Newton Compton Editori – Acquistabile qui

Dopo aver assistito alla morte dell’uomo che amava, Savannah è distrutta. Qualcosa dentro di lei si è definitivamente spezzato e il dolore ha chiuso il suo cuore in una morsa gelida. Possibile che sia arrivato il momento di arrendersi? Quando il destino le concede una seconda occasione, Savannah sa che è solo questione di tempo prima che il passato torni a tormentarla. Perché ci sono verità oscure che minacciano di strapparle via, di nuovo, tutte le certezze. A peggiorare le cose c’è una rete di bugie che mette in pericolo la sua vita. Di chi può davvero fidarsi? Dicono che non ci sia niente di peggio di un cuore ferito. Ma non sanno cosa significa averlo infranto in mille pezzi.

Savannah è spezzata, distrutta. La presunta morte di Cole e l’aborto traumatico l’hanno prostrata al punto da desiderare la morte. Ma, come sempre in questa serie, niente è quel che sembra e a Savannah verrà regalata una seconda occasione, sebbene il pericolo sia sempre in agguato e non si sia ancora fatta luce né sul rapimento, né su chi l’abbia voluto o permesso.

Le cose cambiano rapidamente quando, con una decisione assolutamente avventata, Savi decide di cercare suo padre e pretendere spiegazioni, e la cosa non porterà a niente di buono.

Troppo. Tanta roba. In questo volume si succedono fatti su fatti, e non ci si sofferma su nessuno di essi.

Salvataggi, ritorni, rapimenti, ancora salvataggi, morti violente, scoperte destabilizzanti per chiunque le subisca e la protagonista che fa? Prende decisioni da adolescente, mettendo in pericolo se stessa e la squadra intera… Non si chiede mai un perché, o lo fa troppo velocemente, non si sofferma su fatti gravissimi e comportamenti orrendi di chi l’ha letteralmente venduta e decide cose da ragazzina.

Questo libro non risponde a nessuna delle domande che il lettore si fa. Certo, i colpevoli del rapimento e delle torture si mostrano in tutto il loro splendore, ma qual è la vera ragione di comportamenti tanto aberranti?

La suspense è un gioco di fatti e attese. Qui ci sono tante cose, ma non c’è suspense. E alcuni tratti della personalità della protagonista sono, onestamente, ridicoli.

Il primo volume preparava a risoluzioni che qui non hanno preso forma, se non nei nomi e in comportamenti inspiegabili. E stiamo parlando del sindaco di New York e del suo staff!

Avrete ben compreso che il racconto non mi ha convinta affatto. Nonostante ci siano delle ottime idee, tutto scorre senza che sia approfondito. E la storia d’amore scompare quasi, tra tutti gli avvenimenti e i personaggi.

Spero che nel terzo e ultimo volume i fatti siano finalmente chiari, anche se devo ancora decidere se leggerlo o no.

Recensione a cura di:

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1 – Tienimi sempre con te – Potete leggere la nostra recensione QUI

2 – Dammi un’altra possibilità

3 – Mended – Inedito in Italia al  momento della pubblicazione dell’articolo

Newton Compton Editori  – Acquistabile qui

Mi chiamo Savannah Miller. Sono la figlia del sindaco di New York e ho sempre vissuto senza preoccupazioni. Fino al giorno del mio ventisettesimo compleanno, quando qualcuno mi ha messo un sacco sulla testa e mi ha trascinata via, lontano da tutto ciò che conoscevo. Sono stata picchiata, lasciata a soffrire la fame, trattata come un animale e rinchiusa in una stanza senza finestre. Senza più dignità e percezione del tempo ho finito per rinunciare a qualunque speranza. Avevo deciso di farla finita, quando un’unità speciale dell’esercito ha fatto irruzione nel luogo in cui ero prigioniera. Dopo avermi portata al sicuro mi hanno dato la possibilità di scegliere: rimanere con loro durante le indagini senza infrangere le regole oppure andarmene e rischiare di finire nuovamente prigioniera. Ho scelto la prima opzione.

Savannah Miller, la figlia del sindaco di New York, viene rapita e tenuta in ostaggio da sconosciuti per mesi.

Picchiata e torturata, decide di lasciarsi andare, quando, finalmente,  viene liberata da un commando di uomini ben addestrati e portata in un luogo sicuro.

Ora la scelta è tornare alla sua vita e rischiare che la riprendano o rimanere nella casa protetta finché non verrà scoperto chi c’è dietro il suo strano rapimento.

Savi sceglie di restare al sicuro, sceglie di farsi aiutare e si affida al suo salvatore, Cole Logan, a capo dell’unità che l’ha tratta in salvo e che continua a proteggerla:

“ Lasciati cadere ogni volta che vuoi, Savannah, perché io sarò sempre lì per prenderti.”

Da qui all’amore il passo è breve, ma molte, moltissime cose restano oscure: l’atteggiamento del padre di Savi, il riscatto irrisorio chiesto per la sua liberazione, la presenza di un uomo misterioso e agghiacciante nei giorni della sua prigionia.

Man mano che si procede con la lettura, gli interrogativi sul rapimento aumentano e i fili paiono sempre più difficili da sbrogliare.

Tutto questo fino alla conclusione del primo volume, che lascia con il cuore in fondo alle scarpe…

Comincio subito col dirvi che questo non è un dark, se non nella primissima parte, quella relativa ai mesi di segregazione di Savannah. E’ un romantic suspense, ben orchestrato e, a tratti, ha un ritmo assolutamente cinematografico. Peccato che ci siano dei momenti che rallentano l’azione e la narrazione, perché il desiderio di capire dove e quale sia la verità è forte.

Speriamo davvero che i volumi successivi diano risposta agli interrogativi che la storia ci pone, e che non si debba aspettare troppo.

Quattro stelline, con riserva.

Recensione a cura di:

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A volte basta uno sguardo per innamorarsi.

Newton Compton Editori (20 luglio 2019), acquistabile qui.

Mi chiamo Savannah Miller. Sono la figlia del sindaco di New York e ho sempre vissuto senza preoccupazioni. Fino al giorno del mio ventisettesimo compleanno, quando qualcuno mi ha messo un sacco sulla testa e mi ha trascinata via, lontano da tutto ciò che conoscevo.

Sono stata picchiata, lasciata a soffrire la fame, trattata come un animale e rinchiusa in una stanza senza finestre. Senza più dignità e percezione del tempo ho finito per rinunciare a qualunque speranza. Avevo deciso di farla finita, quando un’unità speciale dell’esercito ha fatto irruzione nel luogo in cui ero prigioniera.

Dopo avermi portata al sicuro mi hanno dato la possibilità di scegliere: rimanere con loro durante le indagini senza infrangere le regole oppure andarmene e rischiare di finire nuovamente prigioniera. Ho scelto la prima opzione.

1 Broken, Tienimi sempre con te

2 Shattered

3 Mended

x

J.L. Drake è un’autrice bestseller internazionale. È nata in Nuova Scozia, in Canada, ma attualmente vive con la famiglia in California. Quando non è impegnata a scrivere adora trascorrere il suo tempo viaggiando. Le piace inserire sempre una punta di mistero nelle sue storie d’amore.

Title: UNLEASHED Author: J.L. Drake Series: Devil’s Reach Genre: Romantic Suspense Release: October 30

Trigger Tess was under the Devil’s watch while I suffered behind bars with my demons… The ace in my pocket brings power, and the temptation to flip overwhelms me. I’m playing chicken with the reaper, and it’s only feeding his thirst. The smell of blood is a drug. It fuels me. Consumes me. I am lost. Tess The Devil stole me, but I refuse to belong to someone else. I’m a fighter. I will do whatever it takes to get back to my family. Treachery and betrayal surround us. The only way out is to turn the greatest loss into the greatest victory.

The morning came too quickly. I blinked my eyes to focus and swung my feet to sit up. Once the doors scraped open on the tracks, I made my way downstairs, signaling to my men I was skipping breakfast and headed in the opposite direction.

The line for the phone wrapped around the corner and down the hall, but one look at me, and most scattered. My reputation in prison had traveled far.

I caught the eye of a Stripe Back I sent here last year. Kale had murdered a gas attendant for his initiation and tried to pin it on Morgan, who happened to be there at the same time. With a little pressure, I got the proof I needed to clear Morgan’s name and sent Kale away for life.

It didn’t help that I spread some rumors so he would become someone’s bitch in a matter of days.

“Nice limp.” Rail nodded. “Rough night under the sheets?”

Kale shot him a death look but was more focused on me.

“Tell me something.” He rubbed his crew cut and leaned against the wall. “How is it that you’re in here while your old lady is shackin’ up with your old man out there?”

Rail shifted and blocked the view of the guards while Brick appeared from the cafeteria and stood on the other side. I stepped up closer so we were nose to nose, and slapped my hand down on his pencil dick.

“I will be out of here before your next date with your cellmate,” I twisted him tighter in my grip as he struggled to keep his composure, “peeling the clothes off your sister, just like I did the night you were sentenced.

He tried to lunge, but I squeezed with all my might. He stifled a scream as his veins bulged. He couldn’t afford to get put in the hole again, and he knew I knew that.

“Vineyard!” a guard yelled. “Do we have a problem here?”

I raised my hands and stepped back. “Just getting reacquainted with an old friend.”

The guard gave a red-faced Kale a questioning look. “That true?”

“Yeah,” he muttered.

“Good. Move on, then.” He waved us off as I stood back in line for the phone.

Three rings after I stated my name to the stupid recording, someone finally answered.

“Helmond’s Bar, Peggy speaking. Trigger, is that you?”

Why is she questioning me?

“Peggy, get me Morgan.”

“Oh, my God, Trigger! I thought maybe it was Brick or Rail. It’s been so jacked up without you here—”

“Peggy,” I snapped, “where’s Morgan?”

“No clue. I figured you had him dealing with somethin’.”

“Find me Cooper.”

“Do you know how hard it is to run this bar myself? The till doesn’t add up right. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. Morgan keeps throwing Tess in my face. He really can be an asshole—”

“Peggy!” I shouted, and a guard glared at me.

“Cooper.”

“Fine!” she huffed and screamed for Cooper, who must have been in the bar, as he yelled back at her. “Trigger is on the phone.”

There was bickering before he tore the phone away from her.

“Hey, man, you okay in there?”

“Where is Morgan?” I didn’t have much more time. “I don’t know. He left the day before yesterday, said he’d be back tomorrow. Maybe his dad is back?” Morgan wouldn’t leave unless something came up, but why not tell Cooper or Cray?

“You heard from Links yet?” he asked. The bar must have picked up, because he started yelling over the noise.

“No. You?”

“He was here poking around yesterday, but he wouldn’t share anything.”

Really?

“Find Morgan.” “Yeah, boss.”

I hung up and went to find Brick. Something didn’t sit right.

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Bestselling author J. L. Drake was born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada, later moving to Southern California where she lives with her husband and two children. When she’s not writing, she loves to spend time with her family, travelling or just enjoying a night at home. One thing you might notice in her books is her love for the four seasons. Growing up on the east coast of Canada the change in the seasons is in her blood and is often mentioned in her writing. An avid reader of James Patterson, J.L. Drake has often found herself inspired by his many stories of mystery and intrigue. She hopes you will enjoy her stories as much as she has enjoyed writing them.

Website | Newsletter | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | BookBub

Title: UNLEASHED Author: J.L. Drake Series: Devil’s Reach Genre: Romantic Suspense Release: October 30

Trigger Tess was under the Devil’s watch while I suffered behind bars with my demons… The ace in my pocket brings power, and the temptation to flip overwhelms me. I’m playing chicken with the reaper, and it’s only feeding his thirst. The smell of blood is a drug. It fuels me. Consumes me. I am lost. Tess The Devil stole me, but I refuse to belong to someone else. I’m a fighter. I will do whatever it takes to get back to my family. Treachery and betrayal surround us. The only way out is to turn the greatest loss into the greatest victory.

Bestselling author J. L. Drake was born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada, later moving to Southern California where she lives with her husband and two children. When she’s not writing, she loves to spend time with her family, travelling or just enjoying a night at home. One thing you might notice in her books is her love for the four seasons. Growing up on the east coast of Canada the change in the seasons is in her blood and is often mentioned in her writing. An avid reader of James Patterson, J.L. Drake has often found herself inspired by his many stories of mystery and intrigue. She hopes you will enjoy her stories as much as she has enjoyed writing them.

Website | Newsletter | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | BookBub

Title: UNLEASHED Author: J.L. Drake Series: Devil’s Reach Genre: Romantic Suspense Release: October 30

Trigger Tess was under the Devil’s watch while I suffered behind bars with my demons… The ace in my pocket brings power, and the temptation to flip overwhelms me. I’m playing chicken with the reaper, and it’s only feeding his thirst. The smell of blood is a drug. It fuels me. Consumes me. I am lost. Tess The Devil stole me, but I refuse to belong to someone else. I’m a fighter. I will do whatever it takes to get back to my family. Treachery and betrayal surround us. The only way out is to turn the greatest loss into the greatest victory.

Maybe it was the stress of the past two weeks or the emotional roller coaster I had been on, but somehow, I managed to fall asleep.

I peeled my eyes open at the vibration of a closing door. The last twenty-four hours came rushing toward me, and I shot straight up in…bed?

What the hell? I tried to process where I was.

The room was small, and there was a thin layer of dust covering everything. The bed and a two-drawer dresser were the only items in the room. There was a bathroom in the corner and a closet.

Call me crazy, but I thought I’d be in some basement chained to a wall, not waking up in a bedroom that smelled like—I sniffed in deep and placed the scent—pancakes.

I flipped the covers off and looked down at my clothes. Nothing had been removed but my shoes. I quietly moved around the room checking things out. I leaned down and pulled open the top drawer of the dresser to find a set of clean clothes.

Weird. They were my size.

I couldn’t help but think this was much like Savannah’s moment when she awoke in the safe house, only she was safe. I was not.

Or was I? It was a giant mind fuckery of an event.

I raced to pull on the fresh clothes and hopped on one foot to the window and tried to push it open. Two nails stuck out on the sides, keeping it locked it in place.

I tried the other in the bathroom, and it was the same. Locked.

Shadows moved under the door, alerting me I was about to have company.

I looked around for something to use as a weapon, but all I came across was a bottle of water on the dresser.

Slowly, the door handle turned, and there stood Allen in his church collar.

“Holy Lucifer,” shot from my trembling lips as I fell captive to his stare. Part of me wanted to cry. Allen was like an older version of Trigger, but just as you felt remotely comfortable, the devil would flicker across his pupils and remind you of the darkness that filled his soul.

“No, not Lucifer, but if you care to bare your soul, I’m listening, Tessa.”

“Tess,” I corrected him.

He tugged on his collar before he stepped into the room. He looked around like he was approving how nice it was.

“Look,” he bent down and sat on the arm of the chair, “I’m not in the business of kidnapping.

Never really cared for it, so most were dead by hour four.” He shrugged. “But what I do care about is taking back what’s mine.”

“Which is?” I folded my arms to hide the shakes.

“Devil’s Reach and to return the favor my son so lovingly did for me.” His head slowly rose, and a smug smile played across his dry lips.

“So, how do Gus and I fit into this?”

“Gus doesn’t. He was just being Gussy. Always had a moral probe stuck up his ass for the ones he cared about. He’s like a tick that burrows into your skin and attaches itself to your veins and never leaves unless you either cut off its head or force it from your body.”

“And me?”

His eyes widened. “You, Tessa,” he slowed my name down, “you’re my son’s weakness, my ace in this game. You,” he pointed to me, “will be mine.”

“Ha!” burst out of my mouth before I could stop it. “Not a chance. I don’t do seniors.”

He licked his lips, annoyed at my comment. “As flattered as I am you thought I would consider you, I don’t do hand-me-downs.” He brushed the arm of his jacket free from dust. “When I say mine, I actually mean…” He paused and glanced at the door. I followed his line of sight to Zay standing there in jeans and a fisherman’s knit sweater, wearing the same blank expression he always did when he was around me.

What?

“Now that we have that cleared up…” He stood, and I saw the blood on his cuff. He noticed and raised his cuff to get a better look. “Rick was a fighter.” Nice.

“Tessa,” he purred out my name, “don’t bother running. You have no shoes, and the cornfield will slice your feet to pieces.” He smacked Zay on the shoulder as he left. “All yours.”

Not a chance.

“Hungry?” Zay asked quietly.

“No.”

“Can I get you anything?”

“A lift to town.” I dripped with sarcasm.

He gave an amused smile. “We’ll grow on you.”

“Like a tapeworm, maybe, or a tick.”

He unfolded his arms and dropped them heavily to his sides. He stepped into the room and stopped a few feet from me. “He’ll only take so much lip, Tess, and me too.”

“Good to know.” I folded my arms.

“Trigger might like it—” I slapped him across the face with my open palm. Trigger’s name was too hard to hear right now. I sucked in a sharp breath, waiting for him to react. He closed his eyes for a moment, waiting for the sting to pass.

I knew because my hand hurt like a bitch.

“I won’t sleep with you, Zay,” I muttered to fill the silence.

He stepped back and stood in the doorway. “Like I said, we’ll grow on you. Now, let’s go.”

Amazon US | Amazon UK

Amazon US | Amazon UK

Bestselling author J. L. Drake was born and raised in Nova Scotia, Canada, later moving to Southern California where she lives with her husband and two children. When she’s not writing, she loves to spend time with her family, travelling or just enjoying a night at home. One thing you might notice in her books is her love for the four seasons. Growing up on the east coast of Canada the change in the seasons is in her blood and is often mentioned in her writing. An avid reader of James Patterson, J.L. Drake has often found herself inspired by his many stories of mystery and intrigue. She hopes you will enjoy her stories as much as she has enjoyed writing them.

Website | Newsletter | Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | Goodreads | BookBub