Review: The Pact by Karina Halle

Title: The Pact
Author: Karina Halle
Publisher: Metal Blonde Books
Publication date: December 28th 2014
Buy the book: Amazon / Barnes and Noble



It all started with a pinky swear…

Linden McGregor is tall, rugged, and gunslinger handsome; a helicopter pilot with a Scottish brogue and charm to spare. He’s also one of Stephanie Robson’s best friends and has fit into that box for as long as she’s known him.

Beautiful, funny and an ambitious businesswoman (with one hell of an ass), Stephanie Robson is one of Linden McGregor’s best friends and has fit into that box for as long as he’s known her.

But some relationships can’t be boxed, can’t be classified, can’t be tamed.

Back in their mid-twenties and tired of the competitive hit-or-miss dating scene of San Francisco, Steph and Linden made a pact to marry each other if neither one of them are in a serious relationship by the time they hit thirty.

It sounds like fun and games but as the years to thirty tick past and lovers come and go out of their lives, the pact becomes larger than life.
Sex is inevitable. Friendships are tested. Hearts are on the line.

The pact is about to change everything. 

(Image and summary taken from Goodreads.)

Review:

If there is one thing I know in life, it's that Karina Halle can literally write in any genre. Paranormal, Contemporary, Suspense, Horror, and everything in between. You want it, she'll write it and yes, she'll write it well - extremely well. So well that I have yet to read a book of hers that I didn't enjoy (I loved every book of hers that I have read). And The Pact is no exception. I am going to be honest and say that I wasn't too keen on reading this book because I was tired of reading Contemporary Romances since so many of them have similar plots and they all just end up blending together, but I thank that Lord that He made me decide to read The Pact because ho-lee mother freaking helicopter jumper, this book was so damn good. I swear. It's like the best of Karina Halle mixed into one insanely hot and tension-filled book. I am shivering with delight right now.

Karina Halle truly took the time to carefully form her characters. Especially her two main characters, Linden and Stephanie, which is why it was so fun and interesting to read certain parts in each other their points of view. I feel like The Pact wouldn't have been as impactful had she written the book in only Linden's or Stephanie's point of view, it just needed to be both of theirs. And I loved every single moment I spent in their minds. Even when the times got rough, it was still such a pleasurable experience for me and I could not get enough.

I can't say that I connected with one person more than the other because both Linden and Stephanie have different aspects to them that when you put together, create a complete set. They really just completed and fit each other. One of the things I really liked about the The Pact was the way their relationship progressed, it wasn't an insta-I'm in love with my best friend kind of thing but more like a mutual attraction. And then from then you can see their friendship grow into something more like camaraderie and brother-/sisterhood than anything perverse or unreal. I loved how honest Linden and Steph's relationship was, their dependency on each other can be mistaken as something more but only they know the truth. Honestly, I am literally trying to hold down my feels right now but it is so hard because I am bursting with them. There were so many parts in the book wherein I just wanted to cry and cry out in frustration. Linden and Steph's love was a slow burn, it traveled and covered every base as much as it could and when it finally finally reached where it was meant to go, it was a glorious revelation for the both of them. It was an amazing experience reading about Steph and Linden's love, it's imperfections was what made it so much more beautiful to me. The rawness of their emotions and blatant hope for more made my heart ache way too many times. Karina Halle was able to truly portray and materialize the saying "True love waits," because there was definitely a lot of waiting but in the end, it was worth it. I cannot even properly express what The Pact did to me. I am a literal glass case of emotion right now.

It wasn't just their love that won me over, it was the way Steph and Linden's dynamic worked. Their quips and banter made their relationship so fun and entertaining but they definitely also had their dark moments. Their journey from just friends to something more was a really crazy. There were a lot of downs and just enough ups that they made up for those downs. But other than Steph and Linden's lovely and scandalous relationship that made me love the book so dearly, I also really liked the characters that Karina Halle threw into the mix, each other them added personality and shine to the book that made it so great to read. Even the distasteful people *cough*Nadine*cough* made the book more exciting. Each person had their part and they played their role very well.

Karina Halle isn't the type of author who pussyfoots by writing books that will make you tear up or blush, no, she is the type of author who takes a crowbar and will literally smash your heart into pieces and also manage to make you hyperventilate from all the steam that happens in her books. She will take everything from you but will also give everything she can in return, Karina Halle does everything with her very best and she gives it her all. I am so happy that sense was knocked into me because if I hadn't decided to pick up The Pact, I just know that I'd regret it forever. Scorching hot and heart achingly beautiful, The Pact will make you burn in the most deliciously painful way possible. So if you're looking for a refreshing, extremely sexy and heart wrenching read that will make you work for it, The Pact is for you.

 Rating:

.5