Rotten by J.L. Brooks ~ Blog Tour and Review by Sarah

SYNOPSIS

Growing up on the outskirts of Las Vegas as the daughter of notorious strip club owner, Stephen Knox, and a mother who abandoned her at birth, life was less than kind to a young Antoinette.

After a failed teenage suicide attempt, Toni hit the road in search of a life free of undeserved cruelty and any resemblance to her past. 

Years later, Toni is lost in a dead end marriage and makes a painful confession that sends her back to the one place she always wanted to escape. But can she really right the wrongs that haunt her? Toni soon finds that the only place where things stay the same is in your mind.

When her path crosses with David Stark, childhood playmate turned one night stand, she cannot deny the spike in temperature she feels every time he's near or the scorching dreams that flood her at night.

Digging through the years of heartache, Toni soon finds herself torn between the man she is committed to and the one who has always held her heart. As each layer unfolds before her, she discovers the root cause of her pain. Always believing the source was external, nothing could prepare her for the truth.

*This book contains sexual content and adult language. Intended for readers 17+.

SARAH'S 4-STAR REVIEW

Toni is stuck in a marriage she isn't sure that she wants to be in.  Through no fault of her own there has been no intimacy in the relationship for YEARS.  When her father becomes critically ill she rushes back to her hometown, the one she vowed never to return to, in order to care for him.  While she is there she reunites with her childhood best friend, who also happens to be her first, David Stark.  Things were left poorly between them and she wants nothing more than to keep right on hating him.

The thing is, the more time that she spends with him and the more she learns about his life, the more she realizes she can't, and never really did, hate him.  When the sparks begin to fly, and secrets about David and her father are revealed, Toni begins to question everything about what her life at home is like.  A few fateful occurrences pull every decision that she has made into a new light and she is left with a startling clarity of what her life has become and what she'd like for it to be.

I really really liked this book!!  It was quite a ride and something that I didn't really expect, considering the shear number of books that I read, that is really saying something!  

Toni was really strong and independent.  Not one of those cowering, insecure heroines that I am used to getting.  (Which I also love, BTW, it's just nice to change things up every now and then!)  She was also a very strong Catholic, I greatly appreciated that religion was brought into the novel, as my own faith is very important to me and is usually completely missing in these types of books.  It was nice to see a normal person, with problems being Christian, as too many times the Christian characters in books are portrayed as holier than thou types that we are supposed to hate.

Could David be more swoon-worthy?  I don't think so...  Let me think...  Nope!!  He was so hot and caring and hot and wonderful.  Did I mention that he was HOT!?  He was so good with Toni, when she let him be, and the way that he was completely selfless in making sure that Toni and her father were taken care of.  I loved him!!  He was a sexy bit of Alpha male with heart.  **SIGH**  If only he were real...

The story itself was great.  I loved how it kept moving forward, and didn't follow a normal predictable line that we've all read before.  It wasn't nearly as dark as JL Brooks first novel, Distractions, but it definitely wasn't all sunshine and roses either.  There was one really juicy twist that I didn't see coming. AT. ALL.  I loved it!  I was shocked by it.  Rotten was very well told and thought out.  Ms. Brooks has won me over with her sophomore novel and I will definitely be looking for more books from her!

I would recommend Rotten to just about any one.  It's too dark for those people who can't stomach that kind of book.  Definitely not a comedy, though there are a few laughs throughout.  It is really a well balanced novel that I think would fit on just about any bookshelf!

PURCHASE LINKS

AMAZON US: http://amzn.to/17vOs8W

AMAZON UK: http://amzn.to/H3fZsf

BARNES & NOBLE: http://bit.ly/1hZ33i4

EXCERPT

David’s lips were soft and voluptuous; I dared to say they were beautiful. There was no part of him that was not absolute perfection, including his cock. He had not even touched me there, yet, taking his time working me into a frenzy. He knew how long I had waited, denied the most important of caresses. Forcing my hips up, he pulled away, knowing I wanted more, lifting up and laughing into my mouth. I both protested and begged through moans and whimpers. Gone was the cocky yet considerate boy who took my innocence; he had been replaced by a man with over a decade of experience and nowhere to be. I wanted to lick his skin, take him in, every part of him, but he wouldn't move. He liked kissing me – for the first time, not out of an angry circumstance, but at his own pace, free to do as he wished.

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BOOK TRAILER


ROTTEN PLAYLIST

My songs know what you did in the dark (Light em’ up) - Fall Out Boy

Miss. Jackson – Panic at the Disco

My side of the bed- Little Big Town

Another Love- Tom Odell

Skinny Love- Bon Iver

Fall Apart- Every Avenue

Whitley- More than life

Sail- Awol Nation

Radio Active- Imagine Dragons

Crazy- Aerosmith

Poison- Alice Cooper

Cherry Pie- Warrant

Community Property-Steel Panther

Knocking on Heaven’s Door- Guns N Roses

AUTHOR BIO

JL Brooks is a former columnist turned novelist. What started as a bet changed her entire course in life. With a passion for adventure, she believes everyone has a story to tell. Chances are she will try to convince you to tell yours. 

Favorite Quote:
"History will be kind to me, for I intend to write it."
-Winston Churchill

STALKER LINKS

www.facebook.com/thewenchlab
www.twitter.com/authorjlbrooks
www.authorjlbrooks.blogspot.com
authorjlbrooks@gmail.com