Seventh Window Publications
Novel
3.5 Pants Off
Blurb:
Escaping the past isn’t easy, especially when the scars left behind are a constant reminder that trust and love can hurt.
Michael McKnight knows what it means to be on the run from memories. Years ago, after fleeing an abusive relationship, he was brutally stabbed and left for dead. His only savior had been a compassionate stranger he’d only gotten a glimpse of before slipping into the blackness that claimed him.
For Michael, recovery was an arduous and hard fought return to some semblance of normalcy. He rebuilds his life, spending his waking hours buried in work and fighting to forget the past. And his life seems to be going well until he finds out that his cousin Wayne is being held captive in a mental asylum for being gay. So he buys a plane ticket and flies out to rescue his cousin.
But the weather is against Michael, keeping him grounded and talking to a man who claims that he’d once saved his life and is willing to help him rescue his cousin. Can this man be for real or is something more sinister in the works?
Review:
I started off really liking this book a lot, but towards the end of it, I just liked it. It was all over the place for me by the end of it and the quality that I was enjoying in the beginning diminished by the end of the book.
Michael has been to hell and back after the man he loved tried to kill him. The relationship wasn’t perfect to begin with, and his lover was abusive but he loved him so Michael overlooked the pain. When he decided that he’s had enough, lover boy decided he’s not getting away that easy and corners him in an alley way.
Rebuilding his life after suffering near death Michaels trusts no one, and only finds comfort in his job and the kids he saves. When his cousin is being made a prisoner by his evil stepmother, Michael decides he’s going to save him something he should have done years ago. Well the task won’t be easy because there’s some sinister plans at play here. Then walks in a beautiful stranger from his past, a man he owes his life to and Michael is caught in a cat and mouse game. Can he give his heart and trust again or will he forever be burnt by those he chooses to love?
Alright, I was really enjoying the book because I loved Michael’s snarky comments and his fiery personality. I loved Cash, though he’s all sketchy but I always got the feeling that there was more to him than meets the eye. I think the story became just way… too over the top ¾ of the way through and eye roll numerous came out in full speed.
Believable situations became unbelievable by the over dramatic carry on of the characters, and they just went off topic too much for my liking. It was just one crazy situation after another, and throw in some cliché happenings and it lost me. The story does touch on some serious topics, but I felt it was overshadowed by the continuous curveball of events that kept being thrown at me.
I really do like Michael, but dude can’t seem to keep his head in the game and he mostly made those serious scenes all comical. This could just be all me, but I fear it happened too many times for me to be wrong. As I mentioned before, by the end of it I just wanted the book to be done with, and I don’t know what happened when it started off all excellent.
Overall, I did enjoy reading this book but it was much longer than necessary. I did like some of the characters and most I could have done without. In this case, it should have been kept a lot simpler and I know I would have loved it. I do enjoy Michele’s writing style and will be picking up more of her books for sure. I really wanted to like this one more.
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| 3 1/2 Pants Off |
