REVIEW: RIVEN KNIGHT by Devney Perry

Can a marriage of convenience in a volatile and dangerous situation allow two people to let go of their respective pasts and build a real relationship and future, even though they come from two different worlds?

That’s the question that readers will be asking as they dive in to Devney Perry’s newest release in her Tin Gypsy series, Riven Knight. But while there are no easy answers for Genevieve Daylee and Isaiah Reynolds when it comes to the situation they find themselves in, what is clear is that the intertwining of their lives will either allow them to be protected and to move forward or they’ll lose what little hold they have on the present to the secrets and lies that haunt them both.

For Genevieve and Isaiah, the past is an albatross around their necks, even if it is for different reasons. Genevieve’s is due to her mother’s secrets – ones that always have a way of coming out, despite the fact that the person is no longer there, and Isaiah’s stem from his actions and reactions from a night that unequivocally altered who he is. And despite their differing backgrounds and present lifestyles, they’re thrown together and must figure out how to work through everything while keeping themselves alive as well.

Playing pretend, especially in the world in which Genevieve has to, is not something she ever saw herself doing, but when her reality is upended and her perception of her family skewed, it’s clear that that is her only choice, not just for herself but for the man who went to battle for her as well. And for that reason alone it makes sense why things are so jumbled up in her head, why she just can’t seem to assimilate what she thought with what she finds out as the book continues. There’s a lot for her to wade through, and even more for her to sort out, not only when it comes to her own life, but the life of the man who has somehow become her other half, for better and for worse.

Isaiah is trapped in an endless cycle of guilt and regret, and he just doesn’t know how to break free from it and his struggle to do so is expertly written, allowing readers to truly understand who this man is underneath all of the broodiness, all of the silence, and all of the dark shadows in his eyes.

It’s amazing how much Genevieve changes as a person because of the situations she finds herself in. At first, she seemed too demure…to soft spoken, but that changes throughout the course of the story and by the time Riven Knight reaches its last page, readers see a strong and confident woman who can hold her own in any situation, and in the biker world, those two attributes are mandatory in order to cope with the way life plays out.

A slow burn romance, especially in a biker world, is always an intriguing concept to me. The gritty, dark, and suspenseful environment, at times, doesn’t seem to understand the concept of slow and steady, but that’s exactly what happens between Genevieve and Isaiah, and while it’s due to a litany of reasons, it’s the correct call to make for them to build something that isn’t completely tarnished by the past and a sustainable relationship despite the complicated matters that must be dealt with for them to fully move forward.

I love the grittier side of Devney Perry’s writing. All of the attributes I’ve grown to respect and love are fleshed out even more in an atmosphere that allows for more dangerous and destructive situations, which means that Perry continues with her emotional and complex characters and scenes while also inviting readers into a harsher and more ‘anything goes’ environment, and she does so with precision and mastery.

4.5 Poison Apples