Nate Mathews is a murderer. Alfie doesn’t know the details of his crime, and he doesn’t want to. All he knows is Nate Mathews is evil, and his colleagues at Larkwood prison shudder at his name.But Alfie has caught Nate’s eyes, and they start flirting in the early hours. It’s forbidden, terrifying, but arousing too. One whisper of ‘Freshman’ from Nate, and Alfie’s stomach flutters, and his pulse … his pulse increases. Alfie knows if he reads Nate’s file his attraction to the criminal will turn to disgust, but he can’t bring himself to do it. He likes Nate. Nate makes him feel wanted, and that’s a first for Alfie.
Is Nate genuine? Or is Alfie destined for heartbreak…
more
I couldn’t put this book down! This was just sooo good. The writing, the slow burn, the tension, the characters…
The forbidden attraction between a convicted murderer and his prisoner guard was all about the psychological game Nate seemed to play with Alfie, the 18 years old ‘Freshman’ the title refers to. But was it a just a game?
The lines blurred, the good and bad, the us and them and Alfie tried to resist, but it was the whispering, the things Nate said to him, did to him that he could no longer pretend it didn’t turn him inside out. He wanted what Nate wanted to give him, he wanted to be needed and Nate needed him. How could he resist such a basic human craving? To be touched, to be loved, to be needed.
This was the best book I read this year and I can see it ending in my top 10 of best reads at the end of 2021. Those are characters that I won’t be able to let go for a while.
Highly, highly recommended!!
What makes this book dark is the setting and the psychological war that’s going on inside Alfie’s head. There’s no blood and gore and torture, and stuff like that.
Other than that, it’s pretty effing romantic! <3
Nate seduced me with his purring "Freshman..." grrr ;P He's very intense.
Alfie is your typical Goody Two-shoes. He follows the rules and compassionate. And loyal, he just doesn't know who to be loyal to, and therein lies the problem. He is different than the other guards, because he doesn't threat them as trash, he sees the human in them and not the animal who did those crimes.
The back and forth between Nate and Alfie was fascinating to watch. How Alfie was trying to figure out if he was being played by the inmate, or if his interest in him is genuine or not.
And did I miss the part where Nate's age was mentioned, cuz I don't know. I put him around his early thirties. Which means there's at least a 12-year age gap.
I'm also not sure if it's possible to hire an 18-year old as a prison guard.
Also there were a few things that didn't make sense, like... shouldn't there be cameras in a prison?
I'm not well-versed in the prison-world, so I don't know these things.
The ending was wrapped up pretty fast, I wouldn't have minded an epilogue.
Overall I enjoyed it a lot. 😀 Recommended!
5 BIG stars
Oww whoahh!! I loved this one. Read it in one breathe, because i couldn’t put it down.
Forbidden so forbidden but my goodness… it was more than awesome.!!
Alfie always has the night shifts in the Larkwood prison. As being the youngest the nicknames are flying around his head. When he hears a voice whisper ‘Freshman’ and sees Nate for the first time he is speechless. But Nate is a dangerous killer. Together they play a dangerous game.
The building up and anticipation was just killing. The tension throughout the whole story was more than excellent. The dark atmosphere enchanting and addictive. The prison at night makes you shiver. But Alfie and Nate’s dynamic tops it all.
I was constantly holding my breath… Christ that was one hell of a read.
The way of writing was more than captivating… i was under it spell. It made me lightheaded.
This all take place in a quite small environment and that makes is even more attractive.
This should definitely be made into a movie!!