Thursday 18 April 2013

ARC Review: True by Erin McCarthy


TrueTRUE by Erin McCarthy

Pages: 238
Genre: New Adult
Publisher: Penguin Group (Intermix)
Amazon pre-order: True
Release date: 7th May 2013

Synopsis. (Goodreads)

When Rory Macintosh’s roommates find out that their studious and shy friend has never been with a guy, they decide that, as an act of kindness they’ll help her lose her virginity by hiring confident, tattooed bad boy Tyler Mann to do the job…unbeknownst to Rory.

Tyler knows he’s not good enough for Rory. She’s smart, doctor smart, while he’s barely scraping by at his EMT program, hoping to pull his younger brothers out of the hell their druggy mother has left them in. But he can’t resist taking up her roommates on an opportunity to get to know her better. There’s something about her honesty that keeps him coming back when he knows he shouldn’t…

Torn between common sense and desire, the two find themselves caught up in a passionate relationship. But when Tyler’s broken family threatens to destroy his future, and hers, Rory will need to decide whether to cut her ties to his risky world or follow her heart, no matter what the cost…

Review: 2 ½ out of 5 stars

I am a big fan of Erin McCarthy’s adult series, ‘Fast Track’ so I was more than eager to read True, her entry title into the New Adult genre.

True follows the story of 20 year-old Rory Macintosh who is extremely intelligent with hopes of going to med school to be a coroner, she is honest and logical and comes across as a down to earth, good girl but she is also seeking experiences that everyone else was already talking about such as smex.

When Rory’s dorm mates Kylie and Jessica find out she has never been with a guy, they with good intentions set out to hook her up with bad boy, smexy, tattooed Tyler Mann.

I was really put-off by this arrangement, purely for the fact that Tyler happened to be Jessica’s bed buddy – this just didn’t sit well with me at all, maybe I’m an old prude but potentially sharing a bed partner with someone my closest friend has recently been with just gives me the eeks.

Despite this aspect, Tyler wasn’t as bad as what we are led to believe, he was actually quite smart and noble with hopes of becoming an EMT to support his brothers; I liked his dedication and admired the fact he was working hard to achieve something not only for himself but also for his family since his drug addicted mother wasn’t doing it. His home life was really tough.

I didn’t mind the characters but I was dismayed by the reactions to a few incidents – Rory was blasé and seemed to just walk away from certain issues instead of confronting them – a good example was when she found out her friends had offered Tyler money to sleep with her, she went along with it rather than admit she knew what they had done, it made her seem weak whereas I would have been up in arms my closest friends would chose to do this, its insulting.

Another gripe I had was the dialogue – it seemed stilted and forced and didn’t flow well; I at times found myself cringing and would be embarrassed for these characters. It just came across as OTT.

I really wanted to love this book but unfortunately there was nothing unique and a few issues seemed to be created just to add additional angst and drama, it was too convenient. In saying this, there were a few aspects I did enjoy – Rory & Tyler’s aspirations, Rory’s father’s true to life reactions and the way the characters each supported one another.

At the end of this book we do get to read a snippet from the next book in the series which will be Jessica and Riley, Tyler’s brothers story – it has left me intrigued so I will be adding this to my TBR pile; I am still holding hope.

A copy of True was kindly provided to me by Netaglley/Penguin Group in exchange for my honest review.


Author bio: USA Today and New York Times Bestselling author Erin McCarthy sold her first book in 2002 and has since written almost fifty novels and novellas in teen fiction, new adult, and adult romance. Erin has a special weakness for New Orleans, tattoos, high-heeled boots, beaches and martinis. She lives in Ohio with her family, two grumpy cats and a socially awkward dog.

10 comments:

  1. *cries* I have this one to do and I don't think I'm going to like it based on what you've said. Those things will bug me too. I haven't had very good luck with Netgalley reads lately, maybe it's a hint to stop requesting. :/

    Great, honest review - I'm glad you pointed out the iffy spots.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Barbara! The cringe worthy moments were horrible! I was so disappointed because I love this authors adult books.

      I hope you enjoy it more than I did.

      Delete
  2. I just got this one today, and hope that I enjoy it more than you did. It's always a bummer when a book from a loved author disappoints. Great review!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Andrea, I really wanted to enjoy it more than I did but too many aspects let me down which was a shame.

      I can't wait to see what you think :-)

      Delete
  3. I am sorry you didn't enjoy this one. I have it for review to. I hope I like it, but I am kind of worried now. Thanks for the honest review.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Ellen, I hope you like it more than me; the snippet for the 2nd book sounds like it may be more to my liking.

      Delete
  4. Oh no! I have this book for review too and now I don't think I want to read it anymore. I feel like many NA books are not living up to my expectations lately. I hate the sound of the friends. They seem so shallow and definitely not worth the MC's time. Paying a guy to sleep with your friend? Good lord!
    Also, I don't like that the MC is weak. I would be mad if I found out someone paid a guy to sleep with me. >.<
    Lovely honest review, Sharon. I wish there was a way for me not to review this. :/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Nick, some friends hey! It was made even worse by the fact he had been with her roommate, it just didn't sit well with me.

      Delete
  5. Great review, Sharon. I feel the same way about the whole arrangement re bed buddy, it doesn't sit well with me at all. Some people are truly blasé around this and they're welcome to bed swapping, but it's not me and therefore when I put myself in the position of the MC I'd have more of a reaction than it seems Rory did...also, is it me or ever since the Gilmore Girls has there been a ton of Rory's on the scene? I'm currently reading about another Rory (from Aurora, instead of Lorelai).

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thankyou, it didn't sit well with me at all - my reaction wouldn't have been as nice as the MCs that's for sure!

      Rory does seem to be pretty popular at the moment - I recently read The Name of the Star & the MC was also named Rory ;-)

      Delete

Thank-you so much for stopping by today!

I love to receive your comments, please leave your blog link & I'll be sure to stop by.

I also respond to your comment here on my blog :)