There is an epidemic in this world. One that causes ruin… environment he was forced to survive, becoming a victim himself. His fate being tied to Whitney Summers is how every aspect of his life changes. When she travels the world, at her father’s monetary expense, it was truly her who pays the price. But it is Yury who has caused her pain, and who suffers still.
This is Yury’s story…
**TRIGGER WARNING – This is a very dark story and contains subject matter that may be uncomfortable for some readers.**
more
An interconnected standalone apart of the Tainted Waters series, Volatile Waters is a book that almost destroyed me. I have no idea how an author can create obtain such a visceral reaction out of me. All these feelings that I absolutely did not want to feel. This book had absolutely no business being this good. It’s insane how obsessive it’s made me.
It is definitely recommended that you start at the beginning of this series, in order to get a proper reaction, and also get a feel for the author’s words. This book is dark, there are so many things that can be considered triggers for some people, but I think that in order for this book to really tell the story, all the darkness, gore and mystery was needed.
Amazing read! Absolutely recommend.
Volatile Waters is the fourth interconnected standalone in the Tainted Water series by India R Adams. This is Yury’s story and told from his POV. Yep you read that right Yury has a book. I am in awe of the bravery it took for Adams to tackle the difficult subject of human trafficking throughout this series but then to give us an entire book from the captors POV?! I honestly had no idea what to expect but what I got was BRILLIANCE! Nothing could have prepared me for this book! I wanted to hate Yury and I did. Of course I did! He did vile, disgusting, despicable things but through the magic of Adams writing I somehow came out rooting for him in the end. How does that even happen?! PURE GENIUS! It wasn’t easy and I struggled with the back and forth of my emotions throughout this book but Adams just kept giving me little bits of hope that kept me going.
The life Yury lived was not one he chose but one that was forced upon him from such a young age that eventually he just didn’t know any different.
“I was raised to not view these humans as anything other than the means of success.”
There are so many different things throughout our lives that shape us as humans but it’s what we make of ourselves that truly matters. This book shows how strong the power of love can be. Bit by bit we see Yury start to feel and experience things he never has before. Caring and patience, sympathy and understanding, but most importantly love and forgiveness. We see him start to feel his own heart that he never thought he had. And bit by bit my own heart started to heal along with him. Adams doesn’t sugarcoat the volatile things that happen in this book she just shows us that there is more than one side to every story. It was written to bring awareness to the horrors of human trafficking and support to the victims. This story is raw and gritty and by far the darkest I have ever read but it needed to be told.
“Yes, there was a beauty…that rose from the darkness. Beauty that can’t be denied.”
5 Beauty Within Us All STARS!
There are only 4 authors that truly invoke raw and gut wrenching emotions from me where the book and the characters become so real and there journey so heart breaking that I need to take a moment to realize it’s reality. India is one of those authors, ever since the first book I read from her I have been under her spell and would without a shadow of any doubt read anything with her name on it. This book is no different and is my 2nd favorite book by her. Please be aware that this book is dark and intense and might be a trigger for some people but it’s also full of hope and can show how love and resilience can overcome even in the darkest hour, even when you are a complete product of your environment and know nothing else but misery there’s always a sliver of lining to be grasped if you want it. This is Yurys story and even though each one in this series is a stand-alone, they are all connected. Yury is living on autopilot of horrid acts and terrible events but he has molded himself to this life and knows nothing else and during his journey even when it’s at its worst you will only think of one word, HOPE!!
I have no words that can do this book justice only that it is a phenomenal ride!
I voluntarily reviewed a advanced readers copy of this book
Beautiful (Carole King), Beautiful (Christina Aguilera), Scars to Your Beautiful(Alessia Cara), are songs that came into my mind when reading different parts of this book. Weird huh? This book hit every emotion and note inside my mind, heart, spirit and soul. It took me days to read this story and hours after completion to put any thoughts down. How do you say you love a book that has such atrocities running throughout almost every page without sounding like someone twisted? Let me explain, I don’t like what was happening. I don’t like the atrocities. I don’t like most of the characters. All these elements made me uneasy, uncomfortable, horrified, and teary eyed. However, it was these responses in myself that made me encouraged. Yup, encouraged! Encouraged because someone was bringing a much needed current situation to the forefront. These crimes and monstrosities are happening everyday right in front of us and many of us go around unaware of what is occurring until we are confronted by it. So to the author I say well done. Thank you for being so brave to put yourself out there. I can’t imagine the internal pain that you must have gone through.
Onto trying to explain my very first sentence. I live in my own world of hope and being a product of your environment. So although, Yury seems abominable, he is a result of his environment. If you never learn right from wrong, if you never experience a mother’s love, if you never experience any love than you are what you are taught. He was raised in a bubble of brutality, abuse and transgressions. This is so hard to write because of all the heinous things he did. In a court of law I would definitely convict him. However, seeing parts of him coming to life was beautiful. Seeing people teaching him or explaining love true love beyond self was amazing. I would love to write the parts that really got to me in a good way but if you can handle it you need to experience this story for yourself. It is truly not for the faint of heart. I had one of each of the above songs for different characters in this book, even for Yury. This book surely depicts the saying out of something bad comes something good. Think of it as birth. During birth women experience horrific pain, sweat, hours of saying never again but from it comes someone beautiful and innocent. We love unconditionally at that point and would sacrifice our own lives for the little bundle of joy. The same is said when someone, no matter how old, evolves, learns the meaning of true love. The lesson doesn’t come without pain, effort and a cost. Seeing someone trying to redeem themselves is beautiful. They’re scars become beautiful. It’s the cost they’ve paid wether outward or internal.
Did I fall in love with Valerie,Wolf, Fire, and Crash? You bet your butt I did! I even felt compassion for Kirill and Adrian. There is a saying that says, “ There’s no free lunch”. At one time or another we all pay. Karma baby, it’s real. At least in my world it is. However, it’s the real ending of your story that matters. Have to say I love the way India weaved others from a different series into her story. I was deeply moved. Bravo, India for confusing me (with my own thoughts. How can I feel empathy?), breaking me down, building it back up and putting my heart back together again. She is truly THE MASTER of bringing it all home! Thank you for getting up every morning and showing us all the love in your heart. You are beautiful. You’re beautiful as you feel!
I don’t even know where to start with this one. I have loved the Tainted Waters series but it has given me more incite into a world we know very little about, but does exist.
Yury was a hated person for me because of who he was and what he did. This one gave us a different perspective of his side of the story. He may have been raised to think his job was right but when that one person came into his life and changed his outlook.
Even with the tough subject of the story, India gives us a truly heartbreaking view of the the underworld of human trafficking. Even with this little written for this review, be prepared to go through all emotions while reading this but it is a beautiful story of redemption. Yury has redeemed himself in my eyes by righting a wrong in a way of life he only knew.
Dark, heartbreaking, beautiful story!
India tackles issues that are hard to even comprehend, human trafficking/child abuse, but she writes it in such a manner that you wanna read it and go thru all the motions with this characters.
Is heartbreaking, it will give you so many feels and maybe at time you are gonna have to take a deep breath and gather your thoughts to keep on reading, is not pretty, ( read the warning) but it sure gives you an ending where everything comes together and you see some light.
Beautifully written, BRAVO India R. Adams
** read an ARC and this is my honest opinion
Volatile Waters is the fourth instalment in the Tainted Waters Series. This book is about man Yury, Yury is a human trafficker. Inside this book we see behind the scenes of human trafficking.
I do recommend if you are a first time reader, to read from the beginning as the storyline carries over all the books.
Trigger Warning : If Death, Violence, Abuse, or Human Trafficking causes a trigger for you. I would recommend you not to venture into this world of darkness.
If your a dark reader like myself this book will tick all your boxes, it was something you didn’t want to put down once you had started it, Sick, Twisted, Raw, Emotional, Dark and Gritty.
This author right here is an author who is an advocate against humanity trafficking. This is an author who is not afraid to tackle tough subjects. I want to thank India for being able to write Yury’s story.
In Red Waters when we first officially meet Yury, He was a man you love to hate. I’m more on the love side despite his actions. Some will deem him as unworthy of love that he has no humanity left but when you’ve been taught to act and do things a certain way. You can’t fault him for that.
Inside Volatile Waters we see glimpses of the humanity that he has, that these two special people who have been brought into his life has seen and shown that he was capable.
His Wolf and Fire .
Yury is a product of his upbringing and knows no different other then what he was trained to be from a young age. Although I don’t agree with the violent, malicious abs cruel ways he would deal with certain situations, I had to remind myself that this isn’t the real Yury.
Throughout reading you will see that, deep down I could see that Yury was the type of man who really wanted to be set free from the cage he has been stuck in because the price of trying to break free means DEATH.
In spite of all the darkness, you will find the light shining. That flicker of hope that pulls you in piece by piece.
Favourite Quote:
People who say you “fall” in love are wrong. You float… You float right into the safety of someone who would never let you fall”.
Yury is full of so many dimensions and boy was his book a roller coaster turn of emotions and events. The fact that this book was in his point of view, showed things in a new light.
Especially his relationship with Crash, Whitney. Not only did I love/ hate rehashing the events that happened in Red Waters and learning new events that happened in Yury’s life.
Along of the journey Yury meets another person who will forever change his life. This person I absolutely adored, couldn’t have been a perfect person for Yury.
Although it’s taken me a while to finally read this book, from the moment I started it. I couldn’t put it down for the life of me. It was addicting and everything that is happening will consume you.
Thank you India, for giving us Yury’s book.
5 BEAUTIFUL TOUGH STARS!! Wow, this Book is a tough read, but I was addicted to every word…..I could not put it down. This author has taken a tough subject and turned it BEAUTIFUL WORDS. This story has all the feels with twists & turns and OMG moments. If you like dark tough storylines with some light…..here you go.
Phenomenal!
Unbelievably Heartbreaking, Tragic, Very Dark and Very Disturbing – these are some of the best words I could use to describe this amazing story. I jumped right in knowing that it just might break my heart – which at times it did! The story will take you on an emotional rollercoaster ride from start to finish and it will not be an easy one. This story is not for the feint of heart – so be prepared!
This amazing author does not hold back with Yury’s story. But it was definitely necessary for the story because in order to really get to know the man who destroys Whit, we needed all of his darkness, whether it was good or bad. And darkness is definitely what we’ve been given. Yury is so very damaged – so much so that he has no contemplation or idea what love is or what it even feels like. His life is tragedy, heartbreak, degradation and complete and utter darkness. His soul is broken and unable to fix itself. No person should ever be subjected to the blackness, corruption or evil that he was/is subjected to. Going into this book I thought that I would completely hate Yury and his life but now that I have finished the story I don’t hate him, I feel sorry for him and now start to understand him better. That ending was unbelievably surprising and exactly what I needed.
Favorite Quote: “People who say you ‘fall’ in love are wrong. You float…You float right into the safety of someone who would never let you fall.” – utterly beautiful!
India R. Adams is an incredible author. Her weaving of words plays like a movie in my head. The love and dedication that she puts into each book shows with each chapter. Her words are tragic and beautiful – and hit you right where it hurts.
Don’t pass this one up. Highly recommend.
I never know how to adequately review this authors books as she tackles some of the toughest subjects that most choose to turn a blind eye to.
Human/sex/child trafficking is a daily occurance for far too many people in today’s society.
The author tackles this disturbing but real subject with such grace.
Yes this book will tear you to shreds, but maybe it will open your eyes a bit more and return some of the compassion far too many people this day and age have lots.
Bravo and standing ovations to the author.
Would give more stars if I could.
India R. Adams has written a masterpiece with Volatile Waters, book 4 in her Tainted Waters series.
Yury’s story is intense in every single way!
How can you love a book character that you already hate?
How can one individual be both evil and heavenly?
How can I read every other book in a short time, but Yury’s story took me weeks to get through?
How did India R. Adams write this and survive?
Although this is a stand alone book, you MUST read the three previous books to understand the reason for the intensity of Yury’s life!!!
Oh. My. God. Mrs Adams did it!!!! Again!!!!
Each time I open one of India’s books, I know I’ll be immersed in an emotionally insane journey.
With Volatile Waters, the feeling isn’t any different. It’s magnified, if it’s even possible.
Yuri’s story had me intrigued from the beginning. In fact, the challenge was real. Would I be able to find redeemable qualities in the heartless, merciless, violent man he is? After the three other books of the Tainted Waters, my preconceptions about him ran pretty deep. How to find peace in the devastation, and sorrow? Solely written from the captor’s point of view, you’ll find out that that versatile man’s life is far more complex and traumatic than what I had imagined.
The dark topic the author addresses in her tale, human trafficking, in all its realistic ugliness, will open your eyes, or at least, hopefully, will make you think. Are we the product of our genetics and family traits, or are we the product of our upbringing? Tough question… Difficult story….
You’ll feel rage, despair, hopelessness. BUT, have you ever experienced the magical words of India R. Adams? In spite of the darkness of the situations, you’ll also find the light, sometimes just a spark, that will make you see things in a different perspective. Little by little the spark becomes more powerful and fill you with positivity. This incredible ability is pure brilliant talent.
I VOLUNTARILY REVIEWED AN ARC COPY OF THIS BOOK. THANK YOU!!!
Be warned…this is dark and twisted and has so many things wrong with it. But I don’t know what that says about me, but I loved it. There are triggers for some and you need to proceed with caution. But if you are open-minded and understand that some of these things actually do happen in real life, it puts everything into perspective. Poor Yury and Whitney. The writing is done so well that you feel everything. I couldn’t put it down.
This is the first book I’ve ever read by India Adams. I’ve honestly never read a book like this one before. The writing is great, but the subject matter is very hard to read.
This book deals in human trafficking, it is raw, intense, gritty and dark. My heart actually felt so heavy reading this book.
This is from the POV of the human trafficker Yury. You see how he is brought up in a abusive home and how this just becomes his “normal”. I struggled with this character. This is a strongly felt character. Intense disgust, pity, hopeful for a second chance.
This really makes you think about the world around you and the horrors that go one behind closed doors. It also makes you think about nature vs nurture. This book left me raw & I can’t get it out of my mind.
Definitely head the warnings. It is not easy to read, but if you do you’ll be glad you did!
This book. I cannot put to words how emotional and harrowing and painful this book is. How consuming it is.
Volatile Waters is not an easy read. It has a lot of triggers that are not suitable for everyone. It goes into details the abuse of many forms, plus many other sensitive issues that even affected me.
Whenever I read anything by this author, I never know what to expect from them, but just like every other book I have read of this author, of this series, they just keep getting better.
We look into the eyes of Yury, his life and his perspective of the events that happened in the previous books. Yury is a HUGE character that plays a significant role in the series. Without spoiling, his character pushes a lot of boundaries in so many ways.
Yury is a character that will surprise you. You see so many shades of him that you will always change your opinion of him. I certainly did. But this book does open your eyes to what Yury sees, what he experiences, how he feels. He is such a complex character because of how he works, and how his life has affected who he is. However, once Yury breaks his shell, you cannot help but love him, even if you can’t understand why.
One thing about this book is that even the monster can be a victim of pain by someone else’s hands. I definitely do not condone Yury’s actions, and never will, but to see Yury grow into something nobody ever expects and see through all that he is and what he shows, then you truly see beneath the monster.
There were also a few characters that surprised me, and their personal development in the story. From the previous books in the series, you don’t get to see it personally, but it does surprise you.
Volatile Waters is an uncomfortable book, and it is meant to be. It doesn’t only show the dark side of the world, it shows darkness within the human psyche, and how through love, it can drown that darkness and bring out something completely different in them. I was absolutely consumed by this book and I would highly recommend it.
This is the first book I have read by the author and what a way to get an introduction. This book gives a harsh look at a reality that needs to be exposed so that it can end. The thought of one person owning another is just abominable and then using their servitude to train them to do another’s bidding without consent is reprehensible. This book will have one feeling a plethora of emotions from disbelief to sadness to anger to having a sliver of hope that one can change. Yuri is a product of his environment and grew up with a sadistic father and twisted uncle who taught him that human life was essentially worthless and anything is good as long as one can profit from it. As the story progresses and Yuri encounters different people, he begins to learn that what he thought was acceptable may not be morally right. The feelings that he locked tightly away seem to be resurfacing and are causing him to seriously rethink his entire life. Can he be redeemed and change? There is so much that can be said about this book and the lessons that one can learn with the most important one being the way we treat others. A challenging read with triggers and I will caution those that choose to read this book as it will not only bring to light the darker side of life for those that are unwillingly subjected to this violence but will stick with you after it is finished. It can be read as a standalone but I am going to go back and read the previous books to learn more about this mercurial character. I volunteered to read an advance copy of this book.
I am still trying to get my head straight after finishing this dark, twisted and SO SO WRONG of a book.
I mean, India really took us to the dark side and I mean DARK. It’s been a while since I read a book that had my insides all twisted from being so twisted.
I have to say it’s been one hell of a scary roller coaster with Volatile Waters. I was scared, I was frightful, I was spooked to no end for what happened in this story. I can’t express to you how many times I wanted to put my kindle down because my heart was beating erratically from where this story kept going.
But damn, India did an AMAZING job with this story. She must have really done her research really good to know where to take this story.
I’m not going to say anything about this story other than IT TOOK ME TO A PLACE I NEVER THOUGHT I COULD GO — DARK!
If you like or love a dark, dark romance then this book will definitely reach your expectations.
Wow! So dark. So volatile. So disturbing. So twisted. Oh so good. I need more. I loved every word right from the start. This book tore me up and was amazing at the same time.
Since the first time I read Blue Waters (book 1 in the Tainted Waters series), I hated Yury. He is an evil, heartless man. He was irredeemable, despicable. Nothing could have prepared me for the hurricane of emotions that stormed through me as I read Volatile Waters. This is Yury’s story. It’s dark. It’s ugly. It’s so hard to read. But it was eye opening too.
Let me first say, human trafficking is in no way forgivable or under any circumstances okay. Reading Yury’s story opened my eyes more than ever before into this dark, horrendous world. The more I read, the more my hardened heart cracked open and gave space for Yury but I fought it all the way. I didn’t want to give him that. He didn’t deserve it. Then again he didn’t deserve the life he was given either.
My mind and heart battled the entire time I was reading this book.
Volatile Waters timeline matches up with the timeline of the first 3 books in this series. I loved seeing the full story of the characters I fell in love with in those books. It changed them for me but in a good way. It made them stronger. Their bond more amazing.
I have nothing but good things to say about India’s books and Volatile Waters is no exception. Be prepared to have your heart shattered but somehow through all the darkness, she’s able to piece it back together so gently you might not even notice at first.
I definitely recommend this book and the entire Tainted Waters series.
My heart.
I almost don’t know where to start with this review. This series, and in particular this book, has torn apart every part of my heart and left it in pieces. I have experienced a maelstrom of emotions that I didn’t even know that I could feel. My heart hurt, from sadness, from angst, from anger, and finally in a sense of peace knowing that sometimes the chains that bind us can be broken.
Yuri. Sweet holy hell. As much as I hated the things that he did in the last book, I also felt for him. What sorcery this author must possess in order for me to feel this way. I didn’t understand how that could be considering he was so damaged and unfeeling. However, in this book, I realized that he wasn’t unfeeling. He just had never been taught to feel. He was a product of his environment. Even though there are parts of this story that had been talked about, this book gave a totally new perspective of those events. His time with Crash… I am speechless. His time with Wolf and Whitney and seeing it from his point of view added a new dimension to the story. It was richer, it was more agonizing. it was just heartbreaking. I was expecting this to be more about the time with Whitney. but that was just a fraction of this story. It is the entirety of what brought Yuri to be where he is at the time that the last book ended. I didn’t realize until reading it how much I needed this. I knew there was something to him that called to me in the last book it was nothing from seeing this raw and unbiased backstory. The author didn’t sugarcoat anything. In fact, it almost made him more unredeemable, yet this author wove magic and my heart even more at the travesty that not only the victims felt but also for Yuri.
This is not a sugar and spice and everything nice type of story. It was gritty and raw. However, it was a reminder of so many things. Things that need to be treasured, that destiny and connections come in many forms, and that redemption is something that can be obtained. Even though Yuri did the things that he did, I still felt for him. Not in a “Stockholm” reader sort of way but rather I felt for the boy that was lost, that mimicked what he saw because he didn’t know better, for the boy and the man who had never known love, and finally for the man that did anything to protect those that had shown him, after a cost, of what it truly meant to do good.
As I mentioned, this is not a sweet book. Yet, the lessons that came from this are plentiful. There is beauty in this heartbreaking story. I am not sure how many times I can say that this author is extraordinary. If there was any doubt before then after this book there is no doubt that she is one of the best out there for a reason. She ripped me into a thousand pieces and then stitched me back together by giving me this story that will forever change the template of who I am. She cleansed my soul in volatile waters and gave me a sense of awareness and peace I wasn’t even sure I needed. I will forever be watchful now of the stranger next to me and see if or how I can help.