Review: Splinters of the Heart by Alyssa Rabil

Love finds a way.

Aaron Beaumont is a mess. Life has never been easy, so why did he think bondage would help? While he solved the problem of making some quick money, it came at a price he wasn’t willing to pay. To his great relief, he’s rescued by Silas Anderson. Silas, a doctor, takes him home and treats his physical injuries, but his gentle touch and reassurance can’t touch Aaron’s internal turmoil.

When Aaron tries to return home the next morning, the worst has come to pass. He suddenly finds himself with nowhere to go. Once again, his world collides with Silas’.

With the future uncertain, a friendship blossoms into something neither Aaron nor Silas has experienced before, and they know it’s something they may never experience again.

However, happiness is just out of reach, and before they have a happily ever after, they must face a demon from the past.

Reader advisory: This book contains scenes of verbal and physical abuse, consensual pain, parental abuse, drug use, homophobic language, mentions of anxiety, suicide and drug dealing.


DNF 

Oh how I wanted to love this one. 

Splinters of the Heart is a debut novel from new to me author Alyssa Rabil. The premise was promising: two damaged men who find each other in an unexpected place but somehow strike up a romance. It screamed hurt/comfort goodness.

And to me, this debut novel read like a... first time novel. In the first chapter, the reader gets mentions of abuse, first time gay experiences, internalized homophobia, alludes to familial abuse, bondage, a  sketchy porn 'company', gun violence, attempted assault, BDSM practices and a white -knight-of-a-doctor/ veteran-that-just-so-happens-to-work-as-a-porn-actor that comes to the rescue.

An entire kitchen sink with dishes in the first chapter. It read so unbelievable and too much that I couldn't buy either character. The shoot out was like the second to last nail in the coffin. But the stitled dialogue was it for me.

I usually try to five a book that doesn't work for me a breather and will retry. But it was more ridiculous one the second go round. So rather than suffering, I tapped out.

If you're a reader who likes any or all of the topics I mentioned, maybe try it out. It could be a me thing but I found the beginning too saturated to carry the plot along. *shrugs*




No comments:

Post a Comment