Series: Author: Sylvia Day
# of Books: 5 (Bared to You, Reflected in you, Entwined with You, Captivated by You, One With You)
Complete?: No, One with You, has a publishing date TBA
Genre: Contemporary, Erotica, Romance, Drama, Dark
Heat Rating: hot (BDSM: mild)
Point of View: First Person
Thoughts:
I won’t lie: I will admit that I read Bared to You because it was linked to Fifty Shades of Grey. As much as some people didn’t like Fifty Shades, I actually enjoyed the romantic suspense and drama that it brought–I just could have done without all the sex. But what interested me about Bared to You was that it stars two dark characters that have tragedy filled pasts that the reader gets to uncover.
As expected, there are some parallels between the two series in terms of the events the two leads find themselves in (read: jealous exes, insecurities and tormented pasts) but they do differ once you get past the first novel in the Crossfire series. Overall I would say the BDSM element is stronger in Fifty Shades than Crossfire which for me is an added bonus because I’m not the biggest BDSM fan.
The relationship dynamic between Gideon and Eva is also easier for me to see. I could see why they both were attracted to each other and love each other more so than Anastasia and Christian (in Fifty Shades I think it’s clearer why Christian needs Ana in his life more so than why Ana needs Christian in hers).
What I liked about the Crossfire series that Fifty Shades develops more in the second and third books is the suspense. It’s present right from get-go in Bared to You and continues into the next books. Also, Reflected in You takes a turn I never expected and gives this series a much darker feel than Fifty Shades.
When I grabbed Entwined with You I thought two things: one) was that we were going to learn more about Gideon as a whole (possibly his point of view) and two) it was end of the series. Turns out we didn’t get either of those hypotheses. Before this book was published, the series got extended for two more books. As a result I really felt like this book was filler more so than anything. I think the series totally could have concluded within three books and people would have been satisfied and happy. From my point of view, there was no need to extend it two more books; a fourth book would have been a bit of a stretch but a fifth is a huge stretch. I also found that Eva was grating on my nerves throughout this book which really disappointment me because I had really liked her character in the previous two books. She just became so whinny and seemed to me like she was suffering from Bella-Swan-I-can’t-live-without-him syndrome when her character had been so much more independent in the last two books.
Conclusion:
Bared to You and Reflected in You were great books. Entwined with You was a disappointment but I’m not ready to give up on this series quite yet. I think if you want to read a series about two flawed romantic leads, the Stark Trilogy is the better choice than this one as of this moment in the sense that it’s story does get dragged out (well is does in the novellas but the actual novels don’t really do that). Captivated by You shows some promise and I really want to know how this series ends–so I am not going to condemn this series as of now.
Rating: 4/5
Similar Reads: Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James (Fifty Shades Trilogy #1) and Release Me (Stark Trilogy #1) by J. Kenner
Synopsis for Bared to You (from Goodreads):
Gideon Cross came into my life like lightning in the darkness…He was beautiful and brilliant, jagged and white-hot. I was drawn to him as I’d never been to anything or anyone in my life. I craved his touch like a drug, even knowing it would weaken me. I was flawed and damaged, and he opened those cracks in me so easily…
Gideon knew. He had demons of his own. And we would become the mirrors that reflected each other’s most private wounds…and desires. The bonds of his love transformed me, even as i prayed that the torment of our pasts didn’t tear us apart…
[…] want the series to become stretched like so many other contemporary romances **coughcough Crossfire cough** out there. And when you take into consideration that there are 3 other full length novels […]
[…] Fifty Shades of Grey by E.L. James (Fifty Shades Trilogy #1) & Bared to You by Sylvia Day (Crossfire Series […]
I can’t wait for the next two books!
i totally agree with you on book 4 and 5.
i just finished the third book and feel as though i haven’t made much progress in getting to know what the real story is since the second book.I do hope whatever she plans to have in the new books are worth the wait!
http://louisaapril.wordpress.com/2014/07/29/good-reads-with-louisa/
Agreed…the wait for this next book is really building up my expectations to see what is going to happen next
When is book five coming out?
I’m not sure…my best guess is next fall (2015) given how long it took to get book four. In an ideal world, it would be this coming spring but I’m not going to hold my breath. I suggest watching the Goodreads page for updates. All I know it has the title “One with You”
[…] Reads: Release Me by J Kenner (Stark Trilogy #1) and Bared to You by Sylvia Cross (Crossfire Series […]
I liked the first 3 books but was not impressed with the 4 th I just got.into the series a few.months before captivated by you came out so the long wait for it just made me expect more. I didn’t know it was only to be a trilogy looking back her plot line was Nathan when he was gone they series was over but it did so well her and publisher’s wanted more. I just hope book 5 is better. I wanted answers I never got in 4book spoiler alert like is tat really pregnant? Why does Eva’s mom need money do badly? Why did Corrine act that way I think the ann Lucas was medicating her to be nuts. What will happen with ann, Deanna , is Brett done or still fighting if it’s the end that was week I was expecting more. I just didn’t get the answers I have been waiting for she has a lot of lose ends to tie up in the last book
I agree, a lot needs to happen in this 5th book to make me feel like I didn’t waste all my time on these books. The 4th was just a filler novel and left me with more questions than it resolved.
I loved all four books I love Eva and Cross please rush book five and start on books six and seven we all need to follow the E& G Cross family story thanks for a great read my birthday is coming 11/4 I need to be reading book 5 and not re-reading Bare to you, love it all?
Glad you enjoy the series! I still have to read the latest one…I couldn’t get into it when I tried last 🙁
I read all five books of the Crossfire series and simply loved it.
I am now reading the Stark Series and am surprised to see that there are quite a few similarities. Do these writers pinch each other’s ideas??? Or do I see spooks where there are none?
No, there are definitely some similarities between all those series (and a few more). I’ve read somewhere that in publishing, it is easier to pitch an idea that is similar to something that is already successful than to push an idea people aren’t actively buying or used to. And I think we see trends every year in writing that have a lot of similarities because that’s what people are interested in. The romance genre especially has it’s niche markets (dark romances, western romances, historical romances) and there are elements to each of those that are common in most books throughout the genre.
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