THE FLESH CARTEL 1: CAPTURE by Rachel Haimowitz & Heidi Belleau

Part One in Serial Series

Riptide Publishing

October 1^st, 2012

978-1-937551-68-1

Psychosexual thriller

E-book

Reviewed by Dawn (love2read28@gmail.com)

Obtained by self-purchase

 

Orphaned brothers Mat and Dougie Carmichael are trying to move ahead in their lives. Mat is a MMA fighter who always wants to win since he uses that prize money to pay for Dougie’s college books, tuition and more. Life was moving on until the night Dougie gets home and finds himself in the middle of a nightmare even as Mat tries to save his little brother. Mat and Dougie are about to find out what and who kidnapped them even as pain, rape and more fill their days. The only thing keeping them both sane is the bond between brothers and the love they share for one another.

Let me state right from the beginning this is a brutal, brutal book. This is a serial story so there is no romance, happy ever after or anything. If you like light, fluffy fun books I suggest you stay away from this one. Even I went outside my comfort zone and found myself running the gauntlet of emotions the entire sixty plus pages of CAPTURE. You will be horrified, on the edge of your seat and trying to not look away from the e-reader to collect yourself. This is by far a dark, dark story that will either enchant readers or turn them off. I am not sure which I am yet of the two. I loved the two authors’ lyrical writing but the sheer brutalness took that enjoyment away from me. After each more degrading scene after another left me curled up in a ball and whimpering after the last page was read. The story stays long after you are finished with the book. It kept poking itself in my brain, showing me the scenes that just would not go away.

THE FLESH CARTEL 1: CAPTURE is a story that will leave you emotionally wrung out. It is a hard story to enjoy and one that I found was just too much for me to handle. The violence and everything kicks things off immediately and doesn’t let up even after that last page was turned. I don’t think this serial series is for me but I bet there are a few readers who would love to read this introduction to The Flesh Cartel.  Read at your own risk and make sure to if you do read it, to take a break every now and again, kiss your family and it might help deal with the dark nature of this series.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement

 

Power Play: Awakening by Rachel Haimowitz and Cat Grant

Publisher: Riptide Publishing

Date published: Jun 11 2012

ISBN: 978-1-93755-132-2

BDSM M/M

PDF

Reviewed by Gabrielle

Weblink: http://www.riptidepublishing.com/titles/power-play-awakening

Obtained via publisher

I was so glad that Brandon and Jonathan got a second book. So much has happened between the two during their first try. Are they willing to put all that behind them and truly try for themselves this time and not continually fight each other for control?  After all that he has gone through Brandon finds himself still out of sorts once he goes back to his old life. Not able to stand it anymore Brandon goes back to Jonathon’s and asks him for help. Will Jonathan give him the help he needs or will he send him away?

Once again I enjoyed watching Brandon and Jonathan go through so much again. Brandon is so much stronger than he thinks he is and just going to Jonathan for help shows that. Brandon goes through so much and learns so much about himself. While I did begin to understand Jonathan more in this book I still did not connect with him and found him to be lacking in some ways. I did enjoy watching the relationship between these two progresses into what it does. Brandon tries so hard to figure out all his emotions and just where he fits in and Jonathan begins to feel and understand more of their relationship.

Along with the intense sex and extreme situations there is so much emotion in this story. Not only do we get to see the two men in their quiet and secluded life but we also get to see them interacting with another couple in the same lifestyle and in the outside world as well. I enjoyed seeing the effects of all this and how Brandon and Jonathan’s relationship stands against it all. Watching Jonathan and Brandon learn so much about each other and what makes the other tick made for a good read.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.

 

Power Play: Resistance by Cat Grant and Rachel Haimowitz

Publisher: Riptide Publishing

Date published: Apr 9, 2012

ISBN: 978-1-937551-28-5

BDSM M/M

pdf

Reviewed by Gabrielle

Weblink: http://www.riptidepublishing.com/titles/power-play-resistance

Obtained via publisher

Brandon McKinney never dreamed his quick back alley tryst would lead him down this path, a path full of new and sometimes painful discoveries. Jonathan Watkins has offered him the deal of a lifetime; give him six months of his life and in return he will give him three million dollars. Brandon must decide just how much he wants that money to buy his own construction company. Can he give up his control to Jonathan or is it too much to ask?

This book takes the reader on an emotional ride. Both Brandon and Jonathan are as stubborn as can be and continually fight against one another. I enjoyed meeting Brandon and seeing him go through and endure so much endeared him to this reader. I found myself wanting to like Jonathan but had a hard time of it. I just could not connect at all with his character. He was a bit too smug and arrogant for my liking and always demanded from Brandon but never gave anything in return. I was glad to see that at the end of the book Jonathan begins to see the error of his ways, as does Brandon. There was a bit more depth to Brandon and we get to understand him more than we do Jonathan, who comes off as cold, cruel and unfeeling for most of this story. We get small glimpse at the man and Dom Jonathan could be but not many. I loved those small glimpses and truly enjoyed their story through them.

Power Play: Resistance is full of emotion and strong subject matter. It delves into the psyche of two men who are in the midst of a BDSM relationship. Jonathan is not only a Dom but he also enjoys dolling out pain and can be a harsh master at times especially when he is trying to break down Brandon’s barriers. This book can be an intense read at times and had me turning those pages to see if either man would give in. The attraction is there from the beginning and you can see the possibility of it turning into so much more if only one of them would give more than an inch.

This is an objective review and not an endorsement of this book.