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Opposites in every way . . . except the one that matters
Shaw Landon loved Rule Archer from the moment she laid eyes on him. Rule is everything a straight-A pre-med student like Shaw shouldn’t want—and the only person she’s never tried to please. She isn’t afraid of his scary piercings and tattoos or his wild attitude. Though she knows that Rule is wrong for her, her heart just won’t listen.
To a rebel like Rule Archer, Shaw Landon is a stuck-up, perfect princess-and his dead twin brother’s girl. She lives by other people’s rules; he makes his own. He doesn’t have time for a good girl like Shaw-even if she’s the only one who can see the person he truly is.
But a short skirt, too many birthday cocktails, and spilled secrets lead to a night neither can forget. Now, Shaw and Rule have to figure out how a girl like her and a guy like him are supposed to be together without destroying their love . . . or each other.
SERIES: Marked Men, BOOK 1
LENGTH: 10 hours, 18 minutes
PUBLISHER:
FIRST PUBLISHED: 2012, AUDIO PUBLISHED: 10/22/2o13
NARRATORs: Sophie Eastlake, Michael Rahhal
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Heat Level: Steamy
*Note: Current rating has been updated since my multiple rereads of this book.
Rule was another surprising read in 2017 when I was on a New Adult kick. I had read Jay Crownover before when I read her Welcome to the Point series.
Rule is a little bit different than her Welcome to the Point series because it is a New Adult romance – but it was still dark and emotional.
Rule is a typical hate-to-love-girl-in-love-with-best-friend’s-brother trope but I liked the new spin Jay Crownover injected into it.
In Love with Best Friend’s Brother
This is one of my favorite tropes and I always enjoy a good best friend’s brother romance. Shaw Landon has been in-love with Rule Archer since she met him in her teens but their family (and even Rule) thought that she was dating his twin brother Remy! Unfortunately, the story opens three years after Remy passed away from a tragic accident and Shaw is trying to keep the Archer family together.
Shaw is an interesting character. She is a daughter of extremely wealthy divorced parents and has been trying her best to fit in the mold her parents have for her. She is a straight A med student and the rebellious Archers, especially Rule is not one her family approves of. Because the Archers treated her like family, she is desperate to keep the family together.
Rule is the typical bad-boy hero. He blames himself for his brother’s death and to top it off, he also doesn’t fit in with his family. What’s more, he is a tattoo artist and definitely not boyfriend material for Shaw!
Enter one fateful birthday!
Shaw’s birthday changes everything and Rule finally see her as a woman who he is attracted to! This part made me appreciate that we had Rule’s POV because the thoughts going through his head were priceless!
Emotional & Touching
I love Rule’s character growth. Initially, he did act like a douche canoe to everyone – his parents and even Shaw. Not that I blame him, though. He had his reasons and I understood them – but still!
When Rule and his family finally patched things up as best as they can, it was well earned.
Family is Everything
Another thing I liked about this book is family. This book does not shy away from real problems – guilt after someone in the family dies unexpectedly. I also liked how Rule’s parents were portrayed and how the resolution of their problems wasn’t perfect.
I also liked how Shaw stood up for herself against her parents who wanted her to be just like them.
My only complaint would be that I wanted more emotion. I don’t think I was brought to tears by this book AND I WANTED TO CRY.
I will be reading the other books in this series!
Narration
Rule is narrated by Sophie Eastlake and Michael Rahhal and both of them were perfect! Sophie and Michael’s voices complement each other and they also didn’t use annoying voices.
Jet
book 2
Rome
book 3
Nash
book 4
Rowdy
book 5
Asa
book 6
RELATED SERIES: Saints of Denver, Forever Marked
RELATED REVIEWS: Prodigal Son
![✦ ɴᴇᴡ ʀᴇᴠɪᴇᴡ ✦
I FINALLY read The Other Half of the Grave and I am kicking myself for waiting this long to read Bones’ POV! Halfway to the Grave was all in Cat’s POV and I was just so curious on what Bones’ was thinking – because let’s face it, Cat was very immature in Halfway and I couldn’t imagine a master vampire like Bones would put up with her.
The Other Half of the Grave did not disappoint. I love reading the book from Bones’ POV because now we know his thoughts and how he was reacting to Cat’s antics – as frustrating as Cat is! There are also new scenes here because this is Bones’ POV. It gave me another insight into what Bones was thinking.
If you are a fan of the Night Huntress series, then I highly recommend that you read Bones’ POV! If you can read this book alternatively with the OG books in the series, it would even be more immersing.
[Full review on blog. Link in bio]
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Heat Level: 🔥🔥🔥💥
Cover Love: ❤❤❤❤
Audiobook: 🎧🎧🎧🎧🎧
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I read this years ago and loved it. I think it was when I was in the middle of my NA craze. I also bought the audiobook to listen to again and I agree that they both did an amazing job as narrators.
Funny you say that because I am currently in a YA craze… LOL also I love guys with tats.. ☺️
I read this one over 3 years ago, but I remember loving the the family and friendships in this book and all the others. I also liked the growth Rule experienced. Crownover always gives us a good hero.
Sam@WLABB recently posted…Giveaway: The First to Know by Abigail Johnson
YES! OMG! She does write amazing bad boy heroes! I WANT to read Rome’s story sooo bad!
Ahh I absolutely loved Rule, I need to re-read it soon!
Kei @ The Lovely Pages Reviews recently posted…Top Ten New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2017
It’s a good book to reread, too! I’m one of those people who love to reread favorite books ?
I loved Rule, although the cover is not my favorite. Love his brother Rome, and I love Nash and Rowdy too! Love this series! Great review.
Lisa Mandina (Lisa Loves Literature) recently posted…Release Tour Review with Giveaway: Crazy Sexy Notion by Sarah Darlington
Thanks, Lisa! I have a feeling Rome’s story would be awesome! He was one of my memorable secondary characters in Rule! ?