11/23/2016

Hunt The Dawn by Abbie Roads

Abbie, you got me again! This novel has IT ALL - and a lot more. Sounds confusing? Maybe it does, but after you´ve read it, you´ll understand what I mean. Dark, bloody, and cruel scenes as well as some very hot ones – be prepared for everything. This book is the perfect combination of the darkest of humankind with a romantic touch. And when you thought that Race The Darkness was already shocking in some ways then think again – because this one tops it all! After I´ve read the first book of this trilogy, I expected something dark, beautifully written, and with scenes that go beyond everything, you can imagine. Well, what can I say? She did it again. Don´t know exactly how, but she got me with every sentence, with every page deeper and deeper into an emotional rollercoaster at it’s finest.

Hunt The Dawn*

by Abbie Roads
Fatal Dreams Trilogy #2
Publisher Sourcebooks Casablanca on December 6, 2016
Genre Dark Contemporary Romance
Pages 352
Format Paperback
Source ARC by Author

Goodreads

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You can´t hide your secrets from Lathan Montgomery – he can read your darkest memories. And while his special abilities are invaluable in the FBI´s hunt for a serial killer, he has no way to avoid the pain that brings him. Until he is drawn to courageous, down-on-her-luck Evanee Brown and finds himself able to offer something he´s never offered another human being: himself. Nightmares are nothing new to Evanee Brown. But once she meets Lathan, they plummet into the realm of the macabre. Murder victims are reaching from beyond the grave to give Evanee evidence that could help Lathan bring terrifying killer to justice. Together, they could forge an indomitable partnership to thwart violence, abuse, and death – if they survive the forces that seek to tear them apart.

Story

Lathan can read the memories of other people. An ability that causes him pain and something he would rather not have. He works for the FBI and lives a lonely life far away from others. The silence of his home is the only comfort he gets in his head. Until the moment he meets Evanee. With her everything changes. Not only that he recognizes in her a troubled soul as well, he also gets fascinated by her. Something about her makes him feel whole and complete.

Style

The easy and light stuff isn´t Abbie Roads´ way and will probably never be. And yet there are some easy and light moments in her novels. She shows what true feelings, true love can look like. What it means to be really one with each other without losing itself. Abbie Roads plays with the darkest parts of a human soul, with fear, with everything a tortured soul and body can give and have. In Hunt The Dawn the plot is even crueler. There is child abuse of the cruelest kind, sexual abuse, and the rejection of a mother towards her only son. You will see a lot of things you probably don´t like or have trouble with reading. But it is part of the story, part of what her figures are, and in combination with the blunt language and her great comparisons she haunts you from the very first line to the last. 

Yes, the story becomes darker and yes, it seems unbearable what her figures had to endure at some point in their life or still have to. But the author manages to show all that in a way that you can read it. You will get haunted by it, that´s for sure – if not, you can´t be human.

Characters

None of her figures has had an easy life. They all have some sort of pain, bad experiences, troubled childhood, or other things that you usually don´t call normal. Her characters, or at least her main ones, are not perfect beauties. Not in a common way – and that is exactly what makes them so perfect, so brilliant in what they are, how they feel, act, and think. Yes, they are attractive, her men are all tall guys and her women have something special. And yes, they do fascinate the reader’s eye in every possible way. But it doesn´t feel unreal. 

Evanee is a character I didn´t know at first what to think of. On one hand, I pictured her as a young woman who has a terrible past and tries to make the best out of her life now. On the other hand, I was astonished by how naïve, how trusting, and how unknowingly she could be. 

Lathan is a man, I was curious about. In the first book, he has only a few scenes where you could only get a glimpse of him. There he seemed dark, silent, and very mysterious. In Hunt The Dawn you get the answers to why he reacted the way he did towards Xander. Not because he is arrogant, not remotely, no. He is almost deaf since a terrible incident happened in his childhood. And the reason behind his tattoo is astonishing as much as sad – at least that´s the way how I felt about it.

Conclusion

I was in an emotional turmoil after I had finished it. This novel has left me in a mix of shock, being deeply moved, and with the feeling as if a mountain would lie across my chest. My throat felt like constrict and I needed some time to sort everything out and go back to normal again. Yes, this novel had a deep impact on me; maybe more than Race The Darkness had. Highly recommended.

Happy reading

*I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

Abbie Roads

Abbie Roads is a 2014 Golden Heart Finalist with her romantic suspense novel Dangerous Dreams.  Her writing is darkly emotional, but she always gives her damaged characters the happy ending she wishes for all her clients. She’s a mental health counselor known for her blunt honest style of therapy and her shoes. Abbie Roads believes that many of life’s problems can be solved with a kick-ass pair of heels and a chocolate martini—or three.  If that doesn’t work—seek professional help.

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