• Reviews
    • 5+++++++ Stars
    • 5 stars
    • 4-5 stars
      • 4 stars
      • 4.25 Stars
      • 4.5 stars
      • 4.75 Stars
    • 3-4 stars
    • audiobook
      • Audiobooks Under 3 stars
      • Audiobook 3 stars
      • Audiobook 3.5 stars
      • Audiobook 3.75 Stars
      • Audiobook 4 stars
      • Audiobook 4.25 Stars
      • Audiobook 4.5 Stars
      • Audiobook 4.75 Stars
      • Audiobook 5 stars
      • Audiobook 5+++ Stars
  • Series Orders
    • The Complete Guide To Kristen Ashley
  • What to Read after Fifty
  • About~Privacy
    • Advertising
    • Contact ~ Review Requests
    • Terms and Conditions. Privacy Policy.
    • Archive
  • Wicked Book Weekend

Ana's Attic Book Blog

Romance Book and Audiobook Reviews and Deals

  • Ana's Attic Book Blog
  • Home
  • Reviews
    • 5+++++++ Stars
    • 5 stars
    • 4-5 stars
      • 4 stars
      • 4.25 Stars
      • 4.5 stars
      • 4.75 Stars
    • 3-4 stars
    • Audiobooks
      • Audiobook 5+++ Stars
      • Audiobook 5 stars
      • Audiobook 4.75 Stars
      • Audiobook 4.5 Stars
      • Audiobook 4.25 Stars
      • Audiobook 4 stars
      • Audiobook 3.75 Stars
      • Audiobook 3.5 stars
      • Audiobook 3 stars
      • Audiobooks Under 3 stars
  • New-Sale-Free-Preorder
    • Monthly Release Recaps
  • Favorite Lists
    • 2021 Top Picks
    • 2020 Top Picks
    • 2019 Top Picks
    • 2018 Top Picks
    • 2017 Top Picks
    • 2016 Top Picks
    • 2015 Top Picks
    • 2014 Top Picks
    • 2013 Top Picks
    • 2012 Top Picks
    • Top Picks and Favorite Lists
    • Recaps and Best Sellers
  • Book Extras
  • Upcoming Book Releases

Review: The Gamble by Kristen Ashley

07/25/2012

The Gamble is another amazing Kristen Ashley book that kept me up for almost two days straight. I began reading Kristen Ashley’s books with the book after this in the Colorado Mountain Series, Sweet Dreams (OMG—TOTALLY AMAZING!), then I read the one after, and moved on to The Burg series without ever reading The Gamble. Honestly, the reviews on goodreads weren’t as great as her other books so I kept thinking about it but never got to it. WHY DID I WAIT???? I freakin’ LOVED it!!!!

First thing you need to know. You get a LOT for your money in this book (all of her books)! It’s as long as a trilogy of normal books, or at least double a regular novel. But it needs to be because SO.MUCH.HAPPENS.

Nina is an American but her dad is from England and she lives there as well, working as an attorney. She has booked a 2 week “time-out” at a beautiful A-frame cabin in the Colorado Mountains to think about her boring life with her boring fiancĆ©, Niles (haha, you already know he’s boring from the name. How many heroes are called Niles?). When she finally gets through a snowstorm to the A-frame, gorgeous, grumpy, grumbly alpha-hole Max (hero name!) answers the door, informs her there was a mistake and his house wasn’t for rent that week and directs her back down the mountain to a hotel. Nina throws a fit, tells him off, stomps back to her car and ends up in a ditch down the road.

Next thing you know, Max is nursing her back to health after she fell asleep in the car, getting sick. She remembers almost nothing, but Max has been taking care of her for 2 days and is clearly falling for her. So begins Nina trying not to fall for Max, and Max railroading Nina into staying with him. When I say railroading, I mean it! Max is domineering, doesn’t let Nina object to anything (he just cuts her off), he takes her keys, tells the taxi not to get her, then sweetly takes care of her.

The town of Gnaw Bone, Colorado is small, and everybody knows everything about everyone. Plus, so much crap happens in this small town in the first week Nina is there it is crazy! There is a murder, the aftermath of rape, attempted suicide, kidnapping, fights, crazy she-bitch ex-girlfriends from hell, and more. We get to meet and learn about the crazy townspeople of Gnaw Bone as well as the families of both Max and Nina and many of the side characters. Everyone LOVES Max, he is the town sweetheart, the perfect guy, and they all show up at his house, needing him for something. This causes two problems. One, Nina’s already bad self-esteem has a hard time with Max’s wonderfulness, and two, this couple is never alone to “get it on” until over halfway through a very long book. (But it was worth the wait.)

The book was told in mostly first person from Nina’s POV. This really helped get into her character and hear her inner thoughts. The way Kristen Ashley writes these thoughts are so real, it’s the way I talk in my head (except without the English accent and phrases). I cried my eyes out with Nina, I fell in love with Max with Nina, I fell in love with the town with her, I became friends with the townspeople…….some reviewers didn’t like her, I totally did. I get her.

And Max…….he is SO swoonalicious there is no way to NOT love this guy! He is dominant, affectionate, caring, gorgeous, sweet, knows what he wants, and notices all the little things you wish your guy would notice, like how Nina takes her coffee. Plus, he calls her on her shit. He calls her Duchess, which I love, he is possessive, jealous, and takes care of everyone.

“Because I’ve seen you naked. I’ve seen you sweet. I’ve seen you unsure. And I’ve seen you riled and, seein’ all that, I know, you were half a world away from me, I’d fuckin’ phone”

_____________________________________

ā€œIn my life, I’ve learned when to let shit go and when to fight for it. This, babe, what we got, I’ll fight for.ā€

 

Likes:

  • -I cried, in several places, but mostly I read with a stupid grin on my face.
  • -All of the crazy characters you really get to know, and you are able to keep them all straight.
  • -Max’s sweet things he says and does (so hard to choose from all his amazing quotes).
  • -Suspense, right up till the very end, with some crazy twists!
  • -An AMAZING Kristen Ashley epilogue (I dare you to not tear up!)
  • -Hot alpha-male sexy scenes.

Dislikes:

  • -Nina said “Um” and “Max” a LOT, but rarely said what was REALLY on her mind the whole time.
  • -Max seemed so open and honest but left out a MAJOR detail of his past.
  • -Not enough of the hot sex with an alpha-male.

I don’t know whether this one is a like or a dislike (I think it’s a like), but it is a LONG, exhausting read, and had me up super late with less than 5 hours of sleep for 2 nights.

My Rating: 5 stars for story, 3.75 for heat

While I loved this book, I think the next in the series, Sweet Dreams, is even better. But know that the rest of the series took place in Carnal, a town near Gnaw Bone, and I don’t remember for sure, but I don’t think there was any cross over characters.

If you have never read a Kristen Ashley book before, take a gamble on the Gamble.

PurchaseĀ The GambleĀ onĀ AmazonĀ ||Ā BN.comĀ ||Ā iBooks

See my COMPLETE GUIDE TO KRISTEN ASHLEY right here.

Related Posts:

  • My Favorite Books of 2012
  • Kristen Ashley writes Cracktastic books
  • The Colorado Mountain Series order
  • What To Read after Fifty Shades of Grey
  • A Dozen Top Romances for Summer
  • The Burg Series
  • The Rock Chick Series

 

 

Related posts:

  • Too Good To Be True by Kristen Ashley | Book ReviewToo Good To Be True by Kristen Ashley | Book Review
  • Tyrant by R.K. Lilley | Book ReviewTyrant by R.K. Lilley | Book Review
  • Fighting The Pull by Kristen Ashley | Book ReviewFighting The Pull by Kristen Ashley | Book Review
  • Perfect together ReviewPerfect Together by Kristen Ashley | Book Review
  • Both Feet in the Grave by Jeaniene Frost | Audiobook ReviewBoth Feet in the Grave by Jeaniene Frost | Audiobook Review
«
»

5 stars, Kristen Ashley, What to read after Fifty Shades of Grey 2

Follow Me Here!

Join our Facebook Group

Trackbacks

  1. My Top Summer Reads | Ana's Diary (part of anasattic.com) says:
    09/02/2012 at 11:22 pm

    […] 5. The Gamble by Kristen Ashley is the first in the Colorado Mountain Series by Kristen Ashley. I had started my Kristen Ashley reading with #2, Sweet Dreams, but never went back. I should have. This book had everything. See my review here. […]

    Reply
  2. A Dozen Top Romances for Summer | Ana's Diary (part of anasattic.com) says:
    09/10/2012 at 11:35 pm

    […] 10. Anything by Kristen Ashley. She has so many books I love it is hard to choose! Start with either The Gamble from The Colorado Mountain Series, Mystery Man from the Dream Man Series, or For You from The Burg Series. I loved all the series (which get better with subsequent books) and can’t choose! See my review of The Gamble here. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Stalk Me – I Like It

Stay in touch!

Subscribe to my monthly newsletter to stay up to date on my blog!

Welcome! Over 18 please

Ana's Attic

Ana’s Attic Book and Audiobook Blog was established in 2012.

Search this site:

search by category

.
Disclosure: Ana's Attic is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Many of the books reviewed on Ana's Attic were provided by the publisher for free in exchange for an honest review. We never accept payment in any form for reviews or recommendations. For our full, in-depth Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies, CLICK HERE. By using this website you are consenting to our Policies as set forth here.
DMCA.com Protection Status

reading:

Listening:

reading:

next review:

Visit These pages:

Visit These pages:

Founding Member

Passionflix

#officialfifty

#officialfifty

New single out now!

Affiliate:

Ana's Attic is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

Privacy Policy

For our full, in-depth Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies, CLICK HERE. By using this website you are consenting to our Policies as set forth here.

The only time I collect e-mails is when you sign up for the newsletter or if you register This information is NEVER shared, and is only used to deliver your email to you.

Ana’s Attic does not share personal information with third parties nor do we store any information about your visit to this blog other than to analyze and optimize your content and reading experience through the use of cookies.

You can turn off the use of cookies at anytime by changing your specific browser settings.

We are not responsible for republished content from this blog on other blogs or websites without our permission.

This privacy policy is subject to change without notice and was last updated on May 24, 2018. If you have any questions feel free to contact me directly here: ana@anasattic.com

Please note:

This blog is meant for adults 18+ only. All opinions are my own and custom images are copyright protected. I never accept payment for reviews. All books reviewed are either purchased by me or provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. Prices reflected are valid at the time of post only. You are responsible for checking the correct price before completing the purchase.

For our full, in-depth Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies, CLICK HERE. By using this website you are consenting to our Policies as set forth here.

Contest Winners:Ā Contest Winners have 48 hours from my e-mail to get back to me or another winner is chosen. Flash Giveaway winners on Facebook are responsible for checking back to see if they are a winner. Mailed prizes are US only unless otherwise stated. I only pick rafflecopter winners once per month, all at once.

Instagram

anasatticblog

šŸ“–Romance Book &
šŸŽ§Audiobook Reviews since 2012
šŸ“šNew Releases
šŸ’°Sale|Freebie Lists
šŸ“† @startingon_monday
šŸ–Wicked Book Weekend

Ana's Attic Book Blog
I haven’t been able to get What You Do To Me by I haven’t been able to get What You Do To Me by @rochellebweinstein out of my head. Told in 3 timelines, now, the 90’s and the 70’s, it’s about a Rolling Stone reporter’s search for the muse of a hugely popular song. This completely unique story is really sticking with me and it’s one of the ones I’ve been recommending a lot lately. 

šŸ“šRead it: https://amzn.to/3RaQVW3
šŸŽ§Listen: https://amzn.to/3SQ7F5Y
šŸ’»My review: https://anasattic.com/what-you-do-to-me/
Both the book and Audiobook are FREE in Kindle Unlimited.

#audiobookreview #bookreview #bookstagram #audiobookstagram #Rollingstone #romancereads #recommendedreading #kindleunlimited #kindleunlimitedaudio #jewishlit #jewishromance #historicalromance #1970s #1990s
Part 2 of my November mini review recap. I think o Part 2 of my November mini review recap. I think only my mom watches these, but I’m doing it anyway šŸ¤—. You can find the full list of all the November book and audiobook releases as well as links to all my reviews on the recap post on my blog. 
-
#bookstagram #audiobookstagram #bookreviews #bookreviewsofinstagram #honestbookreviews #audiobooksofinstagram #audiobookreview #jewishreads #womensfiction #romancereader #romancebookstagram
My recap of all of my November blog posts as well My recap of all of my November blog posts as well as the hundreds of book and audiobook releases from November is live on the blog. 
https://anasattic.com/november-2023-release-and-review-recap/
—
#bookstagram #audiobookstagram #monthlywrapup #novemberrecap #bookreviews #audiobookreviews #fantasyromance #jenniferlarmentrout #fourthwing #ironflame #catherinecowles #jewishromance #hanukkahromance #jewishbookstagrammer #jewishbookstagram #bookblogger #audiobooks
Part one of my November mini review recap. You can Part one of my November mini review recap. You can see all of the November book and audiobook releases and links to all of my reviews at anasattic.com
—
#bookstagram #novemberrecap #novemberbooks #bookreview #audiobookreview #booksbooksbooks #fourthwing #ironflame #jewishbooks #holidaybooks #fantasybooks #romanticsuspense #romancereads #audible #audiobookstagram
I’ve updated my Hanukkah Romance Book List for 2 I’ve updated my Hanukkah Romance Book List for 2023! Have you read any of these? I love holiday books! 
I’ve also posted a new huge list of Jewish Romances, and I will have my Christmas book list up this week and my list of Formula 1 romances is coming soon too. 

—> https://anasattic.com/hanukkah-romance-novels-2023/

#bookstagram #romancebooks #holidayromancebooks #hanukkahromance #jewishromance #jewishbookstagramtour #jewishbookstagram #hanukkahbooks #jewishreads #jewishbooks
I have a new list of Hanukkah Romances and another I have a new list of Hanukkah Romances and another for Jewish Contemporary Romance on my blog Anasattic.com Let me know if I missed any good ones! 
—
#hanukkahbooks #jewishreads #holidaybooks #holidayromancebooks #spicyhanukkahbooks #chanukah #jewishbookstagramtour #jewishbookstagram #jewishromance #bookstagram #holidaybookstagram
I liked Maybe Once Maybe Twice. I liked the music, I liked Maybe Once Maybe Twice. I liked the music, the stories, and the characters for the most part, and I loved the camp stuff. But the pacing was off for me and there were a lot of timeline changes that I lost track of a few times. I think this one may have been better reading over audio. This book contains triggers, read the warnings!
ā­ļøā­ļøā­ļø
—

šŸ“–Read it: https://amzn.to/3RjGtLZ
šŸŽ§Listen: https://amzn.to/47uVUGL
šŸ’»My review: https://anasattic.com/maybe-once-maybe-twice/
—
#bookstagram #audiobook #audiobookstagram #audiblebooks #hoopla #hoopladigital #audiobookreview #bookreview #romancebooks #romancereader #honestbookreview #jewishbookstagrammer #jewishromancebooks #romancebooks
I’m spending 30 minutes reading and enjoying a g I’m spending 30 minutes reading and enjoying a gorgeous Florida morning before I start cooking for tomorrow. I’m in charge of stuffing, sweet potato casserole and carrot soufflĆ©. One of my boys is home for Thanksgiving, the other is playing a show in Louisville and Cleveland this weekend, but at least he will be home for Christmas week!  How do you spend the day before Thanksgiving? I’m so glad I’m not traveling. 
—
#bookstagram #bookstagrammer #amreading #amreadingromance #booklover #kindle #bookish #floridalife
I know everyone in the world has posted reviews, b I know everyone in the world has posted reviews, but I just realized I never shared mine here. You can see my more detailed review on the blog. 

Iron Flame felt like a 5-star read when I finished. But if I compare it to Fourth Wing or just sit down and look at my notes I realize that I had a lot of negative notes when I had none in the first book. It suffered from a bit of a sophmore slump, especially in the beginning, then too much happened that didn’t all really advance the story. It was like each chapter or two had a new challenge to deal with —like it’s written for episodic TV (which will be happening on Amazon). I still absolutely loved it but I will definitely need to reread this before the next one because I feel like I missed some stuff and some stuff didn’t make 100% sense to me. There were a lot of new characters who I don’t care about adding to my confusion. I loved Iron Flame, but not as much as Fourth Wing which was a much simpler book about a military college—Iron Flame was about the war. Still, I absolutely can’t wait to see what she does with book 3!

IRON FLAME:
šŸ“šRead it: https://amzn.to/3GbxEgQ
šŸŽ§Listen: https://amzn.to/3GaqkC1
šŸ’»My review: https://anasattic.com/iron-flame-rebecca-yarros/

FOURTH WING:
šŸ“šRead it: https://amzn.to/3SXV9lf
šŸŽ§Listen: https://amzn.to/3SOTzSn
šŸ’»My review: https://anasattic.com/fourth-wing-rebecca-yarros/

#bookstagram #bookish #audiobookstagram #ironflame #fourthwing #dragons #commissionsearned #fantasyromance #rebeccayarros #audiobookreview #bookreview #romantasy #bookseries #booktok #trendybooks #hypedbooks #recommendedreading
What You Do To Me by @rochellebweinstein is a comp What You Do To Me by @rochellebweinstein is a complex and completely unique story that had me riveted the entire time. I especially loved the story of the young Argentinian singer and the sheltered Jewish girl in the 1970’s and the sluething of the Rolling Stone reporter to find the muse to the famous song. If you enjoy music-based romances, this one will be right up your alley.

šŸ“šRead it: https://amzn.to/3RaQVW3
šŸŽ§Listen: https://amzn.to/3SQ7F5Y
šŸ’»My review: https://anasattic.com/what-you-do-to-me/
Both the book and Audiobook are FREE in Kindle Unlimited.

#audiobookreview #bookreview #bookstagram #audiobookstagram #Rollingstone #romancereads #recommendedreading #kindleunlimited #kindleunlimitedaudio #jewishlit #jewishromance #historicalromance #1970s #1990s #rochellebweinstein
Roan, Aspen and Cady may be my favorites of the Lo Roan, Aspen and Cady may be my favorites of the Lost and Found series. I love kids in romance novels and this romance was everything I love. The only thing that held me back from 5 stars was that I guessed the bad guy. After reading so many of her amazing books, they are starting to be a bit similar, but that could be the case with all small-town romantic suspense books. Catherine is one of my very top favorites and I can’t wait for the next in the series. I’m hoping I’m surprised this time! PS: the narration by Maxine Mitchell and Zachary Webber made it even better. 

šŸ“–Read it: https://amzn.to/3MsHGxx
šŸŽ§Listen: https://amzn.to/3seKZS8
šŸ’»My review: https://anasattic.com/shadows-of-you-catherine-cowles/
šŸ“šThe Series: https://amzn.to/3QGpMKp

#bookstagram #catherinecowles #favoriteauthor #romanticsuspensebook #contemporaryromance #kindle #Audible #audiblebooks #bookcovers #bookcoverlove #specialedition #recommendedreading #bookseries #amazonaffiliate
How do you do most of your reading? Physical books How do you do most of your reading? Physical books? Tablet? E-reader? Phone? Audiobook? Or do you read another way? 
—
—
#bookstagram #booklover #bookish #ebooks #audiobooks #audiobookstagram #kindle #books #booksbooksbooks #readersofinstagram #booklover #bookblogger #bookstagrammer
If you loved Kristen Ashley’s Ghosts & Reincarna If you loved Kristen Ashley’s Ghosts & Reincarnation series, you will love Too Good To Be True. It wasn’t my favorite because I’m just not into the old historical estates in England and so much was about the house itself. Part historical and part present-time, I liked the couple, but this just wasn’t really for me compared to all the other KA books I’ve loved. 

šŸ“–Read it: https://amzn.to/46fL99S
šŸŽ§Listen: https://amzn.to/3MOpG0F
šŸ’»My review: https://anasattic.com/too-good-to-be-true/
See my Complete Guide to Kristen Ashley: https://anasattic.com/the-complete-guide-to-kristen-ashley/

—
#bookreview #honestbookreviews #favoriteauthor #romanticsuspense #lristenashley #booklover #romancereader #bookstagram
How do you organize your bookshelves? By color? Al How do you organize your bookshelves? By color? Alphabetically? By genre? Do you read the books on your shelf?

Mine are done by author and genre. My favorite authors or ones that I have more than 6 books from have their own shelf or shelf space. The rest are done by genre. 95% of my books are signed, and I do not read them! I read the ebook or audiobook. 

What about you?
—
#bookstagram #bookshelves #bookshelf #bookshelvesofinstagram #bookish #signedbooks #booklover #homelibrary #homeoffice #bookshelfdecor #shelfie #romancebooks #romancebookstagrammer
Did you know you can get the entire series of The Did you know you can get the entire series of The Runaways by @devneyperry for only one credit? 5 amazing books, 5 separate romances, but they all connect beautifully. It was a great binge! 
—
šŸ“šThe Series bundle: https://amzn.to/3RtkEdj
šŸŽ§Series bundle on Audible: https://amzn.to/3rhD861
—
#devneyperry #audiobookreview #audible #kindleunlimited #bookseries #seriesbundle #affiliate #bookreview #bookstagram #audiobookstagram #romancebooks #recommendedreading
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Copyright

All images and text on this blog are credited to Ana’s Attic,Ā unless otherwise stated. Book covers are from Amazon.com. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material (including translations) without express and written permission from Ana’s Attic’s author is strictly prohibited.

Excerpts (no longer than a short paragraph) and links to this blog are permitted, providing that full credit is given to Ana’s Attic with clear and specific direction to the original content.

For our full, in-depth Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policies, CLICK HERE. By using this website you are consenting to our Policies as set forth here.

Facebook Page

Wicked Book Weekend

Ana's Attic Book Blog © 2023

Web Design and Development by emr design studio