So, this isn’t my typical romance but I was honestly just trying to tick boxes in a dark romance challenge. That’s the main reason I sought out Holding On by AC Bextor – it was a highly rated MC romance. Well, after reading this, I’m not sure I want to read more of that specific subgenre if this is the standard. This was just not my cup of tea and I’m going to be upfront about it.
The narrators did a good job. The writing wasn’t horrible. The pacing felt very stop and start. The romance is where I have such a huge problem. I cannot stand the way Shame and Hem treated the women they supposedly loved. It was worse than garbage. I wouldn’t treat a dog like that. Mace and Sadey were treated as commodities to be used as they wished and if they stepped out of line, then they’d find another hole to fill. And the women were okay with it! They just went on with it! Even when Mace is saying she’ll never forgive Shame for being with someone else after they had a disagreement, she does! With literally no groveling. It was the worst and I hated it! I hated how the women in the MC were spoken about by the female characters. This just – if this is the standard for MC romances, I cannot say I want to read more.
Storywise – this was okay. The plot felt a little dumb. I’d long figured out the bad guys and the endgame so for the group to be so shocked and confused, it felt idiotic. So did the ending. I think if you felt connected to the characters, the ending would leave you sad but I didn’t so I was just grateful it had ended. And the best part? It doesn’t end on a cliffhanger despite having a sequel, so once done, I was free.
I am not, obviously, going to continue this series. But, if you enjoy reading about women as commodities and men who do what they want without apologizing or groveling for their actions, then you might really like Holding On by AC Bextor.