what is all the hype around this book? i've been trying to get into the story but it just bored me. the 'chemistry' and interactions between naz and karissa are just dull and overdone. i have to be missing something because i don't see whats so special and out of this world about their romance as all the 5 star reviews imply. 
 i'm surprised even the critical reviews were like "the heroine's 18, but acts like an airhead and a kid". do you people know any 18 year olds? 18 year olds are supposed to be wishy washy and confused and stuttery, not super-decisive, sultry seductresses with some sage wisdom and life lessons to share. but that doesn't mean the author wrote a believable 18 year old character. i'm 23, and even now, i would be seriously disturbed and worried that a strange man nearing 40 were taking a specific interest in me and pursuing me after one brief face to face encounter. if i were at the vulnerable age of 18, i would have found it plain predatory and wanted to call someone. i even prefer older men myself, but come on, this is pushing it specifically because theres no convincing reason behind their connection. i enjoy stories featuring major age gaps, but it can't be this absurd. what does a rough, world weary 36 year old gritty 'businessman' usually see in a damn 18 year old in her first year of college? this would have been just another case of failed insta-lust due to poorly developed characters and questionable plot, but the exaggerated and nonsensical age difference adds to the failure. 
 the story fell flat for me because of the contrived, forced attraction, tedious dialogues and bland main characters. i found the writing overly melodramatic in the way that makes it annoying and difficult to keep reading. i'll look elsewhere, thanks.