CRAVING REDEMPTION (The Aces MC #2) by NICOLE JACQUELYN

Reviewed by Jenny & Gitte

4 Brilliant – we love Asa – Stars

Jenny:  Well, Craving Constellations knocked our socks off didn’t it G and so we were hanging out for Grease’s story in Craving Redemption, finally getting to it this week. Okay, I have to get this out there before I can begin to move on…..Grease/Asa….dear lordy mcmordy I am in love with that guy. His endearment and his love for Callie had me seriously swooning and his alpha protective ways had my heart racing. Oh…and he had a way with words hehe

“Tell me how much you love me.” – Callie
“More than my bike, less than my dick.” – Asa

Gitte: Seriously Jenny, I am in LOVE with Asa a.k.a Grease. Absolutely loved him, all the way through, right till the end and beyond. This guy was biker perfection! He was a hard arse who had passion, love in abundance, his protective instinct was spot on and he was funny, articulate and HOT. You couldn’t ask for more!!! I too loved EVERY minute reading Craving Redemption, I was hooked all the way through and cared for every single character and the story line blew me away, it was that addictive. It was LUSH and a pure reader indulgence!

“You’re so fuckin’ beautiful it almost hurts to look at you…” Asa

Jenny:  Nicole Jacquelyn certainly writes an amazing MC book that’s for sure. She has her own style and manages to bring the perfect blend of the alpha yet sensitive male to stories. Asa/Grease was such a deep and beautiful character. He was strong, alpha, protective and possessive yet he conversed without the need for one syllable grunts, and as much as he spoke his mind and could be a bit of a dick on occasion, his love for Callie was without question and he was never afraid to express that love to her verbally and physically. And those endearments…..sigh…….I want to be his Sugar….

Gitte: Yeah I have to agree, in a sea of biker books, this Author manages to tick every single box without falling into the trap of crudeness; over the top alpha speak, one dimensional characters and crass situations. She does have her own style and I for one bloody love it!

Jenny:  Callie was a sweet 16 year old, complete with braces (which was so adorable by the way) when she meets 20 year old Asa under some pretty dire circumstances. Callie has a hero worship for Asa after he saves her not once, but twice. There were times when Callie would at times appear a lot older, but the author would soon remind us of Callie’s youth with her bratty tantrums and it brought to light the fact that here was a young girl, thrown into a situation that was beyond comprehension and heartbreaking to say the least.

Gitte:  Yeah, at first I thought uh oh….Callie’s only sixteen. However, at no stage did this make me uncomfortable nor did I find her annoyingly young or think twice about the four year age gap between her and Asa.  Rather, my heart melted, this sweet girl with braces; rebelling and finding herself caught up in a tragic and dire situation beyond her wildest imagination. If anything, this poor girl had to grow up really fast. Sure, she showed her immaturity at times but it was endearing and feisty and true to age and situation. And wow, did her relationship with Asa make my pulse beat frantically, as well as sigh at the true romance which laid at the heart of this story.

“Stay where you are sweetheart and keep quiet, I’m coming to get you”

Jenny:  I loved that Asa and Callie’s story was told over the span over 5 years.  This way, we were able to experience Callie and Asa’s relationship from inception, through the years and eventually leading up to the climax, which brought us full circle to the start of the book.  Those early meetings with Asa and Callie….wow! They were intense. Gitte, there was THAT on particular scene ……it was so real that you felt every heart stopping, tragic moment. It broke my heart.  There were times I would get frustrated with their living arrangements and wanted them to really take a moment to sort through their crap, but once it all came to a head, I understood why they acted and made the decisions they did. Callie, and Asa to a degree, carried such deeply imbedded scars that had to be dealt with in their own time and it was heartbreaking to witness.

‘…just like that, she completely shattered my fucking life.’

Gitte: I loved so many aspects of this story and the five year time span was definitely one of them, as we followed and grew with the characters, specifically Callie, and saw them evolve. We experienced everything with them from the moment Asa and Callie met till the story had indeed gone full circle. The journey was obstacle ridden; full of tragedy, frustration yet also, passion and romance. I think at times I forgot to breathe because I cared so deeply for the characters and the hell they found themselves in at times broke my heart. If only we could have spent longer with them!

 “You’re my family,”
“You’re my everything.” – Asa

J&G:  Well, it’s pretty clear that we loved this book.  Nicole Jacquelyn did it again and provided us with a story that took us through the complexities of first love, loss, grief and pain all against the backdrop of a rough and tough MC Club, and she did a stellar job. We were there every step of the way and became completely invested in these characters. We shared their pain, their loss, their struggles, their happiness and more than anything we shared their love.

‘…..I still loved him with an intensity that bordered on madness…..’

While Asa tried to find a balance between his club, his brothers and the strong love he felt for Callie, Callie was looking for total commitment, feeling The Aces was an obstacle and the cause of their problems, but what was between them ran so much deeper and their raw and tender story was told with emotion, passion and humour…oh and yes…the heat factor…whoa!!!

‘The thought that he could be taken from me at any time ran through my mind on a constant loop. I started to hate the club he belonged to.’

The build-up and the execution of Asa and Callie’s story was superbly brought to life and we were enthralled through every pulsating minute…….until we got to the end. After being so heavily invested in these characters, the ending felt very rushed, leaving us feeling short changed. It was as though we were treated to a lot of “before” and not a lot of “afters”.  We got to about 80% and panicked that we were running out of time to spend with “present day” Asa and Callie. We held out hope that the epilogue would provide us with the closure we so desperately needed to experience with our couple, but we have to say it was a disappointment also. It absolutely breaks our hearts to say that after what was an engrossing and wonderful story.

‘It was no longer enough for her to need me. I wanted her to be willing to fight for me.’

But…..that doesn’t mean it impeded on our overall enjoyment of the story, it simply means that had the “afters” been explored more comprehensively and the epilogue been more involved, this would have been, without hesitation,  a 5 star read for us. We simply needed more! Asa and Callie’s story had us transfixed and this author has certainly cemented us as one-click fans! We can’t wait for the next Aces story, we’ll be one-clicking in a heartbeat.

ARC provided by author in exchange for an honest review

THE ACES MC SERIES by NICOLE JACQUELYN

♥ CRAVING CONSTELLATIONS – BOOK ONE
Our Review
AMAZON US || AMAZON UK || AMAZON AU

♥ CRAVING REDEMPTION – BOOK TWO
Our Review
AMAZON US || AMAZON UK || AMAZON AU

♥ CRAVING ABSOLUTION – BOOK THREE
Our Review
AMAZON US || AMAZON UK || AMAZON AU

♥ CRAVING RESURRECTION – BOOK FOUR
Our Review
AMAZON US || AMAZON UK || AMAZON AU