Title: Gable (The Powers That Be #1)
Author: Harper Bentley
Release Date: Dec 31, 2014
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Gable Powers had all the makings of everything my father had ever warned me about: a reputation that was anything but stellar, a dirty mouth that had me shivering at the things he uttered in my ear, and a body (oh, God, that body) that was covered in tattoos, all of which added up to a solid ten-point-oh on the bad-boy scale.
The first time I met him, I instantly loathed him.
The second time was even worse.
He was a jerk. He was an ass.
He had secrets.
He was nothing I thought I ever wanted.
So why couldn’t I resist him?
New adult. Not recommended for readers under 17.
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Review
Gable by Harper Bentley is a quick and angsty read that will leave readers wanting their own Powers brother, but I’ll warn you…you’ll have to see through his bullshit and get past his whoring ways to see the good hearted man whose one experience with love left him the filthy mouthed playboy that he’s perceived to be.
At first, the heroine, Scout Patterson, sees the public Gable, and saying she’s not impressed is an understatement. She’s heard all about the Powers brothers because they are the talk of Hallervan’s campus, which is exactly why her plan is to stay clear of the professed manwhores and that’s only reinforced when a certain Powers stops to help her and spews a plethora of innuendos detailing exactly what he wants to do to her. Unimpressed, Scout doesn’t giggle or bat her eyes like Gable is used to, but that doesn’t stop his mouth or his eyes from racking over her every time he sees her, which is quite a bit since they work and have psychology together. But everything changes for Scout when her psychology professor assigns each of her students a classmate pen pal and hers happens to be the one person she wants to hate but just can’t make herself do so.
What follows after that assignment is the push and pull between two people who have trust issues due to past relationships and a double life for both of them – one where things are free and easy – where they’re both unafraid to talk about things because of the supposed anonymity they receive through cyber space, and the other – one that’s way harder and angstier to deal with, which is what sends Scout doubting her reality and questioning everything, leaving her with nothing but a heartache and the realization that nothing is ever easy when it comes to the opposite sex, especially one as difficult and assholish like Gable.
Scout and Gable’s story is a good start to Harper Bentley’s The Powers That Be series. I’ll admit, though, that I wanted to slap both of them. I understand both of their reasons for being cautious, but I wanted Scout to take control and not allow herself to be walked all over by Gable and then keep going back for more. Scout’s strength at the start of the story wanes as her interactions with Gable increase, which didn’t mesh well with my first perception of her. Gable may be a hard sell for some readers as well. His cocky attitude and uninhibited mouth might put people off, but if they’re able to see beneath the bullshit and understand how the events of his past shaped him, they’ll see him how Scout does or at least give him the benefit of the doubt in the end.
Bring on the next Powers brother – I can’t wait to see what kind of antics they get themselves into, especially when they’re brought to their knees by the “right” woman.
A complimentary copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.
4 Poison Apples
“I miss the white outfit,” he stated then put his hands on my hips, moving them down to where his fingers skimmed along the hem of my shorts then started moving them slowly back toward my bottom. “But these hot pink shorts make you look completely fuckable too.”
That brought me out of my stupor and I spun around, glaring up at him. “You can’t talk to me like that!” I hissed under my breath, glancing around self-consciously to make sure no one was watching our exchange.
He peered down at my chest where my nipples were standing at full attention under my t-shirt. “From the looks of it, I think you like me talking to you like that.” Then he leaned in closer. “What’s the matter? Never been talked dirty to before, Priss?” When he pulled back, I saw that the half grin was now going strong and his luminous brown eyes were dancing with humor at his having riled me.
Holy hell.
As I kept glowering at him, having no response to that, I noticed a girl next to us gawking at us, and embarrassed, I smiled shyly at her, tucking a piece of hair behind my ear, trying to act normal. When she turned away, I whisper-hissed at him, “Are you kidding me right now? Just who do you think you are?”
He bent again to get close to my ear. “I’m the guy who’ll have you coming hard before the semester’s over,” he answered evenly, his eyes shimmering with cockiness as they burned into mine when he stood straight again.
Mesmerized, I gazed back at him, lost in him, wanting what he was selling, God, how did he do that, until it hit me that I should be offended by his boldness and I suddenly frowned. “What is your deal?” I screeched making several students look at me and felt my face burning even hotter than it already was at his inappropriate comments. I turned to get away from him mumbling, “Oh, my God,” but he grabbed me by the arm pulling me in close.
“You don’t have to call me God. Gable works, but I’m sure I’ll be making you scream both soon,” he whispered close to my ear.
I pushed against his chest (of course he didn’t budge at all) and jerked my arm from his grasp with a scowl then moved as far away from him as I could, going to the back of the line to wait until he left. Standing there, I closed my eyes trying to get a hold of myself but could still see his seductive gaze searing into mine as he smirked while saying those things to me, as if he was so confident that they’d happen regardless of what I had to say about it.
And the really bad thing about it? As I stood there, a complete emotional mess from what’d just happened, I found I actually wanted those things to happen, which served to embarrass me even more not to mention just totally baffle me. I mean, I’d only slept with one guy, Hayden, my first and only boyfriend, and that’d been after we’d dated for almost a year so it wasn’t like I got around much, so what was wrong with me that I was all in for having sex with someone I barely knew? Someone who’d been an ass to me from day one. Someone who obviously had way more experience than I had.
As I stood behind everyone, I swallowed thickly, my cheeks still on fire, wondering who the hell I was, and when I moved my eyes to the front I saw Gable write his person’s number down in his notebook, smile at a girl who was gazing up at him like he was a damned rock star then he left without even a glance back at me.
When I finally got to the front, I wrote my person’s number down quickly and got the heck out of there because a few people were still watching me curiously. As I walked outside the building, I cautiously surveyed the area making sure Gable hadn’t hung around wanting to torment me some more but saw that he was off to my right talking to his friend, Mr. Tactful, and they were near the parking lot which was a good twenty yards away. I also saw that Gable was smoking. Well, total turnoff right there. Good. At least he had something about him that repulsed me (other than his cocky attitude, that is), and when I saw the coast was clear, I let out the breath I was holding, relief flooding over me along with a bit of disappointment at his unhealthy habit, and headed away in the opposite direction from him, going to my next class.
Harper Bentley has taught high school English for 22 years. Although she’s managed to maintain her sanity regardless of her career choice, jumping into the world of publishing her own books goes to show that she might be closer to the ledge than was previously thought.
After traveling the nation in her younger years as a military brat, having lived in Alaska, Washington State and California, she now resides in Oklahoma with her teenage daughter, two dogs and one cat, happily writing stories that she hopes her readers will enjoy.
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