#OctobeRec Fest Review #1 ~ Grip ~ Kennedy Ryan

Posted 16 October, 2019 by Brandee @ (un)Conventional Bookworms in Reviews / 8 Comments

#OctobeRec Fest Review #1 ~ Grip ~ Kennedy RyanGrip by Kennedy Ryan
Series: Grip #1
Published by Selfpublished on March 2, 2017
Genres: Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Pages: 384
Format: Paperback
Source: Purchase
5 Stars

Resisting an irresistible force wears you down and turns you out. I know. I've been doing it for years.

I may not have a musical gift of my own, but I've got a nose for talent and an eye for the extraordinary. And Marlon James - Grip to his fans - is nothing short of extraordinary.

Years ago, we strung together a few magical nights, but I keep those memories in a locked drawer and I've thrown away the key. All that's left is friendship and work.

He's on the verge of unimaginable fame, all his dreams poised to come true. I manage his career, but I can't seem to manage my heart.

It's wild, reckless, disobedient. And it remembers all the things I want to forget.

Welcome to OctobeRec Fest. I started this as a nod to Oktoberfest (books & beer…heaven, am I right?!?) so I’ll spending the month of October reading a few of the many, many books I’ve procured thanks to you, my blogging friends.
Title: Grip
Author: Kennedy Ryan
Recommended by: Ali @Black Heart Reviews

Grip (well actually its prequel, Flow) served as my intro to Kennedy Ryan. And you do need to read Flow first to see how things started. But Grip was fan-freakin-tastic. And I became an instant fan of Kennedy Ryan.

Highlights:

  • Characters
    Grip and Bristol, 8 years later, are still in each other’s orbits. Bristol is now a music agent and Grip, as Bristol foretold, is a star. I admire Grip for continuing to pursue Bristol when she made it so difficult. These two are meant for each other but an incident is standing in the way. KRyan did a phenomenal job of explaining why Bristol has the issues she does as well as explaining the two very different worlds they come from.  Grip and Bristol would be an inter-racial couple and I appreciated how KRyan dove into the challenges they’d face not only because of the color of their skin but also where and how they grew up.
  • Romance
    Although there was quite a bit of angst, I understood where both Grip and Bristol were coming from. But once Bristol let down her guard and finally claims what she wants, things seem to fall into place with the aforementioned challenges zooming into focus. I was over the moon for how these two dealt with those challenges and fought for their relationship. Bristol’s fight in particular was great to see after putting off Grip for so long.
  • Music
    Music is, of course, central to bother Grip’s and Bristol’s lives. I appreciated how KRyan intertwined music into the story and I specifically want to highlight the lyrics. Grip’s music – hip-hop – is poetic and lyrical and KRyan spotlighted that beautifully. But she also focused on how that genre of music uses lyrics to tell a story…their story…for better or worse. It’s raw but stunning at the same time.

 

KRyan impressed me beyond measure. She writes real characters – stubborn, flawed, loyal, and true to themselves. And the story is, if you’ll pardon the word, gripping. KRyan is a talent I encourage you to check out if you haven’t. She’s also a sweet soul in person. 🙂 I can’t wait to finish Grip and Bristol’s story and more from her.

Brandee @ (un)Conventional Bookworms

About Brandee @ (un)Conventional Bookworms

Brandee is a mom of 3 and a soon-to-be empty nester. She is also an avid reader, a genre omnivore, and a compulsive one-clicker - but she's in recovery. Besides being a reader, she's also a writer and hopes to divide the vast quantities of spare time she'll soon have between reading and finally publishing her first book.

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8 responses to “#OctobeRec Fest Review #1 ~ Grip ~ Kennedy Ryan

  1. I wanna read it for the music <3 Well, I actually may try it for everything you said, but the music part got me quite intrigued!

  2. AHhh! I desperately need to read this book and others from Kennedy Ryan, Brandee. I read Long Shot from her and loved it. This sounds really great too. I’ve been in the mood for angsty romance so I should give it a try.
    Also, I’m in love with the covers for her upcoming books! So glam and sexy!

  3. I met Grip in the Soul series, but still have only read the prequel. I like Ryan’s books though. The Hoop series has been incredible and I loved the Bennett books too. Glad to hear you enjoyed this one.

  4. KRyan is another author I’ve had on my list to read for a while, but haven’t managed to. Maybe this will be a good place to start. I’m glad you enjoyed it so much, sounds like she really did a good job with the complexity of characters, which I always love!

    Miss you! {{HUGS}}

  5. Tanya Atkinson

    I’m excited to start this one *soon.* I already love Kennedy Ryan (her Hoops series was fantastic) and I think Grip even made a cameo in one of the books (if I remember right). Great review, Brandee… glad you emjoyed this one so much!

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