Wrapped in heartache is an inspiring tale of redemption. Meant for You does haunting, like only Sherilee Gray can. Dane and Everly take emotions on a grueling journey. Out of darkness rises a light that refuses to be extinguished. It would be so easy to get lost in the broken, but somehow Gray rises above all the bruises and finds a way to engulf hearts in hug that is never-ending and forever changing. From the abyss of despair emerges a thing of beauty that has no trouble uplifting us all.

Beautiful Killer - Sherilee Gray

Beautiful Killer took my poor heart by sneak attack! I was not prepared for the feels!! Sunny has such a heartbreaking story; except on its face, it doesn't seem that heartbreaking. Reading her day to day life though made my heart hurt for her. You never realize how sad being alone can be. I mean, she literally has NO ONE. And frankly, she hasn't had anyone most of her life. At first, I was like "Meh that sucks, but not a tragedy". Sunny's experiences, even the mundane, made me realize what a tragedy being truly alone could be!

At first, the story reminded me a LOT of Mystery Man by Kristen Ashley. Except, I liked this story more. In Mystery Man I did NOT like Hawk. He was kind of douche-y. Zeke on the other hand, is sympathetic as a hero. Dealing with an ex-fiance who cheated on him and aborted their baby along with survivor's guilt from his time in the army, Zeke is an incredibly complex character. He certainly isn't looking for female companionship, but Sunny approaches him and he simply can't say no.

Sunny had been a shooting star through my endlessly starless night. A flash of brilliant light in the darkness. Perfect, but fleeting.

See what I mean?! Zeke is a damaged hero, but still evokes sympathy! Since Sunny is just happy to have whatever broken pieces of himself Zeke is willing to give, they never share any info about their lives. He shows up at night then leaves once they are done. Sunny, lonely as she is, accepts this arrangement, telling herself that she will just enjoy this small bit of happiness while it lasts. She doesn't push Zeke for more and she doesn't beg when he leaves. I think that makes it so much sadder! Seriously, I cried so many times for Sunny!

Later that night, as I got into my car and headed for home, knowing that Sunny would be there when I walked in the door, that emotion came over me again, the one I hadn't felt in a fucking long time. Happiness. I hated myself for it.

Gah-Zeke...I mean, talk about guilt!! Its heartbreaking!

There is also danger. Someone attacks Sunny; the cops have no leads. This danger adds a lot of suspense to the story and totally kept me wondering what would happen (I will admit I thought it was PRETTY obvious who was behind it all, but it didn't dull that mystery of WHAT would happen, you know?)

Beautiful Killer is book 3 in the series but I have not read the previous books and it didn't affect my enjoyment of the story. However, you better believe I am grabbing those 2 books right away! Beautiful Killer was an emotional and authentic read that made me cry and hope for Sunny and Zeke!

But one thing I was sure of: I was utterly, desperately, hopelessly in love with him.

So am I, Sunny. So I am.

• POV: dual 1st
• Tears: yes!
• Trope: security/PI, ex-military
• Triggers: none
• Series/Standalone: stand alone within an interconnected series
• Cliffhanger: no
• HEA: yes with epilogue

Mystery Man by Kristen Ashley, The Until Series by Aurora Rose Reynolds, The Raven Riders series by Laura Kaye...then you will probably like Beautiful Killer!

 

See full review on The Book Disciple

Underneath the earthiness of Breaking Him lies a sincere and sacred bond between two beautiful people. The darkness that is brought in from the stares and judgements of the outside world adds to the poignancy of Abigail and Elijah's chance to stay hopeful in the face of adverse circumstances. Sometimes less is more and Ms. Gray delivered a story that I adored. Plain and simple.

How have I not read anything by this author before??

Abigail is struggling to keep her ranch afloat after the passing of her father. Helping her out is ranchhand Elijah Hays. He is quiet, gentle, and sexy as sin. Eli has a tragic past that gets him shunned by most of the town, but Abi sees something different in the gentle giant. Stolen looks and brief touches soon ignite a fire neither can control...


"The strong and sudden urge to force him to react, to tempt him past his control—to climb that massive, ripped body, wrap my thighs around his hips, and hang on while he bucked into me like an ornery bull, snarling and grunting until we were both spent—was near overwhelming."


Well well well, what a surprising little gem of a book this was! I simply ADORED pretty much every minute of this. It was SMOKIN hot. Along with a nice touch of aching sweetness. Both characters were likable and fairly well rounded for this being a rather short book. It was pretty low on angst and no OW drama. There was just a touch of OM drama, but it didn't affect the couple's relationship in an overly annoying way. The hero is a virgin, and I usually roll my eyes at these older type virgin heroes, but I felt Eli's past supported the believability of him being a virgin. The heroine was not a virgin (refreshing change that).



I was slightly confused at the beginning of the book about who was the eldest of this couple. Eli comes across quite young at the beginning, but it is later stated that "Eli had already left high school when Abi started" so that cleared up my confusion. Now I did take half a star off because I would have liked a little more build up between Abi and Eli. We pretty much hit the sexy times right from the start. I wish we would have gotten a bit more flirting or glimpses of them as they headed towards sexyville. Alas, that was just a minor thing. Thankfully It also had a pretty sweet "2 years in the future" epilogue that wrapped things up nicely.

So overall I was VERY VERY impressed with this one. Two thumbs up from yours truly...


"Christ, I think I’m losing my mind, Abigail. Making you feel good, it’s all I want to do. I never want to stop."

So this short book was an unexpectedly sweet story. Elijah Hays is the misunderstood gentle giant. Dogged and despised for his dark past, he faces much prejudice by his ignorant peers who have never bothered to get to know him. Abigail is the "worldly" woman in this equation. And she brings out the part of him that he has never dared or hoped to explore. This story is in no way virginal. In fact it is quite steamy but in a very exploratory and developmental way. It's nice to see a role reversal for once.

Set in cowboy country, Breaking Him is a departure from the city slickers, mechanics and forced criminals. I didn't know what to expect when I began this book because everything else I've read from Sherilee Gray has been about bad boys and kick-ass girls. But I was not disappointed. She always writes her female characters as strong, independant women and the same goes for Abigail. If you want a short but romantic book with an aww gosh! HEA Breaking Him is the book for you. Two thumbs up for Breaking Him.

ARC provided in exchange for an honest review.