Summary: Intense, heart-stopping, thrilling book filled with layers of mystery, plot twists and vacillating emotions. Utterly unique and well-written. I couldn't put this book down!
Stars: 6 mind-bending, intense stars!
Main Characters: Anthony "Tony" Rawlings, Claire Nichols and a host of connected characters
Themes: Love, revenge, manipulation and so much more
Genre: Psychological thriller
What I ♥ The Most: So many things. The absolute uniqueness of the story. The brilliant writing. The quotes on each chapter. The intense emotions it evokes, many times in contradiction. And I LOVE the complicated characters that are both Claire and Tony.
If You Liked This Try: Truth, book #2, and then painfully wait for book #3, Convicted... because there's nothing like these books out there. I know it's been compared to Captive/Seduced In The Dark by CJ Roberts, but they are completely different books.
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OHMYGOD these books. Seriously. INTENSE! At first, the story begins and I can't believe the cruelty of Claire's situation. I HATE Anthony Rawlings. HATE him. He's so cold and in control... always in 100% control. And because the story is primarily imparted from Claire's POV, I didn't often understand Tony's intent and feelings, which furthered the portrayal of his callousness and mercilessness.
The book immediately begins with 26-year-old Claire being kidnapped. She finds herself in an opulent bedroom suite in Iowa, held captive by a man she recently met while working as a bartender.
"The room looked like heaven, but she already knew it was hell."
When she wakes, she's disoriented and her body is bruised. She finds herself face-to-face with her captor.
"Anthony Rawlings was so different from the man she met less than a week ago--the handsome tall man, with brown hair and the darkest eyes she'd ever seen. He'd been polite, kind and gentlemanly. Last night, none of those words could be used to describe him. To say he was cruel would not explain what she endured. One could say demanding, aggressive, abrasive, controlling--but above all, brutal."
She's raped and she's abused, both mentally and physically, constantly and coldly reminded there are rules that MUST be followed.
Always do as your told and remember that behaviors always have consequences and "consequences can be unpleasant."
Anthony is surprised at Claire's fiery tenacity, but often times, her bravery results in such cruel consequences. As Claire reluctantly acquiesces to Anthony's rules, her "freedoms" increase. She escorts Anthony to events and learns perhaps his most important rule-- appearances are everything and public failure is not an option. And with daily reminders to not disappoint him, Anthony continues to be patronizing and abusive, callous and cruel.
"He hurt her--not just physically, but also emotionally--down to her core. He humiliated her and seemed to enjoy humiliating her routinely, since she arrived."
But Claire endures through compartmentalization. "This compartmentalization had facilitated her survival."
Claire is so tremendously brave. I love her character. Yes, there are many times you want her to drop the mask and fight and flee to escape this horrible situation. But it's a complicated one and I often reminded myself that there are always consequences. Yet, there are many times she does bravely stand up to Tony with small moments of defiance, brilliantly negotiating for her very minor privileges. And just when I thought I could not hate Tony more, he shows moments of kindness, warmth and even love.
"Anthony Rawlings never previously considered fulfilling someone else's desires. His entire adult life had been about his wants, goals, ambitions and needs... He no longer wanted to dominate, but to satisfy."
Glimmers of vulnerability seep through the perfect facade and Claire begins to see the real Tony... not only the dark side, but also the side which cares for her, the side that shows regret.
"Perhaps I'm afraid of losing you, afraid if you truly know me you will not want to stay with me."
During those times, I observed that like Claire, as a reader I was almost broken down so much that the smallest kindness seemed monumental. With those perceptions lacing my already-fragile emotions, Tony now seemed to me like a complicated man that could love and be worthy of being loved. But how could I think that? How could I possibly like him? How can I root for him? For them? Something was definitely wrong with me. As you read the second half of the book, there are so many more moments that confuse how you feel about Tony. You hate him. You love him. And then you hate him all over again.
There were a multitude of times I felt incredibly anxious about what could happen, times where I was frightened of the consequences that Claire would undoubtedly suffer. The tension I felt throughout was intense.
As the story continues to unwind, you realize just how much more it is beyond the complicated dynamic between Claire and Tony. Their situation is mysteriously rooted in the past. The plot is comprised of many unique puzzle pieces coming together slowly. And just when you think you've got it, and things normalize... the walls come crashing down. The story ends with a BANG. Mouth agape. Shock. Hurt. Angry.You absolutely HATE him again.
This book is so unique, so good and there are so many elements that made me LOVE it so much:
Unique story - The idea of this book is completely unique - the plot is intricately woven with unexpected turns that make your jaw drop. How she thought of this, I have no idea!
Stellar writing - The writing is so tight. Not superfluous at all, each word seemingly written with the intent of taking you to the next significant point in the story. And although the book is long, I was riveted and I wanted to know what would happen next. I really loved the quotes at the beginning of each chapter that ranged from William Shakespeare and C.S. Lewis to Keri Russell. They set the tone for each chapter, preparing you for what would come next.
Character strength and complexity - Both Claire and Tony are flawed and complicated in different ways. Both make bad choices, both characters amazingly written. And they both evolve in the books and to see those changes come alive on the page is pretty great.
Shock value - I never knew what was coming next. I'm typically pretty good at figuring things out, but even though I was right some times, the way things would happen and the way things resulted were shocking. I loved that it had the ability to surprise me.
I can't say enough good things about this book. I immediately dove into book 2, Truth! As intense and emotionally-draining as this book was, I needed to know what would happen next. It fueled me to devour the next book. I definitely recommend this incredibly thrilling series!
"It is not the circumstances that make a person a success. It is how that person responds to those circumstances."
For more reviews, visit Vilma's Book Blog online
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About the author
so if you don't enjoy this type of read
I don't usually write reviews, but thought I would share my experience with this series of books. First this is a series, not a stand alone read. Before I even finished the first book, I purchased the second in the series, and before finishing it, purchased all the rest. This author takes you on a complicated ride into the lives of a man greatly influenced by his grandfather. It is rather dark and abusive, so if you don't enjoy this type of read, don't bother. However, it grows out of that phase into a better frame of mind as the series continues. Not wishing to expose any events of the actual book, I love this author, and highly recomment this series. The author has brought to us a very complicated plot that carries you from page to page and book to book. I dread reaching the end, because I am so enjoying being part of the lives of this family, through the terrible and the delightful.
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- Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2013
- Reviewed in the United States on October 23, 2013
Top reviews from other countries
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Cliente AmazonReviewed in Brazil on February 19, 2019
UM DOS MELHORES LIVROS DOS ÚLTIMOS TEMPOS
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BeachesReviewed in Germany on February 6, 2013
"Consequences. She brutally learns that her each and every action has consequences."
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