Seeing Red blog tour: review & two giveaways
Hello and welcome to our stop on the Seeing Red blog tour hosted by AToMR Blog Tours. We have our review and there are two giveaways to enter.
Seeing Red by Sidney Halston
Adult Contemporary Romance
Paperback, 397 pages
Published Febuary 15, 2013 by Sidney Halston
Purchase: Amazon | Barnes & Noble
A love triangle just wouldn't suffice; Jillian Stone had the 'misfortune' of getting herself into a love square--with twins, nonetheless.
Alexander, Oliver, and Jillian were raised on a deserted island. For 12 years, all they knew were those that were marooned with them. A strong bond would link them forever. At 12 years old, they are all rescued and clairvoyant Jillian is immediately shipped off to boarding school. Ten years later, she is reunited with her twins at the funeral of Helen, the woman who “mothered” them while on the island. The innocent and childhood feelings they shared on the island...well, they aren’t so innocent anymore. Her scrawny gangly twins are now grown men. Oliver, the ever-loyal friend and Alexander the ultimate bad-boy, have her heart in a tug-a-war.
Enter, mysteriously sexy Professor Paul Black. He’s Jillian’s law school professor and she has caught his attention, albeit inappropriate. All the while, Jillian’s clairvoyance is wreaking havoc on her life as visions of a redheaded man are becoming all consuming. The dangerous man in her visions is searching for her and has a big secret to share with her about her time on the island as well as about her psychic abilities. Scared for her life, all three men try to protect her, but she must chose one in order to focus on the problem at hand—the redheaded man’s secret.
Seeing Red is a romance with some paranormal elements and some suspense and a lot of sexual tension.
About the Author
Sidney Halston
Sidney Halston lives her life with one simple rule: “The secret of getting ahead is getting started.”–Mark Twain. Or even simpler, “Just Do It”—Nike.
And that’s exactly what she did. After working hard as an attorney, Sidney picked up a pen for the first time at thirty years old to begin her dream of writing. Having never written anything other than very exciting legal briefs, she found an outlet for her imaginative romantic side and wrote Seeing Red.That first pen stroke sealed the deal, and she fell in love with writing.
Sidney lives in South Florida with her husband and children. She loves her family above all else, and reading follows a close second. When she’s not writing you can find her reading and reading and reading. She’s a reader first and a writer second.
When she’s not writing or reading, her life is complete and utter chaos, trying to balance family life with work and writing (and reading). But she wouldn’t have it any other way.
Seeing Red is certainly an interesting read. One red-headed graduate student named Jillian, two twin brothers who love her, one professor who claims to love her and then there's Jillian's psychic visions and the mysterious red-haired man. Law school is certainly not boring.
Jillian is a likable character even when her indecision about guys could frustrate even the most patient of readers. She has a unique past with the twins since they were stranded on an island as infants after the plane they were on crashed. They grew up calling that island home for twelve years until they were rescued and Jillian was sent to boarding school. Oliver is her "rock" with the ability to calm and soothe her where as his brother, Alexander, has quite the opposite effect. When he's with Jillian they wind up arguing, competing, and getting on everyone else's nerves. The story jumps between parts of time from the journal of their "mother" Helen after the crash to her funeral where the trio of friends reunite after seven years apart to four years later.
I didn't mind the time passages. The yo-yo effect of Jillian liking one brother over the other did come across as repetitive at times and some scenes needed to be tightened. I also questioned Jillian's allowance of Professor Paul Black (her third boyfriend) to treat her with such varying displays of temperament (from demanding and controlling to sweet to short-tempered). This part of the story still doesn't click for me and her dating him was strange. As someone preparing for a career in law, she was too naive though her good nature was what endeared her to me. All three lead characters had their own point-of-view and still they didn't come across as fully dimensional for me. The dialogue sounded unrealistic at times, especially during an argument characters would say too much and sound long-winded.
The closeness of the three friends was touching and we are privy to flashbacks. Since they were the only remaining family for each other, the way they protected each other was poignant (even when Alex wasn't around at times due to his drug and drinking). Alex does change after Jillian implores him to but he then has to convince her his actions are true. When he shows up at Georgetown with the same exact schedule as hers, I was glad to see his character maturing. Oliver was always solid, dependable, and nice to her so deciding on which brother she should choose was difficult until one particular hospital scene. The question of loving someone as opposed to being in love raised and created an interesting dynamic. I wasn't crazy about the cliffhanging ending and suppose this is a series. The psychic part of the novel held my interest and gave the story some added charm.
All in all, I enjoyed Seeing Red. With some tightening of scenes, this contemporary offers readers a zany love triangle and a mystery to solve.
Rating: 3
Cover comment:
I find the cover bland and is better situated for a hairstyle magazine.
Book source:
I received a promotional copy in return for my honest review.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
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