Review: The Terms of Release by B.A. Tortuga

Reviewed by Whuppsy
The Terms of Release by B.A Tortuga
Dreamspinner Press
Novel: 24opgs
4 Pants Off

Blurb:
They say a man can always come home. So after doing hard time, Sage Redding heads to his family’s northeast Texas ranch to help his ailing daddy with the cutting horses. 

Adam (Win) Winchester is a county deputy and the cousin of one of the men killed in the incident that sent Sage to prison for almost a decade. While Win's uncles, Jim and Teddy, are determined to make Sage and the entire Redding family pay for their loss, Win just figures Sage has paid his dues and maybe needs a friend. Maybe he needs more than a friend. In fact, Win’s counting on it. 

No one’s denying Sage is an ex-con who went to prison for manslaughter. Regardless of the love he has for his father, he’s returned knowing things will likely go badly for him. Maybe a man can always come home, but he may not be able to stay.

Review
Well, this book was so…wow. I’m not really sure how I can put into words what I’m feeling right now. This book had me just all over the place.

Sage Redding is this young man who has been out of prison for about a year. He’s trying to do the best he can living and surviving. He has served his time and now he’s just trying to survive. He gets a dreaded call from his Momma to come home to help with the family ranch. He’s this really sweet, loving guy who just wants to work with horses and help his family. He knows that going home is going to be hard, but it’s his family and he is going home.

Adam “Win” Winchester is this deputy in the small Texas town. He’s a bit of an outsider himself as he doesn’t automatically hate Sage the way the men in his family does. He’s always thought for himself and he’s going to go his own way and not be bullied to do something that he doesn’t think is right. He’s this really kind and loving guy who is just looking to have a life of his own. Adam has a heart and isn’t afraid to follow it.

The secondary characters in this book just made my heart just beat a bit faster. Sage’s family is just wonderful. Their love and acceptance of who he is was just beautiful to see. Wilma and Bulldog are so accepting of Sage and it’s beautiful to see people just showing kindness and their good hearts. I loved Adam’s Momma. She was a hoot and a half. She had such unconditional love for Adam and stood up for those who tried to hurt her son. Jim and Teddy were such horrible men, yet it what you’d expect from Old fashioned men who aren’t ok with anything that wasn’t their way. But the good in this story sure outweighed the bad.

I like that Adam felt that Sage needed a friend. Even though he was attracted to Sage, he wanted to let him know that he thought that he was ok and that someone else was on his side. That meant a lot to Sage, who figured being back there would be hard and would test his resolve, but he knew that he had to go. It was nice to see that as Adam fell in love with Sage, it became more than keeping him safe, it was about being together staying together as a couple. Facing their troubles together and knowing that there would be someone there to love and support them. It became about making a life together and not allowing anything or anyone to tear them apart.

This story had me reeling. I felt so much for Sage. All he went through just for wanting to come home again going to prison and the horrible things that happened to him there. Sage is a bitty thing. Adam calls him his pocket cowboy. So, you can just imagine the horrible things that he faced. Yet, he did what was necessary to survive and I can’t fault him for that. When he spoke to Adam about the things that had happened to him and the way he sounded was just so heartbreaking. Adam was furious on his behalf. I think most of it was because the Man that he loved suffered and had to go through that made him so very angry. I totally understood. Hell, I was pissed as hell and it was over a fictional character. There was love and hope and strength in this story. There had to be. Sage showed that he was stronger than anyone ever thought he is. To survive what he did, that says a bunch. His biggest thing was that he couldn’t go back to prison, so some of what he took, was with that fear of going back. I think that anyone understand those thoughts. I sure did.

I will say that I enjoyed this book a lot. It was nice to see that Adam and Sage as different as they seemed to be were so very alike where it counted. That love and compassion overruled those that had hate in their hearts. It was a story about hope. I think that was one of the most important themes that rang strongly throughout the entire story.

Read this book and go on this wonderful journey that at times will break your heart, but it will also show you love and hope and true courage.

4 Pants Off