Disorderly Conduct
Author: Tessa Bailey
Reviewer: VampBard
Rating: A
What I’m Talking About:
I love reading book series. It’s honestly one of my favorite things. I get to meet some characters, get to know them, have some sh*t happen, and then it gets fixed (or the author is mean and leaves us hanging…) and they live happily for now. Until the next book in the series comes out and there’s another crisis. OR…we meet ‘supporting cast’ members in the first title who become the leads in a subsequent book. The Academy series by Tessa Bailey is the latter. Slated for three titles, the first two titles are about police academy recruits/students…whatever you call them. The third? I’ve heard is about a grumpy part-time instructor.
But, we’re here to talk about Disorderly Conduct today. And, oh…my. This title is a five-alarm-fire-in-your-panties hot. I mean, when things start as super casual-slash-friends-with-benefits, it’s gonna be hot—especially since Tessa Bailey is the author. I loved the pacing and the entire premise of the title—I mean, who wouldn’t? Casual nookie that turns into something more? *fans self* Yeah. That’s the best.
One thing I wasn’t too keen on, but got over, was the way Charlie handled the entire situation. The deception and lies—nothing dangerous, just a breach of trust he has to redeem himself for later. I know a book needs conflict, and if we just had Charlie and Ever shift their relationship from F*ckBuddies to Friends and eventually transition to a couple, there’s nothing that would tear them apart and put them back together—the thing that holds the reader’s interest (besides phenomenal characterization and writing). So, I understand why it was done…and it was done well. It worked as an excellent plot point.
Ever is a great, independent character that doesn’t NEED a man to be complete. I mean, throughout the title she talks about a bunch of things that makes her seem like she needs to be in a relationship, but it’s really only her falling for (or realizing she’s fallen for) Charlie. This isn’t an in-your-face OHMYGODILOVEHIM romance. There’s a slow burn that made me want to yell at the characters (may have done this…) and/or skip to the end to make sure they made it through okay (I trust Tessa to give me at least a HFN, so I didn’t). And, here’s the thing about Ever. She starts out with ‘rules’ about her relationships. As in, there IS no relationship. There’s an expiration date on them. Watching her growth as she realized Charlie was The One was brilliantly illustrated through her body language and her thoughts.
Charlie is a lot like Ever. He has relationship rules, too—which, you’d think would make them the perfect couple, right? Well, yeah. It did. In the beginning. The thing I loved the most about Charlie was how observant he was. It wasn’t just because he was training to be a cop—he actually *saw* who Ever was, IMHO. Um. And his grand gesture at the end to make up for being a douchecanoe? Solid. Gold.
If you can read through Disorderly Conduct without falling for Charlie and having a girl crush on Ever, I’d be amazed. Looking forward to Jack’s story next—January 2018!
My Rating: A, Loved It
About the Book:
You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone…
Police academy cadet Charlie Burns can’t believe his luck when the gorgeous blonde he meets in a bar murmurs those magic words: “Nothing serious, ’kay?” Mind-blowing, no-strings sex with Ever Carmichael—it’s the holy grail of hookups for a guy who’s too busy following in his law enforcement family’s footsteps to think about getting serious. Charlie’s all about casual…that is, until Ever calls it quits and his world tilts on its axis.
Ever knows that when you control the relationship game, you can’t get played. But for the first time, she wants more than short-term satisfaction. Step one: end her fling with commitment-phobic Charlie. Step two: sacrifice herself to the ruthless NYC dating scene. Yet everywhere she turns, there’s Charlie, being his ridiculously charming self. No online match or blind date compares to the criminally hot cop-in-training, but they’re over. Aren’t they?
If love is a four-letter-word, why does the idea of Ever seeing someone else tie Charlie up in knots? Now he’s desperate to win her back…and a little date sabotage never hurt anyone, right?
Release Date: August 28, 2017
Publisher: Avon
Series: The Academy #1
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Format(s): paperback (384 pages), e-book, audiobook
Book Source: Publisher/Edelweiss
Purchase Info:
Amazon