Review: Hurts so good
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 12 28, 2011
I had to take a moment to center my thoughts before writing this review because I wanted to convey how much I really enjoyed this read. Cameron Dane has been an "auto-buy" for me for quite some time and while some of the books are not as strong as others, I have enjoyed every book I've purchased. This one was certainly no exception.Summary: War veteran Hunter Tennison returns home physically and emotionally scarred. Unable to bear feeling anything, Hunter uses pain to quiet the chaos and to keep his emotions from destroying him. Hunter dare not risk falling in love. He can't let anyone get close enough to see the violence inside him.In business and relationships, Alexander Quick is practical and rational. The first time Alex looks into Hunter's eyes, he sees the damaged soul within, and adamantly tells himself not to get involved. Too many things could go haywire with a volatile man like Hunter, and Alex doesn't enter into relationships where he cannot predict the outcome.Then Alex learns his mentor is ill. The news sends him reeling. Alex suddenly sees his life isn't as perfect as he thought. An ache for something meaningful stirs in Alex, and Hunter's broken soul draws him in like a beacon on the blackest night.Two men, one running like hell from love and the other opening himself to the emotion for the first time, collide. Hunter and Alex begin a darkly sexual relationship bound to explode. In the aftermath, can Alex make Hunter believe their love is powerful enough to heal his scars?Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: male/male sexual practices, self-injury, spanking.What I liked about this book: While reading the book, I imagined how difficult this book must have been to write. It certainly was difficult to read. I ached for Hunter while experiencing each torturous moment with him and the flashbacks into Alex and Hunter's lives just made the story more poignant. With each slice into his own skin and brutal memory of Hunter's past, I felt more and more enraptured in his story.Dane likes to break "the rules" in the romance genre which is why I enjoy the books so much. Knowing they will have a happy ever after is what I love most about romances and several times while reading this book I worried the elusive HEA would not arrive. It didn't deter my reading though. I just spurred me to read more. It was really like watching a real-life relationship unfold and therein lies the reason I love Dane's books so much. They're not sugar-coated, pretty little boxes wrapping up a tender love story. They're gritty, hard-core erotic portrayals of what real romance is.With Hunter and Alex's story, Dane did not disappoint!