Blog Tour - Review & Giveaway: No Kissing Allowed by Melissa West

No Kissing Allowed 

by Melissa West

July 28, 2015

204 pages

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Goodreads Summary:

A new adult romance from Entangled's Embrace imprint...

No kissing. No touching. And definitely no falling in love...

Armed with her besties, an embarrassing number of shots, and her list of 10 Wild Things To Do Before Adulthood, recent grad Cameron Lawson is partying it up before she starts her dream job at New York's biggest ad agency. Her last task? Hook up with a random guy. And while it's so not her style, the super-sexy guy sitting next to her is definitely game. No names. No details.

At least, that was the plan.

On her first day of work, Cameron discovers her hook-up is none other than Aidan Truitt-her new boss's boss. Talk about failing the "no fraternizing with coworkers" policy on an epic level. Especially when Aidan makes it clear their one night was only the beginning. Falling for him could cost her everything, but sometimes the only way to get what you want is by breaking a few rules...

 

Review

New Adult is a genre I generally enjoy but lately I've been finding the storylines a little too similar. I've really pulled back on reading NA but when I saw No Kissing Allowed, I couldn't resist requesting it. It has one of my favourite love trope: forbidden romance. I'm always curious to see how the author gets the characters to hurdle that obstacle. This story had its ups and downs but I definitely found it enjoyable at the end.

First off, No Kissing Allowed had one of the most overused trope in NA stories. Yes, it's the serious girl falls for casual guy one. We have Cameron, our girl that only ever has serious relationships and then we have our guy Aidan who has never been in a committed relationship before meeting her. There's mutual attraction which leads to real feelings but obviously Aidan refuses to commit. Cameron secretly holds on hoping she'll be able to change his mind. I saw all of this coming so the book definitely suffered with its predictability.

Onto the things I loved about the book. Cameron is a really great NA character. Even though she hopes she can change Aidan's mind, she doesn't blindly hold onto that hope (which was the norm in NA stories). Knowing what was best for her, she had the strength to walk away from him when he couldn't give her what she deserved. I had respect for Cameron because she respected herself. Even when she was in a tough situation, she was able to hold her own.

The forbidden romance did not disappoint me. It was full of hesitations but brimming with tension. I didn't fall for Aidan like Cameron did mostly because I couldn't get behind his hot and cold attitude towards her. The way he changed his mind back and forth just wasn't very believable. I did like that when they were at a stalemate, they gave each other time and space to think. "But sometimes we needed to sort out our thoughts in silence, the quiet giving way to understanding in a way words never could." (eARC Loc 1530). Both characters were very mature and rational and that made the story that much better.

 

I was surprised at the way the forbidden aspect of the story was settled but it couldn't have made more sense. With strong characters, some cheesy moments, No Kissing Allowed was overall a very honest story.

*I received an eARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. All opinion are my own and not affected in any way. The quote was taken from the Advance Review Copy I received.

About this Author

Melissa West writes heartfelt Southern romance and YA sci-fi romance, all with lots of kissing. Because who doesn't like kissing?. She lives outside of Atlanta, GA with her husband and two daughters and spends most of her time writing, reading, or fueling her coffee addiction.

She holds a B.A. in Communication Studies and a M.S. in Graphic Communication, both from Clemson University.

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