The Vegas Random

A HEARTACHINGLY BEAUTIFUL READ!!!
Title: The Vegas Random
Author: Ellie Gerrard
Designation: Full-Length Contemporary Erotic Romance With Elements of BDSM & Suspense, Can Be a Read As Standalone, HFN,
Reading Platform: Kindle Edition
My Rating: Three Sexy Stars***
*Due to explicit language, graphic violence, and sex scenes, both consensual and nonconsensual including rape, this book is not recommended for readers under 18.
After receiving a recommendation for The Vegas Random in a newsletter from an author I follow, I decided to check it out. Ellie Gerrard is a new-to-me author and had no idea what to expect, but I liked the cover and, more importantly, was intrigued by the blurb, so I made my purchase and dove in. Although I rated this book only three stars, I can honestly say I was impressed with Gerrard as an author. I truly loved the premise and found it to be captivating, creative, imaginative, gripping, and highly emotional, but the execution left much to be desired. This author shows a tremendous amount of promise, but the entire book was littered with syntax problems including incorrect grammar, punctuation, verb tense, use of homophones, improper shifts to third person perspective in a first person narrative, run on sentences and fragments, as well as weak story structure and exposition. Despite the mistakes, I couldn’t stop reading. I found myself completely captivated by the characters and the unique story arc. This book had so much potential and could have been truly great with a professional edit and proofread. I checked Amazon and discovered The Vegas Random is the only book listed for Gerrard, so I assume this is her first release. I understand the challenges and difficulties a new indie author faces to publish a book, but shortcuts can destroy a promising career after only one book. Some readers may decide not to purchase again from an author after a less than satisfactory experience, especially since the market is currently being flooded with a plethora of new authors offering so many options. If you truly want to have a successful writing career, please consider having your books professionally edited, and not by friends or family who love you. This story could have easily been extraordinary, rather than just okay.

The Vegas Random is a heart wrenching, fast-paced, full-length contemporary novel filled to the brim with danger, drama, suspense, mystery, angst, heartache, humor, passion, erotic romance, and enough plot twists to give you whiplash. It can be read as a standalone and doesn’t end with a cliffhanger per se but rather what I call a happy for now. Although I knew very early the story would not have a traditional HEA, I never expected the little grenade dropped by the author in the last few paragraphs of the epilogue. Oh my! That little nugget really blew my mind! No spoilers from me, but I will say this… A handsome dominant billionaire who had never been in love and had no inclination to ever do so-check! A charismatic dominant brother who’d suffered unbearable heartache after losing his wife and had no intention of ever giving his heart to another woman-check! A beautiful, brave, spunky, fearless widow and former soldier/medic/sniper who had her hands full with her two children, menagerie of pets, and current job as a private investigator/security expert-check! A shocking diagnosis, a bucket list, a trip to Vegas, a forced holiday, an unusual bet, not one but two once in a lifetime jackpots, a quickie Elvis wedding, an even quicker divorce, an unexpected turn of events, and a random pickup that not only irrevocably changed the lives of two brothers but also united two families-check! A large cast of wacky, intriguing, and endearing characters-check! Snappy dialogue, lots of humor, and a talking horse-check! (Yes, you read that right-a talking horse but after all, this is fiction, and this story will make you want to believe.) Danger, drama, heartache, mystery, suspense, a mysterious stalker, a special client, and a perplexing case-check! Immediate attraction, explosive passion, heartwarming romance, a steamy menage a trois, a serendipitous twist of fate, a generous splash of humor, a sprinkle of supernatural assistance, an unlikely but wonderful double surprise, and an ending that will tug on your heartstrings, rip your heart from your chest, but still leave you with the warm fuzzies and a big smile-you bet! That and a whole lot more! Interested yet? You should be! It’s a wild ride!

Did I like this book? Yes, I did but it could have been so much better. One of my favorite components of the story was the characters, especially the three protagonists. I was instantly smitten with brothers Charlie and Ian Morrissey and adored Kate/Shorty. Everyone in this book seemed to be very open about their sexuality which I found that I liked, a lot. I’m an old bird and have read a lot of books in my lifetime, but Kate may be my all-time favorite heroine. She was brave, intelligent, selfless, kind, passionate, loving, and as loyal as the day is long, but such a little firecracker. She was perfect. I could feel the love between Charlie, Ian, and Kate, and they complemented each other brilliantly. Would I recommend it? Probably but not for readers under the age of 18 since it does include explicit language, sex, and strong elements of BDSM. Also, this story does contain graphic scenes and references to rape and violence which may be upsetting to some readers. Will I read this author again? I’ll definitely give this author another chance, especially after the little bomb she dropped at the end of the story. And finally, was I entertained? Yes and despite the errors, I found myself on the edge of my seat, white-knuckling my ereader with my heart fluttering wildly in my chest as the pages flew. I snickered, snorted, giggled, fumed, sobbed, and flat out ugly cried through the entire book, but by the end I was happy, satisfied, and well entertained.