Title: Under His Skin
Author: Sidney Bristol
Publisher: Ellora's Cave
Series: So Inked # 1
Reviewed By: Arlena Dean
Rating: 4
Review:

"Under His Skin" by Sidney Bristol

What is this novel all about?

A woman who doesn’t believe she deserves love…

Toe-curling kisses and enough sex to fill a weekend were all Pandora wanted from a fling with her teenage crush. She’s never forgotten how he played the knight in shining armor to her damsel in distress. She’s ready to say thank you in several naughty ways, so long as she can walk away when it’s over with her heart intact.

A man...more "A woman who doesn’t believe she deserves love…

Toe-curling kisses and enough sex to fill a weekend were all Pandora wanted from a fling with her teenage crush. She’s never forgotten how he played the knight in shining armor to her damsel in distress. She’s ready to say thank you in several naughty ways, so long as she can walk away when it’s over with her heart intact.

A man moving on from tragedy…

Brian has no intention of allowing the feisty tattoo artist to leave him after one taste. He hasn’t had enough of her inked curves. The packaging might have changed, but Pandy is the woman he hasn’t been able to excise from his memory. He’s ready to put together a new life, one that includes her. But he’s not the only one vying for her attention. Someone else wants her, dead or alive."

What I got out of this read....

Who would have thought that Brian would find someone of his pass(after ten years) during this Convention to give him a tattoo that would be a memorial to his lost band mates. Then Brian spends the weekend with Pandora (tattoo artist) and it seems for a while everything seemed to go alright for these two. However, Pandora and Brian both had some pasted troubles that were presenting itself having been scarred physically, emotionally and even some secrets. I don't want to leave out the chemistry of the steamy and hot sexy erotic scenes that were off the chart! Now, to get past all of these issues is their a villain out there who has other plans for Pandora and her business? I found this a interesting read seeing this heroine come to terms with her past and learn to trust and support Brian.

What I liked about this novel...

I like how this author brings out the suspense along with the romance and you will be lead to wonder will their be any happiness between Pandora and Brian. To get it all you will have to pick up this good read "Under His Skin" to see how this author will bring it all out to the readers. You will definitely find yourself rooting for these two main characters. Also the secondary characters ...Kellie, Autumn and Mary were all supporting and well developed which only helped give the reader a well written novel. I really liked how the author headed the chapter with an important tattoo definition that related to each chapter.

Overall Impression...

So, my overall impression of "Under His Skin" was a good drama, mystery, suspenseful romance novel that I would recommend to you as a good read that will leave you wanting the next novel by this author. ( )

Under His Skin (So Inked #1) By Sidney Bristol

This is the first time I’ve read a book by Sidney Bristol and I will say her writing is very good, the story and plot flows well and you really enjoy her characters in this story and actually want to learn more about everyone we meet.

We meet Pandora who is a tattoo artist and she has entered a tattoo contest, you can feel that Pandora is very nervous but really wants to win this contest to her it’s not just about winning it more about proving something to herself and others. Right at the beginning you end up wanting her to win. Brian is a rock star with some deep regrets; Brian has lost all his band members in an airplane crash and feels very alone, so he would like a tattoo of his band members as sort of a memorial.

When things don’t turn out the way that is expected Pandora and Brian end up spending the weekend together, Pandora is okay with this as it’s only the weekend. Brian has other plans though he wants more. Both Pandora and Brian have secrets, regrets but you are pulling for them both. I really liked Pandora and Brian as a couple and hope they could get past all their issues. But nothing is that easy as there is always someone who wants nothing more than to get Pandora back.

This novel has romance and suspense meanwhile you’re hoping that in the end Brian and Pandora can find their happiness together.

I really enjoyed Under His Skin, Sidney Bristol is a great writer, I felt for both Brian and Pandora and you have to give the author kudos’s when she can actually make you feel these thing. I want to read more about the other characters and hope the next book in this series is coming out soon.

I have rated Under His Skin a 4 star rating, and am I recommending to anyone who enjoys a fun, suspense, loveable romance to go pick up this novel. I definitely will be checking out Sidney Bristol’s other books.
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Review:

This is my first book by Sidney Bristol. I decided to read UNDER HIS SKIN for a couple of reasons; first and foremost being that I have read some very good books from Ellora’s Cave lately. When I had the chance to feature this book on the blog, I jumped on the chance. I also wanted to read this book because it explored some unfamiliar territory for me. I don’t know a lot about tattoos having none myself, but I was intrigued by the idea of having a series/book centered within the tattoo world. I also liked that both of these characters had a lot of crap to rise up from before they found each other. Those factors considered, I decided to read and review this book.

Pandora has had a less than desirable past at best. She was deserted by her father at a young age and raised by her mother for several years until cancer claimed her life. She ends up the unwanted child of her father and never quite fits in with him or his new wife and new life. She bails at 18 and ends up eventually hooking up with her emotionally unbalanced and abusive ex, Robert. She tries to make a break from Robert only to be forced back into the relationship until one fateful night when she is rescued by her new “family”. She finds peace within her So Inked family and settles into a better life than she had before.

Brian has been there, done that. As a former rock star, there is not much he hasn’t been exposed to at one time or another. Life was good on the road to success until a plane crash takes the lives of the band members; all except Brian. Trying to cope from survivor’s guilt and some ass-kicking physical therapy, Brian decides to pay homage to his former band members by permanently inking them on his body. He finds Pandora after searching through several artists that can do the job.

Pandora instantly recognizes Brian when he comes to her for his tattoo and is mortified, but tries to play it cool and behave professionally. Several questions later, Brian has figured out who Pandora is. Ironically, as big as the crush was that Pandora had on Brian, he too did not go unaffected by the young girl from a few years back. Little does she know just how much of an impression she made on him. But a bad situation and feelings of guilt may make it impossible for them to move past the artist/client relationship. Several issues arise that interfere with a possible future for the two. Highest on the list being Pandora’s belief that Brian can do so much better than her. Of course Brian has baggage from the crash, and Pandora also has a crazy asshat of an ex who is lurking in the shadows.

What I liked most about this book was that each chapter began with a definition of tattoo terms such as stencil and flash. I mean I didn’t have a clue what any of this lingo meant, but the descriptions allowed me to continue reading without interference from my lack of knowledge in this area. It was beyond apparent that Ms. Bristol knows her tattoos, the processes, and just about everything else someone would need to know. I appreciated that she included so much information about tattooing without presenting it in a confusing way. I came away feeling somewhat educated. I also enjoyed that Pandora and Brian remained consistent in character throughout the story. I felt like they knew who they were, they knew their faults, and they made no bones about it except to try and make a go of a difficult situation.

Unfortunately, I had a few things that I didn’t like. There were a few sections of the book that mimicked things that had been stated prior. For example, two or three times we read about how jealous Pandora is that someone else had tattooed Brian before she did. I felt like I was re-reading parts that had already been covered. I also disliked that the whole story ended so abruptly. I was reading and then it was over. I had no clue that the story was about to cut out on me. I feel like there was so much left unfinished. Robert, Carly, Ike’s mother ~ just to name a few things that I felt left me hanging. The only thing I can think of is that the following books may cover some of these topics because this is the first in series. But that may be a bit of an unfortunate circumstance if that is the way things are handled because the couple featured in the next book would lose some of their time. I am not saying what will or will not happen in the next book because I have absolutely no clue. I just don’t like finishing a book and being left with a million questions. I also really disliked Robert. As a psycho, he works. But I felt like he could have been mentioned as part of Pandora’s past and reason for many of her insecurities without actually being a part of her current life. His actions toward the end of the book were unexpected and I felt like Carly was thrown under the bus as a secondary character. I just didn’t like how things played out.

This book is not going to make it as a favorite read for me. And although I really enjoyed the educational aspects of tattooing that was added to the book, it wasn’t enough for me to be able to really like the book and overlook the flaws that interfered with my enjoyment. The story is a good attempt and can likely be enjoyable for many people as a quick read to pass the time. Of that I have no doubt. And in fact I have seen several positive comments about this story. But for readers like me who hate to be left with questions at the end and who want to see more of an HEA (especially when reading a novella), you might want to think twice about this particular story.

(eBook copy provided by author/tour company in exchange for an honest review.) ( )