Thank you to Kate Willoughby, Sarina Bowen, and the rest of the World of True North for the advance reader copy of Darkroom, the seventh story in the Moo U series.

A classic trope, the virgin who is fed up carting around that card. She sets her sights on the man who will help her remedy her problem. How does he react? What will he do? You gotta read Darkroom to find out.

Check out all my World of True North Reviews here.

Check out the Goodreads synopsis…

“Indi

I’m not gonna lie, being a twenty-one-year-old virgin is ridiculously embarrassing, bordering on pitiful. And if there’s anything I hate, it’s being pitied. So I’m getting my V-card punched this semester. It’s time to stop dreaming about being swept off my feet. Instead, I’m planning a down-and-dirty one-nighter with a certain hot hockey player I’ve been eyeing.

Hudson

As a top draft pick from a family of hockey royalty, I’m under so much pressure that I’m losing my edge on the ice. I need something to snap my brain out of this self-destructive stress-loop. Like a hot night of fun. That’s where Indi Briscoe from my photography class comes in. She’s flirtatious and funny one moment, sweetly shy the next. But then she wants me to pop her cherry.

Jesus. Did I mention the pressure thing? Am I crazy for starting something with her? Or would I be a fool for saying no?”

Check out my more detailed thoughts below…

• Characters: Indi is a hardworking student with medical school aspirations. She was adopted by a White couple after she was abandoned by her parents and left in an orphanage in China. She was born with a port-wine birthmark that covers the upper left area of her face. Hudson is your classic really really trying to be the nice guy. Hudson comes from NHL greatness, as his father was a Hart trophy winner with nineteen years of playing in the league. Hudson is a big softie though, he loves animals and even has a pet hamster. For someone with the immense pressure to make it to the big leagues, he hasn’t let it consume him. He is still incredibly thoughtful and values the education he is getting, something that not everyone in his family understands. I really really liked his character. I connected less with Indi, but granted the baggage she is dealing with is riddled with things I never had to deal with. Her rejection of her ethnicity is not something I connected with, as I hold onto mine for dear life. So when it comes to Indi I found her character quite fascinating as she is going through a unique set of struggles that no previous Moo U heroine is going through.
• Setting: Of course the story is set at Moo U, and yet again introduces more awesome side characters. I definitely want to see AJ, Hudson’s roommate get his own love story. The way he fell so fast and hard for Indi’s roommate Ruby just to have his heartbroken. I want to understand more about him and why he is so quick to love.
• Pacing: The pacing was good. Some heavy secrets are being kept and I thought the reveals were done at the right time and pace.
• Romance: Indi and Hudson have a much rockier start than previous Moo U couples. It was actually refreshing cause things do not always fall into place as easily as they did for previous couples. Especially for Indi, she’s got some serious abandonment issues and a really poor outlook on her self-worth. I know many people think you need to love yourself before you can love someone else. What Indi goes through, and it is something I personally connect to is that you begin to love yourself more as you begin to understand how you are worthy of love. That only happens once Hudson enters her life and is the first guy who is there for her. He is not scared off by her baggage and her flaws, something that Indi has never experienced before. I absolutely loved that this is the basis for their relationship. Hudson while being support is not a crutch, forcing Indi to go through her own character development separate from her relationship with him. This installment is much more about individual growth than some of the other ones, so it will definitely be the one to pick up if that is more your jam.

Darkroom receives four out of five stars.

You can pick up the story below…

https://geni.us/AmazonDarkroom

Thank you again to Kate, Sarina, and the team at TWOTN for the review opportunity. Thank you for reading and supporting my blog!