REVIEW BY: Christie
TITLE: Debt
AUTHOR: K.C. Wells
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 254 pages
RELEASE DATE: May 27, 2016
BLURB:
Two months after Mitch Jenkins had the rug pulled out from under him when his two-year relationship came to an abrupt end, he is still hurting. A colleague’s attempt to cheer him up brings Mitch to a secret “club.” Mitch isn’t remotely interested in the twinks parading like peacocks, until he spies the young man at the back of the room, nose firmly in a book and oblivious to his surroundings. Now Mitch is interested.
Nikko Kurokawa wants to pay his debt and get the hell out of the Black Lounge—where he is forced to not only have sex, but sometimes suffer abuse to please clients. Earning his freedom isn’t proving easy, especially when he starts attracting interest. Life becomes that little bit easier to bear when he meets Mitch, who is nothing like the other men who frequent the club. And when Mitch crawls under his skin and into his heart, Nikko figures he can put up with anything. Before long he’ll be out of there, and he and Mitch can figure out if they have a future together.
Neither of them counted on those who don’t want Nikko to leave….
REVIEW:
Debt by K. C. Wells was quite the rollercoaster ride of emotions. Curiosity, amusement, fear, lust, and even a sense of loss and betrayal were all evoked in myself while reading this book. Am I glad I read it? Sure. Was it good? Yes, definitely. Will I put it on my list of books to reread in the near future? No way. Would I recommend this book to others? That would be a hesitant yes.
Two months after his long term boyfriend dumps him for not being adventurous enough in the bedroom, high school English teacher Mitch Jenkins decides it’s time to try and get back out there into the dating scene. But, not just anywhere will do. Mitch decides to try his luck with online dating. That is, until a friend and colleague brings him to a private club and basically gives him a proviso carte blanche guest pass of sorts to pick and choose from any of the men there for a little “encounter”, so to speak.
Well, Mitch is totally not interested in anyone. Until he sees Nikko Kurokawa curled up in a chair with his legs tucked up under him, lost in a book instead of preening and flaunting himself to prospective clients. Nikko is shy, slight of build, and has a few dark secrets. One of which is that he’s not there voluntarily. In fact, he is there trying to pay off a debt.
After spending an hour with the lovely Nikko, Mitch just can’t seem to get the *gulp* prostitute out of his head. The thing is, in order to see him again, Mitch has to actually join this brothel, masquerading as a private club. And, of course he does. After which Mitch becomes a bit obsessed with the smaller man and visits as often as possible. That is, until one day, Mitch notices signs that Nikko has been abused. He knows Nikko has to get out of there, but doesn’t know why the man stays. Enter Nikko’s dark secrets, and navigating how to help him resolve them without causing further harm to Mitch’s beloved man, and potentially losing the teacher his career in the process.
Out of all the people in this book that are introduced to us, I have to say that Randy the guard is my favorite. He is kind, compassionate, and ends up being a real ally to Mitch and Nikko. It’s a harsh story, and at times very hard to read due to the things Nikko suffers. But, if you are able to push thru those spots and weather the barrage of emotions the book will most definitely stir up in you, then I recommend this book.
RATING: 
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