On This Page
Description
They say when you take revenge against another you lose a part of your innocence. But I'm not innocent. I haven't been for a very long time. My innocence was stolen from me. Taken was the life I was supposed to have. The soul I was born with. The ruby heart embedded in a life full of hopes and dreams. Gone. Vanished. I never even had a choice. I mourn that life. Mourn the what-ifs. Until now. I'm ready to take back what was always meant to be mine. But every plan has a fatal flaw. Sometimes show more it's the heart. show lessTags
Recommendations
Member Reviews
3.5
Primero lo primero: Esta es una de esas novelas "dark" que no le recomendaría a nadie. No es insoportablemente ofensiva ni cruda como los "romances" (que de romance, de hecho, usualmente no tienen mucho que digamos; todo, claro está, dependiendo de qué tipo de "dark" elijan contar: o sea, de si sus historias tiran más para el erotismo sadomasoquista o de si, entre otros casos, se trata de la pequeña minoría que se sale del bondage, para marchar derecho al plano de la violación) del estilo de "Captive in the Dark", y [b:Tears of Tess|18134894|Tears of Tess (Monsters in the Dark, #1)|Pepper Winters|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1372821993s/18134894.jpg|25474810]; pero sí tiene temas muy jodidos que a algunos lectores les show more podrían llegar a resultar chocantes o difíciles de leer.
Dejando ésto de lado, BANG es, básicamente, la trama de la serie REVENGE, pero con tonos incluso más bizarros (y ridículos a veces), más violentos y muy, pero muy, eróticos.
Sin embargo, Ninao Elizabeth es una protagonista sobresaliente. Absolutamente desquiciada y fría. Su modo de pensar, su determinación (aunque su meta es, sin duda alguna, completamente estúpida y, en mi opinión, exagerada) y sus modos de actuar- su personalidad, en fin- la conforman como una anti-heroina como pocas solemos encontrar en el género. Es ella, y no tanto la trama de "venganza", la gran atracción de la novela. Ella es original, intrépida, loca, calculadora y única. Fue su voz la que me instó a seguir leyendo hasta el final. No está en papel de sumisa (como pasa en CAPTIVE.. y en TEARS...), sino que es ella quien lleva las riendas de la tortura; pero que al mismo tiempo, debe dejarse lastimar, todo siempre con la venganza en mente. La protagonista que fue víctima en un pasado, y hoy quiere ser victimaria. Imposible que te caiga bien, pero atrapante de todos modos. Fuerte y depravada; una villana bizarra, que da tanta pena como asco. Y todavía no creo que a mí misma me caiga bien, en realidad, pero que su historia y su punto de vista fueron sumamente interesantes, no lo voy a negar.
Y, si bien puede ser un poco predecible a veces, los capítulos finales son bastante inesperados; tan tirados de los pelos que la resolución termina tomándote por sorpresa.
El estilo de escritura es bastante aceptable; es decir, nada excelente pero, comparado con las novelas previamente mencionadas, definitivamente superior. Más similar a la prosa de [b:Just One Night|17571567|Just One Night (Just One Night, #1)|Kyra Davis|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400898418s/17571567.jpg|43148070] (que es excepcional en el su género), aunque no tan "elegante" y sin las metáforas bien logradas de aquella autora.
La principal diferencia entre ésta y la gran mayoría de novelas de romance dark, es que BANG no quiere convencerte de que lo que enferma a sus protagonistas es amor. En ese sentido, tiene un desenlace bastante honesto consigo mismo, y acorde a sus premisas: nada es romance, ni intenta serlo. Lo que se le parece por momentos la relación entre Nina/Elizabeth y Declan , es sólo la pantalla para las enormes locuras que una esconde y el otro expresa. Por escasas escenas, parecen normales, y ese es el gran suplicio de la protagonista. El no tener la capacidad de convertir la fantasía en realidad; su locura es más problemática, y la autora en ningún momento intenta solucionar su degeneración ni su trauma en una de esas historias enfermizas donde todo se arregla con amor. BANG no tiene solución, no hay felicidad en su trama o, por el contrario, si acaso la hay, esta es efímera, se confunde rápidamente entre mentiras y más violencia.
Repito, no lo recomiendo, pero si son aficionados a los "romances" que no son romances, o a las historias de venganza con protagonistasvillanos , esta es la novela para ustedes.
show less
Primero lo primero: Esta es una de esas novelas "dark" que no le recomendaría a nadie. No es insoportablemente ofensiva ni cruda como los "romances" (que de romance, de hecho, usualmente no tienen mucho que digamos; todo, claro está, dependiendo de qué tipo de "dark" elijan contar: o sea, de si sus historias tiran más para el erotismo sadomasoquista o de si, entre otros casos, se trata de la pequeña minoría que se sale del bondage, para marchar derecho al plano de la violación) del estilo de "Captive in the Dark", y [b:Tears of Tess|18134894|Tears of Tess (Monsters in the Dark, #1)|Pepper Winters|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1372821993s/18134894.jpg|25474810]; pero sí tiene temas muy jodidos que a algunos lectores les show more podrían llegar a resultar chocantes o difíciles de leer.
Dejando ésto de lado, BANG es, básicamente, la trama de la serie REVENGE, pero con tonos incluso más bizarros (y ridículos a veces), más violentos y muy, pero muy, eróticos.
Sin embargo, Nina
Y, si bien puede ser un poco predecible a veces, los capítulos finales son
El estilo de escritura es bastante aceptable; es decir, nada excelente pero, comparado con las novelas previamente mencionadas, definitivamente superior. Más similar a la prosa de [b:Just One Night|17571567|Just One Night (Just One Night, #1)|Kyra Davis|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1400898418s/17571567.jpg|43148070] (que es excepcional en el su género), aunque no tan "elegante" y sin las metáforas bien logradas de aquella autora.
La principal diferencia entre ésta y la gran mayoría de novelas de romance dark, es que BANG no quiere convencerte de que lo que enferma a sus protagonistas es amor. En ese sentido, tiene un desenlace bastante honesto consigo mismo, y acorde a sus premisas: nada es romance, ni intenta serlo. Lo que se le parece por momentos
Repito, no lo recomiendo, pero si son aficionados a los "romances" que no son romances, o a las historias de venganza con protagonistas
show less
OK, so almost everyone I know has been raving about this book, like going mad over it. They are so mindfucked and book hungover they can't pick up anything else. They're just blown away. I'm thinking maybe it's just me or something, but it do not have that effect on me. First off, I've watched that show Revenge which is very similar so I think that ruined much of the wow factor for me. I'm jealous of those that hadn't watched it because I think they got a lot more from the book. That being said, I thought the book was very good, better than many books I've read. It wasn't a life-changer for me, but I did enjoy reading it.
Elizabeth and Pike have always been the other's person, each show more other's ONLY person. These two have been through some deep shit. I do not envy them at all. I was really attracted to the idea of this relationship very much.
Nina and Bennett are a couple I don't really know much about. I don't know how their merger came to happen. He's almost like an abstract thought. Do we feel sorry for him? Do we believe he is guiltier than he appears to be? Hmmmm.
Nina and Declan could have been a love story. Coulda, woulda, shoulda, ya know. Declan may just turn out to wiser than previously suspected.
I actually think all three men may be more clever than we've been led to believe.
This story just begs to be discussed. It's that type of book. I have so many little points that I think I caught and so many theories of what has happened or will happen. It's hard to keep a review spoiler free. I believe that every character mentioned has a role from the first social worker to her husband's friend/business partner to her husband's driver to her foster brother's friend/previous roommate to her lover's father. In my opinion, it's a web much larger than for what she was trying to get payback. I plan to go into the future books with no preset notion of who is bad or good or alive or dead.
One of the most interesting things about the whole book to me was Carnegie. I loved how he continued to pop up throughout the story. Caterpillars symbolize being unable to move past an early stage of development. She has not been able to move past the perfect life she had at the age of five.
Another topic I want to bring up is the series name Black Lotus. A lotus flower's roots grow from mud at the bottom of a murky water source and the bud rises until it is above the surface to bloom into a beautiful, elegant, pure, full flower. This could have been her life after her horrible past, but it isn't. Because of the "black" which does not occur in nature for lotus flowers, the meaning is altered. The following are some meanings associated with unnatural black flowers: the dark side of human nature, the undertaking of a perilous journey from which not expected to return safely, the death of old habits, the end of an era, never fully opened, tragic love, hatred, resistance, vengeance, and of course the ideas of death and mourning.
I've noticed some people had issues with the sex. I feel that the past sex scenes were necessary so that we truly knew the depths of her pain. It also reinforces the bond between the Elizabeth and Pike, everything they went through. There is no way they could come out of it unchanged. The current scenes were so that we could see how not mainstream she was. Nothing about her sex life was anything most people would be doing. And the scene that made many cringe, made perfect sense to me because it lends to the state of mind of both Nina and Declan. The want between them is so much that it can't be expressed through normal means.
I thought it was a good read. I recommend it and plan to read the future releases in this series.
3.5 stars
toni
FangirlMoments and My Two Cents
FULL REVIEW CAN BE FOUND AT http://fangirlmomentsandmytwocents.blogspot.com/2014/06/bang-by-ek-blair-review.... show less
I feel like I live in the dark more than I do the light.
Elizabeth and Pike have always been the other's person, each show more other's ONLY person. These two have been through some deep shit. I do not envy them at all. I was really attracted to the idea of this relationship very much.
"You tell me all the time that I'm all you have, but it goes both ways. I have nothing but you. You're my only family, Elizabeth. Please don't let him take you away from me."
Pike never has left my side.
"You're the only one who can make it go away, Pike."
Nina and Bennett are a couple I don't really know much about. I don't know how their merger came to happen. He's almost like an abstract thought. Do we feel sorry for him? Do we believe he is guiltier than he appears to be? Hmmmm.
Bennett is everything a husband should be, so it was essential that I create fissures within him. Purple flowers being one of them.
Nina and Declan could have been a love story. Coulda, woulda, shoulda, ya know. Declan may just turn out to wiser than previously suspected.
"Taste your lies, Nina."
"Nothing is real until you break down the walls and reveal the ugliness."
"Let go, Nina. Stop fighting me," he says, as if he knows I'm trying with everything I have not to come.
I actually think all three men may be more clever than we've been led to believe.
This story just begs to be discussed. It's that type of book. I have so many little points that I think I caught and so many theories of what has happened or will happen. It's hard to keep a review spoiler free. I believe that every character mentioned has a role from the first social worker to her husband's friend/business partner to her husband's driver to her foster brother's friend/previous roommate to her lover's father. In my opinion, it's a web much larger than for what she was trying to get payback. I plan to go into the future books with no preset notion of who is bad or good or alive or dead.
One of the most interesting things about the whole book to me was Carnegie. I loved how he continued to pop up throughout the story. Caterpillars symbolize being unable to move past an early stage of development. She has not been able to move past the perfect life she had at the age of five.
Neither of us could have possibly imagined how our lives would be forever changed when he opened that door.
I want my daddy. After all these years, I just want my daddy.
Another topic I want to bring up is the series name Black Lotus. A lotus flower's roots grow from mud at the bottom of a murky water source and the bud rises until it is above the surface to bloom into a beautiful, elegant, pure, full flower. This could have been her life after her horrible past, but it isn't. Because of the "black" which does not occur in nature for lotus flowers, the meaning is altered. The following are some meanings associated with unnatural black flowers: the dark side of human nature, the undertaking of a perilous journey from which not expected to return safely, the death of old habits, the end of an era, never fully opened, tragic love, hatred, resistance, vengeance, and of course the ideas of death and mourning.
"There's something about a beautiful, nearly flawless flower, emerging from muddled water."
"Everyone has something beneath that they're hiding."
I've noticed some people had issues with the sex. I feel that the past sex scenes were necessary so that we truly knew the depths of her pain. It also reinforces the bond between the Elizabeth and Pike, everything they went through. There is no way they could come out of it unchanged. The current scenes were so that we could see how not mainstream she was. Nothing about her sex life was anything most people would be doing. And the scene that made many cringe, made perfect sense to me because it lends to the state of mind of both Nina and Declan. The want between them is so much that it can't be expressed through normal means.
I thought it was a good read. I recommend it and plan to read the future releases in this series.
Lights. Camera. Action.
3.5 stars
toni
FangirlMoments and My Two Cents
FULL REVIEW CAN BE FOUND AT http://fangirlmomentsandmytwocents.blogspot.com/2014/06/bang-by-ek-blair-review.... show less
I truly do not know where to begin with this review...
I finished last night and my mind is still conflicted.
It was a love/hate relationship for me.
The Love.... Was the writing. The Author is very talented at writing an intricate story with just the right amount of details. BANG was fast paced and intriguing. The secrets were revealed slowly, but there were enough of them to keep you sucked into the story.
I appreciate the mind f the book provided. The characters were all a whirlwind of messed up. Each one had their own demons and each one dealt with them a different way. Pain was the mutual conclusion... They all craved revenge and they didn't know it at the time, but they were all pawns in one another's game.
The Hate... Nina was show more annoying, self centered, and a complete manipulative train wreck. I understand she went through a tough child life, but it was so hard to read about her using and abusing people. I hated being inside her messed up head. It made me bitter and quite frankly put me in a bad mood.
The subject matter was also touchy for me. I have an open mind and usually can read about all different tough circumstances, but there were some parts in this book that left me closing the book mumbling I am done. Of course, I always picked it back up and started again... but WOW! I don't know how the Author wrote some of those scenes.
All in all I think that this book was an intense, suspenseful mind twist that will leave readers wanting more at the end. I know when I read the last word I was thinking No, this can't be the end!
I applaud the Author for taking on such a crazy plot and making it her own... show less
I finished last night and my mind is still conflicted.
It was a love/hate relationship for me.
The Love.... Was the writing. The Author is very talented at writing an intricate story with just the right amount of details. BANG was fast paced and intriguing. The secrets were revealed slowly, but there were enough of them to keep you sucked into the story.
I appreciate the mind f the book provided. The characters were all a whirlwind of messed up. Each one had their own demons and each one dealt with them a different way. Pain was the mutual conclusion... They all craved revenge and they didn't know it at the time, but they were all pawns in one another's game.
The Hate... Nina was show more annoying, self centered, and a complete manipulative train wreck. I understand she went through a tough child life, but it was so hard to read about her using and abusing people. I hated being inside her messed up head. It made me bitter and quite frankly put me in a bad mood.
The subject matter was also touchy for me. I have an open mind and usually can read about all different tough circumstances, but there were some parts in this book that left me closing the book mumbling I am done. Of course, I always picked it back up and started again... but WOW! I don't know how the Author wrote some of those scenes.
All in all I think that this book was an intense, suspenseful mind twist that will leave readers wanting more at the end. I know when I read the last word I was thinking No, this can't be the end!
I applaud the Author for taking on such a crazy plot and making it her own... show less
OK, so almost everyone I know has been raving about this book, like going mad over it. They are so mindfucked and book hungover they can't pick up anything else. They're just blown away. I'm thinking maybe it's just me or something, but it do not have that effect on me. First off, I've watched that show Revenge which is very similar so I think that ruined much of the wow factor for me. I'm jealous of those that hadn't watched it because I think they got a lot more from the book. That being said, I thought the book was very good, better than many books I've read. It wasn't a life-changer for me, but I did enjoy reading it.
Elizabeth and Pike have always been the other's person, each show more other's ONLY person. These two have been through some deep shit. I do not envy them at all. I was really attracted to the idea of this relationship very much.
Nina and Bennett are a couple I don't really know much about. I don't know how their merger came to happen. He's almost like an abstract thought. Do we feel sorry for him? Do we believe he is guiltier than he appears to be? Hmmmm.
Nina and Declan could have been a love story. Coulda, woulda, shoulda, ya know. Declan may just turn out to wiser than previously suspected.
I actually think all three men may be more clever than we've been led to believe.
This story just begs to be discussed. It's that type of book. I have so many little points that I think I caught and so many theories of what has happened or will happen. It's hard to keep a review spoiler free. I believe that every character mentioned has a role from the first social worker to her husband's friend/business partner to her husband's driver to her foster brother's friend/previous roommate to her lover's father. In my opinion, it's a web much larger than for what she was trying to get payback. I plan to go into the future books with no preset notion of who is bad or good or alive or dead.
One of the most interesting things about the whole book to me was Carnegie. I loved how he continued to pop up throughout the story. Caterpillars symbolize being unable to move past an early stage of development. She has not been able to move past the perfect life she had at the age of five.
Another topic I want to bring up is the series name Black Lotus. A lotus flower's roots grow from mud at the bottom of a murky water source and the bud rises until it is above the surface to bloom into a beautiful, elegant, pure, full flower. This could have been her life after her horrible past, but it isn't. Because of the "black" which does not occur in nature for lotus flowers, the meaning is altered. The following are some meanings associated with unnatural black flowers: the dark side of human nature, the undertaking of a perilous journey from which not expected to return safely, the death of old habits, the end of an era, never fully opened, tragic love, hatred, resistance, vengeance, and of course the ideas of death and mourning.
I've noticed some people had issues with the sex. I feel that the past sex scenes were necessary so that we truly knew the depths of her pain. It also reinforces the bond between the Elizabeth and Pike, everything they went through. There is no way they could come out of it unchanged. The current scenes were so that we could see how not mainstream she was. Nothing about her sex life was anything most people would be doing. And the scene that made many cringe, made perfect sense to me because it lends to the state of mind of both Nina and Declan. The want between them is so much that it can't be expressed through normal means.
I thought it was a good read. I recommend it and plan to read the future releases in this series.
3.5 stars
toni
FangirlMoments and My Two Cents
FULL REVIEW CAN BE FOUND AT http://fangirlmomentsandmytwocents.blogspot.com/2014/06/bang-by-ek-blair-review.... show less
I feel like I live in the dark more than I do the light.
Elizabeth and Pike have always been the other's person, each show more other's ONLY person. These two have been through some deep shit. I do not envy them at all. I was really attracted to the idea of this relationship very much.
"You tell me all the time that I'm all you have, but it goes both ways. I have nothing but you. You're my only family, Elizabeth. Please don't let him take you away from me."
Pike never has left my side.
"You're the only one who can make it go away, Pike."
Nina and Bennett are a couple I don't really know much about. I don't know how their merger came to happen. He's almost like an abstract thought. Do we feel sorry for him? Do we believe he is guiltier than he appears to be? Hmmmm.
Bennett is everything a husband should be, so it was essential that I create fissures within him. Purple flowers being one of them.
Nina and Declan could have been a love story. Coulda, woulda, shoulda, ya know. Declan may just turn out to wiser than previously suspected.
"Taste your lies, Nina."
"Nothing is real until you break down the walls and reveal the ugliness."
"Let go, Nina. Stop fighting me," he says, as if he knows I'm trying with everything I have not to come.
I actually think all three men may be more clever than we've been led to believe.
This story just begs to be discussed. It's that type of book. I have so many little points that I think I caught and so many theories of what has happened or will happen. It's hard to keep a review spoiler free. I believe that every character mentioned has a role from the first social worker to her husband's friend/business partner to her husband's driver to her foster brother's friend/previous roommate to her lover's father. In my opinion, it's a web much larger than for what she was trying to get payback. I plan to go into the future books with no preset notion of who is bad or good or alive or dead.
One of the most interesting things about the whole book to me was Carnegie. I loved how he continued to pop up throughout the story. Caterpillars symbolize being unable to move past an early stage of development. She has not been able to move past the perfect life she had at the age of five.
Neither of us could have possibly imagined how our lives would be forever changed when he opened that door.
I want my daddy. After all these years, I just want my daddy.
Another topic I want to bring up is the series name Black Lotus. A lotus flower's roots grow from mud at the bottom of a murky water source and the bud rises until it is above the surface to bloom into a beautiful, elegant, pure, full flower. This could have been her life after her horrible past, but it isn't. Because of the "black" which does not occur in nature for lotus flowers, the meaning is altered. The following are some meanings associated with unnatural black flowers: the dark side of human nature, the undertaking of a perilous journey from which not expected to return safely, the death of old habits, the end of an era, never fully opened, tragic love, hatred, resistance, vengeance, and of course the ideas of death and mourning.
"There's something about a beautiful, nearly flawless flower, emerging from muddled water."
"Everyone has something beneath that they're hiding."
I've noticed some people had issues with the sex. I feel that the past sex scenes were necessary so that we truly knew the depths of her pain. It also reinforces the bond between the Elizabeth and Pike, everything they went through. There is no way they could come out of it unchanged. The current scenes were so that we could see how not mainstream she was. Nothing about her sex life was anything most people would be doing. And the scene that made many cringe, made perfect sense to me because it lends to the state of mind of both Nina and Declan. The want between them is so much that it can't be expressed through normal means.
I thought it was a good read. I recommend it and plan to read the future releases in this series.
Lights. Camera. Action.
3.5 stars
toni
FangirlMoments and My Two Cents
FULL REVIEW CAN BE FOUND AT http://fangirlmomentsandmytwocents.blogspot.com/2014/06/bang-by-ek-blair-review.... show less
Dark, Twisted with a dash of flips and dips.
WOW is all I can say. I have some pretty dark and twisted books but nothing like this roller coaster. The twist and turn that double back and twist more. You love and hate Nina (Elizabeth) throughout this whole story. Without give away teasers reading this story puts your mind in places you never knew existed. One minute your thinking why is her life so bad and bang your in the whirlwind of how the hell is this happening. The author does an amazing job bringing the characters to life to the point of having a love/hate relationship with them and even those you feel sorry for or that you can't for them to meet the ultimate Karma. This is one book I do not regret taking heed and reading.
Major show more cliff hanger at the end that leaves your heart pounding and dying for the next book. show less
WOW is all I can say. I have some pretty dark and twisted books but nothing like this roller coaster. The twist and turn that double back and twist more. You love and hate Nina (Elizabeth) throughout this whole story. Without give away teasers reading this story puts your mind in places you never knew existed. One minute your thinking why is her life so bad and bang your in the whirlwind of how the hell is this happening. The author does an amazing job bringing the characters to life to the point of having a love/hate relationship with them and even those you feel sorry for or that you can't for them to meet the ultimate Karma. This is one book I do not regret taking heed and reading.
Major show more cliff hanger at the end that leaves your heart pounding and dying for the next book. show less
Lots of twists and turns and, yes, a cliffhanger. I hate cliffhangers but I knew when I started what I was in for, so no complaints here. There is so much I already know and so much more I need to know, like, right now. Can't wait for book two. I would recommend!
Members
- Recently Added By
Author Information
28+ Works 617 Members
Series
Work Relationships
Is contained in
Common Knowledge
- Canonical title
- Bang
Classifications
- BISAC
Statistics
- Members
- 144
- Popularity
- 226,585
- Reviews
- 7
- Rating
- (3.89)
- Languages
- English
- Media
- Paper, Ebook
- ISBNs
- 2
- ASINs
- 1
