Brave

Wicked West Rejects, Book 2

De: Cora Brent

Narrado por: Amelie Griffin, Gabriel Spires

It began as a dare between two lifelong enemies...

Micah Lyonne is the worst man I know. As children, we were constantly thrown together by our powerful parents. And we always despised each other.

He was supposed to be the heir to a billion-dollar empire. Instead, he lives in the shadows and chooses a life filled with violence. Meanwhile, I'm the mayor's ambitious daughter with a long list of responsibilities.

Micah sneers at everything I stand for. And I know better than to dance with danger. But when the inked, volatile Micah comes to my rescue one night, I'm forced to trust him.

It's a night when I let my guard down.

It's a night when I reach for him in a way that will change me forever.

It's a night when I understand what it means to crave a man who is the opposite of the safe future I assumed I wanted.

The two of us make no sense together. We won't let that stop us. He's all I want, and he's decided that I'm his. Together we turn all the rules upside down and set the world afire.

Until someone decides to make us pay…

This enemies-to-lovers story is set in a Wizard of Oz-inspired gritty contemporary world and full of hate-to-want-you energy with a volatile collision of two people who never expected to end up together. Micah and Tess will take you on a journey that is messy, dirty, dangerous, angsty, passionate, and with an HEA that makes it all worthwhile.

©2022 by Cora Brent (P)2023 Podium Audio

Another great story, great performance

So many twists and turns and betrayals revealed. The saying is true: 'What's done in the dark will one day be brought to the light'. I like that in each book in this series we finally find out who the real villains are - I've grown so pessimistic that I never trusted "Uncle Josh" and wasn't surprised by any of the revelations at the end...even the "daddy" of them all! lol....Overall so far I am enjoying this 'Wizard Of Oz' reimagining series by Cora Brent. The performers are also wonderful in bringing the characters to life. I felt the almost desperate love and devotion the Micah and Tess exuded.

4 starz - worthy of a repeat listen

absolutely beautiful!

I have loved this series. it is so well written. it has everything a person could want in a romance novel. fantastic characters, performed beautifully, love, spice, all the things. I hope everyone reads this series. so worth it!

Better than book 1 for sure…

I’m really glad I read Brave, it turned out to be much better than Book 1. This installment follows Tessa and Micah, who reconnect after a complicated past, and despite some rough edges, their relationship felt authentic and emotionally grounded which made me like them as a couple even more than book 1 couple, I did like Gage.

I appreciated the way their bond developed, it was slow burn in the best way (and I’m not one for slow burn because they can get stupid). They had real tension, but also warmth, and the trust they rebuilt over time felt earned. The third-act breakup, which I usually find frustrating in romance books, was present but not overly dramatic or drawn out. It felt more like a natural bump in the road (even though the reason… well… I suppose?) than a plot device,

That said, the book did feel a bit long not because of the plot itself, but because some sections focused on frustrating aspects of Tessa’s character that didn’t quite feel consistent with the strong, grounded version of her we saw elsewhere. Those moments pulled me out of the story a bit and made her feel unnecessarily immature. Still, the overall emotional arc worked well.

I was glad we got to learn more about Micah’s dad, those scenes added emotional depth and some vulnerability to his character. I only wish we had seen more development around Tessa’s mom too. Those threads had a lot of potential to add richness to the story but felt a little underexplored.

One thing I definitely enjoyed was that this book had a bit more spice than the first one. It wasn’t overdone, but it added intensity to Tessa and Micah’s relationship in a way that felt earned.

Cora Brent’s writing continues to be very readable nothing too flowery or overwritten. The dialogue flows well, and even when I found myself annoyed at certain character choices, I never lost interest in the story itself.

All in all, Brave was a solid, emotional romance with just the right balance of tension, vulnerability, and heat. I thought I’d read this one and move on... but here I am, just downloaded Book 3. Fingers crossed it keeps the momentum going.

So glad to see an authentic heroine

Absolutely loved this book! I love that the heroine was so authentic. She didn't hide her fears and scars with some b.s. snark or bad-assery. She owned her weaknesses and her fears. She faced them, and HIM, with honesty and courage, and I loved it!

Nuanced characters

Throughout this series, good people sometimes acted like jerks and there were a number of very flawed characters- definitely gray. And I like the characters’ growth- especially since we meet them as teenagers (with glimpses into their younger years) but over 10 years have passed. I’m not always satisfied by the unraveling of the mysteries. The connection to the wizard of oz is fun - it adds another dimension to understanding the characters.