Faith. She’d managed to keep her namesake while in captivity, but now that she was free? The daunting task of rejoining society was in front of her and it seemed that Marlin had to keep it for her.
Marlin can’t help how he feels about Faith, she was remarkably easy to like. The only thing he could do for her was be there, and keep his damn hands to himself, which was the real challenge.
Neither one of them knew if she would make it out of the darkness intact; only time would tell about that. During trying times, all you can do is hold on and have a little faith…
A.J. Downey is a Pacific Northwest girl living in an East Tennessee world who finds inspiration from her surroundings, through the people she meets, and likely as a byproduct of way too much caffeine. She specializes in real and relatable romance stories featuring that real-life kind of love that everyone craves.
This was a good story and I liked how the characters came together slowly despite having feelings for each other early into the book. I felt so bad for Faith and was really happy that she finally got her HEA after everything she went through.
What a beautiful story about Marlin and Faith. Responsibility and healing man helps a broken damaged girl into the light.
“I blinked, and couldn’t believe it. This powerful man’s man, fisherman, biker, fighter… was giving me a pedicure.”
“I thought to myself: Everything, all of the pain, the misery, and sorrow of New Orleans, was worth it because in the end I’m able to sit here with a man like him”
Marlin was so much more than I was expecting. He was still all alpha but love and care he showed Faith gave us a completely different side to him. Faith's story I knew was going to be a heartbreaker read she had so many hurdles to over come but with the love and support of all around the path to happiness was made easier.
Ok, I am writing this review because after now reading a whole heap of A.J. Downey's work the same problem keeps popping up for me. My ratings for her are wildly inconsistent, I LOVE 'Brother to Brother' and really enjoyed 'Hunter's Choice' and her blurbs always sucker me in but *sigh* then comes the execution. Her stories tend to drag for me. 'Damaged & Dangerous' started out really strongly for me but at around 50% through the novel I was wondering why the story wasn't wrapping itself up, IT JUST KEPT GOING! WHY??? I DON'T NEED ALL THESE EXTRANEOUS DETAILS, GET TO THE POINT! *ahem* Which leads me to my problem with this book, 1st it is incredibly difficult to read this without reading the first book. I tried reading it and got bored and annoyed. Hope: "Oh I'm trying to find my sister but omg this man is sexy but my sister but he's hot but my sister" Etc, etc, etc. Whatever, so I jumped into the next book and was like WOW wtf happened? Again this writer's choices baffle me. She gives the most POINTLESS AND UNNECCESARY prologue in 'Fractured & Formidable' but this book where a prologue would have really worked? Nope, jump straight into Faith's drug withdrawal. 2nd problem. As someone who suffers from depression and anxiety, as someone who has a few friends who have (unfortunately) suffered sexual assault, the way that Downey writes her characters doesn't work for me. It is not that simple or easy to fix. After I was diagnosed it took me 3 YEARS until I was a properly functioning member of society. Rape or systematic abuse and rape and associated trauma (PTSD, anxiety, depression, etc) that women in Downey's novels suffer, seems to be magically fixed in no time and are just not depicted realistically enough. I don't need a blow by blow or intense detail but if you have been systematically abused and raped for 2 YEARS having sex or physical intimacy for the first time is A BIG THING not a "Oh, you love me and I trust you, man I have known for a month or so, sexy times YES!" with no panic attack or anything. That isn't how it works and it annoys me when people write like that. If you are going to delve into something dark, traumatic and horrific make sure you execute it right or don't do it at all. I didn't mind Faith's character, though she was incredibly similar to Dani from 'Damaged & Dangerous' and Shelly from 'Tattered & Torn', again novels I had problems with due to the "Oh, bye PTSD, hello sex!" attitude. Marlin was also nice but dude moving in on a girl so soon after a traumatic experience, ESCPECIALLY when you are her safety blanket, kinda not cool. All in all, I didn't like this novel. It was interesting and moved fairly quickly for the first 15% of the novel and then started to drag, be repetitive and have convenient things happen to further the plot which should not have dragged out for as long as it did. It's a real pity because I want to like Downey, I really do. I just can't, she won't let me :(
What a sad story! I hated that Faith had to go through all that. I am so glad that she had Marlin by her side. Another amazing read. One more sister to go and I think Nothing will be perfect for her!
Beautifully Gripping & Intense Story! Great Narration & Audible Listen🎧
Marlin’s Faith The Virtues, Book II By: A.J. Downey Narrated by: Ivy Randall, Bob Carter
A.J. Downey continues to wow me with another beautifully written novel, the second in “The Virtues” series. In the first book, “Cutter’s Hope” we watched a fierce and determined Hope on a mission to find her missing sister “Faith”. This book picks up with Faith’s story after her rescue and her road to recovery, healing and learning to live again and love again and not just herself. This is the kind of story that not only grabs and captivates your attention, it tugs on your heartstrings as well. I loved how the author kept it all real, also loved how her descriptive details places you right alongside the characters so you can see what they see, feel and think, with inner dialogue when they are in their own head. Marlin, a bad ass biker, was by Faith’s side while she suffered thru her detox, he failed his brother and was determined not to fail Faith. She has had a rough couple of years, what was supposed to be a fun vacation turnout out to be a life of hell, betrayed and sold into slavery, then used and abused by her captors who kept her doped up. No, Faith’s story is not a pretty one, but her strength to get past it is. Once she gets past her withdrawals, she needs to deal with her fragile mental state, anxiety and PTSD, she also has other obstacles to tackle too. She has help from not only Merlin but the Krakens MC, Captain Cutter and her sister Hope all have her back. I loved how everything played out in this book, it is a brilliantly plotted story that contains plenty of drama, angst, heartfelt moments, heart- rending ones too and a slow burn romance. A.J. Downey, thank you for another wonderful story and emotional rollercoaster ride.
🎧📚🎧 And for the fantastic narration, A.J. Downey cast the perfect narrators to bring her story and characters to life. Ivy Randall and Bob Carter are talented narrators and versatile voice artists. They had a complete understanding of the characters they portrayed, gave each a voice that fit their character’s persona to a tee, sounding believable in every role they played and just as I pictured the characters to sound. Ivy Randall did a great job with Faith, taking her through every step of the way, capturing her strength and her vulnerabilities. Bob Carter’s take on Merlin was perfection, grasping his badassery and his good-heartedness. They set the perfect tone for the story, captured all the characters’ emotions and projected them into their performance. These are two entertaining storytellers and a pleasure to listen to. Thank you for the great listen.
Marlin's Faith The Virtues, Book II By: A.J. Downey Narrated by: Ivy Randall, Bob Carter
AJ Downey has blown me away with another of her books. Heart wrenching from the start, we meet Faith who was a happy girl going on vacation only to be taken and sold into slavery. Now home, she has to deal with the abuse and drug addiction she is left with. Lucky for her she has Marlin. Marlin is a biker, a bit burly with a big heart. He is staying with Faith through her detox. He has a definite attraction to her, but her recovery is the most important to him. But things are not going to be easy. Faith has a long road ahead of her, between her PTSD, her addiction and melding back into civilian life, she has her work cut out for her. Plus, danger is lurking! With the protection of the MC club, support from Hope & Cutter and the growing love with Marlin, we can only have faith she finds her way. Downey writes with such realism; at times it is scary. I was pulled in and was right there with Faith. The Ashes and Embers references from Carian Cole was a bonus and I love the connection. Again, Downey had my attention, kept me engaged and had me loving Marlin!! I can' wait for the next in his series!
The narration in this story is key to bringing it to life. I loved the team of Ivy Randall and Bob Carter. Randall has the perfect new adult voice, and she brings all the emotions and torturous memories of Faith alive. There are a lot of layers, and she delves deep and gives them all to us. Bob Carter has a rough, alpha sound, but gives Marlin the heart of a teddy bear. I love the conviction we hear in his voice, and the love he has for Faith. It's a fantastic listen!
Honestly I knew this book was going to be more about recovery than anything else, but I was hoping that something other than Faith's recovery would happen. Unfortunately nothing happened, outside of the outstanding warrant in NOLA, this book dragged and dragged! It was so boring and while some parts just broke my heart because let's face it, what Faith went through...shit no one should ever go through. It was rough and just horrendous.
Faith spent about 98% of the book crying...that's a whole lot of crying let me tell you! I felt bad but then just frustrated because damn...that's a lot of fucking crying!!! While I understand that AJD did not want to rush Faith's recovery she took it so incredibly slow that I just skipped some chapters to get through the book quicker and that didn't really help neither.
Marlin was so very sweet and a fucking saint because a man with more patience I've never met. He was truly a doting man. Though with that being said I just have to say that him going bareback with Faith was downright irresponsible and just plain nasty. Girl was diagnosed with not one, not two but three STDs! With what happened to her she was fucking lucky that all of her diseases were curable, still he was having unprotected sex with her just a few weeks after she was diagnosed and I'm sorry but that shit is just not right! So he totally lost points in my book for knowingly making such a fucking stupid decision...because ewwwww!!!!
This is Faith and Marlin’s story and continues directly from Cutter’s Hope.
Faith has been rescued from the clutches of deprived men who had abducted her and force her into human trafficking by controlling her with drugs pumped into her.
Thankfully Hope and the Kraken MC have found her but she’s in dire straits. But Marlin has her. He has a past that has dealt with addiction so he is asked to help in her healing. Along with a doctor and a psychiatrist they all work to get Faith back. It’s a struggle but with patience and perseverance they all make it through. But not without a bunch of consequences that pull all of the MC into the fray.
The development of the budding relationship between Faith and Marlin was encouraging and Marlin is one man to swoon over. Wow he has so much to offer Faith and he’s not afraid to let her heal so he can claim her as his very own.
I loved when Faith had a super spunky moment and thru Johnny’s wife Lynn into the water😂 and told her off! She was quite the ass!
The healing is happening at its own rate and seems like the group of men who had Faith may still be around and it’s a worry for them all.
Again loved Bob as Marlin in this book. Ivy Randall was good as Faith. Faith was subjected to a lot being abducted into sex slavery but I found her a tiny bit irritating at times but who the heck knows how a gal would behave having gone through the ordeal she did.
In my opinion, the story was well written and touching. The lead female character showed strength which I admire when reading books about rescued female characters.
What I also liked about this book was that it was connected to the first book in the series "Cutter's Hope" and that the story continues immediately from the point where the first book ended , however, I would have if the book had some scenes from the rescue and how both Marlin and Faith both felt and what they thought, 'cause I think that would have made the story better, it would have felt like you are more involved in the story and understand it better.
Plus at the same time it felt like the book had no defining moment or obstacle that Marlin and Faith had to overcome it just kinda ended and that disappointed me quite a bit. But all in all I liked the story, it was sweet and touching and the same time empowering. Plus I also liked that the books in the series and characters do interconnect from the previous books even though the series contain standalone novels.
When Hope and the guys rescued Faith in the last book you knew this one was going to be brutal. As Faith detoxed it was bad, so very bad, but with Marlin at her side she was able to make it through. Time and time again Marlin proved he was the perfect person for her, came up with thoughtful things to help her. You knew that they each would end up falling for each other, so it was great to see the little steps along the way as Faith got stronger. I also really liked how the MC helped Faith face consequences of what was done to her. Hope especially was there for her sister and let her know in a spectacular way.
OMG…you will definitely need tissues for this listen!! Faith was rescued by Marlin’s MC after being betrayed and held as a sex slave for two years. To ensure her compliance, her captors got her addicted to heroine. The book starts from her rescue by Marlin and gang…btw…Faith’s older sister is the prez’s old lady. Told from both Marlin and Faith’s POV, we live through Faith’s agonizing ‘come down’ from heroine and Marlin’s gentle care. Beautiful story that will make you agonize and sympathize with both characters. Highly recommend. Fair warning, some parts are gut wrenching and will require tissues.
Oh Boy😥, this second book was hard for me to read. What Faith went through is hard, she escaped her fears, her pain, by checking out completely, that was the only way she can survive. Sometimes life put you through some stuff you've never thought you would end up in, Faith was in that darkness. Marlin is her dark knight, he loved her by being there, being her rock and together they make the perfect couple.
Like the first book in this series, I found myself being pulled into this world once again. It is amazing what the human heart can go through, and this author shows those to us through her words. She shows how important it is to have someone strong on your side, there to stand with you through the toughest times.
We all need a champion in our corner and Marlin is it
Highly emotional and very, very well written especially with the topics addressed, human trafficking and drug abuse. Love the champion in Marlin as he builds faith up as well as allows her to build herself up with no pressure. I can read this again and again and never get tired of it. Fabulous all around!
I would have given this book 4 stars because I enjoyed the main storyline and characters. However, there were I few things that didn't have closure. For example, we never learned, satisfactorily what happened to Hope after Faith left her behind in prison. There were a few other instances as well.
This one hurt the heart, but then it should, what Faith suffered is unimaginably horrible, and her journey back was going to take a lot of time and love. Marlin was perfect absolutely the perfect male, his patience and tenderness with her is legendary and I know I fell a little in love with him just reading this. Love this book and Cutter is growing on me a little too.
This book gave me all the feelings. I laughed, I cried tears of sorrow and tears of joy. I was anxious and then the HEA came and I was so glad I found this series. Marlin is amazing with Faith and I absolutely loved both of their characters.
I am just in love with this whole series. This one got a little repetitive toward the end, but overall, super entertaining with a great story line. I'm going to be sad when I have nothing left to read by A J Downey!
5 STARS I don't know what more I can say about the author. This is the second book to the series I loved Marlin and Faith. Marlin is the man woman would die for. I don't know any that would do what he did for Faith!
A riveting, intense and emotional roller coaster ride to go on with Marlin and Faith. A definite page turner that kept me on the edge of my seat. I absolutely enjoyed every single moment of this thrilling journey.
This book was just ok for me. Parts of it were really good, but, other parts seemed repeated over and over. The book would have been better if it were shorter.
A tough read about the after effects of addiction and getting over it, but the men of The Kraken (and especially Marlin) make it a romantic story with a HEA. Fits beautifully into the series!
Never mind amazing grace...it's amazing faith! MC romance involving a survivor of human trafficking and surviving the addiction her captors forced on her.