“This is not the night you die.”After years of working for a loan shark, Robert is done with blood and violence. All he has to show for it is a bag of money and a lifetime of regrets. There’s no other way out of his line of work than in a body bag.So Robert decides to die.But on the night he chooses to seal his own fate, destiny offers him a chance at redemption. When Robert saves a handsome … him a chance at redemption. When Robert saves a handsome young escort from a terrible death, he has no idea he is setting in motion much more than one last attempt at proving that inside the hardened shell, he is a decent human being.
Charming, quick-witted, and full of smiles, Nathan is all Robert could dream of. He’s also ready to fall into the arms of his gruff protector. Robert, on the other hand, has never been with a man and will first need to fight his own demons if he is to accept that his whole being wants to make Nathan his.
With his former boss hunting them both, time is ticking, and Robert might just not get the chance to decide before it’s too late. More importantly though, Robert will stop at nothing to protect the man who’s made him feel alive again, the man who is the only thing between him and the abyss.
*
“I never had to think much about death before, but I did yesterday. I thought I would die. In a hole. Covered with dirt. Suffocate underground. But then you saved me.”
POSSIBLE SPOILERS:
Themes: enemies to lovers, protector, cruelty, homophobia, crime, self-discovery, family conflict, age gap, escort, self-hate, first time, revenge, on the run
Genre: Dark, gritty, M/M contemporary romance
Content: Scorching hot, emotional, explicit scenes
Length: ~90,000 words (Standalone novel, HEA)
WARNING: This story contains scenes of violence, torture, mentions of suicide, offensive language, morally ambiguous characters, homophobia and homophobic language
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Five awesome – loved it.
Unlovable Bastard is a standalone gritty romance between a disillusioned loan-shark thug and an escort in a dangerous situation. Although this is a romance and it has a happy ending, please make sure to read the warnings to make sure this is a book for you. I love dark and gritty romances with dangerous and morally ambiguous characters, but it may not be for everyone.
What an emotional rollercoaster this book was! I loved the tense and edgy relationship between Robert, the ex-henchman, and Nathan the spicy young escort. The action and violence starts right away and leads to a deliciously hot sex scene that burned up the pages. From there, the book never stopped and I loved every single moment. The plot took some unexpected twists and the ending was just *chef kiss* fabulous.
The audiobook was narrated by Wyatt Baker who does such a wonderful job. I loved how he voiced both main characters and it was easy to follow along in the narration. The performance was perfect with just the right amount of energy and emotions to make the audiobook feel dynamic and exciting but not going over-the-top. The audiobook production was well done and altogether it was a smooth and fun listening experience.
I’m reviewing the audio edition. These authors are always on my watch list and when I get the stories in audio, I’m extremely happy. A story starting in a cemetery gives a feel what kind of story it will be. These ladies know how to write the on edge, dark romance. The characters are neither angels and when thrown together get into plenty of trouble. The story flows right along. The narrator, Wyatt Baker does an excellent job of bring these guys to life. This audio held my attention from the beginning to the end. As always, I’m always waiting for something new from these authors.
Wow, what a book. I loved it.
I wasn’t sure what to expect as I hadn’t read the blurb, but this audio was everything.
We start with murders, then a closeted angry homophobic loan shark and an out gay escort.
This is a great story that has you on edge a lot, with great characters and a strong storyline.
enemies to lovers, protector, cruelty, homophobia, crime, self-discovery, family conflict, age gap, escort, self-hate, first time, revenge, on the run, talk of suicide,
Good clear narration, I had to speed up. I listened at 1.40 speed on audible but loved Wyatt Bakers voice.
Unlovable Bastard
Gay Dark Romance
By: K.A. Merikan
Narrated by: Wyatt Baker
Length: 8 hrs and 58 mins
Overall
Narration
Story
Read at 1.40 speed on Audible
3.5 stars
I just love this cover. I admit I struggle with the first two chapters. Mostly with them getting together at first, It just didn’t click for me. They met by chance when Robert was choosing to end his life and someone else choosing to end Nathan’s. Robert seeing what was about to happen to Nathan decided that Nathan was his last-ditch effort of redeeming himself for the life he led as a loan shark enforcer. I’m grateful this wasn’t consistent on the road running away from the bad guys. Sticking to one place for them works for me. The secondary characters really added some depth to the main characters. Overall, it was good to read, just not one of my favorites by them.
A dangerous encounter saves two lives rather than just one, but the act of conscience comes with mortal consequences. Nathan and Robert are forced to run, to hide, to survive however they can as they try to find a way out of the mess they’ve both created and found themselves in. Along the way they’ll face deep parts of themselves that they’ve been blind to, have ignored, have denied for years. They’ll either survive or die, but the real question is whether they’ll do it together.
Robert is troubled, to say the least. He’s frustrating, hurtful, and yet I ache for him. To know who he is and then to deny it just to survive and keep scraps of what he’s protecting is disheartening. When I look at him I just see survival. Not pretty survival, or even strong survival, just knee-jerk reactions to stay alive and provide for a family he distances himself from to protect. I find so much about him that’s redeemable and I think he really grows and finds his way back to the light by the end of the story.
I feel like I’m in the minority here in regards to preferring Robert over Nathan. Yes, Robert is deeply closeted and hurtful to Nathan and others, but despite the “I can’t be gay” thing (which is pretty understandable given his location, family’s beliefs, and his professional restrictions and expectations), Nathan’s behavior is deplorable on many, many more occasions. Outing Robert, even unsuccessfully, because he’s offended, knowing being gay can get them both killed regardless of Vogel’s obsession, giving an impressionable young girl the idea to sleep with the guy bullying her because that’s what he did, thinking nothing of spending someone else’s money, getting Robert shot, exposing them over and over…I mean, I could go on but I think you get the idea, yeah? With Nathan’s reactions over and over I question what’s so great about him aside from his looks. There’s a bit of caring and self-awareness that happens once they’re with Robert’s family, but even then those are flashes rather than an upward trend. Most of how Nathan describes being gay and his identity comes down to sex rather than who he really is. Being unable to express himself is and understandable frustration, I’m not faulting him for those feelings at all. What I am faulting him for is his treatment of Robert, his constant need to throw gay sex in everyone’s faces when ignorant, hurtful things are said, and his self-centered actions. I’m not even won over by the end.
The overall story felt disjointed, unfocused, and way too long for what the point was. Inconsistencies and content issues bothered me quite a lot and I wanted to skim so much of the story. It’s Robert’s redemption, making amends, changing for the better, and eventual honesty that saves the story for me. Lots of other people liked it, and that’s totally great, so make of this what you will, but I went from being intrigued to disappointed very quickly. Also? The cover is unappealing. With a lot of unrealized potential I’m hard-pressed to recommend this story as a good representation of the author’s true abilities.
We Met In Death, by K. A. Merikan, is a dark, stark romance, Robert and Nathan take you on a journey. One filled with themes such as violence, homophobia, and morally murky waters. Oh and dont forget the swearing. I like Nathan and Robert… Robert had a lot of self exploitation to do in order to fully embrace what he had with Nsthan. The story was interesting and entertaining… definitely kept my attention and had a satisfying ending.
I received an advanced reader’s copy of the book and I am voluntarily leaving my honest review and recommendation.