Rating: 3.5 stars
Buy Link: Amazon | iBooks | Amazon UK
Length: Novel
Isaac had found his place in the army, but an injury forced him to be discharged. He has scars inside and out and PTSD that seems to be a way of life now. Isaac liked the feeling of purpose he found in the military and he liked being part of a close team. His older brother is the VP of the Black Death Riders Motorcycle Club and he suggests that Isaac prospect for them. Isaac agrees, as he needs a brotherhood to belong to, but he wasn’t expecting Thanatos. Thanatos is the President of the club and has a darkness that clings to him, but Isaac can’t look away.
Thanatos has not been the same since his sister was killed. He blames himself and he is out for vengeance. He can’t rest for a minute and won’t allow himself a moment of happiness or peace. And then Isaac walks into his club and Thanatos feels things he hasn’t felt in a long time or maybe ever. Thanatos tries to resist Isaac every step of the way, but the chemistry between them is impossible to stay away from.
But the club is at war with a dangerous rival and Thanatos’ destructive ways could put him at risk. Thanatos doesn’t care as much about himself, as he wants his revenge, but putting Isaac in danger wasn’t part of the plan and now Thanatos might not be able to save him.
It’s been a while since I read a book set around a motorcycle club and Amy Thorn is a new author to me and, from what I can see, this is the author’s debut book. The book edges darker, but with a lot of the violence either being off page or having happened in the past, it is not overrun with violent images.
The book moves fast and it was a quick read, even given the subject matter. Told from both Isaac’s and Thanatos’ first person POVs, we are dropped into their lives already in motion. Isaac never thought a motorcycle club would be his life, but with his brother there, Isaac knows he needs a place to belong after leaving the military. However, he trades one battle for another. When Isaac and Thanatos meet for the first time, they both know there is something between them, but with Isaac being a prospect and Thanatos set on revenge and self-destruction, they odds are against them from the start.
The pull between the men is heated at first glance. It’s not only the physical though, as all of their thoughts are on display and they just read each from the start. I felt there was a lot of repetition to their thoughts as for many chapters we are only told the basics of what Thanatos is fighting for. He references his sister over and over and how he needs vengeance, but it went around and around a little too long for me until we are told exactly what happened to her.
For as dark as Thanatos is described as being, his thoughts run softer when he thinks about Isaac, and his sister, and then his brothers in the club. It worked to show why Isaac was attracted to him, but it also made Thanatos seem to have two personalities that were too distinct for me from one another at times. The book is all about the revenge that Thanatos needs and I never got a larger sense of what else the club does. The book is also set in England and the author alerts us to that with a note in the beginning explaining the British spellings of words, but besides that I never felt a strong sense of place for this book.
I liked meeting Thanatos and Isaac. Although their relationship happens quickly, their character development and chemistry helped to make it work. The book ends on a cliffhanger and I’m in to see how the rest of their story plays out.
