Max Payton lives by two rules:
Size and strength win any fight, and never show weakness.When a rash of assaults sends Bowler University for a tail spin, Max volunteers to help teach a self-defense class. One of the other instructors is the beautiful pixie-faced girl he keeps butting heads with…and who challenges everything he thought he knew.
Lea Travers avoids guys like Max – cocky jocks who assume she’s fragile because of a disability caused by a childhood accident. She likes to be in control, and something about being with Max makes her feel anything but. But during the moments he lets his guard down, Lea sees a soul as broken inside as she is outside. Trusting him is a whole other problem…
When the assaults ramp up and hit close to home, Lea and Max must learn, before it’s too late, that true strength can come from vulnerability…and giving in to trust is sometimes the only way to make things right.
Have you read the first book in the Bowler University Series? I really recommend reading this series in order and I totally loved the first book, you can read my review here.
Kat Caruso wishes her brain had a return policy, or at least a complaint hot-line. The defective organ is constantly distracted, terrible at statistics, and absolutely flooded with inappropriate thoughts about her boyfriend’s gorgeous best friend, Alec…who just so happens to be her brand new college math tutor. Who knew nerd was so hot?
Kat usually goes through tutors like she does boyfriends–both always seem to bail when they realize how hopeless she is. It’s safer for her heart to keep everyone at arm’s reach. But Alec is always stepping just a little too close.
Alec Stone should not be fantasizing about Kat. She’s adorable, unbelievably witty, and completely off limits. He’d never stab his best friend in the back…
But when secrets are revealed, the lines of loyalty are blurred. To make it count, Alec must learn messy human emotions can’t be solved like a trigonometry function. And Kat has to trust Alec may be the first guy to want her for who she is, and not in spite of it.
Make it Right by Megan Erickson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
*ARC Given to Blog for Honest Review*
4 “doll” “white knight” Kisses
Oh boy…so much to say, so many words and I feel like I can’t get everything out fast enough. I really enjoyed this book…like a lot. I mean of course I had high hopes, considering I loved Make It Count, the first book in the series, but Make It Right was a little trickier. MiR is part of the Bowler University Series…it’s possible for it to be read as a standalone, but I really wouldn’t recommend it. It makes more sense if you read MiC first, because that’s where we initially meet Max.
Max Payton…what do I think about Max…well, after MiC, I can’t lie – he was already at a disadvantage. It’s not that I didn’t like Max…I just wasn’t crazy about him. He’d done some not too great stuff (no…I’m not going into detail) but I guess I was a little ambivalent about him….I could take him or leave him, I wasn’t impressed…but I was excited about the prospect of him impressing me. And…he totally did…he could be the poster boy for proof that people can and do change. Don’t get me wrong, there are a lot of things to like about Max…he’s attractive…popular…can sing karaoke with the best of them – he’s a fun loving guy but very few people know the real Max. He is…full of potential but held back by so much…and I hate that he had to hold back in the first place. I think what surprised me the most was Max has such a big heart when he lets himself love…and seeing him let go…trust…feel without restrictions…he was like this gorgeous creature that I couldn’t get enough of. That’s what Lea did for him…
‘She wondered if he realized how much those eyes gave him away when he wasn’t careful. She wondered if anyone ever tried to look deeper.
She wondered if he wanted anyone to.’
Lea Travers…oh my tough little cookie, Lea touched my heart in a very different way. She’s brave…she’s a fighter…and she’s got so much passion packed into her little body. Lea was dealt a tough hand…a car crash changed how she would live her life and while I think it made her a stronger person, it definitely made her more guarded. She trusts few and protects fiercely…none of which are necessarily bad qualities but it’s turned her into quite a control freak – which I can totally relate to! Lea’s sweet…funny…kind…strong in a million different ways that you could never imagine, it made my head spin. I adored her relationship with her father, who called her La La (loved the story behind that nickname)…and honestly it wasn’t until pretty late in the book that the differences between Lea’s relationship with her dad and Max’s relationship with his really set in for me…it was quite eye opening. But I digress…I grew very attached to Lea…and it was easy to do…she was full of surprises, from her tattoo’s and piercings to the way she was with Max…but he wasn’t the only one that changed…Lea went through her own growth, and it was all due to a boy with beautiful brown eyes.
‘Max stepped closer and she leaned slightly into him. Something was obviously wrong but he found a small bit of satisfaction that his presence seemed to comfort her. And that should weird him out. Because he didn’t do this “damsel in distress” thing. He wasn’t a white knight. He’d learned that the hard way. But something about Lea made him want to be.’
Oh boy…what did I love most about Max and Lea? Their combativeness. They’re both so strong willed and stubborn…I love seeing them rile each other up…cause it was just one of many amazing emotions they evoked out of each other…but I absolutely thrived off the fact that Lea didn’t let Max get away with shit! Max and Lea each have their own unique insecurities…their own quirks and things to overcome…but it was all part of their journey. The beauty in what Max and Lea find and have together is their ability to trust in one another…to have faith in another person and know that they feel the same thing…the capability to share themselves and give wholly to another human being and seeing them open up to that was astounding. Max has never had a strong female in his life and Lea has never felt comfortable enough to let another man in as much as she does Max…so their both opening themselves up to a very vulnerable situation…but the fact that they allowed it to happen spoke volumes to me about their relationship and who they are as a couple.
“Anything?”
She didn’t like this look in his eye. “Wait-”
“Go out with me,” he blurted.
She snapped her jaw shut, then licked her lips. “What?”
His gaze darted back and forth between hers. He was nervous. “Lea Travers, will you go on a date with me?”
“I-”
“You said anything-”
“Okay, but I might have some caveats.”
His dark eyebrows dipped. “I don’t know what caveats are but they sound fancy.”
As usual, I fell more and more in love with these characters the more I get to know them. I loved seeing more of Alec and Kat…seeing little bits of their progression, even from someone else’s eyes, it just does stuff to me…one of the many reasons why I love series. I did not expect to fall more in love with…Danica! Of course I thought she was a riot in MiC and I loved her friendship with Alec, but she took on a different role with Lea…almost like a big sister. I kind of already have crushes on Max’s older brothers, Cal and Brent…they’re typical older brothers but with the way they were raised…they just have an interesting dynamic and I really liked their interactions. It showed a different side to Max…and if Cal and Brent are half as interesting as Max is, then oh boy, do I want! 🙂 (a girl can hope!). But…there was one character that completely stole the show…Wayne. Wayne is…a cat. Yup…a cat who in just a few scenes is magically able to show a completely different side to the tough and burly Max…I don’t want to give too much away, but Wayne totally rocked it out and I loved what he brought out in Max.
‘“No, I’m not going to ask how I’ll know.”
She smiled. “Confident?”
He huffed out a breath and said softly. “Not at all.”
She sucked in a breath. “You still want a date with me?”
His chest hitched. “If a date with you means I get to look into your eyes when you smile and smell your hair when I’m close and feel those fingers on my skin when you laugh, then yes, doll. Yes, I want a date with you.”
It was too much and not enough all at the same time. Because he was all around her, he was her – supplying her legs and providing her heat and giving her breath because she inhaled him every time he exhaled.’
I was happy that the writing style pretty much stayed the same from MiC to MiR…the tone changed, obviously, with the characters but it’s still has the same feel. It’s dual POV, which I continued to enjoy…no scenes were repeated so it wasn’t redundant. And of course there was still that magical blend of emotional, funny and steamy…perfectly balanced between two insanely loveable and endearing characters. I really do enjoy Megan’s writing…she’s got a great flow and I feel like I’m consistently pulled in by what is happening. The plot was once again very unique and original and I really enjoyed it. It played both to Max and Lea’s strengths and weaknesses, which I appreciated. The balance and flow of this story was darn near perfect for me…just enough angst and pull to keep me on my toes…dear-sweet-lord-in-heaven was it sexy as hell…just the right amount of emotions, I didn’t cry like I did with MiR but I was feelin’ lots of feels!
“We’re talking about me, not you.”
“Right.” He nodded. “But that’s your logic. That I’m weak because I trust. You’re strong because you don’t trust.”
Well then her logic was flawed. Because nothing was stronger than the sight of Max grabbing the headboard, closing his eyes, and trusting her with his naked body and naked heart. “I don’t think you’re weak.”
His exhaled with relief and stepped closer, brushing his fingers over her bangs, eyes watching the hair fall back into place. Then he met her gaze. “I don’t think you’re weak either. I know you have it in you to trust. Is it me? You can’t trust me?”
Everything in her heart screamed she could but her head didn’t want to admit it. “It’s not you,” she whispered. “I don’t see myself as broken or hurt or weak. And I’ve never trust another person, other than my family, to feel the same way about me. To see me as an equal and not a fragile doll.”
He laughed softly, cupping the back of her head, thumb rubbing the shell of her ear. “I call you doll because you look like one. But you sure as hell aren’t broken.”
I’m über excited about Cam’s story…he’s a man whore and I love my man whores, plus I can’t wait to hear his back story. He was set up perfectly over the past two books and if he’s any where close to the amazingness that Max and Alec are, then we’re in for an awesome story! Can’t wait to get my hands on Make It Last!
Megan worked as a journalist covering real-life dramas before she decided she liked writing her own endings better and switched to fiction. She lives in Pennsylvania with her husband, two kids and two cats. When she’s not tapping away on her laptop, she’s probably listening to the characters in her head who won’t stop talking. You can get more info about Megan on her website.
This book is so interesting. I love a good review as you have provided. I also love the excerpts from the book. I will be reading this one.
Good book need to have a good review…thanks 🙂
This looks like a great read! I would like to check it out.