Review: Reflected in You by Sylvia Day

Reflected in You (Crossfire #2) by Sylvia Day

Published: October 23rd 2012

Gideon Cross. As beautiful and flawless on the outside as he was damaged and tormented on the inside. He was a bright, scorching flame that singed me with the darkest of pleasures. I couldn’t stay away. I didn’t want to. He was my addiction… my every desire… mine.

My past was as violent as his, and I was just as broken. We’d never work. It was too hard, too painful… except when it was perfect. Those moments when the driving hunger and desperate love were the most exquisite insanity.

We were bound by our need. And our passion would take us beyond our limits to the sweetest, sharpest edge of obsession…

My Thoughts:
I loved Bared to You, so I was highly anticipating Reflected in You. There were things I loved about this story, unfortunately the things that frustrated me far outweighed those.

We pick up the Eva and Gideon’s intense story right where we left off in Bared to You. They’ve got past some of the Corinne drama, are seeing a therapist jointly due to their abusive pasts, and settled in for the long haul. Or so we think. From the get go we have possessive and controlling behavior on both sides. They both seem to thrive on it. Eva and Gideon are not confident in each other unless they’ve pushed the other one to make some over-the-top gesture to control, and consume one another. But let’s face it, we/I sort of love this, to a certain extent.

I can’t complain about 50% of the book because it was HOT and wonderful. Ms. Day really knows how to write some steam, and boy does she excel at getting you hot and bothered. And I’m not just talking about the spice. It’s the push and pull between Eva and Gideon and their overwhelming desire for one another. I have many delicious quotes and scenes highlighted in my Kindle that are sure to make anyone’s toes curl! Here’s a sample:

I found myself pinned to the hallway wall by six feet, two inches of hard, hot male. “You know what happens when you run, angel.” Gideon nipped my lower lip with his teeth and then soothed the sting with the caress of his tongue. “I catch you.”

I would’ve been fine with this situation had Gideon been more forthcoming. Didn’t we all finish Bared to You thinking we’re going to get answers about his past and behavior in this one? I know I did. Eva freely trusted and shared her past with him. I don’t know why he felt the need to hold back so much. Instead we get pages and pages of frustration, and behavior that infuriates with no explanation! Not even at the 80% mark were there answers! I was about to pull my hair out! Add to that is Corinne! Gideon knows what Corinne does to Eva:

Gideon: ”I thought I understood your feelings for Corinne, and, frankly, I thought you just weren’t dealing with it well. But I had no clue. I was a self-centered idiot.” Eva: ”I’m not dealing with it well. I hate her f&%king guts. I can’t think about her without feeling violent. “ Gideon: “I get it now. I didn’t before.” He GETS it because Eva turns the table on him with jealousy and he gets a taste of his own medicine. But does this stop the Corinne issue? NO!!!!!!!!! All we get is: “Trust me Eva.” When all I wanted to do was SHANK him at this point! Okay, okay, I’ll calm down…..this is fiction after all. So basically I was frustrated for about 40-50% of this book. I can take 20-30% of frustration, I expect it. We must have some hurdle to overcome. But when the frustration and confusion are for almost half of the book, I start getting ticked. I feel like the author is jacking me around. If Eva was enlightened, given a little clue, a breadcrumb, just a little bit before we hit the the 94% mark, I would’ve been happy. We still didn’t even get the full story until almost the last pages!!! In my opinion, this was completely unnecessary! Yes, I know, I am seriously ranty and harpy in this review. Sorry. I finished this story last night and was totally worked up, and woke up even more worked up, and went through the day in a foul mood because I COULDN'T GET THIS STORY OUT OF MY HEAD! This review is the result of that aggravation, I had to vent somewhere. You are my collateral damage.

I will say, I’m dying for the next installment and probably will pick it up the day it comes out. Is that all kinds of crazy? Maybe……probably. Maybe this is a testament of what a great job Ms. Day did in writing this story. Or maybe she’s just an evil genius, and I’m like a moth to the flame.

Thank you to Penguin Group and Netgalley for allowing me to read this.

2.5 Suns