4 1/2 HeartsReview written for MM Good Book Reviews
Will/Gar has spent the last forty years exacting vengeance on the guilty for the innocents they have killed. His Purpose, Vengeance, demands it as payment for strength, youth and mental powers. Vengeance: an entity that feeds on the souls of the guilty. When Gar meets Ryan he begins to lose the cold shell he has encased himself in and Will begins to emerge, emotions and feelings he hasn’t felt in years shock him, so what is it about Ryan that has drawn Will out of his long sleep. Ryan has been cast out by his family and meets Gar, not quite sure what to make of the man, getting to know Gar and the real man behind the façade, Will, leads to Ryan discovering something about himself that he finds a hard time getting his head around. Ryan challenges Will to rethink what his Purpose wants, but when the FBI get involved Ryan might be in more danger than ever before.
This is a brilliant, unique, slightly dark, gritty story that you just can’t put down. Will was taken as a host by an entity nearly forty years ago, since then he has buried himself beneath a cold emotionless façade, Gar, to carry out the vengeance that he has been called to do. When Gar meets Ryan there is something about the young man that calls to him and Will begins to re-emerge. Ryan is confused by Will but can’t help falling for the man who saved his life, but when he discovers what his Purpose requires he asks if there is another way to give it what it wants. Things get more complicated when Will tries to discover what it is about Ryan that ease’s him, and then Will discovers he is being tracked by an overzealous FBI agent who will stop at nothing to get Will.
I have to admit to being dragged into this story from the very first page, the opening scenes grip you as it leads you straight into meeting Gar and his Purpose Vengeance. As we progress through the book we can see the changes in Gar/Will as Ryan breaks through his shell. We see Will, a man who buried his emotions to dull the pain of loss, still getting to grips with his Purpose and evolving his relationship with the entity and finally beginning to understand just what the entity needs and requires. With Ryan you see a man who still has a long way to go before he is confident and secure, but also someone who will sulk and act like a brat when he doesn’t get his own way, which causes problems for Will.
The police and FBI angle was really good and while Will is willing to bargain with Detective Griffin, he wants nothing to do with Agent Barrington, these are aspects of the story you do not want to miss. The characters bring this story alive giving us a darkish gritty story of vengeance and justice. There’s entities from other planes, the innocent demanding vengeance, justice and revenge, the guilty paying for their crimes and two men feeling an instant connection and finding more in common than they thought.
This isn’t a book to miss if you want a unique storyline, great characters, vengeance galore, confusion, love and a brilliant ending.
