Carrie Butler

Original review posted: http://offbeatvagabond.blogspot.com/2013/03/review-giveaway-strength-mark-of-nex...

Strength is a story that follows a girl named Rena and her life in college. Rena is off to meet one of her best friends, Aiden. But she is afraid to since his next door neighbor is called the madman on campus. Every night the “madman” would scream and cause a raucous in his room. No one knows why, but people have made their own speculations. They think he is a killer or something. show more But after one day of accidentally bumping into the crazy guy, named Wallace, after also calling him crazy, Rena wants to know why people have called him crazy and takes the chance to get to know him. She quickly finds out that Wallace really isn't crazy. As a matter of fact, he is freaking perfect. But he does have one secret – he may not be human. And Rena may have stumbled into something she may not be prepared for.

Oh my goodness. I want the sequel like yesterday. I loooooooved this book so much. Everything fit just right for me. I loved Rena. She had me laughing and she had balls. She was stubborn and willing to do what she can to help people. I love how she never gives up on Wallace even though everyone was afraid of him. Even when she was in difficult situations, I never felt like she was a damsel in distress. She kept her head on straight and did all she could to save herself. I love this chick, she definitely has earned a spot on the “great kickass heroines” list.

And then we have Wallace. Oh God, Wallace. He is definitely one of my favorite book boyfriends. Oh my goodness, can I clone him somehow? He was sexy and sweet. He was hot, but he tried his best to stay away from people giving his incredible amount of strength and his past. He is really haunted by it and it has made him quite the recluse. Also his strange and chaotic outbursts at night that have given him his “madman” reputation has made avoid human contact. I just loved him. I also liked Wallace's brother Cole. You will hate him at first and I mean really hate him, but give him a chance. You will be surprised. I know I was. Also Rena's friends were a lot of fun. Aiden was the adorable geek who was frightened by Wallace, but I like how this works out for him. Also Gabby, Rena's roommate, who cracked me up in this book. She definitely had a mouth on her. She can't keep a secret and always seems to share plenty especially with her “bedmates”. But she was a fun character and I liked the little backstory we got about her and why she was the way she was.

The story is fast paced and loads of fun. I love what we learn about Wallace and what he is. But things really kick into gear when Cole shows up in the book. I wouldn't have seen those connections at all, but the story is fascinating. Wallace's family history plays a huge role in this and I love all the things that were revealed. Oh man, is it exciting. I love also the growing romance between Rena and Wallace. We don't get any sex scenes right out, but there is a reason. There scenes together were either action packed, super sweet, or super steamy. I loved them all.

I highly recommend this read to New Adult fans. I couldn't put this down. I can't wait to what is next. I loved all of these characters. I was fully invested in this story. Everything just worked for me. I will be rereading this book for sure until the next one comes out which can't get here fast enough. I can't wait to uncover the bigger mysteries that are sure to rise. I am dying for more. A must read! show less

Strength was one of those books that sucked me in on page one. I am an enormous fan of a smart, snarky and fun heroine. If you show her to me right away there is a good chance I will enjoy the book. Right away I knew I was going to love Rena. She is a smart-ass with tons of attitude, she's tough - as in will punch you in the face without question if you mess with her or her friends, yet she has a conscious that weighs on her and will do anything to make things right when she's screwed up or show more if she sees someone hurting. She's not always the best decision maker and sometimes I questioned her sanity...I just found that made her a little more endearing though. I guess I just like whacky.

We meet her as she literally bumps into Wallace. Wallace is known around campus as a crazy recluse who may have murdered his last roommate. Rena learns quickly that rumors lie when Wallace proves to be nothing like anyone expects. Starting with the fact that he is disarmingly hot, not the geeky, greasy haired freak she assumed. But there is something strange about Wallace. Every night at the same time, noise erupts in his room, groans - moans - growls - thumps. Some say it's him and a sex slave (I wish!); Rena has her doubts about that, though every time Wallace touches her she bruises.

Vowing to get to know Wallace and discover the mystery behind his odd nightly bouts of violence, Rena makes an effort to befriend him. Opening herself up to a world and feelings she never dreamed existed. And once fully involved in both Wallace's life and his heart, it may be too late to ever come back out. Alive, at least.

The relationship between Rena and Wallace was an enjoyable ride. These two are so inexperienced at anything remotely resembling a romantic relationship yet are so drawn to each other. The struggle and fumbles and nervousness was utterly endearing. Rena's internal monologue had me giggling on several occasions and I would have liked to get a peak into Wallace's mind as well. I bet it would have been equally entertaining.

Wallace is a super sweetie pie but tortured by his strength. It keeps him at arms length of everyone, no hugs, no kisses, no (ahem) other stuff. Rena's determination to get close to him pushes his limits to the edge and also puts her in danger with his bloodline.

Enter Cole, the twin brother. Did I mention Hot Wallace has a twin brother? No? How could I forget such a thing. Cole, or AssCole as Rena dubs him, is equally hot but not nearly the sweetheart Wallace is. Cole is the bad boy, the jackass, the screw up...so of course I loved him.

As danger threatens Wallace and Cole's family, these three form an unprecedented and unlikely team; willing to sacrifice so much to survive. I expect great things from these three as the series progresses.

I had a great time reading Strength and flew right through it. My only qualm would be the background story of the Blake family bloodline. It is all to unknown and I felt myself wanting more details, hoping that comes with book two which I am very ready for! show less

I really wanted to like this book, and there were parts that I really enjoyed. The beginning is engaging, with Rena meeting Wallace and finding out that he is nothing like her preconceived notions. The idea of a race of superpowered people has been done to death, but that's okay. I like fantasy, and just because something is cliché, that doesn't necessarily make it bad. Unfortunately, the promise at the beginning of [b:Strength|18310859|Strength (Mark of Nexus, #1)|Carrie show more Butler|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/books/1376353874s/18310859.jpg|20862060] was empty. The last half or so of the book just fell apart.

My first peeve came early on, though. Can anyone tell me why [a:Carrie Butler|6265027|Carrie Butler|https://d202m5krfqbpi5.cloudfront.net/authors/1348020509p2/6265027.jpg] felt the need to invent a new word that means the same as another perfectly good word? The non-word in question: 'confliction.' What the hell? That's not a real word, and 'conflict' is already a noun so why on God's green earth would you add 'ion' to the end of it? It just sounds so incredibly stupid. And it's not just once, either. 'Confliction' shows up over and over and over in the text. I wanted to scream. The word you're looking for, Carrie, is 'conflict.' That's the word you want.

One of the things that is a deal-breaker for me when reading a story is when a character does something they would never ever do. Well, that didn't quite happen here, because the characters kept changing. I couldn't tell you about Rena's character, besides that she's stubborn (and stupid), because I have no idea who she is. She's all over the place. What's her motivation? And Wallace: he goes to church but he's not above killing someone, and the only reason he won't fornicate (which is kind of a no-no by church standards) is because he's afraid he'll hurt the girl. The only characters I really got a handle on are Aiden and Gabby, and they're a stereotypical geek/nerd and a stereotypical slut. Ugh.

At one point, Rena's wrist gets broken. I'm not going to say how, in case anyone cares about spoilers. Anyway, she continues on blithely in spite of the excruciating pain, even using her wrist to push herself up at one point, though to be fair, that does hurt... just not as much as it should.

Speaking of Rena: it is possible to write an unlikable main character and keep the reader engaged, but it's not easy, and it's a huge risk. I don't think that was the goal here, but it was a big fail whether I was supposed to dislike Rena and still want to keep reading or... was I supposed to like Rena? Because I didn't. She was so annoying. I wanted to reach into the page and slap her... hard.

The big showdown with the villains is one of the most boring I've ever read. Most of it is a bunch of exposition where the villains explain what they're up to and why they're doing it in an attempt to get the heroes to join them. I understand that they're trying to get their support, but my eyes glazed over. I really don't care about your stupid plans, villains! I want some action and internal conflict and emotional angst.

I gave the book 2 stars because of the potential promised in the first little bit. Unfortunately, I can't give it more than 2 stars, because the last bit didn't live up to that potential. I'm disappointed. show less

I read the synopsis for Strength and thought it sounded interesting, not to mention the hot guy on the cover that caught my attention, and I have a weak spot for hot guys on book covers, but what I wasn't prepared for was how much I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I couldn't help but love Rena. I mean the book begins with her creeping up to the 7th floor of her coed dorm to see her friend Aiden (this is also where the hottie on the cover lives). She has this whole silent dialogue going on with show more herself in her head, like she is on a secret mission (see quote below).

"I plastered myself flat against the wall, straining to distinguish footsteps from heart palpitations. He was close now; had to be. My shoes gave a little squeak as the rubber met the linoleum, and I inched toward the corner.....I hadn't been back on campus for twenty-four hours, and here I was - caught in a game of hide-and-seek with the madman. What did that say about my sanity?...."All right, Madman," I muttered peering around the edge. "Ready or not..."

See what I mean, she's a hoot. Well at this point, you might be wondering who the said "madman" is. That would also be Mr. Cover Hottie. You see, Rena had never met him, but based on "rumors" about how strange noises and groans came from his room at night, everyone was convinced he was some sort of serial killer or something. When Rena is doing her creeper thing down the hall, she runs smack into the chest of Mr. Hottie, and is flabbergasted to say the least. Surely, she thinks, this couldn't possibly be the madman. Rena feels really guilty about being a part of spreading the rumors about Wallace Blake AKA "The Madman," AKA Mr. Cover Hottie, and is determined to make things right. She soon finds out that the sounds are nothing like they expected, which makes her feel even worse, plus she has the hots for the hottie. Over the next few weeks, she and Wallace begin to grow really close and she find herself being able to tell him things she hasn't shared with anyone before. Wallace has secrets to, big secrets, which Rena ends up finding out about, despite Wallace's attempts to protect her from them. Rena now finds herself in the middle of something she can't get out of, and if the truth be told, she really isn't sure she wants out, but what comes next will test her resolve and love in ways she never expected.

Strength is a great book. The paranormal element is unique and creative and I really enjoyed it. The story begins more like a NA contemporary romance, with some mystery/thriller aspects mixed in, unexplained things happen, bruises from mere touching, and a mysterious twin brother appears on the scene. Yes, hottie has a twin. That twin would be Cole, and he is nothing like his brother. He first comes across as the "evil twin," and I didn't like him in the beginning, and then I grew to really like him, even though I still wanted to pop him up side of his head him a few times. Wallace is an all around great guy. You already know he's hot, he's nice, he's sexy, and has a very deep and passionate side. Wallace and Rena also have some serious chemistry going on and some really big obstacles to a physical relationship to overcome. I liked Rena's roommate and best friend Gabby also. The banter between Rena and Gabby proved to be funny and intense at times, but their other friend Aiden, has become an expert at helping keep things in line. Things do get very suspenseful and very dangerous at times, but Carrier Butler has interjected just the right amount of humor and romance to balance it all out. Strength is fast paced and kept my attention from the beginning to end, and I really enjoyed the way Carrie Butler gradually lead up to the paranormal aspect of the story, which the book centers around. I am very much looking forward to the next book in the series. If you are a paranormal romance fan looking for something fresh, or even a contemporary romance fan, and/or enjoy the bonus of a little thriller/mystery component added in, then you are in for a treat when you read Strength, and I would definitely recommend checking it out. show less