REVIEWED by Jen B.
TITLE: Ten
SERIES: Love by Numbers
AUTHOR: Tia Fielding
PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press
LENGTH: 218 Pages
RELEASE DATE: January 15, 2019
BLURB: Can two broken men build one life?
Ten years.
That’s what Makai lost for a crime he didn’t commit. He’s been exonerated, but the abuse he suffered in prison isn’t so easy to leave behind. He heads to the one place he remembers being happy: Acker, Wisconsin, where he spent summers with his grandpa. Unfortunately, not everyone wants Makai there.
Ten days.
That’s how long Emil, now twenty-one, was held prisoner as a teenager. The mental and physical injuries he suffered at the hands of a drug trafficking ring still haunt him.
Nightmares, anxiety, and PTSD challenge the connection forming between Makai and Emil, though together, they might find a way to move beyond their pain and into a future—and a relationship—that both had thought impossible.
Now they just have to convince Emil’s father, the town sheriff. It won’t be easy with danger closer than they know….
REVIEW:
I am a sucker for damaged characters, and this one packs a double whammy. Makai, released from a ten-year prison sentence after being found innocent tries to pick up with his life that was basically on hold for a decade. He heads to a small town who all seem to know his story and not all the residents are happy about him being there. He just wants to keep his head down and make a comfortable life as he readjusts to life outside and getting past the horrors he experienced during his incarceration.
Then there is Emil, a sweet young man who suffers from PTSD and injuries he sustained when he was kidnapped and kept captive and tortured for ten days when he was 17 in connection with his father’s job as the town sheriff. He has trouble eating (due to being starved), has problems with his fingers (that were all broken), and suffers from fairly frequent panic attacks.
These two meet accidentally, and it is quickly apparent that they share a connection and commonality that allows them to be more comfortable with each other than they have been able to with others up to this point. They take things extremely but understandably slow given their issues, but it is easy to see their relationship blossoming. Their trust in each other grows with every interaction, and I was rooting for them from the get go.
We don’t get too many details about their pasts, but there are definitely enough to give a clear picture and understanding of what these guys have been through. It is the story of two people who were wronged but through each other, find happiness. It was really sweet, and I can easily recommend it to anyone who loves seeing guys get second chances at life and love.
RATING: 