⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️4 STARS⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I didn’t know about this one. I didn’t know if I could even read with an open mind. That’s right – I was judging a book before I even started on page one. I know that’s bad and I’m sorry. I was ready to completely disregard this book because the female character was hooking up with her sister’s ex. That is a big no, no for me. Vomit!

I’m the first one to say I was wrong when I am wrong. With that being said – I was wrong! This book was the whole enchilada!

Ruckus by L.J. Shen gave me all kinds of feels. I felt happy, sad, pissed, irritated, elated, horny, and everything in between.

This is going to be messy, fair warning. I’m going to top it off with some pretty stuff too.

Let’s see what the author has to say. . .

Synopsis

Rosie

They say that life is a beautiful lie and death a painful truth. They’re right.
No one has ever made me feel more alive than the guy who serves as a constant reminder that my clock is ticking.
He is my forbidden, shiny apple.
The striking fallacy to my blunt, raw, truth.
He is also my sister’s ex-boyfriend.
One thing you should know before you judge me;
I saw him first. I craved him first. I loved him first.
Eleven years later, he waltzed into my life, demanding a second chance.
Dean Cole wants to be my bronze horseman. My white knight has finally arrived. Hopefully, he isn’t too late.

Dean

They say the brightest stars burn out the fastest. They’re right.
She sets my mind on fire.
All smart mouth, snarky attitude and a huge heart.
In a world where everything is dull, she shines like Sirius.
Eleven years ago, fate tore us apart.
This time, I dare it to try.
Getting to her is a battlefield, but man, that’s why they call me Ruckus.
Rosie LeBlanc is about to find out how hard I can fight.
And conquering her will be the sweetest victory.

Ruckus is a complete standalone and a part of the Sinners of Saint series

***************************************************

Let’s get messy. . .

We have Dean Cole. Dean is apparently this rich, sexy as hell, sex on wheels, playboy who now lives in New York in a multi-million dollar penthouse.

Rosie LeBlanc is the little sister of Dean’s ex-girlfriend, Emilia. She has cystic fibrosis and moved to New York to show how independent she can be despite her terminal illness.

Dean always had a thing for Rosie but accidentally started dating Rosie’s sister and couldn’t find a way out of it.

The first 15-20% of this book made me want to put it down and never look at it again. If it wasn’t for my BRBE homegirls, I would have. I was on WhatsApp like, “This book is pissing me off!” But they told me to keep going. So I did.

Let me tell you why this book was pissing me off. . .

When Dean tried to compare himself to Jacob from the Bible, I almost died. I was like, “What? Did he really reference his relationship with Emilia from Vicious to Jacob and Leah?” I was done, y’all. Done!

In the meantime, he was with Leah.

He didn’t suffer. Not per se. Leah was good to him. A safe bet. She could bear his children – something Rachel, he would later find out – had difficulty doing. – Dean

Dean was Jacob. Emilia was Leah. Rosie was Rachel.

But it got worse. Let me give you an example. . .

When he goes to ask Emilia out at her house he sees Rosie for the first time and BAM! He realizes he picked the wrong sister and can’t get out of it.

I stole a glimpse at the girl who was destined to be the Rachel to my Jacob. – Dean

Really, Dean, really. Get the fuck out of here with that bullshit.

Wait a minute, y’all, it got even worse. Let me give you another example. . .

“It’s not fair to her. You can’t treat her sister like that. Like…like…”

“Like what?” he challenged.

“Like you want me.”

“But I do,” he replied. “Maybe it’s time for some musical chairs. Your sister doesn’t care for me too much, Baby LeBlanc.” – Rosie/Dean

MUSICAL CHAIRS!

Did he just call Rosie and Emilia a childhood classroom game?

Yeah, ok. . .

That shit would not have gone well with me.

What were they supposed to do next? Tag each other in and out when it’s the other’s turn.

Now both of them needed their assess kicked for even having a conversation like this. If my sister’s man came to me talking about he liked me? Y’all better pray for that child because we are about to be on the 5 o’clock news because he would have gotten himself hurt.

Are y’all seeing why I wasn’t feeling this fuckery?

At one point Rosie even points out how Dean would stare at her whenever he kissed Emilia. WHAT? WTF? Is that a thing now? Are females allowing their sister’s man to just stare at them when they are making out? I’m glad I missed the email.

Little Miss Rosie wasn’t innocent. She was just as much at fault as Dean, if not more.

. . .with Dean ‘Ruckus’ Cole, nothing was simple. I wanted to milk every second I had alone with him. I wasn’t even sure why.Ti felt strange, agonizing, and thrilling to have him around, and then the moment he was gone, I knew I’d hate myself for every single word I’d said, every way I’d acted, and every single breath I took. – Rosie at 17

SIDE NOTE: I called my sister at this point and was like, “Girl, you ain’t gonna believe this shit I just read.” She was like, “Why are you even reading that BS?” (My sister doesn’t curse.) We exchanged a few more words about how stupid this book was and then started talking about some other crap. I don’t remember what it was.

During all this back and forth teenage drama they had, it’s revealed that Dean only dated Emilia to protect her from Vicious. Here’s the thing with that – that’s just silly. He could have protected her from Vicious by dating Rosie. Come on folks, think about it for a second. But. . .it was well written and therefore, slightly justified from a teenage standpoint. As an adult you can see that there is no true logic there.

Here’s where the nurse in me came alive. The teenage brain is not fully developed, especially the frontal lobe where one’s executive decisions are made. Trying to remember when I was young and dumb, I can see thinking this was a legitimate reason. At 33, it makes no since whatsoever.

Once I got past the first 20% of the book, I feel in love with Rosie and Dean’s story. It was one of the best and well written love stories I’ve read this year. The chemistry, the intensity, the faith that they had in each other, I could go on for days. Rosie and Dean understood each other, stood by each other, stuck up for one another and fought for each other.

Many of the things I found aggravating about Dean became the same things I adored about him.

“You, in my bed, playing with my balls as I suck your tits until they bleed. Maybe jerk me off. Just as an appetizer, obviously. The main course will be better, but you’ll have to see for yourself.” – Dean

He was the cutest mess! 🙂 🙂 🙂

His sexual innuendos were a bit much and annoying. Then we find out that that behavior was a defense mechanism related to his fear of rejection. He feared loss and abandonment.

. . . all the sexual crap I was dishing at her was a defense mechanism in case she said no. – Dean

Poor baby. 🙁 🙁 🙁

I’m going to be honest with you guys, Dean’s rich, white boy problems were getting on my nerves. His reason or reasons (depending on how you see it) for drinking and smoking so much were not that big of a deal to me. The book tries to portray him as a addict – which I didn’t see how he was an addict, but that’s just me. If you want to see what an addict looks like, let me take you back to my Vegas days. Dean didn’t have shit on me. At the same time, it’s not up to me to say what should or shouldn’t cause someone’s demons, so whatever.

Rosie’s demons were real, raw, and heartbreaking. Cystic fibrosis is a bitch and she lived with that bitch everyday. She was a sweet girl with a big heart. She loved her sister and never meant to hurt her by being with Dean. I can see how it worked for Emilia and Rosie. How I would have handled the situation is irrelevant because it’s not my story, it’s theirs. I respect can that.

Dean was broken in his own way. He played pretend for too long with his friends and family. He let everyone think he was an asshole – it was a part of what captured me.

I could feel the love between Rosie and Dean seeping off the pages and I tip my hat to the author for that. I wanted them to work out, I fucking needed them to work out for my own sanity.

Even when Rosie was trying to push Dean away, his love for her was tangible and he wasn’t letting her go.

“I’m kind of hoping it will end like this. You made me happy. Very happy. But. . .you deserve everything. Wife, kids, a white picket fence.”

“And I’ll have all of it. With you.”

“You know that can’t happen with me.”

“Then it can’t happen with anyone. There won’t be a next Rosie. And there won’t be another story like ours. This is it, Rose LeBlanc. And this is us. If there is no you, then there is no me.” – Rosie/Dean

One thing he wouldn’t stand for was someone questioning his feelings about Rosie. Sometimes you have to put a motherfucker in place and let them know that their shit stinks too.

“Jamie, I didn’t ask you what the fuck your intentions were when you bent Mel over her dest and fucked the shit out of he in the classroom, so you don’t get to ask me the same question. Rosie is a big girl. People need to stop acting like she’s an old pet no one wants. What we have between us is ours. Not yours. Not Vicious’s, and not Emilia’s. Anyone who thinks differently is welcome to settle this with me. And, true to our brotherhood’s fashion, I won’t be nice, polite, or apologetic about it. Am I clear?” – Dean

Well, damn! I guess he told their asses!

Don’t let Dean’s sweet moments fool you. He still fucks up. He fucks up big time. He’s still a HotHole folks.

He fought for his girl and gained so much respect from me during the process. I couldn’t believe how wrapped up I got into this story, their story.

Did I tell you that my book baby daddy, Vicious, pops up and here and there in the book? My bad for forgetting. He almost looked like a real friend for a minute too.

Vicious stood up. “Don’t fuck it up.”

The underlining message was: but I got your back.

I messed my hair with my fist. “You didn’t fuck it up with Millie.” Thanks, bro.

“I almost did.” Don’t make my mistakes.

“I know better than you.” I wouldn’t dare.

“That’s what I’m counting on.” Then what are you waiting for? Go get her.

– Vicious/Dean

If you are reading this review thinking I gave away the whole damn book then stop because I didn’t. There is shit ton more that goes on in Ruckus, so don’t worry.

Just read the damn book! It’s really good! In my opinion, at least!

Can Dean be my book boyfriend? No. Why not? No huge reason, he’s just not my type. . .but he could get it. He had a fascination with eating pussy. He could eat mine as much as he would like. I eat loads of pineapples and strawberries so my shit tastes good.

So, here’s the big question. . .Would I recommend this book? Fuck, ya! It was really good. L.J. Shen put her everything in this book. Ruckus is almost 500 pages – her largest book to date. If I had to guess why, it would be because she listened to her fans who were nervous about the whole, sister and sister switch up thing. She wanted her readers to see that the love between Dean and Rosie was worth it. I give her mad respect for that.

I know I got really messy at the beginning of this one, but it ended really pretty!

TTYL, lovers!

Stalk all things messy…

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