Blog Tour ~ Review, Author Guest Post & Giveaway ~ Heart in Wire (By A Thread 4) by R.L Griffin

Book Description:

 

 This book has spoilers in it if you haven't read the By A Thread series yet, you may not want to read the synopsis. This is a companion book to that series and I highly suggest reading it first.

Have you ever been involved in an epic love story where you wound up alone? Have you devoted yourself so completely to someone that you lost yourself in their abyss?

Patrick Greer spent the past five years revolving around El. He fought like hell to not feel the emotions for her that were hidden deep in his gut, until he couldn't anymore. He was so sure of them, of her, of what they were to each other, until he wasn't.

Patrick couldn't even imagine the things he'd done for her, with her and to her. El broke him.

He was a liar, a friend, a lover, a fixer, a runner and a killer.

Now he had to figure out who he was without her.

*There are adult situations, tons of cussing and you may enjoy this book with an adult beverage.

 

 Find it on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18129604-heart-in-wire

 

Our Review

 

**ARC received for honest review**

 

Reviewed by Donna ~ 5 Stars

“The wire that squeezed his heart was painful on a normal day, but he’d punctured it and now he was bleeding the fuck out.”

Firstly I would highly recommend that you read the By A Thread series before reading this book if you have not done so already (By A Thread, Tension and Seamless). Heart In Wire is Patrick’s version of events during those three books. This is in no way whatsoever a re-telling of the series, it is so much more. This book is extremely insightful; this book will make you reassess everything you thought you knew. Opinions will change, alliances will change everything will change. We get Patrick’s back story and his story after El, there was still so much to learn about Patrick Greer.

So there was I thinking that the amazing By A Thread series was complete, yet I always thought that there were a few characters that still had a story to be told, one of them being Patrick. So you can imagine my excitement when RL Griffin announced that in fact Patrick’s voice wanted to be heard, her head was swimming with his story and his comments and she needed to put pen to paper. In all honesty I have felt a plethora of emotions towards Patrick, I liked him, felt sorry for him, admired him, pitied him, I hated him and my heart broke for him. The friendship that he and El shared was beautiful, but we know how that ended up, yes he did screw it up, royally, but he had his reasons and it was those reasons that I wanted answered. I wanted to know why he chose the path that he did, I wanted to know his reasoning’s, how he justified himself, but moreover, I just wanted to know the “real” Patrick. I knew there was more to the man and after we had ended the By A Thread series with killer scenes that decimated my heart for him, I actually felt sorry for him and this actually tore my heart in two because I loved George, but I couldn’t help feel sorry for Patrick. Although El reciprocated his love to a certain extent and I do believe you can love two people, he was not the path El chose and by reading I could tell that this destroyed him and it destroyed me too.

Patrick, what can I say, El was “his person” I always knew, deep down that he loved her, he went above and beyond what any friend would have done given the circumstances, no matter what, Patrick was always there for her. I think that when reading the BaT series, you are so wrapped up in El’s story and living what she went through and endured you don’t actually see her selfish side and this is highlighted throughout this book. I saw El with different eyes in this book and I didn’t like it, I didn’t want to see her that way, but with what she going on in her life you kind of understood, she had to look out for numero uno. It is only after reading Patrick’s side of the same story that you understand the mixed signals and his confusion, this was by no means one way traffic and El was forever reeling him in and then letting him go. All I could think about throughout this book was the pain that Patrick was going through watching the woman that he was in love with completely and unconditionally, falls in love with somebody else and move on. My heart bled and my eyes wept.

Billy in his moments of genius summed this up perfectly, but this is so true and for me was the killer line…

“You’re holding her hand because you want to; she’s holding yours because she needs to.”

Finally, Patrick thinks he has the opening that he has always wanted, what he dreamt of getting and yet again he was used and tossed aside, whilst the circumstances were not the best and you could say that Patrick took advantage, it meant so much to him, it was the culmination of years of all-encompassing love for El and he finally thought he had “his person,” but alas no. His pain and his torment flooded the pages, I cried…a lot!

P is for pain; Patrick goes through it all in this book, especially mentally. Pain at keeping secrets, pain with his conscience, pain through Stella’s rejection, pain with the aftermath and pain in grief.

A is for alliances, his friendship with Billy is priceless, he is just who Patrick needs and we further see their dynamic throughout this book. I must say, I love Billy. New alliances, especially with Jesse, these two together were a kind of a “dream team” they fed off each other, their friendship was needed on both sides and it was treasured, they are kind of kindred spirits. They all had one thing in common, their love for El and their need to protect her, no matter the cost or the consequences.

T is for Truth, the truth always hurts and none more so than in this book, there are lots of truths that are exposed, the whys explain a lot and you could see that Patrick was stuck between a rock and a hard place and the longer they stayed a lie the harder it was to tell the truth. Truth of feelings and emotions, Patrick spilled them, El rejected them, painful to read, painful to understand, my heart and head were tormented.

R is for Retribution and none more so for Jamie, but and it is a big BUT, I actually felt for Jamie in this book before he went crazy. His phone calls to Patrick were heart breaking, again you see another side and you can’t help but feel sorry for him, but the undercover work changeth the man and the only way Jamie would be stopped was death.

I is for Intimacy, Patrick tries to overcome his rejection but cannot seem to take that next step no matter how hard he tries. It takes a while for him to put himself out there again and while you are happy that he does, you can’t help but feel he is settling for second best. You want him to have a happy ever after, he certainly deserves it, but has El permanently scarred his heart? At least he may have found his wire cutters.

“She’s the wire and you are the bolt cutters I needed.”

C is for a Clean Slate, he needs to move on and does so more out of necessity, he could not survive being around El so he goes for a complete black out, El becomes Voldemort, she who shall not be named. This I could understand, but there was so much he needed to know and again when they are reunited it is painful, extremely painful.

K is for Karma, there is a lot of it dished out in this book. I was happy with the ending, I knew in my heart of hearts El was meant to be with George but I couldn’t help but have wild thoughts as to how I could get my way. As tortured as I was this book made me switch allegiances from George to Patrick, something I never thought was possible.

In summary RL Griffin nailed this one, never has her writing been so emotive, I lived and breathed Patrick’s pain in this book and this is my favourite book of hers so far. I love a book that makes me “feel” and this certainly did that in spades. The growth in RL Griffin’s writing is clear as day and I am so glad that while trawling Goodreads, I came across By A Thread. This is one series where the characters have become my friends, they are like a family and I am incredibly lucky to have been on this roller coaster of a journey with them. I still feel there are more stories to be told, especially Jesse and Billy and I know Millie will have a tale to tell. I am not ready to see them go so will be hounding RL Griffin to continue. That is the beauty of this series, all the characters have burrowed themselves into my heart and not many authors have achieved that.

One thing I will leave you with is we still have humour; this scene had me cracking up!

"So, as you can see, this side of the room is newly decorated. I call it ‘police tape chic.’ And do admire the blood splatter and brains on the wall—not everyone has such modern art in their home! Though I think I may need to do some redecorating."

 

Guest Post from RL Griffin

 

RL Griffin has made our day here on The Romance Cover, we had asked for a guest post and in the past she has given us deep and meaningful, today we have a total treat! We are proud to reveal what could become a mini-serial (Donna is jumping up and down clapping her hands like a demented seal)...are you ready...

Take it away RL Griffin...

Have you ever wondered what would have happened if Patrick would have just told Stella about Jamie? Well, here you go...

He stood at the graveside service, his stomach twisting wildly in disgust. Disgust at the reason he was there, at the lie being perpetrated on these people, at the girl that he’d broken. Patrick turned his head so that he didn’t have to watch Jamie’s fiancé. 

As the crowd began to disperse a man, about Patrick’s height, with salt and pepper hair and a weathered face walked up to Patrick.

“You Patrick?”

Patrick nodded.

“I’m Stella’s father, Frank,” he stuck his hand out to Patrick. The shook hands solemnly. “You should just leave her with us for now. I don’t think she’ll want to go back to DC right now.”

Patrick nodded again, thinking Stella’s dad was probably right. He couldn’t imagine what she was thinking; she hadn’t said a word to him since she asked him to stay with her while she cried.

“Thank you for bringing her Patrick, we’ll take it from here.”

“Yes, sir.”

They both turned to watch as Stella rose from her seat and walked to the grave as the men lowered the casket into the ground. She sunk to her knees and let out a heart-wrenching sob, making Patrick rethink everything. At the same time, Frank turned to another woman and went to hold her while she cried. Patrick looked at this family, not Jamie’s that was torn apart by the news he’d delivered. He didn’t understand why one prick in the ATF got to dictate people’s heartbreak.

“Come on Miranda, let’s get you to the car and I’ll come back and get Stella,” Frank told Stella’s mother.

She nodded.

Patrick marched up to the grave and picked Stella up, her arms looped around his neck, her head landed against his chest. He carried her to his car and put her in. He leaned over and secured the seat belt, she smelled like coconut.

After Stella refused to speak with her parents, Patrick had told them he would take her back to DC and check in with them about her coming home. They drove back to the house he’d borrowed from some friends in silence. Patrick’s mind warred back and forth about whether he was about to do something stupid and whether he could trust this girl he didn’t know.

Pulling into the driveway, he stared out the windshield. “I have to tell you something.”

Silence.

Patrick got out of the car, let Cooper out and then opened her door. “Come on, let’s go to the beach.”

He took her hand and the walked to the beach and stood gazing out at the ocean.

“All of this is a lie, Stella.”

This got her attention and she glanced up at him in confusion.

“Jamie’s not dead; he’s on an undercover assignment. I will lose my job if anyone knows that you know this truth, but I couldn’t…I … you are so…”

“What?!” Stella screamed at him.

Patrick took a step back.

“Do you mean to tell me that my fiancé would rather tell me he’s dead than tell me he’s going undercover?” Her voice was eerily low now.

“Not exactly.”

“Patrick, I swear to you, if you don’t tell me what the fuck is going on I will scream at the top of my lungs.”

Patrick started walking down the beach. “All I know is that I was supposed to tell you he was hit by a tractor trailer and it was fatal. He told me his assignment was only six months, so it doesn’t make sense that they did this.”

“Who did this? Does the government really do shit like this?” Her eyes were full of disbelief. “Do his parents know? Who did we bury today?”

“That’s above my pay grade Stella.”

Stella crumbled to the ground, Cooper stops prancing around in the ocean and runs to her. “What the fuck am I supposed to do with this?” She asks to no one in particular.

Patrick was silent. He didn’t have an answer for her.

They stayed like that, her on the ground, silent, and him standing staring into the surf for several minutes.

“I’m not sure how to process this, but I appreciate you telling me Patrick. I…Jamie being dead changed my entire life and now you’ve just changed it again. I know you can get in trouble for telling me, but I owe you big time.” She pushes herself up off the sand and brushes off some of the sand coating her legs. “I believe it’s time to go get hammered. This is not a just a “few drinks” situation, this is and I will not stop drinking until I pass out kind of situation.”

Patrick smiled, this he could be down with. He wanted to get drunk himself.

“I do some of my best thinking while drunk,” Stella commented.

“Says everyone who is about to get wasted.”

♥ ♥ ♥ ♥

Three hours later, still in their clothes from the funeral and down a full bottle of Crown Royal, they’d moved on to beer.

“You know…I’m going back to DC and going to law school. Fuck that asshole mother fucker.”

Patrick wiped some of the beer that escaped his mouth with a smile. “Yeah, fuck him. I mean who does shit like this.”

Stella gazed at her ring. “Why did he even propose, Patrick? I mean I don’t get it. If he just wanted to leave, why did he ask me to marry him?”

“No fucking idea.”

“Well, I’m not crying for him…you know, because it’s over. I cried because I thought he was dead, that’s enough.” She took her ring off and put it on the table. “Will you run me by his parents’ house tomorrow? I’ll leave the ring for them. I don’t want that shit.”

She stood up and absent-mindedly unzipped her dress, stepping out of it and throwing it on the heels she discarded earlier. Patrick took her in; she was gorgeous. Her black hair flowed down her back now in chaotic waves and tangles, her eyes were red-rimmed from crying, which made the green stand out more and her lips were begging for kisses. He shook the thoughts from his head. She was wearing miss-matched lingerie, like she hadn’t even known what she was putting on. The bra was pink with black polka dots and the underwear, if you could call it that, was solid red lace. His dick stirred in his pants. No fucking way.

“I’m going swimming,” she announced and she and Cooper moved to the door.

“Stella, don’t do that you’re drunk and the ocean…” Patrick’s words died on his lips as she took off down the stairs of the house to the beach and threw her bra on the sand as she went. “Fuck.”

Patrick followed her tight little ass as she waded into the small waves.

“Oh shit its cold,” she squealed as she turned around and motioned for Patrick to come in. Her breasts bounced and her nipples were…. Stop it.

“Fuck it,” he said to himself as he tore off his own clothes and ran into the ocean.

Author Links:

Website: www.rlgriffinauthor.com
Twitter: @rlgriffin
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rlgriffinauthor?fref=ts
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1254833.R_L_Griffin?from_search=true
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/rlgriffinauthor/

 

Giveaway
 

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