Under ef7171Her Skin
by Adriana Anders
Her Body is His Canvas
A darkly possessive relationship has left Uma alone and on the run. Beneath her drab clothing, she hides a terrible secret—proof of her abuse, tattooed onto her skin in a lurid reminder of everything she’s survived.
Caught between a brutal past and an uncertain future, Uma’s reluctant to bare herself to anyone…much less a rough ex-con whose rage drives him in ways she will never understand. But beneath his frightening exterior, Ivan is gentle. Warm. Compassionate. And just as determined to heal Uma’s broken heart as he is to destroy the monster who left his mark scrawled across the delicate tapestry of her skin.
Spice Level: 4.25/6 | Story Score: 7/10 | Rating: 4.25/5 |
Since the other “Under Her Skin” was less than 100 pages, I still needed to complete that challenge and this one is one that I already had from a freebie deal I found. I’d never heard of the author but the blurb seemed like it may be right up my alley. Especially lately. I’ve been wanting all the feels but I want the H to be good. It’s a hard line. I’ve read a few antihero stories lately and I just need time to recover. Honestly, the Tormentor series may have traumatized me a bit, especially so close after Sabotage.
Insert Ivan, the hero I didn’t even know that I needed.
Ok, so Uma comes to town because of an ad on the radio she heard for a doctor doing free tattoo removal for domestic violence victims. She gets a job as a live-in assistant for a recluse and before she even meets the woman face-to-face, she has a bit of a panic attack and finds herself on the ground beside the house… A dog finds her, followed by the dog’s owner. Ivan, or Ive, is the old woman’s neighbor and he tells Uma that if she needs anything, to come tell him. Based off assumptions and her devious boss’s omissions, Uma believes some untrue things about Ivan that make her try to stay away from him, even though she’s inexplicably drawn to him. One night, she comes back after dark and is locked out of the recluse’s house and Ivan rescues her. Their relationship is a tenuous thing because Uma is clearly recovering from something terrible. Ivan helps her realize that she is more than the sum of her ex’s mistakes and he will protect her.
This book leaves a lot of holes and lacks details when I wished there were so many more. I enjoyed the story. I think the author had a good plan but maybe she struggled with how graphic to make it? Or how much to reveal, hoping that readers’ imaginations would fill the gaps. And mine did pretty well, but I wanted to KNOW. Also, Uma was running from things they she didn’t want to think too much about so you never really KNOW what all is going on until someone else figures it out. That is a hard thing for me. I’m bad with surprises, lol. I rarely even watch a movie that I don’t make my husband spoil for me.
The characters are likable in this book. Uma is OBVIOUSLY going through a lot and she’s still strong in spirit and full of determination. She has a lot of things that make her hesitate, but she works through stuff so well, I think. Ivan is a dream guy for her. He is giant and scary and strong…but he’s willing to sit at her feet if she needs it. A man that is strong enough to let himself be vulnerable for a woman he cares about is the strongest of men for me. The other guys are fun, but I don’t feel like their “touch her and die” vibes are sustainable.
This book contains some very severe abuse, off page. She relives and remembers certain bits and pieces, but they weren’t triggering to me because of the lack of detail, so I don’t know if anyone else would have issues.
-SPOILERS-
So, Uma’s ex, held a gun to her head, tied her up, and proceeded to tattoo and maime her body. There are descriptions of the tattoos, like MINE on her wrist, BITCH on both arms, JOEYS BITCH somewhere else. He used four whole bottles of ink and it even covers her breasts, including her nipples. He was NOT a tattoo artist, so he basically mutilated her skin. He also raped her during this. The whole idea and visual is INTENSE for me. I see something so horrific that it hurts me and so when she can’t look at her skin, I understand. Is there a clear picture of what she looks like? No. I’m sad, but at the same time, if the author made it LESS intense than I'm imagining, I would’ve been more bummed…tricky hill here.
This book was everything I needed though because Ivan allowing Uma to take control was the sexiest thing I’ve read in so long. Him allowing her to boss him around, kneel at her feet, be blindfolded, etc. It was so fucking beautiful. I wanted to scream that THIS IS WHAT A MAN CAN DO FOR SOMEONE HE LOVES. Don’t get me wrong, I love dominant men. I love ‘touch her and die” vibes and ‘I’ll fuck the hurt out of you’ stories. But THIS. THIS is what healing looks like for ME. Those controlling and dominant men are sexy, but Ivan would be a forever.
Standalone #1 in the Blank Canvas series | 343 Pages | Trope Challenge: Damsel in Distress |
“We don’t have to do anything that scares you. Don’t have to do anything at all. Unless you want to, of course. I wouldn’t say no, if you asked.” He shot a shy smile in Uma’s direction before continuing. “We can do whatever you want. Anything you want.”
-Ivan, Under Her Skin by Adriana Anders
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