One Kick

What is it about?

Kick Lannigan, 21, is a survivor. Abducted at age six in broad daylight, the police, the public, perhaps even her family assumed the worst had occurred. And then Kathleen Lannigan was found, alive, six years later. In the early months following her freedom, as Kick struggled with PTSD, her parents put her through a litany of therapies, but nothing helped until the detective who rescued her suggested Kick learn to fight. Before she was thirteen, Kick learned marksmanship, martial arts, boxing, archery, and knife throwing. She excelled at every one, vowing she would never be victimized again. But when two children in the Portland area go missing in the same month, Kick goes into a tailspin. Then an enigmatic man Bishop approaches her with a proposition: he is convinced Kick's experiences and expertise can be used to help rescue the abductees. Little does Kick know the case will lead directly into her terrifying past…

My Thoughts....

I gave this book a 2 out of 5 stars.

I was really looking forward to this book. I was disappointed in it, mainly because it seemed so scattered and like there was so much missing. The whole story seemed to be eluding to something that was never explained. Bishop appears out of no where and Kick takes off with him, a complete stranger who she knows nothing about. I would think that someone who was kidnapped and kept as a sex slave for 5 years would be more cautious about who she takes off with. Especially if she spent the last 10 years of her life training herself in combat and such. The character of Kick didn't fit with her actions.
Second, I have no idea how the connection was made between Adam's abductor and her "brothers" abduction. Maybe the pictures of the dark haired boys they found? Again, it was only eluded to and I'm not positive that was it. 
Overall, I found the book to be a complete set up for the series. It left a lot of unanswered questions about the characters, who some of them worked for and why they did the things they did. I get that it is known to be the beginning of a series, but I like a series that is made up of stand alone books, not one that is set up so that the reader has to buy the next book to figure out what happened and why in the last book. 

*Note: At the time that I was writing this review, I had seen some very disturbing messages from the author posted on her facebook page in which she actually swore at her fans and essentially made fun of them for asking her questions in which she felt they could find the answers elsewhere. This definitely colored my opinion of her and more than likely my review. While you can be a mean person and still write wonderful novels, I feel like I shouldn't support an author who can be horrible to her fans. Chelsea Cain is a wonderful author, I thoroughly enjoyed her previous series and I hope that her posts on her Facebook page were a slip of the mind and that she realizes as an author who puts herself out there to interact with her readers that she should expect interaction and that sometimes this means answering questions that have been asked before and the more than likely have been answered elsewhere. If she hasn't already I really think she needs to apologize to her fans.

Undeniable Series

   

While each of these books are great individually, they really need to be read as part of the series. Each one is definitely a stand alone in that you don't need to have read the others to follow the story line, but they do share characters. To get the full effect of the characters I recommend reading them in order. There are more books to the series, three more as far as I know. Number 4 has been recently published and there are two more to come. I will add them as I read them.

Each story follows a member of the Hell's Horsemen MC. They are raw, erotic and down and dirty. If you are easily offended you may not enjoy these. In fact, the books come with a disclaimer from the author, for example: "Warning: This is not a virtuous and tender love story. It’s chaotic, ruthless, and tragic. This story takes love and kills its innocence, steals away the pure moments, and crushes the hearts of the broken. A story born in childhood, tying one girl to one boy, leads to a destructive path—that hurts more than it doesn’t, that shatters more than it heals—testing the love that binds the two through a lifetime. " That said, I loved all of the characters in all of the books so far and I absolutely can't wait to read the rest.

If you would like to learn more about this series and read  the description of each individual book, you can check them out here. 

Necessary Lies

What is it about?

Bestselling author Diane Chamberlain delivers a breakout book about a small southern town fifty years ago, and the darkest—and most hopeful—places in the human heart

After losing her parents, fifteen-year-old Ivy Hart is left to care for her grandmother, older sister and nephew as tenants on a small tobacco farm.  As she struggles with her grandmother’s aging, her sister’s mental illness and her own epilepsy, she realizes they might need more than she can give.

When Jane Forrester takes a position as Grace County’s newest social worker, she doesn’t realize just how much her help is needed.  She quickly becomes emotionally invested in her clients' lives, causing tension with her boss and her new husband.  But as Jane is drawn in by the Hart women, she begins to discover the secrets of the small farm—secrets much darker than she would have guessed.  Soon, she must decide whether to take drastic action to help them, or risk losing the battle against everything she believes is wrong.

Set in rural Grace County, North Carolina in a time of state-mandated sterilizations and racial tension, Necessary Lies tells the story of these two young women, seemingly worlds apart, but both haunted by tragedy.  Jane and Ivy are thrown together and must ask themselves: how can you know what you believe is right, when everyone is telling you it’s wrong?

My Thoughts....

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars!

Another amazing book by Diane Chamberlain! I could not stop reading this, it was such a great story. Although it was not a true story, I'm sure there were many situations like the ones described in this book that many women and men found themselves in. It doesn't surprise me that such a program existed and it doesn't surprise me that it was essentially hidden from the public for so long. I was so proud of Jane for sticking by her beliefs and doing what she believed to be right. I could feel myself getting annoyed at her husband for not supporting her, however I know that at the time of the story this was the way things were between women and men. I am so glad that I didn't grow up feeling de-valued that way because I am a women. 

This book touched on many issues in society- poverty, human rights, racism, class-ism, loyalty, family and many more. However, the overall theme that I found in this book is stand up for your beliefs and be a voice for those who need to be heard but can't be because of the above list and societies perception of them.

Going Down Swinging

What is it about?

A remarkable debut novel and bittersweet tale of the unflinching love and devotion between a mother and daughter.Razor sharp and darkly funnyGoing Down Swinging chronicles two years in the life of the Hoffmans. Eilleen Hoffman has just told Danny, her con-artist lover and father of her youngest daughter Grace, to get out — for good. Once a teacher, Eilleen lived a middle-class life, but her taste in men coupled with a predilection for pills and booze has brought her down. Desperate to prevent her family from sinking deeper into poverty, Eilleen reluctantly goes on welfare. Eventually she turns to the only friends she has left, hustlers and hookers, to learn how a woman makes fast money, no investment necessary.With Eilleen on welfare and her older daughter Charlotte a teenaged runaway, child welfare authorities descend on the Hoffmans. As Eilleen trails through several attempts at drying out, the well-intentioned Children's Protection Society finally intervenes to apprehend Grace. With the threat of prolonged separation now a stark reality, Eilleen and Grace must rally to confront their demons with grit, determination and humour. Unblinkingly observed and brilliantly written, Going Down Swinging is about the powerful bond between mother and child. And with her skilful narrative interplay, Billie Livingston illustrates poignantly how the truth of our stories lies not so much in the black and white, as it does in the grey.

My Thoughts....

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars

I found this to be a very emotional book. I don't know how anyone who hasn't been a part of the child protection system could write such an accurate portrayal of it. Every character in this book was real, you can find people similar to them in any town. The author developed each one perfectly- emotionally, psychologically and physically. She also told the same story from every side- the parent, the child, the social worker, the family friends and even the police. I felt like I was reading the other side to the case history of any child I could potentially work with someday. It is an excellent book to teach empathy, meaning making and point of view. It is also a great example of how our experiences impact how we see the world around us. I loved it!