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Skin #4
Skin Dive
She can’t remember what home is like…
Gillie is a fugitive. She has the scars to prove her long-term incarceration, but the story would land her in a padded cell if she presented it to the authorities. Now that she’ s free, she’ s determined never to be bound again. But her extraordinary healing is too valuable to let go, and her former captors intend to retrieve her—by any means necessary. Which doesn’t bode well for her dream of a normal life.
He can’t remember wanting anything more.
Taye can’t remember much about his past, but he knows he’s not worthy to give Gillie her happily-ever-after, so he’s determined to preserve her innocence, though she tempts him more than any woman he’s ever known. With the clock ticking and a bounty hunter hounding them, he faces the most important task of his life—assuring her safety from the Foundation. No matter the pain of his own deferred desires.
Gillie doesn’t understand how he can resist the charge between them. And if Taye has his way, she’ll never know the sacrifice he’s making to keep her alive…
Gillie is a fugitive. She has the scars to prove her long-term incarceration, but the story would land her in a padded cell if she presented it to the authorities. Now that she’ s free, she’ s determined never to be bound again. But her extraordinary healing is too valuable to let go, and her former captors intend to retrieve her—by any means necessary. Which doesn’t bode well for her dream of a normal life.
He can’t remember wanting anything more.
Taye can’t remember much about his past, but he knows he’s not worthy to give Gillie her happily-ever-after, so he’s determined to preserve her innocence, though she tempts him more than any woman he’s ever known. With the clock ticking and a bounty hunter hounding them, he faces the most important task of his life—assuring her safety from the Foundation. No matter the pain of his own deferred desires.
Gillie doesn’t understand how he can resist the charge between them. And if Taye has his way, she’ll never know the sacrifice he’s making to keep her alive…
280 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published May 21, 2011
6 people are currently reading
562 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 63 reviews
July 18, 2011
I didn't enjoy this one as much as the other 3 books. It was just too much action and not enough loving. The thing about men in the Skin series is, they were very protective and very tight on their self control. And with Taye, the self control was in double dosage.
Taye first met Gillie when they both were confined in the Exeter facility as test subjects. And being that Gillie was a mere child when she was abducted and practically grew up in the facility, he saw her as an innocent and very fragile. After they got out, Taye still felt the need to protect her even from himself so he kept pushing her away.
And they wasted 40% of the book being apart instead of doing the dirty. And boy, when they actually did, the sex scenes were extremely scorching HOT. Absolutely dirty!
Taye first met Gillie when they both were confined in the Exeter facility as test subjects. And being that Gillie was a mere child when she was abducted and practically grew up in the facility, he saw her as an innocent and very fragile. After they got out, Taye still felt the need to protect her even from himself so he kept pushing her away.
And they wasted 40% of the book being apart instead of doing the dirty. And boy, when they actually did, the sex scenes were extremely scorching HOT. Absolutely dirty!
July 15, 2011
In Skin Dive we finally get Taye's and Gillie's book and its starts with their escape from the foundation lab(they experiment on people) where they were prisoners. As we know Taye has the ability to manipulate electricity and metal(at great cost to himself) and Gillie can heal people(it causes pain to her).
They escape but the foundation guys are still after them, they are contacted by a guy who runs a group with people like them working against foundation. They ask Taye to join them but he only wants to protect Gillie and help her achieve a normal life.
She is the only good thing in his life, he doesn't even remember his name or past but what flashes he has had makes him believe that he is not a great guy and then there is the truth, that he knows he is slowly dying. He kind of treats her like spun glass when she is not, she had twelve years in that facility. They take jobs to get enough money for ID's and Taye tries hard to resist the pull between them.
At first Gillie allows Taye to pull that crap but later not so much, she asks him to be treated as an equal and when he decides to join the party fighting against foundation, she also signs up.
My problem with the book was I felt it was based too much on the action, though I did like the players introduced. While Taye runs around trying to destroy foundation, Gillie enrolls into college making a new life for herself. Of course Taye does come back, missing her like hell. But I didn't like the romance that much, though I never had doubts that these two loved each other.
They escape but the foundation guys are still after them, they are contacted by a guy who runs a group with people like them working against foundation. They ask Taye to join them but he only wants to protect Gillie and help her achieve a normal life.
She is the only good thing in his life, he doesn't even remember his name or past but what flashes he has had makes him believe that he is not a great guy and then there is the truth, that he knows he is slowly dying. He kind of treats her like spun glass when she is not, she had twelve years in that facility. They take jobs to get enough money for ID's and Taye tries hard to resist the pull between them.
At first Gillie allows Taye to pull that crap but later not so much, she asks him to be treated as an equal and when he decides to join the party fighting against foundation, she also signs up.
My problem with the book was I felt it was based too much on the action, though I did like the players introduced. While Taye runs around trying to destroy foundation, Gillie enrolls into college making a new life for herself. Of course Taye does come back, missing her like hell. But I didn't like the romance that much, though I never had doubts that these two loved each other.
March 3, 2023
I think this was the weakest of this series for me.
This is Gillie and Taye's story. After their escape, they stay together and help each other re-acclimate and cope with their new life on the outside. Gillie was 12 when she was kidnapped and has been imprisoned for half her life. They are also being hunted by the Foundation.
When Mockingbird reaches out, they do eventually accept help. Now, the goal is to take the Foundation down. Gillie and Taye start separate lives while never forgetting about the other. I did like seeing how Silas was able to restart his life. I also thought the Foundation was brought down too easily. I was also disappointed that we never really knew Mockingbird as a character. But, just focusing on Gillie and Taye and their HEA, this did work.
This is Gillie and Taye's story. After their escape, they stay together and help each other re-acclimate and cope with their new life on the outside. Gillie was 12 when she was kidnapped and has been imprisoned for half her life. They are also being hunted by the Foundation.
When Mockingbird reaches out, they do eventually accept help. Now, the goal is to take the Foundation down. Gillie and Taye start separate lives while never forgetting about the other. I did like seeing how Silas was able to restart his life. I also thought the Foundation was brought down too easily. I was also disappointed that we never really knew Mockingbird as a character. But, just focusing on Gillie and Taye and their HEA, this did work.
July 5, 2011
“Sweet, sweet girl, I want to dive under your skin.”
Forget the swimming pool! If a man offers me a line like that, I’m diving into the horizontal position or into the final installment of Ava Gray’s Skin series.
Taye and Gillie are fugitives from an underground facility, Exeter. The Foundation, the creators of this experimental facility, basically seek out people with extraordinary gifts to kidnap and mind scrub their brains. Then they continuously use them as lab rats for brutal, psychological experimentation. Taye’s gift is an electrical current that manifests in and out of his body. He is basically a walking live wire, but has limited control of his abilities. The more he uses his gift, the weaker his body becomes. Gillie has the gift of healing. Through transfer of blood, she can heal disease and near fatal wounds. Whenever she uses her gift, there are permanent scars that disfigure her body. With little memory of their past lives, Taye and Gillie are re-learning how to function in daily activities once they escape Exeter and return to the everyday world. Both know that even though they have escaped, The Foundation has enlisted a bounty hunter who is searching and is quickly catching up to them. With no other choice for safety, Taye and Gillie must put their faith and lives in the hands of a man known as “Mockingbird”. This mysterious man has recruited and provided for former prisoners of The Foundation and in return he requested their help in destroying the members and facilities of the clandestine organization. Taye believes he has little time left before his gift destroys him and he is determined to ensure that Gillie has a safe and normal life without his complications. Gillie knows that there is no one else but Taye who she wants to live her life with and therefore has different plans in mind.
Ava Gray has penned a fearless, passionate couple in an action packed story for the final entry of her Skin series. She has consistently delivered intense chemistry with each couple in this series and Taye and Gillie were no exception. What I loved about this couple is their outlook and dedication to each other was immediately established and never faltered. Both own the fact that they have survived hell on earth and vow to create a better life for themselves. Taye wants Gillie to find that with someone of worth and Gillie knows it cannot be with anyone but him. Once they are free, Taye is so reluctant to get any closer to Gillie except to protect her. And Gillie’s unwavering pursuit of Taye (including a game of Truth or Dare which leads to some seriously daring manual stimulation) is like a thorn that keeps lodging deeper and deeper until finally he can no longer deny his feelings or his desire for her. As the reader you get an immediate sense that this couple just fit together beautifully, in spite of all their obstacles. They both know that they are not whole people without the other.
And while they can heat up a simple conversation, when it comes to the bedroom, they can scorch the sheets with their raw need for each other. Gillie is one of the best written virgins I have read in romance. Forget shy or backward, Gillie knew exactly what she wanted when it came to sex and she had no qualms in verbalizing it. Their banter in the bedroom was uninhibited and honest, proving to be some of the best written love scenes I have read of Ms. Gray’s to date.
“Good to go deeper?” At her nod, he pushed, a slow and torturous penetration that threatened to melt his bones.
“It doesn’t hurt,” she whispered. “I have toys. I used them and thought of you.” He lost his mind.
Eye-fluttering, intense dialogue like this not only heated my blood, but also reminded me of another one of my favorite authors Larissa Ione, whose Demonica series is cleverly referenced by Gillie as the perfect reading material for Taye.
While Skin Dive can hold as a stand alone read, it is far better if you have invested in all of the uniquely driven characters throughout each book of the series. Paranormal and romantic suspense readers are sure to be completed sated!
Favorite Quote:
“She was the strong one, damn near unbreakable, for all he’d worried about protecting her from harm. Loosing him wouldn’t end her. As it turned out, she was stronger than him because three months without her had wrecked him, stolen his will to do the right thing.”
Originally posted at http://www.fictionvixen.com/2011/07/r...
June 3, 2017
I wish I could say that I enjoyed this, but reading it for the second time has shown me that I wasn't being picky. I liked Taye and Gillie individually, but I didn't like or love them together. Taye was too much of a coward and it got old real quick whenever Gillie tried to take it further and tell him that she wanted to be with him. He refused to trust that she was capable of knowing what she wanted. She didn't help the problem when she let him get away with repeatedly pulling her in and then pushing her away. She let him toy with her emotions and showed that she'd always forgive him whenever he screwed up. He knew that she'd never walk away from him no matter what he did or how many times he hurt her. By the time he got his act together and figured out that they could make it work, it was way too late for redeeming himself. She accepted him with open arms like he didn't ever abandon her and break her heart the way he did. She gave herself to him when HE decided to stop being scared because he was ready to take it further. Even after that, he screwed up again and all it took was some flowers and teddy bears to win her over. Even given the significance of the teddy bears, sorry, that's not gonna work. It doesn't make up for every time he rejected her, made her feel like she wasn't good enough, hurt the one person that loved him as much as he loved her, left her when she needed him most. He deserved to end up alone or watching her find happiness with someone else as a lesson of what he gave up when he had her, from the day he met her, he had her.
The actual story itself was fine, but watching Taye reject Gillie over and over again ruined any enjoyment the rest of the story brought for me. I won't put myself through this again. It had potential to be great and I loved their relationship that we saw in the first book of this series. These two don't feel like those same characters I was cheering for in the beginning. On that note, I'll finish this review off with saying thanks but no thanks, it was a good experience but one I won't be coming back to ever again. Taye is NOT a worthy hero...and...scene.
The actual story itself was fine, but watching Taye reject Gillie over and over again ruined any enjoyment the rest of the story brought for me. I won't put myself through this again. It had potential to be great and I loved their relationship that we saw in the first book of this series. These two don't feel like those same characters I was cheering for in the beginning. On that note, I'll finish this review off with saying thanks but no thanks, it was a good experience but one I won't be coming back to ever again. Taye is NOT a worthy hero...and...scene.
July 12, 2011
Posted at http://yummymenandkickasschicks.com/?...
I am just going to come out and say it: I LOVED this couple. When I first heard that the fourth and final book in Ava Gray’s Skin series would be Taye and Gillie’s, I had high hopes for it. You see, we first meet Taye and Gillie in the second book, Skin Tight. They aren’t a couple in that book though. In fact, they just meet and bond from both being part of a horrible situation. Buy they are lovable from the very beginning and I really was hoping they would end up together. So you see that’s why I was really happy book four was ‘their’ book!
Gillie and Taye were taken by members of the Foundation because they both possess incredible powers (for lack of a better word). Gillie can heal people, including those with cancer, by taking the disease into herself and letting her body heal it. Taye can manipulate electricity and use it as a weapon. They had become two very valuable assets to the Foundation. Until *slight spoiler* they escaped.
Gillie surprised me in this book. You know she possesses a strong character because she’s not insane even after being imprisoned, used and tested on for half of her life. But she was actually a little kick ass and I for one loved it! She has been imprisoned for so long that she is determined to do what she must to stay free. She also knows she wants Taye and is pretty much willing to do anything to keep him too.
And Taye. *sigh* I must admit that I wanted to smack him upside the head sometimes. He is so sure that Gillie just wants him because she’s never known any other option that he is pushing his own feelings down to give her a chance to ‘explore’. Even though Taye was a bit of a dumbass, he was still an amazing read. He is so thoughtful of Gillie, he just wants to make sure she gets the life she deserves. And how can you not love a man like that? Especially when he has also been trapped for years and has no recollection of his life pre-Foundation. Always thinking of Gillie first. Again…*sigh*
I had three tiny little issues with this book. But as you can tell, they weren’t enough to dampen my rating. I was slightly confused every time Taye’s stomach pain came up. Only at the very end do we find out what was up with that exactly. Before then, I thought it was only caused by using his powers…and that’s an easy-ish fix. But nope. It was serious stuff. I just don’t know why it was explained a little more earlier on. I also found the ultimate climax of the book/series was a little rushed and some of the ‘revelations’ came out of nowhere. Finally we have Tanager and Mockingbird. What the??? Even though we don’t see much of Tanager in this book, we see enough that you get a little attached and want her to get a happy ending too. I just felt like she got totally jipped in this story.
Just a little note: Even though this is a series, they are pretty much stand-alone books. But, to really get the full effect of them all, you should read them all and in order. There is a little bit of back story that can make you appreciate the scope of the world Ava has built, especially in the second and third books. But if you are short on time and can only read one, don’t fret. Ava does a good job recapping what happens with Gillie and Taye in Skin Tight so you won’t feel lost.
Ava Gray (a pen name for Ann Aguirre) has a lovely writing voice. She’s a wonderful story teller and her characters will stick with you. Her Skin series is labelled under ‘paranormal romance’, but it’s not your typical one. There are no vampires and no weres – it’s closer to an X-Men type of paranormal which makes it inventive and different. I have read all four books and I can easily say that if you are looking for a different twist in a paranormal writing, smart story lines and intense characters, then you would really enjoy this series.
As for Skin Dive, it is to be the last book in the Skin series and I found it ended the series perfectly. I actually found myself re-reading the last couple of chapters because they made my heart swell and made me smile real wide. And even though I had high expectations for this book, Ava met them and then some.
I am just going to come out and say it: I LOVED this couple. When I first heard that the fourth and final book in Ava Gray’s Skin series would be Taye and Gillie’s, I had high hopes for it. You see, we first meet Taye and Gillie in the second book, Skin Tight. They aren’t a couple in that book though. In fact, they just meet and bond from both being part of a horrible situation. Buy they are lovable from the very beginning and I really was hoping they would end up together. So you see that’s why I was really happy book four was ‘their’ book!
Gillie and Taye were taken by members of the Foundation because they both possess incredible powers (for lack of a better word). Gillie can heal people, including those with cancer, by taking the disease into herself and letting her body heal it. Taye can manipulate electricity and use it as a weapon. They had become two very valuable assets to the Foundation. Until *slight spoiler* they escaped.
Gillie surprised me in this book. You know she possesses a strong character because she’s not insane even after being imprisoned, used and tested on for half of her life. But she was actually a little kick ass and I for one loved it! She has been imprisoned for so long that she is determined to do what she must to stay free. She also knows she wants Taye and is pretty much willing to do anything to keep him too.
And Taye. *sigh* I must admit that I wanted to smack him upside the head sometimes. He is so sure that Gillie just wants him because she’s never known any other option that he is pushing his own feelings down to give her a chance to ‘explore’. Even though Taye was a bit of a dumbass, he was still an amazing read. He is so thoughtful of Gillie, he just wants to make sure she gets the life she deserves. And how can you not love a man like that? Especially when he has also been trapped for years and has no recollection of his life pre-Foundation. Always thinking of Gillie first. Again…*sigh*
I had three tiny little issues with this book. But as you can tell, they weren’t enough to dampen my rating. I was slightly confused every time Taye’s stomach pain came up. Only at the very end do we find out what was up with that exactly. Before then, I thought it was only caused by using his powers…and that’s an easy-ish fix. But nope. It was serious stuff. I just don’t know why it was explained a little more earlier on. I also found the ultimate climax of the book/series was a little rushed and some of the ‘revelations’ came out of nowhere. Finally we have Tanager and Mockingbird. What the??? Even though we don’t see much of Tanager in this book, we see enough that you get a little attached and want her to get a happy ending too. I just felt like she got totally jipped in this story.
Just a little note: Even though this is a series, they are pretty much stand-alone books. But, to really get the full effect of them all, you should read them all and in order. There is a little bit of back story that can make you appreciate the scope of the world Ava has built, especially in the second and third books. But if you are short on time and can only read one, don’t fret. Ava does a good job recapping what happens with Gillie and Taye in Skin Tight so you won’t feel lost.
Ava Gray (a pen name for Ann Aguirre) has a lovely writing voice. She’s a wonderful story teller and her characters will stick with you. Her Skin series is labelled under ‘paranormal romance’, but it’s not your typical one. There are no vampires and no weres – it’s closer to an X-Men type of paranormal which makes it inventive and different. I have read all four books and I can easily say that if you are looking for a different twist in a paranormal writing, smart story lines and intense characters, then you would really enjoy this series.
As for Skin Dive, it is to be the last book in the Skin series and I found it ended the series perfectly. I actually found myself re-reading the last couple of chapters because they made my heart swell and made me smile real wide. And even though I had high expectations for this book, Ava met them and then some.
June 30, 2011
Skin Dive by Ava Gray
Paranormal Romance - July 5th, 2011
4 ½ stars
The latest in the paranormal Skin series features two wounded individuals trying to make a new life away from the evil Foundation.
Gillie has powers to heal. Unfortunately, healing others causes her deep scars and pain. For over a decade, she is the prized lab rat in the Foundation’s top secret facility. Although she has been given a small apartment, she knows she is being monitored 24-7 and is sexually coveted by the man in charge. But one day ,Gillie is surprised when a young man named Taye is placed in her cell. At first she is very afraid but soon realizes that Taye made a deal to meet her. In exchange, he will cooperate with the Foundation’s nefarious experiments, but these experiments are taking their toll on Taye.
They quickly realize they must escape. With the help of another captive named Silas, they are finally free. But at too soon, they are all being hunted. Then, they are contacted by a mysterious man named Mockingbird. He and his agents also have supernatural powers and fight the Foundation. He asks them to join their fight. Gillie wants to stay with Taye forever but Taye has no memory of his past. He feels dirty and used up. Plus his powers are slowly causing him irreparable physical damage. He agrees to work for the Foundation because he loves Gillie (and wants her free) but knows he doesn’t have long to live. But the only way to keep her safe is to push her away…
This was an exciting installment to the Skin series. They all remind me a bit of the X-Men- only better! (The story on Silas is featured in the anthology Primal and I think reading that short adds a bit to this book, since it mentions more about Mockingbird and his agents.) I really enjoyed how the author gets the reader involved in the relationship between Gillie and Taye. Sometimes I did get a bit frustrated with Taye for always saying he wasn’t good enough but the depth of emotion between the main characters more than made up for that small quibble. Gillie is very young and although inexperienced in life, her tragedies made her very mature. She wants Taye, no matter how much he tries to push her away. Reading about their ‘last’ days together is very poignant because the tender chemistry between them felt so real. You just know that they could never find another person who would match or understand them half as much. The only thing that surprised me was the ending which makes me think this may be the last book in the series?! I really hope not since I love the mastermind, Mockingbird, and would love to read a story featuring him.
Poignant and exhilarating, anyone who loves the X-Men or the Dirk and Steele series by Marjorie Liu will find a haven in this series.
Reviewed by Steph from the Bookaholics Romance Book Club
Paranormal Romance - July 5th, 2011
4 ½ stars
The latest in the paranormal Skin series features two wounded individuals trying to make a new life away from the evil Foundation.
Gillie has powers to heal. Unfortunately, healing others causes her deep scars and pain. For over a decade, she is the prized lab rat in the Foundation’s top secret facility. Although she has been given a small apartment, she knows she is being monitored 24-7 and is sexually coveted by the man in charge. But one day ,Gillie is surprised when a young man named Taye is placed in her cell. At first she is very afraid but soon realizes that Taye made a deal to meet her. In exchange, he will cooperate with the Foundation’s nefarious experiments, but these experiments are taking their toll on Taye.
They quickly realize they must escape. With the help of another captive named Silas, they are finally free. But at too soon, they are all being hunted. Then, they are contacted by a mysterious man named Mockingbird. He and his agents also have supernatural powers and fight the Foundation. He asks them to join their fight. Gillie wants to stay with Taye forever but Taye has no memory of his past. He feels dirty and used up. Plus his powers are slowly causing him irreparable physical damage. He agrees to work for the Foundation because he loves Gillie (and wants her free) but knows he doesn’t have long to live. But the only way to keep her safe is to push her away…
This was an exciting installment to the Skin series. They all remind me a bit of the X-Men- only better! (The story on Silas is featured in the anthology Primal and I think reading that short adds a bit to this book, since it mentions more about Mockingbird and his agents.) I really enjoyed how the author gets the reader involved in the relationship between Gillie and Taye. Sometimes I did get a bit frustrated with Taye for always saying he wasn’t good enough but the depth of emotion between the main characters more than made up for that small quibble. Gillie is very young and although inexperienced in life, her tragedies made her very mature. She wants Taye, no matter how much he tries to push her away. Reading about their ‘last’ days together is very poignant because the tender chemistry between them felt so real. You just know that they could never find another person who would match or understand them half as much. The only thing that surprised me was the ending which makes me think this may be the last book in the series?! I really hope not since I love the mastermind, Mockingbird, and would love to read a story featuring him.
Poignant and exhilarating, anyone who loves the X-Men or the Dirk and Steele series by Marjorie Liu will find a haven in this series.
Reviewed by Steph from the Bookaholics Romance Book Club
July 12, 2011
Ava Gray's 'Skin' series is a must read for fans of an alternate paranormal romance. Instead of vampires, witches and the like, we have humans with extra abilities, kinda like Heroes or the X Men. What made the series stand out though, was the fact that Gray didn't try to recreate Heroes or the Xmen, but rather show the lives of these special people and how they intersect with normal humans and the backstory of how they came to be that way.
Now as the series devoloped, I understood that eventually it would become more detailed in the paranormal action, however I think it was executed poorly in the book and made for a mind numbing read.Let me clarify that I love anything sci-fi/paranormal/action whether in books or in movies. I think that when it gets mixed in with romance though, things can get tricky.
I loved how the book started out, then by midway to the end, it sorta went downhill from there.
My main issues with Skin Dive are :
1. Gillie. After reading about Gillie in previous books, I had conjured up an image of a very precious, very strong and innocent girl. In this book, IMO, her innocence came across as naivetee, and her strength as being whiny. There is a scene towards the end, where Taye is grovelling to Gillie and he sends her every day a stuffed animal to make up for the one's Rowan took away from her on her 16th birthday. This reflects the issues I have with Gillie's characterization. On one hand she wants to be the dirty talking sexy girl but yet she still pined for her stuffed toys.
The other issue I had with her, was WHY she was mad at Taye. For the most part he was trying to protect her knowing that he was dying and KNOWING that she would try to find a way to heal him (and that can hurt HER). I don't like the way he did it, but Gillie overreacted and came across as being spoiled and whiny. I mean Taye is sacrificing for her (joining the Mocking Birds etc) and all she can think is 'He's treating me like a child'. It's because you act like one ma'am.
2. The new 'team' - Ok- I'm not a bird enthusiast, and I was irritated by the Crow/Gull/Hawk yadda yadda yadda. That would translate better in a movie than reading. I had to think to myself 'wait, was that Silas?'
3. The action scenes were boring to me and I had to force myself to read them. But that deficiency could be with me, and not the author :)
What I did like though, was the fact that we got to see the mastermind behind 'the Resistance' against the Foundation. I sorta wished we got some cameos from old characters.It's a definite must read for fans of the series though!
Now as the series devoloped, I understood that eventually it would become more detailed in the paranormal action, however I think it was executed poorly in the book and made for a mind numbing read.Let me clarify that I love anything sci-fi/paranormal/action whether in books or in movies. I think that when it gets mixed in with romance though, things can get tricky.
I loved how the book started out, then by midway to the end, it sorta went downhill from there.
My main issues with Skin Dive are :
1. Gillie. After reading about Gillie in previous books, I had conjured up an image of a very precious, very strong and innocent girl. In this book, IMO, her innocence came across as naivetee, and her strength as being whiny. There is a scene towards the end, where Taye is grovelling to Gillie and he sends her every day a stuffed animal to make up for the one's Rowan took away from her on her 16th birthday. This reflects the issues I have with Gillie's characterization. On one hand she wants to be the dirty talking sexy girl but yet she still pined for her stuffed toys.
The other issue I had with her, was WHY she was mad at Taye. For the most part he was trying to protect her knowing that he was dying and KNOWING that she would try to find a way to heal him (and that can hurt HER). I don't like the way he did it, but Gillie overreacted and came across as being spoiled and whiny. I mean Taye is sacrificing for her (joining the Mocking Birds etc) and all she can think is 'He's treating me like a child'. It's because you act like one ma'am.
2. The new 'team' - Ok- I'm not a bird enthusiast, and I was irritated by the Crow/Gull/Hawk yadda yadda yadda. That would translate better in a movie than reading. I had to think to myself 'wait, was that Silas?'
3. The action scenes were boring to me and I had to force myself to read them. But that deficiency could be with me, and not the author :)
What I did like though, was the fact that we got to see the mastermind behind 'the Resistance' against the Foundation. I sorta wished we got some cameos from old characters.It's a definite must read for fans of the series though!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 21, 2011
There was so much going on in this book beyond Gillie and Taye. There was all the stuff going on with the foundation, Mockingbird and the others, at times it didn't seem like parts of the story went with others. The start of the book seemed really familiar to me, then it hit me that we have seen it when they first broke out.
I really liked the parts with just Gillie and Taye, they were very sweet together. He tried so hard to not be with her, it was a battle you knew he was going to loose. When he finally did it was great. Although I have to wonder a little about Gillie. Here she was a sheltered girl who had no inhibitions and could talk dirty like a porn star.
I did like the resolution with the Foundation, was sad about Mockingbird, and Kestral.
I really liked the parts with just Gillie and Taye, they were very sweet together. He tried so hard to not be with her, it was a battle you knew he was going to loose. When he finally did it was great. Although I have to wonder a little about Gillie. Here she was a sheltered girl who had no inhibitions and could talk dirty like a porn star.
I did like the resolution with the Foundation, was sad about Mockingbird, and Kestral.
November 16, 2013
REVIEW: Skin Dive by Ava Gray
Rating = 2.5/5
Caliber SEAL: FAIR READ
Review goes live at 00:00 hrs, November 17, 2013!
Rating = 2.5/5
Caliber SEAL: FAIR READ
Review goes live at 00:00 hrs, November 17, 2013!
June 15, 2011
Loved this book. Review to come
October 15, 2020
Hot paranormal, good story, tho I did roll my eyes a few times at the hero's dumbass decision not to tell the heroine his secret. Good thing he grovelled well.
July 14, 2011
So much potential, but the author rushed it and did not give us a complete or well thought out story.
STORY BRIEF:
The Foundation takes human prisoners and experiments with them – creating special powers. Gillie was kidnapped when she was 12. She was a prisoner for the next 12 years. Her ability is healing others. Her captors link her blood to someone with cancer. The cancer patient is healed, and Gillie’s body takes on the disease. Then they use kidney dialysis to cure Gillie. Taye can channel electricity from power sources through his body to burn and kill others. He can also open locks and used magnetism to move metal. There are several characters in this story with a variety of powers.
Taye and Gillie met while they were prisoners. Taye orchestrated their escape by modifying surveillance equipment, starting fires, and opening locks. They and other patients escaped. The Foundation wants them back and has hired thugs and a mercenary to get them. Mockingbird is the organizer of former patients who now work together to help other patients and fight the Foundation.
Taye and Gillie were on the run together for ten months. But it was getting too dangerous so they agreed to work for Mockingbird in return for his help.
REVIEWER’S OPINION:
I assume the author was under pressure to churn out another book with a too-soon-deadline. Things were not well thought out. Some events did not have enough details. The major conflicts in the story were Taye keeping secrets from Gillie for no rational reason. Taye’s ability created a cancer in his body. Each time he used electricity, the cancer grew worse. He was unable to eat and was wasting away. The more he used his power the sooner he would die. He and Gillie were in love, but he kept this a secret from her. If he had told her, she could easily cure him. She would feel some pain for a few hours until kidney dialysis could clean her blood. Then she would be fine. But would Taye tell her he was sick? No. He planned to die without telling her. His reason was he didn’t want her to feel any pain. Big deal. That was her role in all of this. She would heal others, feel their pain for a while, and then be ok. Taye kept this secret for far too long. It was not a good plot.
Taye also created another conflict that I could not understand. Taye and Gillie loved each other and hungered for each other sexually. But for some stupid reason Taye refused to have sex with Gillie. This was the main conflict for ten months. I didn’t enjoy that part of the story which was the first 110 pages of the book. I still don’t know why he wouldn’t have sex with her. He didn’t want to hurt her, but his rejection hurt her.
At the end of the book Taye again does something illogical and unnecessary that hurt Gillie. I won’t say more so as to avoid a spoiler. It was unreasonable and artificial.
Examples of other things not thought out or lacking details: (1) Mockingbird’s past and present. (2) Not enough told about the leak in Mockingbird’s organization. We learn who did what, but it felt superficial. (3) Toward the end Gillie sort of knows Taye is sick, but we don’t get to see how she learned it or her conversations with Taye about it. (4) Gillie is part of a team to fight some bad guys, but she takes no weapon. She had been taking lessons and shooting at a shooting range for a while. Why didn’t she take a gun? She waited until Taye killed a guard, and then she took the guard’s gun to use. (5) Tanager had in interesting ability. When she used it she was required to have sex with any man afterwards (to balance things out somehow). I wanted to see some of her pay-the-piper sex scenes. None of them were shown.
At times I was confused with the bird names. Taye’s code name was Crow. Silas’ code name was Hawk. During the story the author went back and forth calling various characters the different names. Several times I was asking myself – now who is Hawk? Or which one is Taye?
The suspense and action were pretty good. The major flaw in this book was the relationship and story between the main couple – not good since this is a romance novel. Part of the problem was that they loved each other from the beginning so there was no room for relationship development. It’s much easier to see a couple start out NOT liking each other and then watch things change. Here, it was one person refusing to have sex and also keeping a secret. I think the author should have done something very different for them.
I did enjoy a side story relationship between the mercenary and Kestrel. But their story was a very minor part of the book. I would have enjoyed more about them.
DATA:
Story length: 280 pages. Swearing language: strong, including religious swear words. Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: 7. Total number of sex scene pages: 18. Setting: current day mostly various places in the U.S. Copyright: 2011. Genre: paranormal romantic suspense.
STORY BRIEF:
The Foundation takes human prisoners and experiments with them – creating special powers. Gillie was kidnapped when she was 12. She was a prisoner for the next 12 years. Her ability is healing others. Her captors link her blood to someone with cancer. The cancer patient is healed, and Gillie’s body takes on the disease. Then they use kidney dialysis to cure Gillie. Taye can channel electricity from power sources through his body to burn and kill others. He can also open locks and used magnetism to move metal. There are several characters in this story with a variety of powers.
Taye and Gillie met while they were prisoners. Taye orchestrated their escape by modifying surveillance equipment, starting fires, and opening locks. They and other patients escaped. The Foundation wants them back and has hired thugs and a mercenary to get them. Mockingbird is the organizer of former patients who now work together to help other patients and fight the Foundation.
Taye and Gillie were on the run together for ten months. But it was getting too dangerous so they agreed to work for Mockingbird in return for his help.
REVIEWER’S OPINION:
I assume the author was under pressure to churn out another book with a too-soon-deadline. Things were not well thought out. Some events did not have enough details. The major conflicts in the story were Taye keeping secrets from Gillie for no rational reason. Taye’s ability created a cancer in his body. Each time he used electricity, the cancer grew worse. He was unable to eat and was wasting away. The more he used his power the sooner he would die. He and Gillie were in love, but he kept this a secret from her. If he had told her, she could easily cure him. She would feel some pain for a few hours until kidney dialysis could clean her blood. Then she would be fine. But would Taye tell her he was sick? No. He planned to die without telling her. His reason was he didn’t want her to feel any pain. Big deal. That was her role in all of this. She would heal others, feel their pain for a while, and then be ok. Taye kept this secret for far too long. It was not a good plot.
Taye also created another conflict that I could not understand. Taye and Gillie loved each other and hungered for each other sexually. But for some stupid reason Taye refused to have sex with Gillie. This was the main conflict for ten months. I didn’t enjoy that part of the story which was the first 110 pages of the book. I still don’t know why he wouldn’t have sex with her. He didn’t want to hurt her, but his rejection hurt her.
At the end of the book Taye again does something illogical and unnecessary that hurt Gillie. I won’t say more so as to avoid a spoiler. It was unreasonable and artificial.
Examples of other things not thought out or lacking details: (1) Mockingbird’s past and present. (2) Not enough told about the leak in Mockingbird’s organization. We learn who did what, but it felt superficial. (3) Toward the end Gillie sort of knows Taye is sick, but we don’t get to see how she learned it or her conversations with Taye about it. (4) Gillie is part of a team to fight some bad guys, but she takes no weapon. She had been taking lessons and shooting at a shooting range for a while. Why didn’t she take a gun? She waited until Taye killed a guard, and then she took the guard’s gun to use. (5) Tanager had in interesting ability. When she used it she was required to have sex with any man afterwards (to balance things out somehow). I wanted to see some of her pay-the-piper sex scenes. None of them were shown.
At times I was confused with the bird names. Taye’s code name was Crow. Silas’ code name was Hawk. During the story the author went back and forth calling various characters the different names. Several times I was asking myself – now who is Hawk? Or which one is Taye?
The suspense and action were pretty good. The major flaw in this book was the relationship and story between the main couple – not good since this is a romance novel. Part of the problem was that they loved each other from the beginning so there was no room for relationship development. It’s much easier to see a couple start out NOT liking each other and then watch things change. Here, it was one person refusing to have sex and also keeping a secret. I think the author should have done something very different for them.
I did enjoy a side story relationship between the mercenary and Kestrel. But their story was a very minor part of the book. I would have enjoyed more about them.
DATA:
Story length: 280 pages. Swearing language: strong, including religious swear words. Sexual language: strong. Number of sex scenes: 7. Total number of sex scene pages: 18. Setting: current day mostly various places in the U.S. Copyright: 2011. Genre: paranormal romantic suspense.
July 6, 2011
Review of Skin Dive by Ava Gray
3 ½ out of 5
“She didn’t weep; that was weakness. In her kitchen, she had a whole cupboard full of dishes to break, and it gave her tremendous satisfaction to smash that first plate, while imagining Taye’s face”
Gillie Flynn hasn’t seen the sun in over twelve years. As a child she was diagnoised leukemia and spent many years in the hospital until one day she is miraculously cured. Her miracle left her with the special talent to heal others from life threatening diseases and wounds. She is taken away from her parents and locked up in the Exter Facilty where her talents are sold to the highest bidders. One day she is greeted with a guest, who is also a patient, named Taye. Taye turns her whole world upside down.
T-89 thinks his real name is Taye or at least something similar. Ever since he woke up in The Exter Facility he has no idea who he is or where he comes from except that he has a gift that allows his to manipulate electricity and use it as a weapon. The facility is used to do research on Taye and other patients that also posses special abilities like his. With some help from Gillie and some other patients they manage to escape and destroy the facility. The Foundation, the group that heads all of the research programs around the country for people with special abilities, has put a bounty on their heads with orders to bring them in alive. Gillie and Taye are approached to join a group, lead by a man named Mocking Jay, who’s main goal is to stop the Foundation. If they decide to join and fight the Foundation they will have to separate but if they stay together they might not be able to stay alive.
I really liked this book at the beginning. I loved they way Taye and Gillie interacted and how protective they were of each other. Seeing what they did to survive and also to see them experience the outside world was really fun to read about. The sexual tension between them was amazing and I couldn’t wait to see what happened when they acted on it. The truth or dare scene was one of the sexiest things I’ve ever read. I loved how Gillie stood up to Taye and showed him again and again that she could take whatever he could give her emotionally and sexually.
The book turn a very different turn when Taye and Gillie are split up after joining Mocking Jay and his team. This is when I started to loosed interest in what was going on. I still enjoyed Gillie and her new life but Taye was such a downer and his mission scene were very long and kinda boring. His attitude and reasons for not being with Gillie got very annoying and I just wanted to shake him and scream “What is wrong with you??? She’s a bad ass chick who wants you for some reason!”. I was also very disappointed with how Taye eventually won Gillie back after he acted like the biggest jerk ever. I was even more disappointed that she caved so easily.
I actually did like this book a lot besides my gripes in the previous paragraph. Even though this is the fourth book in the series it starts and ends as if it were a stand alone. I couldn’t figure out if any of the side characters are in the previous books or if they will be in future books. The side characters are really funny, interesting and have special gifts that I would love to learn more about. I would defiantly read the next book if one of them was a main character.
Even though I had a few problems with the storyline and some of the characters it was an interesting book and the chemistry between the main characters was amazing. I really loved the tone of the book and how well everything tied together in such a short time. The whole book takes place over a year and it was nice to see two characters take their time with their feelings and not just fall in love after three days. Skin Dive is a really good paranormal romance with lots of great characters, both main and side, tons of action and a lot of amazing sexual tension. Any fan of this genre would enjoy Skin Dive either as part of the series or by itself.
3 ½ out of 5
“She didn’t weep; that was weakness. In her kitchen, she had a whole cupboard full of dishes to break, and it gave her tremendous satisfaction to smash that first plate, while imagining Taye’s face”
Gillie Flynn hasn’t seen the sun in over twelve years. As a child she was diagnoised leukemia and spent many years in the hospital until one day she is miraculously cured. Her miracle left her with the special talent to heal others from life threatening diseases and wounds. She is taken away from her parents and locked up in the Exter Facilty where her talents are sold to the highest bidders. One day she is greeted with a guest, who is also a patient, named Taye. Taye turns her whole world upside down.
T-89 thinks his real name is Taye or at least something similar. Ever since he woke up in The Exter Facility he has no idea who he is or where he comes from except that he has a gift that allows his to manipulate electricity and use it as a weapon. The facility is used to do research on Taye and other patients that also posses special abilities like his. With some help from Gillie and some other patients they manage to escape and destroy the facility. The Foundation, the group that heads all of the research programs around the country for people with special abilities, has put a bounty on their heads with orders to bring them in alive. Gillie and Taye are approached to join a group, lead by a man named Mocking Jay, who’s main goal is to stop the Foundation. If they decide to join and fight the Foundation they will have to separate but if they stay together they might not be able to stay alive.
I really liked this book at the beginning. I loved they way Taye and Gillie interacted and how protective they were of each other. Seeing what they did to survive and also to see them experience the outside world was really fun to read about. The sexual tension between them was amazing and I couldn’t wait to see what happened when they acted on it. The truth or dare scene was one of the sexiest things I’ve ever read. I loved how Gillie stood up to Taye and showed him again and again that she could take whatever he could give her emotionally and sexually.
The book turn a very different turn when Taye and Gillie are split up after joining Mocking Jay and his team. This is when I started to loosed interest in what was going on. I still enjoyed Gillie and her new life but Taye was such a downer and his mission scene were very long and kinda boring. His attitude and reasons for not being with Gillie got very annoying and I just wanted to shake him and scream “What is wrong with you??? She’s a bad ass chick who wants you for some reason!”. I was also very disappointed with how Taye eventually won Gillie back after he acted like the biggest jerk ever. I was even more disappointed that she caved so easily.
I actually did like this book a lot besides my gripes in the previous paragraph. Even though this is the fourth book in the series it starts and ends as if it were a stand alone. I couldn’t figure out if any of the side characters are in the previous books or if they will be in future books. The side characters are really funny, interesting and have special gifts that I would love to learn more about. I would defiantly read the next book if one of them was a main character.
Even though I had a few problems with the storyline and some of the characters it was an interesting book and the chemistry between the main characters was amazing. I really loved the tone of the book and how well everything tied together in such a short time. The whole book takes place over a year and it was nice to see two characters take their time with their feelings and not just fall in love after three days. Skin Dive is a really good paranormal romance with lots of great characters, both main and side, tons of action and a lot of amazing sexual tension. Any fan of this genre would enjoy Skin Dive either as part of the series or by itself.
December 7, 2012
Posted At: Riverina Romantics
Rating: 4/5*
Romance Rating: 4/5 <3
Gillie has been a captive of the Foundation for most of her life. Between testing, being forced to use her healing ability, and a creepy perverted lead doctor who wants to bang her, it’s all the life she’s really known. Then she gets a visitor in her “cell”. Taye. Forming a fast friendship, Taye and Gillie bond, and wanting nothing more than to be free, they make escape plans. When their plan succeeds, they thing they’re home free. But they soon find themselves on the run when the Foundation hires a mercenary to hunt them down and catch them. They’re once again running for their lives. But when they join up with a mysterious man named Mockingbird, they find they’re not only running for their lives, they’re fighting for the one they love.
After the huge disappointment I felt from the previous book, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read this one or not. But every now and then, a series has a dud, so I gave it a shot. The beginning of it was a little slow for me, but it was a necessary set up for the events that followed. Once the escape happened, it picked up a bit and got me more interested. The different side stories, although needed, were a bit distracting. Granted some aspects of them were intriguing, but for the most part I found myself not really caring.
I was really captivated by Gillie and Taye’s relationship. I did find Gillie somewhat annoying and childish at times. I even had a hard time remembering that she was a grown adult. But when you spend most of your childhood growing up in a lab where your control over your life was taken from you, I can understand why she was so childlike when she escaped. However, I found it to be a tad excessive at times and that took away a little from the romance. But once Gillie found her backbone, she became a really good character that I found I really appreciated. She started making decisions for herself. She embraced her powers and who she was. And she fought for who and what she believed in, no matter when everyone else said or tried to do.
I fell for Taye right from the beginning. Not only was he cocky and adorable and sweet, but he was strong and determined. It was a great combination for him and how he fit with Gillie. I really liked the fact that although he was attracted to her, he resisted, but it was for a legitimate reason (which I can’t say because of spoilers.) Everything he did, he did because he cared about Gillie and wanted nothing but the best for her. He wanted all of her dreams to come true. If he could have, he would have given her the world. When he showed weakness against her advances, it was a great time. Definitely had heat to it. He was an all around great character, and every moment he was on the page was an enjoyment for me.
It did take a while for the romance to be consummated. Throughout the story we’re teased by little tastes of the passion between them to keep us reading. It’s not until things really get going that they finally give in. To me, this worked. It would have felt a little strange given Taye’s character and his problem to cave so quickly. Looking back on it I don’t think the story would have worked if it had happened any other way. The build up was great and when it finally happened, it was hot and passionate! I really felt the heat. I really like how, in the end, Gillie made Taye prove himself to her, after the big secret he kept and all. It was refreshing to see the heroine not give in so easily after the guy messed up, as everything worked out in the end.
Overall a nice ending to a good series.
Rating: 4/5*
Romance Rating: 4/5 <3
Gillie has been a captive of the Foundation for most of her life. Between testing, being forced to use her healing ability, and a creepy perverted lead doctor who wants to bang her, it’s all the life she’s really known. Then she gets a visitor in her “cell”. Taye. Forming a fast friendship, Taye and Gillie bond, and wanting nothing more than to be free, they make escape plans. When their plan succeeds, they thing they’re home free. But they soon find themselves on the run when the Foundation hires a mercenary to hunt them down and catch them. They’re once again running for their lives. But when they join up with a mysterious man named Mockingbird, they find they’re not only running for their lives, they’re fighting for the one they love.
After the huge disappointment I felt from the previous book, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to read this one or not. But every now and then, a series has a dud, so I gave it a shot. The beginning of it was a little slow for me, but it was a necessary set up for the events that followed. Once the escape happened, it picked up a bit and got me more interested. The different side stories, although needed, were a bit distracting. Granted some aspects of them were intriguing, but for the most part I found myself not really caring.
I was really captivated by Gillie and Taye’s relationship. I did find Gillie somewhat annoying and childish at times. I even had a hard time remembering that she was a grown adult. But when you spend most of your childhood growing up in a lab where your control over your life was taken from you, I can understand why she was so childlike when she escaped. However, I found it to be a tad excessive at times and that took away a little from the romance. But once Gillie found her backbone, she became a really good character that I found I really appreciated. She started making decisions for herself. She embraced her powers and who she was. And she fought for who and what she believed in, no matter when everyone else said or tried to do.
I fell for Taye right from the beginning. Not only was he cocky and adorable and sweet, but he was strong and determined. It was a great combination for him and how he fit with Gillie. I really liked the fact that although he was attracted to her, he resisted, but it was for a legitimate reason (which I can’t say because of spoilers.) Everything he did, he did because he cared about Gillie and wanted nothing but the best for her. He wanted all of her dreams to come true. If he could have, he would have given her the world. When he showed weakness against her advances, it was a great time. Definitely had heat to it. He was an all around great character, and every moment he was on the page was an enjoyment for me.
It did take a while for the romance to be consummated. Throughout the story we’re teased by little tastes of the passion between them to keep us reading. It’s not until things really get going that they finally give in. To me, this worked. It would have felt a little strange given Taye’s character and his problem to cave so quickly. Looking back on it I don’t think the story would have worked if it had happened any other way. The build up was great and when it finally happened, it was hot and passionate! I really felt the heat. I really like how, in the end, Gillie made Taye prove himself to her, after the big secret he kept and all. It was refreshing to see the heroine not give in so easily after the guy messed up, as everything worked out in the end.
Overall a nice ending to a good series.
August 28, 2013
หนังสือชุดนี้เป็นหนังสืออีกชุดที่เราชอบมาก ๆ (เราชอบเล่มแรก Skin Game มาก ๆ) เพราะคิดว่าเป็นชุดที่มีคอนเซ็ปต์ที่น่าสนใจ มีคาแร็คเตอร์ที่แตกต่าง และไม่ได้เป็นไปตามสูตร ซึ่งว่าไปแล้ว ในสามเล่มแรกในชุด ทั้งหมดตอบโจทย์ที่เราตั้งไว้ และถือว่าเป็นหนังสือที่สนุกมาก ๆ ทั้งสามเล่ม
ดังนั้นจึงไม่ใช่ความผิดของเรานะคะที่คาดหวังกับงานเล่มนี้มาก ๆ แต่นั่นก็เหมือนกับการสร้างกับดักตัวเอง เพราะเมื่อคาดหวังสูง เวลาผิดหวังก็จะรู้สึกรุนแรงตามไปด้วยเช่นกัน
เล่มนี้ถือเป็นเล่มสุดท้ายในชุด และมีความเกี่ยวข้องอย่างมากกับเล่มสองในชุด (Skin Tight) มากยิ่งกว่าเล่มสาม (Skin Heat ซึ่งเราคิดว่า มีความเป็นเอกเทศของตัวเองมาก ๆ สามารถอ่านได้โดยไม่ต้องอ่านเล่มไหนในชุดเลยก็ได้) เพราะตัวละครทั้งพระเอกและนางเอกเป็นคาแร็คเตอร์ที่มีบทบาทพอสมควรในเล่มสอง อันที่จริงเหตุการณ์ในเล่มนี้เริ่มต้นในระหว่างเหตุการณ์ในเล่มสองด้วยซ้ำ
จิลลี เด็กสาวที่ตกเป็นนักโทษมาตลอดชีวิต ด้วยความสามารถพิเศษในการรักษาโรคร้ายได้ทุกชนิด แต่การรักษาของเธอก็มีผลพวงที่ร้ายแรง เพราะจะทำให้เธอเจ็บป่วยอย่างหนัก แม้จะไม่ได้ถึงกับเป็นโรคที่เธอใช้พลังรักษาให้หาย แต่ก็ทำให้เกิดแผลเป็นทั่วร่างกาย และกิลลีถือเป็นเครื่องมือหากินสำคัญของคนร้าย เพราะเธอเป็นตัวทำเงิน ใคร ๆ ก็อยากหายจากโรคที่รักษาไม่ได้
ตลอดชีวิตจิลลีอยู่อย่างโดดเดี่ยว จนกระทั่งวันนึงนักโทษคนใหม่ได้ถูกจับเข้ามา เทย์เป็นชายไร้บ้านที่มีพลังควบคุมกระแสไฟฟ้า ทั้งสองเริ่มต้นผูกความสัมพันธ์กัน และจากเหตุการณ์ใน Skin Tight ทั้งคู่แหกที่คุมขัง และหนีไปด้วยกัน
ตั้งแต่เริ่มต้นเรื่อง เห็นได้ชัดเจนว่า จิลลี และเทย์มีใจให้ต่อกัน ปัญหาสำหรับเราก็คือ คนแต่งพยายามยืดประเด็นนี้ออกไปให้นานที่สุด ด้วยการสร้างความขัดแย้งที่ไม่ควรมีในเรื่อง เริ่มต้นจากเทย์คิดว่า เขาไม่คู่ควรกับจิลลี พล็อตที่น่าเบื่อที่สุด จิลลีอาจจะอายุน้อย แต่ไม่ได้น้อยเกินไปเมื่อเทียบกับเทย์ แล้วอะไรทำให้เทย์คิดว่า จิลลีสูงส่ง ไม่ใช่ว่า นางเอกไม่ใช่คนดี แต่เราไม่รู้สึกว่า สถานการณ์ที่ิเกิด หรือตัวตนของจิลลี จะทำให้เทย์ต้องเกิดความรู้สึกเหมือนจิลลีเป็นสาวน้อยเปราะบางต้องการการปกป้อง หรือสูงส่งเกินเอื้อม ความพยายามปฏิเสธความรู้สึกของตัวเองของเทย์ ทำให้ช่วงแรกของเรื่องน่าเบื่อหน่ายมาก ๆ เราเสียใจนะคะที่ต้องใช้คำนี้ แต่มันแย่ขนาดนั้น
และเมื่อในที่สุดจิลลีก็ยั่วเทย์จนสำเร็จ เรื่องก็เริ่มเข้าสู่เฟสต่อไป (เรารู้สึกแบบนี้นะคะ เรื่องเหมือนแบ่งเป็นส่วน ๆ ไม่มีความเป็นส่วนหนึ่งเดียวกันเลย) นั่นก็คือ ทั้งคู่ซึ่งกำลังหลบหนีการตามล่าจากกลุ่มคนร้ายที่อยากได้ตัวจิลลีไปใช้เป็นเครื่องมือต่อ ก็เข้าร่วมกับอีกขบวนการนึง ซึ่งเป็นกลุ่มคนที่มีความสามารถพิเศษเหมือนทั้งสอง (คือเคยได้รับยาบางอย่างในวัยเด็ก ทำให้มีพลังพิเศษเหนือมนุษย์) เพื่อต่อต้านกลุ่มคนร้าย
ซึ่งเมื่อเรื่องมาถึงจุดนี้ เราก็ชะงัก เหตุผลหลักที่เราชอบเรื่องชุดนี้เพราะมันไม่ได้เป็นไปตามสูตรสำเร็จ แต่นี่สูตรสำเร็จมาแล้ว กลุ่มผู้พิทักษ์ทำงานรวมตัวกัน เพื่อนพ้องน้องพี่ (นึ��ถึงดาร์คฮันเตอร์ หรือ BDB) ไม่ได้เสียหายนะคะ แต่เรารักความสร้างสรรของชุดนี้น่ะค่ะ พอมาหาทางออกด้วยกลุ่มขบวนการอย่างนี้ ก็เลยเสียใจเล็ก ๆ
เราไม่รู้ว่า ตอนแรกคนแต่งมีแผนจะเขียนเรื่องชุดนี้ต่อรึเปล่า ถึงได้เปิดขบวนการ พร้อมสมาชิกหน้าใหม่หลายคน แต่พอเอาเข้าจริงก็ไม่ได้เขียนต่อ เล่มนี้เลยนอกจากที่จะต้องสรุปเรื่องของจิลลี และเทย์แล้ว ก็ยังต้องพูดถึงขบวนการ (ที่เพิ่งกล่าวถึงในเล่มนี้) แล้วสรุปเรื่องของสมาชิกในขบวนการหลายต่อหลายคนที่เปิดตัวเอาไว้อีก ช่วงครึ่งหลังของเรื่องจึงเต็มไปด้วยความสับสน เพราะคาแร็คเตอร์ใหม่เยอะ แล้วเล่าแบบรวบรัดมาก
สำหรับเรานี่เป็นการปิดชุดที่ไม่สวยงามเลย เล่มนี้ไม่ได้เลวร้ายเมื่อเทียบกับหนังสืออีกหลายเล่มนะคะ แต่มันเทียบกับเล่มก่อนหน้าในชุดไม่ได้เลยน่ะค่ะ
ก่อนจบ เราพูดถึงความงี่เง่าของพระเอกรึยังคะ ตรรกะบ้า ๆ ของเขาที่คิดจะยอมตาย โดยที่ไม่บอกความจริงให้จิลลีรู้ว่า ตัวเองป่วยหนัก (จากการใช้พลัง) เพราะไม่อยากให้นางเอกเจ็บปวด (แค่เจ็บนะคะ ไม่ใช่ตาย) เลยทำให้เขาไม่ยอมสานความสัมพันธ์กับเธอ เลือกที่จะเดินจากไป ปัญญาอ่อนมาก ๆ
คะแนนที่ 63
ดังนั้นจึงไม่ใช่ความผิดของเรานะคะที่คาดหวังกับงานเล่มนี้มาก ๆ แต่นั่นก็เหมือนกับการสร้างกับดักตัวเอง เพราะเมื่อคาดหวังสูง เวลาผิดหวังก็จะรู้สึกรุนแรงตามไปด้วยเช่นกัน
เล่มนี้ถือเป็นเล่มสุดท้ายในชุด และมีความเกี่ยวข้องอย่างมากกับเล่มสองในชุด (Skin Tight) มากยิ่งกว่าเล่มสาม (Skin Heat ซึ่งเราคิดว่า มีความเป็นเอกเทศของตัวเองมาก ๆ สามารถอ่านได้โดยไม่ต้องอ่านเล่มไหนในชุดเลยก็ได้) เพราะตัวละครทั้งพระเอกและนางเอกเป็นคาแร็คเตอร์ที่มีบทบาทพอสมควรในเล่มสอง อันที่จริงเหตุการณ์ในเล่มนี้เริ่มต้นในระหว่างเหตุการณ์ในเล่มสองด้วยซ้ำ
จิลลี เด็กสาวที่ตกเป็นนักโทษมาตลอดชีวิต ด้วยความสามารถพิเศษในการรักษาโรคร้ายได้ทุกชนิด แต่การรักษาของเธอก็มีผลพวงที่ร้ายแรง เพราะจะทำให้เธอเจ็บป่วยอย่างหนัก แม้จะไม่ได้ถึงกับเป็นโรคที่เธอใช้พลังรักษาให้หาย แต่ก็ทำให้เกิดแผลเป็นทั่วร่างกาย และกิลลีถือเป็นเครื่องมือหากินสำคัญของคนร้าย เพราะเธอเป็นตัวทำเงิน ใคร ๆ ก็อยากหายจากโรคที่รักษาไม่ได้
ตลอดชีวิตจิลลีอยู่อย่างโดดเดี่ยว จนกระทั่งวันนึงนักโทษคนใหม่ได้ถูกจับเข้ามา เทย์เป็นชายไร้บ้านที่มีพลังควบคุมกระแสไฟฟ้า ทั้งสองเริ่มต้นผูกความสัมพันธ์กัน และจากเหตุการณ์ใน Skin Tight ทั้งคู่แหกที่คุมขัง และหนีไปด้วยกัน
ตั้งแต่เริ่มต้นเรื่อง เห็นได้ชัดเจนว่า จิลลี และเทย์มีใจให้ต่อกัน ปัญหาสำหรับเราก็คือ คนแต่งพยายามยืดประเด็นนี้ออกไปให้นานที่สุด ด้วยการสร้างความขัดแย้งที่ไม่ควรมีในเรื่อง เริ่มต้นจากเทย์คิดว่า เขาไม่คู่ควรกับจิลลี พล็อตที่น่าเบื่อที่สุด จิลลีอาจจะอายุน้อย แต่ไม่ได้น้อยเกินไปเมื่อเทียบกับเทย์ แล้วอะไรทำให้เทย์คิดว่า จิลลีสูงส่ง ไม่ใช่ว่า นางเอกไม่ใช่คนดี แต่เราไม่รู้สึกว่า สถานการณ์ที่ิเกิด หรือตัวตนของจิลลี จะทำให้เทย์ต้องเกิดความรู้สึกเหมือนจิลลีเป็นสาวน้อยเปราะบางต้องการการปกป้อง หรือสูงส่งเกินเอื้อม ความพยายามปฏิเสธความรู้สึกของตัวเองของเทย์ ทำให้ช่วงแรกของเรื่องน่าเบื่อหน่ายมาก ๆ เราเสียใจนะคะที่ต้องใช้คำนี้ แต่มันแย่ขนาดนั้น
และเมื่อในที่สุดจิลลีก็ยั่วเทย์จนสำเร็จ เรื่องก็เริ่มเข้าสู่เฟสต่อไป (เรารู้สึกแบบนี้นะคะ เรื่องเหมือนแบ่งเป็นส่วน ๆ ไม่มีความเป็นส่วนหนึ่งเดียวกันเลย) นั่นก็คือ ทั้งคู่ซึ่งกำลังหลบหนีการตามล่าจากกลุ่มคนร้ายที่อยากได้ตัวจิลลีไปใช้เป็นเครื่องมือต่อ ก็เข้าร่วมกับอีกขบวนการนึง ซึ่งเป็นกลุ่มคนที่มีความสามารถพิเศษเหมือนทั้งสอง (คือเคยได้รับยาบางอย่างในวัยเด็ก ทำให้มีพลังพิเศษเหนือมนุษย์) เพื่อต่อต้านกลุ่มคนร้าย
ซึ่งเมื่อเรื่องมาถึงจุดนี้ เราก็ชะงัก เหตุผลหลักที่เราชอบเรื่องชุดนี้เพราะมันไม่ได้เป็นไปตามสูตรสำเร็จ แต่นี่สูตรสำเร็จมาแล้ว กลุ่มผู้พิทักษ์ทำงานรวมตัวกัน เพื่อนพ้องน้องพี่ (นึ��ถึงดาร์คฮันเตอร์ หรือ BDB) ไม่ได้เสียหายนะคะ แต่เรารักความสร้างสรรของชุดนี้น่ะค่ะ พอมาหาทางออกด้วยกลุ่มขบวนการอย่างนี้ ก็เลยเสียใจเล็ก ๆ
เราไม่รู้ว่า ตอนแรกคนแต่งมีแผนจะเขียนเรื่องชุดนี้ต่อรึเปล่า ถึงได้เปิดขบวนการ พร้อมสมาชิกหน้าใหม่หลายคน แต่พอเอาเข้าจริงก็ไม่ได้เขียนต่อ เล่มนี้เลยนอกจากที่จะต้องสรุปเรื่องของจิลลี และเทย์แล้ว ก็ยังต้องพูดถึงขบวนการ (ที่เพิ่งกล่าวถึงในเล่มนี้) แล้วสรุปเรื่องของสมาชิกในขบวนการหลายต่อหลายคนที่เปิดตัวเอาไว้อีก ช่วงครึ่งหลังของเรื่องจึงเต็มไปด้วยความสับสน เพราะคาแร็คเตอร์ใหม่เยอะ แล้วเล่าแบบรวบรัดมาก
สำหรับเรานี่เป็นการปิดชุดที่ไม่สวยงามเลย เล่มนี้ไม่ได้เลวร้ายเมื่อเทียบกับหนังสืออีกหลายเล่มนะคะ แต่มันเทียบกับเล่มก่อนหน้าในชุดไม่ได้เลยน่ะค่ะ
ก่อนจบ เราพูดถึงความงี่เง่าของพระเอกรึยังคะ ตรรกะบ้า ๆ ของเขาที่คิดจะยอมตาย โดยที่ไม่บอกความจริงให้จิลลีรู้ว่า ตัวเองป่วยหนัก (จากการใช้พลัง) เพราะไม่อยากให้นางเอกเจ็บปวด (แค่เจ็บนะคะ ไม่ใช่ตาย) เลยทำให้เขาไม่ยอมสานความสัมพันธ์กับเธอ เลือกที่จะเดินจากไป ปัญญาอ่อนมาก ๆ
คะแนนที่ 63
September 11, 2011
Gillie is a fugitive. She has the scars to prove her long-term incarceration, but it’s the kind of story that would land her in another cell if she tried to present it to the authorities. Now that she’s free, she’s determined never to be bound again. She has a powerful healing gift—and a fierce resolve never to use it, unless it’s her choice. Taye is keeping a powerful secret. He cannot remember everything about his past, but he knows he used to be homeless, one of the crazy-tinfoil-hat-wearing brigade. He knows his own family threw him away when he became too much trouble. He also knows he has a limited amount of time to make sure Gillie gets the life she’s always wanted. It just hurts because he can’t be a part of it. Because his ability is killing him, and there’s nothing he can do about it. But he’s determined not to seduce her, and to do one thing right before he dies–save Gillie Flynn. But she’s busy making plans of her own.
Favourite Quotes:
“Thanks to Heron, thanks to everyone who fought and died, the survivors could live without fear for the first time since the experiments began.”
I read the first two books in the Skins series and was really intrigued with the glimpses of Gillie and Taye, therefore decided to skip the third book to get to Gillie and Taye’s story. I will eventually get back to the third book. Gillie and Taye’s story however lovely was rather anti-climatic after their escape I felt. I was annoyed at the start of the story where there was the tension between Gillie and Taye after they escaped and were trying to make a new life for themselves yet Taye was resisting Gillie and it just didn’t work for me and from then onwards I had trouble viewing Taye as being worthy for Gillie because of his idiotic behaviour and attitude towards Gillie’s feelings for him. I felt at times Taye was causing more problems for himself than he really had and was using them as an excuse to keep himself away from Gillie however, I enjoyed seeing how Gillie grew as a person and managed to live her life even though she loved and missed Taye in her life. Yet it was Taye who had to make the decision to change as Gillie had. At the end I think Skin Dive was a nice conclusion to the overall series.
Favourite Quotes:
“Thanks to Heron, thanks to everyone who fought and died, the survivors could live without fear for the first time since the experiments began.”
I read the first two books in the Skins series and was really intrigued with the glimpses of Gillie and Taye, therefore decided to skip the third book to get to Gillie and Taye’s story. I will eventually get back to the third book. Gillie and Taye’s story however lovely was rather anti-climatic after their escape I felt. I was annoyed at the start of the story where there was the tension between Gillie and Taye after they escaped and were trying to make a new life for themselves yet Taye was resisting Gillie and it just didn’t work for me and from then onwards I had trouble viewing Taye as being worthy for Gillie because of his idiotic behaviour and attitude towards Gillie’s feelings for him. I felt at times Taye was causing more problems for himself than he really had and was using them as an excuse to keep himself away from Gillie however, I enjoyed seeing how Gillie grew as a person and managed to live her life even though she loved and missed Taye in her life. Yet it was Taye who had to make the decision to change as Gillie had. At the end I think Skin Dive was a nice conclusion to the overall series.
April 25, 2012
Gillie, who can manipulate energy and has a healing gift, has been a captive for a long time. When she’s finally allowed a house guest, Taye, also known as T89, becomes her friend and begins preparing Gillie to escape with him. Taye can use electricity to manipulate locks. Now, after a successful escape, they are both fugitives.
Their captors will do anything to get Gillie back. Taye will do anything he can to protect her; she’s become everything to him. Taye wants to assure Gillie that the Foundation will never find her, but he can’t even remember his past. Will they be what the other one needs as the attraction between them grows? And will they find a way out of the mess they are in before it’s too late?
Skin Dive by Ava Gray is the fourth book in her Skin series, and this is a series I would suggest reading in order because it helps to understand the back story and characters. Gillie is a really powerful healer who has been in captivity so long she doesn’t know another life. At first, Taye might not remember who he is but he is the stuff heroes are made of. He’s strong, protective, and loving and he has an incredible power. He just needs to remember who he is.
I really liked how Ms. Gray developed Taye’s character. Even though he has this great power, he thinks of Gillie first. He’ll do anything to protect the woman he loves. I also liked how Ms. Gray developed Gillie’s character. She is a strong woman who I can really appreciate.
The blending of action, paranormal elements, and romance made this an unforgettable book for me. I really hope Ms. Gray continues writing this series and that there are many more books for me to enjoy in the future.
Their captors will do anything to get Gillie back. Taye will do anything he can to protect her; she’s become everything to him. Taye wants to assure Gillie that the Foundation will never find her, but he can’t even remember his past. Will they be what the other one needs as the attraction between them grows? And will they find a way out of the mess they are in before it’s too late?
Skin Dive by Ava Gray is the fourth book in her Skin series, and this is a series I would suggest reading in order because it helps to understand the back story and characters. Gillie is a really powerful healer who has been in captivity so long she doesn’t know another life. At first, Taye might not remember who he is but he is the stuff heroes are made of. He’s strong, protective, and loving and he has an incredible power. He just needs to remember who he is.
I really liked how Ms. Gray developed Taye’s character. Even though he has this great power, he thinks of Gillie first. He’ll do anything to protect the woman he loves. I also liked how Ms. Gray developed Gillie’s character. She is a strong woman who I can really appreciate.
The blending of action, paranormal elements, and romance made this an unforgettable book for me. I really hope Ms. Gray continues writing this series and that there are many more books for me to enjoy in the future.
July 1, 2013
Gillie has a rare gift of healing. She spent twelve years incarcerated at The Foundation, a place that experiments on humans. Sometimes she wishes she were dead. It wouldn't be so bad if she had some control when she uses her gift, but The Foundation took that from her.
T-89 'Taye' is also incarcerated at The Foundation, and his gift is to manipulate energy. He uses his gift to help them and other patients escape. Now, Taye will do everything within his power to keep Gillie safe.
The Foundation wants them back though, at any cost. They hire mercenaries to get them back, but Gillie and Taye stay on the run for months. Mockingbird, the leader of a group of previous patients, wants Gillie and Taye to join him on his mission to destroy The Foundation for good. Gillie and Taye don't want to do that because they will have to split up.
Eventually though, they decide to join Mockingbird, and they both go their separate ways even though they love one another. Taye will do whatever it takes to keep Gillie safe, even if it means staying away from her. He is dying, and he knows that she can heal him, but if she does, she will take his pain into her own body. He will do anything to keep from hurting her.
SKIN DIVE is a thrilling paranormal jaunt that is brimming with romance, action and thrilling suspense. The bond between Gillie and Tay grows during their journey, and their chemistry absolutely sizzles. SKIN DIVE can be read as a standalone, but you won't want to miss the other two books in this series, SKIN TIGHT and SKIN HEAT.
T-89 'Taye' is also incarcerated at The Foundation, and his gift is to manipulate energy. He uses his gift to help them and other patients escape. Now, Taye will do everything within his power to keep Gillie safe.
The Foundation wants them back though, at any cost. They hire mercenaries to get them back, but Gillie and Taye stay on the run for months. Mockingbird, the leader of a group of previous patients, wants Gillie and Taye to join him on his mission to destroy The Foundation for good. Gillie and Taye don't want to do that because they will have to split up.
Eventually though, they decide to join Mockingbird, and they both go their separate ways even though they love one another. Taye will do whatever it takes to keep Gillie safe, even if it means staying away from her. He is dying, and he knows that she can heal him, but if she does, she will take his pain into her own body. He will do anything to keep from hurting her.
SKIN DIVE is a thrilling paranormal jaunt that is brimming with romance, action and thrilling suspense. The bond between Gillie and Tay grows during their journey, and their chemistry absolutely sizzles. SKIN DIVE can be read as a standalone, but you won't want to miss the other two books in this series, SKIN TIGHT and SKIN HEAT.
July 9, 2011
This is the final story in the Ava Gray (Ann Aguirre) Skin series. Because this story is in an already developed world and includes reoccurring characters, I do not recommend starting with this novel. Even though I had read the previous books in the series, it had been a while so it took me a little while to get back in to the world. I was thrown off just a little bit because we did go back in time just a little bit to see some character origins but I really did enjoy the snapshot of what had happened earlier. Gillie has spent years as a prisoner in a laboratory with Taye as her only friend. When they finally break out and make their way in the world on their own, Gillie wants more than Taye is willing to give her. He doesn’t remember his past and doesn’t think he’s worthy of her. Gillie couldn’t give two figs about who he was, she cares for the man he is now. As they get to know each other outside of the laboratory, they’re still on the run from those that want to control their powers. Can they stick together and foster a possible budding relationship? Or do they need to split up to keep themselves safe? With a traitor in their midst there are only so many people they can lean on for help. A really great read that tied up a fun series, delved deeper in to some character stories, and told a wonderful love story. A little sad to see the series end but over all very enjoyable!
July 6, 2011
Author Ava Gray is an amazing story teller.
When reading Skin Dive you are immediately transported into a world with pulse pounding action, witty banter, emotional upheavals, thoughtful characterization and passionate romance. With both the hero and the heroine on the run, the mood of the book is constantly changing, and with it, your emotions. There are moments of joy, sorrow, humor, anxiety and understanding; and with each moment you’re catapulted into the center of Taye and Gillie’s life, hoping that they succeed in out running an evil that has not only ruined their lives but countless others. The heady combination of both an exciting suspense and a compelling romance leaves you breathless.
What’s particularly impressive is the way Ms. Gray combines all the elements of the action and romance through the lives of her protagonists and the secondary characters. Both the prose and the dialogue reveal the desperation of the situation as well as the hopes and fears of both Gillie and Taye. The immediacy of their situation is angst producing, no doubt, but it also gives them the perfect situation to rely on each other and through that dependency, to get to know one another.
I have a full review posted on the B&N.com Heart 2 Heart blog.
http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com/t...
When reading Skin Dive you are immediately transported into a world with pulse pounding action, witty banter, emotional upheavals, thoughtful characterization and passionate romance. With both the hero and the heroine on the run, the mood of the book is constantly changing, and with it, your emotions. There are moments of joy, sorrow, humor, anxiety and understanding; and with each moment you’re catapulted into the center of Taye and Gillie’s life, hoping that they succeed in out running an evil that has not only ruined their lives but countless others. The heady combination of both an exciting suspense and a compelling romance leaves you breathless.
What’s particularly impressive is the way Ms. Gray combines all the elements of the action and romance through the lives of her protagonists and the secondary characters. Both the prose and the dialogue reveal the desperation of the situation as well as the hopes and fears of both Gillie and Taye. The immediacy of their situation is angst producing, no doubt, but it also gives them the perfect situation to rely on each other and through that dependency, to get to know one another.
I have a full review posted on the B&N.com Heart 2 Heart blog.
http://bookclubs.barnesandnoble.com/t...
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July 6, 2011you know those books that you can't put down? the ones where you put off making dinner, caring for your chldren or even going to the bathroom, for fear of missing something?
yeah, well this book ain't one of those.
i truly don't get it. this series started off AWESOME. i absolutely adored the first book. and then they got worse exponentially until here, at number 4, i had to force myself to finish it.
it is the conclusion of the series, so i HAD to finish it.
the romance was pfft as well. previous books - hot, exciting relationship between h/h. this - not so much. usual device: innocent, sheltered heroine; bad boy hero, who just doesn't feel good enough. blah, blah, blah.
would i recommend? you know what? probably not. even if you've read the first books in the series. not worth it. even for the conclusion. seriously.
yeah, well this book ain't one of those.
i truly don't get it. this series started off AWESOME. i absolutely adored the first book. and then they got worse exponentially until here, at number 4, i had to force myself to finish it.
it is the conclusion of the series, so i HAD to finish it.
the romance was pfft as well. previous books - hot, exciting relationship between h/h. this - not so much. usual device: innocent, sheltered heroine; bad boy hero, who just doesn't feel good enough. blah, blah, blah.
would i recommend? you know what? probably not. even if you've read the first books in the series. not worth it. even for the conclusion. seriously.
July 6, 2011
This book is the final showdown between the Mockingbird’s group (good) and the Foundation (bad). The romance in this book is between Gillie and Taye who had finally escaped from the Exeter Facility.
Overall this was a great series and I recommend it to anyone that likes paranormal mixed with some great romance..
Overall this was a great series and I recommend it to anyone that likes paranormal mixed with some great romance..
July 24, 2011
A suitable ending to what has been a very good series - although some of the outcomes are not what I expected really!
This story is of Gillie, abducted when she was 12, and imprisoned by the Foundation for the next 13 years, alone and friendless; and Taye, who befriends her and is determined to get her free. His special skill is the manipulation of electricity and magnetics, so he is unknowingly helpful when their facility is attacked (see the previous books in the series).
They escape to try to make their own way, but when Taye uses his talent, Foundation spies notice them and try to recapture them. The resistance, run by Mocking Bird, gathers them in, giving Gillie a new identity and the opportunity to go to college, and asking Taye to complete 6 missions to help rescue other people imprisoned as he was.
It is not a HEA ending for many of the characters in this series, but there are enough to satisfy. It has been a great series about scientifically and genetically modified humans surviving in a difficult world where power and money mean a lot; there have been very dark episodes, but the Hero/Heroine relationships have been lovely to read.
This story is of Gillie, abducted when she was 12, and imprisoned by the Foundation for the next 13 years, alone and friendless; and Taye, who befriends her and is determined to get her free. His special skill is the manipulation of electricity and magnetics, so he is unknowingly helpful when their facility is attacked (see the previous books in the series).
They escape to try to make their own way, but when Taye uses his talent, Foundation spies notice them and try to recapture them. The resistance, run by Mocking Bird, gathers them in, giving Gillie a new identity and the opportunity to go to college, and asking Taye to complete 6 missions to help rescue other people imprisoned as he was.
It is not a HEA ending for many of the characters in this series, but there are enough to satisfy. It has been a great series about scientifically and genetically modified humans surviving in a difficult world where power and money mean a lot; there have been very dark episodes, but the Hero/Heroine relationships have been lovely to read.
September 5, 2011
I like this series alot and this entry was just as good as the rest. It took a little for this romance to get off the ground. There was a lot of tension but due to the illness the hero had he didn't want to lead the heroine on. I liked that alot because he could have just jumped into the sack and said oh well. Both of these two characters were really world weary and needed that special someone who just got them warts and all. So loved that about this story. We learn who Mockingbird is and the twist about him. Not sure how this is going to progress with him. I like Tanager alot and wanted her to get her man. Maybe it will be another character? I liked Caleb the bounty hunter alot and I am thinking this maybe the hero in the next story. I hope so! Or maybe Tanager? Or maybe both? I think they would make a great couple.
Since I have read these I have found out that they are written by Ann Aguirre and she has a urban fantasy series out that I originally read back when it first came out and I don't remember why but I didn't like it. I am going to try to find it at the library and try it again. I also have her YA novel Enclave that I am going to read as well.
Since I have read these I have found out that they are written by Ann Aguirre and she has a urban fantasy series out that I originally read back when it first came out and I don't remember why but I didn't like it. I am going to try to find it at the library and try it again. I also have her YA novel Enclave that I am going to read as well.
May 26, 2013
The books feels like the end of the series though since I want to read more about this world - I am hoping not. Overall, this is a series that I liked quite a bit. The characters are real, and they are different. They have nuances to them, little quirks that make them important, different from each other and so much fun to read about.
This book is about Gilli and Taye. Taye, who took up the role of protector and Gilli who is willing to kick his ass to point out that she can take damn good care of herself. As characters, they were introduced in Mia and Soren's book, and even then they were really intriguing. Now, they are great. For long parts of the book - they are not together, not just in the sense of a relationship but also literally. It is nice to see them grow even apart from each other. They choose to be together, for many reasons and that is reality - no decision is ever based on a single reason. It is good to see how the book ends - it reaches a really good note - bittersweet maybe but good nonetheless.
This book is about Gilli and Taye. Taye, who took up the role of protector and Gilli who is willing to kick his ass to point out that she can take damn good care of herself. As characters, they were introduced in Mia and Soren's book, and even then they were really intriguing. Now, they are great. For long parts of the book - they are not together, not just in the sense of a relationship but also literally. It is nice to see them grow even apart from each other. They choose to be together, for many reasons and that is reality - no decision is ever based on a single reason. It is good to see how the book ends - it reaches a really good note - bittersweet maybe but good nonetheless.
December 7, 2014
This is it for me.
Good PNR series have a story arc that flows through the series. I thought we had reached the point in the Skin series where we would finally learn more about the Foundation and what kind of technology would give so many different superpowers in human beings. The science in the past books had been non-existent so I was expecting the author to flesh out the story and at least attempt to give an explanation of how this world worked. But to my surprise, the plot behind this book was exactly the opposite: to finish the powerful Foundation in one swoop so future books would be about random people with superpowers, without having to deal with a powerful enemy hunting them to threaten their HEAs.
WTF?
That is, if there any future books. Maybe this was just a way to finish a series the author didn’t know how to continue.
Good PNR series have a story arc that flows through the series. I thought we had reached the point in the Skin series where we would finally learn more about the Foundation and what kind of technology would give so many different superpowers in human beings. The science in the past books had been non-existent so I was expecting the author to flesh out the story and at least attempt to give an explanation of how this world worked. But to my surprise, the plot behind this book was exactly the opposite: to finish the powerful Foundation in one swoop so future books would be about random people with superpowers, without having to deal with a powerful enemy hunting them to threaten their HEAs.
WTF?
That is, if there any future books. Maybe this was just a way to finish a series the author didn’t know how to continue.
November 18, 2015
What an emotional book!
I’ve loved Gillie and Taye since they first appeared in the second book, and I’ve been hoping for their HEA. The romance in this book was a lot more intense and heart-breaking than the other books, and the sexual tension between these two set the book on fire. I loved the bond between Gillie and Taye and who they really were just meant for each other.
This book portrayed so well human nature and the destruction it brings. It’s horrific to read how monstrous people can be, and how they can see other people as collateral damage.
The secondary characters in this book was amazing, and it was so sad that not all of them could have their HEAs. This book had me laughing, biting my nails, crying and smiling.
I would recommend this series to all romantic suspense lovers. You HAVE to read this.
I’ve loved Gillie and Taye since they first appeared in the second book, and I’ve been hoping for their HEA. The romance in this book was a lot more intense and heart-breaking than the other books, and the sexual tension between these two set the book on fire. I loved the bond between Gillie and Taye and who they really were just meant for each other.
This book portrayed so well human nature and the destruction it brings. It’s horrific to read how monstrous people can be, and how they can see other people as collateral damage.
The secondary characters in this book was amazing, and it was so sad that not all of them could have their HEAs. This book had me laughing, biting my nails, crying and smiling.
I would recommend this series to all romantic suspense lovers. You HAVE to read this.
September 24, 2013
This is the last book of the Skin series. It features Gillie and Taye from the second book. Unlike the first and third book, there are many characters that have been focused on aside from the main characters. The nemesis organization of the Foundation is introduced, along with Tanager and other supporting roles. Unlike the other romance that all characters have their happy ever afters, there are ones that don't have that kind of blessing. Anyway, I've really enjoyed this story, the unpredictabilty of every scene is good, and the ending is action pack. The conflict between Taye and Gillie is really understandable. I will recommend it who likes scifi, suspense and romance at the same time.
July 17, 2011
I think this was the best one yet out of Ava Gray's (which is one of Ann Aguirre's pen names) Skin series. I'm not going to rehash the blurb since it's already been done.
This has a more intricate plot than the other books, and has more viewpoints. The expertise that Gray handled them won't be a deterrent for other people. So far, Agguirre's blog does not mention that the series will continue on (sad), but she does a good job wrapping it up (I hate books where they end it with a cliff hanger). But a fan can hope that there will be additional books, in this series.
This has a more intricate plot than the other books, and has more viewpoints. The expertise that Gray handled them won't be a deterrent for other people. So far, Agguirre's blog does not mention that the series will continue on (sad), but she does a good job wrapping it up (I hate books where they end it with a cliff hanger). But a fan can hope that there will be additional books, in this series.
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