Black Swan Affair Paperback – September 1, 2016

Wow! What a story! Be still my beating heart! I'm still trying to process everything I read and my head is spinning from all the emotions this book evoked in me. It was so not what I expected but in such a good way. My mind is completely and utterly blown away. This was a wild crazy experience that left me dizzy and a bit sad that it is over.I really don't know how to review this so that I don't spoil it for anyone but OMG I have to at least give it the credits it deserves in trying to write a coherent sentense or two. This was so well thought and so well written I want to punch myself I didn't read it sooner. My 1st book by K.L.Kreig but it won't be my last. The words flowing from the pages were like magic embedding itself right to my very soul. I felt them, I lived them, I experienced them with every little piece of myself. The feelings were so real, so heartbreaking at places but so unbelievably beautiful at the same time...I was like living under the spell of this heroes’ world for a few days and they captivated me, enthralled me and hypnotized me with their love and a bit twisted but beautiful story. I was questioning so many things while reading, couldn't turn the pages fast enough to get the answers and although I felt them on the tip of my finger they somehow slipped and blurred and I was wondering again whether I'm right or wrong. Then there were so many life truths melded within the pages of this story I had to stop on a few places and just let it all sink in...Curiosity, pain, betrayal, angst, hurt, devotion, sacrifice, family loyalties, childhood friends, love, guilt, shame, anger, hope, you name it…it had it all and so much more than I expected. I was intrigued by the blurb, drawn by the cover and the positive reviews but it was the story itself that blew my mind away. I was captivated from page 1 and the real mystery behind all the events that lead to this turn out unraveled at the end and kept me on the verge of going insane the whole time. I had a hundred and one theory on how things happened and why, but the truth was like nothing I was expecting. So well thought and what a way to keep the suspense and attention till the very end.Amazing job K.L. Kreig. You’ve found yourself a new fan. Perfection till the very last detail. That was what this book was. I’m still processing…might need a day or two… This is hands down, one of my best reads this years!

This was an incredible read, possibly the best book I’ve read all year (so far). The story was engaging and you’re highly invested in the characters and eager for more. The pain of betrayal and unrequited love is evident, and the love triangle has you itching for a resolution. The pain and longing Maverick goes through is palpable, and you really feel for her and want things to work out for her. At times, I even found my eyes moving so fast across the page in order to know what happens before I even fully registered what I read. Even parts that seems drawn out and unnecessary end up having a payoff and reason for being there later, which was something I could appreciate. This is truly a book that will have you unable to put it down.That being said, I did find a substantial flaw in it, and that was how it ended and things leading up to the ending. Without giving any spoilers, based on how events were playing out and implications made due to the time jumping to the past and present going on with how the story was laid out, it made it kind of predictable as to who Maverick was going to pick, and I truly feel like she made the wrong choice. She actually went with the guy who was spent years literally stalking her and making claims on her he had no right making without her consent, but also had a clearly unhealthy obsession with her, and built their relationship of falsehoods and lies, and continually lied, manipulated, tricked, deceived, and event straight up controlled her life decisions all throughout their relationship for his own gain. Quite a few times he uses guilt-trips, deception, and emotional manipulation to coerce and emotionally blackmail her to do what he wants with no regard of what she really wants, all the while saying that he’s thinking about her and doing it for her when it’s more than obvious that his reasons are primarily selfish and for his own gain, which he even admits to later when his deceptions and manipulations come to light. And this is all at the expense of the brother who quite literally sacrificed everything for her and her family and constantly suffered for her and her family’s sake. And not only does he get kicked to the curb for his troubles, but for seemingly no reason other than to create more tragedy for him, he gets salt rubbed in the wound. And the logic behind Maverick’s choice is flawed at best. I just don’t see how she could want him in her life at all let alone pick him knowing what she knows by the end. I won’t reveal who her choice was, but I felt it was very obviously the wrong one, as the brother who was clearly in the wrong and making very toxic decisions and controlling and manipulating her for his own selfish gain wins her when he doesn’t deserve her while the brother who was clearly the victim in everything and was made to suffer for literally no reason, and he doesn’t even get any resolution for his story.But that aside, the biggest problem I had is the end, and not just Maverick’s choice. Right at the beginning, before the plot starts jumping between the past and present, an emergency life-threatening situation is occurring, and all throughout the story, as the past catches up with the present, we get closer and closer to what happened, leaving us eager to actually see what went down and how, with the story occasionally jumping back to what happened just after the situation and promising and edge of the seat climax when it’s revealed. Only it doesn’t deliver. What happened was barely even skimmed over and we’re only vaguely told via internal dialogue of what happened in just a couple sentences. This was, IMO, the biggest flaw of the story, as it built and led up to something, only to skip over what happened during it and just cut to the aftermath while having someone mention what had happened. It’s like you’re told that a hero fought and killed a dragon at the beginning of the story before jumping to what happened prior to the battle, then the story eagerly builds you up to know how the battle, only to not even give us that battle and just provide the aftermath while only telling us that the battle happened. It was extremely disappointing. Honestly, I think it would have been better to cut that part out completely and just end the story with Maverick making her choice, as the whole climax that was never given to us felt pointless other than to create drama that had no payoff and we never got to see.Ok, I know that this sounds like I’m bashing the story, but that’s not my intention. This was truly a phenomenal read that I would highly recommend. I’m just offering some constructive criticism and preparing any potential readers for possible disappointment so they can fully enjoy the story. Aside from the ways things ended and the lack of payoff with the promised climax, I have absolutely no complaints about this and would have considered it a perfect read. It’s only because of the dissatisfaction I found with ending that I’m giving this a 4/5 instead of a 5/5.