I enjoy Maya Banks' work but this book is godawful (pun intended). The repetition of thought by the hero and heroine. I can buy insta-love if well done but insta-love with a cult survivor who has been there for 20 years of her life? It doesn't sound like they treated her well or would bother to educate her. So, her grasp of sarcasm and the English language is unbelievable. Also the hero instantly jumping into possession of the heroine. This woman has been owned by a cult for 20 years. Can you have some room to breathe?! ( )

Listened to audio narrated by Jefferey Kafer. Jenna can heal, was kidnapped and abused by a religious cult but escaped and found Isaac after he discovers her trying to steal his truck. There falling in love really seemed too quick and not believable but the love and caring was great.
( )

So, several weeks ago I read Brighter than the Sun by Maya Banks and was blown away. See, years ago, I had tried an Maya Banks book and it did not work for me. As it turns out, it was in the Slow Burn series. Given my new admiration for Banks, I decided to give Just One Touch a shot. My reading tastes have evolved since my first attempt at this series and I felt pretty good about giving this a shot.

My first step whenever I start a book is to head to good reads and mark the book as "Currently Reading". So I head over and happen to glance at a few of the reviews because people were PANNING the book. I was a bit nervous to be honest. I had already had one bad experience with this series. But, I pushed onward and here is why I think I was able to enjoy the aspects of the book that others panned.

First, I approached this book as more of a paranormal romance instead of contemporary romance or romantic suspense. All of the heroines in the series prior all have 'powers'. Jenna, our heroine, can heal people with her touch. So, right away, my brain classified this as more of a paranormal romance and in doing so, I was not as rigid in my expectations. See, if I think its PNR, I am more likely to believe ALL the things. So, I accept that she can heal people; why then can't I also accept the love at first sight thing? To me, if you have supernatural elements in a story and I as a reader accept them, then I can't complain when something else seems too unrealistic. So many people on goodreads complained about the super fast insta-love. Um, so you don't have any problem with the girl healing people with her hands, but you totally cannot understand love at first sight?!? If there were no paranormal elements in the story, I would agree that the insta love in this book is SUPER fast. But the story is filled with out of the norm things, so why is insta-love so frustrating to people?

Ok, so rant over. Jenna escapes from a cult who was keeping her prisoner to use her talent. She meets Issac when she tried to steal his car. And then people are shooting them. Literally, the action is non stop from page one. You get Jenna's story in the snippets she shares as she and Issac grow closer so there is always an air of mystery as to who the bad guys really are. You also get all the DDS guys and their wives in the story so if you read and enjoyed the previous books, you get to see past characters take a roll in Issac and Jenna's story. Jenna's naiveté, why understandable given her life, got a bit tiresome at times. That was my biggest struggle with the story overall. Just One Touch is actually a pretty quick read! Honestly, that worked out well for me because I could never find a good stopping point in the plot.

If you like a suspenseful romance with paranormal elements, Just One Touch by Maya Banks is a perfect pick for a weekend binge read! Danger, supernatural powers, and fierce love burn on every page!

 

• POV: 3rd


• Tears: no


• Trope: insta-love, supernatural


• Triggers: Jenna was tortured and abused by the cult. While not described frequently, there are descriptions that might make some readers uncomfortable


• Series/Standalone: series (while its not necessary to read the previous books, I do think you might enjoy it more if you understood the whole series since the characters are fairly unique!)


• Cliffhanger: spoiler


• HEA: spoiler

...then you will probably like TITLE OF BOOK!



Just One Touch




See full review on The Book Disciple ( )

Ouch! Another stinker! Another one that I can't (won't) finish.

This story is over-the-top to begin with, but made 10 times worse because the reader uses a Jack Webb voice the entire time. Jack Webb works well for Dragnet and the eras it was produced in, but... not in 2018 (well, unless it's pulp fiction?). ( )

DESCRIPTION, NOT REVIEW: Raised in a strict religious cult since she was a young girl, Jenna has no connection to the outside world beyond vague flashes of memory that seem to be from another life. Memories she clings to when the cult leaders discover her extraordinary ability to heal—and punish her. Years held captive and forced to do the cult's bidding have turned Jenna into a meek, timid woman…or so they think. In truth, she is merely biding her time, waiting for the perfect moment to escape.

When a terrified young woman tries to steal the SUV of Devereaux Security’s toughest recruit, Isaac’s anger quickly turns into a strange sort of protectiveness for the beautiful, bruised stranger. But when they are caught in a firestorm of bullets and Isaac is hit, he’s sure the end is near, until Jenna touches him and closes his wounds. As he tries to bring Jenna to safety, she refuses to tell him what danger haunts her or how she healed him, but Isaac vows to do whatever it takes to gain her trust…and her heart. Because with just one touch, Isaac knows he wants Jenna to be his—forever. ( )