Cruel Men by Shani Finn

Cruel Men by Shani Finn

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

Writing: ★
Story: ★
Characters: ★

Overall rating: 1.0

I'm not even sure what I just read. There were parts of it, that actually grabbed my attention, only to stop short and fall flat.

The whole "book", (term used loosely), was nothing but trying to figure out who was cheating who, and who was about to die.

My thoughts on this book? Not much. The characters made no sense, and the plot had more holes than Swiss Cheese. There were areas that showed promise, that could be used to build off of and would make a semi-decent plot. But they passed quickly.

The author sure didn't have much "time for dat", that's for sure! The first story ended, just stopped. Didn't even have a period after the last word.

The author states, in the book blurb, that she's the queen of dark erotica. This was nothing more than a slasher book with rough sex thrown in so it could be called "erotica".

So in conclusion...

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Review: Final Debt by Pepper Winters

Final Debt by Pepper Winters

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Writing: ★★★★
Story: ★★★★★
Characters: ★★★★★

Overall rating: 4.6

5 *Perfect Ending* Stars

Bravo! I loved the Indebted Series, every single book, but it was time for it to end. To go out "on top". I was ready, and so were Jethro and Nila. The only thing left to do is read the Indebted Epilogue, to find out how Jethro and Nila move on. I *am* anxious to read their (hopefully) "happily ever after". And did I just see somewhere that there is going to be a prequel? Indebted Beginnings Oh hell yeah! Bring it on!

From the very first book I was hooked, and I can't even begin to decide which book in this series was my favorite. Possibly the Second Debt... perhaps it was this one seeing Nila and Jethro grow as people, one getting stronger, one finally allowing a bit of vulnerability. Both showing both of those traits at different times.

Bonnie and Cut and Daniel.. Oh my! Oh how I despised these crazy fucked up characters through this whole series. They're all just plain crazy! So many times I wanted to wrap my fingers around their windpipes and pull. They are all necessary evils, and without them, there would be no story. But, damn... they're all so twisted!

But this book also showed the human side of these characters that I had come to believe were less than capable of anything but cruelty. So many things were finalized, answered, wrapped up. So much redemption, forgiveness, and answers are found in this book, and all were done very well. And a lot of history was shared.

I love dark reads.. dark non-con filled with all sorts of taboo, and this saga hit every love, and took me places that my mind would have never thought possible.

This book also had some unexpected POVs that were very welcome. Some were tear worthy. But all were fitting for this book. There were a couple times I was ready for this book to move along, but for the most part, I really wouldn't change a thing.

The transformations in the main characters in this saga were always ongoing.

Enemies Unknown
Hawk and Weaver
Kite and Needle
Jethro and Nila
Friends and lovers

And finally...

Soulmates.

Soul shredding, heart wrenching, and beautiful. This series will go down as *the* top series for me. My very favorite. Well done, Pepper Winters!

But wait! That's not all! Lets not forget Nila's core in this review (as I've made mention of in my other reviews of this series!) Just a little fun. It didn't go unnoticed that Pepper toned down Nila's clenching core in this book! Which I was *really* happy to see. I really worried about all the things that her core was doing, that it was going to wear itself out! But in this final book, her core only clenched once, Jethro pulled on that invisible cord, (that was new), between Nila's breast and core causing her womb to clench and wetness to weep, her core grew wet, and then finally... finally her core "detonated"! Such a fitting finalé for Nila's over active core!

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Review: All I Need

All I Need by Emily Goodwin

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


After reading Stay last fall, I couldn't wait for Jackson's story to come out. After some delays, and worry that the author wouldn't publish after all, I'm happy to say, it's finally here!

OMG! What a great book. Reading Jackson's story in this companion book, was, most times, heartbreaking. Realism and plausibility are Ms. Goodwin's strong suit. Most of the time, I felt like I was right there in the house with Jackson. I could feel his pain.



The writing pulled me in, made me a part of the story, it was descriptive in all the right ways. Never overly so, but enough that you could actually picture Jackson doing something as simple as brushing his hair back with his arm. Jackson's pain is real, he has no hope for anything anymore, death would be welcome...



Until Adeline.

Knowing what Jackson was doing and thinking during all those times Adeline was alone in the basement, or being otherwise abused. Knowing that he was thinking about her, falling in love with her, finally having hope. It was so insightful and at times gutwrenching.

After reading Stay, and knowing how the story would end, reading it from Jackson's point of view, was like reading it all for the first time again.

This book made me hurt so much for Jackson, and I'm still feeling the "book hangover" effects of this one. The author, and her research, made this feel more like a true story. And, sadly, I'm sure it is similar to the plight of many in sexual slavery.

Please, before you read this companion book, (even though it *can* be read as a stand alone), and if you enjoy a seriously dark, non-con, taboo story, take the time to read Stay first. You won't be sorry. You'll get Adeline's side of things, and a much more detailed ending.

Reviewers Note: Amazon has stopped selling Stay, but, at the time of this writing, it is available here, on Smashwords

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Asylum by Lily White

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


Okay.

So.

I'll just get right to it. What an anti-climactic ending for me..

Where was the twist?

Where was the mindfuckery?

I was actually waiting and guessing and excited to get to the end of this book.

I didn't *want* a HEA.. not from Lily or if it was a HEA I wanted it to be something that made me go.. "OMG! She did it to me again..."

But what she did to me was make me lay the book down and go... "ummm... meh."



I really felt like there was a big finish coming, but what I feel like I got was a rushed ending. Like Ms. White had to hurry and finish it with no time for her usual twists and turns.



The first 94% of the book was great, awesome in fact, as you can tell by my updates (see below) as I was reading. It had my mind going in all different directions. The last 6% just left me disappointed.

On the positive side, it WAS a great story, I was invested in the characters, all of them from the best to the worst. I was captivated by the story, I could picture it all. I thought the theme rooms were a bit far-fetched, but they still worked. I could see it all.

Would I recommend this book? Yes, if you're into HEA's and you like your reads a bit dark, but not too dark. Then this is definitely the book for you!

I'm going to give this book 3.5 stars, but rounding it up to 4. I liked it, I just didn't *love* it.

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Review: Undeniable

Undeniable by Madeline Sheehan

My rating: 1 of 5 stars



This is a tough review. I'm not even sure where to start to be honest. I wanted to like this book. I tried. It was almost a DNF for me, but I pushed through since it was a BOTM for my group and I was the one that actually *chose* this book.

The idea of the book was interesting. "Right idea, wrong execution", type of deal. I love an MC book with a bad boy hero and a smart, sassy, strong heroin. But this book? I didn't find a single likeable character, the story was full of holes, and everything was just too extreme and over the top. It wasn't plausible or believable.

I felt like I was reading a book that should have been set a loony bin somewhere. I have no problem with foul language, non-con, etc., just take a look at some of the books I read, but, this book bordered on ridiculous. The F word, C word, Bitch, etc. was so overused. If you took out half of them the usage might have been more believable. Maybe. If you have to use them, use them for *emphasis*, not for the sake of seeing yourself type them. I checked my Kindle and the F word in some form was used "Over 500 times" in just the first 160 pages", that was all my Kindle would count... OVER 500 times. Over 400 of them unnecessarily, they didn't add a thing to the story.

Deuce was the most unlikable leading male that I've ever read about. Not because he was a bad boy, because I really like bad boys, but because he was an idiot. Bad boys have redeeming qualities. Deuce was just a douche.

Eva, I really tried to like her. But I just couldn't. She flip-flopped and was wishy-washy. She loved Deuce, but she loved Frankie. Felt the need to "take care of him", yeah... okay. He raped her, and yet she married him. He threatened her, and yet she stayed with him to protect him. She was the daughter of the President of the MC, and she was much loved, yet, she didn't go to "daddy", or any of the "brothers" for help after the rape. No. She married him. Oh and let's not forget this is the "man" (sic) that was raised as her brother. Seriously?

I didn't have a problem with the 18 year age difference between Eva and Deuce, once she was of age herself that is. But the way she was talking about him when she met him... at 5 years old. Eva was 5 and Deuce was 23. And the way he spoke to her, a little girl. *shaking head* For instance, about her shoes...

"I like you, kid," he said, still grinning. "You got good taste in tunes, and you've got a pair of Chucks on instead of those stupid fuckin' high-tops everyone's wearin'."

Who talks like that to a 5 year old? Just another instance where the F-word could have been left out of the sentence, then it may have been sweet, and not idiotic.

And she, by the end of that first meeting, (did I mention she was 5?) when he calls her "darlin'"...

"It was official. I was head over heels in love."

It was just another ridiculous, non-plausible part of this whacked out book.

They met again when she was 12. Yeah, still pretty creepy, seeing how he was 30 at that time. The next meeting, she is 16. He is 34, married with 2 children, and he's got his tongue in her mouth, or as she put it, "He laid siege to my mouth. He plundered and pillaged until I had no reservations, no choice but to kiss him..." and had his hand down the front of her pants bringing her to orgasm. Then at 18 he takes her virginity in a dirty alley. How romantic and thoughtful. This guy is just all kinds of fantasy man.

Frankie. Now there was a character that was fifty shades of crazy. Seriously. This was the second most unlikeable character in the book, behind Deuce only because I didn't have to read about him as much. Just sick and twisted from the get go.

Eva wore a necklace that Deuce gave to her when she was a young girl. A necklace that had "Horseman" on it which was a *different* MC. One that her father's MC was on shaky ground with. Frankie slept with her, (at night because he couldn't sleep alone), could never be away from her, he threw a fit and practically went into a fetal position if she was out of his site for more than a few hours, he was obsessed with her. If anyone even glanced in her direction he went off the deep end, threatening to beat them or send them "to ground" (a term SO overused in this book). He was all that and at the same time knew that she loved Deuce, and drove him crazier... yet he never said anything in all the years they were together about her wearing that particular necklace? Are you kidding me? *No one* said anything about her wearing that particular necklace. Not her dad who actually shot Deuce, TWICE, for messing with Eva after seeing him with her when she was 16, not any of "her boys" in her dad's MC. *No one*, it just hung there around her neck day in and day out, she never took it off. If her father saw fit to shoot a man, TWICE, for what Deuce did when she was 16, how do you seriously think he would have reacted to her being raped by Frankie?

Kami. The "main whore" (cause there were a few) of the book, was probably the one I least despised. She was Eva's best friend and she was actually true to her friendship with Eva. Too bad I can't say the same about Eva towards Kami. Kami may have liked to sleep with a couple bad boys, at the same time, but at least she was honest about it.

Chase. another one that Eva screwed around with. The man was married to her best friend. Sure, she disguised it under the misnomer of "blackmail so he'd help Frankie". Just another in a long line of characters in this book I didn't like. Sitting around drinking his $75,000 bottles of whiskey. The author could have at least made *that* small thing somewhat realistic.

The sex. It wasn't sexy, erotic, or hot, it was overplayed and pretty sloppy. Someone was always getting "sloppy seconds". I had to actually skim the "sex scenes" just to get through them.

I do have one positive spin, sort of, okay half a spin. Towards the end of the book is a nice twist, some action, but it didn't last too long… the crazy train was traveling way too fast at that point and it just blew by the one interesting stop in the whole book, making it feel like the author rushed to tie up loose ends. The one thing that Eva did that made me actually feel a little glimmer for her, the person she killed, the author drops the ball once again by not even saying how Eva dealt with it. Yeah, crazy train/station... whoooooosh!

This is nothing more than Fanfiction and poorly written Fanfiction at that, stripped and mangled from Sons of Anarchy. Another reviewer said it best, "It makes 'Fifty Shades of Grey' look like Pulitzer material".

I can't, for the life of me, fathom how this book has so many 4 and 5 star ratings.




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