This novel is a tough read, but I'm so glad I stuck with it. Barrons likes to push the reader out of their comfort zone, shred life as we know it, and then still manages to stitch all the broken pieces back together for a beautiful, satisfying ending. I appreciated every moment this author spent trying to better understand the darker tendencies of those who've been emotionally and psychologically broken for so long their coping mechanisms turn from the weird to downright absurd. This novel explores a lot of darkness, especially brought on with human trafficking, pedophilia, and emotional trauma. I appreciate how Angel honours the experiences of the children who disappear into the black hole of the world of trafficking, who more often than not are forgotten by all except their mourning parents, who almost never get closure.
Although I enjoyed the book, there were a few small things that didn't quite fit, and stretched my ability to suspend disbelief a little too far. One such scenario was the kidnapping of Melanie's twin sister, Maddie. I understand the literary purpose of the kidnapping, but can't believe it would have "gone down" quite that way. A disappearance after school, or coming home from a friend's house would have been far more believable than a midnight abduction from the family home.
Nevertheless, Melanie and Angel make for a very interesting couple. The greater story about the biker gang facing off the Mafia was a lot of fun to read, and definitely added a lot to the bigger picture from what I'd read in the previous books in this series.
For anyone who likes dark contemporary romances that explore the human psyche, and our capacity to overcome the darkness our hardships offer us, I can highly recommend this series.
NOTE: This is the third book in The Ridge MC series. Check out my reviews of the previous book here:
