Nessuna buona azione

The Heretic Doms Club #4

by Marie Sexton

Charlie Garcia ha trascorso la vita aiutando gli altri. Per anni, ha fornito assistenza sanitaria gratuita agli abitanti del quartiere e ha fatto da consigliere per gli amici e i parenti. Adora essere la persona a cui tutti si rivolgono, solo che così ha finito per innamorarsi dell’uomo sbagliato. Adesso, sei anni dopo, colui che se n’era andato è tornato a Denver per donare un rene e ha una richiesta: vuole che Charlie lo sposi, in modo che questi ottenga la procura medica a suo nome. Charlie è felice di rendersi utile, ma, oltre a un fidanzato a sorpresa, si ritrova all’improvviso con due enormi problemi: un vicino di casa rancoroso che vuole rovinargli la carriera e un segreto che potrebbe distruggere la sua amicizia con Warren, Phil e Gray.

Genres: BDSM, M M Romance, Romance, Contemporary, LGBT, Contemporary Romance, Second Chance

342 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 22, 2020

About the author

Marie Sexton lives in Colorado. She’s a fan of just about anything that involves muscular young men piling on top of each other. In particular, she loves the Denver Broncos and enjoys going to the games with her husband. Her imaginary friends often tag along. Marie has one daughter, two cats, and one dog, all of whom seem bent on destroying what remains of her sanity. She loves them anyway.

The absolute best way to stay up-to-date on my books is by joining my FB group. You can view livestreams about Oestend, Coda, and the Heretic Doms Club. I also give away books on a regular basis. NO DRAMA ALLOWED!!


Or, you might want to check out these pages:

Coda: Which book do I read first?

Find a book by trope or heat level.


Visit my website/blog at http://www.MarieSexton.net

Reviews

[Kati *☆･ﾟ · Rating 4 out of 5]

4**** stars


Don’t ask me why I picked this one up. Because this last one didn't exactly called my name. BUT, I knew from my experience with the previous books that the themes are serious and I was in the mood for it. And as soon as read the prologue and my reservations towards this book flew out of the fucking window. One name and I was hooked!!!


Shit, I didn’t see this early plot twist coming and the resulting tension between various characters was delicious. The romance was sweet and hot and the overall plot continued to hold my attention.

I loved the epilogue that basically held the HEA for all four of this series’ couples. They truly are a great bunch and overall I enjoyed the hell out of the whole series.


side note: I guess it's possible to read these books as standalones but I would recommend starting with the first one to really get all the characters and their dynamic in the group.


************
The Heretic Doms Club

Book 1 - One Man’s Trash - 4.5 stars ♡
Book 2 - Terms of Service - 3.5 stars
Book 3 - Spare the Rod - 4.5 stars
Book 4 - No Good Deed - 4.0 stars

[Lyn❤Loves❤Listening to Real Voices Only!!!!❤️🎧📚 Addict ON HIATUS · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audio 4.5 Stars

Story 3 Stars..an additional .5 Star for Robert and Will's Story. I wish it had been a full length novel.

This was my least favorite of the series.

[Gabi · Rating 2 out of 5]

After a couple chapters I started skimming. It felt rushed. And I have to say, it felt like the author wanted to be done with this series and it shined through the writing. Sorry, honest opinion.

[AussieMum · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars
This book had its ups and downs for me. The prologue was perfect, leaving me completely stunned. But the first few chapters were a let down. The whole setup seemed a bit ridiculous to me. Jonas basically coming back, after 6 years, to marry Charlie because he’s scared to have surgery and he’s the only one he trusts. “I want you to be with me, all the way through. To be in the room with me, as much as possible. And there’s only one way we can be sure they’ll allow that.” Hmmm. But it turns out in the end that was soooo wrong because later in the book.... “Can Charlie come?” She shook her head. “I’m afraid not, but he can be there the minute you wake up.” So the whole getting married thing, for surgery purposes and romance setup, was a waste of time.

I almost put it down for good. I’m glad I got back into it because I really enjoyed these two together. They really are a great match and have grown during their separation. And as for the kink I just have one thing to say... The sexiest SOUNDING sessions I’ve ever read!!!

As always the cameos from other Heretics were good. But I was totally over the group sex between the 8 of them as it honestly seems so clinical now. Like they’re just going through the motions cos that’s what they’ve always done. I wish there was more feeling rather than what amounted to an assembly line of cocks and holes. But maybe that’s because I prefer MMM where I can easily keep track of everyone, and here I got a bit lost.

...And then they all rotated. Suddenly it was Phil presenting his cock to Jonas to be sucked. Charlie fucking Avery. River sucking Warren. Gray being sucked by Taylor before turning him around and fucking him instead. And then they switched again. And again.

This came at the end of several pages of descriptive sex but you get my point.

This series has been hit and miss for me. River and Phil will always be my absolute favourite but Charlie and Jonas deserve a lotta love too. Overall this was a good ending to the series. A little bittersweet perhaps but mostly satisfying.

[Leaf of Absence · Rating 4 out of 5]

I rounded the rating up a little, to 4 Stars.

No Good Deed - the grand finale of the saga of the Heretic Doms - started the best way possible: the prologue elicited an audible 'oh shit' from me. What a great way to start the story, with the possibly insurmountable conflict, and the potential fallout within the group. Viewed as a whole, the strongest parts of the series has been the dynamics between this core group of friends (Charlie, Gray, Warren and Phil), and to introduce a real threat to this dynamic for the final book is a truly great way to up the stakes.

The rest of the book is a bit patchy, setting up a number of secondary plots alongside the above-mentioned obstacle to Charlie's happiness, though none of them quite live up to their potential. As always, there's great moments of tension when a new person is introduced or reintroduced to the group at one of the infamous poker parties, and there's a really good moment of danger, where Gray gets to once again play a small but pivotal part. Gray as the efficient, ruthless asshole is wonderful, but Gray as the irascible toddler, less so.

Overall, I liked the book. I liked Charlie and his love interest. I liked the moments of tension within the group and the moments of joy. I feel a bit let down by the decidedly non-heretical and very much normative resolution of everyone giving up their illegal activies in favor of being happily married and moving to the 'burbs. There's nothing wrong with that per se, but there's something to be said for letting the characters keep their anti-hero qualities, because this is fiction, and it's fun. I like Warren the vigilante, and Charlie the rogue nurse, and I'm not all that excited about them going down the road of respectability.

[AGandyGirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bleh. I love these characters but this really was lacking. The bonus chapters gave this read a slight bump in rating but overall this was pretty disappointing. I think the first in the series is still my favorite.

***
Original thoughts:



Salivating over this cover. He is exactly as I pictured. Can't wait!!

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

six years later, the one who got away is back in Denver to donate a kidney, and he has a request...he wants Charlie to marry him long enough to serve as medical power of attorney. Charlie’s happy to help, but in addition to a surprise fiancé, he suddenly has two huge problems: a neighbor with a grudge who wants to ruin his career, and a secret that may destroy his friendship with Warren, Phil, and Gray.

Jonas had had a past relationship with Gray, and he had been in Seatle ever since leaving Gray and Colorado...so that relationship was well and truly over. All their friends knew it and had accepted it. So, I couldn't understand Gray's reactions in the beginning, to Jonas and Charlie forming a relationship. They were all adults...anything between Jonas and Gray was over...had been for 6 long years...so why should Gray have been so angry that Jonas came to Charlie when he returned to Colorado to donate a kidney? Charlie was a registered nurse and one of the Heretic Doms...and also Jonas and Charlie were the only two of the "friend's" group that didn't have partners and weren't married. Charlie had always loved Jonas, but never acted on it, and the feelings was mutual, so I just didn't get Gray's anger issues. It didn't ruin the story...I just didn't get the reasoning here.

This is the last book in the Heretic Doms Club series. I am so glad that I bought all 4 books. I really grew attached to these characters and their relationships...their poker nights...their amazing friendships and how they always managed to support one another...to just "be there". There will be certain aspects of their closeness that won't appeal to everyone, even die-hard M/M Romance readers. Just bear in mind that these relationships are a bit...well a lot, unusual.... but I really liked the comradery between the Doms.

This last book...and I do so hope that there will be another full-length book sometime in the future to continue with these characters.... but hold on...There is a wonderful surprise at the end of this book! After Charlie and Jonas' story is finished...we find that...IT ISN"T!!! Marie Sexton has included a section of short stories about each of the couples...including one for Avery's piano-playing friend, Robert. Thank you, thank you, Ms. Sexton... and thank you for these 4-books in this wonderful series...but could you now, pretty please.... get started on that fifth book???

[Alessandra Magagnato · Rating 5 out of 5]

Assolutamente 5 stelle piene.

[Claude]

DNF at 30%.

This review say exactly my thoughts.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


Phil's book will always be the best part of this series.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story wasn’t bad but it missed the mark a bit for me, although the prologue was rather brilliant. I never really loved the MCs dynamic and although I’m always happy to dispel disbelief at most scenarios in fiction I just couldn’t buy into Jonás’s reason for coming to Charlie. I appreciate the author raising awareness of kidney disease and I liked that storyline but never bought the marriage idea. I did like Charlie as a rogue Robin Hood style nurse.

The group thing didn’t work for me here. TW for group sex/sharing of partners - all consensual.

This ends about 80% and the rest of the book is shorts from other books in the series with scenes from different characters point of views. I did enjoy this part as I’m always intrigued as to what other characters think of things but I also found it made the actual book feel like it ended abruptly.

[Tamara · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story let me down in a completely different way than Gray's book.

The characters met and fell in love off-page. We only get their relationship after a 6 year separation (the one glance into the past is negligible). Because of that I couldn't feel their connection as anything other than a superficial one even though we were told enough times it was not.

Also, is it just me or were there entirely too many sex scenes compared to the rest of the content? I can't help but think some of them could have been sacrificed for more info about how they actually fell in love.

But, dealing with that part of the story would have included lying and (mostly) emotional cheating. After the way the first two books dealt with extremely difficult subjects (especially the first!), you would expect Sexton wouldn't hesitate to tackle this one, and it looks like she took a coward's way out by skipping it. It's one thing to talk about it six years after the fact, another to show characters dealing with it as they did it.

All the while I was reading it I kept thinking how it felt very rushed considering the percentage I was through, only to find out it ends at 80%. The rest of the book are behind-the-scenes types of snippets. After the disappointment I felt with the story, these were great and helped me finish the book on a happier note. But in all I feel let down and sad because I had high hopes this book would be as great as the first two.

2.5 stars rounded up

[Jenn (The Book Refuge) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, Sounding in a contemporary romance. Something I've been wanting to check our. I know I jumped to the last book of a series for it, but I got the gist of everything.

3.5 stars
4.5 on the spice scale

[Vanessa Booked Up]

No Rating

Hmm, I really should've stopped at book 2 in this series. This one was ok but just not remarkable to me. And the whole "sharing is caring" bit is just getting to be a bit too much. Wasn't bad by any means...just, meh.

[Antisocial Recluse · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great finish

I think I enjoyed this the most out of the series in many ways. The foundation of this group of four men is tested in this volume. It’s a more emotional story in many ways but the author adds a touch of excitement and danger too. I enjoyed the sexual aspect lots more, somewhat kinky but it began with an established connection so it was sweeter. The kink is a little milder but I found the scenes hot as hell. More my speed I guess. Great series.

[Mercedes · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfect end! I am going to miss these guys so much. Each story so meaty.

[Kochka94 · Rating 4 out of 5]

De retour à Denver pour faire un peu plus ample connaissance avec Charlie le nounours, Charlie et ses pâtisseries, Charlie et son dévouement pour ses patients, Charlie et son cuir, Charlie le solitaire... dernier du quatuor à être célibataire, qui voit ses amis l'un tomber amoureux et se caser, les uns après les autres... Charlie qui va recevoir une visite qui va bouleverser sa vie.

Difficile d'en dire plus sans divulgâcher l'histoire, tout tournant finalement autour de l'homme qui va revenir dans la vie de Charlie, et des autres dominants, bouleversant la dynamique de leurs relations, menaçant de faire voler en éclats cette amitié si forte et si particulière.

Et Charlie va devoir gérer aussi un junkie violent, dont l'ex a été mise en sécurité grâce à Warren, situation d'autant plus délicate que Gray ne peut plus couvrir ses arrières.

La partie de poker tourne cette fois carrément à l'orgie, avec huit hommes chauds comme une baraque à frites, forcément, ça ouvre des tas de possibilités.

Ce dernier tome de la série se termine par un petit bonus, l'auteur nous offrant trois petites nouvelles qui éclairent certains évènements essentiels, de ce tome et du tome précédent, mais vu cette fois par un autre protagoniste, et j'ai trouvé que c'était une bonne idée.

Bref, une série qui m'a fait passer un bon moment, où j'ai apprécié certains couples et certains gars plus que d'autres mais où il était intéressant de suivre l'évolution de ces quatre dominants hérétiques, aussi bien dans leurs couples respectifs que dans leur amitié. Le lien qui se noue aussi entre les quatre "soumis" est plutôt intéressant. Par contre, il est important de préciser que certaines pratiques peuvent choquer, puisqu'il est à la fois question de BDSM sous diverses formes, du plutôt léger (liens autour des poignets) au plus lourd (cravaches et fouets), mais aussi de pratiques sexuelles de groupe, "entre amis", histoire de se mettre en forme pour le poker.

[Barb ~rede-2-read~ · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a wonderful finish to a memorable series, made even better by the talented voice(s) of John Solo (who gets better with each audiobook).

Charley who was the sweetest bear of the foursome that make up the Heretic Does Club, finally gets his man, a man who was once Grey's partner. Jonah returns to the area to donate a kidney after losing his stepsister to kidney disease. There's a lot of heartwarming and heartbreaking moments related to this subtopic so have tissues handy--especially when we meet the parents of the boy selected to receive his kidney. Ugh. Many tears.

But Charley's care and concern for others shines through in this book and he gets in trouble for his neighborhood clinic--with a drug addict and nearly with the cops. And he's totally rejected and dejected when Grey learns that Jonah is now with Charley and that they spent one night together six years before--the night before Jonah and Grey broke up.

All four couples are involved in this story and it's awesome to see how every couple and every character has evolved over time. The final chapters are riveting and the author comes through with lots of love.

There's also three bones scenes at the end--scenes that couldn't be included in the original books due to the POV of the main characters in those scenes. But they are terrific and memorable and fill in the gaps beautifully. Thank you, Marie Sexton and John Solo. I loved this book!

[Jenn (not Lily) · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fantastic finish to this series. Charlie has been a rock of stability for the past 3 books, but he is obviously completely off-kilter for Jonas. This starts with the aftermath of Jonas and Gray's last fight six years before the series started -- the end bit surprised me so much that I had to go back and start the book over to be sure exactly what I was reading. The story just got better from that point. I feel like I should be able to articulate better, but I'm really just overwhelmed with lingering impressions from both this and the previous books -- Warren and Taylor's first poker night, their water sports (which was referenced again in this one -- lasting impression for sure!), Phil and River camping, their growing stability as a pair, Gray's slow-turning focus from Phil to Avery and Avery growing into a functional adult, and finally the poker night in this story coming full circle, followed by Jonas's surgery. I'm going to miss these men, but I have a funny feeling they'll all be living in my head for a while.

[JD Crittendon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Change is Inevitable and So is Love!

Dom/caretaker Charlie gets an unusual proposition from his best friend Gray’s ex-boyfriend Jonas and he won’t refuse because of love. This is an enjoyable, a bit intense, no surprises yet interesting story. I’m invested in the MCs, the co-characters, and the overall premise of the Heretic Club. Charlie is the last member to get his happy ending which I think was cleverly done. I’m going to miss these guys!

[Daniela Tirrito (Tivvys_books_world) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5*

[Grace · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this one a lot more than book 3, but not as much as the first two books in the series.

Not as much actual relationship angst, as a lot of the conflict is generated by outside forces, which made sense, but I did, in the end, feel like overall there wasn't quite as much tension feels as the other books all had. I really liked the characters and that, again, it was a very different dynamic and set-up, though I felt the entire pretense for the "fake marriage" was really ridiculous and a bit of a stretch. I feel like the author was trying to do something different, which I appreciate, but she didn't quite land it.

I also felt super blindsided by Charlie's major body issues and internalized fatphobia. That can be a bit triggering for me if I'm not prepared for it, and generally blurbs give you a good idea if that might be a theme, but this one gave me nothing, and seeing as how I've never so much as seen a hint of that in any of the past three books where Charlie has frequently been in various states of undress, not only did it really come on strong out of nowhere, but it felt almost out of character, like the author, again, needed to manufacture some angst because there just wasn't a lot there.

The ~drama~ at the end with the addict felt similarly contrived, and also very obvious from the moment that character was introduced.

I liked it, but like some other reviewers said, 3/4 of the "Heretics" ending the series married in the suburbs did feel like a bit of a vanilla ending for these kinksters. Though I loved that at least not all of them HAD to be married and the author made it clear that Phil & River are very happy without ever having a wedding.

This book also had two codas from this book and the last one from other couple's POVs at the end which I really enjoyed as they were definitely some critical moments and it was cool to see how those effects played out elsewhere.

[Rocken]

I'm not going to rate it, because I only read about a third of it, and I love Marie Sexton's writing and wouldn't want to ruin the overall score.
Unfortunately, this book included one of my least favorite trops: returning-lover/second-chance. The MCs were in love and getting it on right out the bat, no preparation and barely any backstory. And I really couldn't be bothered with the rest of it. I tried, but I just couldn't make myself care.

It's a real shame, since this one was one of my most anticipated books. I couldn't wait to read Charlie's story. But oh well.

Anyway, Phil's story in book two is still my favorite, followed by Warren's, then Gray's.

[P-san~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

The last book of the series is definitely less heavy than the previous ones, especially if we talk about the characters' past, but we have some drama with ex and best friends involved.
I liked how the other doms with their respective partners helped with Gray and Avery so that they could all make up and feel less awkward.
I loved the scenes at the end of the book from others' points of view and the short story about Robert.

[Bibliophile · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was just okay. I'm not sure why this book didn't pull me in as much as I would have hoped. Partly it's because I don't find group orgies sexy. But I also think it's because I just don't understand how someone could claim to love someone and then not talk to them at all for six year. I normally really love Sexton's books, but this one didn't work for me as well as I would have hoped.

[Valentina Campi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Decisamente il libro della serie che mi è piaciuto di più. Sarà per i personaggi, sarà perché quello che succede va a influenzare tutto il gruppo di amici, ma sicuramente è il mio preferito della serie.

[Karen BookAddict · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sympa, lu avec plaisir, mais clairement en dessous des précédents. Il n'empêche que ça a été génial de tous les revoir ❤

[•Siℓvia• · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 STELLE -
Ultimo libro della serie e un po' deludente.

[Saimi Vasquez · Rating 3 out of 5]

La historia de Charlie y Jason. Charlie el ultimo soltero del grupo, es el "sabio", el consejero del grupo, pero se siente solo, el unico hombre del que se cree enamorado lo dejo hace 6 anos, cuando termino su relacion con Gray. Desde ese entonces Charlie se siente culpable, pero cree que Jason ya lo olvido.
Sin embargo Jason se fue de la ciudad porque queria aclarar sus sentimientos por Charlie y rehacerse a si mismo, ya que sintio que con Gray se perdio. Pero cuando se enfrenta al hecho de una operacion, la unica persona que piensa que va a apoyarlo es Charlie, por lo vuelve a la cuidad y a los brazos de Charlie.
Ambos se enfrentan al dilema de que el grupo los acepte como pareja, ya que al ser el ex de Gray el grupo se fractura. Pero Jason y Charlie logran asegurar al grupo que su relacion es verdadera y que nunca, nunca van a interferir con la relacion de Gray y Avery.

El libro tiene mucho menos emcion y drama que los anterioes, el pasado de Charlie y Jason es relativamente normal, y solo el drama con los demas del grupo es lo que domina la trama.
Es un buen libro de final de serie, porque te muestra todo lo que ha pasado con las otras parejas, ademas que puedes ver el futuro que estan enfrentando y como la amistad entre ellos es cada vez mas solida y verdadera.
El autor incluyo al final varias historias cortas de lo que paso con otras parejas cuando tuvieron que verse en decisiones importantes en otros libros, por ejemplo, nos muestra como realmente se sintio River cuando descubrio que Gray estaba enamorado de Phil, o como Avery y Gray manejaron el regreso de Jason, todo desde el punto de vista de los involucrados y no de los protagonistas del libro.
Ademas agrego una historia corta (muy corta a mi parecer) sobre la nueva relacion de Robert (el pianista que acompana a Avery) con Wil (uno de los chicos del grupo de "cuero" de Charlie).
En conclusion es un buen libro, y una serie recomendable solo si te gusta el genero erotico M/M con mucho drama incluido.

[Britin71 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charly voit revenir vers lui Jonas avec qui il a eu une brève mais intense aventure des années plus tôt. Ce dernier lui demande de l’épouser, non par amour mais pour que Charly, infirmier, puisse être légalement en droit de prendre les décisions médicales le concernant lors de l’opération pour donner son rein.

Cette saga est un sans faute !
Chaque tome aborde un aspect du BDSM bien particulier mais où l’amour emporte tout ♥️

On connait assez peu Charly des précédents tomes et je ne m’attendais pas à ce qu’il soit un daddy en cuir qui protège et chéri Jonas. Cependant, ça colle parfaitement à la personnalité de ce barbu costaud qui passe son temps à prendre soin des autres 🥰
Mais 6 ans après leur dernière rencontre, le corps de Charly s’est un peu empâté et il n’assume pas vraiment ses kilos en trop vis à vis du jeune et fringant Jonas. La relation entre lui et Charly arrive vite du fait de leur passé commun et parce qu ils n’ont jamais réellement réussi à oublier l’autre pendant toutes ses années.

Je vous laisserais découvrir qui est Jonas et quel lien le relie aux membres du Club des Dominants Hérétiques car cela m’a vraiment étonné. Mais le moins que l’on puisse dire c’est que ça va foutre la merde dans le petit groupe 😅

Question pratique sexuelle, Charly fait découvrir à Jonas le plaisir urétral et je dois dire que c’est un truc qui ne m’a jamais excité (bien au contraire 😰).
Par contre, les soirées poker sont plus que jamais brûlantes 🔥😜🔥

Quel bonheur aussi de revoir tous les personnages des tomes précédents 🥰

Les petites nouvelles à la fin du livre apportent un vrai plus.

Cette saga aborde avec justesse différents aspects du BDSM, sans glauquitude et avec toujours beaucoup d’amour et de respect. Je ne peux que vous la recommander et j’espère que d’autres romans de Marie Sexton seront traduits car c’est une auteure de talent ♥️

Note : 17/20

[Wide Eyes, Big Ears! · Rating 5 out of 5]

Charlie Garcia is the wisest of the Heretic Doms and probably the most saintly. He uses his RN knowledge to treat the health of struggling people in his neighbourhood for free, just like his abuela did. Unfortunately, that puts him in danger or on the wrong side of the law at times. Jonas Kincaid left town six years ago after his acrimonious breakup with Gray, even though it broke Charlie and Jonas’s hearts to do so. Jonas is back and needs Charlie’s help and love but will that cause a rift between the Heretic Doms and their beloved subs? I was looking forward to Charlie’s story and wasn’t disappointed. I understand why some people felt this was rushed. Although it was a second-chances romance, Jonas and Charlie almost immediately rekindled their relationship so it felt like instalove - I didn’t mind it. There were some great plot lines: Jonas’s kidney donation, Charlie’s trouble with his neighbour and the police, and the huge adjustment the Heretic Doms faced with the return of Jonas. I thought the author really tied up the whole series well and gave us nice glimpses into each couple’s progress - I found that really satisfying. John Solo’s narration was perfect as always. I listened to all four audios in a row and loved taking the journey with him. The three “deleted scenes” were also a welcome addition!