REVIEW: Real Ugly and Get Bent by CM Stunich

Real Ugly is about swearing, sex, and drugs.

Oh, and rock and roll.

And murders.

And stabbing people to death.

And shitty fucking foster homes, and worthless lead singers who screw anything that moves, and band mates that make you want to choke the shit out of them.

And throw in a few crazies from your deep dark past and some haunting memories of your first love and you’re got a real ugly story.

And it totally works.

Naomi Knox has a past she’s tried real hard to forget.  She’s a kick-ass guitarist for a kick-ass band, she’s on tour with a big name headliner, she’s got no boyfriend to tie her down, and she’s doing what she loves.

Some would say that’s about as good as it gets in life. But Naomi is about as cynical as they come.  She keeps the world at arm’s length, no one gets close, she’s wears her anger in her fists, and she swings first and asks questions later.

She’s one tough bitch and she holds onto the fact that she’s in control of her life. But everything Naomi has built over the years is about to be ripped apart because her deepest darkest secret is suddenly right in her face.

Turner Campbell is the world’s biggest dick. He’s a rock star who’s been working his ass off to make it for a very long time, and now that his dream is just about to peak, the shit starts hitting the fan. But this Naomi chick is triggering a memory with him. He’s sure he knows her and for some reason he’s drawn to this girl even though she hates his guts.

This book is the first is a series that is a cross between a romantic suspense and a romantic mystery.  Who is threatening Naomi?  That’s the big question, the mystery.  But the real attraction in this book are the characters.  Like ALL of CM Stunich’s books that I’ve read, who gives a fuck about the plot, I’m in it to see how the characters react to the conflict.

But the good thing is, the plot always kicks ass too.  So you get well developed first rate characters and a totally original story at the same time.

I like the twisty stuff and you don’t find that a lot in new adult books these days.  Most of them are very predictable.  This series is about rockers, and yea, that trope is as old as dirt. But it’s the way it’s done that makes it rise above the rest.

CM Stunich pulls no punches – not with the music, not with the emotions, not with the swearing or sex or drugs.  It’s all real. Ugly.

So if that’s your kind of book, you’re gonna love this one.  Fair warning, the ending of this first book is a wicked cliffhanger, but book two is out now, so you have no worries.

Naomi Knox is missing.
I don’t even f*cking know whether she’s dead or alive.
What I do know is that she’s the air I need to breathe.
She’s my redemption, an all consuming fire that burns in my blood.
And I’ll do anything to find her. Anything. Even if it means the end for me.

***

Turner Campbell is searching.
But he has no f*cking clue what it is he’s searching for.
There’s darkness all around and enough secrets to choke.
There are angels, and there are devils. It’s impossible to tell them apart.
Light needs to be shone on the truth, but there’s no one left to hold the torch. The line between life and death is blurred, and the players are all thoroughly entrenched in the game. The question is: am I still one of them?

REVIEW

Get bent picks up immediately after the cliffhanger ending of Real Ugly.  Turner Campbell is a fucking mess.  Just utter and complete mess.  

He’s desperate, he’s shooting meth in the tour bus bathroom, he’s just not coping well.

Like at all.

Since Naomi’s band is in shambles Turner takes it upon himself to keep it going while on tour by playing Naomi’s guitar and singing for the girl he calls “Skinny bitch” all because it keeps his faith alive.  It keeps him going because Turner Campbell is a man on the freaking edge. He loves this girl, he proclaims his love for Naomi on stage, and he’s in deep.

Normally I’m weird about drugs in a book.  Sometimes I really – LIKE REALLY – cannot stand characters who do drugs.  But for some reason, even though I cringed when Turner was mainlining meth – I mean, shit man, that’s just trailer park right there. It didn’t make me feel that way.  Partly because I knew that he knew it was dirty.  I had faith in Turner to let that shit go.  And he did not disappoint.

I can’t say too much more about this book because it’s all spoilers and I don’t want to ruin it for you. But if you enjoy a mystery (yes, the mystery is even more pronounced in this installment), a really fucked up couple trying to find their way back into love, rock and roll, and real, honest characters with an original plot – this is your series.  I highly recommend it.