Damaged by RR Banks

​CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE

Publication date: 12/23/2017
Kindle Unlimited: Yes
Cliffhanger: No

To avoid being accused of being too negative and too hard on authors/books, I’m going to start this review with the things I liked:

• The cover dude. He’s yummy.
• The story is technically well-written. No glaring errors, decent pacing, natural-feeling dialogue​
• Micah, the hero. Like the cover dude, he’s yummy. He’s protective and strong and alpha without being a controlling alphahole.

• ​Scout the dog. I’m a firm believer that every book should have a cute dog. And just for all my fellow pet lovers out there who might want to read this book, you’ll be pleased to know that the dog lives. I don’t consider that a spoiler, by the way. It’s a public service. You’re welcome.     
• I love a good “stranded with a hottie” story. For whatever reason, I just can’t get enough of that particular trope.

Now that THAT’S out of the way, here’s what irked the bejesus out of me and nearly caused me to toss my Kindle across the room in a fit of temper whilst reading:

• The heroine’s mother is an a-hole of the highest order. Inviting her daughter’s ex boyfriend to a Thanksgiving getaway with the family without telling her daughter is a REAL douchebag move. This is very early on in the story, and I was tempted to DNF the book based on the mother, because I didn’t see how anything short of the author eviscerating her on the page (which seemed unlikely) would satisfy me.
• The fact that Charlotte lets her parents think that her ex is anything other than an abusive jackass was confounding to me. If your parents are pushing you to reconcile with your ex, why would you not tell them that he was a scary, abusive jerk? Charlotte’s silence made absolutely no sense to me. Even if you don’t think they’ll believe you, I still think that any rational person would speak up in a situation like Charlotte’s.
• I get that Charlotte was upset (and maybe a little scared) when her ex showed up at the cabin. But with all that family around, she was in no physical danger. The fact that she took off in a borrowed car to get away from him, driving up a mountain in bad weather, had me side-eyeing her pretty hard at this point in the story because she was dangerously close to TSTL territory.  
• I groaned out loud when Charlotte woke up with amnesia. Yep. It’s another amnesia story, folks. Ugh. If I wanted amnesia stories, I’d watch Days of Our Lives. (No disrespect to Days of Our Lives intended.)
• I was a big fan of Micah right from the start, but the fact that he didn’t immediately tell Charlotte who she was when she woke up made me want to throat-punch him. What was the purpose of NOT telling her? She was confused and scared, and knowing her name might’ve provided at least some level of comfort. Keeping silent was a dick move on Micah’s part. Very...un-romance-hero-like.
• Once Charlotte discovers Micah’s deception by omission, what does she do? Well, runs out into the snow, falls down and lays there waiting to be rescued, of course! The whole thing gave me Bella Swan flashbacks (and a little nausea), which really pissed me off.
• Spoiler alert: the mother wasn’t eviscerated, which was really disappointing. The way she spoke to Micah was disgusting.
• I won’t give away the ending, but Charlotte does yet another stupid thing, which endangers Micah AND MORE IMPORTANTLY Scout the dog. It was uncool. Seriously, seriously uncool.           

So, long-story-short, this was an eye-roll-inducing, tedious read for me. But, given the crap-ton of glowing reviews this book has, I’d say I’m representing the Unpopular Opinion Crew on this one. Whatever. Go ahead and read it if you want, y’all. Just don’t say I didn’t warn you. Eyes will roll...  

Does this book contribute to or help crush the romance stigma?
It’s the Charlie Sheen of books. No amount of rehab can save it.  

Other reading suggestions
For a great “hot guy saves injured woman” story, try Into the Storm by Melanie Moreland. You can check out our review here. Another fabulous option is Unloved by Katy Regnery. You can check out our review of that one here. We also put together this list of the sexiest recluses you’ll ever find in romance. Again, you’re welcome. ​

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