Blog Tour Review, Q & A and Giveaway: Untamed by S. C. Stephens

I could never get enough of the first 3 books by SC Stephens so I was pretty excited to see more of Griffin.  He definitely gets your attention in Kellan and Keira’s books with his no holds bar attitude and cockiness.  I loved him hooking up with Anna since she seemed to understand all of him and I wanted to know more.  If I could break this review in half, I would.  The first part of the book is Griffin’s descent.  He is sitting on top of a mountain.  The D Bags are beyond successful, he has a beautiful wife and a little girl that he adores but it just isn’t enough for him.  He feels underappreciated by the entire band and he wants his own spotlight.

What Griffin doesn’t understand is that he has been coasting along.  Writing music and being front and center takes a ton of work.  Work he hasn’t been putting in so far.  But of course, instead of talking through his issues with his bandmates, he makes one bad decision after another.  Griffin leaving the band and its afermath is painful to read.  I wanted to close the book and throw it a few times.  There is only so much cocky attitude, acting like he doesn’t care about his family and friends and beating on the chest that I could take.  I was completely over Griffin.  I was disappointed.  His plan left him gutted and alone.

Then, the second half of the book redeemed Griffin.  I was afraid there was no coming back from how far he had sank.  Griffin grows and matures and it was fantastic to read.  He realizes his mistakes and tries to rectify each and every one of them.  It was pure heartwarming reading and it made me happy.  His realization of his love for Anna and his girls is the best part of this book.  Actually, Anna might be the best part of this book.  She is beyond kick-ass and a girl I would want to be friends with.  She is loyal, loving and most importantly accepting of who Griffin is.  It just takes him a bit to appreciate exactly what he has in Griffin.

I loved seeing him make it right with Kellan, Eric and the band.  They are his family too.  There were some intense moments between the guys and I wondered if they could actually save their relationships and the band.  Fortunately, they did.  The D Bags need Griffin and he needs them.

Sometimes the best things in life are right in front of our faces and we just don’t see them until it’s too late.  Thank goodness for Griffin, he woke up.  He sees how fantastic his life is with Anna, his girls and the D Bags.

I was so ready for his selfish ways to end, I was so happy when Griffin started to grow and learn from his mistakes. The second part of this book was so much better for me. The first part, was bit slow and kind of felt dragged on a tad bit. In the second part, I regained interest in what was happening. Seeing that change in Griffin and how far he would go for his family was touching. His redeeming quality was definitely his love for Anna and his baby girls. They made a great team in the end. It was a very long journey for Griffin, and definitely painful, but it was still a rather interesting one. I was very happy that I was able to like Griffin again by the end of this. Anna, was awesome. I seriously loved her for doing what she had to do for her girls. The steam was great, but sometimes it was a little too random. The romance between Griffin and Anna was definitely heart warming. Overall, I thought it was really great read.

1. At what age did you discover writing? It wasn’t until my late twenties that I really had an interest in writing, and then, I could never seem to finish more than a scene or two. It wasn’t until 2009, when I started Thoughtless, that I finally finished a full-length novel. What made you want to pursue it as a career? Writing was just a hobby for me until Thoughtless and its sequel, Effortless, really began to take off. Even still, I never truly considered writing as a career until I was approached with a book deal. That was when it all started falling into place.  

2. What can you tell us about Griffin and Anna, that we won’t find in the book? The book doesn’t cover the challenges they overcame early in their relationship—those are touched on in the original Thoughtless trilogy. They both had to let go of their wild pasts to truly embrace a committed relationship.

3. Did you listen to music while writing UNTAMED? If so, what are some of the bands and/or songs on your playlist.

I frequently listen to music when I write, especially when I’m writing about a band. The D-Bag’s sound is a lot like Linkin Park to me, so their music is all over my playlists. For Untamed, Until It’s Gone, A Light That Never Comes and Final Masquerade were on constant repeat.

4. If you were in a rock band, what instrument would you want to play?

I have no musical talent whatsoever, so I would have to do something simple…like a cowbell. And I’d probably mess that up!

“What was all that about? And what did you mean at the end there? You are a part of this band, Griffin. You always have been, and you always will be.”

Pushing him back a step, I snapped, “It’s a little late for the pep talk, bro. If you think I’m so valuable, you could have stood up for me in there.” I lifted my arms for emphasis. “It gave me the warm and fuzzies how you let him walk all over me.”

Kellan sighed. “It’s complicated, Griff. Matt’s a genius on guitar…he’s…it’s his instrument, the one he’s born to play. But us saying that isn’t an insult to you. You’re amazing on bass, gifted even. It’s just…we each have our part, you know? And we have to do them the best we can.” He put a hand on my shoulder. “For the sake of the band, I’m asking you to let this go and just…forget about lead. Please?”

I could only stare at him. I felt numb inside. Was this what giving up your dream felt like? For as long as I could remember, I’d wanted all eyes on me—I’d wanted to be the center of attention. Matt had never wanted that. But he was given the instrument that shone while I was given the one that everyone forgot about. My part was designed to blend, designed to go unnoticed. It was everything I wasn’t, and I was sick of being stuck with it. I wanted more, but they wouldn’t give me more.

Without answering him, I turned and walked away, toward the house. What could I say to that anyway? Matt had just permanently rejected my chances at ever being lead guitar. Forgetting was the only thing left that I could do. Forget, or stew, and right now, I wanted to stew.

When I got back to the living room, Jenny and Rachel were there working. “Need something, Griffin?” Jenny asked, her pale eyes practically sparkling with happiness.

Ignoring both her good mood and her question, I called out for Anna. “She’s upstairs with Kiera,” Rachel quietly replied.

Harrumphing some sort of thank-you, I began plodding my way to the stairs. Fucking stairs. I stomped up them, cursing my bandmates with each step. I imagined that the carpet treads under my feet were their squishy faces. I felt a little better by the time I reached the top. “Yo, Anna! Where are you?”

Both Anna and Kiera instantly appeared in a bedroom door frame. Simultaneously, they both put fingers to their lips. “Shhhhhhh,” they both scolded.

I was tired of being reprimanded today, so I didn’t lower my voice any. “Wake up Gibson. We’re leaving.”

Anna instantly edged around Kiera to step into the hallway. “What’s wrong?” she asked me, while Kiera stepped out of the room behind her. The two sisters were pretty similar, but Anna definitely had a lot more curves than her slimmer and straighter sister. Generally I appreciated those curves, but at the moment, I just wanted to shove them into the car and get out of here.

“There’s no point being here right now, so we’re leaving. Actually, there’s no point in ever coming back here, so we’re leaving.” I opened the door closest to me, hoping I’d find my sleeping daughter behind it. Nope. Empty.

I moved to try another door, but Anna stepped in front of me. “Let’s go outside, get some fresh air.”

Dramatically tossing my hands in the air, I gave up. “Fine.” What did it matter, since nothing was working for me today anyway?

I headed back to those goddamn stairs while Anna told Kiera she’d be right back. Not waiting for my very pregnant wife, I sped down the steps and out the door. The fresh air on my face helped calm me down a little, but I was still riled up. I paced the front porch while I waited for Anna. Those sanctimonious assholes.

“Griff?” A soft touch on my shoulder spooked me, and I jumped. Turning, I saw Anna behind me, her green eyes worried. “What’s going on?” She indicated the front step, and I grudgingly sat down.

Once I was seated, my mood dropped. I’d started the day so positively, knowing without a shadow of a doubt that this tour was going to be the one. But not anymore. It was going to be the same old crap. Dropping my head, I slumped over. Anna sat beside me, and her fingers lightly caressed my back in a soothing pattern. It helped my residual anger, but not my rising disappointment.

“One song. I asked for one fucking song…and they wouldn’t even give that to me…” I studied my fingers in my lap while my dreams dissolved in my hands. “Matt just told me that he’s not ever going to give me a chance to play lead, and the rest of the guys agreed with him. I’m done…forever stuck on bass…forever in the shadows. I just wanted one song, one moment in the spotlight.” With a sigh, I looked up at her. “Four minutes? Is that so much?”

Anna’s eyes were heavy with sympathy. Reaching up, she threaded her fingers through my hair. “No…that’s not much at all.”

I nodded and dropped my vision to my lap again. “Yeah, I didn’t think so either. But they can’t even give that to me.” The anger resurfaced, wrapping disappointment around it like a blanket. “Between me and you, babe, sometimes…I really don’t like those guys.”

Anna kissed the back of my neck and wrapped an arm around my shoulder in sympathy. “I’m sorry, Griffin.”

Closing my eyes, I let her comfort wash over me. At least there was one person on earth who gave a shit about me.

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