Ruin You (The Debt #3) by M. O’Keefe-Review and Book Tour

 

RUIN YOU
The Debt #3
by M. O’Keefe
Release Dat: November 9, 2017
Genre: adult, contemporary, romance

  Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO /iBooks

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date November 9, 2017

Simon

The only thing that stands in the way of my revenge is her.

The lying scheming daughter of the man who killed my parents. She has the secrets I need to bring down her father.

And I’ll do anything to get them. I will lie to her. Steal from her. Use her.
Ruin her.

It helps that our chemistry is explosive.

What I’m not expecting is for her to be so sweet. And so strong.

So…irresistible.

Penny

After so many years of lying and hiding, I finally have a place to call home. With people I can call a family. The Paintbrush Inn is my life now, and I won’t let anyone ruin it.

When sexy and world-weary Simon checks in to the Inn, I never expect him to glance my way. I’ve spent my whole life blending into the background. Being overlooked and ignored. It’s been helpful, even though it’s lonely. And he’s way out of my league.

But our attraction is powerful. Undeniable.

Dangerous.

Because I can’t let anyone close. If the secrets I keep were to be revealed, my whole life would be destroyed. But something about Simon makes me break all my own rules. I’m letting him in to my home, my body, my life, never expecting he has his own secrets.

His own lies.

When the truth comes out, we’ll both be ruined.

••••••••••

REVIEW: RUIN YOU is the third full-length instalment in Molly O’Keefe’s contemporary, adult THE DEBT dark, romance series focusing on a group of former teens thrown together in the foster/ juvenile system of San Francisco, California (more specifically the St. Jude’s Home for Court Place Juveniles) -Tommy, Beth, Simon, Rosa and Carissa. This is journalist Simon Malik, and chef Penny McConnell’s story line. RUIN YOU can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary with the inclusion of a prologue that reveals some of the background and events leading to the debt owed by Tommy, Simon and Carissa to the mysterious Mr. Bates.

There is a FREE short story prologue available -THE DEBT. The same short story prologue is also contained at the beginning of Tommy and Beth’s story-Lost Without You.

NOTE: RUIN YOU, like book one-Lost Without You- begins seven to eight years earlier in which we are witness to the horrific acts of violence perpetrated on five young souls who will be beaten and broken for any number of offenses deemed inappropriate or wrong. The introduction reveals five ‘young offenders’ destroyed by a sexually and physically abusive foster family, only to discover that freedom came at a cost- all debts must be repaid; anytime, anywhere, without question or fail.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Simon and Penny) RUIN YOU begins eight years earlier as the reader is given a glimpse into Simon’s past and his first encounter with our story line heroine: the events leading to his incarceration in the juvenile offender’s system, and the fall out when Simon and his best friend Tommy (LOST WITHOUT YOU) took measures to ensure their foster family was no longer a threat to their safety and health. Fast forward to present day wherein Simon’s debt-the cost of his freedom-must be repaid. Enter Penny McConnell aka Tina Andreas, Simon’s target and the woman with whom our hero will fall in love. What ensues is the building relationship between Penny and Simon, and the fall out when Tina’s (Penny) father discovers the whereabouts of his long, lost daughter, and the truth about Simon’s mission is finally revealed.

RUIN YOU is a story of second chances; of lies and betrayal; of romance and love. Penny McConnell is not who she professes to be but neither is Simon Malik who sets out to seduce the woman who may or may not have access to the information he so desperately wants. The relationship between Simon and Penny is one of immediate attraction and insta-lust but our heroine knows that to get involved would mean having to reveal the real person behind her professional façade. Simon’s undercover assignment follows a two-step plan in which retribution and revenge are a by-product of a debt repaid. The $ex scenes are limited but intimate, erotic and passionate without the use of over the top, sexually graphic language and text.

RUIN YOU is a slow paced story; a sweet burn romance;with a conflict resolution that was over too quickly. Tommy and Beth (Lost Without You) make a cameo appearance, as well as the mysterious Mr. Bates, Carissa, Penny’s business partner Megan, and Tina’s father Dale Simpson. I suspect there is some history between Carissa and Bates; we learn a little more about Mr. Bates’ connection to the group home survivors. Rosa’s whereabouts have finally been uncovered, and our story line hero is about to embark on a mission to find their missing friend. The premise is entertaining and engaging; the characters are charismatic and determined; the romance is fated and captivating.

Copy supplied for reviewe

Reviewed by Sandy

_____________

LOST WITHOUT YOU
(The Debt #1)
by Molly O’Keefe
Genre: contemporary, new adult, dark, romance
Release Date: June 19,2017

FREE ebook: Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date June 19, 2017

ALL DEBTS MUST BE PAID

Tommy

Seven years ago, I thought I could save Beth, the girl I loved from the monster who was supposed to take care of us. I thought I could keep Beth and all the other kids at St. Jude’s Home for Court Placed Juveniles safe.

I failed. Badly. Now we all have blood on our hands and owe a dangerous man a very dangerous debt. We don’t know when he’ll come calling for payment, but when he does – we pay, or we suffer.

When my turn comes, I’m ready for anything.

Except seeing Beth again.

LOVE IS NEVER FREE

Beth

No one ever tells you that the cost of having your dreams come true is literally every single other part of your life. Yes, I’m a huge pop star these days, but I’m pretty much a mess, too.

I’ve spent my life hiding behind disguises, make-up and costumes, all to protect myself from the kind of pain that comes from revealing your true self to someone.

I did that once. With Tommy. The only person I ever loved. It didn’t turn out so well.

And now, with everything else falling apart around me, I’m suddenly in the backseat of his car.

Being kidnapped.

And the past we’ve both tried to run from is catching up with us.

Contains The Debt: A Prologue and 50,000 more words in the continuation of Tommy and Beth’s story

••••••••••••

REVIEW: LOST WITHOUT YOU is the first full length instalment in Molly O’Keefe’s contemporary, new adult THE DEBT dark, romance series focusing on a former group of teens thrown together in the foster/ juvenile system of San Francisco, California (more specifically the St. Jude’s Home for Court Place Juveniles) -Tommy, Beth, Simon, Rosa and Carissa. LOST WITHOUT YOU is twenty four year old Tommy MacNeill, and twenty three year old Beth Renshaw’s story line. I have not had the opportunity to read the conclusion to their story WHERE I BELONG but I am hoping to rectify that very shortly.

NOTE: There is a FREE short story prologue available -THE DEBT -that reveals some of the background and events leading to the debt owed by Tommy, Simon and Carissa. The same short story prologue is also contained at the beginning of Tommy and Beth’s story-Lost Without You.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Tommy and Beth) LOST WITHOUT YOU begins seven years earlier in which we are witness to the horrific acts of violence perpetrated on five young souls who will be beaten and broken for any number of offenses deemed inappropriate or wrong. LOST WITHOUT YOU focuses on the fall out of a corrupt juvenile system that saw five ‘young offenders’ destroyed by a sexually and physically abusive foster family, only to discover that freedom came at a cost- all debts must be repaid; anytime, anywhere, without question or fail.

Fast forward to present day and Tommy MacNeill’s contracted debt has been called into fruition, and his assignment will bring him face to face with his past. Enter pop sensation Jada, the young girl formerly known as Beth Renshaw, and the woman Tommy has always loved. What ensues is the rekindling relationship and romance between Tommy and Beth, and the fall out when Tommy is unable to pay off his seven year debt.

LOST WITHOUT YOU is a somewhat dark and edgy story of heartbreak, betrayal, abuse and regret. Five teens caught in the system with no chance of parole until a mysterious and dangerous stranger, Mr. Bates, offers freedom for a price. All debts must be repaid, and Tommy’s debt has been called placing our hero in the line of fire. The premise is engaging and angst-ridden; the characters are broken and battle-weary; the romance is passionate but lacked the heat factor of many of today’s dark romance novels-perhaps the events of the past interfered in their ability to let go and enjoy their few remaining moments together.

LOST WITHOU YOU ends on a cliff hanger-you have been warned.

Own a copy

Reviewed by Sandy

Molly O’Keefe has always known she wanted to be a writer (except when she wanted to be a florist or a chef and the brief period of time when she considered being a cowgirl). And once she got her hands on some romances, she knew exactly what she wanted to write.

She published her first Harlequin romance at age 25 and hasn’t looked back. She loves exploring every character’s road towards happily ever after.

Originally from a small town outside of Chicago, she went to university in St. Louis where she met and fell in love with the editor of her school newspaper. They followed each other around the world for several years and finally got married and settled down in Toronto, Ontario. They welcomed their son into their family in 2006, and their daughter in 2008. When she’s not at the park or cleaning up the toy room, Molly is working hard on her next novel, trying to exercise, stalking Tina Fey on the internet and dreaming of the day she can finish a cup of coffee without interruption.