Series Review: Off the Subject by Denise Grover Swank

Series Review: Is this series worth your time? Does it get better as the novels progress? Or does it get worse? Find out below:

SERIESous’ Top Book Series: Honourable Mention – Top New Adult Series 2013
Series: Off the Subject
Author: Denise Grover Swank
# of Books: 3 (After Math, Redesigned, Business as Usual)
Book Order: Connected
Complete?: Yes
Genre: New Adult, Romance, Contemporary, Drama
Heat Rating: really warm
Point of View: First Person, Single (Business as Usual is First Person, Alternate)

Thoughts:

I’m a sucker for New Adult romances between geeky girls and handsome athletes. I don’t know why; though it might be because I am a geeky girl myself. But when Kobo recommend that I read After Math based on my recent purchases, I read the synopsis, bought it that day and then proceeded to immediately read it.

And I’m glad I did because I really loved After Math (which is currently FREE on Amazon!)! It wasn’t super steamy but I loved the tension between Tucker and Scarlett. I really felt like they made a connection to each other than physical attraction and I really appreciated that. I breezed through the book because it was a lot of fun to read. It was the perfect blend of drama and romance along with interesting characters. Although it was set in the South (and I tend to dislike New Adult books set in Southern USA) I found that the drama wasn’t over the top or petty. We also get to see enough of Caroline, the heroine of book 2, Redesigned, to make you excited to read about her story.

Redesigned was just as great (maybe better than) After Math. Part of why I loved it so much (and why I liked After Math) was that the book focuses on characters growth just as much as it does on the romance. One of my favourite aspects about New Adult romances is seeing how relationships can change a person’s life for the better and these books do just that.

One thing that I didn’t like about After Math and Redesigned is that we only got one POV, the heroines. Which is fine because I liked the heroines and I think it worked with the “mysterious hero” thing they both had going on; but I’m just so used to reading both POVs that it surprised me a bit. However, with Business as Usual, we get both heroine and hero’s POV and that makes things more interesting because you get to watch both characters grow.

I was really looking forward to Business as Usual–and it was really good don’t get me wrong. But it just seemed so over the top at times (and by that I mean that it didn’t seem realistic to me because for the most part, these books were fairly realistic) with its plotline and that bothered me. Otherwise I loved the characters, I just wish that the hero and heroine interacted more together instead of focusing on their individual growth. Definitely not my favourite of the series but I enjoyed it nevertheless.

Conclusion:

If you want a sweet romance story that focuses more on the growth of the characters and their relationship with each other and not just endless amounts of sex, I recommend that you grab these books! I really enjoyed them! Also, After Math is available for FREE on Amazon.

Rating: 4/5
Would I Recommend this Series to a Friend: Yes

Similar Reads: Easy by Tamara Webber (Contours of the Heart Series #1); Four Years Later by Monica Murphy (Drew + Fable Series #4) and Choosing You by Allie Everhart (Jade Series #1)

Synopsis for After Math (from Goodreads):
Scarlett Goodwin’s world is divided into Before and After.

Before she agreed to tutor Tucker Price, college junior Scarlett was introvert, struggling with her social anxiety and determined to not end up living in a trailer park like her mother and her younger sister. A mathematics major, she goes to her classes, to her job in the tutoring lab, and then hides in the apartment she shares with her friend, Caroline.

After junior Tucker Price, Southern University’s star soccer player enters the equation, her carefully plotted life is thrown off its axis. Tucker’s failing his required College Algebra class. With his eligibility is at risk, the university chancellor dangles an expensive piece of computer software for the math department if Scarlett agrees to privately tutor him. Tucker’s bad boy, womanizer reputation makes Scarlett wary of any contact, let alone spending several hours a week in close proximity.

But from her first encounter, she realizes Tucker isn’t the person everyone else sees. He carries a mountain of secrets which she suspects hold the reason to his self-destructive behavior. But the deeper she delves into the cause of his pain, the deeper she gets sucked into his chaos. Will Scarlett find the happiness she’s looking for, or will she be caught in Tucker’s aftermath?