Book Reviews

Book Blurb

-- A gentle heart has no place in an outlaw’s chest ---

Ghost. Not a member of the Coffin Nails MC. Not a doctor anymore. Not gay.
Luca. Bent, not broken. Will not let go of Ghost. No matter what.

Ghost finds out the hard way that people you meet online aren’t always who they seem to be. When he met ‘Zara’ five years ago, they became inseparable. She’s been with him through the rough and the smooth. He’s been there for her when her abusive boyfriend had her in tears.

She is The One, and despite all his friends considering him crazy, Ghost is about to propose.

But ‘Zara’ turns out to be Luca, and Luca is most definitely a guy. Yet Luca is the same person with big dark eyes, so desperate to be saved that Ghost can’t help but fall head first.

Luca’s so-called boyfriend is not just abusive. He is a Sicilian drug lord, a man dangerous and ruthless. If Ghost is to ever save the person who wreaked havoc on his heart, he has to make a deal with the Coffin Nails MC. But being a member is a destiny he’s always tried to avoid. And when a life of violence becomes too much to bear, he might be the one needing Luca to catch him when he falls.

POSSIBLE SPOILERS:

Themes: Outlaw motorcycle club, criminal activity, hurt/comfort, abuse, catfishing, independence, sexual orientation issues, mafia, PTSD

WARNING: Adult content. Explicit gay sex, strong language, violence, potentially triggering sexual abuse scenes. Reader discretion advised.

 

Book Review

Ah yes, the next book in K.A. Merikan’s series about outlaw bikers and their shenanigans is finally here. I approached it, as I do all of the books of the “Sex & Mayhem” variety, with a mix of eager anticipation and utter dread. Anticipation because, if nothing else, all of these stories are about fascinating characters, intense situations, and deeply emotional relationships that almost don’t survive under the onslaught of exterior forces. But I also dread reading each one, because they are brutal, gritty, and just this side of the limits to my comfort zone. This novel covered both ends of that spectrum in spades, but the one thing that helped me this time around was that most of the horrible brutality occurs in the beginning of the book (and let me tell, you, it’s not pretty!). Luca and Ghost are then left to pick up the pieces and there is plenty of conflict and drama to go around but I was able to breathe a little easier. Mind you, that is all relative, since this is by no means an easy read! Worthwhile – yes, easy – no.

Ghost is a familiar face from ‘The Devil’s Ride’. He is the doctor who saved one of the bikers’ life under “questionable” circumstances, and lost his license to practice medicine as a result. He has now become the MC’s doctor, and in many ways is one of them, but he is not a full member, nor does he want to be. He abhors violence after his stint in Syria and doesn’t even want to touch a gun! When he figures out that the woman he met online five years ago is actually a man, and that said man, Luca, is being abused by a cruel Mafioso, he will do anything to help. And I do mean anything! It’s fascinating to see how he deals with Luca being a man, and it shows his true character how he manages to focus on what’s really important. He is determined to save Luca, and ends up going through an ordeal that would make a weaker man give up the will to live. I take my hat off to him!

Luca is in deep trouble. As in life-threatening trouble. Taken as “payment” for a debt his father owed to the evil mafioso who now forces him to be his “boyfriend”, Luca has never known freedom. He gets beaten up and worse o a regular basis, but he sees no way out of his predicament. His only entertainment is an online game where he plays a female character (probably so nobody recognizes him). That is where he meets Ghost, and by the time they start to talk about more than he game, it is too late to tell Luca he truth. Luca has been through an ordeal already, but what he has to suffer before the Mafioso will let him go is absolutely brutal. He cannot believe his luck when Ghost doesn’t kick him out, but there are quite a few obstacles to overcome and twists and turns to survive before he can breathe easy.

As always in this series, heed the warning labels and believe what they say—the authors put them there for a reason. This is not romantic fluff! It is, however, a moving love story that crosses the lines of perceived gender as well as a tale about crime of all kinds, and that, to me, made it a great read.

If you like outlaw bikers and those who live with them, if you enjoy stories with two strong heroes who each suffer enormous pain to be with the other, and if you’re looking for a read filled with emotion, desperation, and violence, then you should definitely give this novel a try. It has the same pronounced “danger vibe” as the other volumes in this series, but the story underneath it all, as always, is well worth it – at least it is for me.

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Books reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by the author for the purpose of a review.

Additional Information

Format	ebook and print
Length	Novel, 176 pages/99000 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	25-April-2015
Price	$4.99 ebook, $12.99 paperback
Buy Link	http://www.amazon.com/Matter-biker-erotic-romance-Mayhem-ebook/dp/B00WHBI318