Very Wicked Things (Briarwood Academy #2)

I love sports romances! I read a couple of this authors other books and liked them, so I thought Id try this one, even though I dont normally read new adult romances, much less high school romances. The premise was intriguing – football star and ballet dancer fall for each other. The heroine, Dovey Beckham, was compelling – pretty and talented but very young and defensive. The hero, Cuba Hudson, took more time to warm up to – handsome and talented but scarred and mean. They had great chemistry and a little bit of sizzle. Overall, not a bad book, just a little too young and a little too much angst for me.

Talk about amazing. I loved this book so much. Who would have known that Cuba \”Hollywood\” Hudson has a heart. Dovey sure as heck had it. His heart belonged to her even if he did not know it. This book was raw, emotional, strip you bare of emotion and I loved it. There were times that I was breaking, not sure if I could handle these emotions that felt so real. Ilsa\’s wording through out this book was so good, I thought how the hell are Cuba and Dovey not real people. I felt like I was reading a journal at times and not a story. Cuba and Dovey\’s Journal. Yes, I will think of it that way. \”I remember everything we did, Dovey. Every date, every kiss, every whispered word,\” I admitted, my voice low, filled with-need?\” Dovey is from the wrong side of the tracks you could say. Growing up poor she has a lot of responsibilities for her young age. Yet, she got into BA as a dancer, the one thing that will help her out of Ratcliffe and get her somewhere better. She is friends with one person at BA, Spider and he is a good friend for the most part. I think that people need to look at there friends and evaluate them, are you missing out on something, how much do you know about your friend? \”As the sun rose, I realized the world is all about complimentary opposites. We exist with ups and downs, shadows and light, with heaven and hell. Everyone makes a choice, and I picked mine willingly. I\’d harm only myself.\” Dovey is in a rock and hard place with her life. She has Sarah and Heather-Lynn, they have looked after her, help raise her, kept her focused on her dancing. I want to talk so much about this, it would just give it away. There was a huge sacrifice that Dovey makes for Sarah and Heather-Lynn as well. Just, WOW. My heart broke a little more. I can\’t even think about having to make that choice for myself. She is a strong woman. Cuba, who is to say the rich have it easier is full of crap. Cuba may have the money and the good looks but he has been through some really hard times. I was not sure if I was going to like him at all. I was sure that he was just going to be this total arrogant jerk and he was at times BUT he had his reasons. So here I am saying that I love Cuba. I really do, he handled his situation the way I think most people would. Although I just wish he could have seen that he was making the wrong choices before everything else happened. \”It\’s that silly ballerina, isn\’t it? She\’s the one you really want?\” At the end of it all this book is about a persons self-worth, learning to love yourself first and that despite the situations that we were born into you can make something of your self, learn to love others, who ever they may be. It is ok to say that you made poor decisions, make the changes and love someone who may have made those decisions that altered your life. I really think that Ilsa has written a book that was so much more than \”another book,\” I can\’t even put all my feelings out there so you could understand what I am trying to say. So please read the book when it comes out, enter the giveaway at the bottom of this post and leave a review.

I finally have time to read this book and oh my goodness I LOVE it!! I really enjoyed Very Bad Things. The story the characters and the writing style of the author…and big plus it takes place in Texas! So, I knew that I would LOVE Very Wicked Things the only problem was finding time to read it…and it was well worth the wait. Now, I will admit that I fell for Cuba and all his cockiness in VBT. There was just something about him that I liked and I couldn\’t wait for him to be knocked around by love. I really liked reading his POV. I loved getting inside his head and realizing that there is so much more to him that I thought. His character and his personality is so well written. Dovey is such a great female lead. I really liked her character and her personality. She is such a strong girl and I like that she refused to be a victim of circumstance. Instead she decided to make her way in life with or without the help of her parents. It was so moving that she came to that decision at such a young age and I really appreciated getting that glimpse into her childhood at the beginning of this book. I also enjoyed all of the glimpses into her and Cuba\’s past being told in her POV. I felt all of the emotions that she felt and the way the author wrote the past glimpses I even felt Cuba\’s emotions very strongly. This story is so well written that I felt every emotion. I felt angry when Cuba was being a jerk. I felt the butterflies in my stomach when Dovey or Cuba were nervous or couldn\’t fight their feeling. I felt the tension both sexual and not between the two. I felt Dovey\’s confusion I trying to move on from Cuba and I felt her hesitation. I also felt her pain when she put the love of Sarah before the love of herself. She is truly a selfless person and lived up to making choices that were for the good of her family. She stayed true to her personality throughout this book and never once played the victim. I really enjoyed this book from the Briarcrest Academy series and I can not wait for more!!

This is the complete story of Cuba and Dovey. It contains some parts of the Prequel but I still believe the Prequel was worth reading. Let\’s face it, there is little we can be held accountable for when we are still in high school. We are merely victims of circumstance. Even for Cuba and Dovey, wise beyond their years, taking on each situation as if they can change the outcome and/or things are their fault. I imagine it is difficult to be 17 feeling like you own the sins of your parents. But both Cuba and Dovey did. Perhaps this is why they connected. Immediately, the energy was sizzling. Their individual stories were tragic and downright sad, their reactions explainable, although sometime cringe-worthy. But they were perfect together. You want to see them together and the story of how they saw the stars and the light and came together was intense and addicting. Their chemistry and love scenes were HOT, sexy and romantic. This author always has a great supporting cast and I look forward to reading about Sebastian or Spider. I would have liked to hear more about Nora from the first book but she made a couple of appearances.

4 stars!! He was off-the-charts, no-holds-barred, freaking going to make-me-lose-my-mind-right-there, delicious. And I had no idea how to handle him. Because I was way out of my league. This is book two in the Briarcrest series and follows Cuba Hollywood Hudson and Dovey Beckham, I have to admit, I was hooked from the first till last page, this book was a page turner for me and I didnt want to let their beautiful yet heart breaking story go. Cuba is the guy that your mum warns you about, he is a star football player, he is also a player, a man whore, and he leaves a trail of heart broken girls in his wake with no remorse. But as with all things is this just a front? Who is Cuba Hollywood Hudson really? There are always two sides to every story and Cubas is heart breaking. Despite wealth, a privileged upbringing and all that entails there is a magnitude of hidden emotions underneath that playboy exterior, he just has a poor way of dealing with themgirls and a lot of them. Dont pull away. Im scared, too. And I know were young, but I feel older than I really am. Ive gone through some bad s*** in my life Dovey Beckham is a ballerina, she tries her hardest to not be noticed, from the poor side of town and on a scholarship all she cares about is getting through school, dancing and looking after her guardian. Her back story is also an extremely harrowing one, but she is a survivor and has come through the other side stronger and more resilient. She has hardly any friends, she trusts no-one, but there is always one thing that keeps her grounded and that is her ballet. When Cubas eyes strayed from the pitch to the window above, he was taken aback by the beauty of the dancer that he could see practicing; he was captivated, so much so he got sacked and never lived it down. He was enamoured with the ballerina and he had to get to know her better. Cuba had never had to chase before, girls just flung themselves at him, but he always knew Dovey would be different and she made him wait, he had to pull all the stops out just to convince Dovey that this was not one of his usual conquests. Slowly but surely Cuba reveals the real man underneath the faade and once he emerges you see him in a totally different light. He realises he has fallen, so does Dovey, but can Cuba be the man she deserves or will it all blow up in their face. Can he be that man or will fate have other ideas? This is a long and bumpy road but will they be strong enough to survive? Is this really a Cinderella style fairy tale whereby the poor little girl nabs the fit rich guy? There are many obstacles to overcome but can love pull them through? Will it be enough and more importantly will they realise before it is too late? Dont you see whats going on? Dovey, we dont need sleepbecause we are falling in love. This book is emotional, with two very guarded people. These two made me mad at times, Doveys pride made her make some really awful decisions but while I understood, they didnt make them any easier to swallow. She had friends that were willing to help, but she would rather just deal. Cuba hid behind his reputation; he needed help in a different way, but would never let anyone see. Dovey got to see glimpses but as soon as they flickered, he doused them. This is a book about love, redemption, forgiveness and survival. Emotional and heart breaking yet maddening at times Isla Madden-Mills manages to evoke through words a plethora of emotions that will leave you tearful and mindful. This book is extremely thought provoking, to what lengths would you go to, to protect the ones you love? If you finally found that you loved someone with all your heart and yet felt that you didnt deserve that love, what lengths would you go to, to protect them and yourself? While infuriating at times, I was hooked from the first till last page and Cuba managed to wheedle his way into my heart, Dovey had her place there from the start. You cannot help but connect to these characters, you will champion them from the beginning and hope that despite the obstacles and crap that life puts your way that they will find their way through and realise that what they have is something precious and needs nurturing, they are soul mates, they share this connection that neither have ever felt before, it is powerful and consuming but it is theirs. Now it is up to them to grasp it and feed it. Yes, yes, yes. Someday. Totally loved this one and love this series, the characters from the first book do make an appearance although I would have loved to have learned more about Nora and Leo, but that is me being greedy. I cant wait to see who gets their story next, maybe Sebastian, maybe Spider? But whoever the lucky soul is, I will be there at the front waiting to read.

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