Entwined with You by Sylvia Day

 

" The worldwide phenomenon continues as Eva and Gideon face the demons of their pasts, and accept the consequences of their obsessive desires… From the moment I first met Gideon Cross, I recognized something in him that I needed. Something I couldn’t resist. I saw the dangerous and damaged soul inside–so much like my own. I was drawn to it. I needed him as surely as I needed my heart to beat.

No one knows how much he risked for me. How much I’d been threatened, or just how dark and desperate the shadow of our pasts would become.

Entwined by our secrets, we tried to defy the odds. We made our own rules and surrendered completely to the exquisite power of possession." (Description from Goodreads.com)

 

I know, you're thinking, not another story about a rich guy trying to teach the virginal girl the ways of the world. Lucky for us, this series doesn't follow that formula. Yes, Gideon is rich but so is Eva. You'll also find that Eva is very independent and knows her own mind. More importantly, they both have issues and deal with them. One of my favorite things was them both excepting the fact they have issues and were willing to go to therapy to deal with it. Things are explained as well. For example, in 50 Shades I felt it took a long time to get to the whys and how, but Eva and Gideon are constantly there asking if the other is OK and explaining motives behind the actions. 

 

Is the relationship 100% healthy, no. However, the characters recognize this and are working towards a better future. That's where book three has us at in the series. It picked up with Eva returning home in the taxi from Gideon's. I won't go into the who's and whys, I would hate to spoil the story before this point. From there is a slow build of them reestablishing themselves back into society as a couple. 

This is actually my second reading of the story. When I first read it, I was frustrated and disappointed. I felt like it was one wrap over till book four comes out. At that point, I didn't know book four was coming until the last page. At least that kept me from shaking my first. On my second read, I was able to enjoy the story more for what it was...the development and reestablishment of their relationship. We see the characters grow more and begin to really trust each other. Plus, Gideon is sexy as ever.

 

While this story is filed under Erotic Fiction (EF), I would also consider it in the New Adult (NA) section since Eva is just out of college and trying to establish herself in the world. However, due to the sexy-times in this book and the newness of the NA genre, I get why it's filed under EF. I like to compare the EF books to 50 Shades since everyone has read the book and know what their tolerance in the EF world is. I would say if you rated 50 Shades at 100% sexy times, then this would be at about 75%. Really, nothing beats out 50 Shades in the sexy times and the 'I can't believe I just read that' moments. You also have a lot of fade away scenes in this book. Sexy time to fade to next scene. So, it's not constantly in your face. Finally, where people feel 50 Shades failed on storyline, these books shine and have a few great arcs happening in the story.

 

This book is the third in the Crossfire series. If Sylvia Day is new to you or the Crossfire, I would start with Bared to You to read all about Eva and Gideon.