Like Candy by Debra Doxer Series: Candy #1
Publisher: Self-Published on July 28, 2015
Genres: Romance, Mystery, Young Adult
Pages: Novel Length
Format: eARC
Source: Blog Tour
Purchase: Amazon
Add to: Goodreads
Rating:
Revenge is sweet, just like candy.
Candy Seaborne knows she’s badass. She takes after her father, an assassin and possibly a spy, although he won’t admit to either. She idolizes him. Her dream is to follow in his footsteps. But first, she has to finish high school.
Biding her time, waiting for real life to begin, Candy craves drama and isn’t above manufacturing some. If you’re a classmate who wronged her or a boyfriend who cheated, watch your back. She’s no pushover, and revenge may be her favorite pastime.
Jonah Bryson is the senior class heartthrob who breaks all the stereotypes. He’s a jock, but he isn’t the typical player. He’s moody and antisocial. No girl has gotten anywhere with him since his last girlfriend broke his heart.
Candy sees Jonah as a challenge and the perfect distraction. But she may be in over her head because unlike everyone else, Jonah isn’t buying her tough act. He sees the lost, lonely girl inside. He sees too much. When he looks at her that way, she wants to let her guard down and be vulnerable. But that’s the last thing she should do because her father’s world is spilling over into hers, and life is about to get real much sooner than Candy expected.
At A Glance
Sometimes I loved this book, sometimes it was just okay.
The Good
Now this one had an interesting concept. It felt different from other books. I really enjoyed Like Candy. The characters are extremely flawed. Sometimes I hated them, but that’s why I liked them.
Candy was….interesting. Sometimes I could totally see her as a wannabe sociopath, but other times she was just a normal teenager. She wants to be like her spy/assassin dad, but he doesn’t want that for her. So she goes on with the drudgery of high school and being a part of the popular crowd because there is nothing better to do. But Jonah changes all that. He’s a loner, but he has this mystery about him that draws Candy in. I wasn’t so sure about Jonah in the beginning, but he really grew on me. He is so attentive and caring for Candy and her many problems. I actually loved him in the end. Then that damn twist!!!
I loved the mystery aspect. It was a good mix between romance and mystery. The little action was exciting. Candy’s dad was a total prick, but their interactions kept things interesting. The cliffhanger was killer. I was okay with it, but it felt like the story didn’t end at the right point.
The Bad
When a blurb says Candy is a badass, I expect her to be a badass. She really wasn’t. She had no skills or training at all, and with her dad being an assassin, I expected more. I thought she was going to get such cool revenge on people who wronged her. She did, but it happened in the beginning, and the end, so the middle was full of Candy being a normal teenager. I expected more action in-between.
The middle got boring.
The Snuggly
Candy and Jonah are hot together but everything stays very YA. Just kissing.
Final Thoughts
I will continue this series for sure. I have to know what is going to happen next. Like Candy had it’s bad points, but it had more good points. Recommended.
Quotes
“Do I seem like most guys to you? I like strong women who aren’t afraid to stand up for themselves. Any guy who doesn’t is just plain weak.”
“I wish I was the first guy you fell for. Then maybe the shadows in your eyes wouldn’t be there, and when I told you how beautiful you are you’d believe me. You make me want to erase those shadows and chase away the memories that put them there, because every day that you don’t realize how amazing you are is a tragedy in my book.”
About Debra Doxer
Debra Doxer was born in Boston, and other than a few lost years in the California sunshine, she has always resided in the Boston area. She writes fiction, technical software documents, illegible scribbles on sticky notes, and texts that get mangled by AutoCorrect. She writes for a living, and she writes for fun. When her daughter asks when she’ll run out of words, her response always is, “When I run out of time.”
Connect with Debra. She loves hearing from readers.
Giveaway
This is a tour wide giveaway
Christy
Wannabe sociopath! I wanted to be a sociopath when I grew up too. lol. Drama twist … oooo… the boy is an international bad guy who had major plastic surgery and went undercover as a high school boy so he could get close to his nemesis’s daughter. I’m right, aren’t I? 😀 Seriously though, this sounds like a fun book, even if the middle isn’t so much.
Jennifer Bielman
I can’t tell youuuuu… top secret shit here!
I still want to be a sociopath!
kindlemom1
I like this “sometimes I hated them but that’s why I liked them.”
Because I felt the same way about them. Candy was really hard to like but at the same time you sort of felt for her and were drawn to her. This was different from her other reads for sure.
Glad you did like this overall.
Jennifer Bielman
Yup, Candy was very hard to like but I still enjoyed reading her narrative.
Braine
let’s hope that she will earn her bad ass badge on the next book
Jennifer Bielman
🙂
Lekeisha
I liked this book, I just need the next book now because that ending was too abrupt.
Jennifer Bielman
I knoooooowwww!
Giselle
Romance and mystery is my fav combo for a story! I like how unique this sound – especially Candy’s characterization. Glad you liked it, Jennifer! Great review!
Jennifer Bielman
Thanks!
Brandi Breathes Books
Interesting premise but sorry to hear that character didn’t live up to bad ass as promised
Jennifer Bielman
I love my badass characters so if they are half-badass it just sucks.
Jaclyn Canada
I mean, if you advertise a bad-ass then that’s definitely what should be delivered. Guess some people have different understandings of what that means. Happy that you would continue with the story though. Great review!
Jennifer Bielman
The book would have been on the next level if Candy was more of a badass.
Tika
Mmmm. I love a good revenge story, but with the character not being badass, I don’t really know how much I’ll actually enjoy it. The cover is super cute, which really makes me want to give a shot. (Yes I’m a cover whore!) lol
Jennifer Bielman
I know, the cover is so awesome!
sharon - Obsession with Books
The premise for this sounds exciting! it’s a shame about the boring middle and the lack of bad-assery (is that a word 😉 from the MC.
A great review! Sharon – Obsession with Books
Jennifer Bielman
I so wish the bad-ass-ness was amped up.
Blessie (Mischievous Reads)
At one point when I was around 15, I wanted to be a badass sociopath too, lol. Sounds like this book was a hoot! Awesome review! 😀
Jennifer Bielman
Being a sociopath is all the rage now!