Book Reviews

Book Blurb

Killian Desmond’s dreams died in a flash of pain and the scream of twisted metal. He lost it all the night a tour bus sailed off a mountainside, sending his band—with his brother—to their deaths.

Killian is dead too, if the papers are to be believed, and living a half-life of odd jobs, rodeo rides and pick up gigs. The road that once meant freedom is now Killy’s exile. No strings, no ties, no names for the one-night stands.

Answering a tribute band’s ad thrusts him face to face with his past, and into the arms of the one man who just might understand.

NOTE: This book was previously published by Dreamspinnr Press in May 2011. This is an expanded version.

 

Book Review

“Sometimes you have to forget how you feel to remember what you deserve.” ~ unknown

Killian (Killy) Desmond is a broken man. Everything he ever loved, including his brother, went up in a horrible crash and now he's lost. Killy doesn't understand why he didn't die as well. On top of that, he feels guilty that when his brother needed him, he didn't do enough to help him. Since then, he's been trying to run away from the pain, to do to forget his past, but nothing has worked. Killy can't run away from the pain; he needs to get past it, but he can't do so with all of that guilt, fear, pain, and grief crowding his mind and his heart.

Killy wears his pain like a cloak; everyone around him can feel it, but few try to get close to him and that's the way he says he wants it. Killy won't stay one place for any length of time because that breeds familiarity which could mean attachment and he has no intention of being attached to anyone or anything for the rest of his life. The one thing he can't let go of is his music. No matter how hard he tries, Killy can't put away that guitar; he can't stop singing or writing lyrics either. From time to time he still performs, but the latest gig he signs on for is something that took him by surprise. It's with a tribute band dedicated to Killy's former band, Trickster. Despite serious reservations, he takes the job telling himself that it's just for one night and he can survive.

When he walks into the seedy bar where he is to perform, he's not impressed with anything except a handsome young man, who as it so happens, is a another band member. Killy is impressed not only with his looks, but with his playing and singing. Against his better judgment, he goes home with him and nicknames him Texas. Killy and Texas are soon having sex like old lovers. He finds himself breaking every rule he's ever made to keep him detached. For some unfathomable reason, Killy trusts Texas. He senses a kindred spirit with troubles of his own. Texas understands things that he has no way of understanding, listens without judging. Despite himself, Killy feels safe enough to confide in Texas while, finally, his tears flow allowing the poison to leak out of his heart.

This is a moving love story about two men who have been scarred by life and are struggling to find new meaning in their existence. Eden described Killy's anguish with such clarity and emotion that I cried—I wanted so badly to help him. The story, although poignant, could have been very sad except for the fact that, when Killy needed it the most, his knight in shining armor showed up with a left-handed guitar and a voice like an angel, capturing his heart and holding it in his healing hands. Thanks, Eden, for giving Killy and Texas a second chance.

 

 

 

 

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Additional Information

Format	ebook
Length	Novella, 15000 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	19-July-2014
Price	$2.99 ebook
Buy Link	https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-highwayman-1575533-149.html