The fairy tales have it all wrong. Cinderella didn’t fall in love with the prince. He was nothing more to her than an easy escape from her shitty life. How do I know? Because in this twisted Cinderella story I’m her long-lost stepbrother. Wilhelmina is about to marry the wrong man. He’s no prince charming, and Mina sure as hell doesn’t love him, so I have no idea why she wants to spend her life … she wants to spend her life with him.
Time’s running out for me to save my stubborn Cinderella by stopping her wedding.
Nothing, not even war, prepared me for this agonizing battle to win Mina’s heart.
Good thing I’ve got a few tricks up my sleeve and I don’t mind fighting dirty.
DISCLAIMER: This fictional story is far from a fairy tale. It’s a rather dark spin on Cinderella, only instead of a wicked stepmother, this heroine dreams of escaping years of traumatic sexual abuse. Fair warning that there are a few scenes that could trigger emotional distress before the hero saves the day.
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Trick is Dark, Steamy, and Amazing!
Goodness! “Trick,” Book 7 of Lane Hart’s Cocky Cage Fighters MMA romance series, is dark, intense, and oh so amazing. When Patrick first made an appearance in Book 6, I was certain he was going to be a presence. Trick, as his Havoc crew calls him, is a broody, sexy military vet – a loner who takes up cage fighting to both work out his aggression and earn money. After having his heart dented when his friend, Alyssa, chose his teammate over him, Trick makes an attempt to reconnect with his long-absent father and his stepfamily, only to discover that his father’s money is covering up some twisted stuff! After a chance, anonymous encounter with a beautiful young woman outside of a club, Trick finds himself embroiled in his stepsister Mina’s personal nightmare. Mina is a stunning young woman – self-sacrificing, kind, and falling quickly for the stepbrother she’s never had the opportunity to know. The sexy bits are there, as are the MMA action and comic relief, but this one is so much more than that. As always, Hart gives us an amazing read, and the subject matter is treated with respect. Familiar characters – aka the Havoc family – come through to remind Trick that he’s no longer alone, and the author hammers home the fact that our family is who we choose rather than who we’re related to. I’m starting to lose count of all the stars I wish I could give to this series!
Such a raw, gritty, powerful story Lane Hart tells in Trick and Mina’s story. This one about broke my heart while I was trying to read through the tears. Two damaged individuals. One a military veteran who served honorably and comes home only to struggle to fit in and survive as a civilian. The other the victim of long term emotional, physical and sexual abuse. Those are hard rows to hoe for those living through it and a tough pill to swallow for those receiving the information second hand but Lane Hart has used such compassion and empathy, giving her characters the strength and dignity to come out the other side with their own happily ever after. This is not just an story for entertainment. This story could be a life changer for anyone going through similar circumstances. There are phone numbers, web sites and other information as contact. This story and these characters deliver hope, strength of character, and a belief in the possibility of true happiness. How awe inspiring is that?
Oh my god, oh my god I could hardly believe my eyes when this book came to my Kindle. I was so excited that I almost couldn’t fit in me.
There’s nothing more that I’d like to add about this wonderful author that you don’t know yet but the only thing I want to highlight is that I love Lane Hart from the bottom of my heart. I love the fact that she’s a wonderful author who managed to touch my heart through her books. I love messages that sometimes we trade and I’m super happy when I have a new book to read.
Now enough with the mushy stuff and let’s get down to business.
Trick is the 7 book of Cocky Cage Fighters series and oh boy it’s freaking awesome.
Had you read book 6? Or even better, have you read this entire series? If you have you know what I’m talking about but if you don’t I strongly advise you to grab this entire series and read it because despite they are all standalones the characters interact with each other’s in all books.
This book tells the story of Trick a new Havoc fighter.
He choose to follow a military career to show his dad that he was worth something that he had some value. Always felt left out and thought that enlist was his best option. But things don’t always go the way we hope and he came back from that another man, someone more reserved, of few words. When he felt that his life no longer had meaning he accepted the invitation and joined the Havoc Team.
On a date night with the guys he just wants fun and if possible find a woman for fooling around. Mine had a sad and neglectful childhood and because of that she doesn’t trust easily. When she raised her guard she suffered what no one wants to suffer, and when her groom ask her the unthinkable she won’t believe her sad fate. To cheer her up, her friends took her out to a bar where they hope she can let go. When she meet Trick she doesn’t believe in her luck. That wonderful man will be it for that night because the next day her life would change. She hopes to meet the man of her dreams and be happy forever, at least that’s what she wants.
Two troubled souls with a common goal, to forget the past and live for the future. But will they?
This book was one of the most intense and exciting I’ve read so far. First by love, passion, desire that was showed but also by the evil, disloyalty and treason. I was speechless when I finished and I still can’t find the right word to give you the well-deserved value.
And my goodness, the hot scenes were exciting and hair-raising that can convert anyone into a sex addict.
Lane Hart I din’t know that it was possible but I stayed with even more desire to read your books. Will we have more news of the Havoc Team? Please say yes!
***THERE ARE SEMI-SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW*** (I could not think of a way to write the review without giving away a lot)
I wasn’t sure if I was going to like this one. I really didn’t like Patrick in the last book. Then I saw a warning that there was some sexual violence. I thought about maybe skipping this one, but then I decided that I would read it anyway because I usually love what Lane Hart has to write. ***THERE ARE SEMI-SPOILERS IN THIS REVIEW*** (I could not think of a way to write the review without giving away a lot of the story)
Patrick (aka Trick) just won 5 fights in 5 days. So how does a single guy celebrate? Go to a club and pick up a woman for the night. He sees a lot of ladies there…. but only one got him to move his feet on over to the dance floor. Mina was there to dance the night away and forget the man that she WAS engaged to. They actually get down and dirty in the alley outside of the club. And then she couldn’t get away from him fast enough.
Patrick stuck around to go meet up with his dad, who he hadn’t seen in years, and attend the wedding of his stepsister. He was quite surprised to find that his stepsister was the girl he picked up at the club! And she was in fact back together with her fiance and still planning to get married. Not if he has anything to say about it.
The family dynamic in this story is completely dysfunctional. Patrick’s dad (Mike) is still a jerk who doesn’t pay him children much attention. He practically ignores them all, except Mina. Although she wishes he ignored her too. She is using her fiance as a way to escape the abuse that she has been enduring for years! Despite the fact that Patrick is his son, she feels safe with him, like he will protect her from the abuse his dad inflicts on her.
Patrick totally redeemed himself in my eyes in this book. He is most definitely the exact kind of hero you want to read about. He is passionate, caring, protective and has a hero complex so he is always compelled to save the day! With Patrick’s help, Mina finds her strength. The sexual violence was a key point in the story. And while you would think that it would turn people off, it was written in way that had you feeling the despair of Mina and wanting to personally rip Mike to shreds. I LOVE LOVE LOVE THIS ONE!
Trick by Lane Hart a trickster of a five-star read. This is the seventh book in the cocky cage fighter series, but the can all be read as stand-alone, but I am a lover of a good series and this one is amazing, usually by book seven I would be a little pushed to still have the same level of obsession I have about this series, but as each book is about one man Havok man and focuses on him and not just his eight-sided dream, but his whole life and everyone in it. You see some of the other boys pop up in each other’s stories and it all wraps up nicely. I imagine Lane Harts mind must be a mahoosive memory palace to keep on top of everyone’s story’s and have them flowing and revealing a little more with each book, but not giving the whole end game away. I shows a real talent for writing that means I am working through everything she has even written and have even re-read a couple of the cocky cage fighter books before I have finished the whole series. It’s that amazing.
Patrick Foxx is a little lost in his life, after leaving the Marines after losing his best friend Austin and then being put in the friend’s zone by his widow Alyssa whom he was just trying to be there for, finding himself fighting for more than just the win after a punch up. Trick finds himself alone in the world, seeming like no one would be there to watch him win, until his farther invites him to a wedding, the wedding of his step-sister.
Wilhelmina Hightower has had a tough time and now is the perfect time to get away, her sister is going away to college and her prince is offering her a new home, but the night of the bachelor party he offers something more, something that shows he may not be the prince she was after. But given Mina’s circumstances just because he’s not a prince doesn’t mean he won’t be her perfect escape. Until fate offers her another option, an option that turns up the morning after and introduces her as her step-brother, in town for the wedding. Fate is a fickle player and she has more up her sleeve for these two that they could ever imagine, but it seems fate may be having a helping hand from a little someone.
This was such an amazing book, it deals with issues that some will face and not all will feel strong enough to get away from, but maybe just one person will read this book and get the strength they need. After all the strength is within you just need to find your inner fighter. There are also an amazing telephone number and a website in the book where you can find help, the website can help even if you aren’t in the US. It can also give you some very helpful information about how to avoid circumstances you should never end up, no matter how much you are convinced it would be you as you are strong and independent, it can happen to anyone. Making this information easily accessible is an amazing thing to do. Thank you Lane Hart for being the amazing woman you are.
I received an ARC for an honest review of the book so here you go. Let me start off by saying I was not a fan of Patrick “Trick” after reading Nate’s book; however, after reading Trick I have had a change of heart. Trick’s book will definitely pull at your heart strings and put you on an emotional roller coaster due to some content so have tissue handy. This book was definitely NOT like the others in the Cocky Cage Fighter series but has become one of my favorites. Lane Hart you definitely did not disappoint, in fact you left me speechless! Thank you for another amazing read!!!