Book Review: Deeper by Robin York +++ Giveaway! (UK Only!)

Product details:
Publisher: Piatkus.
Paperback, 394  pages.
Release date: January 28th 2014.
Rating:  4½ out of 5.
Ages: 17+ || New Adult
Source: Received from publisher for review.

When Caroline Piasecki's ex-boyfriend posts their sex pictures on the Internet, it destroys her reputation as a nice college girl. Suddenly her once-promising future doesn't look so bright. Caroline tries to make the pictures disappear; hoping time will bury her shame. Then a guy she barely knows rises to her defence and punches her ex to the ground.

West Leavitt is the last person Caroline needs in her life. Everyone knows he's shady. Still, Caroline is drawn to his confidence and swagger - even after promising her dad she'll keep her distance. On late, sleepless nights, Caroline starts wandering into the bakery where West works.

They hang out, they talk, they listen. Though Caroline and West tell each other they're 'just friends,' their feelings intensify until it becomes impossible to pretend. The more complicated her relationship with West gets, the harder Caroline has to struggle to discover what she wants for herself - and the easier it becomes to find the courage she needs to fight back against the people who would judge her.

When all seems lost, sometimes the only place to go is deeper

Self-confessed good girl Caroline Piasecki has always played by the rules.  She also plays fair. So when Caroline decides that her relationship with her boyfriend of three years, Nate, just isn’t working anymore, she breaks it to him gently. Caroline hopes she and Nate can still be friends, and Nate seems pretty OK with that. You could say, that as far as break ups go, Caroline and Nate’s is as good as it gets. In fact, their break up is so amicable it’s almost too good to be true. This proves to be the case when weeks later, Caroline finds out that Nate has posted sexually explicit pictures of her online; pictures that she was never entirely comfortable with him taking, pictures that she only let him take because she wanted to try and save her crumbling relationship with him, her first love, by any means possible. Caroline is the victim of revenge porn, and unfortunately, since it’s legal in most States, there’s not a whole lot she can do about it.

West Leavitt on the other hand, knows exactly how he wants to deal with Nate. A bad boy with a chequered past, when West sees Nate, he sees red: and soon after that Nate is flat out on the floor with a bloody nose. But why does West feel the need to defend the honor of a girl he barely even knows? That’s what Caroline can’t figure out. Could West’s feelings run deeper than Caroline could ever imagine?

Deeper by Robin York was such a great reading surprise for me. It’s no secret that the New Adult genre hasn’t exactly been a total hit with me. Sure, I’ve found books I’ve liked pretty well, but I’ve never found a New Adult book that I loved. Now I have. Deeper is Robin York’s New Adult debut, but she is a best selling Adult Romance writer under the name Ruthie Knox, and it shows. Boy, does it show. Because the ensuing romance between West and Caroline in Deeper is all kinds of hot. It’s a slow burn romance – the kind that I like – so these to don’t immediately end up between the sheets, but when they do…*fans self*.  Also, while Deeper is New Adult, I will say that it is more explicit in nature than many New Adult reads, so you might want to keep that in mind if you’re easily shocked! It wasn’t a problem for me, but let’s just say that West has a dirty mind to go along with that dirty mouth of his (I’m talking crude language, people!)

It’s not all fun and games between Caroline and West, though. Oh no. West is a difficult one to figure out; He’s super intelligent, sexy and funny (wait until you read the Thor and My Little Pony comments from him!) but he’s also a guy with some bad habits and a dark past. West doesn’t want to get involved with Caroline or with anyone else for that matter. Determined to escape his past, he’s got a clear goal for his future, and falling for Caroline is not in his plan. For her part, Caroline is pretty OK with being ‘just friends’ with West. The impact that Nate’s actions have on Caroline are tremendous and far-reaching; everything from her reputation to her self-worth, and even her future career in Law are under threat because of the pictures Nate posted online. In terms of character study and growth, Deeper is a fascinating read. When we meet Caroline she feels ashamed of and disgusted with herself. But why? For trusting her boyfriend of three years not to post their private photos all over in the internet. Little by little, Caroline realizes that Nate is entirely to blame, she realizes that she didn’t do anything wrong, and so instead of hiding away, she shows true strength of character by deciding to rise above it all, to go out there and live her life, and maybe even one day, to find a guy to love again. Or maybe she’s found him already. Maybe she’s spending all her nights hanging out with him in the bakery where he works, getting to know him better, thinking about kissing him, and more…

West isn’t having any of it, though. He keeps Caroline at arms length. But he can only do that for so long and when these two finally do get together, well…*fans self again*

The best New Adult book I have read to date, Deeper is a sexy, intense, compelling read that I loved from start to finish. The sequel, Harder, releases in July, and it’s one that I’ll be first in line to buy. I can’t wait to see where Caroline and West’s journey takes them next.

Highly recommended.

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Thanks to Piatkus I have THREE copies of Deeper up for grabs. 

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