ARC Review: The Wrong Side of Kai by Estelle Maskame
10:00
Series: None
Author: Estelle Maskame
Published September 19th 2019 by Black & White Publishing
Goodreads Synopsis
Vanessa Murphy doesn't do relationships.
With a father who doesn't notice her, it's easy for her to sneak around with her latest fling, Harrison Boyd. But when an explicit video of Vanessa hooking up with Harrison is leaked the morning after she ends things with him, her life is thrown into chaos.
And Vanessa wants payback. Enter Kai. With his own vendetta against Harrison, Kai proposes revenge, and the two pair up to ruin Harrison Boyd's life. At first, they are nothing more than an illicit partnership. Teammates working towards the same mission.
But – between late-night stakeouts and crime committing – Vanessa is drawn into Kai's life. And, as the two grow closer, she finds herself letting Kai into hers.
Goodreads
Review
I received an Advance Reader Copy from the publisher, via NetGalley. This in no way impacted on my view.
After an explicit video is spread of Vanessa Murphy with her latest fling, Harrison, Vanessa is out for revenge. She doesn't do relationships, and is very sex positive, but having her private images leaked is a betrayal, and when Kai appears, and seems to have his own vendetta against Harrison, Vanessa is ready to team up. But as the stakes hot up, and their petty actions turn into real crimes, will Vanessa regret meeting Kai?
I've read most of Estelle's books now, and though I enjoyed The Wrong Side of Kai, it definitely was not my favourite of hers. Vanessa was quite an immature character at times. She lost her mother when she was younger, and her father is absent most of the time, so she seeks out attention in different ways, including with finding a new partner regularly. She's very body positive and confident, but I felt like there were definite times in the book when she acted very young, and made easily resolved mistakes. I did like the chemistry between her and Kai, but think it should've been less of an instant attraction, and taken a little longer for them to fall for one another. This definitely isn't a lighthearted book though. It covers very important and hard hitting topics, particularly around slut shaming, online harassment, and grief, and I think it would be a great read for anyone.
Dates Read:
March 30-31, 2022
Rating
4 Stars
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