Running Wild (Havoc, #1) by S.E. Jakes
Romance Suspense, MM
E book
June 28, 2014
Riptide Publishing
Reviewed by Tori
Sean Rush, ex military, ex convict, and current car thief, has been having an affair for the last eight months with an unknown man who sneaks into his home late at night and fulfills all his sexual fantasies. He knows nothing about the man except he is big, quiet, and amazingly talented in bed. As they spend more time together, Sean begins to realize that he wants more than just some stolen moments in the dead of the night.
Ryker, a lieutenant for the Havoc motorcycle club, has been watching Sean for a long time but only recently gave himself permission to act on his attraction. When things start to go south for Sean, Rykers protective instincts kick in and he drags Sean to the Havoc compound for safety. Sean has lots of secrets though, some that can destroy Havoc and everything Ryker has built if they all aren’t careful.
When Ryker’s own secrets come to light. Ryker will have to convince Sean that its not the rush that keeps them together, but the love that has built despite it.
I was excited to see S.E. Jakes was writing a M/M romance centering around a motorcycle club. There aren’t many of them out there and I really enjoyed her Men of Honor series. An interesting premise hints at a troubled young man whose lover will do anything for him and ends up having to prove that. That being said, Running Wild failed on multiple levels for me. My first point of contention is the secret sex. It’s eerily similar to Kristen Ashley’s Mystery Man premise. I didn’t like it then and I don’t like it now. No one lets someone break into their home for almost a year to have anonymous sex with them. Fiction or not, it’s not romantic no matter how you spin it. It smacks dubious consent and cowardice.
Second problem was Sean himself. Being in his head was a confusing journey and I likened it to watching one of those tiny rubber balls bouncing around. His thought process goes 90 miles a minute in multiple directions; flashing between past and present, speech and thought with nary a contextual clue to help you follow along. I do think Jakes did a good job with showing us someone who I suspect has ADD along with his PSTD might act. He has very limited control and being an adrenaline junkie to boot doesn’t help. I found his inability to sit still and just listen to be extremely tiring. He also had a “bratty” nature to him that wasn’t appealing, but that’s on me. I’m not a fan of adults who act like that in books or real life.
The storyline was a myriad of sub plots that overwhelm the book. The gist of the story is a car theft ring that pits three central groups against one another-putting Sean directly in the middle. Between the races, thefts, accidents, flashbacks, interjection of other series characters and storylines, kidnappings, the club’s businesses, and other MCs…I was confused about 75% of the book. Everything is very limited in explanation. An onslaught of information is dropped on us throughout the book but most of the actual events happen off scene. There is minimal development for such an convoluted storyline. There is also a supernatural scene that just left me staring blankly at the book. I know why it was done but I felt it was complete overkill.
The romance was steamy at times, sexually speaking, but I didn’t buy into Sean and Ryker’s chemistry. They already had an 8 month relationship before the book even starts, so we weren’t able to see their interactions or their thoughts during that time. Sean spoke of it in his disjointed way, but I felt Ryker’s explanations were a little bland. Once we learn his secret, his actions make more sense but I still couldn’t see beyond lust between the two of them. I never saw the “spark” that they saw in each other that would lead them to love.
The ending wraps up the various story lines, though we are left with a few open ended questions in regards to some events that occurred so I’m assuming Jakes will revisit them in the future. Jakes has said the M/F Skull Creek MC series, written as Stephanie Tyler, won’t overlap with this series but we do see/hear a little about it in here. While I enjoy some of Jakes’ works, I don’t foresee me continuing this one unless book two takes a much different route.
RATING: D
Recent Reviews:
The Blogger Girls
Wicked Lil Pixie
The Novel Approach
Goodreads I Author Website I Series List
“Between the races, thefts, accidents, flashbacks, interjection of other series characters and storylines, kidnappings, the club’s businesses, and other MCs…I was confused about 75% of the book.”
This. I’m still not sure if they started doing the nasty before or after Sean got out of the Army.
I’m not sure either. I think he was out already because he had been out a yr and I believe their relationship started 4 months after he got out. But, don’t quote me on that. 0_o It was an all around disappointing read for me.
Agree with the review, and I’m still trying to force myself to finish the book. I love Jakes’ Hell or Highwater series, but I won’t be buying any more of this series, I’m sad to say.
Oy vey this book – such potential but what a mess. The timeline was confusing with all the jumping around and frankly I found nothing redeeming about a car thief who came across more as an overgrown child. I still don’t understand what exactly attracted Ryker to him in the first place made him go all “mine”.