It's not easy to achieve the transition from a non-con to a real BDSM love story. But Lisa Henry did it.



At first I wasn't very convinced, it was too dark, there was too much abuse. I honestly didn't see any romance in the torturer-tortured relationship. Miller struck me as a sadistic bastard, or at least, as an impassive person who has seen too much violence and, as such, he can't ever be moved by real emotions anymore.



Psychologists and psychiatrists who learn how to break minds instead of curing them freak me out.

But I ended up liking it pretty much.

How?

Well, for starters, there is a change, from the fascination towards someone who refuses to be broken to a fascination for something more he manages to see in Rho. Miller meets a POW who has survived for so long he wonders what's different in him. Days pass and Rho gets under his skin, Rho is someone he wants for himself, so he saves him and bends him to become his. Rho resists at first, but there is a compulsion that complies him to finally give in, to finally submit, to this man.



That's why I liked. Regardless of how wrong it sounds, how twisted the circumstances are, how depraved the situation is, there is a beautiful relationship in its infancy which is already life-changing in the most basic and essential of senses.



From pain and despair, to warmth and safety.

And surrender.

Is it even possible?



*****

You can read it for free here.

Dan Skinner writes about coming of age as no other.



This reads as a typical Dan Skinner story.

Young men barely out of their teens, if at all? Check.

First discoveries and sexuality exploration? All in all, coming of age? Check.

Sense of doom filled with dreams struggling to come to the surface? Check.

1960s in the middle of nowhere setting? Check.

Poetical and intimate style? Check.

Raw feelings? Check.

Dan Skinner has the ability of giving me what I need and still leave me with utter longing. This is a little gem. With an aery feeling, emotions get out of your skin and become tactile and real.

And the ending is open to hope.

So I hope and have the perfect ending in my head.

Because I choose to believe.



*****

Story ends at 75%.

***DNF 55%***



This bores me to death. I began this book due to Ava March erotic hot scenes. But this one doesn't inspire me at all, and I don't care for the characters.

Wow, I seriously loved this one.



It reminded me a lot of Unwrapping Hank. It's useless to deny it: I love hunky and apparently tough guys who are marshmallows inside they and lose their marbles for the twink but are so insecure they can't push themselves to reach for what they desire.

The idea is hot but also so adorbs I can't help myself. And Eli is a master at this. And I love how she writes, she captures my attention until the very end, so my only option is to finish the book, that's all.

The after-death issue is a well-used trick, but it was fun and believable, and not even the philosophical parts were discouragingly pretentious, as usually happens with these matters.



I also liked how this insensitive asshole, Brian, finally redeems himself when he sees beauty in what Brian and Kevin find together. The bullying scenes made me sick and uneasy, but the sweetness after all that ugliness, and the sense of belonging, made it up for me.

I'd have loved to see more of Kevin and Chunk together. They are not the MC of this story, just Brian's quest and ticket to go to Heaven, so I felt they weren't given the importance they deserved. I admit I would have loved a whole book focusing on them after Brian passes the test.

I love the cover and the title, and it's Lisa Henry's so I was sold.



Her style is there, and I love it. She knows what she's writing and she knows what she wants to achieve.

The problem is... this is too rushed. In every sense of the word.

Too "insta-lovey" for my taste.

I liked the characters together but I had the sensation they both need more development, not only from the author's part, but also of themselves.

It's a way too soon, Aidan needs some growing-up, more healing. I'm not referring to the chronological aspect. He's too vulnerable, his mental fragility is obvious. He had been abused for years and years, and his mother left him behind. Also, he dropped out of school when he was 15 because of his dyslexia and is too dependent of Cole. I felt he was not ready for a sentimental relationship of this magnitude. I wasn't feeling comfortable with the sexual sphere here, and it was nothing to do with the age gap but with the emotional growth.

Cole is also too unstable, he's a veteran and he comes with his own baggage. He's supposedly the confident one, the one who provides safeness and protection. I'm not saying he's unable of such things, but I do believe he's still not prepared for what's to come.

I can understand Aiden's crush on Cole, as he saved Aiden's life and is the first person who has ever behaved well with Aiden. What I cannot buy is Cole's instant feelings.

What I meant to say is not that this story doesn't work, just that it needed more time in order to be really complete and solid.

The mystery part was unexpected. It comes in the very end and took me by surprise. I didn't see that coming, but makes a lot of sense.

*****

You can read this book for free here.