Jay Crownover

New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Jay Crownover returns with her most complicated hero yet, in the first book in the romantic suspense series The Breaking Point. Don’t be fooled. Don’t make excuses for me. I am not a good man. I’ve seen things no one should, done things no one should talk about. Honor and conscience have no place in my life. But I’ve fought and I’ve survived. I’ve had to. The first time I saw her dancing on that seedy stage in that second rate club, I felt my heart pulse for the first time. Keelyn Foster was too young, too vibrant for this place, and I knew in an instant that I would make her mine. But first I had to climb my way to the top. I had to have something more to offer her. I’m here now, money is no object and I have no equal. Except for her. She's disappeared. But don’t worry, I will find her and claim her. She will be mine. Like I said, don’t be fooled. I am not the devil in disguise... I’m the one standing front and center.

The Breaking Point

Honor

Lover of Romance 

This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.
 

  
    She was my endgame. She was what had given my life meaning, and now she was breathing that very essence back into me and it felt perfect. She was everything.
  




  First Impressions

Honor is the first book in the “Breaking Point’ series which is also connected to the “Welcome to the Point” series. I was growing my Libby library and I came across this audio that was available, and I instantly grabbed at the chance to read this one. This is an author I love reading and have really fallen behind on reading and this was the perfect chance to get back to her books,., What I have really admired from Jay Crownover is the way she writes edgy contemporary, it’s like the in-between genre between contemporary and dark romance. I wouldn’t call this dark romance but borderline it. From the first moments, I knew that this book would be a glorious one and I will be honest, this book has been on my GR Wishlist for years, I remember when this book was first released and I am not sure why I didn’t grab it up back then when this one was all the rage when it was first released, and now having read “Honor” I am having a moment of wondering why it took me so long to read this one *banging head against the wall in shame*. I will say that if you are fans of sexy alpha males, strong feisty heroines, and a second chance romance then this book will definitely work for you.


  
    She was so much more than freedom. She was Honor
  



  Summary

Our story begins with an introduction to the hero, Nassir, and his life growing up in the middle east, where he was used by everyone for their own causes and he found his way to escape that hell of a life to find his own life in the States. and he found his home in the Point and the one woman who had his heart and soul. He first met Keely when she was a stripper at a club and rescued her when she was attacked by an eager patron, and later saved her life when she was shot. Keelyn knew the moment that she met Nassir that what was between them was intense and real and it scared her, so she left her life in the point and the only home she had ever known and went to Denver to settle in a boring life that doesn’t bring her true satisfaction. But then Nassir comes back into her life and she realizes that her home has always been the Point with the one man who has always held her heart and now will go back to embrace his offer to be his partner in this sex club he wants to open as well as fighting for the love they have. But seducing the sexy but resistant Nassir won’t be as easy as she thinks, and with an enemy out to destroy everything Nassir has built, Keelyn will have her work cut out for her to fight for the man who deserves a life of passion and enduring love…


  
    I was born and bred to fight and never give up. The fight was in my bones. It was in every breath I exhaled. It was in every drop of blood that poured out of me and painted the soil.
  



  What I Loved

Honor was such a breathtaking book and held my heart captive from the first moment. The first was the author’s dedication to the innocent lives caught up in the religious war in the middle east and I knew from that dedication, that this book would be breathtaking and it definitely was!!! Definitely going to make one of the best books I have read this YEAR! I absolutely adored this story in every single way. We first get to see the type of life that Nassir grew up in and lived as a teenager and my heart just broke for him but to see him have the grit and determination to escape that life and find his own path was so beautiful. Nassir is such an alpha male, but with so many vulnerabilities that you just want to hug the male. We see his soft and caring side for Keelyn. He isn’t your typical alpha male either. He just wants Keelyn back in his life no matter what, he doesn’t go after her in a romantic relationship, he just wants her close to him, that any nearness to him is enough for him. Keelyn is a female that doesn’t give up without a fight. She knows that they have something strong and it’s worth fighting for. At first,? Nassir is resistant to pursuing anything romantic or sexual with her, but its Keelyn that uses every tool she knows to win Nassir over both his body and heart. The dynamic that we see between them was so unique in that it was the heroine that was doing the fighting in the relationship, but once Nassir falls and gives into her, he can’t let her go, and seeing his devotion and protectiveness became my catnip. He is such a bad boy and doesn’t apologize for it, but he also will fight to protect everything good in his life and wants to make the Point a place to cultivate people’s talents and Keelyn finds her passion in not just Nassir and being his business partner, but also finding her niche in the Point, and being a fairy godmother to those in need wanting a different life. The romance between Nassir and Keelyn is sexy, poignant and guaranteed to leave the reader on edge all the way through as it will capture your heart and deliver in depths and layers of delicious need.


  
    “These men we love . . .” She gave her head a little shake and a soft smile tilted up the edges of her mouth. “They should come with clear warning labels. Not that it would matter because our hearts wouldn’t pay attention anyway.”
  

  

  

  
    What I Struggled With
  

Nothing….this book was perfection for me!!


  The Narration

This was done in dual POV, and I really liked both of the narrators, they will bring heart and personality to the story and handled their accents of Nassir very well.


  
    Sometimes you have to burn it all, level it all to the ground, for something new to sprout out of the ashes.
  



  Overall View

I found Honor to be a sensually charged romance that speaks to the soul of need and exhilaration of the heart. It’s a story that captivated my attention from the beginning and tugged at my heartstrings in the most unexpected ways! AN EDGY FULFILLING GEM OF A READ!


  
    You aren’t in my world, you are at the center of it. You always have been.

Find this review and more at 
  kimberlyfaye reads.


Wow! What a book! First, I have to say that I must not've paid that much attention to the blurb/book title when I first saw it since Jay's an autobuy/autoread author, because I didn't realize Honor was the start of a new series. I thought it was another book in the Welcome to the Point series, but that's not the case. It's a spinoff that I suppose you could enjoy if you didn't have prior knowledge of Nassir, but I still recommend reading the other books just so you have the whole story. Regardless, color me intrigued by a number of the secondary characters. Second, I wasn't sure I could ever grow to like Nassir, but I was wrong. There's not true atonement for his past, but I got a deeper understanding of how he became the man he is.

Nassir isn't a good man. He's involved in the darkest, dirtiest, most dangerous parts of The Point. He's lurked in the background now for quite awhile and I've always found him intriguing, but I wasn't sure Jay would ever write a book for him. I'm so glad she did though. Antiheroes aren't always my favorite, but I'm willing to give them a chance. I'm so glad I did, too. He was a complicated man with really rough past, one that made him into the man he is, but there was something special about him. I can't quite put my finger on it — and I wouldn't tell you even if I did, because you need to figure him out on your own as you read — but, as I said above, I have a deeper understanding of him now and, yes, even an appreciation for him. Keelyn played a big part in that, too.

Neither Nassir or Keelyn are all brightness and light and good things. They're complex. It's really tough to describe how I felt about either of them. "Liked" isn't quite the right word. Appreciated might be closer, though there was some fondness after a time. One thing was clear though, these two were better together. They were meant to be together. I can't even begin to picture either of them with someone else. They took the good and the bad in each other and balanced it. They made each other better, stronger people. They would go to the ends of the Earth for the other. They would slay dragons (or, you know, other enemies) if the other was at risk. Theirs was an intense relationship and I enjoyed reading about it.

Honor was a great read. I was concerned going in that it might be too gritty, that I wouldn't connect with the characters, but I couldn't have been more wrong. I couldn't put this one down once I started reading. I breezed right through it, enjoying the suspense, romance and the (slightly unexpected) feels. I can't wait to see what's next in The Breaking Point series. I have some thoughts about pairings I'd like to see going forward, but I'm not going to put any of those out there just yet either. There's more story to tell and I can't wait to see how Jay does it.

I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

FAVORITE QUOTES


  I was a man born into a fight for things I didn't understand, things that held no value to me even as I grew into adulthood. 

I wanted to be a man, not a weapon. 

There had been good men and bad men in my past. There had been men I wanted to stay longer than they did and ones I couldn't get rid of fast enough, but in the background there was always Nassir... always. I couldn't escape his pull and not even time and distance had done anything to stop the irresistible attraction I felt toward him. 

"If you're going back to a place that puts bullets in you and to a man that you can't stay away from, then don't settle for anything." 

"You're the opposite of a good man, Nassir, but that doesn't mean you aren't my man." 

"You kiss better than most men fuck." 

"These men we love... they should come with clear warning labels. Not that it would matter because our hearts wouldn't pay attention anyway."

Honor The Breaking Point

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