What do you think?
Rate this book
Complements
Robin Lewis isn't looking for a relationship. Who has time? Manderson College boasts one of the most prestigious math departments in the country, and a social life won't do much to impress the faculty. What will is a dedication to perfection and putting in long hours of a system that works great for Robin until she literally bumps into Hawk Stephens, the department's night custodian. Soon, she discovers Hawk can do more than sweep the halls. If she's not careful, he'll sweep her right off her feet. Robin wants to resist the attraction, but it's hard to ignore the way he seems so perfect for her. But when she finds out Hawk is so much more than he seems, embroiled by the fallout of his own regretful decisions, she questions if two such broken people can ever add up to a whole.
134 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 17, 2014
6 people are currently reading
344 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
April 1, 2014
This was not what I expected! It was a mathematical love tale!
I have to admit I didn't really search this book out as it came to me from one of my favorite authors Killian McRae, so I thought I give it a go and I have to admit I really enjoyed reading it. It had an easy flow and It didn't dabble into too many extra details.
Robin doing her Masters in Math wishes to complete her studies and not get involved in any other extracurricular activities especially when it comes in the male form. Hawk the school janitor, isn't who he seems to be, but Robin learns that as she gets to know him more and more. She must decide to trust him and not judge him if they are going to have a chance together.
The problems lies with her past and his present actions. Will that determine their fate? Robin becomes friendly with a Professor who is just too wiling to help her out, can she see past the manipulation being played out, Hawk knows more then he tells Robin as he is sworn not to speak of what he is going thru, but he takes a chance on their equation of love.
I loved the way Mari Cicero was able to employ mathematics into the story line and yes it was a bit geeky, yet it also was romantic and Hawk is very sexy even for a geek. She also threw in a great story of abuse, ethics, and wrongful doings. I don't want to say too much it will ruin the story. The way all the piece came together at the end also gave the story a hint of a mystery. It really was a brilliant read.
I have to admit I didn't really search this book out as it came to me from one of my favorite authors Killian McRae, so I thought I give it a go and I have to admit I really enjoyed reading it. It had an easy flow and It didn't dabble into too many extra details.
Robin doing her Masters in Math wishes to complete her studies and not get involved in any other extracurricular activities especially when it comes in the male form. Hawk the school janitor, isn't who he seems to be, but Robin learns that as she gets to know him more and more. She must decide to trust him and not judge him if they are going to have a chance together.
The problems lies with her past and his present actions. Will that determine their fate? Robin becomes friendly with a Professor who is just too wiling to help her out, can she see past the manipulation being played out, Hawk knows more then he tells Robin as he is sworn not to speak of what he is going thru, but he takes a chance on their equation of love.
I loved the way Mari Cicero was able to employ mathematics into the story line and yes it was a bit geeky, yet it also was romantic and Hawk is very sexy even for a geek. She also threw in a great story of abuse, ethics, and wrongful doings. I don't want to say too much it will ruin the story. The way all the piece came together at the end also gave the story a hint of a mystery. It really was a brilliant read.
April 9, 2014
I rated this book 4.5 stars, but always round up to the next highest full star when leaving reviews on sites such as Amazon, Goodreads, etc....
**
I like Hawk Stephens. I'm being distracted by Hawk Stephens. I'm attracted to Hawk Stephens. What all of that amounts to is....I'm in trouble.
**
Last thing on Robin Lewis' mind is starting a relationship with someone, let alone a janitor at the very University she attends. She has a past that complicates her future. But she is bound and determined to overcome it and move on. Without a man. Because a man is what got her in trouble in the first place. But there is something about Hawk Stephens. He invades her thoughts and before she can no longer deny the feelings between them. But Hawk isn't so forthcoming with his baggage. Can she overlook it as their relationship grows? Or is it enough to stop it in its tracks?
I adored this story. The writing, the flow, the characters...all of it! Instantly, I was pulled in and fell for this story line. And even though I have read this author's other work under her other name, Killian McRae, I found this book and her other work very distinguishable. Sometimes when an author produces under 2 or more names, the work can sound alike. Not so with this lady. I truly think that this book appealed to me more than any of her other stuff. I was so hooked from the very first paragraphs that I had a hard time putting it down.
**
"I’m going to kiss you now," he declares, “deep, hard, and long. And I am going to kiss you like that every time I see you, so you might as well get used to it."
**
Hawk was such a nerd. But in a good way. He is sexy as all get out, but a nerd none the less. And charming. Let’s not forget charming. Robin's character grew on me. I didn't hate her in the beginning, but ended up loving her in the end. Together these two are magic. I love that they share a love for math (why? I don't know. Me and math do not get along.) But the romance as perfect and flirty and I just loved, loved, loved it. I was swooning the whole way through.
My only problem for not rating it a full 5 stars was the ending. Towards the end so much talking was happening that it made the story drag. It was like the author was trying to explain away the twists. But it was just enough to only warrant rating it 4.5 stars.
COMPLIMENTS is a beautiful, romantic story that I am head over heels in love with. I dare you to pick it up today and read this amazing, quick read.
**
I like Hawk Stephens. I'm being distracted by Hawk Stephens. I'm attracted to Hawk Stephens. What all of that amounts to is....I'm in trouble.
**
Last thing on Robin Lewis' mind is starting a relationship with someone, let alone a janitor at the very University she attends. She has a past that complicates her future. But she is bound and determined to overcome it and move on. Without a man. Because a man is what got her in trouble in the first place. But there is something about Hawk Stephens. He invades her thoughts and before she can no longer deny the feelings between them. But Hawk isn't so forthcoming with his baggage. Can she overlook it as their relationship grows? Or is it enough to stop it in its tracks?
I adored this story. The writing, the flow, the characters...all of it! Instantly, I was pulled in and fell for this story line. And even though I have read this author's other work under her other name, Killian McRae, I found this book and her other work very distinguishable. Sometimes when an author produces under 2 or more names, the work can sound alike. Not so with this lady. I truly think that this book appealed to me more than any of her other stuff. I was so hooked from the very first paragraphs that I had a hard time putting it down.
**
"I’m going to kiss you now," he declares, “deep, hard, and long. And I am going to kiss you like that every time I see you, so you might as well get used to it."
**
Hawk was such a nerd. But in a good way. He is sexy as all get out, but a nerd none the less. And charming. Let’s not forget charming. Robin's character grew on me. I didn't hate her in the beginning, but ended up loving her in the end. Together these two are magic. I love that they share a love for math (why? I don't know. Me and math do not get along.) But the romance as perfect and flirty and I just loved, loved, loved it. I was swooning the whole way through.
My only problem for not rating it a full 5 stars was the ending. Towards the end so much talking was happening that it made the story drag. It was like the author was trying to explain away the twists. But it was just enough to only warrant rating it 4.5 stars.
COMPLIMENTS is a beautiful, romantic story that I am head over heels in love with. I dare you to pick it up today and read this amazing, quick read.
June 3, 2014
my free book from author.....u need to read
February 6, 2015
Different than I expected. Witty tho, I liked it.
November 10, 2014
“I like Hawk Stephens. I'm being distracted by Hawk Stephens. I'm attracted to Hawk Stephens. What all of that amounts to is....I'm in trouble.”
When I started to read this book I wasn’t sure what I expected. I mean the blurb doesn’t really give us much to go by. There is Robin that is running from a previous relationship at a different University. Then we have Hawk that is trying to get his life back together after he made a decision he regrets. From my point of view that doesn’t really give us anything to go by when it comes to the actual story. It only took me a few sentences to get hooked into the story. I went into the story not expecting much and it turned out to be great! It didn’t take me long to read and it was really enjoyable.
Robin Lewis ran from her previous college because of a forbidden relationship. She is trying to start over in a new school without participating in the social aspect of everything. She plans to keep to herself and prove that she is not the same person and she deserves to be in this program. All of that starts to go up in flames when she literally falls for Hawk. She falls flat on her face in front of Hawk cleaning the classroom. Hawk Stevens is the night Janitor for Manderson. He made some decisions that were spur of the moment that he can’t take back. He now has to fight for his right to stay at the university. Hawk now has another reason to fight as hard as he can to stay at Manderson, Robin. He has wanted her since the moment she fell into the shipping and receiving room. He just needs her to admit she wants the same thing. I loved these characters. Robin was timid and shy but also stubborn and sassy when she got comfortable with Hawk. I really didn’t think I was going to like her in the beginning because of her superiority complex it looked like she was going to have. But this was before we found out about her past and the complex only lasted a minute or two. The only thing I didn’t really like about her was that she seemed to be very judgmental. She tried to say she wasn’t but she judged pretty much everyone right from the beginning, and usually really really wrong. Hawk is another story. I loved him right from the beginning. He was a nerdy bad boy and I kinda loved it. He has a brilliant mind and he definitely likes to protect people. He knows what he wants right from the beginning and he over looks some of the things that Robin does and forgives her for them.
“I’m going to kiss you now,” he declares, “deep, hard, and long. And I’m going to kiss you like that every time I see you, so you might as well get used to it.”
The story was a really fun read. The characters worked. You actually became invested in the characters that you see in the book even though there are not many characters other than the main two. Which I thought was a little weird. I mean neither one of them had any friends. They hung out with each other and studied. Granted I never went to school on an actual campus because I commuted but I would have thought that they would’ve had a least one each. But other than that we only meet some people once or twice, not really any more than that. Hawk and Robin’s story is good enough that you really don’t need much more than them. The story had a nice flow to it. We weren’t skipping around in time erratically or anything. The love story developed nicely as well. They took their time and got to know each other. You didn’t even hear “I love you” until the end of the book. If you are looking for a book with steamy scenes in it this book isn’t for you. There were make-out scenes and “sex” scene but they were relatively clean. There wasn’t much detail, so if that is what you are looking for this book accomplishes that.
I kind of found this book to be a little predictable. I knew what was going to happen with the “villain” of the story and Robin. It wasn’t that hard to figure out. Even before we knew what happened with Hawk you could guess it. The only person that didn’t figure it out was Robin. I mean the description of Hawk’s body language and things should have given it away. Other than that the book was a sweet, nerdy, love story that you can really get into.
“Like the mathematical topics each of us are consumed with, we are compliments. What one gives, the other receives in reciprocal, always adding up to a perfect, encompassing whole. Together, we are complete.”
June 14, 2014
****3.5 stars***
Mixing numbers and romance may not seem like a likely combination, but hey even the math geeks need some love!! Robin and Hawk are both brilliant minds with a past that still haunts them, and should they be able to shake their demons, a bright future ahead. Robin was trying to hide from an old forbidden romance that could put her reputation at Manderson University into question, and Hawk’s world was rocked when his gut reaction forced him to take some serious heat. What seemed to be a chance meeting between the student and the university janitor turned out to be the start of a tangled web of uncertainty.
Robin was a bit on her high horse when she first met Hawk. Sure, when asked to think of their dream man no one has a picture of a janitor pop into their mind, but she was awfully quick to judge a book by it’s cover. Thankfully, Hawk proved quickly that he was made of much more than his dirty side job! I had to hand it to him, he took the blow to his ego without being a dick about it, and his personality made it hard to judge him no matter what his career path. Robin saw this spark in him, too, but when she learned he was not only the janitor but also the teacher whose class she was supposed to present lessons to, it was a big red flag for her after her past indiscretions.
The relationship between Robin and Hawk was sweet; their shared love for math was cute, and Hawk was a sexy gentleman as he tried to control himself around her. When he wasn’t looking sexy in anything from janitor uniform to business suits, Hawk was certainly an admirable character. This guy worked his ass off and was still giving all of himself to Robin so she’d know how much she meant to him. When working closely with other faculty became a must for her position at the university, Robin was forced to make some judgment calls that caused a lot of tension between her and Hawk. But he was looking out for her at every step of the way. When Robin unknowingly put herself in the line of fire, he was right there to be her protector and I loved when his alpha side came to the surface!
As the drama surrounding Robin’s actions played out, there were a few unexpected revelations that kept the pages turning quickly. I liked the way everything was wrapped up, I think everything happened the way it was supposed to more or less. There were times throughout the story where the narration was a little heavy on the creative metaphors, so it wasn’t as light as I would have liked. But overall, the characters were enjoyable and this was an entertaining read that happily breaks out of the mold to be something unique.
Quotes:
He’s wearing a flannel shirt that’s open halfway down, a gray T-shirt clinging to his muscular chest. I see just enough definition through the fabric to tell me Hawk has a body that wouldn’t be entirely unpleasant to explore. ~Loc 549
I’m not sure why that phrase haunts me the entire bike ride home, but I hear it repeated in a loop in my mind, along with the way it made a quiver pass through my gut. In such a simple manner, Hawk’s convinced me of that much: he can be a bad boy. The question is, do I want to be a good girl?~Loc 635
“…I can’t wait to see what you do here. You’re going to have everyone under your command.”
My head cocks to the side. “I am?”
Hawk takes my hands into his and dots a fleeting kiss to my lips. “Yes, you are. After all, you already have me.” ~Loc 945
Find this and more of my reviews at:
http://www.autumnreview.com/search/la...
Mixing numbers and romance may not seem like a likely combination, but hey even the math geeks need some love!! Robin and Hawk are both brilliant minds with a past that still haunts them, and should they be able to shake their demons, a bright future ahead. Robin was trying to hide from an old forbidden romance that could put her reputation at Manderson University into question, and Hawk’s world was rocked when his gut reaction forced him to take some serious heat. What seemed to be a chance meeting between the student and the university janitor turned out to be the start of a tangled web of uncertainty.
Robin was a bit on her high horse when she first met Hawk. Sure, when asked to think of their dream man no one has a picture of a janitor pop into their mind, but she was awfully quick to judge a book by it’s cover. Thankfully, Hawk proved quickly that he was made of much more than his dirty side job! I had to hand it to him, he took the blow to his ego without being a dick about it, and his personality made it hard to judge him no matter what his career path. Robin saw this spark in him, too, but when she learned he was not only the janitor but also the teacher whose class she was supposed to present lessons to, it was a big red flag for her after her past indiscretions.
The relationship between Robin and Hawk was sweet; their shared love for math was cute, and Hawk was a sexy gentleman as he tried to control himself around her. When he wasn’t looking sexy in anything from janitor uniform to business suits, Hawk was certainly an admirable character. This guy worked his ass off and was still giving all of himself to Robin so she’d know how much she meant to him. When working closely with other faculty became a must for her position at the university, Robin was forced to make some judgment calls that caused a lot of tension between her and Hawk. But he was looking out for her at every step of the way. When Robin unknowingly put herself in the line of fire, he was right there to be her protector and I loved when his alpha side came to the surface!
As the drama surrounding Robin’s actions played out, there were a few unexpected revelations that kept the pages turning quickly. I liked the way everything was wrapped up, I think everything happened the way it was supposed to more or less. There were times throughout the story where the narration was a little heavy on the creative metaphors, so it wasn’t as light as I would have liked. But overall, the characters were enjoyable and this was an entertaining read that happily breaks out of the mold to be something unique.
Quotes:
He’s wearing a flannel shirt that’s open halfway down, a gray T-shirt clinging to his muscular chest. I see just enough definition through the fabric to tell me Hawk has a body that wouldn’t be entirely unpleasant to explore. ~Loc 549
I’m not sure why that phrase haunts me the entire bike ride home, but I hear it repeated in a loop in my mind, along with the way it made a quiver pass through my gut. In such a simple manner, Hawk’s convinced me of that much: he can be a bad boy. The question is, do I want to be a good girl?~Loc 635
“…I can’t wait to see what you do here. You’re going to have everyone under your command.”
My head cocks to the side. “I am?”
Hawk takes my hands into his and dots a fleeting kiss to my lips. “Yes, you are. After all, you already have me.” ~Loc 945
Find this and more of my reviews at:
http://www.autumnreview.com/search/la...
June 18, 2014
“Unnaturally blue eyes survey me through a spray of ash-blond hair, concern and amusement mixed in his expression. At first, I’m convinced that I’ve actually hit my head during my fall, because I’ve never seen a boy … a man, who looked this good rush across a room to offer me assistance. Then again, I haven’t fallen flat on my face so epically since I was eight and my ballet class performed a number from Swan Lake. I wonder if there’s actually something to the klutz strategy of flirting.”
Robin Lewis is a brilliant mathematician. Until one mathematical error she made that cost her career, life and academic popularity.
Now, she starts fresh at Manderson University, one of the most prestigious university to offer her a master's degree in Applied Mathematics. But she is struggling in a male-dominant department and she has no adviser yet. She tries everything just so she could get a stellar recommendation and land on one of the professor she's been eyeing.
Things go horribly wrong for Robin. She has to redo again her teaching plan the night before the start classes. Then she almost fell flat-down and saw the most beautiful, soulful blue eyes she has ever seen.
“No one should be that dreamy hot, hardworking, intelligent, and generous without having some serious flaw that keeps the universe in balance.”
Meet Hawk Stephens. The night janitor. Or teacher. Or PhD student.
Robin tries not to make history repeat itself again when she wants to prove something for herself this time.
But Hawk's smile, charm and wit disarms Robin so much she can't help but fall in love.
“In mathematics, rational numbers are any number that can be expressed as the quotient or fraction p/q of two integers, with the denominator q not equal to zero. One over two is, therefore, a rational number, even though being half of anything right now seems the most irrational thing I can think of.”
When a professor of her's gives her more than what a professor should give his attention to his student, Robin acts as if it was nothing because her professor helped her get out of trouble. Then Hawk gets upset about this. He doesn't tell her what troubles him so much about her professor.
Hawk isn't just smart with a pretty face, he has secrets too. Secrets that Robin wants to know and that could rock their relationship.
“We’re two equations, you and I. Arranged different, each with our own set of variables, but somehow, we add up. You and I together equal each other.”
And we do. Somehow, we just add up.”
The book is somewhat…nice. I like how there were mathematical theories and equations thrown in this book. It is somewhat…refreshing to say at least.
But it wasn't really for me. I did hope that we could read Hawk's POV because it was more of his story though.
And by the way, he did such a douchebaggery, lower than crap, I-want-to-kick-his-face-if-I-could to Robin. The telephone thingy where the other end accepts the charges? Yeah. I got mad at that. But luckily he was the knight-in-shinning-armor when he came to Robin. So, all was well in the world.
I would recommend it buuut there were some math jargons in there what was applied to the story. I now understand why one of the reviewer said she had to scan some pages just to keep her interested.
Quick read but not really that…well, something. I think if this a bit rewritten or redrafted or something, it might be really good. I just have a feeling it was missing something.
July 26, 2016
Rating: 3 stars
Title: Compliments
Author: Mari K. Cicero
Genre: Contemporary romance, new adult
Heat: 2 stars
Source: Arc provided by Bewitching Book Tours in exchange of an honest review
Robin has tranfer to a different university running away from her mistakes. All she wants is to make a path for herself in such a male-dominated world. Looking for justice, Hawk takes the night janitor’s job as a means to an end. They each want different things, but they may discover that addition is their favorite operation after all.
Ms. Cicero has created an interesting story with Compliments. She has taken the world of mathmatics and have added a romance spiced with intrigue into it. The concept of the plot is fresh and has a few twists along the way to make the perfect intensity balance for the read. The story is easy to follow and kept me guessing along the way. .
I really enjoy the characters until Robin decides to have her TSTL moment. It was just a passing moment, but it did irk me that she could be so naïve, with her past and all. Overall, the characters were easy to understand and relate.
This is a new adult romance bordering on the sweet side, on which you can feel the romance vibe, but the heat is not intense. The scenes are metaphorically described.
I really like the world built by the author and the twists that she has added were a pleasant surprise. My only problem with the book was the female character was too naïve at a times to be really believable.
I would recommend this book to anyone that likes a sweet romance with a good plot behind.
Title: Compliments
Author: Mari K. Cicero
Genre: Contemporary romance, new adult
Heat: 2 stars
Source: Arc provided by Bewitching Book Tours in exchange of an honest review
Robin has tranfer to a different university running away from her mistakes. All she wants is to make a path for herself in such a male-dominated world. Looking for justice, Hawk takes the night janitor’s job as a means to an end. They each want different things, but they may discover that addition is their favorite operation after all.
Ms. Cicero has created an interesting story with Compliments. She has taken the world of mathmatics and have added a romance spiced with intrigue into it. The concept of the plot is fresh and has a few twists along the way to make the perfect intensity balance for the read. The story is easy to follow and kept me guessing along the way. .
I really enjoy the characters until Robin decides to have her TSTL moment. It was just a passing moment, but it did irk me that she could be so naïve, with her past and all. Overall, the characters were easy to understand and relate.
This is a new adult romance bordering on the sweet side, on which you can feel the romance vibe, but the heat is not intense. The scenes are metaphorically described.
I really like the world built by the author and the twists that she has added were a pleasant surprise. My only problem with the book was the female character was too naïve at a times to be really believable.
I would recommend this book to anyone that likes a sweet romance with a good plot behind.
Like the mathematical topics each of us are consumed with, we are compliments. What one gives, the other receives in reciprocal, always adding up to a perfect, encompassing whole. Together, we are complete.
December 23, 2014
Compliments is an intriguing story that keeps you guessing throughout. The characters are complex and deep. The story addresses a "taboo" issue and depicts the internal struggle of the characters. I loved watching Hawk and Robin's relationship evolve. Hawk helped Robin evolve as a person as well. I am a math geek myself so I loved the math angle of the book. I thought the chapter headings were unique and fun. I was glad to see karma play out at the end of the story. Highly recommended!
May 18, 2014
Was pretty good. Liked the story, was entertaining and a pretty quick read. Would have loved to had a chance to read Hawks side of things since so much of this story is about him. Over it was great reading this one between darker or more intense books, which fit perfectly to for lack of a better term - cleanse your pallet. For more info please check out my blog - A life Bound By Books.
August 9, 2016
I was given this book in exchange for an honest review.
This was the first book by this author that I have read, but look forward to seeing more from her in the future. I enjoyed the storyline and the writing style. I really enjoyed the way everything worked out for Robin and Hawk and would love to see more.
This was the first book by this author that I have read, but look forward to seeing more from her in the future. I enjoyed the storyline and the writing style. I really enjoyed the way everything worked out for Robin and Hawk and would love to see more.
April 1, 2014
3.75
April 3, 2014
Nice enough...but had to skim chapters to keep interested.
July 1, 2016
Good plot, interesting characters and some humor = a pretty good book.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews