Stacia in Progress

Let's play a game of 'Spot Stacia' with this picture.Yep. That's about how I feel right now. Do you need a parade rained on? Give me a call and I'll trek on over with my portable cloud.I wanted to like this book. I was hesitant going in but dammit, I wanted to like this book. I was the one who even suggested reading Wounded to a friend because it seemed like this might be one of the few hyped books which would actually work for me. The slight recap that I'm about to give you will probably echo at least a couple of friend's sentiments because of recent/ongoing discussion about this book and if something overlaps between my opinion and theirs, it was absolutely unintentional for me to do this in my review and it happened by complete accident. Starting out - the first couple of chapters of this book had such a hook! So what happened after that? It was as if all of the research put into recreating the environment of Rania's life somehow disappeared when she became her alternate self and there was the crutch of staying in one location. This made the story feel like it lacked authenticity, almost as if the author did a short wikipedia search to gather a few basic facts, then was able to let it go once we could settle down into a complacent spot. I felt like we were almost getting a textbook view of the location instead of an insider's view. Let's talk about Rania's transformation. I didn't believe this girl's voice sounded like how a real person would react in the exact same situation. There were glimpses of hesitancy and speech translation issues which were well portrayed...but then we'd switch over "Romance Lingo 101" in the blink of an eye and I'd wonder when this chick had the time to read books about being wanton (and other such terms which don't seem like they'd be commonplace for anyone who hasn't spent time devouring romance novels).Hunter was a likable guy. Sure, he was horny at strange times, but yeah...I know guys who could get hard on their deathbed. So that didn't much bother me. :pThis book would have benefited greatly from giving more time for Raina and Hunter to truly discover one another.. An extra 50 or so pages could have afforded time for this couple to get to know each other better. With little to no knowledge to go off of, the connection felt shaky. I see the draw of "woman nurses man back to health" as a plot point, but Tristan and Isolde this is not. I won't touch on the military or religious authenticity because I don't know how accurate these points were. I had seen a couple of friends' comments which made me wonder if everything was addressed correctly, but again, I don't know enough to say anything on that front. You might have seen at least one or two other people mention a possible ick factor : she was having unprotected sex for ten years and he went down on her with no hesitancy? and I'll say that this was also a "wait, what?" moment for me.I felt like this book catered strictly to an unrealistic fantasy, yet we were reading a contemporary/non-fantasy book. Yes, romance is a fantasy in and of itself but the best realistic romances are the ones which are tempered with enough plausibility to make them feel like you're actually intruding in on someone else's life as fly on the wall. I never felt like this was the case as I was reading. Back on the fantasy aspect, there seemed to be too much of a "hollywood action movie" feel at times. Impossible fight scenes - check. People coming back from the dead multiple times - check. "Go big or go home" didn't really pan out this time. There is one big upside : This book is a sweet romance story about two people finding comfort in each other through patience and understanding. Many people have loved this book and I can see why. The power of love and its ability to overcome great obstacles is always inspiring. It's also a huge draw to see a tough, protective man who will do anything to keep the woman he cares about safe. If you love those things in a book, then you might be one of the masses who adores Wounded. In fact, I'm pretty sure that many hardcore romance fans will find plenty to cheer about. If you're not sure, go take a spin through the many positive reviews and you might find a couple which will sell you on this story. And if you do decide to give it a try, I can honestly say, "happy reading!"