Criminal by Terra Elan McVoy

Nikki’s life is far from perfect, but at least she has Dee. Her friends tell her that Dee is no good, but Nikki can’t imagine herself without him. He’s hot, he’s dangerous, he has her initials tattooed over his heart, and she loves him more than anything. There’s nothing Nikki wouldn’t do for Dee. Absolutely nothing.
So when Dee pulls Nikki into a crime—a crime that ends in murder—Nikki tells herself that it’s all for true love. Nothing can break them apart. Not the police. Not the arrest that lands Nikki in jail. Not even the investigators who want her to testify against him.
But what if Dee had motives that Nikki knew nothing about? Nikki’s love for Dee is supposed to be unconditional…but even true love has a limit. And Nikki just might have reached hers.

This was the first book I’ve read by Terra Elan McVoy, and it definitely made me want to read more of her books. Though this book was at times slow, it was beautifully written. From the very first page, I was interested in Criminal. The story automatically drags you in, and demands to be read.

Nikki is not an easy character to read though. Her obsession with Dee is beyond annoying. However, I was kind of expecting her to be at least a little bit obsessed with him- so I suppose I was partly prepared for what I was getting into. That being said, Nikki did make it harder for me to get through Criminal. Nikki seems totally brainwashed through a lot of the book. At one point, I started to actually feel sympathy for her. She was so obsessed with Dee that she let him control her- and it was just because she thought he loved her, and she wanted to be loved. Ultimately, she ends up doing the right thing. Though even then, she tries to protect Dee.

This book is more character-driven, even though the actions between the characters play a huge part in the story. Ultimately, Criminal is a coming of age story revolving around Nikki. She has to learn how to break herself away from Dee, and pay the price for her careless actions.

Criminal was a great read. It made me want to check out other books written by Terra Elan McVoy. Though I don’t think Criminal is for everyone, I definitely recommend it.

FTC- Received via Edelweiss.