Title: Nikan Rebuilt
(Preload #3)
Author: Scarlett Cole
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: January 2, 2018
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press SWERVE
Review & Excerpt Tour for NIKAN REBUILT by Scarlett Cole
Does the past ever really stay in the past? Find out in
Scarlett Cole’s NIKAN REBUILT, the steamy, third standalone in her rockstar
romance series, Preload. After years of no contact, Nik and first love Jenny’s
connection still blazes between them. Will they have their second chance at
love? Or will the weight of their past crush their future together?
Don’t
know about you, but we love a great Rockstar romance. And Scarlett Cole knows
how to write a great Rockstar romance. We are excited to share with you NIKAN
REBUILT, book three in Cole’s Preload series. Follow the tour for reviews,
excerpts, and enter to win a $50 Amazon gift card + ebook copies of JORDAN
RECLAIMED and ELLIOTT REDEEMED!
From the queen of heart-pounding, sexy, emotional romance Scarlett Cole comes Nikan Rebuilt, the next novel in the Preload series.
Does the past ever really stay in the past?
Nikan can never be complete. He's got a rock group made up of the family he built for himself, more money than he knows what to do with, and a stream of groupies falling over themselves to date him. But none of them are her. The one regret that still plagues him, still taunts him with what he could have had.
Jenny is a survivor. Now running a group home after overcoming life in a cult lead by her manipulative father and watching her mother drink the poison he fed his followers, she fights to keep the light in the eyes of every boy who walks through her doors. Far from simple young love, Nik taught her to trust, showed her how good life could be. Before he formed the band. Before he became a famous rockstar. Before he destroyed it all.
A chance meeting after years of no contact shows the connection still blazes between them. But will they have their second chance at love? Or will the weight of their past crush their future together?
Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK | B&N | iBooks | Chapters Indigo
NIKAN REBUILT Excerpt
Copyright © 2017 Scarlett Cole
Nik took the towels out of her hands and placed
them on the dryer. “Hey, come here,” he said as he reached for her hands. “Talk
to me.”
She wasn’t ready to, not least because she
didn’t understand the swirl of feelings sweeping through her. To put into words
for Nik exactly how that felt was impossible. “I’m fine, I’m good. I just have
a lot to do here now.”
Nik placed his finger under her chin and raised
her eyes so she was forced to look at him. “I think we can safely say that lies
have no place between us. So, I’ll tell you what I’m thinking, and then you can
tell me what you’re thinking. Okay?”
Jenny sighed and nodded. “Okay.”
“I didn’t come here tonight expecting to kiss you
like this. I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t thought about it, but I know I have
a lot of work to do to prove myself to you. But seeing you laugh, and seeing
you look at me, just for a moment, without the pain I caused you in your eyes .
. . Well, I don’t even know how to begin to explain what that felt like to
me—except that I didn’t want to be away from you for another moment, and that
it felt like a new beginning of sorts. If there’s any doubt in your mind about
what that kiss did to me, I’d encourage you to touch me and check, but I think
that might be a step too far, given where we are. Now it’s your turn.”
His words made her stomach flip, and despite her
best efforts she was filled with a warm and fuzzy feeling. She looked over to
the staircase again to check that nobody was within earshot. “We’re coming at
this new friendship . . . relationship . . . from two completely different
places. I’m mad at myself for letting you get this close to me again. It’s
reckless to fall for you all over again and I know it. But when you stand so
close to me, I can . . .” Crap. How could she explain that the way the
smell of him, and the heat of him, and the proximity of him, and the touch of
him took her straight back to that time and place where she wholeheartedly loved
him?
“You can what?” Nik asked, moving his hands to
her hips.
“I can remember us. Before.”
3.5 “Second Chances” Stars
ARC via NetGalley
Thank you, Swerve!
I’ve been following
this series from the very first book, so I was obviously excited to get my
hands on Nikan’s story.
While I have to say
Lennon’s book is the one I’m most anxious about, I had a good time reading Nikan Rebuilt. It was a little different
than what I expected, and maybe lower on the suspense and angst vibe than the
previous titles in the series, but it was a pleasant read.
Speaking of Lennon, I
often felt he was the star of this book, despite it being about the love
between Jenny and Nik. At times, it almost felt like this was a book meant to
set things forward for Lennon. But that’s not a complaint, because he is one of
the most intriguing members of the band.
Now, about Nik and
Jenny. I had my doubts I’d like the romance because it’s centered in two major
problematic plot points for me: cheating and second chances.
Cheating is something
that normally ruins the book for me, as made clear by many of my reviews. And
of all romance tropes, second chances is probably my least favorite. Still,
Scarlett Cole managed to write these elements in a way that didn’t make me
dislike the story.
Yes, let’s make it
very clear from the start, Nik cheated on Jenny when they were young and in
love. This book brings an explanation to his behavior. Was it satisfactory? Not
really. Would any explanation ever be? Probably not. It wasn’t a horrible
explanation, either, so I’ll give him that. It doesn’t hurt that he spent the
better part of the story trying to show Jenny he had changed. Was I convinced?
Not really. Was I swayed? Probably.
The two of them had
chemistry, and I could understand why Jenny decided to forgive him. I could
easily tell she loved him a lot, and he did his best showing her he loved her,
too. I just don’t know if maybe she should’ve held on a bit longer. Maybe that
would’ve helped with the forgiveness angle a bit. Or maybe not. But that’s
mostly on me and my intolerance for cheating.
I did love the way
Jenny and Nik found purpose working with foster kids and giving them a chance
at life. They were both important in the roles they played in those kids’ lives
and it certainly helped build a connection between reader and character.
So, while Nikan Rebuilt was not my favorite book
from this series, I was happy to see how it moved the overall story forward,
and it’s always a pleasure to see the members of Preload again.
The tattoo across my right hip says it all really. A Life Less Ordinary. Inked by the amazingly talented Luke Wessman at the Wooster Street Social Club (a.k.a. New York Ink). Why is it important? Well, it sums up my view on life. That we should all aspire to live a life that is less boring, less predictable. Be bold, and do something amazing. I’ve made some crazy choices. I’ve been a car maker, a consultant, and even a senior executive at a large retailer running strategy. Born in England, spent time in the U.S. and Japan, before ending up in Canada were I met my own, personal hero – all six and a half feet of him. Both of us are scorpios! Yeah, I know! Should have checked the astrological signs earlier, but somehow it works for us. We have two amazing kids, who I either could never part with or could easily be convinced to sell on e-bay.
I’ve wanted to be a writer for a really long time. Check through my office cupboards or my computer and you’ll find half written stories and character descriptions everywhere. Now I'm getting the chance to follow that dream.
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