by Janie Marie
My Ratings
Plot – ★★★★☆
Character Development – ★★★★☆
World Building – ★★★☆☆
Editing – ★★★★☆
Enjoyment – ★★★★☆
Summary
When you’re in love with your best friend, life is complicated.
When he’s also your stepbrother, it’s a nightmare.
Jane’s apparently a magnet for chaos.
Because now she’s agreed to tutor her stepbrother’s enemy, and that sexy bad boy might have a thing for her. She might also love that a tingle surrounds her soul whenever he’s close.
Throw his two brothers into the mix, dangerous rivals looking to destroy every one of them, and parents controlling her love life. It’s safe to say she’s wandered into the apocalypse.
At least being torn between four hot guys isn’t the end of the world.
Just kidding. It totally is.
But they’ll all realize something.
Jane’s the ruler of her life. No one else.
Long live the queen . . . and her kings.
Note: This book contains details of emotional and mental abuse. The author herself has added trigger warnings for abuses, violence, and controversial themes.
My reviews may contain small spoilers that outline the plot rather than divulge the full story.
The Review
Note: I am going to try and be as unbiased in this review as possible. However, I was also one of the editors of this novel. Yes, you read that right – my name and my earlier site are in the book! Jane’s Team is my first venture into the world of proofreading and editing. I have learned a lot from this experience, and I am deeply thankful to Janie Marie for allowing me to glimpse what goes on behind the scenes in the world of literature.
Jane’s Team is a spin-off from the God’s & Monsters series that started my whole journey into blogging. It is another reverse harem style book, so it comes with many warnings for sensitive souls and pearl-clutching Mary’s alike. You know the types – they outwardly vocally hate on things yet devour it in the dead of night when nobody is looking. We all know they do it.
Jane is your typical American high school girl who enjoys cheering on her school’s football team alongside her bestie during game season. However, she has another reason for being there – her drool-some best guy friend, David. He’s the schools middle line-backer and also her neighbour. They’ve been falling for each other for years, but just as a relationship between the two of them begins to bloom, Jane’s mother and David’s father drop a bomb on them – they’re going to be stepsiblings.
We are thrust forward a few years, and their relationship is purely platonic, but not without Jane having a lot of hidden inner turmoil about it. David is engrossed in his football schedule, and, in the typical high school romance book fashion, he is dating a cheerleader. Much to Jane’s chagrin. She is forced to face her feelings for David when she is tasked with tutoring his nemesis, Ryder, and realizes that she wants both… plus Ryder’s two brothers.
This begins an angst-filled teen journey of navigating the path to adulthood with hot guys, naughty moments and dealing with adults who think they know best.
The gradual unveiling of the backstory of Jane’s life is a gripping, heartbreaking tale of a father’s choices for his daughter. I honestly wept through those parts; I am not ashamed to admit it.
Like her other books, Janie Marie tackles those uncomfortable truths of life head-on. She doesn’t sidestep the absolutely true realities of being female – of being slut-shamed, having self-doubt, attempting to juggle multiple boys, finding her place in the world, and even attempted assaults.
In typical Janie fashion, it isn’t all turmoil and distress. There are a lot of comedic moments interjected throughout the book that keeps the tone up. I did, however, struggle to get through a small part, both in editing and in reading the final product, as it felt a little slow-moving during the initial setup. As an editor, I do not get the final say with my edits, as the Author has every right to throw out our suggestions and changes. However, I did fail to highlight the pacing myself.
Finally, I love this book for many reasons and not because I played a small part in helping Janie. I recommend giving it a read as it has a perfect blend of seriousness, light-heartedness, and sexy moments.
The second prologue is a wonderful surprise, but you certainly need to have read Gods & Monsters to understand it in its entirety.
Where to buy
It can be purchased digitally in the Kindle Store or in paperback.
Alternatively, you can get it at The Book Depository for purchase in your local currency.
Please follow the links to be taken to the relevant site.
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