250 Word Review: If I Were You (Lisa Renee Jones)

Summary (From Goodreads.com)
How it began…

One day I was a high school teacher on summer break, leading a relatively uneventful but happy life. Or so I told myself. Later, I’d question that, as I would question pretty much everything I knew about me, my relationships, and my desires. It all began when my neighbor thrust a key to a storage unit at me. She’d bought it to make extra money after watching some storage auction show. Now she was on her way to the airport to elope with a man she barely knew, and she needed me to clear out the unit before the lease expires.

Soon, I was standing inside a small room that held the intimate details of another woman’s life, feeling uncomfortable, as if I was invading her privacy. Why had she let these items so neatly packed, possessions that she clearly cared about deeply, be lost at an auction? Driven to find out by some unnamed force, I began to dig, to discover this woman’s life, and yes, read her journals—-dark, erotic journals that I had no business reading. Once I started, I couldn’t stop. I read on obsessively, living out fantasies through her words that I’d never dare experience on my own, compelled by the three men in her life, none of whom had names. I read onward until the last terrifying dark entry left me certain that something had happened to this woman. I had to find her and be sure she was okay.
Before long, I was taking her job for the summer at the art gallery, living her life, and she was nowhere to be found. I was becoming someone I didn’t know. I was becoming her.

The dark, passion it becomes…

Now, I am working at a prestigious gallery, where I have always dreamed of being, and I’ve been delivered to the doorstep of several men, all of which I envision as one I’ve read about in the journal. But there is one man that will call to me, that will awaken me in ways I never believed possible. That man is the ruggedly sexy artist, Chris Merit, who wants to paint me. He is rich and famous, and dark in ways I shouldn’t find intriguing, but I do. I so do. I don’t understand why his dark side appeals to me, but the attraction between us is rich with velvety promises of satisfaction. Chris is dark, and so are his desires, but I cannot turn away. He is damaged beneath his confident good looks and need for control, and in some way, I feel he needs me. I need him.
All I know for certain is that he knows me like I don’t even know me, and he says I know him. Still, I keep asking myself — do I know him? Did he know her, the journal writer, and where is she? And why doesn’t it seem to matter anymore? There is just him and me, and the burn for more.

Title: If I Were You
Author: Lisa Renee Jones
Length: 313 Pages
Source: ARC for review
Release Date: 24/08/2012

Plot: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★★
Readability: ★★★★
Overall: ★★★★

My opinion:
If I Were You is a must for fans of Fifty Shades of Grey – but those who weren’t a fan of Fifty Shades may also enjoy it.

Like Fifty Shades, If I Were You is an erotic romance; a genre which has exploded into the public eye with the success of Fifty Shades.  The men in the books are fairly similar too – rich, powerful and damaged (as described by themselves).

However, there are some distinct differences between If I Were You and Fifty Shades – firstly, I found the writing in If I Were You MUCH better, so if that was one of the reasons you couldn’t stand Fifty Shades, I strongly urge you to take a look at this.  Secondly, I found Sara a much stronger, more intriguing character.

The third and biggest difference between the two series for me, is the premise behind If I Were You – the mystery behind Rebecca’s disappearance, and trying to put together the pieces of where she’s gone and why, made the whole book feel less….fluffy than Fifty Shades (which at times felt like just sex…filler….sex, with no real plot).

One possible negative: the book did feel a little slow at times.  Obviously as it’s the first of three we haven’t found out where Rebecca has gone, so if you’re looking for a quick resolution to the mystery this probably isn’t for you.

Buy it? I would, personally.  Can’t wait for book 2!
In a nutshell: Sexy with a plot.