Under the Influence

This book was wild. I was hooked from the beginning. I loved Lana. And Kai’s obsession with her was something else. He especially didn’t like the fact that she had a boyfriend. The twists and turns had me totally invested. And that spice was spicing. This story was so dang good. I loved it. I want more.

This was a good, fun, dark, unpredictable story.

Kai is completely obsessed with Lana. He is unhinged. After an interaction with her years ago and letting her ago, he realizes that he won't ever let her go again. Unknown to her, he's been following her ever since. She doesn't know that he's always gotten int he way of her previous relationships and isn't thrilled with the one she's currently talking to now either. The story is thrilling and keeps you on your toes!

Lana
She comes back to a town that she grew up in, goes to her last audition for a role that she dreams to land and once she gets the part, she meets her male counterpart to see if they have chemistry, Liam. He looks familiar to her, but she doesn't give it more thought. That will be explained later on in the book.

Kai
He has a history with Lana and is obsessed with her. He has had a crush on her since high school. He comes face to face with her one night, her being at the place where he works. Into flashbacks of  his past, we realize that he has a weird way of dealing with his obsession, going to another girl everytime he has an altercation with Lana. Half of the book is filled with sex scenes between him and this other girl.

The writing is not very spaced out, it's hard to follow at times. In the same line, you can have the words of two different people and it sometimes gets confusing as to who is talking.

But the story is good and I was looking forward on knowing everything that happened between them since the beginning. I was more intrigued by the story than the characters, to be honest and had a few "what the hell is happening" moments regarding some of the choices that were made by them. There is some suspense going on and some stalking happening but this side of the story isn't exploited enough. There are so many sex scenes that the story is a bit forgotten.

I love the fact that the story happens in the nineties, this goes in the plus side of the book.

I am giving this book three stars. I am stretching it to three because I still wanted to read it, to understand what was happening and the concept was also interesting to me.

I want to thank Shay for allowing me to read her debut book. I loved the book and enjoyed being able to be taken back to my childhood (90s). I enjoyed the flashbacks and the overall story. I cannot wait to see the rest of her books and enjoy them! Kai is your typical morally gray man and is mostly what I look for in my book boyfriends.

Firstly, I want to thank Shaylynn for allowing me to read her work. It was a pleasure, a wild ride.

Under The Influence is a story based in the 90’s. A dual POV storyline between a scare actor and an actress. Lana and Kai collide in more ways than one. When I first started reading, I was already hooked. The descriptions of the characters, the settings, it’s all I want to read about when I’m reading a book.

Lana soon became my favourite. She was strong, compassionate, kind and she held her head high throughout the whole book. Throughout the plot twists and the waves of drama and love, she stood strong and held her head up high. 💕

Kai..Kai, Kai, Kai. What can I say about him? Attractive? Definitely. In a spicy romance book, I expect a MMC who’s obsessed, who’s dedicated to getting his girl. And Kai ticked all of my boxes, he’s officially on my book boyfriend list🫣

Overall, Shaylynn outdone herself with this book and I cannot wait for the rest of the world to read it and love what I loved.

Thank you again for the opportunity to read ‘Under The Influence’ ❤️‍🔥📚🩷

This was a great debut novel, a fast read with spice, twists and emotions!

The storyline centres on Lana and Kai who meet again (after meeting previously) at Kai's workplace - Midnight Mayhem. Kai let Lana go once but he is not going to do this again. However, Lana has another potential boyfriend Blake and Kai does not like that.

The storyline is dark, fast paced and I read the book in one session.

Read the trigger list before reading as the book is very dark. I look forward to Shaylynn's next books ❤️

This is your book if you are looking for some serious spice. Had a good storyline with some unexpected twists and turns. Definitely got some Scream vibes

I love this story 😍
I have the honor to help Shay on her journey with this book and I can just say, what an adventure 🥳
Shay is but the book as well.
It has a great story, with amazing characters, and different POVs, which works amazing 😍
I'm in love with Blake, he is my man 🥰
The story is thrilling, mysterious, and full of body contact (if you know what I mean 😉)
Thank Shaylynn for this amazing book, and congratulations on your debut 🥳🎉
I can't wait to read your future books ❤️❤️❤️