One stud stallion coming right up!
“Edge of Midnight” by Shannon McKenna
There’s no denying it, Sean McCloud is psychotic. And there is no doubt about how much psychotic heroes are loved and welcomed here at ripmybodice.com (see Ivan Tramore, and any of the other McCloud brothers) but Sean dances dangerously on the line of “omg he’s so psychotic how hot is that??†versus “omg he’s so psychotic, Mimi! Tranq gun! Now!!â€, and then wave goodbye as the men in white coats and butterfly nets take him away to a lifetime of electro-shock therapy and finger painting. And yet, there was something…truly sweet and heartbreaking about Sean’s character, underneath all his clownish, crude, cat without its kitty litter for way too long behavior. So Sheridan decided that to make a pro-con list, of the things that were good and not so good about “Edge of Midnightâ€, Shannon McKenna’s latest offering about the wildest ladies man of clan McCloud, so that you, dear readers, are able to come to your own decision on whether this is a keeper, or a “please take this book away from me before I hurt itâ€.
Pros:
(1) The Hotness –No doubt about it, Sean’s hot (and to be considered the hottie of the McCloud brothers is no mean feat). There’s no girl he cannot seduce or charm, no pair of panties he cannot get into, no female form he doesn’t appreciate. In fact, Sean’s story opens (creepy sub-plot aside) with him waking up in bed with two girls and seven used condoms. There’s nothing Sheridan loves more, than a hot reformed rake (not of the garden variety) who is the best stallion the ranch has to offer. He’s also the resident bad boy trouble maker, always giving Davy (i.e. the eldest McCloud) a hard time trying to keep him in line. Hot bad boy who’s also a stud muffin in the sack? Well slap me on my cowboy hat honey ‘cos I’m going ridin! “Hi-yo Silver! Away!!â€
(2) The Longing – In case you’ve haven’t been keeping track, Sheridan loves, loves, LOVES “The Longingâ€. Nothing is more gut wrenching (or hotter for that matter) than a pining hunk of a man, who hasn’t stopped thinking about his lady love though the years, and against his better judgment (most times, it is so since the hunk of man pines for some simpering idiot instead of for myself). And nothing says “I love you†more, than having kept tabs on the woman you’ve loved for years – files, photographs, updates on her whereabouts etc etc. Truly. Roses and chocolates aren’t romance! Invasion of privacy is!
(3) The sweetness – For all of his crazy OTT immature personality (see below), Sean did have a softer, sweeter side, which he shows only to Liv. Sheridan loved the fact that he used up all the money he was saving for college to buy her a diamond (minus the band cos he had no money at the time), which he then reset and wore in his ear as a diamond stud everyday since the breakup. Sheridan also loved the tender moment they shared when he stuck the stud (the diamond, not himself…although, I may be wrong about that one) in her ear and said something like “it’s about damned timeâ€. Plus, he calls her “Princess†throughout the book and you know he really means it. Awww!
(4) The Sub-plot – Normally, Sheridan could care less about the sub-plot (Mr. O who?) but this one was so creepy and well-written that it almost stole the show. Never mind that my disbelief is currently dangling from the empire state building. It still gives Sheridan the heebie geebies whenever she thinks of the final scene between the baddie, Liv and Sean, and where Sean says “Goodbye Princess, I love youâ€. Best “there’s a crazy psycho psychopath killer after me and my girl!†sub-plot ever written by Shannon McKenna. CREE-PY.
Cons:
(1) The immature personality – We don’t mince words here at ripmybodice.com (much to the chagrin of most of the authors and their loyal fans we imagine) and there’s no other way to say this but to just say it. Sean’s “I’m such a prankster oh look at me! Look at me!†personality in the book, was highly annoying. Also, it wasn’t particularly endearing to read that he constantly gave his brothers a hard time every year (most of the time but) especially on the death anniversary of his twin brother. The fact that none of them could catch a break from Sean’s yearly tantrum to grieve for their brother showed Sean as an incredibly self-centered brat who is constantly used to getting his way by acting out. He’s that kid who would scream at the top of his lungs while spinning around the supermarket floor aisle cos you wouldn’t him his gummy bears. It’s a wonder Liv didn’t smack him when he waddled on his knees in the middle of the street to get her attention and to be perfectly honest, at times, he was a bit of a jerk to her. No alright he was a big jerk to her most times but all he had to do, was to have sex with her, and she’d forgive him. Which brings us to…
(2) The sex – Sean and Liv’s sex life was most intereesting to read about. Not that we’ve not read the unconventional (let Lola tell you all about the usage of a harp in a sex scene of a particular book) but this is truly a whole new level of mind-boggling sex scenes from authors who want to come up with newer, sexier, raunchier sex. I mean, this definately beats the hook thingy coming out of the hero’s penis. At one point of the book, Sean let’s Liv play the role of the man and no my friends, she did not have a strap on. I know it was meant to be a whole new level of sexy, but it ended up being…really weird and *scratches head*. Well maybe I’m a prude. Intrigued? Read the book.
(3) The twin brother – Wassup with the twin brother visiting him in his dreams eh? Also, what’s up with the whole “you made me believe he was killed in a car accident! You forced me into this box where I’ve been trapped in all these years but now I’m free!†It made no sense to turn the blame for his brother’s death onto his own family, when all they wanted was to help him move on. Seriously man, they thought he drove off a cliff too. Also, what did happened to Kevin? You’re leaving me hanging Shannon! Cliffhangers are mine enemy. You know the old episode cliffhanger of ‘Friends’ when you didn’t know whether Ross chose Rachel or that Bonnie/Bonny chick? It nearly killed me to wait for the new season to begin. Ask Lola! She’ll back me up on this!
(4) Cindy/Miles – I fail to understand why Shannon McKenna does not kill Cindy AND lover boy Miles off in the most unimaginative way ever (because putting in effort would be too good for them). ANNOY-ING. Was Cindy and Miles supposed to be a sub sub plot for some sort of relief from a possible McCloud overload? Was it necessary to make Cindy that annoyingly stupid? Was it also necessary to make Miles hung like the kind of horse that other horses go “wow gee whiz will you look at that? Now I’m embarrassed� Sheridan was most sad when Cindy did not die in Davy’s book and was devastated that her living resulted the creation of more problems for team McCloud. Let a tree fall on her please! Or a dead bird from a great height. Or let her and Miles walk by the empire state building and have a psycho penny throwing killer stationed on the observation deck. Anything! Really! Sheridan’s not fussed!
So there you have it, SheridanSC’s pro-con list. I highly recommend it as a most excellent thriller. Just…be prepared for Sean to overwhelm you. If at anytime you are torn between wishing for the ability to smack him versus soothing his tortured soul against your bosom, just know that you are not alone my friend. Not alone.
Wendy said,
September 18, 2007 @ 8:55 am
My kid has been tantrumming all @#$!@#! afternoon, so Sean lost me on con #1.
Though I’m not real thrilled with all the used condoms, either. Though better than none, I suppose.
Sheridan Sakura Carlotta said,
September 18, 2007 @ 9:09 am
Hi Wendy! Sorry about the bad day. Which example of con #1 did you stop at? It may have been a good thing to stop reading as Sean’s a little too much to handle in one sitting.
La Lola said,
September 18, 2007 @ 10:34 am
The sex scenes in this book were a lot raunchier than Shannon McKenna’s usual. And that’s saying something.
And I didn’t understand the bit about getting Liv to act like the man either. But nothing tops that book where the harp was used as a prop. NOTHING. I think my eyes are still bleeding.
Bedelia said,
September 18, 2007 @ 7:53 pm
Shannon McKenna’s first 2 in this series are her best, I think. And while all the rest of her novels & short stories, for me, are keepers… some of them rely more than others on the grace of my enduring passion for Seth Mackey.
As far as Sean’s behavioral issues… he kind of just seemed like the youngest brother, to me. In a hyped-up romantic-suspense character kind of way. Not a prototype I’d be into in reality, myself, but I’m an oldest child. My own baby brother, e.g., is 24 & a good guy, but he’s a certifiable spaz & a bit spoiled… he will require much tolerance from his future mate. So, Sean didn’t seem THAT far out, to me. (Except for the dead/alive Kevin thing, WTF? That better be addressed in the next book.)
AND, as for the odd sex. I have to say, I’ve noticed that she seems to recycle some dialogue bits between books. My mind wandered a little towards the 2nd 1/2 of this book, in the spots that ought to be steamy. I think that little role-reversal thing was not the right kind of um, innovation, to make up for the fact that every single one of her heroes has at some point used the phrase, “yummy girl juice,” etc. It kind of came off to me as just another Tab A / Slot B (or would that be Tab B / Slot A?) scene, instead of being really absorbing. Like, Oh, look, they’re doing it again… anyway, what’s next..?
Phew! That said, I’m ready & waiting for her next book…
Oh, P.S.: Cindy = extremely unsympathetic character. Miles could’ve used more development, he was kind of cute, but Cindy needed to be put out of her misery, & everyone else’s.
Sheridan Sakura Carlotta said,
September 19, 2007 @ 9:47 am
Oh man Bedelia you are speaking my language! If Cindy were real, I’d ask you out for a hunting trip in the ripmybodice.com mobile. We’d find her, tie her to a bag containing all the bad Romance novels we’ve ever read and then dump her into the ocean. Then we’d hit up a greasy Mexican joint where we’d meet up with Lola and Mimi!
You’re right about the Miles bit. I think I would have liked him a whole lot better if he had a chance to grow up a little, since it literally felt like on page 2, he was the puppy dog that followed Cindy around and on page 3, he was being mean to her and being all “dark” and “McCloud-ish”.
PS: “Yummy girl juice” is SO not sexy.
PPSS: I think Kevin is dead. Unless he has now become some amazing guru that can project himself into Sean’s dreams…
livlife said,
April 12, 2008 @ 5:23 am
Umm…harp? You’ve got my attention. What’s the book?
La Lola said,
April 12, 2008 @ 11:11 am
The rauncho version of Phantom of the Opera… check out the review here, http://www.ripmybodice.com/2007/10/01/harp-to-say-im-sorry/
Chanel19 said,
February 22, 2009 @ 5:42 am
So, I’m digging my way through the collected works of the brothers.
Now, do they compare notes, seeing as they all seem to like the same positions?
How BIG was her clit?
I think Kevin buggered off and joined the Foreign Legion (because we all love an alpha in a uniform, think of the Kepi) or the alternate possiblity is whacked. He’s a gay, kite designer living in San Francisco..