Author: Kennedy Ryan
Series: Grip
Series: Grip
Publication Date: September 24, 2017
Synopsis via Goodreads: I'll be there.
Through thick and thin.
Ride or die.
You can count on me.
The promises people make. The vows we take.
Assumptions of the heart.
Emotion tells us how we feel, but life...life has a way of plunging us in boiling water, burning away our illusions, testing our faith, trying our convictions.
Love floating is a butterfly, but love tested is an anchor.
For Grip and Bristol
Love started at the top of the world
On a Ferris wheel under the stars
But when that love is tested, will they fly or fall?
KENNEDY RYAN HAS DONE IT AGAIN!
It's been well over two weeks since our buddy-read of Still and we are still at a loss for words. We've put off writing off our review because we don't quite know how to articulate our feelings about this book or this series in general. Like how does one even begin to review the best romance series for 2017??!! Well we're going to try and hopefully this review ends up making sense...
ARI: Earlier this year I buddy-read Flow and Grip with Britt and absolutely fell in love with Kennedy Ryan's writing. I loved every minute of Bristol and Marlon's story and even though their story ended on a good note, I WANTED MORE. NEEDED MORE. I couldn't get this story out of my head and spend weeks re-reading all my favorite parts between current reads. I even went on the binge-read the Soul series (the series where we are first introduced to Bristol and Grip) just so I could be in that world again. I WAS A READER OBSESSED AND I HAVE NO REGRETS. So when Kennedy Ryan announced that there was going to be a sequel to Grip, I was over-the-moon! My wish was granted and I was finally going to see my babies get married and have babies of their own and be successful and live happily-ever-after and just—okay I'm rambling, but y'all get my gist. I was excited and who better to buddy-read this book with than my partner in crime, Britt. We started this series together, might as well end it together too!
BRITT: When Grip ended I had to lay down and try to collect my ENTIRE life and heart because I was so damn gone!! Kennedy Ryan had single-handedly slayed me with the story and characters she created. Ari and I laughed and cried during our reading experience, and the story stayed with us well after that last page. My love for Kennedy's writing was definitely established at that point and my Grip review turned into a massive essay about how much I loved and appreciated the story. I thought about the book days and weeks after finishing and NEEDED more from my babies because I NEEDED to see them happily married with tons of little babies and doggos and all that happy shit!! I was over the damn moon when Kennedy announced the sequel and then it was the longest waiting game for the synopsis, book cover, and most of all the release date. But let me tell y'all it was so worth it!!
ARI: Just like with Grip, Still touches on a number of social issues and just like with Grip, Ryan tackles each and everyone one of them head on! Interracial relationships is definitely the main focus in this sequel as not everyone is on board with Grip and Bristol's relationship. But Grip and Bristol keep on fighting, proving that though they may comes from different worlds, their love for one another will help them to work through their differences. It's what makes this romance so epic because these two are constantly growing and going the distance to prove their love for one another. The writing in Still is on a whole other level. It's lyrical, poetic, insightful, powerful, breath-taking...I could go on and list as many adjectives as I want but to sum it up, Still is absolute perfection and by far the best romance I've read in years! THIS BOOK IS WHY I READ ROMANCE Y'ALL SO DON'T SLEEP ON IT!
I also was not at all expecting what went down in the second part of Still. Kennedy Ryan took this story in a direction I was not prepared for and I was gutted by the end. Ryan was giving no fucks about our feelings y'all. She was trying to rip us a new one and by the end of this book I was on the floor with my heart ripped to shreds.
I also was not at all expecting what went down in the second part of Still. Kennedy Ryan took this story in a direction I was not prepared for and I was gutted by the end. Ryan was giving no fucks about our feelings y'all. She was trying to rip us a new one and by the end of this book I was on the floor with my heart ripped to shreds.
BRITT: When I say that Still made me emotional, it made me EMOTIONAL!! Whereas in Grip we get the foundation of Bristol and Marlon's relationship as they come to finally be together and overcome some obstacles, Still shows us just how difficult things can get and how hard they challenge them. They truly see what they have to navigate in their relationship and and it means to be an interracial couple. Grip was truly just the beginning for them, and they learn quickly just how hard they'll have to fight in order to keep themselves together and show people that they deserve to be happily in love just like other couples, and they also have to show people close to them. Kennedy Ryan truly knows how to weave a believable, beautiful story that takes a hold of your heart from beginning to end, and even when things get so fucking hard (and they do), she still knows how to write the hard times in such a way that evokes the strongest emotions, but also puts you back together again. You trust her to grab your hand and bring you back to the light just as she does for her characters. And the way she brings in racial issues today? Top fucking notch!! Even those who may not understand the racial issues many of us face, or who haven't experienced them before can't help but to understand and FEEL them when reading this. I said it in my Grip review and I'll say it again. Thank you to Kennedy for taking to huge chance and risk to talk about these issues in a romance book. In a world where our issues are often pushed to the side and glossed over it's so appreciated to see an author go against the grain and show that our stories DO matter, and that when written with respect and care people of all kind WILL read about them. There are very few authors centering on black lives so I love seeing them get the love they deserve.
ARI: Bristol Gray has come a long way and has grown the most throughout these three books. I'll admit, I wasn't a big fan of hers in the beginning. Bristol comes from a somewhat sheltered life so she kinds of oblivious when it comes to certain social issues. But with a little help from Grip, she has learned so much and has come to understand the struggles people of color face everyday. She is also a fighter because despite the fact people have told her time and time again that her relationship with Grip is wrong, she still stands by his side. She is not a woman to be trifled with and has no problem putting people in their place. But the thing I admire most about Bristol is her strength, especially after everything that went down in this final book.
BRITT: Bristol is a huge fighter for who and what she loves and it's even more true in Still. We definitely see Bristol come into her own in this book and I loved it!! Another thing I loved about her is that she never got complacent or comfortable in learning no matter how long she was with Grip. She was constantly still wanting and doing everything she could to understand the struggles Grip had to go through as a black man, and I love that so much. It really further proved that no matter what she TRULY loved everything about him even if she may not always relate to it. She was always confident in the previous books, but I think she developed a new kind of confidence in Still, and I'm always here for character growth.
ARI: Then we have Marlon James a.k.a Grip a.k.a Commander in Clit a.k.a my future hus—okay let me not finish that last one before Britt comes for me for trying to claim ownership of her man. But in a nutshell, Ryan has basically ruined me for future book boyfriends. Maybe even future boyfriends in real life because where am I going to find someone as smooth as Marlon James in real life?! I adore this man so much! His words, his thoughts, I swear I can listen to him go on all day because he's so damn passionate about making the world a better place through his music. He's an artist, an activist, a role-model, a son, a husband and a keeper.
BRITT: Y'all see Ari tryna steal my man?? How dare she?? It's bad enough everyone else is trying to steal him. Grip is miiiiinnnneeeee!! Repeat after me GRIP IS MIIINNNNNEEEEEE!!
Anywho, There's never a bad thing for me to say about Grip, he's such a strong amazing character who fights hard and loves harder. 😏😏 I loved reading how hard he fought for his relationship and stood tall even when people tried him. Like people really tested my boo in Still, but he never gave up. He really proved that just because he was in an interracial relationship it didn't mean that he loved black women or issues any less, that he forgot his culture and where he came from, or that he would turn his back on his own. And I think it was so important to include those conversations in the book. Plus he fine, he's the Commander In Clit, and like I said he's allllll miiiinnneeeee!!
ARI: I honestly could continue to talk about Still for days, but instead I'm just going to tell y'all to read this series. If you love romance, you'll love this series. Even if you don't love romance, still read this series because it's not one to be missed! Gripstol will not only steal your heart, their story will snatch you soul. These two have definitely left a mark on my little bookworm heart and I'm so glad to have read a love story as powerful as theirs. This romance is a classic and will forever be dear to my heart.
BRITT: Anyone who loves honest, emotional, and raw romances should read this series, anyone who likes more lighthearted romances should read this series, anyone who doesn't like romances should read this series, honestly everyone should read it. It may make you uncomfortable, it may break your heart, and it may make you see things in a different light but it is so worth it. You get to experience two different worlds by reading both POVs and you get to read about these tough racial issues that are handled in the most beautiful way. Don't hesitate to read this series if you're scared of the issues, even if you may not understand them at first you will within the first few pages, and I PROMISE, you'll love Grip and Bristol's story with your ENTIRE heart!!
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