All In (The Blackstone Affair #2) by Raine Miller

Jenny: So GG to say we were excited to get the ARC of All In last Sunday is a bit of an understatement wouldn’t you say?

Gitte: Absolutely Jenny, how excited were we to get Ethan back in our eager little hands!! It was so hard to keep quiet on this one!

Jenny: It sure was! We’ve been dying to tell people all about this book haven’t we? But Raine had asked everyone (reviewers etc) to keep it quiet until release day. Of course we respected her wishes, even though it killed us not to discuss with our fellow readers. The last thing we would want is to spoil a readers enjoyment of a book.

Gitte: No doubt about it, at the end of the day it is about the book, its characters and the Author who give us a piece of their heart in the writing of their story!

Jenny: Exactly. So let’s talk about All In. This is the very much anticipated second book in The Blackstone Affair series, it picks up where Naked (The Blackstone Affair #1) left off . This time the story is told through Ethan’s voice. I have been really looking forward to this book – I was dying to hear from Ethan. I really did like hearing Ethan’s voice in this book, but I do think I prefer Brynne’s voice. There is something about her character that grabs me. Having said that, ideally I would love to read something from alternating POV’s from these two.

Gitte: I was too Jenny…could not wait to get inside this gorgeous alpha male’s head. To hear Ethan’s voice; to be given an insight and to understand him; who he is/where he has been how he got to where we met him in Naked. Absolutely love Ethan, I have to say.

Jenny: Oh what’s not to love about Ethan…**sigh**….This book has a lot of emotion because we get to experience their back stories unfolding – both Brynne and Ethan have painful pasts and we get to explore these in All In. Both of these characters are so tortured by their pasts but Gitte, it was Brynne’s story that broke my heart. To hear her “tell it” with so much emotion had me spellbound and close to tears. Brynne’s voice is so moving and so powerful.

Gitte: I was shocked Jenny. I wasn’t expecting Brynne’s story to be so heartbreaking and awful. No wonder this girl has these emotional barriers around her. Raine really packed a punch telling Brynne’s story!

Jenny: She sure did! Ethan is still our gorgeous, super sexy, alpha, possessive hero who is coming to terms with the intense feelings he has for Brynne, and boy are they intense! His priority is keeping her safe, but at the same time he has to run a busy, successful business, provide support to Brynne and also encourage her to deal with her past demons. Not to mention that Ethan has his own demons to confront. He certainly has a lot on his mind.

Gitte: Yeah Ethan’s back story, though not as detailed as I would have liked, sure was emotional. No wonder this guy protects and loves as fiercely as he does. His (*hot*) strong alpha male shoulders carry so many burdens; but he deals…possessively so.

Jenny: Brynne. What can I say about Brynne? She gave this book heart. I absolutely adore our heroine. She is up there as one of my favourites that’s for sure. She has intelligence, strength, vulnerability, and humour, with sensuality that leaps off the pages. She sure gives Ethan a run for his money, but she also provides an inner strength for him as well as compassion, yet she herself can be so fragile. Brynne for me was the standout in this book. She provided so much substance to the story and I found it became HER story even though it was told through Ethan’s voice.

Gitte: Yes I agree completely Jenny; it almost became more about Brynne than Ethan. Brynne’s story told through Ethan’s POV….unusual and at times I am not sure whether this did not make Ethan lose some of his alpha-maleness if that makes any sense? But absolutely, no doubt, love Brynne!

Jenny: Totally makes sense, I noticed that about Ethan as well. I really did like All In. It was a good read. The chemistry between Ethan and Brynne was explosive and the sex scenes were HOT! It was a very emotional at times, especially as I said before, when we experience their back stories. It is a longer book than Naked, and I did find some things a bit repetitive at times. One thing I will say and that is I am absolutely HANGING out for book 3 and can’t wait to see where Raine takes us next time. What about you Gitte? How did you find it?

Gitte: I really did enjoy the actual story; it was sexy, passionate and thrilling. It did however lose me a little bit in the middle, I think if it had been a short power packed punch like Naked was, I would have enjoyed it more. However, Raine was unfairly criticised for this by some readers so it’s one of those no win situations unfortunately. The last 20% or so was FAB and dragged me right back into the thick of things so I have to say I cannot wait for book 3!! Bring it on Raine!

Please note: We were requested to beta read “All In” for British vernacular and continuity. Our review is based on the assumption that our changes and suggestions were adopted upon release.