Mar 8 2013
REVIEW: Reckless by S.C. Stephens
Dear Ms. Stephens:
This book seemed like it was written for the fans rather than an organic story of its own. Clocking in at over 400 pages, Reckless, takes the reader into Kellin and Kiera’s happy ever after. They’ve not grown much from previous books. Kiera is still beset with agonizing uncertainty over Kellin’s fidelity and Kellin is constantly reassuring Kiera of his love. The conflict between the characters caused by a third person seemed forced. I would have hoped that Kiera and Kellin would have emotionally matured but they haven’t.
The first few chapters portrayed a very shmoopy Kiera and Kellan who called each other husband and wife even though they were not married. Kellan’s band is invited to LA to record their album. Kellan brings Kiera with. Kiera is going to write a novel. What novel? Why the true love story of Kiera and Kellan. Meta, I guess. Kiera is writing Thoughtless, Effortless, and, I guess, Reckless. And she’s self publishing it. (Yes, there is a whole section in there about why she is going to self publish which I thought was kind of gratuitous)
However, Kiera and Kellin’s faux connubial bliss is interrupted when recording artist Sienna decides that to revive her career, she will utilize Kellin and the music company encourages this. First, they don’t want Kellin to tell anyone he is married. Second, the female recording artist decides that fostering a romance with Kellin might be useful in raising her profile. Given that the hottest boy band has been in a committed for several years and that several of the kids in the other hot boy band are in serious relationships, both actions came off as melodramatic villianry. Boo! Hiss! And the tinny piano music plays on.
The middle part which followed the band around was a bit more entertaining because it came off as reasonably authentic. However, the last third of the book devolved into comic unbelievability. I’m still agog that Kellin uses a discman and that Kiera writes these books in a notebook. I felt like I was in a time warp.
The band, however, was almost too perfect. No one is upset that only Kiera is traveling with the band. There is no drug or alcohol abuse. Everyone, or nearly everyone, is in a loving committed relationship. Given that these kids are all in their early twenties, none of it came off as realistic.
Finally, I found the nearly page by page declarations of love to deaden the emotional impact. The two were constantly billing and cooing and promising their life long loving devotion. I didn’t have an ebook but I swear if I did a word search on the phrase “I love you” it would have appeared at least 100 times by conservative estimates.
I think fans of the first two books will be pleased with this entry. I could have used a lot less billing and cooing between Kiera and Kellan and a little more realism in the rock story. As much as I despised Kiera in Thoughtless, that was the clear standout in this series. The other two, particularly this one, seems to rehash old insecurities and spend far too much time on assuring the reader, as much as anyone, that these two truly will make it. This book failed to rouse any emotion in me at all. D
Best regards,
Jane
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