Keep Me Safe

Slow Burn #1

by Maya Banks

A sizzling story of a woman who risks her life and her heart to find a wealthy man’s missing sister — the first novel in a sexy new romantic suspense series from #1 New York Times bestselling author Maya Banks

When Caleb Devereaux's younger sister is kidnapped, this scion of a powerful and wealthy family turns to an unlikely source for help: a beautiful and sensitive woman with a gift for finding answers others cannot.

While Ramie can connect to victims and locate them by feeling their pain, her ability comes with a price. Every time she uses it, it costs her a piece of herself. Helping the infuriatingly attractive and impatient Caleb successfully find his sister nearly destroys her. Even though his sexual intensity draws her like a magnet, she needs to get as far away from him as she can.

Deeply remorseful for the pain he’s caused, Caleb is determined to make things right. But just when he thinks Ramie's vanished forever, she reappears. She’s in trouble and she needs his help. Now, Caleb will risk everything to protect her — including his heart....

Genres: Romance, Paranormal, Romantic Suspense, Contemporary, Audiobook, Suspense, Contemporary Romance

307 pages, ebook

First published October 7, 2014

About the author

Maya Banks is the #1 New York Times, #1 USA Today and international bestselling author of over 50 novels. A wife and mother of three, she lives in Texas.

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

review posted on Got Fiction? book blog


ETA: There is a spoiler (marked) in the comments. Trigger Warning for rape and abuse. Just a heads up in case it's not something you want to read


1.5
I don't even think it's worth the "it's ok" rating. This is 1.5 stars

Ramie was the weakest heroine I've ever come across. Ever. I get that's sort of the point-that she's broken, and scared, and weak right now, but the only strength I ever see in between her whispering and crying, was when it was time to play the martyr.

Our hero Caleb did something horrific to her, and she is never even mad. In my full review I think I'll spoil this [spoiled in comments-marked with a spoiler tag], because it needs to be talked about.

The ending was so abrupt that with the amount of damage done to Caleb and Ramie, I have a really hard time accepting that as a Happily Ever After, or even a Happily for now. They need therapy. Years and years of therapy. His love is not enough to fix what's wrong with her, and her forgiveness is not enough to rid him of what he did, let alone what the sociopath villain forced him to do.

I'm also over this author creating weak heroines. This is the second recent book where the heroine is so weak that the hero literally takes over running her life.

Now his family. My God, his family. What a bunch of dicks.

about 5 pages from the end, I DNF'd the book because of something one of his brothers said. Of course, once I cooled off, I finished it, but it wasn't worth it. This is a book that starts of forcefully and catches you up in the plot, only to have horrible things ruin what could have been a 5 star romantic suspense. We're left with a 1 star wanna be thriller. There is no romance at all. Whatsoever. A random dude who takes care of you and begins to run your life is not romance. There was no instalust to help this along and I truly felt the sex was completely inappropriate. (I'm so disgusted I can't even make an inappropriate sex joke right now). Basically, when you're traumatized and the hero knows you're traumatized, the last thing you need is sex. Ugh. All hail the magic peen. She will be healed through sex. Blergh. I'm done for now.

EDIT #2:

I've added the spoiler up here so you don't have to go hunting for it. It's still in the comments, but it's here now as well.
Also, I was originally going to rewrite this review but I think I'll leave it as is, since we've had so much discussion about it.

So Ramie can psychically connect with someone, right? Well, she used to help the police track down kidnap victims. She's trying to recover from her last case alone in a cabin in the mountains. Caleb hunts her down. He accuses her of being selfish by not sharing her gift with the world. He shoves his sister's scarf into Ramie's hands, and she's instantly connected to Tori. Right as Tori is raped.

Ramie's body shows all signs of everything she and Tori go through. For example, Tori is slapped, and Ramie's head jerks to the side from the blow. She feels it too, she has a hand print on her face too. During this, Caleb realizes what he's put Ramie through and feels sick, but when he sees her body realizes he's watching her/his sister get raped, he can't believe he put her through this. BUT it's emphasized over and over and over that he hates himself for it, but he'd do it again.

OK, so as soon as she tells him where to find his sister, he calls his brothers and the cops and his sister is found. But he leaves Ramie curled in the fetal position, alone in the mountains, and says he'll come back. Meanwhile, he basically caused her to go through a rape and he's just like bailing on her.
During this past year, Ramie was hiding from a stalker. She goes on the run. She eventually contacts Caleb after a year and says "You owe me." he's near obsessed with her and comes and saves her and takes her to his house. She's never mad at him. She is just like "Oh I understand. Of course you had to do that to me, you wanted your sister back." At least a small part of her should be mad.

The next big thing is that the killer establishes a psychic link with Caleb and has him cut Ramie up. Like torture. Nearly to death.
And the ending happens in less than 10 pages. You can't just have "I love yous" after that and have it end. Like it was no big thing.There needed to be a lot more afterwards. Therapy, more showing them healing, showing them trying to deal with the PTSD.

I mean, how is an alpha male hero going to deal afterwards when he’s been forced to carve into the very fragile love interest? He literally tortured her. She nearly bled to death. The bad guy got inside his head and forced him to hurt the woman he loves. Seriously, how does he come back from that? Certainly not with “I love you, let’s move on.”

Short review for the tl;dr :

Big fat nope.

***ARC courtesy of Avon

[KristenReviews · Rating 1 out of 5]

1 Star

I can't believe I'm giving one of Maya Banks books such a low rating but this book was awful. The characters were unlikable, the plot ridiculous, and the HEA eye-rollingly unbelievable. I adore this author but this was not her best work.

[Sabrina · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a big fan of Maya Banks' romantic suspense book, and when I saw that she did a paranormal series I knew it was going to be kick ass. Keep Me Safe lived up to most of my expectations, but not all of them.

I liked the plot and the story kept me very intrigued in the beginning. I had an insane need to know what would happen between Ramie and Caleb so I couldn't put this book down. I just can't help it, I'm a sucker for a damsel in distress kind of book sometimes.

The suspense aspect of the book was very well written, and I would expect nothing less from Ms. Banks. But it was the romance part that I had an issue with. It felt lacking and near the middle of the book it all seemed to just slow down to the point I was getting bored with it. Which is not what I was thinking this author would deliver.

I enjoyed the overall story and I'm still very interested in the other characters that will show up in this book, but I hope I get more romance from their books.

[Shawna · Rating 1 out of 5]

1 star – Romantic Suspense

This was over-the-top ridiculous. I didn’t feel the romance between the H/h, and after suffering so much abhorrent abuse and violence, their HEA seems impossible and totally unbelievable...even for Romancelandia. I’m surprised to be giving a Maya Banks book a 1-star rating, but this was just bad.

[XxTainaxX Curvy and Nerdy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to this on audiobook while at work :) While I felt this was well written, I struggled with the heroine's doormat tendencies. I get that not all female leads will be strong, independent, kick@$$ heroines, but they should have something that says she WANTS the hero more than NEEDS him. I felt at the end of the story that this poor woman was doomed to an asylum or she would off herself of the hero, Caleb, didn't step back into her life. It was kind of sad. I've never felt that for a character before at the end of the book: pity. Usually by then something tells me they've got their shit together and will be ok. Caleb was the strong alpha type and I liked how he was with her after he initially messed up. The way they develop as a couple was pretty sweet though largely based on protective instincts IMO. The plot is quite involved and has some very interesting paranormal elements. It flows well and everything ties together seamlessly. But for me, it feels overshadowed by her overall state. Safety: No OW/OM/Sharing. Condoms sometimes. h was a V. No rape. Yes to abuse.

[RachelW (BamaGal) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not really much to it, sugary sweet and cheesy. A perfunctory effort by an author who has been writing long enough to do better. Not particularly suspenseful or romantic. Another one of Banks chest beating "mine" alpha heroes and Insta-love stories, with a side order of psychic 'woo-woo' a la Shea in the KGI series. (That went over the top ridiculous at the end of the book). A group of brothers running a security firm. Remind you of KGI? Yeah; it was the Kelly brothers in a fortified mansion in Texas instead of a fortified compound in Tennessee. I'd honestly hoped for more, especially since the KGI series has tanked. Why in the world would she blatantly pattern after a series that has already failed?

It was just barely okay, super fans of Banks will enjoy it. Just don't expect anything new or different. A stalker, honestly? Like that trope hasn't been beat to death. Sigh...

[Jacqueline's Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Paperback Giveaway - > HERE

5 Sexy Suspenseful Stars!!!

Well, this little gem came out of NO WHERE. I loved Keep Me Safe. I really did. I’ve always been a fan of Maya Banks. She’s one of the first authors I picked up when I started to read new adult. I think after that, I never looked back.

Keep Me Safe was nothing what I expected. It was suspenseful with a paranormal twist and the romance will make any book reader happy.

Ramie is sort of a physic. She can tap into people’s minds by touching anything they own. She helps bring kidnapping victims home, but it comes with a price. Ramie feels everything the kidnaped feels. Since Ramie is good at what she does there is a particular kidnapper that has been stalking her. He doesn’t like that she helps saves his victims and he intends to hurt Ramie. He just needs to find her first.

Caleb’s sister is kidnapped and he will do anything to save her. He knows Ramie’s abilities and he wants to use Ramie to find his sister.

I'm not a good man, Ramie. In fact I am quit capable of killing and hurting someone without hesitation if I deem them a treat to someone I love

Ramie reluctantly helps Caleb. Caleb had no idea Ramie would feel his sister’s pain, but he can’t focus on that now. He needs to save his sister.

When I first started Keep Me Safe I was punched with so much and I couldn’t stop reading. All Caleb cares about is finding his sister and when you see the pain Ramie goes through in order to find her, oh it breaks your heart. I gobble this up like crazy. Ramie is concerned that Caleb found Ramie easily and Ramie is scared of her stalker. Ramie decides to go on the run for good.

I love me a damsel-in-distress storyline! If you don’t’ like Heroine’s being stalked by crazy killers, then this isn’t for you, but fortunately it’s 100% for me and that is why I enjoyed it so much. Ramie goes on the run, but it seems that every where she goes the stalker is always near, a little too close for comfort and so Ramie enlists Caleb to help Ramie. It’s the least he could do with everything he put her through right?

I love Caleb’s guilt. I love that he’s torn of what he did to Ramie, but he would do it all over again if it meant saving his sister. Caleb is my kind of Hero. He has this protectiveness that I crave, yet he has a Ramie complex. He wants her, but he has massive guilt.

Whether she liked it or not she was now fully under his care and protection and that meant in all areas

You do have someone to live for, Ramie. You have me

Keep Me Safe is no normal book. It goes way out there with physic stuff and suspenseful moments, but in all honestly it felt really fresh and I felt like I was on my toes most of the time. I also love the villain! I love to hate a villain and Maya Banks delivered for me. He is pure evil.

I also loved getting small glimpses of the brothers, since they will be apparent throughout the series. I can’t wait for the next book!

If you love Maya Banks or want to try a Maya Banks book, but want something a little different than the norm, then this one is for you.

An ARC was provided in exchange for an honest review

AMAZON

[Skyden · Rating 1 out of 5]

I am so utterly disappointed in this book. This is not the Maya Banks I know and love. Right from the start the writing was horrible. I felt like I was reading bad fan fiction or something. Honestly, this is more reminiscent of the quickly spun off tales you find with ebook only authors. The premise was interesting enough to snag my attention but what I've read so far (and I put it down half through to never pick up again) is crap. Just utter crap. The whole psychic hunting a psychic killer has been done before and it has been done well! If you were as disappointed by this book as I was, try a Kay Hooper Bishop series book. Some of the early books in that series were well written and scary, but they had characters you could connect with and an actual romance.

Here's a summary of what made me stop reading this book:

-Hero leaves our heroine in obvious distress after watching her go through everything his sister was apparently going through somewhere else in the world. He learns his sister is safe, but decides to leave the defenseless woman who just helped find his sister alone and in obvious agony.

-Hero has a thought that maybe our heroine might have never encountered sex as anything but rape and decides to go slow. Then tosses that out the window in favor of "just have sex because it'd be fun"...and sort of because she's freaking out and asking him to help her. Ooh, let me slip you my magic dick cure all!

-Hero's family is obviously deranged. One brother welcomes the heroine as the "change" his traumatized sister needs, then promptly changes his opinion a few hours later. The sister who was rescued by the woman is incredibly petulant and nasty. Here's a woman in obvious need of help with bruises on her face and she couldn't be bothered to at least thank her?

-Heroine has a migraine headache and it's so crippling she takes a pill. Then she not only continues on trying the think and remember facial features, she has sex with the hero...who knows she's having a horrific migraine and has just walked in to find her curled up and rocking in agony. Um-hmm. Sexy fun times are what migraines are made for...MAGIC DICK TIME!

-the sheer number of times I had to go back and reread what Banks had written to clarify what she'd actually meant. Two examples: 1) I started the book thinking Ramie was his sister's sister because the line "Ramie was his sister, Tori's, only hope" got twisted into Ramie was Tori's sister...which made me think "Well isn't she your sister too?" 2) Ramie encounters two other characters that are part of the Hero's team helping to protector her. She goes through a bunch of stuff with them present (touching a purse from a kidnapped victim, describing the killer, flipping the freak out and doing a lot of the rocking/panicky breathing thing) and then suddenly after she has a vision she's all "shocked" that they KNOW about her gift!! Oh my god! How could they know?! After trying to figure out how they didn't know, I put the book down and shook my head. It's honestly not worth finishing this blah jumble.

And, reading some other reviews on here, I'm actually pretty happy with my decision. So not worth my time! Maya Banks you are better than this!

[Dayla · Rating 1 out of 5]

Short review first appeared on my blog: Book Addict 24-7

I received a copy via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review

Keep Me Safe is the first Maya Banks novel I've ever read and I'm thinking that if her other novels are like this one, then I'm probably not going to read anything else by her. While the idea of the novel is pretty cool and promising, the characters are predictable, annoying, and way too dramatic, the romance is forced, obsessive, and too instant, and the storyline was rushed and full of plot holes.

Banks's novel is told from two perspectives: Caleb and Ramie. I had so many issues with these two characters because it was like Banks just needed to write a last minute story with two characters that fell completely flat. Caleb literally falls for a girl he forces to do something horrendous for him. Then, he spends a year pining for this mysterious girl, who holds no grudges against him. And even though she helped find someone Caleb loves, his family still hates her.
Seriously.

Ramie, on the other hand, is one of those characters who the author tries very hard to make an example of. She's supposed to be tough, independent, and brave. What I saw, however, was a girl who thought someone she'd seen a year before could be her saviour. She's the type of girl who, though she knows she's going to just end up hurting herself, does whatever she can to both a) appear heroic and brave and b) move the storyline along. She was infuriating. There are characters who are written as weak as one of their character traits, and then there are characters, like Ramie, who are weak because they are written weakly.
The overbearing "I must protect you at all costs because you're a fragile creature" act was made worse by Ramie allowing Caleb to not only continue his smothering of her, but enabling him by acting like a damsel in distress, when she's the one who got herself into certain situations in the first place.

The dialogue was overdramatic, the constant use of the descriptive phrase "bruise the skin" (or along those lines), and the translucent skin covering the final twist, made this such a blah book. I got through it because it was a quick read, but I was seriously disappointed.

Maybe if you like Maya Banks you'll enjoy this one, but this wasn't for me.

[Alex is The Romance Fox · Rating 1 out of 5]

The 1st book in Maya Banks Slow Burn Series.

This was such a disappointment - nothing excited me!!!

I found the characters totally unlikeable.........the heroine is a total wimp...always whining and moaning. The hero....let me not start!!! This is the most controlling and irritating man ever!!! The whole thing of feeling "bad" because he caused the heroine so much pain.........pleeeeezzzzzzzzzzzz.....

The plot....so over the top and totally unbelievable.

I am not convinced about this series. Maybe I should give it a chance and read book #2.

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Keep Me Safe by Maya Banks is a 2014 Avon publication.

Maya Banks is an author I have heard so much about, but for some reason I have only read a handful of her books. So, when it came to my attention that the fourth installment in the ‘Slow Burn’ series is due out later this month, I thought I would catch up on the series as quickly as possible before the new book is released. I was excited to see why this author is so popular, and was hoping to find a new romantic suspense series to follow.

Honestly, since I am not as familiar with the author’s writing style as many of her readers are, I can’t say if this is her best work, or if it is par for the course, or below average compared to her other work.

But, I have to confess I was not a big fan of this one. I’m fine with certain paranormal elements and I love romantic suspense, but this setup didn’t quite work for me.

Caleb was okay, I liked him well enough, but I didn’t care for the other Devereaux brothers due to their unreasonable response to Raime, but I’m sure their characters will improve as the series progresses. I liked Raime, but for those who like a kick butt heroine, who despite the physical and mental torment of having lived through countless attacks via her psychic connection to other victims, rises to the occasion and shows off her mental toughness, then you may find Raime a little too tepid. She was a little whiny and seemed to teeter on the edge of an emotional breakdown for the majority of the book, but did get old after a while. Ironically, I found that Tori is given permission to feel fragile, and is given all the time in the world to recover, while Raime’s emotional weakness is considered a flaw and is quite annoying. Even the other characters in the book, who should have been thankful to Raime, were a little hard on her. Go figure.

Overall, the plot was a kind of weak, the bad guy too shadowy, and the characters were hard to warm up to, but this is only the first book in the series, so perhaps things will firm up a little in the next installment. Here’s hoping!

This one gets 2 stars

[Penny Well Reads · Rating 2 out of 5]

Actual rating 1.5 stars

I can't say I enjoyed this book. I wasn't interested in the story or the characters.

[Kathleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review posted at: Swept Away By Romance

Story Rating ~ 2.5 Stars
Hero Rating ~ 3 Stars
Heroine Rating ~ 3 Stars
Romance Rating ~ 2.5 Stars
Heat Level ~ 3 Stars
Ending ~ 2 Stars
Overall Rating ~ 2.5 Stars

Keep Me Safe started out really good. I liked the direction the story line was going and loved that it was creepy. Then the story took a backwards slide and it took sometime before it picked back up.

I thought Caleb was a good character, but I found it hard to believe that he fell in love with Ramie so fast. I didn’t really feel the connection between them until the end of the book.

I loved Ramie's psychic abilities and I thought her back story was well done, however I got tired of her thinking she was a coward throughout most of the book.

There were a few sex/love scenes, but for me they were not up to Maya Banks’ usual sensual level. I felt some of them took place at a very inappropriate times, which made me feel that they were just added for the sake of adding a sex scene.

There were some fabulous action scenes and that’s what made the read for me. Without them this book would have been a bust.

I felt the way they caught the killer was not very believable , it was rushed, and would have loved for this part to be drawn out a little more.

I have to say that I thought the overall part of Ramie's abilities was a great touch, but it could have been a much better story if it would have continued on the eerie side, instead of the romance, which I felt fell flat in the end. It should have focused on one or the other.

*A copy of the book was provided in exchange for an honest review*

[Howard · Rating 2 out of 5]

2 Stars for Keep Me Safe (audiobook) by Maya Banks read by Jeffrey Kafer.

I really didn’t enjoy this story. I kept waiting for it to get better but it didn’t. The characters seemed off and the situation wasn’t believable. And I don’t think that the author liked the characters either when she brutalized them in the end.

[♥Rachel♥ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ramie St. Clair has a special psychic gift or curse as Ramie sees it, to locate people. Unfortunately, when she uses her gift it costs her emotionally and physically because Ramie feels everything the victim does, as though it happened to her.

Caleb Devereaux is a desperate man. His sister, Tori has been abducted by a madman and Ramie is his only hope of finding her in time. When he finally locates Ramie, he forces his sister’s pain on her not knowing what her ability costs her, and he’s horrified by the realization. He can’t honestly say he’d do anything differently because it is his sister’s life on the line, but Caleb vows to help Ramie heal, make her whole again. The trouble is she disappears immediately after Caleb leaves to tend to his sister, and Ramie stays of the radar.

Caleb is determined to find Ramie, and has researched her fully since she took off. He feels a connection to her even just meeting her that one time. Caleb is torn to bits over what he put her through. So when Ramie finally materializes asking for his help and protection from a crazed serial killer, Caleb jumps at the chance to make things right and keep her safe.

I gravitate towards stories with an element of mystery and danger. Keep Me Safe was a combination of all of that with a steamy romance included! The story held an air suspense throughout and I was on the edge of my seat wondering what danger would come next. Poor Ramie, she’d gone through countless horrifying situations after helping the police locate numerous victims. This is why she went off the grid before Caleb found her and then again after helping to locate his sister. However, it seems her stalker has no problem finding her even with all the precautions she takes, and she just narrowly escapes him when she finally calls Caleb for help.

Caleb and Ramie’s romance was fast and intense, kind of insta-love/lust, but it didn’t bother me so much. Caleb felt like he already knew Ramie somewhat because he researched into her life to the point of obsession, so he felt like he knew her even with only meeting once. They have almost an uncanny connection when they’re reunited, and Caleb provides a warmth and protection that makes Ramie feel completely safe for once. I was happy she got some normalcy and love after all she’d been through.

There was a lot of action and danger in Keep Me Safe that had me anxiously biting my nails it some parts! Caleb and Ramie are put through the ringer in this intense conclusion. No worries, though, the story wraps Caleb and Ramie’s romance up nicely. The next story focuses on Beau, Caleb’s brother, next: In His Keeping. Can’t wait!

A copy was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

[Michel Reinhard (Saucy Southern Readers) · Rating 2 out of 5]

ARC provided by the Publisher, via Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

Keep Me Safe by Maya Banks was not what I was hoping for or expecting from a writer of her caliber.

Keep Me Safe is book one in the new romantic suspense trilogy The Slow Burn Series. This series features a group of brothers running a security firm and trying to find their kidnapped sister. Caleb Devereaux is determined to bring psychic in to help their search.

Ramie has a gift that wears on her soul. Once Caleb tricks Ramie into finding his sister’s location their story begins. They are mutually attracted to one another but continually deny their feelings.

As the story unfolds it does not seem believable. Caleb has that Alpha Male attitude and when he meets Ramie he instantly wants to protect her. While Ramie wants to be strong her weaknesses have a way of taking over her personality.

Even though this book was written from duo POV I found it very repetitive. The dialogue continued revolving in circles and kept the story from progressing. I also found that quite a bit of the plot, the characters, and series basis was borrowed from Maya’s other series. The brothers were similar to KGI, the security firm again similar to KGI, fortified mansion similar to KGI, Caleb’s personality similar to Burn character, and the secondary characters had familiar traits as well. Her leading female character appeared much more wishy- washy than her other leading female characters. Both leading characters in this series seem to fall flat and their personalities did not jump off the pages. The story moved at a slow pace and I found myself speed reading it rather than absorbing it. The repetitive dialogue spoiled the book. As I closed this book I was grateful to be finished and found no desire to read the next two books in this series.

I think Maya’s publishers/editors did her a disservice by allowing this book to be published. They should of demanded rewrites and better pacing. It feels like the publisher was banking on Maya’s excellent reputation and ability to sell books.

I have read all of Maya Banks books and I have to honestly say that the last three published books were subpar. She is an excellent writer and always delivers a good book. I am very sad to write this review.

[BookAddict ✒ La Crimson Femme · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ever lost something and wish you had a way to find it again? What if a person is able to locate missing people just through a touch? In the a new series from Ms. Banks, Ramie is able to help find a missing person by touch. Sometimes wondrous gifts contain a negative flip side. For Ramie, the flip side is she connects with the missing person and experiences what they feel and more. If the people are merely deadbeat fathers skipping out on alimony or child support, it may not be the worst thing. Unfortunately for Ramie, she is requested for cases involving foul play or kidnapping. Too worn out, Ramie escapes to hide from everyone. This doesn't stop a determined man from finding her.

One of determined men is Caleb Devereaux. He is at his wits end and wants to find his kidnapped sister. He won't rest until Ramie helps him pinpoint his sister's location. When their paths cross and Ramie is tricked into helping, it won't be the last time they meet. When the other man stalking Ramie gets too closed, Ramie must reach out Caleb for help.

The story moves a bit slower than other Ms. Bank stories. The characters do follow her usual pattern. There is an alpha male lead who believes he can protect everyone and is proven otherwise. A female lead is misunderstood and treated poorly despite her being one of the good guys. From a character development, it's decent and easy to understand each character. Even if some of the minor characters are annoying and need a good slap upside the head, it is easy to step into their shoes. Perhaps if some of the angst injecting family scenes are cut and the repetitive dialog are to be removed, the story would flow at a better pace. In addition, it would make the story feel more tightly written.

The plot is of medium complexity. It's straightforward in the conflicts and the resolutions. The conflict is obvious even when throwing in a paranormal element. For those who don't enjoy stories involving speculative paranormal powers, this story will be difficult to believe. Realists will need to suspend their disbelief in order to finish the book. For those who enjoy or are indifferent to psychic abilities, this is no bother. There is a thrill aspect to this story. For me, it is enjoyable even if it stretched my ability to believe the latest twist in the psychic powers. Recommended to those who enjoy paranormal stories with a psychic thread.

*provided by Edelweiss

[mer]

RD: Oct. 7, 2014.

[Victoria]

DNF at 70%

I should admit that I'm in the process of breaking up with Maya Banks. It's like breaking up with an old friend that you've had good times with but now just don't enjoy, it can be hard. I keep going back expecting to capture the earlier magic but each time, I find no magic.

I never intended to read Keep Me Safe because, well, me and Maya are on a break. But when the title popped up as available at my library I figured I'd download it and give it a try, for old times sake. I normally don't enjoy paranormal reads but enjoyed the earlier romances the author had written in the KGI series that had psychic heroines and thought this fell along those same lines. I was trucking along and the book was okay. The heroine is over and beyond a damsel in distress. She's practically falling apart at the seams. Still, I love a good hero that saves his lady love so wasn't a major issue for me. Still a 3.0-3.5 book until I got to the 70% mark. At this point, the hero seems to suffer from some type of mind control where his actions are no longer his but those of the villain instead. Mind control? Seriously? Ummm...Nope. Not for me.

[Angela · Rating 1 out of 5]

Tried multiple times to get into this book, but just couldn't.

[Vickie*** · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5

I read this book without reading the negative reviews in fear that it could affect my thoughts on the overall book.

I'm pretty sad to give this book low ratings, it did have a lot of potential. The side characters just pissed me off a lot though.

Ramie is a psychic, and having such useful powers is beneficial for solving criminal problems, but it's really bad for her. when Ramie touches something belonging to a victim, she becomes the victim. She feels their emotion, get the same injuries, and it could really take a toll on someone's mentality.

Caleb has a sister who has been kidnapped, and is set on finding Ramie so that she could help him. Once he finds her he basically forces Ramie to use her abilities to find his sister, Claire. Long story short, Caleb is mortified on how Ramie's powers affects her, and is immediately guilty. After finding Claire, Caleb and his 2 brothers are extremely grateful for Ramie and what she had done for their family.

One year later... Ramie looks for Caleb when she's in trouble because you know he does owe her a favor for forcing her to use her powers. Caleb takes her into his protection, and brings her to his home. A home whom he lives with his 2 brother and sister.

Claire is still not well after the kidnapping, and his brothers are mad that He brought Ramie home.

This is when I'm like "WTF??" what happened to all the appreciation you had for her a year ago, where did that go?
and Claire was a total bitch to Ramie, you know the person who was the main reason she's alive in the first place. She was mean to Ramie because apparently she was ashamed of Ramie seeing her at her lowest point.
Well wake up Claire, she didn't just see you at your lowest point, she practically lived through it as well.


Other people had a problem with Ramie crying all the time, but I was alright with that. If I had to die 123489381239 times I'm sure I'll be crying my eye sockets out all day errrrr'day

The beginning of the book was really intriguing for me, but the rest did fall a bit.. flat.

[LuvLaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is my first Maya Banks book:

I found it to be quite different... is it erotica? Is it Paranormal? Is it truly romance? Yea it is a Romantic novel with a different twist along the story :)

Erotica? I am not so sure O_o

The main star cast:



At the start of the book we find Caleb who is in search of Ramie to save his sister who has been Kidnapped by a psychotic guy.

Ramie is a gifted person who with a victims clothes can feel and has connection not only with what happens to that particular victim but also has a connection towards the criminal. Ramie has disappeared from the site of people cause she is scared of another psychotic criminal who is behind her life for he has imprinted into her mind when he escaped the cops.

The only thing I didn't get is... does he have gift like Ramie? Nothing about the criminals background is mentioned.

So in the meanwhile Caleb forces Ramie to see what is happening to his sister (and read it to understand what happens)

After this incidence Caleb feels bad for what he did to Ramie and vovs to come back and help her, but she has disappeared again in fear that the criminal will find her too.

Now this book shows us after one year Ramie approaches Caleb to help her out from the clutches of her Criminal.

I loved the way he handles Ramie and my my how much she suffers for her gift.

I loved the way Caleb holds her when ever she suffers:



I loved the way he handled his family and Ramie :)

I loved the way in the end his family accepts her ^^

But in the end my question is what happens to Tori's abuser? What is the story behind Ramie's abuser? These remain unanswered...

So for me its 4* NJOY!!!

[Greta · Rating 2 out of 5]

Probabilmente ho fatto qualcosa di male in questi giorni e il karma ha deciso di farmi schifare le mie ultime letture. Boh, non saprei. Fatto sta che neanche questo mi è piaciuto. Sono stata sveglia quasi tutta notte per finirlo e cercare di cavarci un ragno dal buco, ma no, niente.

Keep Me Safe è il primo romanzo della serie Slow Burn (primo e ultimo per me ovviamente) e dovrebbe essere di genere romantic-suspance, anche se a me è sembrato più una lagna paranormal romance. La prima cosa che mi è saltata agli occhi e che mi ha fatto storcere il naso sin da subito è stata la scrittura dell'autrice, sembrava che stesse scrivendo un libro per ragazzini, non la trovavo seria e non mi ha presa per nulla.
Seconda cosa, i personaggi. Raimie è una ragazza che sin da bambina ha il potere della telepatia. Veniva spesso usata dalla polizia o dalle famiglie per rintracciare persone scomparse, il punto è che a lei questo potere fa male, perchè rimane vittima lei stessa, soffre insieme alle persone che vengono rapite e seviziate. Ora, spiegami cara Maya perchè devi fare un plot così bello, con questi poteri, e poi mi fai una storia così piatta e una protagonista così scialba? Questa tizia aveva paura anche dei moscerini!

Per non parlare di Caleb. Sembrava un quindicenne che cerca di salvare la sua principessa dall'orco cattivo, invece di un uomo. Il loro insta-love mi ha dato proprio sui nervi. Lui la cerca per trovare la sorella scomparsa ma poi si sente in colpa per averla fatta soffrire e poi boh di punto in bianco si innamora di lei. Così, dal nulla. Dov'è uno straccio di spiegazione? Qualcosa che mi faccia capire COME E DOVE E QUANDO lui si è innamorato di lei? Ma no, niente anche qui.

[Tanja ~ KT Book Reviews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Right from the start, this book really took me by surprise. It’s really different from what I am used to from Maya Banks. A psychic ability is a curse to Ramie, but one that has been used to help others. Through touch of objects and people she feels their deepest emotions: hate, fear, darkness, and physical pain. What Caleb does to Ramie is horrible. Yes, he does it in order to save his sister, but to the detriment of Ramie, leaving her alone and nearly dead.

A year passes and when Ramie finds herself within the reach of a psychotic murderer she seeks out to Caleb for help.

Although I am a huge fan of Banks, this is where things just kind of fell apart for me. I did not like Caleb’s sister at all. Her selfish and narcissistic behavior without any due cause didn’t endear her to me. Ramie saved her life, a little gratitude please. Along with the brothers outward anger and the insta love thing going on I just felt irritated by the lot of them.

Having said, all that the sexy time was hot and the case was thrilling. I just didn’t feel anything for these people. I am sad to say that I am just meh about the whole thing.

[Lover of Romance · Rating 3 out of 5]

This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance

Keep Me Safe is the first book in Bank's "Slow Burn" series, and its definitely been a long while since I have read this author and quite frankly I wasn't sure I wanted to read more of her ever since the whole fiasco with her and her PR team BUT I just realized I didn't want to keep that frustration for another series to keep me from some solid reads and I did see this on Libby and I just wanted to read it and as one of my main goals this year is to mood read I knew I wanted to try it out. So I grabbed this up and first impression was the narrator, I fell in love with his voice and the flow by which he narrated this novel and I do think his narration did increase my enjoyment of the story quite a bit, so I do love it when that narrator hits the spot and he just has this gruff sexy voice that just appealed to me and totally connects with the alpha vibes you get from this book.



So Keep Me Safe is a story that is focused on our hero, Caleb, who is on the hunt for his sister who has been kidnapped. He goes in search of a psychic woman who is known for finding serial killers and he will do anything to get his sister home and safe with them. So he forces Ramie to make a connection to get the location of his sister but when he sees the effects of the linking, Caleb realizes his mistake and what he put Ramie through and despite the horrible meeting, Caleb is drawn to Ramie and is determined to make it up to her no matter the cost. Ramie hasn't seen Caleb in six months and even though she has been furious with him, she needs him because she is being hunted and she knows that Caleb can help protect her from him. But Ramie never expected that upon calling Caleb for help, she would find herself in a fighting game with this psychic killer but also finding a love with Caleb she never thought possible for herself.



Keep Me Safe was quite different than I expected and yes it has been a while since I have read such a suspense thriller romance with a paranormal twist as this book was. I know there are a TON of mix thoughts on this one here. I am kinda on the fence on my true feelings to be honest. I enjoyed it quite a bit, but there was quite a bit of drama, so much that I almost felt like I was reading a new adult (which this is NOT new adult since the main characters are older and more experienced) I actually enjoyed seeing this romance form, I did think it had that insta love feel to it a bit. I mean, as a suspense novel, you definitely know that the plot will thicken and progress very quickly so you do need to take that aspect into account. But their romance was a bit too quick even for me and I adore the instant love trope. It just felt off and not quite right for the level of intensity that is found within the story.



The plot of the story is highly engaging and you definitely feel like you are on edge, not sure how I feel about reading audio romantic suspense because yeah my anxiety levels kinda went through the roof but then its been a while. Listening to this book was a good reminder that I have been lax on my romantic suspense reads because I realized (despite some of my issues with this one) that I miss these suspense, on the edge, vibes in a romance. I did adore many of the side characters that come into play with this book so you can count on me picking up the other books in the series for sure.



Overall I found Keep Me Safe to be a fantastic read that brought some unique elements together and I am highly intrigued to see where this author takes the series overall.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book that just wasn’t an enjoyable read. The heroine, Ramie, spends the whole book on the verge of a nervous breakdown, crying, and being in pain. So I didn’t believe that she could realistically develop feelings of love for the hero, Caleb, in that frame of mind. And I also couldn’t believe that Caleb could be so hot for her either when he barely knew her, and what little he did know showed her to be a highly damaged and basket case. It felt like he was taking advantage of someone who’d come to him for protection.


The story begins with Caleb angrily driving to find Ramie. She has a psychic ability to track down kidnap victims. It somehow instantly transports her into the victim’s body, but also apparently into the killers mind as well? It’s a strange mish-mash of things for a rather poorly defined ability. For example, once when she was connected to a victim, the victim was slapped and the handprint showed up on Ramie’s cheek. So it’s not just a mental connection. She’s actually physically receiving the injury. But she also is somehow able to learn the victim’s exact location. Even giving details such as the license plate number of the killer’s car and directions of how to get there…things the victims surely don’t know themselves. So her powers are kind of hard to believe.

Caleb’s sister, Tori, has been kidnapped so he barges in on Ramie and demands that she do her psychic thing. She tries to refuse but Caleb ruthlessly thrusts his sister’s scarf into Ramie’s hand and then watches as she is catapulted into Tori’s mind. He soon realizes what using her gift means and he watches as the aforementioned handprint appears, as she’s kicked in the stomach, and then as she experiences Tori getting raped by her captor. Caleb feels remorseful for putting Ramie through this horrific experience.

Ramie comes back to the present and gives Caleb Tori’s location but he hesitates to leave. He seemed strangely overly concerned for Ramie at this point when his sister was still in the clutches of her tormentor. He seems to feel worse about Ramie and the abuse she’s just psychically endured than he does for Tori. It sat all wrong with me. He eventually does leave, but on his way out he says he’s going to be coming back, to make this up to her.

The police act on Ramie’s information and are able to save Tori. By the time Caleb gets there, she’s already recovering in the hospital. But even as he’s standing there, looking at his abused sister hooked up to tubes and wires and under heavy sedation because she was so hysterical, all he can think about is how Ramie’s the one who REALLY deserves his sympathy. That Tori had his brothers and the hospital staff to take care of her, while Ramie had no one. It was pretty sickening and hard to believe, and that’s one of the problems with this story.

It really felt like we weren’t supposed to spend any time thinking about Tori and her ordeal. Or about any of the other women who were tortured and killed in the course of the story. Everything was about poor, poor Ramie. She was really painted as both the Mary Sue and the tragic waif in need of rescue at the same time. I didn’t believe that after a lifetime of being fiercely protective of Tori, Caleb would so completely shift his priorities to Ramie after only one 30 minute encounter. And the whole story we kept getting bashed over the head with how no matter what anyone else had gone through, Ramie had had it infinitely worse and therefore she was the only one who deserved sympathy.

The story skips ahead one year and we pick up with Ramie heading back to her motel room. She’s being chased by a psycho killer whose kidnap victim she saved. He’s got a psychic ability so when Ramie made a connection with him during her search, he somehow found a way of making that connection permanent. He can see what she sees, which makes it easy for him to track her down. He’s been chasing her all this time, but leisurely so he can toy with her. Now he’s decided it’s time to grab her and he’s waiting in her room, but as soon as Ramie touches the doorknob, she sees the remnants of his evil feelings and knows he’s there.

They struggle, and she gets away and calls Caleb for help. He’s overjoyed to get her call and arranges for someone to pick her up and take her to a hotel, then gets on his private jet to fly there himself. Once there, she explains about the guy chasing her. Caleb believes everything she says, including the part about her having a permanent connection to the killer. Then he insists on taking Ramie to stay at his house. Ramie’s pretty hysterical throughout the whole process. She cries a lot and babbles about how she shouldn’t have called him. That it’ll put his family at risk if she’s at his house. Caleb scoffs at this, saying that he has the best security team money can buy.

On the plane, Ramie is again babbling stuff when out of nowhere, Caleb says that he feels a connection to her. He wants her and wants to explore this thing between them. Then he kisses her. All of this seemed wildly unfounded and inappropriate to me. Ramie is terrified and running for her life. She came to Caleb because she needed help. She hasn’t given any indication that she wants more than that or that she has any kind of feelings for him. Not to mention that he knows that she’s experienced rape on multiple occasions, through the minds of the victims. She’s also been a weeping basket case the whole time they’ve been together. And he thinks now is a good time to make a pass at her? He thinks that it’s somehow appropriate to imply that while she’s under his care, he’s going to be pushing to make their relationship sexual? That is NOT okay.

They get to his house and as soon as they walk in the door, Caleb’s family attacks Ramie. Tori is extremely upset to see her and his brothers are mad because Tori’s upset. Ramie has to explain to Caleb that the reason Tori freaked out is because she knows that Ramie knows exactly what horrific things were done to her and seeing Ramie brings it all back.

Caleb basically condemns his sister for reacting this way. Saying that she’s got no right to take it out on Ramie when Ramie has suffered so much more than Tori. Because it’s a competition, you see. Only the person who has had the MOST horrible things happen to them is allowed to behave as if they’ve been hurt. Tori’s had a whole year to get over her abduction, rape and abuse, now she’s just being unreasonable. In fact, he says that he thinks it’s high time he and his brothers stopped coddling Tori, since being nice to her this last year hasn’t resulted in her magically being back to her old self. The whole thing is incredibly tone deaf. And, I might add, no one even once mentions if they ever got Tori some counselling for her ordeal, which leads me to believe that they DIDN’T. But yeah, Tori’s just a self-centered b*tch for not having gotten over it by now, right? The REAL victim here is poor, poor Ramie.

Caleb gets Ramie settled and she falls asleep, but almost immediately the killer makes contact with her and says that she’s a fool if she thinks she’s safe from him now. Ramie wakes up screaming bloody murder and crying again. Caleb rushes in and cuddles her close and they start making out, which again seemed wildly inappropriate for the situation. They don’t have sex though.

The next day Caleb wants Ramie to work with a sketch artist to get a picture of the killer. Ramie is kind of resistant at first, but then one of Caleb’s most trusted people, Eliza, tells her that another woman has been taken. Not only that, the killer called the local police station and told them he’d taken a woman and that it was Ramie’s fault for not surrendering to him. This makes Ramie determined to help and she asks to have something of the victim’s brought to her. Caleb is pissed at Eliza for telling Ramie and he’s against letting her use her psychic gift. She’s just too fragile. It takes too great a toll on our poor, selfless waif. But eventually he gives in.

The cops arrive with a purse that belonged to the victim. She touches it and is instantly connected to her. The killer then kills the victim. He’d only been holding on until Ramie made contact, so he could taunt her with her inability to save the woman. Then he’s somehow, like, mentally caressing Ramie or something, which pulls her deeper and deeper into their connection, but was apparently killing her in real life? Caleb is frantic and screams at her to come back. Eventually she surfaces and is exhausted. His brothers and Tori are there watching, and now feel bad for being mean to Ramie.

Caleb takes Ramie upstairs and she cries some more. Then they decide to have sex. And again, this felt so wrong to me. She just watched someone die and had a close encounter with a psychopath and I’m expected to believe she feels like losing her virginity? And Caleb has no trouble rising to the occasion because he’s just so hot for her. What man wouldn’t want to get into the pants of a woman who’s been a terrified, screaming, weeping basket case and who has a known psychic connection to a killer who can quite literally see everything she’s doing. Nothing creepy about that at all, right? This is totally a romantic scenario for our hero and heroine to make love for the first time.

The next day, conveniently, Caleb has to leave the house. He’s got important papers to sign for his business. And it’s not like a man of his limitless wealth could insist someone bring the papers to him. Nope, he’s got to leave the safety of his house so that the plot can happen. The killer stalks him there and then deliberately stumbles into Caleb, which is apparently all he needs to establish a psychic connection to him.

Back at the house, Ramie has been working with the sketch artist and managed to get a picture of the killer worked out. It gave her a bad headache, though, and Tori has prescription pills for her own headaches. One of the guards goes to ask Tori for one of her pills and he rips her a new one when she doesn’t immediately hand one over. He, too, feels it’s high time everyone stopped coddling Tori. He calls her a spoiled brat and demands a pill to take to the REAL victim in the house.

Caleb comes home, sees the sketch and does NOT recognize the guy he saw just an hour earlier. He takes Ramie to bed instead. Then, in the dead of night, the killer somehow takes over Caleb’s body so completely that he gets up and goes into the security room and does something. Then Caleb goes back to bed with no memory of the event.

Next day, another woman has been abducted and the killer called it in again and even gave her home address. Caleb’s people convince the police to let Ramie go there first, so that she can try to get more psychic impressions to try to identify the guy. Once there, she puts her hand on the railing and is overwhelmed by the visions and hate from the killer. It causes her great pain and she gets a massive nosebleed, but she sees that there’s a bomb in the house. She yells out a warning just in the nick of time.

She’s treated at the hospital and then she and Caleb go back to his house where he tells Ramie that he loves her, but doesn’t expect her to say it back yet. She’s given some kind of sedative and then in the middle of the night, a bomb goes off in Caleb’s house. He and his family have to escape by climbing off the roof. Ramie is unconscious for most of this, which was hard to believe. They run through the woods and are picked up by their security team. Poor, fragile Ramie is tucked into bed because she’s just been through so much and then the others talk. Eliza has to be the one to figure out that since they KNOW, and have known since the beginning, that the killer can see everything Ramie sees, the only way to keep her from being found is if SHE doesn’t know where she is. Duh. So they spirit her off to a safe house, wearing a blindfold.

Unfortunately, the joke is on all of them because the killer has that connection to Caleb. So he knows exactly where they are and shows up in the middle of the night, managing to kill all of the supposedly super elite security guards. Then he psychically takes over Caleb, forcing him to get up, grab a knife from the kitchen, and then attack Ramie. He pins her down and slices her up, all while Ramie is crying and begging and saying “I thought you loved me!” Then she conveniently passes out and the killer takes her, leaving Caleb behind, asleep. He filmed the whole thing and sends the video to the police, providing d@mning evidence that Caleb killed Ramie.

Next morning, Caleb wakes up with a terrible headache and finds the bed covered in blood, Ramie gone, and everyone else dead. His brothers and Eliza show up and they’re all looking at him in disgust, demanding to know why he did it. Caleb is confused and asks what’s going on. No one believes he didn’t do it, but it seems clear he doesn’t remember, so they show him the video. Caleb has a complete breakdown and suddenly remembers all the things he did. So he just says that he did it, he’s guilty. Take him to jail.

Eliza, however, notices that Caleb’s nose was bleeding while he was attacking Ramie, which she says is an indication that he was being psychically controlled and was trying to fight back. So it’s all okay. But then, unbelievably, Caleb, who is not psychic himself, somehow manages to reverse his connection to the killer and use it to find where Ramie is being held. Then they all roll out to that place and Caleb just walks up and shoots the killer between the eyes. No big final showdown, nothing. He’s dead. Ramie is still alive and is taken to the hospital, unconscious. She’s out for several days and Caleb is allowed to stay with her, which is very unbelievable, considering that “another guy took over my body and made me do it” isn’t really a defense that’ll stand up in court. Ramie wakes up and shows fear of Caleb and he’s crushed but says he just wanted to make sure she was okay, he loves her forever, and he’ll never bother her again.

Days later, Eliza tells Ramie that the killer is dead and that Caleb killed him. Ramie is relieved and wants to know where Caleb is. Eliza explains that he thinks she hates him so he’s gone. Ramie goes after him and says she still loves him, and that’s the end of the story.

Overall, I just didn’t connect to this one. The talk about how wonderful and brave Ramie was got annoying, and I really hated how nasty everyone was toward Tori, after what she’d been through. And Ramie seemed inconsistent. On the one hand we’re being told that she experiences all the trauma of the victims, including the rapes, and on the other, she’s got no hesitation whatsoever with jumping into bed with Caleb. The killer’s end was very anticlimactic as well, and I thought it weird that we never found out what he did to Ramie while he had her. There was also a ton of repetition in the book, which was annoying. Overall, just not a fun read.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Keep Me Safe is the first installment in author Maya Banks's Slow Burn series. I have seen Ms. Banks's name associated with romance/erotica all over goodreads and she has written an impressive quantity of novels. I was so excited when I saw this audiobook at my local library- what a perfect chance to try out this popular author! Unfortunately, I did not enjoy my first Maya Banks experience as much as I had hoped to. I should note that many goodreads reviews for this book have made reference to some disappointment compared to her other novels...oh well.

Keep Me Safe falls in the romantic suspense genre with a mild paranormal element. This combination appealed to me, and I liked the idea of the overall plot. It succeeded in the suspense factor, and I found the female lead's paranormal gift interesting. However, I just didn't care about the romance element and that's just sad. I felt that there was very little relationship development when it came to the romance aspect- it just happened all of the sudden- and that led me to feel minimal investment in the characters' interactions together. Also, just a sidenote: the audiobook is pretty dramatic. I literally felt like I was listening to a movie announcer's voice during the action scenes and I found it distracting. Ultimately, these issues ended up affecting my enjoyment of the book as a whole. While I did finish this book, I do not plan to continue on in the series. I'll have to do some goodreads research before selecting another Maya Banks book.

[✰ Bianca ✰ BJ's Book Blog ✰ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really liked it - but what I don't like is anything paranormal or psychic stuff :/
It was - like all recent Maya Banks book - too much redundant talk in there ..but it was pretty suspensy and interesting...I missed the Maya Banks sexiness a bit though..
I will definitely read the next 2 books in the series - even though the supernatural stuff will get even worse ;)

[Tonya · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the book by this author that I have read. I will be continuing with this series. I loved it. the characters are easy to fall in love with

[Vika aka ♔ of GIF & Grumpy Smut-ateer *P/T Freebie Fairy · Rating 3 out of 5]

My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

Ok maybe throw in another half a coffee bean in there… or a shot… because the story plot was intriguing and interesting..

Ramie St. Claire has a great gift... NO! an awful gift... she is a psychic with a 100% success rate in finding people after they have been kidnapped. Problem is when she 'locates' them she forms a link to the kidnapper and the victim. As you can imagine with that comes EXPERIENCING everything first hand as it happens to the victim.



NOW she is on the run because she formed a link that she can't shake off. She is now STALKED & HUNTED. Just a few centimeters ahead of her tormenter.

Having old school money Caleb Devereaux uses it to track her down to help track down his sister who has been kidnapped with no ransom demanded. To save her life he FORCES Ramie to locate her. After seeing what it does to her he unfortunately has to leave her in her state to get to his sister. Upon safe retrieval he returns to Ramie only to find her hiding hole abandoned and no way to track her again.

In effort to absolve his GUILT he forms a security company to keep his sister safe and his younger brothers... but his mind is always of Ramie and what he forced her to do. What he forced her to experience. GUILT. GUILT. GUILT...



After a very close call Ramie heartbroken and nowhere to run for safety seeks Caleb and demand he owes her protection. But oooh silly girl she doesn't need to DEMAND... their attraction is already felt. Caleb's overprotective genes making it harder for him to think. His knuckled elongating to the floor... dragging on it if he is not beating on this chest protecting Ramie from EVERYONE even his hostile family members.



Unfortunately, I felt like the book could have been reduced in length and would have had been a powerful book then. But there was an awful lot of angst and self deprecating feelings from both MCs… where it could have focused more on establishing secondary characters it spent time wallowing in “ I’m no good for you… you are too good… I’m so weak… I don’t deserve you…”-land… but then again this also solidified in how we are to perceive the heroine. Who WOULDN’T be like that when their mind is not their own and they had no home.

Ultimately, I just want to hug the poor girl and kiss Caleb all over...



Overall I wasn't too overly impressed with the beginning of this series but I WILL give this series another go. After all we all deserve a second chance.

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