Translucent ~ permitting light to pass through but diffusing it so that persons, objects, etc., on the opposite side are not clearly visible
This definition describes Bryleigh/Blake, the heroine in Erin Noelle’s latest story, perfectly. At twenty two years old, she has witnessed and suffered from more death and devastation than anyone should. Her desire to please and feel loved has left her broken and battered. She’s had to pay the ultimate price for her choices, and now, as she starts over, she doesn’t allow anyone to fully see who she is. She only allows them in so far and then she closes herself off, fearful for what could happen to not only herself but to anyone she becomes attached to in any significant way. Blake may have a new life, but her past always follows her, reminding her of all that she has lost and endured. She’s a prisoner to her memories; her demons hold her hostage and force her to live a life devoid of pleasure.
But then Madden Decker enters Blake’s life and offers to set her free.
Madden has his own past that haunts him, but he sees something in Blake that captivates him. After being betrayed by a woman who was supposed to love him, he closed himself off to all emotions and lived a life filled with work and release only, but that all changes when he meets Blake. He knows she has secrets and nightmares that rule her life, but he offers her a way to break free from her pain; a way to experience absolute pleasure as long as she willingly submits herself to him. Madden understands the fragile woman that Blake is, and it doesn’t scare him away; it actually solidifies their need for one another.
But how does someone so chained to the memories of her past offer herself up to another man when the first one nearly destroyed her, and how does a man vow to protect her with everything that he is when he really doesn’t know what he’s up against? These questions aren’t easily answered, but Erin Noelle takes readers on Blake and Madden’s journey of passion, dominance, and self discovery in order to illustrate what it will take for them to break free from their pasts and be together as their complete selves.
Translucent brings out a multitude of contradictory emotions. On one hand, it’s a dark and disturbing read that makes readers question the characters’ sanity. Blake’s flashbacks are absolutely atrocious; they will make readers wonder how anyone can survive the types of things she witnessed and endured. Erin Noelle does a fantastic job of shedding light on what Blake is running from to ensure that there is no question that the threat Blake fears is really and 100% fucked up. I absolutely would be looking over my shoulder at every turn because the risk is so great. But while there’s definitely a gritty side to the story, there’s also the passion and emotional depth of Blake and Madden’s budding relationship. Blake needs Madden more than she even realizes and that is clearly brought out in their passionate interactions. Because readers get the thoughts and feelings of both main characters, we follow their mindset from Blake and Madden’s initial meeting to the many times Madden rescues her from her own head, and even though, the ending of book 1 is a cliffhanger, I’m not as off kilter as I thought I would be because I know that Madden will do what needs to be done to protect Blake, and I look forward to seeing how it all plays out in book 2.
Erin Noelle shows her versatility as a writer with this book. She takes her readers on an emotional and scarring journey with Translucent. With complex characters and a well thought out and developed storyline, this is her best work to date!
A complimentary copy was received by the author in exchange for an honest review.
5+ poison apples
Meet Bryleigh Carter…
Picking me up off the bed, Ish threw me over his shoulder and marched out of the hotel room, into the pitch-black night. Scared speechless, I didn’t make a peep as he strode into the small motel office and dropped me on the floor. The male front desk attendant that had rented me the room had eyes as big as saucers, obviously fearful of Ish and the scene unfolding in front of him.
“Did you give her a room to stay in?” he demanded.
The older man nodded, taking a small step backwards.
“Don’t you fucking move, Gramps, and answer me when I ask you a goddamn question.”
“Y-yes, I gave her a room,” he admitted in a cracked voice.
“Did she pay you with money, or did she fuck you for it?”
“She paid me with money, sir. I don’t run that kind of business.” The man looked down at me huddled in a corner on the floor, and then back up at Ish. “She never even offered that kind of thing.”
Ish stomped around to the back of the counter and held his hand out, palm up. “She wants a refund. She’s not staying here tonight.”
Trembling, the man opened the cash register and pulled out some cash, setting it in Ish’s hand. As he did, Ish grabbed hold of his wrist and twisted it behind his back.
“Please…please don’t hurt me,” the man begged. “I didn’t know I was doing anything wrong.”
“No, you probably didn’t, but she did,” Ish spat, his fiery eyes darting over to me. “Princesa, did you know you were doing something wrong?”
The growing sob that had built in the back of my throat escaped as I nodded and said, “Yes, I did.”
“Well, someone needs to be punished for your bad behavior to remind you not to do something like this again.”
“Punish me, Ish,” I cried. “That poor man has nothing to do with this. Please, let him go.”
He glanced over at the man he held in a tight hold, and then back at me before releasing an evil laugh that echoed loudly throughout the small room. “Sorry, Princesa, but I need you to be pretty for our upcoming wedding.” Then, without warning, he pulled a long-bladed knife from the leg of his pants and chopped the man’s hand clear off in one swing. I’m not sure who screamed louder, me or the man, but within seconds, it was only my high-pitched voice shrieking, because Ish took the knife and slit the man’s throat, killing him instantaneously. Dropping the bloody body, he stalked towards me, bent down to my level, and clamped his hand on top of my mouth.
“Quiet now, Bryleigh, before you alert anyone else and I do the same thing to them. You don’t want to be the reason anyone else dies tonight, do you?” he whispered in my ear.
Immediately, I stop screaming, knowing damn well he would do exactly what he promised. “Now, that’s my good Princesa,” he said, stroking my hair. “We should get out of here. I’m going to carry you to the car, and I expect you to be well-behaved.”
Lifting me from the dirty tile floor, he carried me like a baby out to his car and placed me on the passenger seat. Petrified of what was going to happen next, I sat as still as a statue as he got into the car and drove north, back towards Chicago. He said nothing the entire drive home, but once we were both inside the apartment, he threw me on the bed and stripped me naked. Turning me over so that I was face-down on the mattress, he yanked forcefully on my hips, raising them in the air. He held tightly onto my hipbones as he viciously thrust himself into my virgin ass—no warning…no lube…nothing. I shouted out at the intense pain, and tears immediately began to stream down my face, but he didn’t stop thrusting until he was buried completely inside of me.
Leaning over, with his chest pressed to my back, he said in low, spine-chilling voice, “Anytime you fuck up, Princesa, someone will pay the price, and I will make you watch as I administer the punishment. You need to see the consequences of your actions, so don’t fuck up again if you don’t want any more blood on your conscience.”
He then fiercely fucked me until he came deep inside my asshole. He pulled out, not saying another word, then showered and left. I cried until I couldn’t see, and passed out with exhaustion.
That was the only time I ever tried to run away, but sadly, not the only bloodstains on my hands. It was only the beginning.
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