Apparently I Can't Prioritize My Books.

On a blessedly stuff-to-do-less Sunday, I actually sat down and read a book. Yes, that's right. A whole BOOK.

Unfortunately it was the Shiloh Walker book that I ordered from Amazon following the Kindle-story incident. To clarify: the misfortune doesn't stem from the fact that it was a Shiloh Walker book, but more from the fact that I picked it over books that have been on the TBR shelf for far longer than that one. Case in point: Kiss of a Demon King by Kresley Cole, a book I am really, very excited about, but which I can't seem to pick up and read.

About this Shiloh Walker book, Broken. I stumbled onto an excerpt Idon'tknowwhere and decided to order it, once again making the mistake of ordering a sequel before the prequel. In this instance it didn't matter that much-- the hero, Quinn, is brother to the previous book's hero, and they both stand pretty independently, minus a few references to previous happenings that have nothing to do with the current story.

Quinn's a bounty hunter with a Secret Dark Past (really, I don't think he ever even tells our heroine about the things that happened to him), who runs into Sarah, his new housemate (also of the Secret Dark Past) and promptly falls into lust fueled love. Lots of inappropriate public sexual encounters ensue, blah blah blah, encumbered only by the fact that Sarah Is Hiding Something.

As with the previous story I had read, there are liberties taken with huge chunks of time that don't serve the story well at all-- to have them wake up one morning after the passing of one week in their relationship does very little for me in terms of plot development or the development of the characters. Suddenly there are holes to be filled in with regard to their routine and how they're doing as a couple-- to say nothing of the fact that despite the passage of time, they don't seem to know each other any better than when they started.

The ending worked for me as much as it didn't work for me (follow that?). The twist made it interesting and everything pulled together nicely (I do like a good, working red herring), but then there was a tidy little bow on everything. Followed closely by a severe and annoying lack of communication by Quinn and Sarah. And the last minute, heavy handed introduction of new characters, which really is a pet peeve of mine.

None of this stopped me from ordering the prequel to the sequel, nor will it stop me from considering Shiloh Walker books in the future. I highly doubt any of them will end up on the Keeper Shelf, but I'd be willing to read them anyway. This will be especially true if the author can stop being such a contradiction-- a modern writer with modern styles who really is stuck in old skool cliches. And not hiding it well.

On a maintenance front, Shotgun's alias has officially been changed to Boy Scout. It just fits better, no matter how much he wants to pout about it.