Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Leaving His Mark (Leaving Marks, #1) written by T.A. McKay (224 pgs) – finished reading 5/14/16 – 4.5 stars - Contemporary Romance

4.5 star rating

Oh, that prologue gets you right from the beginning. You know that with an opening that is so troubling, this was going to be one emotional ride! Two amazing characters that were stronger than they thought deal with a psychotic stalker and trauma from their past. Told in alternating POV’s, it’s a story of love that comes together as two friends spend more time with each other and realize that their feelings go much deeper than just friendship. But, are they willing to take a chance on more knowing that if it doesn’t work out it could jeopardize their current relationship?

This ended up to be one race against time read. Not knowing who the despicable stalker was just thrilled me. I had an idea, but I wasn’t 100% sure. And, when it was confirmed, he/she was a great villain that added mystery and suspense to the story. The person was just so creepy and their behavior was just so off. There also were some side characters that were fantastic that actually made the book more exciting – Clay, the loyal and supporting best friend – David, Gabe’s dad, that was such a disturbing and violent man – and, Carter, Rhys’ friend that she works with that wants to be so much more. And, then we have the two main characters – Gabe and Rhys. Gabe with his disturbing and abusive past is nothing but one sweetheart of a guy. He’s loyal and compassionate, but so thinks he’s not worthy of Rhys. And, with his tragic past, he’s so afraid that he has violent tendencies like his dad. He’s scared of what could happen if his temper emerges. And, Rhys she suffers from nightmares that are abusive both mentally and physically from an ex-boyfriend. He was just so violent and demeaning. Treating her with venomous aggression as he punishes her repeatedly while stealing her lust for life. My heart really broke for these two damaged individuals - bringing tears to my eyes quite a number of times.

The author created such a moving story that included passion and heartache. It was emotionally challenging to read as walls were broken down from past trauma and trust was established wholeheartedly. I enjoyed Gabe and Rhys’ story immensely. The only problem I had was there seemed to be words missing throughout the book. The spelling is more of the English version with the occurence of “ou” instead of just “o” and “z” instead of “s” leaving me to realize that this author is not American, which I have no problem with. It just bothered me a bit that words were missing, and this book was edited. I don’t know maybe it’s just me. I wonder if other readers felt the same way. So, anyway, I still would suggest reading this book because the story was engaging, the characters were amazing, and my oh my, the intimacy was steamy and HOT! Sizzling! On fire! Totally panty-melting!


And, BTW, there is a cliffhanger...

Review Written, 5/18/16

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