Series: Runaway Train
Author: Katie Ashley
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: March 24, 2013
Blurb:
For Abby Renard, the plan was supposed to be simple—join her brothers’ band on the last leg of their summer tour and decide if she’s finally ready for the limelight by becoming its fourth member. Of course, she never imagined stumbling onto the wrong tour bus at Rock Nation would accidentally land her in the bed of Jake Slater, the notorious womanizing lead singer of Runaway Train. When he mistakes her for one of his groupie’s, Abby quickly lets him know she sure as hell isn't in his bed on purpose.
Jake Slater never imagined the angel who fell into his bed would resist his charms by promptly kneeing him in the balls. Of course, the fact she seems like a prissy choir girl makes her anything but his type. So he is more than surprised when after betting Abby she wouldn’t last a week on their tour bus, she is more than willing to prove him wrong. But as Jake’s personal life begins to implode around him, he finds an unlikely ally in Abby. He’s never met a woman he can talk to, joke with, or most importantly make music with.
As the week starts comes to a close, neither Abby nor Jake is ready to let go. Can a sweetheart Country songstress and a bad boy of Rock N Roll actually have a future together?
How about that cover? YUMMY, right? I definitely thought so; however, the saying "don't judge a book by its cover" can go both ways. I'm always looking for a new series centering around a bad boy Rock God and a woman worthy of his unfettered attention. When I found this one on Amazon along with an average rating of 4 stars, I thought I'd found my next obsession. I never like saying I'm wrong, but on occasion, it's a must. And Music of the Heart just wasn't for me. At all.
Sure Jake Slater started out the book being all sexy with all his flirtations and his alpha male ego. His manipulating of Abby to stay on their bus for a week instead of running to her brothers' band where she was supposed to be provided a ton of potential.
Abby was supposed to spend a week touring with her brothers' band, Jacob's Latter - a Christian rock band, so she could decide whether or not she wanted to live her life in the limelight. Instead, she accidentally finds herself on Runaway Train's bus, in Jake Slater's bed to be exact. Jake is the womanizing lead singer of this hard rock band, and Abby landing in his bed would be the beginning of his metamorphosis into an upstanding one-woman man. And now the problems begin.
My first and, by far, largest complaint was the feeling of being preached to. I get Abby grew up in a conservative Christian household, but she spent the first half of the novel preaching to this group of bad boys about how they should treat a woman. How they should act like gentleman, not make sexual innuendos, etc. Essentially her goal was to change these men, make them into something they weren't. And not just Jake, but Rhys and AJ also. Brayden was married and loved his wife and children very much so, in Abby's eyes, he didn't need to change.
Now, I understand the idea of these books is to take a womanizing rock star and win his loyalty, but it's been my experience that most of these women want the guy for who he is. They have no desire to change his personality, only his promiscuous ways. And any woman in her right mind KNOWS better than to try to change a man.
Secondly, nothing about Jake and Abby's relationship was believable. She forgave every mistake, small or large, the minute he said "I'm sorry." Sure, some slip-ups can be forgiven that easily, but bringing another girl on the bus to purposefully hurt someone you love, no. Running after having a heated make out session with the love of your life. No. Ranting at said girl, telling her the only reason she loves you is because you are Jake Fucking Slater and kicking her out of your house when she's there to comfort you. Hell no. But Abby just let everything slide.
My final point is the numerous plot holes. Jacob's Latter, the band Abby was supposed to tour with, played such a small part in the book, I almost wondered why they were even there. Then Garrett, a singer from another band in which Abby sang a duet with, played no part in the book. He was a trope to play at Jake's jealousy, but forgotten within a page or two. For womanizing rock stars, we never see AJ or Rhys in action. In fact, other than Abby, Brayden's wife is the only other female the guys from Runaway Train even converse with. AJ was humorous, and out of all the characters, he was definitely the best written.
Also, one of my biggest pet peeves is repetition, and wow!!! The repetition in this book knows no bounds.
I will not be continuing on with this series, but I've heard great things about Katie's other works and will most likely give one of them a try. I sincerely hate having so little positive things to say about a book, but on the bright side I finished it. Mostly to see if there would be some kind of lesson about trying to change a man and how absolutely wrong that plan could go.
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