Review: Bad Romeo by Leisa Rayven

Rating: ★★★★★ stars
Date published: December 23rd, 2014
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Synopsis: When Cassie Taylor met Ethan Holt at acting school, sparks flew. She was the good girl actress. He was the bad boy about campus. But one fated casting choice for Romeo and Juliet changed it all. Like the characters they were playing, Cassie and Ethan's romance seemed destined. Until he broke her heart and betrayed her trust. Now the A-list heartthrob is back in her life and turning her world around. One touch at a time. 

Cast as romantic leads once again, they're forced to confront raw memories of the heartbreaking lows and pulse-pounding highs of their secret college affair. But they'll also discover that people who rub each other the wrong way often make the best sparks.

What I Thought:

This book is so good, I don't even know where to start. Nothing I can think of seems to do this book justice.  It's like describing what I loved about this book will lessen the impact it has.  We know Cassie and Ethan were together and in love, but then Ethan broke Cassie's heart in such a way it's never been repaired again.  Cassie is no longer anywhere who she used to be when she first met Ethan.

This book is so much more than two lovers reuniting to find the chemistry they have is still there.  It's like a mystery and romance in one.  The mystery is finding out the motivations behind why Ethan treated Cassie the way he did.  Especially since he seemed as emotionally involved in their secret relationship as Cassie was.  And you know what?  I wasn't even angry when the book ended and I hadn't found out the answers both Cassie and I were looking for.

I may have mentioned I love this book.  One of the reasons was the chemistry between Cassie and Ethan.  It was off the charts hot.  I laughed, cried, and panted when things got really steamy.  Their love and relationship was so fraught with angst and turmoil.  I read each page with such anticipation, waiting to see what would happen between them.  Leisa Rayven made me wait to get what I wanted. She made Ethan and Cassie wait too.

I think one of the most interesting things about this story was seeing Ethan and Cassie switch roles. In a way it makes sense, because both of them had (hopefully) found something so overwhelming so early in life.  Cassie gave all of herself and in turn found her self broken into little pieces.  I don't know how Leisa Rayven did it, but if you love drama, passion, and angst in a second chance setting, this book is perfect for you.  I do not know how I'm going to wait until the end of April to see what happens between Ethan and Cassie, but I'm going to be eagerly counting down the days.  This book has stayed in my thoughts long after I finished it.  I don't think my words can in any way come close to describing how much I enjoyed it and how amazing it is.  You're just going to have to read it to find out on your own.  I would strongly recommend it.

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About the Author

Writing has always been a passion for Leisa, and even though she originally intended to be an actress, it wasn’t long into her time at drama school that she began writing plays.

Those plays were bad. Very bad. Well, her friends thought they were good, but that’s because they were always cast in them and any opportunity to be on stage was met with an obnoxious amount of enthusiasm.

Since then, she’s honed her craft, and several of her plays have been produced and toured
throughout Australia.

These days, playwriting has given way to fiction writing, and Leisa’s debut novel, BAD ROMEO, will be available in a worldwide release through Macmillan Publishing in December 2014.

Leisa lives in Australia with her husband, two little boys, three cats, and a kangaroo named Howard.

(Howard may or may not be her imaginary marsupial friend. Everyone should have one.)

*Thank you to the publisher for providing a copy via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.  All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for them in any manner.*