Kade and Adrienne - Book 1
Serenading the Shadows by Jodie Larson is the first book of a 5 book series called "Lightning Strikes." Jodie Larson is an American author with 12 books, all in the romance genre. She has multiple book series and continues to crank more books out, with the last book being published in September of 2022. This series follows a rock band - Lightning Strikes - and the 5 members of the band. The first book followed the lead singer Kade and his "babe" Adrienne.
Blurb
No one should have their lifeplanned out at the young age of three. Yet that's exactly what happened to Adrienne Charmichael. Paving the way as the "piano prodigy" was all her parents wanted ...
Only she didn't.
All she wished for was to be normal, to be a regular teenager and everything that came with it - including the decisions that would shape her life.
Wish granted.
Ten years later, scarred and broken, she knows that being alone isn't everything she imagined. The piano is finally everything, except nobody will ever hear her play again. All that changes when a sexy-as-sin rock god blows into her life. Tall and tattooed with jet-black hair and a dangerous bad-boy smile ... he's every girl's fantasy.
To her, he's a distraction, yet Kade Evans is everything she shouldn't want. Instinct tells her to run, but she can't get him out of her mind.
But maybe, just maybe, he can be the one to pull her from the shadows before the darkness swallows her... for good.
Let's Get Into It
Serenading the Shadows is about Adrienne and Kade moving through obstacles, learning, and loving each other. Adrienne's fight to let down her guard and let herself, love, despite her past and what she blames herself for, is Kade's biggest fear, and getting her to open up was one hell of a fight and took all of his patience.
Quinn, Adrienne's best friend, had to be one of my favorite characters throughout the whole book. Her sassiness and "I don't give a fuck" attitude were the funniest thing about this book, even though it is a romance. Her character at the beginning of the book compared to the end was my favorite character development of all the characters in the book. Settling down and finding the love of her life after being a little wild and reckless is relatable. I think that the characters Kade and Adrienne were just the same as in every story that's been told. The bad boy and the girl that is broken and not in a great place. However, I do like that there is a music aspect to the storyline. It makes it a bit exciting.
As I said, I do think that the storyline was a little predictable, they fall in love, break up for some time, then get back together and get married. Same old, same old. Some of the little aspects of the storyline made it exciting and made me want to keep reading. Although, there for a minute it was going to be put in my "Did Not Finish" pile but I stuck it out.
My favorite part of the book was when Adrienne was open and vulnerable to Kade about her past experiences and why she is so afraid to let someone in, care for her, and love her. It happens after a huge thunderstorm in which she had a panic attack that basically lasts for 4 days. She completely secluded herself, even from Quinn. Kade finally comes back to his senses and comes to her help anyway. After a little time and Adrienne getting settled after a medical ordeal, she finally opens up and reveals her past. This showed a lot about her character and Kade's as well. Kade stayed with her, no matter the past and how messy she was/is. Adrienne finally got some peace after telling Kade. This was the pivotal moment in the storyline, in my opinion. I also did not see it coming. I truthfully thought she was going to keep her demons to herself, and eventually it would come out after a bad fight.
The only thing about this book was that its basis was the same as every other romance book. We need some spice, we need different storylines. Romance books remind me of Hallmark movies. You can literally guess the ending and what happens within the first 15 minutes of the movie. The same goes for books. Character's, amazing. Little details, amazing.
I rate this book about a 3.5/5. I definitely would recommend reading it, It's a fun little getaway. There is a lot of mature content, so I wouldn't say that this book is kid/young adult appropriate.
I can't wait to start reading the second book in the series.
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