Bared To You Book Review: Gideon Cross vs. Christian Grey, Who Wins?

Book number 32: Bared to You by S. Day. This one I read for I was curious how it compares to Fifty Shades of Grey, and really compare is not even the word; it’s like the entire book is based on it! 🙄

What it is: It starts as a “no strings, no expectations, no responsibilities” kind of thing between Gideon Cross and Eva Tramel but of course we all know where that leads to right? Yes, animal sex. 😆 Both becomes obsessed with the other,  taking instant possession. The catch is they are both victims of childhood abuse, which makes relationships, trust, and openness difficult – bared to you, remember?

What I liked about it: While Gideon Cross is an obvious spin of the fucked up Mr. Grey, I find that women, though not me, would still buy his character: hot, sexy, primal, not to mention mega successful and wealthy that comes with his own issues. Eva, on the other hand, is smart, sweet, and hyper aware of who she is, including her limitations. Both characters in Bared to You are twisted but I can’t say they are solid. They are okay, but not strikingly palpable.

The one character that I happen to really like is Cary, Eva’s bicurious, up and coming model flatmate and best friend whom she met at group therapy (Ikr, it seems that everyone in the book is either abused or crazy). What is nice about Cary is that his actions can be justified and I believed him.

The setting, Manhattan, is also great because the Bared to You is a power struggle of some sort. The characters are looking for control yet they do not want to be controlled by others. It’s quite suffocating actually but I get it. If you want control then naturally you want the upper hand but since both of them want it then there lies their problem of power sharing, which is also not resolved since Bared to You has a sequel, no surprise there.

What I did not like about it: The ultimate problem any book can ever have is unfortunately my biggest problem with Bared to You – it is not believable and I blame the narration for it. The transitions, or the serious lack thereof, simply runs hot then cold without anything as much as a thought to follow from start to finish that I was left not too hot and not too cold but simply confused.

The dynamics of the relationship between Gideon and Eva did not make any sense to me and I found it superficial, the progression without basis. Bared to You proved to be one emotional roller coaster ride that had me puking at the end. It was a chase that did not hit home. I really don’t know what happened but I’m just not sold. A lot of people liked this book and I wanted to like it but I’m just confused. Maybe I should reread it but idk if I can. 😐

There is also the big issue that somehow, the two main characters felt like a split of Christian Grey – yes, even Eva in all her jealousy, self-loathing, and sex madness, which left her and Gideon unable to standout as in really standout. The references to Fifty Shades trilogy is also heavy and very obvious: the fucked upness, the  BDSM stuff, the brunettes thing – even the silver tie, for heaven’s sake!

Recommended for: Fans of erotic romance would like the sex scenes in Bared to You. I actually think it is better than Fifty Shades, I can give it that much. I mean, exhibitionism? Crazy.

—

Photos from here, here, and here.