Compulsive - Lia Fairchild
Released: May 12, 2015
Series: Liar #1
Genre: Comtemporary, Romance, New Adult
What happened to me...exactly?
I was a liar.
I know what you're thinking. We're all fucking liars.
But, I'm not talking about the lie you tell your Aunt Helen when she gives you that crappy sweater for your birthday. Or, even the lie you tell yourself when you're sleeping with someone for all the wrong reasons. I'm talking about bold-faced lies that spilled from my lips as easy as the breath from my lungs. Lies that ruined people, lies that protected people, lies for the hell of it. I ate, slept, and drank lies. I bathed in deceit. At one point in my life, I might not have recognized the truth if it bent me over and slapped me on the ass.
And sometimes, the chaos that was my life got me in a whole hell of a lot of trouble.
I was a master at keeping it all locked up inside me...until I met Dr. Daniel Harrison.
**Content Warning: Due to language and sexual situations, this book is intended for 18+ Only**
Is it ok that I didn’t enjoy Compulsive as much as most of the reviews that I’ve read? At some point I was convince I received a defective copy. I couldn’t get into the storyline, I walked away from reading this a few times because of my lack of interest.
I will say that the cover and the blurb initially caught my attention, my vision of how the story was going to go was completely different from what actually happened. The heroine Gray Sky has a serious problem not only can she not tell the truth, but she was attracted to drama. This girl was a wreck. Her complete way of life landed her on a therapist couch.As fate would have it her current therapist who I think was on the verge of dismissing her as a patient had personal issues of her own;so Gray was on the search for someone new. Being the rebel that she is Gray wanted nothing to do with the recommended therapist list left by her, she wanted Dr. Daniel Harrison.
Daniel decision making gave me concerned mainly because I’m sure being in his profession he knows not to get involved with his patients. While for the most part he attempted to keep things legit Gray made that very difficult.
The epilogue was from Daniel’s POV and it did intrigue me enough to want to read the second installment, even though I wasn’t wowed. I secretly hoping that Gray’s guy friend Nathan get a story, because I took a liking to him and I’m hoping that he find a woman that deserves and maybe better friends, because Gray sucked.
Compulsive is my first experience with Lia Fairchild’s work and fingers crossed that this will not be the last. The writing was decent, but again the story felt all over the place and my attention didn’t hold. The optimist in me want to believe this was because the heroine was a complete flake, she was flighty, and she made she absolutely crazy.
Exclusive Excerpt:
The ridges on the stark white ceiling blurred from my intense stare as I listened to the steady even breaths coming from the body next to me. He wasn’t a bad guy. Just an idiot. Maybe even married for all I knew. The clock read four twenty-three. That wouldn’t work for me. I waited for a nice round even number. Something that felt right. I held my phone with the message typed out: I need you. I keyed in the address, and when the clock hit four thirty, I hit Send.
At ten before five AM, I eased my body out of the bed the way a mother slips from her sleeping child, hoping not to rouse her angel. He stirred a moment and turned on his side, his arm involuntarily reaching for me.
“Sky,” he murmured with his eyes closed. His dark buzz cut hair was sprinkled with gray flecks, and a small rectangular scar bordered the hairline on the right side of his face. I hadn’t noticed that the night before, or I would have asked him. Now my curiosity had me pausing, conjuring up various scenarios for its origin. Whatever the cause would forever remain a mystery. With a gentle hold around his wrist, I lifted his hand and rested it on the comforter. His eyes flitted open and closed. Frozen, I waited to see if he’d wake. I didn’t worry about coming up with a story. It always came.
Still sitting on the edge of the bed, I reached over to an adjacent chair to snag my black silk shirt. When I pulled it over my head and then glanced down, two light blue eyes met mine.
“Hey, you,” he whispered. His soft, sweet smile almost made a dent, but I pulled my hand away.
“I’ve got to run.”
Surprise and confusion colored his face. “What time is it?”
“Around five. I’ve got early rounds.”
He seemed satisfied with my excuse and looked thoughtful. “Ah, yes, Dr. Phillips. Time to save lives.”
I gave him a nod and a tight smile just before a knock at the door sounded. I rose from the bed to pull on my skirt and slip my feet into my heels.
He sat up watching me closely like a cat that’d dart out of an open door. “Who could that be at this time?” he said.
“My ride,” I threw over my shoulder. I scooped up my purse from the dresser on the way out, catching his face in the mirror. They always had that same look the next day. Or perhaps I was the one who saw things differently.
I heard him jump out of bed and scramble for his pants as I made my way to the living room, picking up my pace. “Sky, wait.”
When I reached the door, he came in and leaned against the couch, folding his arms. “I could have driven you home.”
“It’s okay,” I said, pulling the door open.
Nathan stood in the doorway, hands stretched out to the jams on each side, his brown hair ragged from being dragged from the comfort of his bed. He shot me that look that said, you owe me and then let one hand fall and sweep to the side as if making a path for royalty.
“Wait,” a voice came from behind me. “Who’s this guy?”
Nathan took a step into the doorway. “Oh, hey, man.”
“John, this is my cousin, Nathan,” I said.
Unfortunately, Nathan had spoken at the same time I did and said, “I’m her neighbor.”
John walked over to the two of us, eyes darting between me and my partner in crime. “Well, which is it?”
Nathan and I exchanged looks, and I opened my mouth to speak.
John held up his hand. “No. Let me guess,” he said in a sarcastic tone. “He’s your cousin who lives next door.”
I half-shrugged while looking him dead in the eye. “I really should get going.” A split second later, I plastered on a smile. “I’ll call you.”
“You haven’t given me much choice,” he said to my back as I sidled past Nathan. “I don’t even have your number.”
I’d be willing to bet John wouldn’t be holding his breath.
