What happens when opposites attract… when you fall for a psycho?5* Steamy Psychological Rom Thriller“Hard-hitting, powerful, this rom thriller has it all; sex, murder, power, glamour, secrets, lies, revenge, wicked laugh out loud. Stalkers, prostitutes, exSAS, footballers, the British press & evil step center stage. No wonder this one’s going to Hollywood.”What happens when a scorned … Hollywood.”
What happens when a scorned childhood sweetheart grows into a sexual tour de force – when a fun-loving glamorous career-girl, her racy girlfriends and insatiable lovers get caught in his revenge – when sex is used as a weapon and hearts as bait?
What happens to high flying careers, clandestine affairs and wannabe starlets when the celebrity hungry press find out?
Obsession, kidnap, murder… magnetic, manipulative David Howard is just getting started!
Grab a glass of wine, close the bedroom door and read alone!
REVIEWS
“Gripping Story – I admire this author, she isn’t afraid to push the boundaries.”
“Explosive and visceral… compelling.”
“Holy Shit is all I can say!!! These books are going to make AMAZING films!!!”
“Cunningham has done it again! What a fantastic writer. The second book in the series is just as brilliant as the first,”
“Pick it up when you have plenty of time because you won’t want to put it down.”
“50 shades crossed with Martina Cole.”
“I read a lot of books and this book moves up to one of my top 5 reads.”
“My God you shocked my shoes off. Excellent work!”
“I read this book in 3 days, it’s one of those books you just don’t want to stop reading.”
“Had me reading and reading to the small hours. Gripping! Can’t wait for the third in the series.”
‘OMG!! Finished ‘Unfinished business’! You certainly know how to have an ending AGAIN.”
“Powerful and emotional writing with bags of tension, a classic psychological thriller. Loved it.”
“I raise a glass, I’d love to meet anyone who writes like this.”
“Blown away to the point of speechless. Shocking, vivid and bloody well written!!”
“God I loved your book! It was intense, great narration, and wonderful dialogue.”
“This reminds me a little of American Psycho only so very much better!”
“A talented writer, I was compelled to keep reading and now I’m frustrated because I WANT MORE!”
“You’ve managed to do what I’ve seen very few people do – give your narrator a personality.”
“If you love Martina Cole books and 50 Shades of Grey this book is for you!”
“An incredibly powerful piece of writing. Few could make a man they’d already shown as a monster into an object of pity.”
“Masterful, dark and suspenseful, you expertly exploit tensions between the erotic and the macabre, your characterisation of David is phenomenal.”
“Marvellous. Brilliantly written, good storyline.”
“Finished reading The Penance List and now IMPATIENTLY waiting on Unfinished Business and For My Sins.”
“This book has everything – suspense, sex, laughs and intrigue. The twist at the end left me speechless.”
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Favorite Quotes:
We’re a bit old for older men don’t ya think? Ours would come with a wheelchair and bus pass. It would be more useful to learn a few resuscitation techniques… a good bit of slap’n tickle and a cheeky bit of CPR, very sexy.
Tara had a sweet way of talking naughty whilst making it sound as if she were discussing pruning petunias.
She was hardly WAG material, being over thirty, more like GAG material, ‘grandmothers and girlfriends’.
… and to think she’d grown up wanting to be a nun – as a girl, she’d loved their outfits, particularly the long blue dresses with the white veils. She could do the ‘doing good’ bit easily enough; it was the ‘being good’ bit where she failed.
The hovering Enzo stared at her. Maybe he should consider becoming gay. You learned so much about women working in the restaurant business.
My Review:
It always worries me when I fall deeper and deeper into a creepy and sinister plot while vastly enjoying the experience. I fear there may be something wrong with me to become so enthralled and transfixed on such a twisted and disturbing story. But in my defense, this superbly penned stunner quickly mesmerized me and held me in thrall with razor-sharp and well-crafted writing. The storylines were ingenious and compelling, cleverly insightful, and often witty and amusing. I had a hard time putting my Kindle down any longer than necessary for those pesky chores such as sleeping and seeking sustenance. The characters were fascinating, original, complex, and enticing, yet deeply flawed – some more than others.
The taut narrative was skillfully written in the third person omniscient POV of practically everyone, including taxi drivers, waiters, and receptionists; with frequent dashes of clever humor, intense sensual scenes, and a mesmerizing and suspense-filled build-up to the gruesomely plotted climax. But I also want to mention there were also haunting, dark, and grisly descriptions of abuse and violence. It was highly evocative and often elicited a powerful response whether empathic or severely creepy. But did you notice this was Book #1? While the cliffhanger wasn’t vile and heinous, the story is not complete, damn it, but it did reach a comfortable stopping point.
To end on a positive note, I also picked up some new vocabulary words, several of which would never pass the Amazon censors but I believe sloaney will make it, which is apparently a young party animal from a posh and wealthy family with more money than sense. Hmm, I would have aspired to being a sloaney young adult in my day.
The Penance List
Holy cow! This book is intense. It is everything that the synopsis promises and more. It’s a psychological thriller with a dose of romance and a pinch of suspense. SC Cunningham expertly weaves a tale that kept me on the edge of my seat and up at night!
The tale follows David as he stalks his prey and then flashes to his childhood where the reader gets glimpses into why he is what he is. He is a character that is so dark and dangerous and yet I felt sorry for him.
Then, we get to meet Tara. The lovely, vivacious Tara. She is unwittingly the target of David’s obsession. I enjoyed her character. She made me laugh out loud several times.
There was also a wonderful cast of secondary characters: the hot Franco, loyal Micheal, Irish Seb, and the entertaining Anton. I loved them all. They had great chemistry and fleshed out the story.
The plot was wonderful. It was meticulously crafted to tie all the different story lines together to have one major climax. I have to say the prologue is very intense.
The story also has quite a bit of romance. It seems like everyone is getting some. The scenes are done well. I would recommend reading them in the quiet of a bedroom. Not in a busy coffee shop! Oh la la!
David’s character is seriously messed up. There is rape, murder, bondage, and just overall creepy stuff happening. I definitely did not want to be all alone after reading this!
I enjoyed SC Cunningham’s work in The Penance List. It was everything promised and more!!!
I received this ARC from the author. This is my honest opinion.