REVIEW: BEYOND JEALOUSY by KIT ROCHA

Series: Beyond #4

Genre: Dystopian/Erotic Romance

Publisher: Moira Rogers

Publication Date: 3/17/14

Format: eARC

Source: Author

Rating:

 

She’s been looking for the perfect man. She found two. When Rachel Riley sacrificed a life in Eden to protect the O’Kanes, she earned her place in the powerful Sector Four gang. But the former crime princess is tired of being everyone’s sweet little sister . It’s time for her to get wild, to embrace her fantasies as only an O’Kane can—with a delicious exiled soldier and the gang’s wickedly sinful tattoo artist.

A saint...

Lorenzo Cruz is a warrior, taught by his commanding officers in Eden that involvement equals distraction. Emotion is a liability, and desire a sin. In Sector Four, he finds decadence, shameless sex—and his own dark urges. No battle strategy prepared him for how Rachel makes his heart race…or the way his rival for her affections sets his blood on fire.

...and a sinner.

Ace Santana has a dirty reputation and a mind to match, especially where his new lovers are concerned. He’s eager to help Cruz embrace his dominant side, and to explore the lines between pleasure and pain with Rachel. But corrupting them quickly becomes an obsession, a need he can’t deny—and a love he never imagined.

Three hearts on the line means a hundred ways their ménage a trois could go wrong. After all, even O’Kanes do forever two-by-two. One of them could be the missing piece that makes them all whole…or a temporary diversion destined for a broken heart.

 

 

 

I know a lot of readers will see this and think "A triad. Ewww." And I respect that opinion. I genuinely do like reading about them, though I've never known anyone who's tried it in the real world. Sometimes the relationships seem forced, with a set-up that's hard to get behind. In this case, though, the relationship between Rachel, Ace, and Cruz developed very organically and very slowly. I never felt as if any of the participants were manipulative or manipulating. All three were complete equals, no one was left out emotionally or physically. I think a lot of the easy acceptance is due to the world the characters live in. The world is harsh and so much of the happiness is truly hard-earned. Being an O'Kane is about being family no matter what. Sexual freedom is embraced; love is embraced in any form.

Each of the three has his/her hang-ups. Ace is the charmer of the O'Kanes. He's the hottest tattoo artist out there, a sweet guy who can be so very wicked. He's lovable, totally squishable and walking sex. But behind his smiles is a guy with a metric crap-ton of baggage. An orphan at a young age, Ace's only gather figure was the man who took him off the street, his pimp. Until he met Rachel, no one had truly wanted to see him, be with him. Not knowing how to love, Ace pushed her away. When things with Rachel, Cruz and him heats up, Ace is all-in, but assumes the other two will eventually tire of him.

As for Rachel, she was brought in as a deal between her dad and Dallas, to keep her family safe. That's given Rachel as sense of not belonging in some ways, though she is truly an O'Kane. Since Ace broke her heart back in book one, Rachel's made an effort to break out of her shell and has undergone a huge sexual awakening (her big moment in Beyond Pain was, WHOA.) But just as Ace feels on the outside, so does Rachel. He and Cruz developed a really close friendship that slowly turned to more, and she wonders if there will always be room for her. And she fears that Ace will break her heart, and Cruz's, again.

And Cruz; he's the least-known of the three. He was raised to be the ultimate soldier, and is still adjusting to life in Sector Four. He's trying to shake off the "values" of Eden, which is part of the reason he and Rachel didn't really work out. He also is struggling with his feelings for another man, knows about Rachel and Ace's history and fears he'll be shut out by their love for each other.

So what we have is three complicated characters in the trickiest of romantic entanglement, all fearing heartbreak, all protecting the others. Making it work will require ultimate trust and honesty.

Okay, serious business aside. Beyond Jealousy was so damn hot. I mean, I'm not even a little bit surprised, given how much I've loved all the books leading up to this, but yet, I am surprised. It's weird because, sometimes I feel the extremely erotic books I read can be a bit sleazy (btw, no judging here, I handle reading sleazy very well) but no matter how hardcore this or any of the books get, I didn't feel anything but excited and happy. The sex is extremely hot and can be graphic, yet each scene works to progress the relationship and develop the intimacy and trust. Kit Rocha really knows how to work it out.

As the series progresses, I am still loving how the Beyond world continues to develop. Each book gives more and more details about how the world went dark, how the areas divided and developed, and how precarious it all still is. Delicate, brutal politics between the sectors and Eden comes into play here, and I keep feeling we're inching closer to a huge event.

And the ending....so good. I will say the the central arc of the Rachel/Ace/Cruz relationship isn't left hanging, and though I'm never 100% sure about the longevity of a triad, I do believe Rocha sold it. (which honestly, if you consider how many traditional relationships work out, it gives a little more perspective) But while that story is pretty nicely wrapped, we do get a bit of a shocking ending; not so much a cliffhanger as it is a huge lead-in to book five, Beyond Addiction.

Wildly sexy, intense, and imaginative, Beyond Jealousy is a great addition to the series.

 

Favorite Quotes

 

  Because whatever was going on between him and Rachel and Cruz hurt like hell, but the pain was a pinprick compared to the satisfaction when Cruz growled his name or Rachel whimpered it.

  If he could just figure out a way for both of them to do it at the same time, they could tear his heart out of his chest and burn it to ash, and he'd still go to hell happy.

 

 

  Separately, the two men drove her crazy, twisted her into knots of longing and thwarted desire. But together--

  Together, they'd give her everything.

 

 

  Fuck that life. Fuck those lies, the denial and shame. With Rachel curled trustingly against him, Cruz let go of the last little bits of Eden clinging to him, wrapped a hand around the back of Ace's head, and pulled him in for a slow, tongue-tangling kiss.

 

 

  Dallas O'Kane had patience...until he didn't. And then he burned shit to the ground.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Beyond Series

        

(covers lead to GoodReads page)

  

 

Purchase Links

Amazon  |  Barnes & Noble

 

 

My reviews of Beyond #1-3.5

 

About the author

Kit Rocha is actually two people—Bree & Donna, best friends who are living the dream. They get paid to work in their pajamas, talk on the phone, and write down all the stories they used to make up in their heads.

Beyond Shame was their first dystopian erotic romance. They also write paranormal romance as Moira Rogers. You can find them on the web at the following places:

 

 Website (Kit Rocha) |  Website (Moira Rogers)  |  Facebook  |  Twitter (Announcements)  | 

Twitter (Bree)  |  Twitter (Donna)