The Hunter by Erica Chilson

17721762Title: The Hunter

Series:  Mistress and Master of Restraint (Book 10)

Author: Erica Chilson

Genre: MM/MMF/Polygamy/BDSM/Incest

Length: Novel (311 pages)

Publisher: Erica Chilson (August 16, 2013)

Heat Level: Explicit

Heart Rating: ♥♥ 2 Hearts

Reviewer: Seeker

Blurb: Cortez Abernathy, the modern day whipping boy. The orphan always walked alongside the man he was destined to shadow, enjoying the wealth, the indulgences, the influence, and the opportunities of the elite. Ezra Holden Zeitler was coddled, protected because he was the last of his family’s line. The heir would act out, and fearing Ezra’s tantrums and his mental illness, Cortez took the blame… the consequences… the punishments.

From the outside looking in, Cortez is selfish, lazy, and untrustworthy. Cortez tries to scream the truth, but no one ever takes him seriously- never listens. “Ezra did it!” In actuality, Cort is brutally honest while his lips twist into a charming smirk and his eyes glisten with amusement.

This life, this game, Ezra, has taken a toll on Cortez. The whipping boy only had one thing to call his own. It was inborn, a passion for words. The latest punishment rendered Cortez blocked, left to walk an endless abyss of an empty imagination. Without Cort’s ability to delve into his imaginary worlds, he was forced to live in reality.

Lost… confused… Cortez Abernathy struggles to survive.

One simple acknowledgement frees Cortez’s words. “Daddy.” The muse awakens from her long slumber and demands that Cortez go back to the beginning. Cortez Abernathy begins writing a memoir, The Hunter. As he pours his soul onto the pages, he begins to heal.

No longer lost or confused, Cortez realizes he doesn’t have to walk in Ezra’s shadow. Whether beside Ezra or without Ezra, Cortez will survive.

Purchase Link: http://www.amazon.com/Hunter-Mistress-Master-Restraint-ebook/dp/B00ELXI1J4/ref=la_B007X9QDRK_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1381636617&sr=1-1

Review: Cortez, Ezra, and Katya are dealing with some very real issues that crop up sooner or later in some polyamorous relationships.  And like most poly relationships, their household is more than just the three of them.  They are a family with children.  And like their children, they too have grown up in and around the affluent and the powerful, the sadistic and the masochist.  But Cortez does not know who he is, other than totally in love with Ezra.    

Erica Chilson’s 10th instalment of her series Mistress and Master Restraint is not for the faint of heart.  Snuggle up; get good and comfy, because even if you are a dedicated fan of the series, you are in for a bumpy read. 

Was it the incestuous (cousins) relationship?  True, that is a limit of mine, but I read on.  Was it the polyamorous lifestyle they lived? No. That was familiar.  I had experience with, no limit there.  Was it the BDSM? Have we met? Hardly.   Even when the predictable storyline screamed stop!  The writing…the writing flowed.  The characters had depth (and I like to believe, not having read the other nine of the series, these were all incidental characters) and emotional gravitas. 

However, the constant chapter past/present/present flashing proved too much. I cut my teeth on writers who were masters and mistresses of the art of flashbacks and flash forwards and sideways but this novel Wily Wonker’ed me to distraction following Cortez around his life. 

There even seemed to be more than a few moments when I truly believed that this might have been a Paranormal story because the author could have quite smoothly gone in that direction and then my only reaction would have been, “Well, d’uh.  Finally!” 

While I was trying to decide which one of us, the main character or myself needed to try the better living through chemistry route I perused the other reviews of this novel.  You will be happy to note that I am in the minority.  Apparently, there is a twist-ending cliffhanger you won’t see coming.  So I won’t spoil it for you here