The Sect by Courtney Lane
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
*****4 Total Mind Blowing Stars*****
Writing: ★★★★
Story: ★★★★
Characters: ★★★★-1/2
Overall rating: 4.1
Keyton is a woman with a terrible past with a man that wants to take away her future. She runs from a life of wealth and privilege to live, hiding in plain sight, on the mean streets of D.C.
She knew Jeff because she spent time with him every day during her lunch hours before she left home. Jeff is a homeless Vietnam Vet who becomes Keaton's protector and teacher on those streets. Jeff teaches her how to survive by making herself look like a boy and act like a mute to keep from giving herself away, how to become a pickpocket, and how to hide in plain sight even when those that are looking for her are just a few feet from her.
Keaton really had it rough at every turn in this book. She is running from her home and parents she loves to live on the streets, which she thought would be better than living where her monster of an ex-boyfriend could get to her. She is truly a lost and broken soul. This character made you want to protect her, see her protected, and shake her all at once to make her go home. But she felt that no matter how much money her family had, the monster from her past had more.
Then one day in a soup kitchen, she sees Noah, he's a handsome man, and he's looking at her. The way he looks at her elicits something in Keaton like she's never felt before. Jeff tries to warn her not to talk to them, but Keaton thinks she knows better.
Noah works for Reven, who helps the homeless by offering them "true freedom". She listens to what he has to say, but politely declines his offer. But it's too late, she is drugged and taken to "The House of Rebirth", where she finds that Reven is the leader of a "religious" cult… where "religion" is actually the worship of the narcissistic Reven and all he holds sacred, and what he holds sacred is sexual and sadistic. There is always a torturous punishment for those that do not follow Reven's rules. Some of the punishments actually made me lay the book aside to catch my breath! They could be tough to read, and Noah is the one that actually does most of the punishments.
I didn't even know what to feel about Noah. He was one I loved to hate… and really hated to even like. Noah, to me, was like an "Enforcer", a giant, pissed off, cruel, man with something… and nothing… to prove. He was a character I hated seeing come through the door of Keaton's room, and one I couldn't get enough of.
Keaton is strong, she doesn't want to lose her humanity in this place, and her strength is what keeps her in trouble most of the time. But Noah and his seductive ways are wearing her down. Tearing down her defenses. Causing her to need and want him, only so he can break her further through cruel rejection. No matter how much she tries to understand him, and figure him out, she comes up empty. No matter how much she tries to be strong and deny him, she is falling for him, craving the man, and his touch.
Even as cruel and evil as Noah is, he does still try to protect Keaton from the other horrors in The House of Rebirth, Reven, and the "Henchmen" that serve Reven. But Keaton fights him at every turn, causing harsh and cruel punishments.
There was one major thing I figured out about half way through this book, but for the most part, the twists and turns kept me guessing. I loved the darkness of this book and the twisted mindfuckery.
The only thing that keeps this from being a 5 Star book is the ending. It was a lot of information to digest about the book all at once, everything came together but I had to keep going back into the book to find things they were referring to that didn't seem important at the time.
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