Review: Rome by Jay Crownover - 4.5 Wine Glasses

Title: Rome 
Series: Marked Men #3
Author: Jay Crownover 
Format: eBook/Paperback, 384 pages
Published: January 7th 2014 by William Morrow Paperbacks
ISBN: 0062302426
Links: Goodreads | Amazon | Kindle
Source: Publisher
Reviewer: Crystal
Rating: 4.5/5

Cora Lewis is a whole lot of fun, and she knows how to keep her tattooed bad boy friends in line. But all that flash and sass hide the fact that she’s never gotten over the way her first love broke her heart. Now she has a plan to make sure that never happens again: She’s only going to fall in love with someone perfect. 
Rome Archer is as far from perfect as a man can be. He’s stubborn and rigid, he’s bossy and has come back from his final tour of duty fundamentally broken. Rome’s used to filling a role: big brother, doting son, super soldier; and now none of these fit anymore. Now he’s just a man trying to figure out what to do with the rest of his life while keeping the demons of war and loss at bay. He would have been glad to suffer it alone, until Cora comes sweeping into his life and becomes the only color on his bleak horizon. 
Perfect isn’t in the cards for these two, but imperfect might just last forever . . .

Thoughts:

Have you read Jay Crownover's Marked Men series yet? If not, stop what you're doing and grab book one, Rule (Only $1.99) RIGHT NOW! The series follows the sexy men and feisty women of a tattoo shop along with their friends and family. Full of sex, tattoos, angst and romance, I have fallen in love with each character and subsequential book so far! 

Cora Lewis is the backbone of steel behind Marked. She runs it and the boys like a seasoned general but will be the first person to step up in their defense. Full of life and color, the only thing that she is missing is the perfect man. And finding him proves a whole lot harder then she thought. Despite her friends comments and advice about her standards maybe being too high, Cora is determined. If a guy doesn't meet her list of requirements for perfection, she doesn't want him. After all, she knows from heart-breaking experience what happens when you fall for a man who isn't perfect. But when Rule's older brother, Rome, walks into the shop, Cora's libido quickly out-talks her brain.  

Rome always knew his place in life; older brother, mediator, responsible son, and dedicated soldier. Now that he's out of the army though and his family is in shambles, Rome feels thrown adrift in life. He's lashing out at those he loves most and hitting the bottle just to make it through the night. When the vibrant Cora come's blazing through his life, Rome knows that he's not the man she is looking for but he can't seem to keep away from her alluring glow. Can he prove to her that what they could have together is perfectly imperfect and worth risking her heart for?

With the third book in a series, sometimes you notice a similarity in plot and decline in the story. But so far, Jay Crownover has been rock solid in the Marked Men series and her writing improves with each edition. Rome is about two beautifully damaged people who must face down their own demons to move forward in life and find that happily ever after. I love that each of Ms. Crownover's characters, whether it be the hero, heroine, or both, must not only learn to love another, but learn to love themselves as well. 

Rome is battling a major case of PTSD while Cora has trust and abandonment issues thanks to a cheating ex-fiance and a run-away mother. Right away you can see Rome's struggles, but from the outside Cora seems very grounded and knows what she wants out of life. Described as a scrappy little pixie, think Tinkerbell all tatted up downing a few Monsters. Her and the straight-laced, tattoo and piercing-free, Rome seem to be total opposites, but they have more in common on the inside then either one of them could know. The journey that these two embark on is frustratingly difficult, sexually explosive, heartbreakingly disappointing, and so romantic you'll swoon. I enjoyed every second of it! 

I recommend reading the first two books in this series first so that you don't miss any of the back story on these characters and the surrounding ones. I am so looking forward to Nash's book now and April 29th can't come soon enough!