FUELED (The Driven Trilogy #2) by K BROMBERG

Fueled with desire. Crashing into love.

Jenny:  Well, we were left hanging at the end of Driven Book #1 in the Driven Trilogy and to be honest we were a little nervous about what to expect in this second installment weren’t we G?  Our concerns were that, being a trilogy, this book could possibly fall in the dreaded “filler” trap, as is the case with some trilogies.

How wrong we were! Fueled is anything but a filler! Fueled is an essential component of this story and it almost felt as if Driven was a stepping stone leading us to Fueled.  Oh the heat factor is still off the charts and the chemistry between Rylee and Colton is in stratospheric proportions, but this book had so much more, it had substance, secrets were uncovered, it was extremely intense at times, very emotional and an absolute must read! I have to say bravo to K Bromberg because she really took this one to a new level in the trilogy stakes that’s for sure! Fans and new readers alike devour this one,  don’t you think so Gitte?

Gitte: Hell yes Jenny, Fueled was without doubt one of the best sequels in a trilogy I’ve ever read. There’s no filler about it and the writing was brilliant. And yes, Driven was the appetizer to the main course of Fueled. With a tantalizing and much needed dessert to follow still in Crashed.

I was blown away to tears by the prologue and I just knew we had a great read ahead of us. Fueled had just about everything that keeps you addicted and excitedly reading. It had the passion between Rylee and Colton as well as some real emotional tear jerking moments.

“Why get attached to someone that will only leave in the end? To someone who will run the other way when they really know about the truths inside me. The poison that clings to my soul….” – Colton

The reveals were truly epic and the cliff hanger. Well…..

Oh and sigh….Colton…..

“Colton kisses like a man drawing his last breath and I am his air. It’s passionate and possessive and provocative.”

Jenny:  I was sobbing in the prologue.  It really hit a nerve with me. It was extremely intense and a deeply moving introduction and set the scene for what was to be the unraveling of Colton Donavan. The man, the myth and just exactly what this 747 load of baggage he carried around consisted of and I have to say, the way the author handled this story was beautifully done. I can’t fault it.

“And it is in this moment, being witness to his agony, I realize there are so many different ways a person can ache. So many definitions I never realized behind a simple word. “

We got emotion in bucket loads and I fell in love with Colton even more if that’s at all possible, and I felt that Rylee really grew in Fueled, she became stronger and I can only see her coming into her own more and more as the trilogy concludes in Crashed.

“There’s so much that I need to explain to you. So much I need to say…so much I should have already said to you.”

Oh don’t get me wrong. There were times the miscommunication between these two drove me crazy and their unwillingness to bend frustrated me but both these characters have so many issues to deal with and learning to trust, love and depend on another is something they must commit to together and watching it unfold through the pages is gripping!

“This is what I do for a living and I missed all of the signs. Love and hurt overriding my training.”

And did I mention Colton…..swoon…I love him! This troubled, broody, sensual man has stolen my heart.

“The image of Colton – so magnificent in body yet conflicted in mind and isolated in emotion…”

Gitte: I fell even more in love with Colton if that was possible too. My heart aches for him, his childhood, the open wounds he still carries and I sympathise with him and understand his behaviour even more now.

“You at least deserve someone that’s going to try to be what you need…give you what you want…and I don’t think I’m capable of that.” – Colton

Really, for me this was Colton’s book, we got his story and how his past affects his here and now as well as his relationship with the gorgeous Rylee.

We really did get underneath that hard and controlling exterior which hides a damaged soul and a vulnerability that melts your heart.

“She pushes me. Unmans me. Consumes me. Scares the ever – loving shit out of me.” – Colton

As for Rylee, she really did do a lot of growing up. She needed to transfer her compassion and understanding from her profession into her personal life in order to understand and heal Colton. Not only that, she needed to realise a few important things about herself and her own past too. Overcome her insecurities and the tragedy which mars her life.

“I came back. For you. For me. For who we are when we’re together. For the possibilities of what we can be if you’ll just let me in…” – Rylee

Jenny:  Fueled really did exceed my expectations. I expected this to be a bit of a romp-fest to be honest but what we got was something so far removed from that scenario. We had questions answered, we witnessed Rylee and Colton grow and understand each other more.  Getting into Colton’s head was a revelation. His internal thought processes humoured me and broke me.

This man has been through so much and you know that Rylee is just the woman to expel his demons and show him love beyond anything he imagined, if he will just let down those walls.

“Just listen to me Ry…If you really love him, then keep knocking on that fucking steel gate he has around his heart. If he’s worth it to you, you’ll keep at it.”
“The damn thing’s got to give sometime and you’re the only one I think is capable of doing it.”

I know a lot of readers are mentioning the CH word but I don’t consider the ending to be a cliff-hanger.  OMG Yes! It killed me and I let out an audible “bloody hell” at the end but to me if felt like a perfect, heart racing ending and set the scene for Crashed.  It had my adrenaline pumping, I was on the edge of my seat, I was cursing the author but…….isn’t that how I’m supposed to feel. This is a trilogy after all and I need to want that third book as much as I do my next breath, and I do. I’d say the author achieved that and more. The ending left me gasping and needing more! Roll on Crashed!!!

Gitte: Fueled gave us a bit of everything we love. Passion, humour, angst and drama. It was so well written and whilst I got annoyed a few times at the misunderstandings and the behaviour it took nothing away from how brilliant a second instalment this is. I already miss Colton like crazy…I am irrevocably in love with this man!!! The cliff – hanger well….just see it as a momentary ‘pit stop’……

“I’ve never let someone this far in because that means secrets are shared and pasts are discovered. And because it means you need. I’ve only ever needed myself – needing others only results in pain. In abandonment. In unspeakable horror. And yet, I need Rylee right now.” – Colton