SPECTRE by Shiloh Walker-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 22, 2019

Myth. Monster. Mine.

Spectre

I wasn’t even a man when I took a life for the first time, although you couldn’t say I was a child. If I’d ever had a childhood, it hadn’t lasted long. My father, may he rot in hell, had seen to that. I took his life as well and that, too, happened before I was old enough to be considered a grown man.
I never regretted it for a second.

That path almost led to my own grave, and would have, if I hadn’t stumbled across somebody who was as different from my father as day was from night. Sarge had seen the monster lurking inside, so he took control, gave me guidelines, rules, so I wouldn’t be the monster my father had planned.

It worked. I restrained the worst of my rage and honed the skills that had been drilled into me—theft, stealth… assassination. The broken child ceased to exist and I became Spectre, an assassin spoken of in whispers, hired to take out the worst of humanity.

Then I was sent to kill her…and my world came to a screeching halt.

Tia

It’s taken a long time, but I finally had a nice, steady routine. I stopped trying to conform to the neurotypicals of the world and found my own normal.

Normal went out the window when I walked into my kitchen and found a strange (hot), dangerous looking (so fricking hot) man drugging my new dog.

It probably wasn’t the smartest thing to leap at him like a banshee and attack, but that’s what I did.

When my attempt to wreck the vehicle was averted, my kidnapper didn’t hurt or threaten me. In fact, he told me he wanted to protect me.

This (hot) guy had to be crazy. But if he was crazy, what did that make me? Because I believed him. More, I found myself seeing something beyond the rigid, blank mask he wore. He kept trying to push me away, but I couldn’t seem to keep my distance.

He calls himself a monster…but when I look at him, that isn’t what I see. I just see him…and I know he’s meant to be mine.

Warning: This isn’t a snuggly, comfy read. The male MC is a hired killer, while the heroine is neuro-atypical. Some dark material is involved—the hero kidnaps the heroine. There’s also violence when he goes on a rampage against those who put a contract on her. Also references of abuse (not against the heroine). Also very graphic, erotic scenes with minor bondage play.

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REVIEW: SPECTRE by Shiloh Walker is a contemporary, adult, stand alone, dark erotic romance novel focusing on assassin for hire Meric aka Spectre aka Casper Bach, and artist Tia Bailey.

NOTE: There are some scenes of bondage, discipline and anal play that may not be suitable for more sensitive readers.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Tia and Spectre) SPECTRE follows Meric aka Spectre Bach as he is hired to kill the half-sister of the police detective who was responsible for the taking down a man responsible for a child prostitution ring but all things considered Spectre had no desire to assassinate the woman that would one day, call to his heart. Stalking Tia Bailey had been easy but meeting our heroine forced Spectre to re-evaluate his chosen profession as his heart battled with what he was paid to do. What ensues is a cross-country journey in an effort to keep our heroine safe; the building but tempestuous relationship between Tia and Spectre, and the potential fall-out as Spectre must fulfil a promise to himself, and take down the people who destroyed so many lives.

Tia Bailey has Asperger’s; a high functioning form of Autism wherein she has the tendency to speak her mind both in and out of social situations but our heroine finds herself falling for the man hired to kill, a killer she is quickly learning to call her own. Meric Bach aka Spectre’s earlier life destroyed any semblance of happiness or normality. Having never felt loved or cared for, Spectre spent his early years learning to kill in an effort to protect himself from grievous harm. Falling for Tia Bailey meant opening his heart and revealing his past, a past he believes will condemn him in the eyes of the woman he loves.

The relationship between Tia and Spectre begins acrimoniously when Spectre is hired to kill our heroine. Unable to murder an innocent woman, Spectre then abducts Tia Bailey, in an effort to protect her from those willing to destroy her brother in the process. A quick ‘Stockholm-esque’ Syndrome relationship quickly develops as Tia begins to consider a life on the run with the man with whom she will fall in love. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and intense but I struggle with the use of a certain four-letter word used liberally throughout the story.

We are introduced to Tia’s half-brother Detective Mac Bailey; Meric’s guardian Sarge, as well as friends Leo Wallace and hacker Theodosia

SPECTRE is a dark, gritty and emotional story line between two people whose lives could not have been any more different. The premise is engaging and enthralling: the characters are energetic, dynamic and colorful; the romance is raw, spicy and spirited.

Copy supplied by Netgalley

Reviewed by Sandy