Name: Jodie Reads's review of Better When He's Bad by Jay Crownover
Item: Better When He's Bad
Rating: 3.5
Author: Jodie Reads

Jay Crownover

New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jay Crownover returns with a heart-stopping new series… Welcome to the Point. There’s a difference between a bad boy and a boy who’s bad . . . meet Shane Baxter. Sexy, dark, and dangerous, Bax isn’t just from the wrong side of the tracks, he is the wrong side of the tracks. A criminal, a thug, and a brawler, he’s the master of bad choices, until one such choice landed him in prison for five years. Now Bax is out and looking for answers, and he doesn’t care what he has to do or who he has to hurt to get them. But there’s a new player in the game, and she’s much too innocent, much too soft…and standing directly in his way. Dovie Pryce knows all about living a hard life and the tough choices that come with it. She’s always tried to be good, tried to help others, and tried not to let the darkness pull her down. But the streets are fighting back, things have gone from bad to worse, and the only person who can help her is the scariest, sexiest, most complicated ex-con The Point has ever produced. Bax terrifies her, awakening feelings she never thought she’d have for a guy like him. But it doesn’t take Dovie long to realize . . . some boys are just better when they’re bad.

A Welcome to the Point Novel

Better When He's Bad

Jodie Reads

The book is annoying sometimes, especially when she forgives him so easily

Lover of Romance 

This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance 
  
    
  
  
    Summary 
  
 
Bax is not only a bad boy, but is truly bad. He has just spend five years in prison, because of a bad choice he made and was practically set up. Now he is in search for the truth and some answers that he deserves. Bax doesn't apologize for the choices he has had to make for the life he was chosen and born into, a world where he had to learn to survive at a young age. He doesn't have many friends, but there is one man he considers his best friend, who has disappeared. On his search he discovers that Race has a sister, a sister who is too good for this life and most especially way to sweet and innocent for Bax.However, Dovie's life is in danger and with her brother in danger, Bax will protect her, but as they search for her brother, the chemistry between them builds and for the first time in his life, Bax learns what it means to love and to fight for something good instead of something bad...
 
  
    The Hero 
  
 
Shane Baxter, was raised into a rough life of tough choices. He became a criminal, a thief, a racer and picked a fight wherever he could. He always knows the ins and outs of being the biggest bad boy alive. All Shane was raised in was the worst of the worst, and had to fight to survive. Bax has so many hard edges, but there is more to him than meets the eye. Baxter is in a tough spot, practically trapped in the circumstances he was raised in and has no clue how to escape the life that has molded him. Bax is such a bad boy, but you see that there is such good in him and at first it comes out in very small ways but through the story we see the true heart of him and loved seeing him change and realize he wasn't what he was born into, that he could be good when he needed to be.
 
  "You made me feel like I was the king in a land of second chances"
 
 
  
    The Heroine 
  
 
Dovie Pryce hasn't had it easy either. She was born into the same life but somehow all the bad that entered her life didn't make her into a criminal and wanting to make bad choices. She still came out as innocent and good hearted and wanting to help others. I loved her sincerity and her heart and devotion to those that she loves. But having been raised in the life she has, she also is understanding of the life and those that live it. I love how she rises above the tough circumstances she grew up with to want to help others and better herself.
 
  "I had been around long enough in the worst parts of town to know the difference between a bad boy and a boy who was just bad"
 
 
  
    Plot and Story Line 
  
 
Better When He's Bad, was a fantastic and emotionally warped romance that suckered me right in. Now I have such a weakness for bad boys, but this story rises to a whole new level in some unique ways. We are introduced to a place, an area that is full of crime but also of some good people stuck in some tough spots. I am so glad that I finally took a chance on this author and really liked the twists and thrills that she brings to us with this book. It is pretty intense in spots and really keep you at the edge here.
 
  
    
      “Are you scared of me?” His voice was scratchy.

I met his gaze steadily in the glass. “Terrified.”

His chin dipped in a little nod of acknowledgement. “Do you trust me?”

“No.”

I saw a shadow flit across that midnight gaze. He lifted a knuckle and rubbed at the blood smeared across his face. “You going to bed with me?”

I sucked in a hard breath through my nose. I wanted to look away but he wouldn’t let me.

“Probably.”
    
  
 
Both of our characters are working together. Our hero is the king of Bad Boys, and our heroine has a soft spot for them but still has such a good heart and she gets to Bax. Bax doesn't react to women emotionally until he meets Dovie. I really liked seeing the change in him, and its a slow change and he still remains a bad boy, but he also fights for something more than just existing and surviving. I really found these two so good for each other and really make a great team. There are some wild moments, smexy moments, thrilling moments and tender and poignant moments.
 
  "I think my reward is happiness, and I can't be happy without him, so my reward is living in a place where that happens."
 
And this book really works your emotions and Crownover wrote such a beautifully dark romance that keep you going and searching for more...
 
  
    The Cover 
  
 
oh I really like this cover...the tats here are just beautiful after reading this book, it definitely connects to the story in a real way. So I always love it when cover artist pay attention to certain details.
 
  Overall View 
 
Better When He's Bad is a truly tough and stimulating romance that gives you all the feels and battles that finding love brings to two people....a bad romance to fall head over heels for!!
 
  
    
  
  Click To Buy On Amazon 
 
[foogallery id="26631"]

Megan Williams

This book is absolutely amazing! I was unsure at first if this was the book for me because of how Jay Crownover describes it. She says that this is a book where the "good" guy isn't that good. Instead he is a man that just got out of jail and is looking for revenge. Now, I have to admit that I like to read about dark men, but I wasn't sure if I wanted to reach this level. I like something redeemable in my favorite male leads, and this book seemed to not be a able to give me that. Or so I thought from the description of this book. 

Yet, throughout the book I was proven wrong again and again. Bax is the nitty gritty toughest character I've had the pleasure to read about. He was so real and strong, yet I couldn't help sometimes despise him because he was so hard. Everything about Bax screamed heartless heartthrob, which was such a contradiction that I grew to have this love/hate relationship with him. 

-Sexy, dark, and dangerous, Bax isn't just from the wrong side of the tracks, he is the wrong side of the tracks. A criminal, a thug, and a brawler, he’s the master of bad choices, until one such choice landed him in prison for five years.-

This description fits him perfectly, even if it doesn't tell the whole story.

Dovie was a character that I grew to like pretty quickly. She definitely didn't fit into Bax's world but it was mostly because she was mostly innocent in worldly things. One thing I really admired about her character was her willingness to go above and beyond for those she loved. When push came to shove, she was right there with Bax and willing to do whatever it took to protect those she cared about.

Overall, this book was an emotional roller coaster that will chew you up and then spit you out! The perfect book for those who are looking for a book to take you on an adventure in the darkest parts of the city and show you the world right under your nose. Truly a masterpiece.

Find this review and more at 
  kimberlyfaye reads
.

Though I don't read a lot of dark stories, I have been known to partake in some grittier reads every now and then. Better When He's Bad was one of my most highly anticipated books of spring because it was written by Jay Crownover. I know how well Jay writes pierced and tattooed bad boys with hearts of gold, but I couldn't wait to see how she handled a darker story with a guy who truly was bad. Better When He's Bad had a very different feel than any of the other of Jay's books that I've read and I enjoyed it nearly as much as the others. I feel like this is going to be more of a ramble than a review, so bear with me. 

To call Bax a complicated character would be an understatement. He was sexy, tattooed and trouble with a capital T. An ex-convict who has spent his life on the wrong side of the tracks, with the wrong friends and the wrong women, Bax wasn't looking for redemption. He wasn't looking for love. I knew before I started the book that he wouldn't be the totally swoonworthy book boyfriend type. I expected some amount of redemption for his past and I had a pretty good feeling I'd be in for some seriously sexy scenes because he just seemed like the type to ooze sex appeal. I wasn't wrong about any of this. I just didn't know how deeply his story and his sacrifices would affect me. 

Dovie was the complete opposite of Bax in so many ways. The only things they truly had in common was that they both grew up in The Point and they both loved Race and they wanted to save him. Where Bax was hard and cold, Dovie was light and thoughtful. She truly was a good girl. She was also incredibly strong and determined. If you're looking for a book with a smart and tough heroine, you've found it. 

There was no insta-love or even insta-lust between Dovie and Bax. Dovie was far from Bax's type and he wasn't at all impressed. Dovie knew guys like Bax would be nothing but trouble and she didn't have time for it. Somewhere, however, along the way, they found a way to come together against the streets they were fighting. Bax protected Dovie and Dove humanized him. Once the sexual chemistry began to build between them, I knew it was all over. And you want to talk about some HOT scenes? This book has them. Holy hell. I was hiding my iPad from my fellow passengers because I was afraid they'd see the dirty talk and judge me. Let me tell you, Bax does dirty talk well. But these two shared more than just hot times in bed (ahem, and other places). The built something very real, even if neither of them was willing to admit it. 

There was more than a little mystery to this book, too. There were a lot of questions to be answered and Jay did a fantastic job with this complex plot and these characters. I thought the book was well-paced. I read the majority of it during a flight and had a really difficult time sitting it down when it was time to get off the plane. I had no idea what path the story would take and couldn't have predicted it all had I tried. I truthfully didn't expect to get emotional over this book, but I can't deny that I spent a good portion of my flight home with tears in my eyes as I finished the book. 

Bax and Dovie both undergo quite a transformation during this book. There's no way they couldn't have with all they'd seen and done. But what I loved most about it was that their transformations seemed so authentic. Nothing was forced or unrealistic. Love does have the power to change and it did indeed change both of them. This book shows that sometimes the last person you think you need can end up being the best thing to ever happen to you, even if the road is rough. 

There were several scenes in this book that were so powerful and tense that they took my breath away. I wasn't kidding when I said I read portions of the last part of the book while trying to keep tears from streaming down my face in public. Had I been reading at home, I'd have probably given in to the emotions and had a good hard, ugly cry while I read those scenes. 

Jay has a great blurb at the end of this book about why the Welcome to the Point series won't have a playlist. In it she explains how the sound track to this series is the sound of the streets and that The Point is as much of a character in this story as the people who live there are. I actually got chills when I read this. Jay did a fantastic job of giving life to The Point during this book. The Point is unlike any place I've ever experienced in my life – or any place I ever want to – but it was so well explained in such detail, I was able to see, hear and feel it for myself. I felt like I was living it right along with the characters. I'm beyond intrigued by these characters and their stories, and The Point itself. Oh, and the teaser for Better When He's Bold at the end of this book? Holy crap. I'm completely hooked and I need more of this story ASAP. 

I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

In New York Times and USA Today bestselling author Jay Crownover’s third novel in her sexy, thrilling Welcome to the Point series, a woman’s search for repentance leads her to the one man from her past she can’t forget as they join forces to save their city—and the explosive love neither can live without. Titus King sees the world in black and white. Right and wrong. Which is why as a teenager he left behind the only family he’d ever known to make a better life for himself. Now a police detective in one of the worst cities in the country, he can’t deny his life has turned into a million different shades of gray. The new criminal element in The Point has brought vengeance and destruction right to Titus’s front door, and the difference between right and wrong is nothing compared to keeping those he loves alive. To add to his already strained moral compass, the beautiful and mysterious Reeve Black has made her way back to town, and she might be as dangerous to Titus as the guy trying to destroy the Point because he needs her—in more ways than one. Reeve knows all about how ruthless this new threat to destroy The Point can be… and instead of running away, she wants to help. She has a lot to repent for and saving the city, plus the hot cop that she hasn’t been able to forget might just be the only way she can finally find some inner peace. With an entire city poised on the brink of war, Titus and Reeve stand in the crossfire—and it will take two brave souls to fight for the ultimate love.

Better When He's Brave

Find this review and more at 
  kimberlyfaye reads
.

I've been a fan of Jay's books since I first picked up Rule years ago. I loved each and every one of her Marked Men (and their ladies!) so I was thrilled when she announced she would be writing another, grittier series. Welcome to the Point isn't the type of book I read often, but I always seem to enjoy them when I do. This was no exception. 

Better When He's Brave sucked me in from the very beginning because HOLY CRAP that prologue. Jay knows how to start a book off with a bang. I knew I was in for a book that would hold me captive until the very end and I anticipated several twists and turns along the way. I wasn't wrong. Not only did I love learning more about Titus and Reeve, but I loved their pairing (even though I wasn't sure I would). It was also fantastic to get more information about the underlying mystery that's run through the entire Point series so far. There were absolutely parts where I was, quite literally, on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next. Jay writes fantastic suspense. 

I really liked the characters in this book, too. I mean, I was already a Titus fan from the other books in the series, but spending so much time in his head made me like him even more. I loved that he was a complicated guy. There was so much more to him than met the eye. Nothing is black and white in The Point. Not even the law enforcement. What was surprising to me was how much Reeve grew on me during this book. Everyone deserves a second chance, but I was rather angry with her after the stunt she pulled in Better When He's Bad. I didn't know if I'd be able to get past that and want good things for her. But, I did. One thing I've found about this series is that everyone in The Point is doing what they need to survive it. It's not always pretty but you can't exactly blame them. (Or, most of them. Some are just plain despicable.) 

I thought this was a great addition to the Welcome to the Point series. I enjoyed the romance, the character growth and the action and suspense. I'm excited for the next book in the series. It will be interesting to see how she humanizes Nassir and find out how she will get me in his corner. :) 

I received a copy of this book from the publisher, via Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

Aja Correa

Krysten 

Trish

Tayla 

Stephanie czajko

Some men are just better when they're bold. Welcome to the Point . . . In a dark and broken kingdom, a ruler has to be fearless to control the streets and the ruthless people who run them. Race Hartman is just bold enough, just smart enough, and just lost enough to wear the crown. Places like the Point will always have bad things and bad people, but the man in control of all that badness can minimize the devastation. Race has a plan, but can he prevent total annihilation without destroying himself? Brysen Carter has always seen her best friend's brother for what he is—too pretty, too smooth, and way too dangerous to touch. Basking in Race's golden glow is very tempting, but Brysen knows she'd eventually get burned. When she starts receiving threatening texts and someone tries to take her out in the parking lot, the only person interested in keeping her safe is the one man she can't allow herself to have. Sometimes being bold is the only way to stay alive. But can she let Race save her life . . . if it means losing herself to him?

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Better When He's Bad by Jay Crownover

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