No One Crosses the Wolf by Lisa Nikolidakis

This is a memoir about a troubled childhood full of abuse and neglect. It’s not an easy read and I wasn’t looking for one. It follows her growing up years with her brother and parents and all the trauma you can imagine.

Her father is a piece of crap, to put it lightly. He is an alcoholic that spends most of his at-home hours terrorizing his family. When he isn’t home, they dread his coming home so they are never truly free of him. After reading her recollections of him, I can understand that fear.

And her mother isn’t much better in comparison. She doesn’t abuse the kids but she doesn’t stop the abuse either. She puts her head in the clouds and pretends that everything is just fine. Domestic violence doesn’t go away because you want it to, you have to stop it! Her mother failed them all.

When her father finally snaps, I expected more somehow. More untangling the emotional threads of her life. More in-depth onion peeling. I wanted to see her do the hard work to undo all the lessons that her upbringing taught at such high prices. But she did none of it. She drank, slept around, and went to Greece. I’m healed!!! The end. What?? Yeah, I’m confused too.

My first inclination was to give this a 2-star review. I mulled it over though, for several days I might add. Three is as high as I can go. She writes well. She knows how to create an atmosphere and add texture and shade to a story but in the end, there’s no story. There’s no healing final chapter. There’s no Oprah “Aha!” moment. And that is a true letdown.

⭐⭐⭐ /⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Brothers Best Friend by Natasha L. Black

ARC REVIEW

Cole left behind his family money and became a self made man. He worked hard and established his own good name. He started two businesses and rehabbed a old Victorian. He has a loyal best friend and life is good good for him until…

His sister Susie chose a different path and it took her down some dark corridors. Her decisions didn’t just affect her though. She had a darling little girl named Millie. Unfortunately she dragged her along in her more perilous pursuits. When Cole is forced to stand in as a parent, life changes fast for everyone involved.

Millie might be a little girl but she’s seen more than most and bears the scars. She bursts on the scene and wraps everyone around her little finger in record time. She’s a big personality stuffed into a tiny body and makes her presence felt on nearly every page.

Layla has a cozy life with her students and her dog. She’s close to her family and has good friends. Her life is a perfect except that she hasn’t moved on from a personal tragedy. She’s moving forward but not really. Her best friend thinks she knows why, but does Layla?

Lance is Layla’s older brother and best friends with Cole. They are as close as he is with Layla. They have always been there for each other through everything. As adults, that hasn’t changed. He steps up to the plate when Cole needs him but is shocked when Lance reveals something that will change the dynamics of their relationship to each other and to Layla.

This is an ARC so even though I found some minor errors I won’t be detracting points or detailing them here. It will be further polished before publishing I’m sure. I did find some other issues however and will be discussing them below.

The story starts off a bit slow but rolls along in a pleasurable enough way to keep reading. There isn’t a ton of angst and drama so you really shouldn’t read it for that. It’s a lighthearted read despite some of the heavier stuff in the book.

It has broad appeal. I mean, a sexy man, a cute little girl, an overprotective brother, a somewhat clueless woman, a meddling family and two Dachshunds. What more can you ask for in a book?

My major complaint is simple. I haven’t verified this by going back to the book but I would say up to about 60% of the book Layla comes off almost prudish. (You’d expect that from a schoolteacher of small children so cool, right?) After that point she becomes some sort of a femme fatale and is like a foul mouthed bombshell. (She’s had two chaste kisses and suddenly she’s asking for shower sex as a first time between them?) It felt rushed, and very uncharacteristic and threw me out of the story.

I never really bought this new side of her character so I enjoyed the last part of the book less than the beginning. The whole thing with Holly and all that follows just made me read it to get done, not because I was actually rooting for them anymore. That honestly breaks my heart. (Yes, I have one!)

As for the sex. it wasn’t unnecessarily acrobatic and it didn’t make me giggle but it definitely didn’t make my Kindle catch on fire either. More’s the pity.

Can I recommend this book? My first inclination was three stars. However, after some thought as to the subject matter and careful consideration of the whole story, I had to give it four.

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Her Name Was Bitter: A Memoir by Mara D. Johnson

She was raised in chaos. Her father raised her and her brother in the same house as his rape victims. He did drug deals, beat his domestic partners and even allegedly killed a man while being hunted by the police. He taught them to hustle and they never forget it. It wasn’t the traditional childhood, even after they go to live with family. It only changed geography, nothing more. She was sexually abused and neglected and had no one to stand up for her. She grew into an adult and chaos followed. This is the story of the chaos that was both thrust upon her and that she caused to befall herself.

I have no doubt that being raised in that kind of environment warps your sense of right and wrong. I believe that you do the best you can with the skills you have and make many mistakes along the way. Most of us learn from those mistakes and never make them again.

Sadly, that is not the case for the author. Instead, she is proud of her mistakes and brags about them in bold terms. The book is chock full of self congratulation and brags, both humble and otherwise.

Spoiler Alert

She starts the book by way of an apology to the daughter she gave up for adoption at 13 after being abused by her cousin. It seems entirely sincere and makes the reader think that she is writing in an effort to make true amends. This is nothing more than a lie that she tells both herself and reader. The adoption allowed for some contact and she claims that the book is her way of doing it since she has never before been able to find the right words. Already I was confused. She could write to her daughter about anything but foregoes that opportunity over and over again.

She will become pregnant a total of 5 times in the course of the book. After the adoption of the first one, the others were her way of trying to keep a man. We all know how that goes in real life.

Speaking of opportunity, she never misses an opportunity to do the wrong thing. Never, not once. She writes about making good grades in school, her intelligence, her ability to make money, how caring she is toward those she loves but never hesitates to break the law, use drugs, get drunk, She gets legitimate jobs but never stays in them.

She also manipulates those around her with money. I have no illusions that she would argue against that but she definitely does it. She complains about her family and boyfriends/husband using her but as long as they need her money she gets to come off a sweet, caring person. Really, what she is doing is manipulating them into continuing to need her.

In the end, she finds God. I’m shocked I tell you! Shocked!! She then proceeds to preach at the reader in a rambling fashion, claiming that God is using her to spread the word. Unbelievably, she uses God as an excuse for telling a woman that she had been having sex with the woman’s boyfriend. I wouldn’t want to stand next to this woman in a lightning storm!

Can I recommend this book? Ummmm…No. It gets 1 egg because I don’t have an image with zero. It’s filled with errors in punctuation, language misuse and badly needed an editor to keep on target.

Knotted (Trails of Sin Book 1) by Pam Godwin

Conor has grown up on a ranch in Sandbar Oklahoma with her brother Lorne and her two best friends, Jake and Jarrett. They’ve grown up in the same household after the tragic death of both mothers on the same day. The foursome are tighter than blood. When Conor and Jake fall in love they do so with the full support and blessing of the brothers. The fathers? Not so much.

On the night that Jake and Conor are going to lose their virginity to each other, what happens instead is a brutal, very descriptive rape. This sets them on a path that separates them but always brings them back because they have revenge in mind. Bodies will soon start to stack up but their bloodlust hasn’t been spent. Not yet.

First things first. The names. Why on earth is the heroine named Conor? Isn’t that a masculine name? Does taking an N away make it feminine? Is this a thing? It confused me throughout the book. I actually found myself thinking of both mains as male until the author woud describe her body and it would throw me out of the story. Please authors, enough with the cutesy/edgy names.

The mothers. How were they killed? Did they die in the same accident? Was it an accident? There was so much left unsaid and it bothered me. I know that this is book one in a series but that seems like a big thing to withhold. It leaves the reader to wonder if perhaps something more sinister had happened but why isn’t that at least hinted to in this installment?

The rape. As I said, it was very brutal and is described in detail. That will undoubtedly trigger a large majority of readers but I hope that they don’t ding the book for it. It sets the stage for the whole book and perhaps the whole series. My issue with it is the PTSD that follows.

Jake, who is not a doctor or training to be one, has decided he is going to cure her of this conditon. Singlehandedly. How you ask? He watched some videos and did some research. He googled?!?! Excuse me? As someone that has PTSD, this was beyond infuriating. It goes further though. He only has two weeks to overcome her major triggers! In that timeframe, he works miracles and gets her comfortable enough to initiate ass play and bondage during sex. After being tied up and sodomized – as a virgin – and carrying this fear within herself for years. The man should be nominated for a medal. He’s magical!

The sex is spicy with heavy BDSM influence. It didn’t set my hair on fire but it’s well written without juvenile descriptions to anatomy or to the act. It felt very realistically handled and it was very appreciated for it.

Jake is dominant. That’s clear right from the start. It borders on arrogance when dealing with her PTSD though. Some might view it as borderline abusive since he never encourages her to seek medical help. It could go either way, even for me.

As for the technical aspects, I found a few typos that could be directly attributable to formatting or human error. Nothing major in regards to the flow, or grammar. It’s very linear and easy to read outside of the rape.

Can I recommend this book? Yes. Was it perfect? No. The death of the mothers and some other things that I won’t detail here because it would spoil it for other readers make this a four star book. It’s a standalone for Jake and Conor. The series continues for the brothers. I won’t be reading those. I’m not interested in them. You can find this one here. It’s currently free! It’s not part of the Kindle Unlimited program so anyone can download it for free.

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Torture Mom: A Chilling True Story of Confinement, Mutilation, and Murder (True Crime) by Ryan Green

story surrounds the supposed War on Drugs, gun running and drug addiction and how the government might have manipulated us all, and the assassination of a man named Barry Seal. He was an informant and pilot that allegedly delivered both drugs and money all over the world, including inside the USA. His name was leaked by the Reagan/Bush administration leading ultimately to a bounty of $500K being leveled against him. Pablo Escobar would be openly blamed but this books shows you why that might not be the whole truth.

It paints a picture that perhaps others inside our own government wanted him dead. It was reported by Brian Ross, an NBC reporter, that he was set to testify again. What would have been covered in that testimony? Who would have been named? Barry Seal was reported to have videotape of people that would pay any price to conceal their involvement. The world will sadly never know what might have been revealed.

This book is told in incredible detail and divided into sections. He covers a huge period of history with such notable headlines such as JFK’S assassination, the Bay of Pigs, both World Wars, and more. The sections are mostly devoted to the people in the title but with heavy splashes of Clinton, Oliver North, Reagan, and cartels from far flung countries.

It’s not exactly linear in the telling but the sections make it somewhat clearer about timing and the motivation behind each principal player. You get a thorough history of each but it doesn’t make any of them sympathetic characters. It’s just the opposite as a matter of fact. You find that each of them had plans that could’ve included blackmail or worse at any opportunity.

In the end, if you’re interested in discovering more about the supposed War on Drugs, gun running and drug addiction and how the government might have manipulated us all, I think you’ll find this book engrossing.

Can I recommend this book? Yes. Was it perfect? No. It was a bit confusing in layout and content. I was forced to take notes to help me keep track so I can’t say it’s a five star read but it’s very close.

Can I recommend this book? Are you a true crime fan? Can you handle it when books are beyond disgustingly dark? Then yes, I can. It’s currently available in the Kindle Unlimited program. You can snag your copy here.

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#RyanGreen

#TortureMom

Wrong Then Right (A Love Happens Novel Book 2) by Jodi Waters

Beckett is a retired SEAL, now doing some civilian security work for a group called Scorpio Securities. He’s seen combat, killed men in battle, and is an all around badass. He also never lacks for a lady’s attention so during a friend’s wedding reception he scopes out his next carnal target.

Hope is funny, sarcastic, and sassy. She is also fiercely independent and willing to work hard. She is working for a caterer but barely making ends meet. She is so goal oriented and driven that not much else in life matters but obtaining her degree. However, when she spots Beckett, she immediately begins to fantasize about him but still can’t believe her luck when the impossible happens.

Beckett propositions her; she can’t say no. After one quick and dirty rendezvous in a hotel room, they part, but not for long. When circumstances beyond her control force her into homelessness, she needs a place to stay that doesn’t have a Toyota name plate on it. Beckett happens to have a room. Okay, so the way that they come together is a bit of a stretch in believability but I loved the characters too much to quit. I think you will too.

The relationship builds slowly in some areas and quickly in others. The emotional growth takes time. Each character has roughly a crap ton of baggage and it makes for some stumbling blocks in their paths. The sexual aspect comes up quicker than Beckett Jr. and that is saying something, my friends. The sex is steamy, and thankfully, happens often. It’s handled quite well without any attempts at porn pillow talk. It’s what a good sex scene should be, really.

Read for the sex, stay for the humor. Seriously! I laughed out loud probably every chapter. In a few instances, I laughed until I couldn’t breathe. I was simply stuck doing that gasping, wheezing, silent version of laughing and loving every second of it. The writing jumps off the page right from the start and never stops.

Hope Coleson only knew a few things for sure.

First, you could never trust a guy with two first names. A sense of entitlement went hand in hand with anyone named John David, and you could bet the family farm he would cheat on you with some girl named Tiffany the first chance he got.

Second, there wasn’t an acrylic top coat on the market that could keep her nail polish from chipping only a few days after a manicure, no matter how careful she was when using her thumbnail as a flathead screwdriver.

And third-and this one was a biggie-unless you happened to be his blushing bride, it was a sure thing that ogling the groom at his own wedding was a first class, nonstop ticket straight to Hell. And it didn’t matter how drop-dead gorgeous he was either, because the Almighty simply didn’t care. Whether a girl believed in an afterlife or not, she should be aware of the possible ramifications, just in case there was a purgatory for the dirty-minded.

This is the first two pages!! Tell me you aren’t sold. I wouldn’t have walked away at gunpoint. I knew it was only going to get better. And it did. They aren’t the only characters in the book. There is a complete roster that includes her brother Asher, several of Beckett and Asher’s co-workers, Marshall the siblings father, her BFF Val -a gay man – who teaches her the finer points of handling Beckett’s merchandise, Bridgett a waitress and part time stripper, and a few other more minor characters. There isn’t a dud in the bunch.

While it’s a stretch to believe how the two main characters were brought together it didn’t detract from the story for me. I kept reading because of the fun conversational style of the writing. It was escapism in all it’s written glory.

The book isn’t all light-hearted sass and sex though. Beckett has an addiction that has him by the throat. He’s fighting it minute by minute, and sometimes losing. Someone has stolen Hope’s money, and is sending text messages with violence simmering just beneath the surface, and Asher is probably more difficult than both of them. If they gave awards for protective older brother, Asher would win before the votes could be tallied.

The ending is beautiful and sweet, without a heavy application of syrup marring it’s surface. It fit the story, the characters and the circumstances surrounding Beckett. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Covering all the technical stuff on this one is easy. It was all good. I didn’t have issues in any of the normal categories I cover: spelling, grammar, punctuation and word usage. Continuity was the same. Flow was also great from first page to last line. It’s a complete standalone even though it’s part of a series. This author is doing it right!

Can I recommend this book? Yes. It would have been 5 eggs if not for the Lifetime Movie-esque way the two mains finally start living together. I hated to, but I had to break an egg.

I highly recommend the book (I’ll be reading the others in the series as soon as I can) and the author. She’s new to me but I already love her. Pick up a copy today. Snag it. Its currently free in Kindle Unlimited but of course, also available to purchase. Check the price before you 1-click!

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#WrongThenRight

#JodiWaters

Church by Stylo Fantome

⚠️⚠️ Darkness Awaits! ⚠️⚠️

This is an incredibly dark book. It has everything in it; mental illness, suicidal thoughts, sexual abuse, parental neglect, self harming, a murder being planned, obsession and control and the list isn’t even done. Buyer beware!

—————————

Emma has been witness to her mother Margo’s coping mechanisms her whole life. All of them are bad. She always makes someone else the victim of her manipulations, usually a man or her daughter. She doesn’t care about the price paid, just that she gets what she wants. Emma has issues of her own, the least of which is her all consuming need to be loved. She will do anything at all for the barest hint of it. She will soon prove that in an unthinkable way.

Margo has recently married Jerry, and he has a son named Paul. It’s obvious that Paul is different, or possibly controlling, from the beginning. Jerry keeps his bedroom unused and makes Emma sleep on a lumpy couch in his home office even though Paul lives in another state. One night she stumbles into him in the dark. He apparently came home and no one told her. The next day she finds out from some other students at the local community college that the kids call him Church and give a wide berth since he’s known to be odd and occasionally violent.

Church is mentally ill. He’s a sociopath and maybe more. He’s highly aware of it. He has dark thoughts about murder, revenge, control, and knows what it takes to break people down, to make them do his bidding. He’s odd though. He’s nearly mute. It could possibly be labeled selective mutism. He speaks, but so rarely that when he does it’s kind of an event. It’s how he controls his evil intentions. He doesn’t let anyone get close enough to see beyond the disinterested facade he shows the world. But he talks to Emma, right from their initial meeting.

She quickly makes him the center of her focus. He begins breaking her down immediately. She wants it, needs it, craves it. It’s in her blood and she doesn’t want the cure. He begins plotting the murder, with her help. She is a willing participant and actually becomes eager to do it to prove her love to him.

It gets very twisty and darker than coal and I struggled with some of it. It’s heavy and so very obviously wrong. I continued reading. You probably will too.

I won’t give away any further plot points. It’s a cliffhanger, so if that’s going to be an issue than perhaps skip it. I usually get very upset by that but the ending given to us is almost complete. I don’t feel like I’m missing anything in case I don’t pick up the next in line. The author includes a teaser chapter and it looks great so I probably will.

In the end, there is a pseudo-redemption of both characters but they’ve also broken each other even more. It’s a train wreck that is spilling all over the tracks and affecting traffic. You can’t look away.

Grammatically speaking, the book is fine. The same for punctuation. There are words that are either spelled wrong or missed, depending on your take. Example: brake instead of break. Those kind of things are peppered throughout the book, infrequently however.

The flow is easy, balanced, and keeps the pages flipping. It was tense, dramatic and fraught with dangerous deeds and even more dangerous people. It never really bogged down with details or became boring.

Can I recommend this book. Yes! If you like an inky black-hearted book this will serve you well.

You can grab a copy here. It’s currently free on Kindle Unlimited. Please check the price before purchase!

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#Church

#StyloFantome