Sammy’s review of Four Letter Word (Dirty Deeds, Book 1) by J. Daniels
Contemporary Romance published by Forever 04 Oct 16
I was intrigued by the title of this book. Not only intrigued, but also a new to me author. Add in a fantastic blurb, and I was all in. I’m a lover of crossword puzzles. I know you’re probably asking yourself; what the heck does crossword puzzles have to do with anything? I’ll tell you. When I read the title of the book, I associated it with my favorite thing to do when I need to de-stress. I am happy to report I wasn’t disappointed.
WILD
Sydney Paige is blindsided when her husband tells her he wants out of their marriage. While she’s trying to come to terms with what just happened, her cell phone rings, and it’s her best friend Tori. She immediately takes the call and finds out that Tori’s boyfriend for the last six months is married with a child. This gives Syd the strength she needs to pack up her bags and drive three hours to Tori’s house. Driving there she’s finding her mad, and when she shows up at Tori’s, she’s ready to take it out on Wes, the slimy jerkwad. Sydney asks for Wes’ number because she wants to tear him a new one, and, boy, does she ever.
“You,” I growled, voice vibrating low and sore in my throat. “Stupid, worthless piece of dog shit.”
“Excuse me?” Wes sounded put off. “What the fuck-“
“Who the hell do you think you are, huh? And in what universe is a douche bag tool like you able to bag a wife? Is she also a fucking idiot?” “Hello! Remove the dildo from your mouth and fucking speak!” A light, amused chuckle hissed in my ear.” “Jesus Christ.” he mumbled, “Think you might have the wrong number, Wild. I don’t normally suck on dildos after six o’clock on Tuesdays.”
From there it just gets funnier. After all the yelling and banter, Brian asks Syd to read him off the number she dialed. Oops! Apologies are made and she finally realizes not only did she dial the wrong number, but the man on the other end of the phone sounded sexy and very playful. She makes some more apologies and hangs up mortified. The next day as Syd is interviewing for a job, she gets a text from Brian.
“Wild Girl, any innocent men alive today yet?”
This starts a friendship via text and phone. Their conversations are fun, intense, full of chemistry, sexy, and playful. I love the journey they are on. Especially that Sydney is at her lowest point, and, well, Brian has a few skeletons in his closet.
TROUBLE
“Wild, help me out. Need a four-letter word for something a runner might break.”
“I wasn’t even reading the clues. I was just filling out four letter word blocks with whatever came to mind. Love. Wild. Hate. Risk. Liar. Fuck. Fuck. FUCK.”
Brian Savage, aka Trouble, is rocked by that phone call. He comes alive listening to Syd’s fierce diatribe and her underlying sweetness. He’s also at a low point in his life. He’s wracked by guilt for something that happened that’s not fully revealed until the end. He’s partners with his friend Jamie in a surf shop and on the side he gets paid to have sex on an online porn site. He does this to help pay for someone’s rehabilitation. He’s trying his hardest to keep all his secrets under wraps while falling hard for Sydney. She wants to meet him in person and he tells her it’s not possible. Meanwhile, fate (another four letter word) has other ideas. They are unknowingly crossing paths with one another.
Tori and Sydney are both working at a restaurant waiting tables, and Jamie (Brian’s friend and business partner) loves to eat there, so he can verbally spar with Tori, aka Legs. I think one of the greatest parts of this book are the secondary characters. They are vivid and pop off the page, but they never take over the main story line. A truly well-crafted, well-paced book. Sydney is feeling down between the breakup of her marriage and the intriguing relationship she’s building with Brian, yet not meeting Brian has her down. Jamie invites Tori to his house party and it’s also the place that Brian lives. Tori drags Syd out of the house in her sweats and hoodie and that’s where they finally meet face to face.
This book is so hot it should come with a fan and some smelling salts. They both have the filthiest mouths and the sex is even dirtier. Well written and absolutely titillating. They fall for each other fast, but it’s believable because this author has some serious writing skills. I honestly don’t want to give too much away. I think this is one of those books that you need to experience with little interference of spoilers. There are twists, there is heartbreak, redemption, love, friendship, everything that makes a novel hard to put down, and when you get to the end you don’t want to let go. These characters and this story in particular will stay with me for a long time. I will place this book on my keeper shelf along side some of my other favorites that hold a special place in my heart. I feel like I have to name a few so you can understand how special I think this book is:
Dark Lover, Lover Eternal, Lover Awakened by J.R. Ward, Caressed by Ice, Heart of Obsidian, Kiss of Snow by Nalini Singh, The Gamble by Kristen Ashley, actually the entire Colorado Mountain Series, Out of Control by Suzanne Brockmann or the entire Troubleshooters series, Night Play, Dark Side of the Moon, Dance With the Devil, by Sherrilyn Kenyon, Dark Demon, Dark Carousel by Christine Feehan, Blue-Eyed Devil by Lisa Kleypas, Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake, Never Judge a Lady by Her Cover, by Sarah Maclean. This book is on par with some of the best written. And I can’t wait until the next book comes out.
I want to leave this review with this quote that rocked my world:
“But before I could question any of it, Brian bent lower, dropped his forehead until we were touching, and said words I will never forget no matter how many years I walk on this earth.” “Wanna set your whole fucking world on fire, ’cause that’s what you’ve done to mine.”
Wild and Trouble. You’ve changed my world too. Thank you.
Grade: A
Summary:
Fate. Hate. Love. Lies.
Which four letter word will change their lives forever?
Sydney Paige was never so mortified to hear the words “wrong number” in her life. She meant to tell off the guy who broke her best friend’s heart, but unleashed her anger on a perfect stranger instead. And now her world is turned upside down by the captivating man who wants to keep her on the line.Brian Savage is living a life he’s quickly come to hate-until Sydney’s wild rant has him hooked and hungry for more. Soon the sexy woman on the phone becomes the lover in his bed. But Brian has secrets, and the closer he lets Syd get, the harder it is to shield her from the devastating mistakes of his past . . .
Other books in this series:
