Captive Hearts Deviant Hearts Book 1
Gay Contemporary Romance
February 23, 2018
308
“Too young, too blond, too skinny. Billy Grace was everything my head told me I didn’t want. Too bad my heart had other ideas.”
When Dashiell Slater uses his fists to stop a vicious assault, the last thing he expects is to be offered a job as reward for being a Good Samaritan. Out of work and short of cash, all he has to do is chauffeur Billy around. It’s easy money so saying yes should be a no-brainer. And if the offer’s not quite legal, so what? Dashiell’s smart and savvy, and knows how the world works. But there are strings attached, and Dashiell doesn’t want to get entangled. He’s ready to say no and walk away – until he sees the fear, despair and fathomless sadness in Billy’s jade-green eyes.
“He was everything I wanted, but couldn’t have. What was the use in dreaming when I was already bought and paid for, the property of another man?”
Billy’s life is a daily round of fear and abuse. One wrong word or one wrong look can mean a beating, or worse. Dashiell’s everything Billy’s heart craves – a man who’ll love and protect him, who’ll keep him safe and catch him when he falls. But Billy can’t have what he yearns for, because to give in to his heart means breaking a promise he’s vowed to keep at all costs.
A soul-searing kiss, a whispered promise, and the chance of a future together is there for the taking. But life is never that simple and danger surrounds them at every turn. Imprisoned by devotion, duty and obligation, Billy’s heart is captive, but can falling for Dashiell finally set it free?
Captive Hearts is a full-length novel of approx. 79,000k words and is the first in the Deviant Hearts series
Review by Gloria Lakritz
Review Chair & Sr Reviewer for the Paranormal Romance Guild
I am so excited to be reviewing a new to me author; A E Ryecart. This author was recommended to me from a friend, and I will be forever grateful. The first book in this Deviant Heart series had a really difficult theme.
Abuse of any kind is hard to read, the person being abused is in such a terrible position. That being said, a person putting themselves under the power of an abuser for the love for another person’s care and safety is doubly hard.
This is the position Billy Grace finds himself , as we meet him in the restroom of a gay club being attacked by thugs…..This is where Dashiell Slater Good Samaritan finds him and fights the men leaving them bloody. Dashiell has never seen anything as beautiful as Billy and this is how he and we are introduced into Billy’s world.
Dashiell helps Billy back to his friends table at the club and meets Frank a ‘big boss’ of sorts. Frank offers Dashiell a job to be a driver for Billy along with odd jobs as his gratitude. With Dashiell wanting to see and learn more about Billy, he accepts and is brought into a bit of the underworld.
While our author never put us thru the actual abuse, we do see the direct degradation and aftermath of the physical abuse. Dashiell becomes ensconced in trying to sort this all out and save Billy. Our author allows this process not to be rushed and we see how Billy is in this situation.
This book is a wonderful read, with trust and love trying to overcome darkness. I can’t wait for Lee’s story.
