Bared to You

Goodreads Synopsis:

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...


Bared to You by Sylvia Day
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I'm NOT going to compare this book to Fifty Shades of Grey. That seems to be the theme of most reviews. It has similarities but I think they are in entirely different leagues so I won't waste my breath. That being said, I really enjoyed Sylvia Day's writing style. I liked the way she characterized and I like that she made these two people a match for each other. I think she would have been better off leaving out the reveal of dominant and submissive. It didn't need saying because it was written so well into the subtext. It seemed forced when it was brought up and out of character for both Gideon and Eva. It made Eva weak where she had been strong and added a coldness to Gideon when he was naturally developing warmth.

I loved that Eva was firey and comfortable with herself. She was developed well as a victim who came back and perservered despite an awful childhood. She had her pick of men and owned her sexiness. She didn't take any crap from anybody and could hold her own against anyone. After the mention of her being a submissive, she became weak and I didn't like her anymore. It is a horrible thing for someone who came from her background to end up submitting to a man when she's worked so hard to overcome those demons. It totally reverts all of the work she's done on getting past being a victim. It was very sad. She started spouting her declarations of love and it just got so needy and old. I just don't understand how you go from completely independent to completely co-dependent in one day. The same goes for Gideon. He was so used to having short-term sexual relationships and then suddenly he turned his entire life upside down after knowing this woman for a week.

Perhaps the plot was just too fast paced for me. I understand that if I had to wait for this plot develop over an extended period of time, it could get boring. I have to believe there is a correct pacing though. It is all so irrational. All of their personal problems point to trust issues and a need to be assertive and independent. You don't break through all of your old issues and run the emotional gamut so quickly. They need to be thoroughly medicated if their personalities are altering themselves that quickly.

I'm not sure what role Cary will play throughout the remainder of the series. He seems really important to Eva but his last scene in the book was rather awkward and unresolved. He also has mood swings but at least he has a cause in the shape of his drug addiction. Everyone is very emotionally complex. It can be a lot to deal with. Despite that, I really cared about the characters. Well...I cared about Eva and Cary. I didn't really care about Gideon's emotional well being. I think that will change as I get to know more about him but for now, I'm left wanting for everything besides the extremely detailed descriptions of his penis.

All of the above comes off pretty negative....but I really did like the book and am excited to see what happens next. The chemistry is fantastic and I'm hoping that some of my issues will be taken care of as the characters continue to develop. More than I'm excited to read the rest of this series, I'm excited to read more of Day's books. She has a gift. She can make me enjoy a book with questionably tasteful content. I'd love to see what she can do with something really interesting. Day timed this series perfectly to get the most exposure and the most positive feedback. Kudos.

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