Review ~ Elite (Eagle Elite #1) by Rachel Van Dyken

eARC received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Release Date: October 14th 2014

Publisher: Forever (Grand Central Publishing)

Description:
For Tracey Rooks, life with her grandparents on a Wyoming farm has always been simple. But after her grandmother's death, Tracey is all her grandfather has. So when Eagle Elite University announces its annual scholarship lottery, Tracey jumps at the opportunity to secure their future and enters. She isn't expecting much-but then she wins. And life as she knows it will never be same . . .

The students at Eagle Elite are unlike any she's ever met . . . and they refuse to make things easy for her. There's Nixon, gorgeous, irresistible, and leader of a group that everyone fears: The Elect. Their rules are simple. 1. Do not touch The Elect. 2. Do not look at The Elect. 3. Do not speak to The Elect. No matter how hard she tries to stay away, The Elect are always around her and it isn't long until she finds out the reason why they keep their friends close and their enemies even closer. She just didn't realize she was the enemy -- until it was too late.

My Opinion

This book surprised me. I was sold at the mention of the mafia really, but I didn't expect it to go the way it did and I really enjoyed it. I wasn't sure about the university aspect when I requested it--I thought it would all be rich, privileged kids who thought they were above everyone--but this book had a darker, more sinister undertone that I loved.

Elite was an interesting read that had many reveals and great characters. I've seen it in a few other reviews the phrase "lovable asshole" and I think that sums up the guys (Nixon and Chase) perfectly. When I was first introduced to them, I didn't think they'd win me over. They came across as complete jerks, but it was intriguing. However, by the end Chase won me over completely, and Nixon mostly did--even if he did mess up more than the others and frustrated me. Saying that, I did find them very intense characters and I thought that kind of emotion was carried across well in all aspects of the book, especially the romance.

Another thing I liked was the constant battle Nixon and Trace had. I liked that even as the new girl, she stood up to him and broke his rules. Of course it ended badly for her, but her attitude and remarks were great while they slowly grew and things were revealed.

If there was one thing I would say bad abut this book, it is that I found everything a bit obvious. I figured out the secret between Nixon and Trace way before the reveal, and similarly with who Trace was. It didn't really bother me as I liked the writing but I felt it could have been concealed a bit better or revealed sooner so I wasn't waiting so long.

Overall though, I really enjoyed this book. I also made the mistake of reading the extract from book 2 at the end, and now I can't wait to read Elect! If you like darker books and don't mind some violence mixed into an intense romance, you should definitely check this out.

4.5