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Ricochet by Keri Lake - Review


“A psychopath’s diet consisted of domination, power, and control.”

Oh man, I have had my eye on this book for so long, from the minute I saw it pop up on Goodreads it was on my tbr list, I’m very grateful for the advanced copy for review. First and foremost I think that cover just drags you in, and then the synopsis pulls you in further. I love a dark read, they are among my favs, but to get a really well written one is just an absolute bonus. To say that Keri’s style in this book complimented the story perfectly is an understatement; the depth and maturity of the words really shine and takes this from something ordinary to something a little bit special.

“Even through destruction, life could continue to bloom in the oddest places.”

I was gripped from simply the prologue and was so excited that I was going to get a book that I could get my teeth into. As the book unravels we find a few pov’s which serve to tell the story really well. The main characters, Nick and Aubrey are told in first person and the rest is in 3rd, I really liked the way this was done, and it helped me connect better with the characters. I’ve seen this way of writing before and in this instance it really worked. Keri creates an absolutely fantastic mood around Nick; she makes no bones about what his demons are and depicts a tortured soul in all its glory. I felt a lot of compassion for him, it was really hard not to. His actions often times left him conflicted and again Keri nailed this. Aubrey was a fantastic character; I loved her strength and the way she held her own. A weak character would not have worked in this story. Kudos for some excellent development in this department.

“How quickly a man could be reduced to an animal. A psychopath, disconnecting all sense of morals.”

The story sets a good pace and while it contains a few twists and turns that I didn’t really see coming until they were right on top of me, I was invested in this story very quickly and the compulsion to keep reading was there with the relevant chapter hooks. I absolutely loved the descriptive text for the most part. Detroit seemed the perfect backdrop for this book and imagery played its part extremely well. I could envision many places that Keri described. The emotional connection is all there, I had many moments throughout this read that just stopped me in my tracks. One in particular really tugged at me, it was more the aftermath of the event and I can honestly say that this would be the first time I have felt emotion over this particular subject in a book. But then again, it marked such a monumental moment in Nick’s life and the book as a whole. To say it was heart-breaking would be selling it short I think. With the intimate scenes I found them to be perfect erotically, I think that was down to the way in which the author wrote them, they didn’t feel like smut, far from it, and they were a natural progression of the storyline. There was one scene however that I felt was lacking, I really needed the details of it and I’m not sure entirely why they were missed. I think the book could have supported that kind of depravity and it seemed odd to me that it wasn’t there in its descriptive form. The scene following was simply not enough for me.

“I finally breathed.”

However, I had issues with it so I couldn’t award the 5 star rating I was so sure this would be. Right up until about 80% it was there but that last little bit just didn’t live up to that awesome read it had been until that point. When the reveal comes I wasn’t so sure about it. I have read other stories that have unravelled this way and found them to be much better in wrapping up the conclusion. I’m not sure that this worked, well not for me anyway. It’s not a common twist and admittedly I haven’t seen it used often so I do take my hat off for its originality. Keri did her homework and the clues are there throughout the book if you look harder. I saw elements of other stories in here, only towards the end though, and that didn’t feel good. One particular thought process took me along the lines of a film I watched recently. Unfortunately it’s was a story that can only be done once in my opinion. Please let me add – This is not that story but it put me in mind of it towards the end. I believe that Keri has a perfectly unique storyline here, with good twists and excellent writing.

“I saw darkness in her beauty, and she saw beauty in my darkness. Yin and yang. Black and white. Beauty and scars; fury and forgiveness.”

I so wish I could give this all my stars but I really can’t, the last 20% threw me in a spin. Up until then I absolutely loved it. It’s dark and sinister in such a mouth-watering way. Fresh and intensely captivating for the most part. I would definitely recommend this for those that enjoy those darker reads, it’s not the blackest I’ve read but it’s not full of flowery crap either. I think this will do really well and folks will really enjoy it. Don’t overlook the writing, it’s some of the better out there and I’d love to see more in this vein from Keri Lake.


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