Double #REVIEW of FireNine Series @shanorawilliams

Who He Is (FireNine #1) by Shanora Williams has a place on my New Adult favorites bookshelf.

Eliza Smith has never been the one to seek a relationship. She’s never dated a guy in her life, never even

hugged a man (outside of her father/manager of the hot and popular rock band, FireNine) but when she decides to spend her summer on tour with FireNine, it all changes. Eliza really gets to meet Gage Grendel - her former crush from high school and the lead singer of FireNine - and witness sides to him to which she’ll begin to truly despise.

She’ll ignore him, she’ll dislike his ways, she’ll do anything to try and stay away from him until Gage finally gets her to slip up and give in. She agrees on a casual fling with Gage, but soon they’ll both see how the fling will blur into something they can’t control and when it’s finally time for Eliza to go and accomplish her own dreams, she’ll know there’s more she took from Gage than she ever thought possible.

REVIEW
Who He Is has a place on my New Adult favorites bookshelf. It had that crazy emotional component that makes young adult characters realistic. Both main characters have their own back stories that create an interesting mix as they come together. Gage is a freakin' hot rock star who can have any woman he wants. Eliza is a quiet artist with not nearly as much experience as Gage. They couldn't be more different except that they both share less than perfect childhoods. Despite it all, they seem perfect for one another. Eliza and Gage move slowly from friends to lovers. There are so many ups and downs - I couldn't put it down because I had to know what would happen. In the course of their summer, Eliza and Gage grow and change as they fall in love. The character development is spot-on. The tension underlies everything, keeping it interesting, because looming over them is the fact that Eliza is returning to school in the fall. The ending left me gasping and desperate for the next book. S.Q. Williams created a story that will capture readers of the New Adult Romance genre.

RATING
5 Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries

Who We Are (FireNine #2) by Shanora Williams is the sequel to a fabulous book. If you read the first, you have to read this one too.

Eight months.

That’s how long it’s been since Eliza last saw Gage and they both feel as if they don’t deserve one another’s forgiveness. He screwed up. She walked away without looking back. They’ll try and make up all the time they’ve lost with one another, that is until they’re facing the choices of either going their separate ways, or hanging on and fighting for dear life.

The fights will be endless. They heartache will be real. The demons will return, and they won’t back down without a fight.

There are some who will do anything to keep true love apart, and those same people will dig deep into their demonic ways until Eliza and Gage are literally no more.

Can Eliza and Gage overcome it all? Will they be able to face the true demons that are seeking to destroy them? Or will they just forget about everything they’ve worked so hard for and go their separate ways?

Sometimes you have to go through struggles in order to reach an ultimate point of peace… but will their struggle be worth it?

REVIEW
The second book in the FireNine series just didn't measure up to the first book. I was totally bummed out because I wanted it to be great. It was good though - maybe my expectations were just too high. That said, the conclusion was satisfying and all my questions about the couple were answered. If you've read the first book, you have to read this one.

The characters changed during their time away from each other. Eliza matures and those who complained about her immaturity will no longer find that a problem. But Gage, the hot confident bad ass rocker, is now weak. I know he goes through a lot but he doesn't take charge of his life in this book. He goes along with being used for way too long to be believable. Where's his fight? I think the author was trying to portray how difficult his life had become but it came off as martyrdom to me.

But here's the real problem... the story skipped too much. Plotted out, this could've easily been two books with more depth to mirror the first book. Scenes were glazed over, the timeline had gaps and details to help readers connect were missing. I craved a deeper story after a full book on just a summer, this book far too quickly covered over two years.

RATING
3 Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries