Under Her Skin by Adriana Anders

Under Her Skin by Adriana Anders
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

I read for stress relief and escapism, so it makes sense that I avoid something as dark as Under Her Skin. The whole "tortured souls" trope is popular among many fans of contemporary romance, but I've avoided it until now because it sounded depressing to me. It is a testament to Adriana Anders' writing that I was able to appreciate the hero and heroine's experience of pleasure with each other without feeling overwhelmed by the darkness of the subject matter.

Under Her Skin is the first book in the Blank Canvas series, but it is a standalone. Without giving too much away, Uma is on the run from a hideous situation when she meets Ivan. He can sense that Uma has gone through something bad and all he wants to do is protect her. Well, that's not ALL he wants. This is a contemporary romance, after all.

Anders does a good job of revealing the background of each character bit by bit without making me want to scream, "Get to the point!" Uma's attraction to Ivan despite her background felt realistic and not at all "insta-love". I was not tempted to skim any of the sex scenes; again, a testament to Anders' skill. When the bad situation comes back to haunt Uma, the resolution didn't feel contrived.

This book wouldn't pass my "auntie test" unless your auntie is a big fan of the TV show Criminal Minds. Other than that, this was a good book that kept me tapping my Kindle (I rarely turn pages these days) until the end.

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