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Strain #1-3
Strain: The Complete Trilogy
In the early 22nd century, a deadly virus is unleashed, and the lives of four men collide.
Nico and Zach
A rent-boy and a preacher’s son. They couldn’t be more different, but both bear a burden of guilt for their unwitting roles in the disaster. They find solace in each other in a world that’s falling apart, knowing that every day they’re together, Nico runs the risk of infecting Zach.
Darius and Rhys
Rhys was only a child when the plague began, and Darius is a hardened soldier who wasn’t given a choice in what he became. When Rhys is exposed to the virus, the kindest thing Darius could do is put him out of his misery. Instead, he tries to save Rhys, losing his heart but reclaiming his own humanity.
Joining Forces
When Zach and Nico seek help from Darius and Rhys, they fight to bring long-overdue justice to one of the men responsible for the plague—and maybe offer humankind new hope for survival.
Nico and Zach
A rent-boy and a preacher’s son. They couldn’t be more different, but both bear a burden of guilt for their unwitting roles in the disaster. They find solace in each other in a world that’s falling apart, knowing that every day they’re together, Nico runs the risk of infecting Zach.
Darius and Rhys
Rhys was only a child when the plague began, and Darius is a hardened soldier who wasn’t given a choice in what he became. When Rhys is exposed to the virus, the kindest thing Darius could do is put him out of his misery. Instead, he tries to save Rhys, losing his heart but reclaiming his own humanity.
Joining Forces
When Zach and Nico seek help from Darius and Rhys, they fight to bring long-overdue justice to one of the men responsible for the plague—and maybe offer humankind new hope for survival.
953 pages, Kindle Edition
First published September 19, 2015
27 people are currently reading
18 people want to read
About the author
Amelia C. Gormley
25 books226 followersAmelia C. Gormley published her first short story in the school newspaper in the 4th grade, and since then has suffered the persistent delusion that enabling other people to hear the voices in her head might be a worthwhile endeavor. She’s even convinced her hapless spouse that it could be a lucrative one as well, especially when coupled with her real-life interest in angst, kink, social justice issues, and pretty men.
When her husband and son aren’t interacting with the back of her head as she stares at the computer, they rely on her to feed them, maintain their domicile, and keep some semblance of order in their lives (all very, very bad ideas—they really should know better by now.) She can also be found playing video games and ranting on Tumblr, seeing as how she’s one of those horrid social justice warriors out to destroy free speech, gaming, geek culture, and everything else that’s fun everywhere.
You can find her self-published Impulse trilogy almost anywhere ebooks are sold, and check out her catalog of Riptide Publishing releases at their website.
(NOTE: If you are sending me a friends request just to try to promote your books to me or invite me to release events, I will unfriend and block you. I don't use GoodReads to spam people and neither should you.)
When her husband and son aren’t interacting with the back of her head as she stares at the computer, they rely on her to feed them, maintain their domicile, and keep some semblance of order in their lives (all very, very bad ideas—they really should know better by now.) She can also be found playing video games and ranting on Tumblr, seeing as how she’s one of those horrid social justice warriors out to destroy free speech, gaming, geek culture, and everything else that’s fun everywhere.
You can find her self-published Impulse trilogy almost anywhere ebooks are sold, and check out her catalog of Riptide Publishing releases at their website.
(NOTE: If you are sending me a friends request just to try to promote your books to me or invite me to release events, I will unfriend and block you. I don't use GoodReads to spam people and neither should you.)
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
January 23, 2024
This is a whole series review. And damn is this series a fucking disappointment. It's a great premise really. It has emotional depth and the writing has skill. The plot is engaging, the whole setup pointing towards a great book...
So what's the issue? The magical "rape is okay cause #bdsm" trope. Darius rapes Rhys, plain and simple. Darius even SAYS EXACTLY THAT to Rhys. But he never apologizes or expresses any regret to Rhys for it. This is well into the book after Rhys becomes very emotionally upset over seeing an old friend/crush and being prevented from speaking with him. It's presented as "I had to rape you cause you'd die without it" but that's not true at all. Darius and Xolani weren't even sure if the sex was necessary at that point given how much Rhys had already been exposed. And Darius had other options to take Rhys somewhere private, to talk with him and settle him. But he CHOOSES not to do that. Instead, he forces Rhys to have sex in a humiliating way that he did not want, in front of others and in hearing range of Rhys's old friend/crush.
The book tries to retcon it later when Darius actually tries to talk to Rhys about the rape. The attempt to discuss it is good, so I was hopeful. But alas, Darius digs in and says he won't apologize. Literally says "I won't apologize." Not even a suggestion that he regrets not taking a different course, like going off to be alone with Rhys. Furthermore, Rhys basically says "yeah but you had to rape me cause I needed it but couldn't take it for myself." OH. MY. GOD. That is all so fucking weak. There wasn't even a good reason that the rape "had to happen!" Darius just wanted to brutally and humilitatingly fuck Rhys. That's what happened.
A similar thing happened with the scene involving Toby and Joe in some harder S/M. It was extremely overwhelming for Rhys and he didn't want it. Darius recognized that after the fact but still... FUCKING STILL he did not apologize or express regret. In fact, Darius NEVER apologizes for anything the entire series. Meanwhile "sorry" is Rhys's favorite word. That whole dynamic was repulsive, frankly. (Oh, and Rhys later on supposedly liked the Toby and Joe scene... #retcon)
Tangent to that, Darius never tells Rhys that he loves him. Not even close. The closest thing I saw was "I love eating your ass." Lmao. What? Darius internally says he "more than loves" Rhys, that he's basically as essential as breathing. But he never communicates that to Rhys in any unambiguous way.
This whole thing reads like a shitty dom's fantasy world where the Dom can just take what they want without repercussion, throw any sense of decency or emotional intelligence out the window, refuse to express any sentiment of love, and just FUCK. With no regard for the sub. None. Fuck everything, fuck everyone, make them bleeeeeeed. If they don't like it, well tough cause the Dom is stronger and the sub is just gonna fuckin take it. FUCKIN TAKE IT. That phrase from Darius is literally used several times. That's this series in a nutshell.
There are few things I despise more than books that label themselves BDSM but are anything but. BDSM is not rape. BDSM is not a lack of love between partners. BDSM is not a Dom never having to take responsibility for their actions. Yet, in the land of shitty MM novels, those fantasies are alive and well. So here's my automatic "rape is #okay in bdsm" 1-star to compensate for the complete waste of time.
It had so much good potential if only someone sat the author down before publication and explained "this is not what healthy BDSM looks like so maybe stop pushing that."
Unless you like reading about shitty Dom behavior and fucked up "BDSM," steer clear of this series.
So what's the issue? The magical "rape is okay cause #bdsm" trope. Darius rapes Rhys, plain and simple. Darius even SAYS EXACTLY THAT to Rhys. But he never apologizes or expresses any regret to Rhys for it. This is well into the book after Rhys becomes very emotionally upset over seeing an old friend/crush and being prevented from speaking with him. It's presented as "I had to rape you cause you'd die without it" but that's not true at all. Darius and Xolani weren't even sure if the sex was necessary at that point given how much Rhys had already been exposed. And Darius had other options to take Rhys somewhere private, to talk with him and settle him. But he CHOOSES not to do that. Instead, he forces Rhys to have sex in a humiliating way that he did not want, in front of others and in hearing range of Rhys's old friend/crush.
The book tries to retcon it later when Darius actually tries to talk to Rhys about the rape. The attempt to discuss it is good, so I was hopeful. But alas, Darius digs in and says he won't apologize. Literally says "I won't apologize." Not even a suggestion that he regrets not taking a different course, like going off to be alone with Rhys. Furthermore, Rhys basically says "yeah but you had to rape me cause I needed it but couldn't take it for myself." OH. MY. GOD. That is all so fucking weak. There wasn't even a good reason that the rape "had to happen!" Darius just wanted to brutally and humilitatingly fuck Rhys. That's what happened.
A similar thing happened with the scene involving Toby and Joe in some harder S/M. It was extremely overwhelming for Rhys and he didn't want it. Darius recognized that after the fact but still... FUCKING STILL he did not apologize or express regret. In fact, Darius NEVER apologizes for anything the entire series. Meanwhile "sorry" is Rhys's favorite word. That whole dynamic was repulsive, frankly. (Oh, and Rhys later on supposedly liked the Toby and Joe scene... #retcon)
Tangent to that, Darius never tells Rhys that he loves him. Not even close. The closest thing I saw was "I love eating your ass." Lmao. What? Darius internally says he "more than loves" Rhys, that he's basically as essential as breathing. But he never communicates that to Rhys in any unambiguous way.
This whole thing reads like a shitty dom's fantasy world where the Dom can just take what they want without repercussion, throw any sense of decency or emotional intelligence out the window, refuse to express any sentiment of love, and just FUCK. With no regard for the sub. None. Fuck everything, fuck everyone, make them bleeeeeeed. If they don't like it, well tough cause the Dom is stronger and the sub is just gonna fuckin take it. FUCKIN TAKE IT. That phrase from Darius is literally used several times. That's this series in a nutshell.
There are few things I despise more than books that label themselves BDSM but are anything but. BDSM is not rape. BDSM is not a lack of love between partners. BDSM is not a Dom never having to take responsibility for their actions. Yet, in the land of shitty MM novels, those fantasies are alive and well. So here's my automatic "rape is #okay in bdsm" 1-star to compensate for the complete waste of time.
It had so much good potential if only someone sat the author down before publication and explained "this is not what healthy BDSM looks like so maybe stop pushing that."
Unless you like reading about shitty Dom behavior and fucked up "BDSM," steer clear of this series.
Displaying 1 of 1 review