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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 fiancé, 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”

_____________________________________

“In 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.”

 

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.

Purchase The Gamble on Amazon || BN.com || 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:

  • The Reunion by Meghan Quinn | Audiobook ReviewThe Reunion by Meghan Quinn | Audiobook Review
  • Gossamer in the Darkness by Kristen Ashley | Book ReviewGossamer in the Darkness by Kristen Ashley | Book Review
  • The Other Half of the Grave Book ReviewThe Other Half of the Grave by Jeaniene Frost | Book Review
  • With This Fling by Tara Sivec | Book ReviewWith This Fling by Tara Sivec | Book Review
  • Taking The Leap by Kristen Ashley | Book ReviewTaking The Leap by Kristen Ashley | Book Review
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5 stars, Kristen Ashley, What to read after Fifty Shades of Grey 2

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  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

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

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When I was 37, my 7 year old begged me daily for a When I was 37, my 7 year old begged me daily for a little brother (or sister). We obliged, but because of my age and I had lupus, the pregnancy was high-risk. At 17 weeks I had an amniocentesis. 2 weeks later we got the devastating news that our baby, the sibling my son was begging for, had some major genetic abnormalities, plus heart problems. If she survived the birth she would need multiple surgeries & would likely never leave the hospital. 

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I love reading about older couples! Flirting with I love reading about older couples! Flirting with Fifty by Jane Porter could have been a little more exciting, but I still enjoyed the read, and can recommend this to any women looking for older couples in their romances.

💻My ARC review: https://anasattic.com/flirting-with-fifty/
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“It’s called hot flashes, Dean. Don’t judge “It’s called hot flashes, Dean. Don’t judge me.” 
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With This Flirt by @authortarasivec is my first 5++ star book of 2022!

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When the author of your all-time favorite series r When the author of your all-time favorite series releases the first book from the male POV, you run to read it and hope it doesn’t ruin it for you. I’m happy to say @jfrostauthor just made me love Cat and Bones more. 

If you are a fan of Cat and Bones, or you just want to start a new series, I 100% recommend The Other Half of the Grave by Jeaniene Frost.

💻My review: https://anasattic.com/the-other-half-of-the-grave/
📚Read it: https://amzn.to/3LfLOys
🎧Listen: https://amzn.to/3kc3qiF
—
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It was SO GREAT going back to Kristen Ashley’s F It was SO GREAT going back to Kristen Ashley’s Fantasyland world again! I tried to read as slow as possible because I just didn’t want to leave. Though the whole Fantasyland series is best read in order, Gossamer in the Darkness easily stands alone. You don’t have to like fantasy or regency to love this, you just have to love romance. I am so happy to have this as a new addition to one of my favorite series, and now I may have to go and listen to the entire series again.

💻My review: https://anasattic.com/gossamer-in-the-darkness/
📚Read it: https://amzn.to/3LREzx2
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The Ravenhood Trilogy by Kate Stewart has a HUGE n The Ravenhood Trilogy by Kate Stewart has a HUGE number of people who are OBSESSED with it. I love Kate Stewart and needed to see what all the hype was about despite it being a long commitment (40+ Hours). In the end, it just wasn’t for me. It was too toxic and I never fell in love with and rooted for the MCs. Maybe I’m just too old? I wanted so much to love this! As much as I hate to sometimes, I review every book I read or listen to.

My Review: https://anasattic.com/the-ravenhood-trilogy/

The Ravenhood Trilogy: https://amzn.to/3vkCNyD
—
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The Other Half of the Grave by @jfrostauthor was e The Other Half of the Grave by @jfrostauthor was everything I could have dreamed of. I was nervous, because I’ve read a few other books that totally changed my opinion of the hero after reading their pov (and not in a good way). I was glad I went into this without a recent re-read of Halfway to the Grave (until after) because I wasn’t comparing the two, and The Other Half of the Grave felt fresh and new. 

I loved reading this almost as much as I loved reading the first book so many years ago, and that’s saying a lot, because I have read thousands of books since, and it still remains a favorite. If you are a fan of Cat and Bones, or you just want to start a new series, I 100% recommend The Other Half of the Grave by Jeaniene Frost.

💻My review: https://anasattic.com/the-other-half-of-the-grave/
📚Read it: https://amzn.to/3LfLOys
🎧Listen: https://amzn.to/3kc3qiF
—
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