Asa - Review

Asa (Marked Men, # 6)

By: Jay Crownover

Published: April 21st 2015 by Harper Collins

416 pages

Genre: New Adult, Contemporary

Source: Personal Kindle Library

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Goodreads description--Jay Crownover’s New York Times and USA Today bestselling Marked Men series continues with the much anticipated story of southern charmer and certified criminal Asa Cross.

Starting over in Denver with a whole new circle of friends and family, Asa Cross struggles with being the man he knows everyone wants him to be and the man he knows he really is. A leopard doesn’t it change its spots and Asa has always been a predator. He doesn’t want to hurt those who love and rely on him, especially one luscious arresting cop who suddenly seems to be interested in him for far more than his penchant for breaking the law. But letting go of old habits is hard, and it’s easy to hit bottom when it’s the place you know best.

Royal Hastings is quickly learning what the bottom looks like after a tragic situation at work threatens not only her career but her partner’s life. As a woman who has only ever had a few real friends she’s trying to muddle through her confusion and devastation all alone. Except she can’t stop thinking about the sexy southern bartender she locked up. Crushing on Asa is the last thing she needs but his allure is too strong to resist. His long criminal record can only hurt her already shaky career and chasing after a guy who has no respect for the law or himself can only end in heartbreak.

A longtime criminal and a cop together just seems so wrong . . . but for Asa and Royal, being wrong together is the only right choice to make.

Asa is the last of the Marked Men series. It’s a sad day. BUT, Jay Crownover is writing a spinoff series called The Saints of Denver. YAY! I feel like the description of Asa above is kind of deceptive. Asa is struggling with who he is. He still feels like the same guy he was before, the criminal, the scam artist. People keep telling him that he’s changed, but he doesn’t see it. He’s trying to be good. But deep down he feels like he’s going to slip up eventually. And truthfully, I expected him to slip up or at least be tempted with a bit more than he was. But everyone else was right, deep down, he really has changed.

Also, Royal’s part of the description was a bit deceptive. She can’t stop thinking about Asa because she feels like he’d be the perfect distraction for her having to process and deal with the guilt she feels over her partner getting injured on duty. Royal really just wants a one night stand with Asa—at first. And Asa nails it on the head that in some ways, Royal wants this as a punishment to herself, not because she actually wants him. And this is something that I struggled with. I’m tired of new adult books that start with a physical/sexual attraction only. I would have really hoped that Asa and Royal could have delved into some emotional stuff before going there physically.

I was trucking along and enjoying Asa but I predicted several things pretty early on. And then of course I get to about the 70% mark and stupidity enters the picture. The conflict seemed so….easily fixable and easily avoidable. I think this is a trap that new adult books fall into often. There has to be something for the couple to overcome so the smallest things are turned into these huge issues that could easily be addressed or even avoided altogether. Throw in that Royal’s partner and best friend turns out to be gay, and now I’m officially rolling my eyes. Come on guys! Is it no longer possible for a boy and a girl to be best friends without one of them ending up gay?

Favorite quotes:

-“Every time I can’t seem to figure out where I’m going lately I always end up wherever you are.”

-I didn’t remember easy feeling so suffocating.

-There was always something appealing about a man that looked like he could take care of business, no matter what that business might be.

Asa had some frustrations for me. It was a book that I finished in two days, so it was an easy read. I didn’t spend too much time overanalyzing this one because I was in the mood for light, fast, and fun, even if I knew it would have some things that would make me roll my eyes. In the end, Asa gets 3.5 Stars. Have you read Asa? What did you think? Let me know!