Sandy M’s review of Down to You (Bad Boys, Book 1) by M. Leighton
Contemporary Romance published by Berkley 12 Mar 13
For those of you who want a story with a twist, something a bit different than the normal read, Down to You fits the bill. It may seem like the typical menage, featuring twin heroes, but well past the half-way mark is when that twist hits. You may figure it out before you get here, or you may not. It’s still a wide-eyed “Oh!” moment.
Olivia gets caught up with Cash Davenport when she mistakes him for a stripper at a friend’s party. She knows immediately she shouldn’t get involved with him because he’s a bad boy and she’s been there, done that. But the build of the man, along with his sexuality magnetically draws her to him. Then when she find him at the house she shares with her cousin, Olivia is fit to be tied the man would come on to her while in the middle of a relationship with another woman. His explanation is he’s Cash’s twin brother, Nash. Okay, then.
Thus begins a huge dilemma for Olivia. She’s attracted to both men. Cash is what she wants. Nash is what she needs. Bad boy versus responsible man. But I think Olivia has blinders on when it comes to these two men. Nash is an attorney, working his way up in the firm. Olivia’s uncle is a partner, thus Nash’s relationship with her cousin. He begins flirting with Olivia, kissing her, wanting to be with her. Cash, on the other hand, is a successful businessman, his club doing quite well. He’s kind and respectful toward Olivia. Each man is the exact opposite of the way she sees them.
It’s Cash, however, who she leans toward. But then one night one of the twins slips into her room, makes love to her, and she’s not sure which one it is. Okay, they’re twins. She hasn’t known either one of them all that long. But not to know which one crawls into her bed? I’m not sure I can go with that. This unknown goes on for quite a bit, giving her more fodder for not being able to make up her mind which man she should choose. Then things happen that don’t make sense, and when she questions them, she gets the shock of her life. Listening to the life the twins had, one they lost because of their father’s actions, is heartfelt. The resultant scheme to keep father and son safe is complex, but it’s worked for years. Now that love is part of the game, it might be a good time to face the music, though.
The love scenes are hot and intense. The book is written in first person and vacillates POVs chapter by chapter. I do like the first-person aspect, but at first I wasn’t sure I’d like the POV jumping, but it actually works. Olivia is very hard to warm up to. She pushes buttons and then gets her mad on when someone pushes back. Her indecision between the twins goes on a tad too long. But once all is decided, things begin to move. I wasn’t expecting the way the book ends, but I’m actually looking forward to reading more about these characters, with the hope that Olivia grows up a little bit. Of course, it goes without saying that hot twins are always welcome in any romance novel.
One nitpick is the overuse of exclamation points, especially when attributed to Cash or any other male. Unless in a super-heated moment, I just don’t think men speak with that much enthusiastic emphasis about nearly everything like women do. But with this being my first Leighton book, that’s not enough to keep me from picking up another. There’s plenty to keep me distracted so those overtired punctuation marks aren’t so noticeable.
Grade: B-
Summary:
Olivia Townsend is nothing special. She’s just a girl working her way through college so she can return home to help her father run his business. She’s determined not to be the second woman in his life to abandon him, even if it means putting her own life on hold. To Olivia, it’s clear what she must do. Plain and simple. Black and white.But clear becomes complicated when she meets Cash and Nash Davenport. They’re brothers. Twins.Cash is everything she’s always wanted in a guy. He’s a dangerous, sexy bad boy who wants her in his bed at any cost. He turns her insides to mush and, with just one kiss, makes her forget why he’s no good for her.Nash is everything she’s ever needed in a guy. He’s successful, responsible and intensely passionate. But he’s taken. Very taken, by none other than Marissa, Liv’s rich, beautiful cousin. That doesn’t stop Olivia from melting every time he looks at her, though. With just one touch, he makes her forget why they can never be together.Black and white turns to shades of gray when Olivia discovers the boys are hiding something, something that should make her run as far and as fast as she can. But it’s too late to run. Olivia’s already involved. And in love. With both of them.Both brothers make her heart tremble. Both brothers set her body on fire.She wants them both.And they want her.How will she ever choose between them?
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
