Hey guys, we have Michele M. Rakes stopping by for a visit today with the blog tour for her latest release Fourth and Long, we have a great character interview, we have a fantastic excerpt, a brilliant giveaway and KathyMac’s review. So enjoy the post and click that Rafflecopter link <3 ~Pixie~
Fourth and Long
by
Michele M. Rakes
Irus Beaumont, cornerback for the Highlanders, has an issue with his nemesis: wideout for the Pirates, Jackson McCoy. Partly jealous over Jackson’s skill and ability to scrub coverage, Irus also struggles against an unbearable attraction to the receiver. Firmly ensconced in the closet, Irus also has a no football player rule, leaving his desires for Jackson unfulfilled. Anti-gay sentiment in the league keeps Irus closeted, even though he’d rather be out and proud.
When Jackson McCoy suffers a gay bashing at the hands of his team mates after winning the national championship, he finds himself traded to the Highlanders. Spring training brings out Jackson’s competitive nature, eliciting the aggression of his new team’s cornerback, Irus Beaumont.
In practice, Irus hurts Jackson badly. The injury places Jackson on the reserve roster. Jacks has plenty of time to contemplate his life, career, and his attraction to the sexy cornerback. Off to Orlando for the best rehab where guilt inspires Irus to call him every evening, Jackson can’t stop thinking about Irus, or what the season holds for his team.
Title: Saving Kane Author: Michele Michael Rakes Genre: Romantic Suspense Length: Novel (235 pages) Publisher: Loose Id (August 12th 2014) Heat Level: Explicit Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥ 3.5 Hearts Reviewer: Tams Blurb: A twenty-something paramedic suffering from PTSD and a failing relationship with his high school sweetheart becomes embroiled in the tragic life of a young, gay man brutally beaten, raped, and left for dead.
Kane Abel can’t help falling for his caregiver, the handsome paramedic who saves his life, but he’s resistant. The one time Kane threw caution to the wind, he was left with a wired jaw and a tracheotomy. He can’t take much more hurt. But with his attacker’s promise to return, Kane lives in a constant state of fear, and with the ever-present paramedic, arousal.
Garrett Young struggles with the question of his sexuality, unable to get Kane out of his mind even as he fights against the demise of his long-time engagement with his girlfriend Amanda. Every day is complicated by his ongoing battle with PTSD and alcoholism, compounded by his fear for Kane’s life.
Review: Kane Abel is violently attacked and left on the steps of his apartment building to die. Thankfully, a neighbour finds him and calls the police, and then an angel saves him.
Kane has always used his super model good looks to his advantage, but after the attack leaves him severely scared mentally, physically and emotionally, he’s out of sorts. He can’t go home alone. His attacker promised him he would be back for him. He can’t work with a tube in his throat and a gash across his face. When his saving angel volunteers to care for him for a while so he can heal, Kane is hesitant. Garrett is tall, dark and handsome and does things to Kane’s libido that shouldn’t be possible considering what he just went through. None the less, Garrett penetrates his defenses with his trustworthy smile and flirtatious attitude.
Garrett Young is just as damaged and screwed up inside as Kane is. His mother died in a fire when Garrett was just a child, trying to get to him, so he’s blamed himself every day of his life since. He became a fire fighter to try to quiet the demons that fire left inside him, but an accident on the job left him scared physically as well. He is drawn to the broken down kindred spirit he sees in Kane.
The fact that Kane is the most beautiful thing Garrett has ever laid eyes on, beaten and scared or not, certainly adds to the attraction. But Garrett is straight, and engaged. To spite the mountain of reasons these two should not be together, attraction wins in the end. There is still that pesky serial killer out there to contend with, and the man doesn’t seem to want to let Kane live, much less let him go.
I’m of mixed emotions about this book. It was a very, very dark storyline, graphic and indecent at times. I was disturbed when Garrett had sex with Kane just days after he was so brutally raped, attacked and left for dead. Another glitch for me was the complete 180 that Donovan did there at the end, as well as Garrett’s dad. There were aspects of this story that were so unnerving. I think that I need therapy after reading it.
That being said, the mystery and suspense were spectacular. This book is worthy of an episode of Criminal Minds. Rakes brilliantly wove the characters together in this game of cat and mouse, and left me truly wondering until almost the last page if they would catch the sick bastard or not. And even if they did, would Kane survive? I enjoyed the odd romance that grew between Kane and Garrett and how they wound up saving each other in a way in the end.
I have to put it out there, if you have triggers, be sure to read the synopsis and reviews for this story before diving in. There are scenes of rape, murder and brutality. I’m not even kidding about this being a script for Criminal Minds! If you like the murder mystery, mind fuck type of stories that are deeply rooted in reality, then you’ll like the intensity of this story.
* I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review through http://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com *
