All Chained Up (Devil's Rock, #1) by Sophie Jordan

Aug 09, 2015 WhiskeyintheJar rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: contemporary, series

****Full Review****

3.5 stars

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Briar Davis grew up with a violent father, so when her boss asks for volunteers to help him at Devil's Rock, a prison, her hand doesn't immediately shoot up. When no one else volunteers, though, she thinks about the promotion she wants and how she doesn't want to be afraid anymore and suddenly she's passing through maximum security ga ****Full Review****

3.5 stars

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Briar Davis grew up with a violent father, so when her boss asks for volunteers to help him at Devil's Rock, a prison, her hand doesn't immediately shoot up. When no one else volunteers, though, she thinks about the promotion she wants and how she doesn't want to be afraid anymore and suddenly she's passing through maximum security gates. Briar’s first day she meets Knox Callaghan, ripped, sexy, intense, and a convict. Knox has been in Devil's Rock for eight years serving out a murder sentence, his brother and he paid a visit to their cousin's rapist that ended badly for everyone. One look into Nurse Davis' eyes and he finds himself wanting things he knows a convict like him will never have. Even the eight years and bars, however, can't fully change the man and Knox saves Briar from sharing his cousin's fate. Suddenly, Knox and Briar have an opportunity they never thought possible, if only both are strong enough to take it.

The first in a new series, Ms. Jordan starts off with a bang. The beginning tension between Briar and Knox with the forbidden aspect, Briar's physical fear, and Knox's emotional brick wall was fantastic, I flew through the pages. They only have a couple meetings in the beginning but those moments pack quite the punch. Their interactions are drawn out but in a needful way, we see Briar's trepidation around Knox, how his brick wall cracks around her, and how they both can't help poking and reaching out to one another because of the draw they feel. The first 40% reminded me of Michael and Sara (Knox is a little darker than Michael) from the tv show Prison Break and I can see fans of the show really enjoying this part.

After Knox rescues Briar from some inmates, his second parole hearing is moved up and he is released, switching the gears of the story. Now we have Briar and Knox free to act on the feelings they had to try and suppress in the prison. The sexual chemistry that was apparent in the beginning carries over to this second part but almost to the determent of the overall story. We get a lot of sexual situations, they are done really well, drawn out with words that evoke feelings and steam but it became our couple’s whole relationship. Knox and Briar don't so much grow together, as they bang together. There are glimpses of emotional strife with Knox not feeling he is good enough for Briar and dealing with society's perceptions of ex-convicts and Briar convincing herself and her sister that she is not ending up like her mother and self-destructing with a violent man. Heavy topics that if flushed out better definitely could have added a deeper level to their relationship and the story.

Secondary characters flittered in and around the story with Knox's brother North having to survive in prison without him, Briar's sister providing a minor villain role, Briar's neighborhood gal pal that could be future heroine bait, Knox's aunt and uncle humanizing him more, and Reid. Reid ran a powerful gang in prison that Knox and his brother were welcomed into and protected them. Towards the end of the story and interjected in a somewhat awkward way, we get a lead in to Reid's future story as he escapes, makes his way back home, and finds his old gang has kidnapped the President of the United State's daughter. I think this would have worked better as an epilogue, finishing out Knox and Briar's story first, but either way, I can't wait to read it.

Briar's self-imposed sheltered personality and life and Knox's anger, determination not to mess up his life again, and stoicism, made them intriguing characters to read about while their sexual chemistry made it fun and hot. Their sexual relationship was written in a way that would at times remind me of Victoria Dahl and Cara McKenna's writing, which I greatly enjoyed. While at times the emotional aspect peeked through the sexual angst, the second half was missing it a lot. As an introduction to the Devil's Rock series though, All Chained Up has me excited for future characters and books.
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Oct 24, 2016 Christine Wallflower & Dark Romance Junkie rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: talk-dirty-to-me, bossy-guys, broody-heroes, adult-humpalot-chains-whips, guilty-pleasure, abuse, angst-in-my-pants, hot-and-bothered

4.5 Stars

He wasn’t that good or honorable. He wasn’t that strong. If she wanted to play with a wolf, then that’s what she would get.

Another great read done and dusted! Who says I was in the throes of a book slump? Huh?
Book slumps are no joke people, and when you pick up 5 consecutive books and can't get into any of them you start avoiding books all together. All Chained Up by Sophie Jordan goes under my fail safe banner, this ladies and gentleman was a scorching hot read with an alpha ex con

4.5 Stars

He wasn’t that good or honorable. He wasn’t that strong. If she wanted to play with a wolf, then that’s what she would get.

Another great read done and dusted! Who says I was in the throes of a book slump? Huh?
Book slumps are no joke people, and when you pick up 5 consecutive books and can't get into any of them you start avoiding books all together. All Chained Up by Sophie Jordan goes under my fail safe banner, this ladies and gentleman was a scorching hot read with an alpha ex convict hero that zeroed in on one woman and it stayed like that for the entire book.

Briar finds herself volunteering at the local prison, she's a nurse and the Devil's rock prison is running low on medical staff. Enter Knox Callaghan, resident badass, he's tough, stoic and the last thing he ever expected was for his mostly predictable prison sentence to be overturned by a good girl like Nurse Davis. In the beginning its all seering glanced and accidental touches, but when Briar is badly hurt while on duty everything changes. Knox saves her life and is subsequently released on parole.

As you may well have guessed, Briar and Knox cross paths in the outside world. Where obviously there are no boundaries which catapults them into an addictive physical relationship. But they're time together leads to even more and both realise that sex isn't enough anymore. On one hand Briar is hesitant but willing to take a chance, on the other Knox feels he doesn't deserve happiness.

While Knox is a strong and stoic type, he also carries around a lot of guilt which makes him feel as if he isn't good enough for Briar. I'll play the shrink for a bit and say that having to leave his brother behind in prison lead to even more guilt. Briar wasn't without her hangups either, coming from an abusive home she was rightfully weary of starting a relationship with a man convicted of murder.

He came from a world where you staked a claim. Prison taught him about taking, having. Marking what was his. That was his instinct when it came to Briar.

This book was fire, the H and h had such chemistry I mean it was just a heady experience reading the sex scenes alone. I've read a few historicals by Sophie Jordan but the heat in this contemporary outshined them. Suffice it to say I shall be reading the rest of this amazing series. Reid and the first daughter are bound to blow up the pages! ...more

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Jun 06, 2016 Naksed rated it it was ok

Shelves: nerd-girl-gets-the-bad-boy, wishy-washy-hero, no-emotional-connection, not-my-cuppa, swiss-cheese-plot, traitorous-body-alert, tstl-hero, tstl-heroine, wishy-washy-heroine, barf

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

Terrible heroine

h was uninspiring, weak, judgmental, wishy-washy, letting others influence her and make decisions for her, and there was one particularly barf-inducing, humiliating episode, where she got herself all gussied up to show up at hero's place of work like the stalker that she is, even though he told her to kiss off in no uncertain terms after a brief fling. No, just no.

Weak hero

Hero was slightly better than the heroine, though he had the same stalker issues, that is when he wasn't pu ...more

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Oct 05, 2017 *TANYA* rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Sigh!!! I love this series!!! Super cute, I’m officially a fan of Sophie Jordan. The story was good, the romance was amazing. All in all a very good book!!

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Feb 02, 2016 Alyssa rated it really liked it

Shelves: 2016-releases

Loved. This. Book.

***Review posted on The Eater of Books! blog***

All Chained Up by Sophie Jordan
Book One of the Devil's Rock series
Publisher: Avon
Publication Date: March 29, 2016
Rating: 4 stars
Source: eARC from Edelweiss

Summary (from Goodreads):

There are bad boys and then there are the men of Devil’s Rock . . .

Some men come with a built-in warning label. Knox Callaghan is one of them. Danger radiates from every lean, muscled inch of him, and his deep blue eyes seem to see right through to Briar ...more

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Mar 28, 2016 Angie Elle rated it it was ok

I have to admit that after such a promising blurb, this book was a disappointment. The first half that took place mostly in the prison was pretty good. The author did a great job conveying how nervous Briar was as she went to help out in the prison as a nurse for the first time, and Knox had all that mystery surrounding him that I like in a hero. But as soon as he was paroled, things took a turn for the worse for this reader. First of all, Briar’s sister was very nervous about her helping out in I have to admit that after such a promising blurb, this book was a disappointment. The first half that took place mostly in the prison was pretty good. The author did a great job conveying how nervous Briar was as she went to help out in the prison as a nurse for the first time, and Knox had all that mystery surrounding him that I like in a hero. But as soon as he was paroled, things took a turn for the worse for this reader. First of all, Briar’s sister was very nervous about her helping out in a prison, and after a significant event happens there, Briar decides not to share with her sister. Ummm…by significant, I mean significant. As in, this stuff makes the news. I have a hard time believing her sister wouldn’t have found out. Second of all, maybe I can suspend disbelief enough to make it through Briar falling into bed with Knox still without knowing why he went to prison, but what I cannot believe is Briar’s friend pushing her toward Knox without knowing why he was put away, not if she’s a good friend. We rely on our friends to be the voice of reason when we lose our heads, and while the reader knows Knox isn’t a dangerous guy, her friends aren’t in the know. And when Briar finally introduces Knox to her sister, she doesn’t seize the opportunity to tell her the ENTIRE TRUTH. Just hey – this guy I’m dating and brought to your family’s home? Yeah…he’s a murderer. Of course her sister is going to freak out! Why Briar didn’t give her sister all the details surrounding Knox’s crime, I have no idea. The whole ‘but you don’t understand’ doesn’t fly in this situation. It was clearly drama for the sake of drama, and it just didn’t work. And I just don’t understand why the author went this way. Even with the details, her sister had a reason to be cautious. But at least give me a heroine who’s going stand up for her man. And Knox – boy, that man is awful quick with the violence for someone who is on parole and always one step away from going back to prison. He was a very cautious character from the beginning, and this just didn’t ring true for me.

What really took the cake for me was that we hit 85%, the hero and heroine haven’t resolved a damn thing, and we get a point of view from a character and this scene doesn’t have a damn thing to do with Briar and Knox! Really? I feel like I needed one of those beepy alerts. **WE TEMPORARILY INTERRUPT THIS STORY FOR A SCENE THAT HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH KNOX AND BRIAR IN ORDER TO SET YOU UP FOR THE NEXT BOOK** That was incredibly frustrating. So then, we finally get back to this book and the most clichéd ending ever. The way Knox ‘proved’ himself to Briar was ridiculous, and in the end, the second half of the story overshadowed everything I’d enjoyed from the first half. Having said all that, I’m reading the second book. Yes, I am. On top of the fact that I’m hoping for the next installment to be more reminiscent of the first half of this book, I really enjoyed the snippets we got of Knox and Reid’s relationship. I at least want to give it a go.

While I gave this story 2 stars, I’d give the narrator, Christian Fox, 5. He had great intonation, and his voice was gruff and sexy as hell, just as I would expect Knox to sound. He did a great job with the female voices, too. It wasn’t too high pitched or soft.

This review was originally posted at Badass Book Reviews. ...more

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Apr 18, 2018 h o l l i s rated it it was ok

Shelves: 2018-reads, overdrive, smutty-smut-smut, finished-in-april-2018, jailhouse-rock, meh, contemporary, romance, crime-mystery, book-buddy-recs

I feel like all my reads lately have been buddy recs and I am not even a little mad about that! But I was definitely not madly in love with this one.

ALL CHAINED UP started with a crazy amount of intensity that had me so so excited. All I knew about this opener for Jordan's Devil's Rock series was that it was starred a convicted felon hero and had a jail setting. After reading McKenna's HARD TIME I was very into exploring more of this kind of romance buuuut it didn't take long for this particula I feel like all my reads lately have been buddy recs and I am not even a little mad about that! But I was definitely not madly in love with this one.

ALL CHAINED UP started with a crazy amount of intensity that had me so so excited. All I knew about this opener for Jordan's Devil's Rock series was that it was starred a convicted felon hero and had a jail setting. After reading McKenna's HARD TIME I was very into exploring more of this kind of romance buuuut it didn't take long for this particular read to not only lose that initial intensity but also expose some of the ridiculousness of both the characters and plot.

Both protagonists interested me in the beginning, but shortly thereafter Briar lost me with her inane and completely thoughtless comments, and Knox fluctuated between a total closed off dick, who went hot and cold faster than a Canadian spring, and yet also.. I don't know. Acted like someone completely different, which is understandable in his post-prison adjustment period, but it didn't feel like a natural transition. I was initially touched by the sibling relationship, and kinda smitten by the idea of the man who retains his goodness and ability to smile after eight years in jail, as North is stuck in jail finishing out his sentence even his brother is released, but after the way things came to a close in this one.. I have no idea how I feel about him now. Looks like he's going to be just another broody britches by the time he's starring in his own story.

As for the rest of the supporting characters? Meh? Not worth mentioning, really. I'll admit I'm curious about the totally outlandish set-up for book two between the now-escaped felon who lead one of the gangs while locked up, and who had served eleven years of his life sentence, and the President's Daughter who was kidnapped by his brother.. but I'll definitely be going into that one with my wtf threshold on super low.

CHAINED UP is a great idea that fails as a result of the characters. But I'm hoping that the next pairing can carry what's to come. ...more

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Mar 29, 2016 Duchess Nicole rated it really liked it

Shelves: genre-contemp-romance, ssssssmoking-hot, 4-star-read, genre-erotica, read-in-2016

Entertaining and thought provoking. I picked this up after it was chosed as a group read for a Facebook group's "Not-so Old-School" book of the month. I'm a nursing student and the idea of a literally locked up bad boy intrigued me. And for the most part, I really liked this escape into convict love. Knox really is a bad boy, in prison for something that most people would see as a justifiable homicide. He's had to toughen up a lot, so he's beyond edgy. His lady love is a volunteer nurse for the ...more

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Sep 14, 2015 ♡Julalicious Book Paradise♡ rated it it was amazing

Shelves: owned, signed-books

Original review on Julalicious Book Paradise

Rating: 4.5/5

I don't think you know just how excited I was for this book. I was trying to get an ARC to be able to review it but it never seemed to work and Sophie being the amazing person that she is gave me a copy when I met her at Apollycon and I totally devoured this book on my way back from Savannah.

If you know me at all, you know I just love Sophie's writing and she's one of my favourite authors hence the reason I wanted this baby so bad. Plus, f ...more

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Nov 27, 2018 Denisa rated it liked it

Shelves: romance, cute, relaxing, cliche, fun

Fun!
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This is a first time author for me and I must admit, I really like her writing style.
Can't say I absolutely loved the characters for some reason (though they were fun and cute together and all that), but it did make me curious about the next book, so that's a plus.

It's worth reading though, at least to get to "meet" a new, good author. ...more

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Mar 30, 2016 Jo rated it really liked it

Shelves: 4-stars, book-boyfriend, mine, gr2016

Knox Callaghan is danger personified. And he has worked very hard for eight years to portray this image to the other inmates in Devil’s Rock. No one messes with him or his younger brother North. Both of them were convicted for manslaughter, after killing the man who raped their cousin. And they have been paying for it ever since. But finally he has been given parole, after saving the life of the new nurse, Briar, when two prisoners decided to take over the HSU so that they could have Briar to th

Knox Callaghan is danger personified. And he has worked very hard for eight years to portray this image to the other inmates in Devil’s Rock. No one messes with him or his younger brother North. Both of them were convicted for manslaughter, after killing the man who raped their cousin. And they have been paying for it ever since. But finally he has been given parole, after saving the life of the new nurse, Briar, when two prisoners decided to take over the HSU so that they could have Briar to themselves. Knox can’t help being attracted to Briar, even though he knows nothing can come of it.

Briar is a nurse who volunteered to assist her boss, Doctor Walker, in his weekly help at Devil’s Rock. Briar despises violence, and believes all prisoners to be bad men. But despite this, she can’t help being attracted to Knox. But then he saves her life, and she realises that her original view of him was wrong. And now he’s finally out of prison, and she hopes to have the opportunity to thank him.

Both Knox and Briar believes that giving into their attraction would be a very bad idea, but walking away is not an option. So when they cross paths again, neither can resist the intensity between them. But can they overcome their doubts, and realise that what they have is worth fighting for?

I LOVED Knox!! His years in prison has made him a hard and dangerous man, but underneath it all he’s loyal and protective. And he would do anything for those he loves. But prison had damaged him, made him believe that he wasn’t good enough anymore. Especially not for sweet and innocent Briar. My major weakness is a broken man, so of course Knox was fantastic. I loved how he cared for his brother, and how protective he was over Briar. The fact that after eight years in prison he didn’t just have sex with the first available woman once he got out, was wonderful in my opinion. He wanted Briar, and he wasn’t going to settle for anything less than what he felt for her.

The plot was wonderfully done. The prison dynamics was so very interesting. I loved the bromance between the two brothers, how they watched each other’s backs while incarcerated, and I also loved the addition of Reid, who had one of the biggest gangs in Devil’s Rock. The bare glimpses given of him made me very interested to see what his story is. Especially after what happened near the end. I can’t wait to read his book.

My only problem with this book was Briar. The only thing I liked about her was her name. For me she was too judgemental to like. Even after finding out about her childhood and how her dad abused her mother, sister and her, I still couldn’t understand her views of Knox and the inmates. She believed them all to be evil and stupid, and that they deserved everything they got. I HATE judgemental people, so I just couldn’t like her. Yes, by the end she did get better, but for me it was too late.

The sexy times were very hot, and I wouldn’t mind having Knox for myself.

I would have given this book 10 stars, because of my love of Knox and the plot, but unfortunately I can’t because of Briar. But it was still a really good read, and I can’t wait to read this next book. I really hope North will get his own book too.

...more

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Jan 27, 2016 Kate Meader rated it it was amazing

I was lucky to get an ARC from the author. This was sexy as all get out - I couldn't turn the pages fast enough. Can't wait for the next book! ...more

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Apr 18, 2018 Bookphenomena (Micky) rated it liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: library, forbidden-love, contemporary-romance, cover-meh, hero-swoon, book-friend-recs, audio, anti-hero, addictive, narration-good

I enjoyed this audiobook much more than I was expecting. It was suggested in a group by a friend and the idea of a prison context interested me. Whilst more of the story is outside of the prison than in, I found that I enjoyed that element more. There are parts of this that might not quite be truly believable but other facets compensate.

The heroine Briar was a grower-on-me type of character but I liked Knox from the beginning. Their chemistry was superb and there was a strong story to tell. A ho ...more

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May 11, 2016 Kimberly Derting rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Prison Break, only better!

These are not the convicts you cross the street to avoid! Hot men and even hotter love scenes. I can't wait for Reid's story!!! ...more

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Feb 04, 2016 Maria Rose rated it it was amazing

Shelves: best-of-2016, fully-reviewed-books, 5-star-reads, sexy-as-all-get-out

All Chained Up is the first story in Sophie Jordan’s Devil’s Rock series, named for the prison that is a key part of the setting. When Briar, a nurse, volunteers to go with a doctor from her clinic to treat inmates at Devil’s Rock following the retirement of their regular practitioner, she figures she can handle a few weeks of working in the prison setting, even if it does make her uncomfortable. Reassuring herself that there is security everywhere, she focuses on seeing the inmates as patients All Chained Up is the first story in Sophie Jordan’s Devil’s Rock series, named for the prison that is a key part of the setting. When Briar, a nurse, volunteers to go with a doctor from her clinic to treat inmates at Devil’s Rock following the retirement of their regular practitioner, she figures she can handle a few weeks of working in the prison setting, even if it does make her uncomfortable. Reassuring herself that there is security everywhere, she focuses on seeing the inmates as patients needing treatment, not as scary, large men. When she meets Knox, in the infirmary with injuries from a fight, she finds herself both frightened and fascinated by him. They share an electric connection though neither verbally acknowledges it. When Knox saves her life during an attempted infirmary take over, preventing a brutal assault, she sees that his stoic facade, in fact masks a man who cares. Paroled after 8 long years in prison, in part due to his help of Briar and her colleagues during the incident, a chance encounter between them at a convenience store leads Briar to throw caution to the winds and begin an affair with Knox. After locking down his emotions for so long, Knox is determined to make their time together only about sex (and good sex at that). As he adjusts to life on the outside again, will he be able to open his heart to Briar and embrace a new future?

I really enjoyed this story! Knox avenged an assault on his cousin, and when things went too far, he and his younger brother North ended up in prison for manslaughter. For 8 long years, they’ve had each other’s backs, and been under the protection of the ruling internal gang leader, Reid, without whom they’d never have survived. Knox’s sudden probation leaves him out in the world again (with his brother still locked up) and having to adjust to everything that means after years of being strong and in control all the time. He has a parole officer checking on him regularly, rules to follow, and a job bartending at his uncle’s biker bar. Knox is determined never to go back to jail, and will do anything he needs to do to stay out of trouble. Knox’s character is that of a bad boy with a good heart, even if that heart is pretty scarred. He struggles with the idea of having a normal relationship. Indeed, the idea of an actual future with a woman is something he stopped thinking about once in jail, his focus solely on day to day survival. Now that’s he’s free, it’s something he begins to contemplate as he and Briar reconnect outside the prison.

Briar has had her own share of trouble, including an abusive ex-boyfriend and a rocky relationship with her mother, who never left her abusive husband (Briar’s dad). She and her sister are on good terms though her sister worried about her being in danger working at the prison – a worry that turned out to be well founded when Briar was attacked there though Briar didn’t share that news. She’s shocked at herself though for being attracted to Knox who is clearly off limits while at the prison, and part of her worries that, like her mother, she is attracted to violent men. When he saves her from being assaulted she realizes that her assumptions about him were all wrong. And when they meet again on the outside, there is no reason not to act on that attraction. She trusts Knox, and this leads to several steamy scenes between them. Briar is sweet but feisty, and in her arms, Knox finds those humane pieces of himself that he’s had to hide for so long. I loved the two of them together, and how Knox is able to finally let down his guard and expose his feelings to Briar.

The story moves at a swift pace, with a very interesting look at Knox’s life inside the prison in the first part of the story, as well as his re-adjustment to the outside world. Action scenes to go along with the sexy romance make for a compelling read. As well, contrary to the usual setup, there is a chapter in the latter part of the story (but not at the end) that sets up the plot for the next story with a hostage situation that will ensure readers want to pick up the next book to see how it all turns out. No worries, though, Knox and Briar get their happy ending in this one. 4.5 stars for this exciting and sexy read!

He approached, stopping an inch behind her, not touching, but she stilled anyway, sensing him at her back. She didn’t turn around, but he heard the change in her breathing. The shallow rasp. Like she couldn’t get enough air.
His chest tightened as he absorbed her warmth. Even this close, it was like a current connected them. All of him felt coiled and ready to snap like a contracting spring.
She lifted her head and stared straight ahead into the cabinets, waiting. Was this it, then? She had invited him over here on the pretext of ice cream, but the first move was his?
He closed the final distance and braced both hands on the counter, leaning in, letting her feel all of him against the trembling line of her body.
He spoke into her ear and caught a whiff of pears. Just like all those times in the HSU. Except they were alone now. No guards. No handcuffs. Nothing was stopping him from touching her. “This is a bad idea,” he whispered.
A shudder wracked her softness and vibrated into the length of him.
He lifted his hand and fisted it into her hair, fingers sinking deep and tangling in the mass, the strands soft as silk against his rough palm. “You should tell me to go,” he growled, fingers delving deeper, searching for the band to free it. She released a soft whimper as he found the thin elastic and tugged it free. The band snapped and broke and the mass of silky hair fell over his hand and arm, tumbling down her back.
Just like that, something snapped in him, too. The last invisible thread that had been holding him together.
“Last chance,” he growled, thrusting his hips, letting her feel him, rock hard against her, letting her know exactly what was going to happen if she didn’t tell him to get the fuck out of here.
He pulled back on her hair and another one of those little sounds escaped her as she arched her throat for him and he pressed his open mouth to the flushed skin at the side of her neck, directly beneath her ear.
She pushed back against him in response, rocking her ass into his hardness.
She might come to regret it, but he had his answer.

...more

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Feb 05, 2016 nick (the infinite limits of love) rated it really liked it

Shelves: arc

3.5/5

This was really good for the most part although I'll admit that I wanted a bit more of the emotional side of the relationship instead of all the sex scenes. Know was a little frustrating at times but overall an entertaining read and I'm looking forward to Reid's book!

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FULL REVIEW

I was really nervous to start All Chained Up because it features a romance with a convict, not something that I would normally gravitate towards. Having loved Sophie Jordan's p
3.5/5

This was really good for the most part although I'll admit that I wanted a bit more of the emotional side of the relationship instead of all the sex scenes. Know was a little frustrating at times but overall an entertaining read and I'm looking forward to Reid's book!

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FULL REVIEW

I was really nervous to start All Chained Up because it features a romance with a convict, not something that I would normally gravitate towards. Having loved Sophie Jordan's previous romance novels though, I was still eager to give this book a try. All Chained Up turned out to be quite the addicting read and mostly what I expected out of the book.

Like I said before, I was very wary of Knox's character at first. The fact that he was a murderer should have made me (and the heroine) run in the opposite direction, but I found myself being very intrigued by his character. As you may have guessed, he was very much rough around the edges, intense and guarded his emotions. He was incredibly difficult to gauge because he wasn't the most open guy when it came to his feelings. Despite his murderer status, throughout the book, I began to grow an understanding of his personality. While his reason for killing was understandable, it still didn't excuse it. I didn't love his character, because I felt really weird rooting for a murderer, but I did feel like Sophie Jordan did a good job at making him redeemable. Briar, the nurse that Knox meets in prison, was a character that I liked overall. She was definitely a bit too innocent and naive for my tastes, but she had her moments where she really shined. Her compassion, dedication and inner strength that she exhibited after a dreadful and terrifying experience at the prison made her likeable.

The chemistry between Knox and Briar was on fire from their very first meeting. Their connection was electric and you feel all that passion that they had between them from the beginning of All Chained Up. Nothing physical happened between them for a bit, but once they started, the two had a ton of steamy scenes together. While I thought Sophie Jordan excelled at the sexy times, I did want to see more of an emotional connection between Briar and Knox. A few more scenes of them connecting in a non-physical way would have been fantastic. Towards the middle, near the end, I did get really irritated with Knox for repeatedly pushing Briar away. I wanted him to get his shit together and fight for Briar and stop with the "I don't deserve her" thoughts. Thankfully, his frustrating behavior didn't last too long.

In the end, I thought All Chained up was a captivating, intense and very enjoyable read. We meet a bunch of secondary characters in this one that I'm hoping will also get their books next. I'm looking forward to more in the series for sure. ...more

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Nov 06, 2015 Keri rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: romance-contemporary, 2015s-read, ntm-author

Really loved this book! Not a romantic trope that you see much of. Knox is a convict in Devil's Rock and he makes no apology for the murder he committed. He has been in for 8 years and has been denied his first parole. Briar, a nurse, has agreed to volunteer one day a week out at DR until a permanent solution can be found. Her first day of course her and Knox get to meet. Although Blair is scared of the situation, she has a background of abuse, she stays with it. A situation occurs that shines a ...more

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Jan 11, 2016 Codi Gary rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: print-books-on-shelf, arc

HOLY FREAKING CRAP OF WONDER!
I'm going to keep this review as spoiler free as possible, but it will be really hard. This was an amazing read. I am a big fan of Sophie's and when she offered me a chance to read All Chained Up, I was stoked. Starting this book at 4:30 today, I flew through the story, devouring the hot, gritty sexual tension between Briar and Knox. And the suspense. There was one scene where I was literally about to come out of my skin if I didn't get to the end of it! And there is ...more

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Apr 27, 2016 Ann Mat rated it it was amazing

"We're two consenting adults. What's wrong with this?"

...more

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May 09, 2016 YA Reads Book Reviews rated it did not like it

Shelves: nichole

Originally posted on www.yareads.com, reviewed by Nichole.

Yikes…just……yikes. I’ve read some of Sophie Jordan’s YA works, but this one was the first adult book of hers that I’ve read. I was really looking forward to it, because I’ve heard such positive reviews over it. It also had a really good premise that I was really interested in reading about. Unfortunately, this one just fell flat….

The fist 22% of All Chained Up is really awkward and a little uncomfortable. It’s basically the same scenes o Originally posted on www.yareads.com, reviewed by Nichole.

Yikes…just……yikes. I’ve read some of Sophie Jordan’s YA works, but this one was the first adult book of hers that I’ve read. I was really looking forward to it, because I’ve heard such positive reviews over it. It also had a really good premise that I was really interested in reading about. Unfortunately, this one just fell flat….

The fist 22% of All Chained Up is really awkward and a little uncomfortable. It’s basically the same scenes over and over and over and over and on and on and on and on. Briar goes to work at the prison, Knox comes into the doctor’s unit at the prison to get looked at, Briar acts like a weak little mouse, they barely have any interaction, but yet they feel a huge magnetic pull. BLAH. They didn’t really have any special moments that really tied them together. So, it was super underwhelming when Knox eventually gets released from prison and they start up this relationship like they’re super in love. They didn’t have that chemistry in prison. I just didn’t get it.

I HATED Briar. Like….HATED. She was very timid, weak, quiet, non-confrontational, blah, blah, blah. Don’t get me wrong, I can read about submissive females in a book and love them. I wouldn’t really call Briar submissive, though, she was just plain. Like, if you had a box of fruit loops, she would be the random beige fruit loop in a bowl full of color. I just didn’t like her.

I. HATE. WHEN. BOOKS. PROMOTE. SEX. WITHOUT. CONDOMS. Ladies, please let me inform you that you need to have sex with a condom. I don’t care if it feels good. I don’t care if you “trust” the guy after knowing him for… a couple weeks? ESPECIALLY if he just came out of PRISON. When a guy says “I’m clean, do you trust me?” YOUR ANSWER IS NO. You put on the condom and you power through it. YOU GET TESTED. Not only do YOU make the GUY get tested, but YOU also get tested and show HIM your results. This is not something to be taken lightly. This is not a game. This is your life and his life and you treat it with care and respect. I’m getting really sick of books advocating sex without condoms and treating it like it’s totally normal. I’m not okay with it. Even if I really like the book, I do acknowledge when that happens, and I dock down the rating. I can’t stand it. You know, it’s perfectly A-Okay if you’re in a commited relationship and decide to make that choice as a couple. That is fine. But don’t advocate it for a couple that just starts sleeping together, whose not even in a relationship. THAT IS NOT OKAY.

Overall, this book was boring and lame. The characters and the plot were underdeveloped and not planned out very well. I thought that this book could have really gone places, it just wasn’t executed very well. Pass.
...more

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Jul 14, 2018 Juliana Philippa rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Recommended to Juliana Philippa by: romancelibrary

Shelves: 0-own-as-an-ebook, 0-own-as-kindle-ebook, cr-delicious-hero, romance-contemporary, romance-series, 0-own, series, cr-heroine-somewhat-wallflower, cr-a-little-on-the-naughty-side, 0-to-reread-romance

4-4.5 stars
Thanks to Lubnaa for this great recommendation; can't wait to read the rest of the series! I loved Knox and Briar and their entire story. Granted, it's very unconventional—prison inmate falls in love with the temporary prison nurse—but all the better; when one reads a lot of romances, it's difficult to find an unusual storyline that hasn't been done a thousand times.

I adored Knox, who was just as delicious as could be; we know of course that he's a good guy at heart, and he is—he was ...more

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Nov 23, 2016 Lover of Romance rated it really liked it

Shelves: pub-2016, setting-usa-texas, rating-4-blossoms, trope-opposites-attract, page-number-300-399, theme-ptsd-trauma-abuse, character-abused, character-alpha-hero, character-doctor-or-nurse, theme-scandals-and-disgrace

This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance

Summary
Briar is a nurse that when asked to volunteer at the prison since they were short staffed, she never realized what she was getting herself into....or the man that was sexy and dangerous and scary as hell and she wanted him, heaven help her. Knox is a inmate who has been in prison for eight years, doing everything he can to be tough and a survivor and helping his brother stay on top of the ladder. What Knox d ...more

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Jun 24, 2017 Lynn rated it liked it

All Chained up is the first book in the Devil's Rock series. I enjoyed the story of Knox Callahan and Briar Davis. Briar is a nurse who has been asked to work one day a week on a temporary basis at Devil's Rock prison helping heal sick and injured inmates. As fearful as she is, Briar is also intrigued by one of her first cases, Knox Callahan. On one of her days at the prison, a couple of inmates take over the health center. Hearing of their plans, Knox gets into a fight with his brother in order ...more

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Aug 26, 2015 Esther rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: arc-edelweiss, some-angst

3.75

ARC from Edelweiss and Publisher for honest review.

I liked the romance between these two and that it's not often that you read a romance that involves prison.

Knox has been in Devil's Rock prison for eight years now. He meets Briar, a nurse who's at the prison temporarily as a fill in, when he comes in hurt due to a fight that ensued. There are sparks immediately between the two but Briar is also afraid of who Knox represents and what she experienced in her past.

At one point during her time ...more

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Apr 30, 2016 Saly rated it liked it

Shelves: rom-contemporary, single-titles, read-in-2016

I have previously read only one prison romance Inside by Brenda Novak, which is one of the few books by Novak that I have enjoyed so that might have colored my judgment of this book. I just went in expecting more and the connection between the characters never really made sense for me, they went from prison to wham-bang!

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Nov 15, 2020 Seline rated it really liked it

Very entertaining and the chemistry between the characters was real nice.

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Jul 08, 2015 Lacey (laceybooklovers) rated it really liked it

Shelves: review-copy, adult, contemporary-romance, arc, blog-review, hot-as-holy-hell, bad-boy

Originally posted at Booklovers For Life

It’s been a while since I’ve read a good bad boy hero, but Sophie Jordan certainly delivers with Knox Callaghan in All Chained Up. She packs a punch with all the intensity and sexiness in this first book in the Devil’s Rock series. I don’t usually read prison romances, but this one was unputdownable and highly entertaining. I really enjoyed the main characters, and the romance was off-the-charts sexy – I’d definitely recommend All Chained Up for those who ...more

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Mar 29, 2016 Red Cheeks Reads rated it it was amazing

OK, so I went into this book kind of blind. I have only read one other Sophie Jordan book and it happened to be NA. But I really REALLY loved it so I wanted to give All Chained Up a go. I am so glad that I did because, wow…this one was super action-packed, angsty, and just crazy sexy!

I honestly didn’t know at first if I was going to like Knox. I didn’t think I could find myself actually attracted to a man who had committed a very horrible crime. The beginning of this book was a bit slow for me a OK, so I went into this book kind of blind. I have only read one other Sophie Jordan book and it happened to be NA. But I really REALLY loved it so I wanted to give All Chained Up a go. I am so glad that I did because, wow…this one was super action-packed, angsty, and just crazy sexy!

I honestly didn’t know at first if I was going to like Knox. I didn’t think I could find myself actually attracted to a man who had committed a very horrible crime. The beginning of this book was a bit slow for me and I think part of that was because I didn’t fully connect to Knox until a good 40% in. But then I did and I actually couldn’t put this book down. I was immediately sucked into the story and totally devoted and rooting for this couple. And Knox. Gah. He won me over with his heroics and then I just felt so incredibly bad for his circumstances.

“Don’t confuse me with some hero. I’m as tarnished as they come.”

Swoon, ya’ll! Because I really do love a bad boy and Knox is definitely that. Briar won me over too! She is feisty, sweet, kind and for someone who was weary of men like Knox, she sure gave him a fighting chance. And her inner dialogue was pretty funny at times, too.

‘A guy like him wasn’t going to give her the things she needed. Well, aside from orgasms. She needed those. She loved those.’

So, even though this one started off a bit slow for me, when the story picked up I was completely sold. I think I found it a bit slow because the author had to give background on quite a few of the rest of the inmates and such. Often first novels in series, I find a bit hard to get into at first for this very reason. But I am so glad that she did give me that background info because some crazy stuff went down in this book and now I find myself really wanting the next book in this series. I am dying for it actually because I just know it is going to be SO good! The writing was really fabulous and I enjoyed it immensely even though it wasn’t first person, which is my preference. But I found that I still connected well to the characters and enjoyed the witty moments, the sad ones, and definitely the sexy ones. This book is smoking hot, folks. Grab it!

~Amie ...more

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Oct 20, 2015 Danielle rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Holy hell! What an outstanding first book in a brand new series by Jordan! I can honestly say I don't think I ever read a romance book where the hero is an inmate in prison. Just the plot and the uniqueness of this story made me want to read it.

Knox has been incarcerated in Devils rock for 8 years for murder. Although he is supposed to get out someday he feels like it's so far away and is just trying to survive day to day. When a fight breaks out Knox is taken to get checked out by medical and ...more

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Mar 14, 2016 Christina rated it liked it

3.5 Stars - 3 Flames

After reading the blurb, I was thinking that I'd be drawn to this like a moth to a flame. Ehhhh. I guess the set up took a little longer than I anticipated because I wasn't really interested in this until roughly 15% in. Not long in the bigger scheme of things, but...ehhh.

Once the "suspense" actually took place, I couldn't turn the pages fast enough to see what was coming next. That is until about 75% in when things started to just...move...slower...than I hoped. Don't get m ...more

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