Book Description:
They created the game but eighteen year old Nicholas Grayson mastered the rules.
They are young and entitled and utterly bored with their lives, so they play games to entertain themselves. They call it the “bet” and new girl Ellie Holbrook is their latest target. Ellie is not the kind of girl Nicholas dates, but she is pretty enough to be his next conquest and so he sets out to seduce her and claim a nice little prize at the end. But her seduction proves difficult when she openly rejects his advances. In his dogged pursuit of her he slowly finds himself in her small circle of trusted friends and meets her two year old daughter, Sophie.
Life takes a startling turn for Nicholas when he realizes his happiness now lies with the young mother and her daughter. Falling in love with Ellie isn’t something Nicholas ever thought could happen to him and he’s completely frightened at how fiercely she makes him feel. But before he can further examine those emotions and clearly process them, enemies from Nicholas’s personal circle of friends conspire to tear them apart and he must now decide whether their love is worth saving or allow his friends to take away the greatest thing that’s ever happened to him.
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Our Review:
Reviewed by Donna ~ 4.5 Stars
“He was his father’s child after all; he had learned about screwing people from the master himself.”
I originally read this book in January 2013; this was pre blog so I had not written a review for it. When I saw the sign up for the re-release, I looked back and read the blurb, kinda remembered the gist of the story and thought, yep, it was really good, I will sign up. Boy did I under estimate the power of this book, as soon as I started re-reading, I was sucked in once again, as soon as I read the first page, all the intricacies of the plot came flooding back, the story came flooding back and the tears came flooding back. Even though I have already read it, the pain, the emotion, the love that I had for this book came straight to the forefront and it didn’t leave until I read the last page. Now, I am so wrapped up in this story once again, I am heading straight back into Redemption, because I need to see this story to the end, it really is that powerful.
Eleanor/Ellie Holbrook had already lived a life even though she was 18 years old, she was strong though, sassy and took no crap from anyone. I won’t go into her full back story as it will spoil some of the plot, but it wasn’t pretty. She had seen and done most things that people would never dream about; she nearly lost herself and her life. There was one bright star that managed to pull her back from the brink, that and her ever faithful Uncle. Having home-schooled for a few years Ellie decides that she needs to experience her senior year at school. So for that final year she enrols, will life ever be the same again?
“Seeing as how you’re so fond of my ass, feel free to kiss it while I walk away.”
Nicholas/Nicky Grayson should have everything that every teenage boy wants, his father is disgustingly rich, and he lives the life, wants for nothing or does he? The one thing that Nicholas wanted the most; he was starved of, love and a stable family life. Emotionally stunted he saunters through life without a care in the world, not worrying about the trail of broken hearts that he leaves behind. Girls were a means to an end, the occasional quickie, but more importantly they were a money earner, they were the force behind “The Bet.”
“He was supposed to be the jaded playboy, the rebel without a cause, who felt nothing except the occasional stirring of his cock.”
Nicky and his friends used girls as a way to stave off their boredom, they used them as pawns in a game they called “The Bet” and Nicky was the master player. Never one not to take a “Bet” on, Nicky is just too tempted by Matt’s latest lucrative victim. The name of the game is to get the said victim into bed and record it as evidence that “The Bet” has been fulfilled. Matt’s latest nomination is none other than the new girl Ellie Holbrook. It soon becomes apparent, that unlike his past challenges who have succumbed to the Nicholas Grayson charm at the click of the finger, Ellie was going to be someone he worked hard for, she had balls, a back bone, her own mind and this was going to be no easy push over, he had to pull out the big guns, he had to go all in for this one. Little did he know that “all in” would also include his heart, the one thing he didn’t even know existed, the one thing he thought was impenetrable, was he strong enough to lose it?
“Because despite my best efforts to stay away from you, I keep finding myself back in your gravity. You’ve become this thing I can’t be without. Your voice in my head - your face in my dreams - your smell all around me. I-I’ve changed…”
As we know the course of true love never runs smooth and it is no different for these two. Their pasts, no matter how hard they try to keep them that way, always have a way of interfering with the future and this story is no different. The biggest question here is will what they have be enough? They have some huge mountains to climb, a lot of skeletons, but will life cut them a break or is this relationship doomed before it has begun?
I was totally engrossed in this story once again, it is emotional, it is a little bit dark in places but it is angst at its best. To see Nicky humbled by his feelings for Ellie and the constant battle that wagers in his mind is one that is so easily relatable. He cannot believe that he has fallen in love and moreover he never believes that he deserves it. Ellie was such a beautiful character inside and out, their chemistry on the page is palpable, you felt it and you couldn’t help but root for these two. I wanted them to believe in themselves, but would the past be too powerful?
The side characters are just as powerful, I loved Gabe and Sophie with a passion, as much as I wanted to hate Maddie, I could only feel nothing but sorrow for her, Matt I could have throttled many a time and finally Tony, only death would be a fitting end for this character. Such is the powerful emotions that this book draws out; you will virtually feel like you have been on the proverbial roller coaster, even a second time, my heart and head hurt.
“When you go through the rest of your life, Nicky, I want you to remember this moment exactly as it is now. I want you to remember the words you’ve just said and I want you to remember that this is the moment you have lost a lover and a friend.”
Francette Phal certainly pulls you in with this one, it is a page turner for sure and seeing as I read this sooo long ago and it still had the power to reduce me to tears is testament to the emotional tug this will have on you. This is the first part of Ellie and Nicky’s story and now I have to re-read part two “Redemption,” I need to see this story through to the end but it will be one of those stories that you won’t forget in a hurry. Fantastic job, I can’t wait to read more from this author.
This book has been edited but Amazon for some reason are taking their time in uploading the new version, if you have the old version please wait to read it, I would hate for your enjoyment to be spoiled.
Excerpt:
Nicholas Grayson wasn’t a nice person. In fact one could call him an asshole and he wouldn’t dispute it. He was as jaded as they come, eighteen years old, with a moral compass fixed permanently on diabolical. He was an emotional cripple with the personality of a cactus. He understood his faults and embraced each one with gusto.
His goals in life were to piss off his parents, break a few laws and generally screw his way through life. He was a good looking kid, born with movie star looks, a little James Dean with Brando’s swagger thrown into the mix to make the female populace of John Edgar High swoon.
He was fully aware of his power over the fairer sex and he used that knowledge for his own selfish end.
It was a game his group of friends played and Nicholas excelled at it. He’d slept with nearly every girl on campus, seduced each and every one with practiced ease that had become second nature, like breathing.
The sex was initially meant to stave off boredom; another vice to add to the growing list of evils he’d accumulated over the years. But then, like all things in his life, sex had become nauseatingly easy to obtain.
“Nicky.” The breathy call of his name had Nicholas peering over his shoulder where Maddie Tate, “Fatty Maddie,” as she was known by many in his circle, looked at him with sickening adoration.
Lounging across his king sized mattress in post-coital bliss, she looked every bit the sated lover with her tousled cinnamon red hair, flushed face, and gleaming azure eyes. She was in love with him. Had been for quite some time now and would undoubtedly do anything he asked of her.
It would take nothing to manipulate her and bend her to his will. Nicholas was sure that she would follow him. Therefore the seduction of Maddie Tate hadn’t taken much doing. The fact is Nicholas had been feeling charitable at the time. She was just another notch in this game he’s come to master; another pawn to use and discard when he was finished. He’d made a video of all their sordid acts just as he always had done and stood to win five hundred dollars for his troubles. Chump change as far as he was concerned but a win nevertheless.
“N-Nicholas…,” the voice was little hesitant this time. He heard the rustling of sheets as she rose.
“Get out.” This was the part he relished the most. Devil that he was, he caught the hitch of her breath and reveled in it.
“I…um…did I do something wrong?”
He took a moment tinkering with the camera before turning to give her his undivided attention, mouth curling into a bastardized version of a smile. “Well.” He moved with effortless grace, swagger unmatched, open and welcoming in contrast to the calculated, almost predatory look in his diamond grey eyes. “You didn’t bore me completely.”
Her face crumpled. The ensuing expression nearly heartbreaking as tears welled. If he cared he would’ve felt something other than this deep rooted annoyance and sudden need to see her out of his bedroom. “Now, please get your shit and get out.” It didn’t take long after that. Shoving him aside with surprising strength she gathered her things and was out like a shot.
Now, Nicholas figured, she’d grow to hate him like so many of the others who’d come before her.
It was what he did best. Fuck ‘em and leave ‘em. He lived by those words, using a slightly different variation out of the bedroom.
He was his father’s child after all; he had learned about screwing people from the master himself. Grabbing the half emptied bottle of whiskey from his dresser Nicholas made his way to the balcony in his bedroom. He took a mouthful, and then another, feeling decidedly better as each swig burned a warm path down his throat. Maneuvering himself over the balcony’s ledge he sat precariously over the edge, legs dangling four stories over the gleaming pool below. A deprecating smile tugged at his lips and Nicholas knew his demons were not far. He could hear the menacing gait of their hooved feet making a steady trek to the forefront of his mind, carrying with them memories he would sooner forget.
Shit, he was feeling maudlin. Why? He hadn’t the slightest idea. Only that the memories refused to be quelled, refused to be inundated by the liquor as per usual. The sudden image of his father fleeted across his vision and Nicholas gave a humorless laugh. Well wasn’t that just a kick in the teeth? Even at his lowest he continued to be haunted by the immoral bastard.
Charles Grayson, CEO and founder of one of the nation’s largest real estate firm was the devil incarnate and Nicholas could attest to that. He’d been ten years old when the first lesson had been imparted. There’d been an incident in school involving him and another student. Nicholas couldn’t remember exactly what it was he’d done, but he remembered he’d been mean and had been fittingly reprimanded for it by his teacher. Charles had somehow gotten word of it and swiftly rectified the situation. The teacher was terminated, credentials ruined and she’d been unable to find work in the state again. This action was quite extreme and cruel for something so little, but then Charles had never been the sentimental sort.
He was a ruthless man whose underhanded business tactics had gained him his empire. Therefore when it came to his son, Charles was merciless. He’d taken the ‘spare the rod, spoil the child’ ideology quite seriously and the scars of those lessons were now imprinted on Nicholas’s soul.
Nicholas took another swig from the bottle while raking a hand through his long hair. He was agitated and dear old Jack wasn’t doing it for him tonight. Needing a distraction that was something quite possibly stronger, he headed back to his bedroom and finished off the last of the amber liquid before tossing it aside.
About the Author:
Francette lives in Massachusetts with her amazingly supportive husband of ten years and her darling two year old son. Reading amazing books has led her to writing and she’s dabbled in fan-fiction before self-publishing her own works. She’s constantly thinking up new stories to write and does her best work when music is playing in the background. Romance is where she’s most comfortable but she hopes to one day venture in mystery novels. She has a weakness for coffee ice cream, tropical fruits and a good glass of wine.
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I’m Rhett.
