Sometimes the wrong choice can be just right . . .
Fun and fearless, Cora Lewis knows how to keep her tattooed “bad boy” friends at the Marked in line. But beneath all that flash and sass is a broken heart. Cora won’t let herself get burned again. She’s waiting to fall in love with the perfect man—a baggage-free, drama-free guy ready for commitment. Then she meets Rome Archer.
Rome Archer is as far from perfect as a man can be. He’s stubborn, rigid, and bossy. And he’s returned from his final tour of duty more than a little broken. Rome’s used to filling many roles: big brother, doting son, supersoldier—but none of those fit anymore. Now he’s just a man trying to figure out what to do with the rest of his life while keeping the dark demons of war and loss at bay. He would have been glad to suffer through it alone, until Cora comes sweeping into his life and becomes a blinding flash of color in a sea of gray. Perfect may not be in the cards, but perfectly imperfect could just last forever . . .
Have you read the first two books in the Marked Men Series?
Opposites in every way . . . except the one that matters
Shaw Landon loved Rule Archer from the moment she laid eyes on him. Rule is everything a straight–A pre-med student like Shaw shouldn’t want–and the only person she’s never tried to please. She isn’t afraid of his scary piercings and tattoos or his wild attitude. Though she knows that Rule is wrong for her, her heart just won’t listen.
To a rebel like Rule Archer, Shaw Landon is a stuck-up, perfect princess-and his dead twin brother’s girl. She lives by other people’s rules; he makes his own. He doesn’t have time for a good girl like Shaw-even if she’s the only one who can see the person he truly is.
But a short skirt, too many birthday cocktails, and spilled secrets lead to a night neither can forget. Now, Shaw and Rule have to figure out how a girl like her and a guy like him are supposed to be together without destroying their love . . . or each other.
With his tight leather pants and a sharp edge that makes him dangerous, Jet Keller is every girl’s rock and roll fantasy. But Ayden Cross is done walking on the wild side with bad boys. She doesn’t want to give in to the heat she sees in Jet’s dark, haunted eyes. She’s afraid of getting burned from the sparks of their spontaneous combustion, even as his touch sets her on fire.
Jet can’t resist the Southern Belle with mile-long legs in cowboy boots who defies his every expectation. Yet the closer he feels to Ayden, the less he seems to know her. While he’s tempted to get under her skin and undo her in every way, he knows firsthand what happens to two people with very different ideas about relationships.
Will the blaze burn into an enduring love. . . or will it consume their dreams and turn them to ashes?
Rome by Jay Crownover My rating: 5 of 5 stars 
Let’s start this review off with some confessions, shall we? 1.Even though I am ashamed to admit it, I have never read Book 1 in the series (Rule). 2.Book 2 (Jet) was awesome, but no one holds a candle to Rome Archer. 3.Rome is my favorite “marked man” even though his “marks” aren’t in the form of ink. Okay, I think that’s all. Let’s get to the good stuff… First off, if you are new to this series then let me just say you are in for some amazing books. Even though it’s not required that you start at book one, I would definitely recommend it. There is too much amazing male hotness to miss out on (trust me, this I know). If you have been a follower of this series from the moment Rule was released from the literary womb then well…feel free to lecture me about how I should have read Rule and everything I missed out on. I hope you can excuse my complete lack of respect of reading orders long enough to get through this review. Cora 
What can I say, I’m a weird chick.
So, since I didn’t get to meet Cora until book 2, I am not sure what I missed out on. All I know is that I love this girl. She is the definition of “tiny but mighty”. That mouth of hers is one that rivals my own and her personality us unmatchable. She is a girl that knows exactly want she wants but reality is about to school her and teach her a lesson about what you think you want and what you really want are two totally different things. She just doesn’t know it yet. Rome 
His face had a vivid intensity about it that just made him stupidly hot, even without the body that was bound to make the opposite sex dumb. I bet if he ever bothered to smile, panties across the nation would melt.
Ahh, my dark, damaged, fuck up man. How I love thee. I have a thing for fictional men who have deep, dark, fucked up minds. Regardless of the circumstances. It might be that I am very similar to Cora and I just like to figure people out. Or maybe I just have weird neurons in my brain that make me fall in love with said fucked up fictional characters. Or maybe it’s equally as fucked up that I obsess over said fucked-upness. Or is it fucked up to obsess over fictional characters in general? I think I just talked myself into a therapy session.
I didn’t know Rome from any other stranger on the street, but there was something about him, something strong and magnetic that I was having a hard time denying made me want to figure out what made him tick.
Amen, sister!!
That grin that was probably going to make me fall in love with him broke across his face, and I knew that whatever it was I was doing with this man, who was so the opposite of what I thought I wanted, was the right thing.
I think what I loved most about this book was that Cora and Rome started out pretty much wanting to strangle each other. Or wanting to pour beer over the others head…..oh wait…Regardless, the two were not huge fans of each other from the get-go. Now, that’s not to say that even though there was obvious slight hatred, the sexual attraction was down right palpable.
He was as gorgeous as he was annoying.
So I mentioned before that Rome has his demons. Well, that is probably the biggest understatement in like….84 forevers. His daily struggles are enough to make you want to drown yourself in enough liquor to put an elephant into a coma. Yeah, that bad. 
I had always been a pretty steady guy, a reliable son, a steadfast older brother. I was still all those things but now I was other things that weren’t so pretty, were harder parts to accept. However, the people in my life that loved me would always love me even if they had to do it in a different way now, and that made me a lucky guy. I needed to stop taking like that for granted and, just like Cora said, stop feeling guilty for being one of the lucky ones.
And even Cora, she has her struggles as well. Having been burned by a douche hole ex, she has decided that only the “perfect” man is what she wants. And of course, why wouldn’t she want that. Hell, she deserves that.
I didn’t know what perfect meant until you.
Do you see where this is going? But don’t you dare take my word for it because this is one of the most amazing stories you will ever read about love, struggles, and how you find that imperfectly perfect missing piece to the puzzle that is called life. First comes denial, then comes hot sex, then comes holy mother of all fucks one amazing love story. The way these two come together and fight through their obstacles together is absolutely incredible. The love they share for one another is so real and true and you can’t help but be sucked into the story and wish that it never ends.
I know you aren’t on the same page as my just yet, Cora, and for right now I’m happy enough we’re reading the same book. Eventually you have to turn the page, though, you got me?
The sex is some of the hottest sex I have ever read about. The angst is nothing shy of gut-wrenching. And the climax will absolutely take your breath away and have tears streaming down your face. This isn’t one of those stories that you read about and simply forget. It will stay with you for a very long time and I am seriously wishing that Jay Crownover will decide to eventually continue their story. Like I said before, if you are new to this series then go pick up the first book and get to reading. I hope that you all can find your favorite Marked Man. I know I did, and his name is Rome Archer As always, I will leave you with a few of my favorite quotes! 
I can’t be perfect for you, but I can be someone you rely on, someone you want to keep around even though it isn’t always going to be easy. –Rome
I don’t want you to be part of my nightmares, Cora, but I’m selfish enough to ask you to want to be. –Rome
I’m not flawless either, Captain No-Fun, but I kinda think together we might get close to something spectacular, if we want it bad enough.
He was mine. Every towering, unpredictable, floundering inch of him was mine, and I was going to do whatever it took in order to make things better for him.
…I knew there was no one else on this planet I would willingly get on my knees for, but this girl with all her mouthy ways and swirling eyes, I would do it for her whenever she asked and even when she didn’t.
Everything he was-hero, lover, stubborn pain in the neck, and a man with or without a plan-I could see it all and it just made me love him all the more..
I’m supposed to share interesting details about myself so that my readers get to know me so here we go in no particular order: I’m an natural redhead even though I haven’t seen my real hair color in years, I’m a big fan of tattoos and have a half sleeve on either arm and various other pieces all over the place, I’ve been in the bar industry since I was in college and it has always offered interesting insight into how men and women interact with each other, I have 3 dogs that are all crazy, I live in Colorado and love the snow, I love music and in all reality wish I could be a rock star not a writer or a bartender but I have zero talent so there is that. I love to write, love to read and all I’m interested in is a good story with interesting characters that make the reader feel something.
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