Colters' Gift (Colters' Legacy Book 5)

I am a big Maya Banks fan but this book should come with some content warnings. As always the writing is great the storyline is smooth and the dialogue flows but I had several problems with this end of the Colter series book.Summary:Lauren is living quietly in Clyde nestled in the heart of the Colter family healing after escaping an abusive relationship. Noah and Liam have been hired to investigate and protect Lauren from her past.Spoilers Spoilers SpoilersFirst, I know this girl has been put through the ringer but the victim pity party got very old. Two guys basically giving up their lives to care for a broken, damaged, and frankly pathetic girl who needs serious counseling and way more time to heal. Plus the guys would have to be desperate and gluttons for punishment to try and embark on a serious relationship with someone that fragile. The steamy scenes were very steamy, but the mood was killed when Lauren would compare the two guys with her previous abuser (out loud) while in the moment.....ummm...not hot.Second, in the beginning of the book even the guys raised voices, most subtle gestures would cause Lauren to flinch and cower it wasn't fun to read. I know this can be reality for abuse survivors but I don't really enjoy that kind of storyline in a romance, it was a downer.Lastly, (but not least) you figure this girl has been through enough and you figure that part of the story is over, but no she is kidnapped by her abusive ex-boyfriend and his goon and brutalized repeatedly as well as sexually assaulted to the point she has to turn in upon herself to escape the pain in any hope of surviving. You are even given a ray of hope when she begins to fight back and makes an escape only to be caught again and brutalized more. It was awful!Basically I really didn't like this book I struggled to finish, I started skimming through it to get to the end. Maya Banks has been in a mode lately with many of her series where she is pretty harsh to her female characters. I hope this changes or she at least warns us in the synopsis so I can pass if she continues this style of writing.

I am a big fan of Maya Banks and have read most of her books. I really enjoyed the Colter series however I felt this book started in the wrong place. It made a lot of jumps from where we left the characters in the last book and that was hard for me. I had some trouble getting into it. I found it hard to believe Lauren was so stupid she would continue to lie and place her family in danger.I have also found that once an author opens the door to adding rape to her books she can overuse it. I felt that was the case here. In several of this authors books of late she has played the rape card and although I freely admit I much prefer not to have that included in the books I read I do get that sometimes it is important to the story. I could let the first one go but had a hard time letting the 2nd one go. I also was not sure why there was a novella at the end when it really was more the final chapter of the book.Again I like this author a lot and will continue to read her but this was not a favorite for me.

A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for an honest review at SeductiveMusings.blogspot.com.Colters’ Gift is the latest entry in Maya Banks’ Colters’ Legacy series and with Colters’ Legacy, the additional novella included as a bonus, it concludes the story of the Colter family and their multiple generations of brothers who share and love a single woman together forever.We last saw Lauren Wilder in Colters’ Promise, when she was rescued from an abusive relationship by her brother Max and the two men he had hired to protect her. In that story Max, happily married to Callie Colter, convinced Lauren to leave New York for Clyde, Colorado, where she could be looked after by the whole extended Colter family. Now months later, Lauren is just starting to regain her confidence and feel like herself again, while her two bodyguards, Noah and Liam, are still in New York trying to find the man who had abused Lauren. What they don’t know and Lauren hasn't shared is that her ex-boyfriend Joel Knight is a dangerous criminal kingpin who uses his wealth and influence with corrupt law enforcement officials to do whatever he wants, including drug trafficking, prostitution, and worse. When Noah and Liam realize the danger Lauren is in, they return to Clyde both to protect her and claim her for their own. But Joel hasn't given up looking for Lauren, and when he finds her, the entire Colter clan rallies to eliminate the danger to her and themselves once and for all.So much of Colters’ Gift was taken up with the threat to Lauren’s life that the romance between her and the two bodyguards suffered by comparison for me. I hadn't gotten a sense from the previous book that either Liam or Noah had harbored deeper feelings for her, let alone ones so strong that they were willing to share her. Of course the idea of being shared wouldn't be out of the question for Lauren after seeing how happy her in-laws were in their relationships, but it almost seemed like it was being forced into the plot just to keep with the overall menage theme of the series. What I found especially odd was how the story just seemed to end suddenly with Colters’ Gift, and then the actual happy ending for everyone was in the bonus novella, Colters’ Legacy. It would have made more sense to me to just have that in the one book, but perhaps there were other issues not obvious to the reader forcing that decision.As a longtime reader of the Colters’ Legacy series, I was happy to have final closure on the characters’ lives, but beyond that, Colters’ Gift was just an okay read for me. There really wasn't anywhere else for Maya Banks to go with the story and I’m glad she was able to end it on a positive note with everyone happy, safe and loved.Ratings:Overall: 3Sensuality level: 4 (MFM menage including anal sex, multiple threats of sexual violence)

Lauren, an unofficial Colter, escaped an abusive relationship. When Max set up personal security for her, little did he know that her two bodyguards would fall head over heels. Noah and Liam needed to confront Lauren about a couple of things that don't add up in their investigation into her abuse. They travel to Colorado to get answers. They also want to know if she feels the same about them as they do about her. Love blossoms but danger sets in. A harrowing kidnap experience affects the whole Colter clan. The outcome is happy and it's time to move on with their lives.This has been a great series to read. The strong family bond of the Colters was heartwarming. All the characters are extremely likeable and their stories were varied and interesting.

Firstly, the price. Your never forced to buy a book, however, you almost always are when it's Maya Banks because your expectations are so high. Mine even more so having read all her previous books from every series she's ever done. So when I say this is a big disappointment, I mean it. The price has reduced, slightly, now, but when I purchased it, it was nearly £10. For a Kindle book. WAY too overpriced. I'm aware Maya has recently started publishing her own books which might be why it's so expensive but for me your already going to lose UK readers with this price. No Kindle book should ever be that much, that is the price of a hardback imo. Perhaps I feel even more annoyed because the book was such a let down.Secondly, I hardly feel it's worth writing a review on the book itself but here we go. I felt like we spent nearly half of the book in Lauren's apartment with the two main lead's Liam and Noah. It was a bore-off, simple as. The sex scene's were only worth skipping, same old same old. Now, I'm aware there is only so much you can do with a story and it's character's but I've read plenty of authors who are on a par with Banks and are producing fresh new ideas in the Romance genre so for me this was a big let down.Considering this was the last in the series of what I thought up till now was individual and cared for by Banks, it was just plain lousy. It felt rushed and the ending was rubbish, not to mention we had follow-up's of everyone but Max and Callie who are one of the favourite couples from this series, not good.Basically, save yourself some disappointment, re-read her old Colter's Legacy books, don't buy this and wait a few years till it's dramatically reduced in price.Not good Maya, not good.

This series is superb and I have loved reading them, I would recommend them to every serious reader you have everything in them you will not be disappointed.

Another great book The Colters are just amazing you cant help but love them sad to see the end of the series have read them all again and will likely read them again at some point.

What more can I say......brilliant story from the first to the last book and all with the famous HEA endings :)

Good

It's sad that its finishing it happy to have read this book and the end novella. I love the way you describe aNd make us live polyAmorous relationships. The Colters series have been close to my heart although I have also read all your other books Maya! Keep the writing up and the prices of kindle books not too high too!

The most amazing series I have ever read. Maya Banks outdid herself. She saw the series through from beginning to end and took us all with her on a journey spanning 35 years. Love love loved it!!!

Ganz ehrlich... Nichts für mich. Finde den Preis für eine Kindle Edition übertrieben.Das Buch habe ich nicht mal bis zur Hälfte gelesen, war einfach zu gelangweilt.Schade um das Geld.

What a great way to end a great series! Loved this book and the whole series! If you haven't read this book or series it's a must read! So sad to see it end but what a great ending! Thank you Maya Banks

A perfect end to the awesome Colters' Series. I'm sorry to hear there won't be anymore Colters in the future :( I absolutely love this book and all the others from the series. Definitely worth reading!

I loved the whole series and have read the first few books several times. I'm sure I will reread the entire series again and again.thank you Maya Banks

Thank you Maya Banks for sharing the love and strength of the families and can endure any adversity. It seemed unusual having the family dynamics of the three dad and then the three dads but the bottom line is that they were all there for each other throught

Just beautiful. So much love, so much promise, so much happiness. It definitely makes the reader supremely jealous if all the characters.xxx

What a nice end to finish with the Colter's. Like reading exotic books with action and romance. Keep the excelent writing Maya. Love reading your books

I love Maya