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I did not think Bryce was a believable character. How could he be so in love so quickly and then so ready to forgive. Then a billionaire on top of that. I think the book did not need the love triangle, I found it rather disturbing. what do you think?

valeriejane wrote: ↑07 Aug 2021, 13:58 I did not think Bryce was a believable character. How could he be so in love so quickly and then so ready to forgive. Then a billionaire on top of that. I think the book did not need the love triangle, I found it rather disturbing. what do you think?

In my opinion, a well-formed love triangle is always enjoyable. In this case, however, I would have to agree with you. The love triangle is not written very well, in my opinion, and didn't really give a personality to Bryce.

I also felt like Bryce felt out of place in the story, and wondered if the story could have been more impactful if it focused solely on Zia's unfortunate encounter with a charming killer. I think the story would have been more engaging if Bryce was just a minor character, or at least one that is second to Zia and Baxter. However, I felt Zia owning up to her sins and growing as a character was an important part of her character arc, and that could not have happened without Bryce. It felt like the author had a normal romance plot in mind at first, and rushed to get Zia and Bryce together before developing them as characters, only to become much more invested in the thriller part of the story in the latter half. As a result, Bryce feels kind of half-baked, almost like the author wasn't quite sure what to do with him.

I agree that Bryce was a rather unrealistic character. I think his reaction to Zia’s infidelity was convenient rather than realistic, especially since he had a history of being betrayed by his significant other in the past. It felt like his entire existence and demeanor was forced and I failed to see a real, rational reason he was infatuated with Zia and stayed with her through an affair he knew was going on.

Some of Bryce's character traits are believable, but I have to agree that his quick forgiveness and failure to call Zia out on her mistakes were both stale choices. While Bryce did not know the specifics of Zia's sexual encounters with Bax, he knew that something was going on. He had plenty of time to confront her about her affair. Zia kept consistently having sexual encounters with Baxter but did not put an end to it until the very end when it was seemingly forced to end. I cannot think of a man in real life that would still marry a woman who consistently cheated on him like this.

It made things interesting, but if your choice is either a guy you find so frustrating that you cheat on him with a guy who makes you feel like you just received a physical exam from The Terminator, you need to keep looking. Neither one of these men is a bargain.

I agree that this live triangle was not believable enough nor was it really beneficial to the overall affect of the book. But then I am if an opinion that no matter what cheating is a hard NO in my books. Overall in some books a love triangle can make the basis of a great storyline but in this case it had no affect to the plot whatsoever in my opinion.

Though the love triangle made up the book itself, I don't think it was necessary. I just couldn't connect witg with Bryce's character it seemed a bit out of context.

One of the first rules of writing is to add tension whenever possible. A love triangle definitely adds tension, and I think in this case it helped Zia grow as a character throughout the novel. That being said--Bryce didn't entirely feel like an authentic character, so in that sense, the love triangle could have been written better.

Bryce doesn't seem like a fully developed character, more like he was an afterthought so, I would agree that it feels like he is so unrealistic however, his character was important and although the 'triangle' seemed a bit unnecessary too, Bryce still played an important role in Zia's character.

Katie Canedy wrote: ↑08 Aug 2021, 16:20 Some of Bryce's character traits are believable, but I have to agree that his quick forgiveness and failure to call Zia out on her mistakes were both stale choices. While Bryce did not know the specifics of Zia's sexual encounters with Bax, he knew that something was going on. He had plenty of time to confront her about her affair. Zia kept consistently having sexual encounters with Baxter but did not put an end to it until the very end when it was seemingly forced to end. I cannot think of a man in real life that would still marry a woman who consistently cheated on him like this.

The reasoning the author gives is because he believed his grandmother's reasoning that true love would come to him, and he wanted to see if Zia was the right one. He wanted her to confess and have his belief that Zia was "the one" to be proven. Though it sort of makes sense when he explains it to Zia, it does make him seem incredibly naive. It doesn't help that the author waits on revealing his backstory until the second half of the book.

ciecheesemeister wrote: ↑08 Aug 2021, 19:53 It made things interesting, but if your choice is either a guy you find so frustrating that you cheat on him with a guy who makes you feel like you just received a physical exam from The Terminator, you need to keep looking. Neither one of these men is a bargain.

First, this response is hilarious. Also, I do agree that Zia's frustrations with Bryce were written better than Bryce himself. But man, it does put into perspective that Bryce could have, you know, told her he didn't want to make Zia feel like a sexual object. Instead he keeps it to himself and leaves her frustrated. It's very convenient for the story.

I understand the point of loving two people in a different way, but the way it was executed, how she resolutely changed her mind after seeing each one made zero sense to me personally, especially as the book progressed. The love triangle is the major part of the plot, but I don't think it was authentic, not to mention the cliches.

Sometimes, love triangles make romance stories intriguing. But, only if both the characters are competent. So, for this story, I agree with you. if this book didn't have a love triangle, Bryce could have been a more charming character rather than unreal.

6eyed wrote: ↑10 Aug 2021, 09:29

Katie Canedy wrote: ↑08 Aug 2021, 16:20 Some of Bryce's character traits are believable, but I have to agree that his quick forgiveness and failure to call Zia out on her mistakes were both stale choices. While Bryce did not know the specifics of Zia's sexual encounters with Bax, he knew that something was going on. He had plenty of time to confront her about her affair. Zia kept consistently having sexual encounters with Baxter but did not put an end to it until the very end when it was seemingly forced to end. I cannot think of a man in real life that would still marry a woman who consistently cheated on him like this.

The reasoning the author gives is because he believed his grandmother's reasoning that true love would come to him, and he wanted to see if Zia was the right one. He wanted her to confess and have his belief that Zia was "the one" to be proven. Though it sort of makes sense when he explains it to Zia, it does make him seem incredibly naive. It doesn't help that the author waits on revealing his backstory until the second half of the book.

I agree with that assessment. As a reader, I was wondering where Bryce was many times. He was seemingly thrown in at the end of the book, which made no sense because I didn't think their connection was that strong. I had hoped that this would have been explained more clearly to us readers.