Forbidden (Under the Skin #2) by Charlotte Stein

Forbidden has all the things I most hate about the New Adult Genre - the angst, the drama, and the growing pains experienced by the characters - but it also has the brilliant storytelling I've come to expect from Charlotte Stein...

Blurb...

They say I need help. Another exorcism. This is not new. This is my life. Today, I expect to suffer at the hands of a man as warped by superstition and fear as my mother. A man who will torture me in order to save me from things that don’t exist.

But the man who actually comes to me is different.

Killian is good and decent and he sees what’s good and decent in me. And I don’t mean for it to happen, but every time he looks at me his gaze sets me on fire. He brings me to the light, gives me back my life. For the first time, I see a future for myself. A future with him.

I burn for Killian - a man who’s intent on protecting me. On healing me.He doesn’t get it. The only thing that can heal me is him. But Killian will soon be a priest. Untouchable. Forbidden.

How can I ask a man to choose between me…and God?

My thoughts...

One of the things I most love about Ms. Stein's writing is how she takes us deep into the heart and soul of her characters, which she does once again in Forbidden. That said, one of my least favorite things about her writing is how much we 'hear' rather than 'see' take place. We spend the majority of this book inside Dot's thoughts as she struggles to understand her feelings. While this gives us a deep insight into hers, it made the story feel very one-sided and left me wondering what Killian was truly thinking and, more importantly, feeling.

The bottom line...

Charlotte Stein is a brilliant storyteller in so many ways, and anyone looking for a dark, anxious, sexually intense New Adult read need look no further. If this story doesn't sound like your cuppa, be sure to check the author's back-list for a storyline more to your taste. Granted, many readers gave a love/hate relationship with her - as her ratings will prove - but don't pass up the opportunity to find out if she's your kind of author.

An ARC was provided by Avon Books/Avon Impulse