She doesn’t let anything get in her way when it comes to finding out the truth.When Bentley Leighton, soon-to-be CEO of Leighton Enterprises, meets “Ceci,” he’s instantly impressed. He doesn’t have time to train a new intern. However, when he sees her that first day, his intentions begin to change.
He’s the boss. She’s the intern.
Nothing can happen. It’s against the company rules.
Then again, some rules were made to be broken.
What starts as innocent flirting becomes raveled up into so much more—secrets, lies, deceit.
Review
Boy does The Intern, Volume 1 pack a punch! It has everything a romance reader is looking for – suspense, mystery, forbidden romance, and hot sex. It’s a fast paced story that will hold readers’ interest until the end and make them demand the next installment as soon as possible.
Ceci West is neither your typical high school senior nor intern. Seven years ago, her life dramatically changed with the death of her father, and since then, she’s spent her time trying to figure out what happened that day. She needs information, and she’s willing to do anything to get it. She’ll manipulate, deceive, charm, and seduce anyone who can help her uncover the truth. Her internship at Leighton Enterprises is a means to an end, but this fact finding mission hits a snag when she meets Bentley Leighton, future CEO of Leighton Enterprises.
Bentley Leighton is sex on a stick, but he’s a distraction that Ceci can’t afford to have; too bad her body doesn’t agree with her mind. Bentley wants her, and no matter how inappropriate a fling with him might be, since he’s her boss and her motives aren’t exactly forthcoming, they both take the risk because their connection and the sexual chemistry between them is too much for them not to act on.
But can Ceci have the guy as well as get the information she needs? That’s definitely one of the questions readers are left with in this first installment. Another one focuses on Bentley’s reaction to Ceci’s deception. What’s going to happen to their relationship and her place at Bentley Leighton when he finds out the truth? I guess readers will have to wait for Volume 2 to get any of those questions answered.
The Intern, Volume 1 is a fantastic read. The storyline is completely original and as Ceci and Bentley’s story continues, readers are given further insights into what makes them who they are. I love that we get both point of views because a multi-dimensional look at what is bound to be an extremely complicated storyline is essential to understand all that is going to be revealed. What a great beginning to what I know is going to be one hell of a series. I can’t wait to see how this storyline is going to play out in the next two parts, especially with where Brooke left us in Volume 1!
A complimentary copy of the text was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.
5+ poison apples
My cock noticed her before I did.
She came out of nowhere.
Completely unexpected.
And I let her in…unwillingly.
But she gave me no choice.
She sledgehammered my thick walls, leaving me charmed by her knowledge, and seduced by her beauty.
I was captivated.
And now…it was about to tumble down in a tsunami of lies.
Uncertainty riveted my core as my anger spread…she was impossible to forget.
After all, she was still my intern.
Forbidden.
Lust.
Betrayal.
I felt all of those things for her at once. But only one would destroy us.
Review
When I checked my kindle and saw that my ARC of Brooke Cumberland’s The Intern, Vol. 2 was on there, I immediately stopped what I was reading, so I could find out how Ceci and Bentley’s story continued. Because it’s a fast paced story, I consumed the volume quickly. I desperately needed to know how it was all going to play out after volume 1 ended with Ceci in quite the precarious position, and Brooke definitely does not disappoint with this second installment. Volume 2 clearly illustrates the deep feelings that are develping between Ceci and Bentley as well as the dangerous position that Ceci is in with both her heart and her investigation.
At the end of Volume 1, Ceci was in Bentley’s office searching for clues about her father’s case. Bentley catches her underneath his desk, but doesn’t call her out, at least right away. Bentley has been burned in the past, so he doesn’t trust easily, and Ceci’s refusal to tell him the truth about why she was in his office gets his hackles up and makes him question every action she makes. Ceci, ever the master manipulator, does her best to assuage his fears, but they’re always at the back of his mind. Despite Bentley’s thoughts of betrayal, though, he can’t stay away from her, and the feeling is definitely mutual. But this game of cat and mouse is getting out of hand, and soon, the walls are closing in on Ceci and the risk of losing the man she has fallen for as well as the information she desperately needs becomes a distinct possibility.
The Intern, Vol. 2 is the perfect second installment. It builds up the chemistry between Ceci and Bentley as well as the mystery behind her father’s murder. Boy do these two heat up the pages. The connection they share is all consuming, and it’s throwing both Ceci and Bentley off their game, which is not good for two people who need to keep their wits about them in order to solve an important case and keep running a business that was almost already ruined by Bentley’s carelessness. Brooke clearly shows how at odds Ceci’s heart and mind are. Her focus is now split between following the clues to the truth about her father and following her heart that demands claiming Bentley for herself. Ceci is too close to both to back down now, but it seems clear that to get one, she’s going to have to give up the other, and she just doesn’t know how to do that quite yet. Too bad she may not have a choice because when, not if, Bentley finds out, it’s going to be game over for her on both accounts.
This is such a fantastic serial. The writing is interesting and draws readers in from the first page, and Ceci and Bentley are complex characters whose depth continues to be exposed as readers get further into their story. At the end of this volume, everything is slowly unraveling, so I will be impatiently waiting to see how it is all going to play out in the third and final installment.
A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.
5 poison apples
I should’ve known.
I should’ve listened to my gut.
But I didn’t.
I listened with the wrong head.
And where did it get me?
Secrets.
Lies.
Deceit.
She embodied them all.
Deceived her way into my company.
Lied about who she was.
Kept secrets from me after convincing me I could trust her.
Those walls she tore down are back up in full force.
Cold.
Angry.
Unforgiving.
She was no longer my intern.
She was no longer mine.
Review
Don’t let one mistake keep you from taking on the world.
It’s such a great piece of advice, but what happens when that one error destroys two lives in the process. How can you battle everything humanity throws at you, when you would have to start by taking on yourself – the one person who took things too far and lost everything because of it?
This is the state Ceci finds herself in as The Intern, volume three begins.
Bentley knows the truth – or at least enough of it to figure out that everything they have has been built on a mountain of lies. And, if you remember how the saying goes…fool me once, shame on you…fool me twice – well, let’s just say Bentley refuses to allow a third time from happening, and he does what he needs to do to ensure that doesn’t ever occur again – he removes Ceci from all aspects of his life.
But how do you forget someone who you can still taste and feel…someone whose memory resonates in your heart and in your soul? Time and distance seem to be the only way, but even that doesn’t take away the pain and the depression from losing the one person you thought completed you.
Is there any hope for a fresh start for Ceci and Bentley? And what about her father’s case…how do you come back from losing not only the love of your life but the only real chance you had of getting the answers you so desperately need for closure?
Dive in to The Intern, volume three and see how everything plays out.
I have been anxiously anticipating the final chapter in Ceci and Bentley’s story since I finished volume two. Brooke sent out the ARCs last night, and as soon as I woke up, I began devouring the text, and let me tell you, readers will be able to tell that Brooke put her heart and soul into giving us a beautiful conclusion.
The final volume is about so much more than Ceci and Bentley’s shattered relationship. It’s about their growth as individuals both emotionally and mentally. It’s about them learning the value of forgiveness and the worth of living their lives for themselves. It’s about figuring out if love can continue to be unconditional even after such a betrayal. It’s about a young girl’s journey to find out the truth about her hero and learning to accept whatever information is learned.
It’s a beautifully written story with well developed main characters that readers can’t help but root for as they try to figure out if and how they can be back in each other’s lives after all of the lies and pain they have caused each other. Brooke does a great job of showing how deeply both Ceci and Bentley were affected by their break up and then illustrates their attempts at reconnecting through not only their words but also the sexual intimacy that has always allowed them to completely express their feelings for one another.
The Intern is one of my favorite serials out there! Definitely a must read!
A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.
5 poison apples
Author Links:
www.brookecumberland.com
www.facebook.com/brookecumberlandauthor
Twitter @blcumberland
Fairest Of All Book Reviews 