Review: Against the Ropes by Sarah Castille

Publish Date: September 3, 2013
Trade Paperback {p. 349}
Genre: BDSM
Source: Publicist
Makayla Delaney, Max "Torment" Huntington

He scared me. He thrilled me. And after one touch, all I could think about was getting more…

Makayla never thought she’d set foot in an underground mixed-martial arts club. But if anyone needs a medic on hand, it’s these guys. Trouble is, at her first sight of the club’s owner she’s the one feeling breathless.

All sleek muscle and restrained power, the man they call Torment plays to win at any cost. Whether it’s in the ring or in the bedroom, he knows exactly when to use a soft touch and when to launch a full-on assault. He always knows just how far he can push. And he’s about to tempt Makayla in ways she never imagined…

Going into this book, I thought I would be reading a contemporary romance. Once I got into it, it read like a new adult novel, then turned into BDSM. So I'm still a bit confused as to how to classify the book, but I did enjoy it.

It was quite a funny read, which I was not expecting at all. When I wasn't laughing at Makayla and Max, I was upset with his very demanding ways. He was walking a very fine line of being too much to remain a likeable character. At times I thought Makayla should cut her losses and move on because he was so controlling. Most of the time, he came across as looking like a complete ass.

Both Makayla and Max suffered some pretty horrible things in their childhood, which left huge emotional scars on their adulthood. With that being said, I was left feeling that both characters could have used a lot more maturing. It seemed them were always fighting about something.

I truly enjoyed all the secondary/background characters. That is until one them, Makayla's BFF Amanda, went and dragged Makayla into something totally stupid. So by the end of the book, Amanda was the only secondary character I didn't care for. But even with that, I'm so looking forward to reading the next installment, which is Amanda's story with Jake. I loved Jake more than I hated Amanda; I loved Jake more than Makayala and Max.