8.17.2022 | Wednesday

Chains

category: Book Reviews
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Chainstitle: Chains
author: S.J. Rowe
series: Hounds of the Reaper MC #1
published: 17 August 2022
genre(s): romance
pages: 383
source: client
format: manuscript
buy/shelve it: Amazon | Goodreads

rating: three-half-stars | series rating: four-stars

the blurb

Maddy —

I don’t do commitments. And I don’t stay in a place long enough to get attachments either. But now I’ve got two after my only friend calls in a favor that’s long overdue. Hiding myself is one thing, but hiding with two kids who have never known happiness is harder than expected. Especially when he comes knocking. Well, more like demanding and riding a Harley.

Chains —

The system failed me. Got me locked up for a crime I didn’t commit. Five years is a long time to want justice, but all I want once I get out is to find my sister’s kids. She died while I was locked away, and I refuse to be separated from my family a minute longer.
I can’t believe this chick won’t give me my kids. That’s fine. I can wait this out. I learned how to play nice behind bars for five years. What’s a few more days of pretending to be the good guy before I get what I want? And I always get what I want.
Just never expected that I’d want her and would be willing to go to war to keep her.

Chains is the first book in the Hounds of the Reaper biker romance series. If you like strong women, possessive men, and a sizzling romance with bikers, you'll love SJ. Rowe's newest series.

Pick up Chains today to discover your love for the Hounds of the Reaper MC and the women that bring these alpha males to their knees.


my review

Chains has the bones of a great story. Chains is a biker, recently released from prison after having been wrongfully convicted. Maddy, once a friend of Chains’ sister, has found her life turned upside down when she unexpectedly becomes the caretaker to his niece and nephew. Her life has been hard, but the two children found their way into her heart immediately. Her life, once solitary and in the shadows, is now totally centered on them and on protecting them, even if that means refusing Chains when he comes to collect them.

Their stories, together and separately, are not the stuff of fairy tales. Both of them have been to hell and back, and have the scars to prove it. They came together because of the kids, but watching their relationship grow through uncertain waters was engrossing. I loved that aspect, as well as the suspense elements. Those parts of the plot were well crafted and intriguing.

But as much as the story had the ability to pull me in, there was one thing that really bothered me. Although, full disclosure, this may well be a personal taste thing, especially in this genre. Admittedly, I don’t always love the alpha male trope, which sometimes feels so over the top that it becomes a caricature. And that tends to rub my independent self the wrong way. But that wasn’t the case in this, wasn’t what bothered me. What bothered me was Chains attitude about sex. It was very clear that he had very different standards for sex with the club bunnies and with old ladies. Essentially, he said that he could and would do whatever he wanted with a club bunny, whether they wanted it or not. In other words, rape was perfectly okay when it came to these throwaway women. That bothered me.

About S.J. Rowe

After traveling all over the world as a child, S.J. Rowe has found a home in the southwest with her husband. She continues to visit exotic destinations around the world with her best friends, and when she is home, she splits her time between watching baseball and singing in the car. To unwind, she finds herself enjoying a good cup of coffee while curled up watching Star Wars.

Rating Report
plot
three-stars
characters
three-half-stars
writing
four-stars
pacing
four-stars
Overall: three-half-stars
::spread the love::

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