BOOK REVIEW: Pierced- A Stepbrother Romance by Maya Hawk

3.75 Stars

Lauryn Hudson isn’t expecting to run into her former teenage flame and current stepbrother, Sutton Pierce, at her yearly gynecologic appointment.  But the pierced and tattooed Sut that she once loved is now Dr. Pierce.

The awkward moments don’t end there. Lauryn and Sutton share a complicated past.

“‘Besides, first you were like my bratty kid sister, and then you were my friend, and then you got boobs and got all hormonal, and then I thought you were hot so I fucked you like crazy, and then we became stepsiblings, and now I’m going to fuck you, like I did back in high school, only now we’re adults.’”

Told via Lauryn and Sutton’s alternating first person POV, Lauryn must work through not only her issues with their parents’ scandalous history but what she wants for herself in the present.

The character development could be a little fuller. I really liked what is depicted of Sutton and considering he was only a teen when their relationship was blown apart the first time, I had a hard time relating to Lauryn’s decade or longer grudge. He seemed like a great guy that truly cared about her for the most part.

The story had potential and I wished it would have been fleshed out more. There’s a few flashback to their past as teenagers but to understand the history and depth of their relationship, I needed more. Less tell, more show. Plus Loren is in a relationship with someone else through the first part of the story and that didn’t help the budding second chance romance with Sutton.  More time spent developing them as a couple, more steam, and better organized flashbacks would have brought the rating up higher.

This is the author’s first novel and a promising debut. I purchased it as part of a bonus with the second release, Wanted. Pierced is still a decent read, but Wanted definitely improves upon places where Pierced fell short. 

GOODREADS    AMAZON