Safe in His Arms by Renae Kaye

SafeInHisArmsLGTitle: Safe in His Arms
Series: N/A
Author: Renae Kaye
Genre: Contemporary/ Abuse
Length: Novel (208 pages)
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Heat Level: Moderate
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥3.5 Hearts
Blurb: In the late-night quiet of the caravan park shower room, Lon Taylor washes away the filth of the Western Australian mines. He’s not looking for anyone, but when Casey offers, Lon doesn’t turn him down.

Welcoming the young man in his big, hairy arms, Lon provides a safety to Casey that he has never known, and Casey wants to stay forever. Still reeling from the breakup of his family years ago, Lon’s not sure he’s ready for the responsibility of the comfort and security Casey craves.

But perhaps Lon can risk opening his heart again and hoping for a brighter future. Casey has some pretty big skeletons in his past to deal with. And Lon wonders what Casey will do when he finds out how badly Lon failed at protecting the ones he loved eight years ago.
ISBN: 9781632162311
Product Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5736
Reviewer: Aerin
Review: Renae Kaye is one of my favorite authors and I’ve loved every book she wrote so far…..except this one. This isn’t a bad book by any means but it isn’t great either. This book lacks one thing I’ve come to appreciate in all of this author’s previous work: a deep connection between characters. So while the characters are interesting and the plot twists are somewhat intriguing, I felt totally disconnected with the characters and events.

One of our main characters, Lon, is a worker in the Australian mines and he is presented as this huge, almost gigantic man, who grows muscles on top of muscles but is a very caring individual. He is the natural caretaker who thrives when he has someone to look after, but this has been missing from his life since the death of his family and the incarceration of his brother.

I think the way he meets Casey at the beginning of the book was the first clue I got that this book wasn’t going to work for me. Lon arrives home after weeks spent working at the mines and meets Casey at the communal bathroom in the caravan park where they both live. And before they even get to know each other, Casey falls to his knees and offers a blowjob because Lon is just so hot, his knees turned into wet noodles. *rolls eyes*

What’s so bad about the way they meet you say? Well Casey and his past, that’s what. Casey is a nineteen year old who lives with his grandmother while he gets himself and his life back on track. Casey has suffered sexual and physical abuse at the hands of none other but his father for years, and now he suffers from nightmares almost nightly and is in desperate need for a shrink. But guess what, miracles of all miracles, as soon as he meets Lon, he feels safe.

Never mind the fact that Lon is a total stranger and he’s a big oaf of a man who could be anything from a giant teddy bear to a deranged psychopath, Casey goes home with him because…well that’s how the story goes. And that wouldn’t be so bad if I felt that amazing chemistry between those two. But I think that chemistry took off along with Casey’s common sense and it looks like they’re nowhere to be found. 

Casey behaves nothing like the abuse victim that he is. Before he meets Lon, he has trouble sleeping at night and is constantly plagued by nightmares. He also has a mild form of PTSD. But after he meets Lon, his nightmares are suddenly gone with no indications that they’re ever going to return, he sleeps through the night every single night and his PTSD is nothing but a memory. While this might sound all romantic and sweet, it’s not how it works in real life, so it left me disappointed and with a bad case of eye rolling.

In spite of everything, their relationship thrives with the support they get from their friends and soon develop strong feelings for each other. I really liked the secondary characters in this book. They were well-rounded and supportive of each other. This book is very well written and I appreciate there are no grammatical errors. I was going to rate it 4 hearts because it’s a good book and my inability to connect with the characters doesn’t mean this author is anything less than very talented.

BUT…there’s always that but. There was too much drama, too much tragedy in both Lon and Casey’s life. I came to expect so much more from Mrs. Kaye and if I compare this book with others in the genre, it would rated somewhere above 4 stars. However, comparing this book with Renae’s previous books I can’t give this a clean 4 hearts. And then came the element that solidified my decision to give this a solid 3.5 hearts….

“Casey was in two-parts ecstasy, one-part hell. He was prepared for the burn, but Lon’s girth was more than he’d ever tried before. Obviously those extra inches around were just a little too much.” His cock is a few EXTRA INCHES AROUND???? No freaking way! As soon as we meet Lon we find out he has a huge dick but let’s be real, it doesn’t need to be the size of a bowling pin because that’s not only unrealistic, it’s also creepy. When they finally got around to having penetrative sex I found myself clenching my butt cheeks in sympathy.

Overall, this was a nice read and I think if you like damaged MCs, abuse, a substantial age gap, Australian setting and hurt-comfort then this is the book for you.

* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *