Rules of Survival by Jus Accardo Review

Rules of Survival by Jus Accardo
Release Date: June 2, 2014
Publisher: Entangled Embrace; 290 pages
Rating:

If you want to survive, you have to follow the rules…

Mikayla Morgan is wanted for her mother's murder. She's been on the run for almost a year now, avoiding not only the police but the real killer. Tired of running and desperate to clear her name, she breaks one of the most sacred rules: never return to the scene of the crime.

Every bounty hunter on the Eastern Seaboard is after the Morgan girl—but Shaun Denver and his partner snagged her. She's a piece of work, and Shaun can't decide if he wants to kiss her or kill her. When things take a sharp turn south, Shaun does the only thing he can think of to keep her close—he handcuffs them together.

As the danger mounts and the killer closes in, the chemistry between them threatens to explode. Shaun and Kayla will need to break all the rules if they hope to get out of this alive.

I believe this may be the first standalone from Jus Accardo? She's been doing series and I love series because I'm a character based reader and this is why I love series. Standalone's just aren't enough time with characters I love but, this book is an exception. I am quite content with this being by itself and not part of a series. And it's not because I don't like it or don't like the characters, it's just that I feel like there's nowhere else for them to really go. I mean, sure I'd love to see more of Shaun and Kayla but really, what more could you go? I'd use my imagination with them. Picture them in 10 years, married and who knows, maybe with kids? Or maybe they'll be married to other people and still at each other's throats? There's many options but that's the great thing about using your imagination.

That being said, I love Kayla. She's badass, independent but also looking to fit in, to be normal for once in her life. She's had a rough life and it's about to get even worse, even if you didn't think that could be possible. She grew up on the run with her mom who committed crimes (mostly petty crimes) to keep them alive but it also caused her to have a lot of enemies. Her mom taught her how to survive nearly any situation and to never, ever trust anyone but yourself. As a child, imagine what kind of damage this would have on someone long term which is exactly what happens in this story. She questions everything and everyone and wonders time and time again how she got herself into a certain situation. Maybe it was because she was distracted?

And what do you know? That distraction is the bounty hunter who managed to snatch her up, Shaun. He's attractive, he's broken and he's dangerous. Everything she should steer away from but when he cuff's them together and loses the key, well, staying away becomes impossible. I like Shaun a lot. I really liked seeing him grow as a character and I especially liked seeing their feelings for one another grow throughout the book and even though they were going through some of roughest things anyone can be put through, they still managed to have moments that were smokin'.

I suspected the twist but I wasn't 100% certain for it; I wasn't certain of either of the twists but one I definitely figured out far before the other. But it doesn't matter whether you knew it or not, you still enjoyed seeing the shock of Kayla. Her whole world was turned upside down when her mother was murdered but then it's just shock after shock after shock. What she would give to be normal. It's all she wants but does she actually get it in the end? Could she ever really get 'normal' anyway?

This is a fantastic book for New Adult fans, especially ones looking for something a bit more different than contemporary, which is mostly what's out there. There was a lot of suspense and mystery to this book and I highly recommend it. (I recommend anything Jus writes so just go read all her books)

Thank you so much to Entangled for the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.