*~*Indebted by Pepper Winters – Excerpt, Review & Giveaway*~*

Genre:  Contemporary Erotic Romance, Suspense/Thriller

 

Title:   First Debt  (Indebted Series Book #2)

Author:    Pepper Winters

“You say I’ll never own you. If I win—you willingly give me that right. You sign not only the debt agreement, but another—one that makes me your master until your last breath is taken. You do that, and I’ll give you this.”

Nila Weaver’s family is indebted. Stolen, taken, and bound not by monsters but by an agreement written over six hundred years ago, she has no way out.

She belongs to Jethro as much as she denies it.

Jethro Hawk’s patience is running out. His inheritance gift tests, challenges, and surprises him—and not in good ways. He hasn’t leashed her but he thinks he might’ve found a way to bind her forever.

Debts are mounting. Payment waiting.

 

 

 

 

ONE – Nina’s POV

“Huge disappointment, Ms. Weaver.” His cold glare sent a snowstorm wiping away the bonfire in my belly. “I’m done playing games, so cut the bullshit. Time to begin the day.” His voice gave no room for interpretation. A cold draft shot down my back.

My brief reprieve from debts and horrible Hawks was over. I’d been shown something I desperately wanted, but denied it because I failed to please him.

“You could teach me…show me how…” I couldn’t make eye contact with him. Mortification painted my cheeks for both admitting I was clueless and asking a monster to coach me.

Jethro laughed. “You think that will save you from what’s coming? Was that your little plan? To make me fuck you in the hopes I might feel something for you?”

 

**

TWO – Jethro’s POV

 

I stood up slowly, clicking my tongue. “Ah, ah, ah, Ms. Weaver. Don’t take that tone with me. You’re the failure. You’re the prisoner. You take what I give you. You do not assume to have any say or authority. That includes listening to everything I deem important to tell you.” Ghosting to a stop in front of her, I murmured, “Is that quite understood?”

I flexed my muscles, welcoming back the soothing chillness of control. I hadn’t liked stepping outside my confines of civility. Things got messy when silence was disrupted. Things got rushed when tempers rose and curses flowed.

And I didn’t want to rush her undoing. I wanted to savour it. Devour it.

 

 

Debt Inheritance by Pepper Winters

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

*ARC Given to Blog for Honest Review*

4 “Threads” “Kite007” “Hawk” “Weaver” “Anchor” Kisses

Oh boy…where do I begin with the mindfuck that just happened to me. This was like a bad car accident that I couldn’t look away from…but there was something that was so hypnotic about it that I was compelled to keep turning the pages. The tid bits of information we are given…each answer creating even more questions in my head…my emotions fed off of every interaction, granted even though most of them were bad, I dunno what that says about me. This was like a giant puzzle mixed into a maze wrapped in a riddle and by the time I reached then end, I wasn’t sure which way was up. Oye…this series is going to be a doozey.

Jethro Hawk…I’m still not sure what I think about Jethro, he scared me…yet intrigued me…repulsed me but I still felt pulled to him…I wanted to love him but couldn’t get past the all-consuming hate for the things that he was doing. He’s a conundrum…an enigma…while I always try and give everyone the benefit of the doubt and really try to never completely give up on a character…Jethro is testing my will immensely. He’s a product of his upbringing…raised to be a Hawk by his father who might be the son of Satan, he’s a part of a family that feeds off of power, pain and fear. He’s the eldest son…set to inherit everything that comes with the Hawk legacy as soon as her turns 30…which lucky him, is in less than a year. The Hawks are based on tradition…legacy’s and rules that have been passed down generation to generation for over 600 years…a little antiquated but no one is dumb enough to stand up to people who are richer than god and can kill you too. Jet is…intimidating, sexy but with a dark edge and honestly, pretty damn frightening…but I can’t get past my desire to know more about him…cause honestly, we’ve barely scratched the surface.

‘One mistake sold her life to me in a mountain of unpayable debt.
I inherited her.
I preyed on her.
I owned her life and had the piece of paper to prove it.
Nila Weaver.
Mine. And my task…
…
…
devour her.’

Nila Weaver…poor, sweet, innocent, naïve Nila…she had no idea what kind of evil she was getting herself into. Nila is a almost the complete opposite of Jethro…she’s a very enjoyable character…very easy to love, a good, gentle, kind girl. She’s a talented fashion designer, obedient daughter (even at the cost of her own wishes and desires), a fabulous sister to her twin brother Vaughn, she’s smart, quick witted and funny…I just really liked her. We get more inner monologue from Nila and I really appreciated that, I think that attributed to the fact that I was in tune with her emotions. I felt like I really understood her and connected with her, so when she was excited, I felt that, when she was scared…I was too…and the poor girl runs the gamut of emotions through this book. She has the best night of her life for her career, only to have it crushed to smithereens by one dark and mysterious stranger. I empathized with her a lot because the girl just flat out cannot catch a break…and it’s of no fault of her own…well, except the one crucial mistake where she went back to Jethro…I think that decision will haunt her for the rest of her life.

‘I hated being lied to.
I hated even more believing those lies until the truth decided to come for me.
Turned out, I was never an individual; I was a possession to trade.
I was never unique; someone had lived my life many times before, never free, never whole.
My life was never mine.
My destiny was already written.
My story began the night he came for me.’

Can you like a book that is about unpleasant things? Where nothing really positive happens? Where the male MC is an ass hole of epic proportions with very few redeeming qualities? Well…call me twisted…but I did. What gets me the most is that I am a romantic at heart…there are erotic sections of Debt Inheritance but for the most part…it’s a dark, twisted, mindfucking thriller. There is no love, there is no sweetness or kindness, there is no seduction, there is no chemistry. There is passion…although sometimes fleeting…and mainly fueled by hatred. There is lust…albeit it gets a little confusing and…sticky. There are questionable things that happen…things that made me pause and they were not easy to read…but they’re necessary for the story and for things to progress – it’s not like they were done out of shock value and honestly, I think that’ the tip of the iceberg, I’m pretty sure it’s only going to get worse! But I liked the challenge…I was okay with the feelings those scenes provoked in me…in a way it was enjoyable (which…I don’t know if I want to question because it’s all just part of the mindfuck) but there was one thing that kept me hanging on.

‘The so-called inexperienced dressmaker had her own agenda. Beneath the chaste little girl, lurked a devious woman who was so tangled and confused she was fucking dangerous.
Dangerous because she was unpredictable. Unpredictable because she didn’t know herself.
I was clueless on how to control her. I didn’t understand her.’

Hope. Pepper is very good at balancing these absolutely terrifying situations with just the right amount of hope. The female MC is in the worst possible situation ever…she is by all accounts, completely fucked…but somehow she is able to find the strength and the mental fortitude to get through it. Nila, just like Tess in the Monsters in the Dark Series, has her ways of getting through everything she is faced with. Whether it’s her father or her twin brother or Kite or her work or the dogs…whatever it is…her brain finds a way to figure out a way to push through while also preserve what she can of herself. It’s like a moment of self preservation…and it’s those moments that continue to give me hope. That on top with the very fleeting moments of seeing the possibility of Jethro having a heart, well…that’s what kept me reading. Well…that on combined with the beautiful writing.

‘Home to me would be hell to her. I should’ve been more understanding – I could particularly hear her heart shatter – but I’d been born into a family where emotion was a weakness. I prided myself on being strong, unbreakable. Empathy was the downfall of any human.
The ability to feel their pain.. The nuisance of living their trauma.
That inconvenient ability had been beaten out of me as a child. Lesson after lesson until I embraced the cold.
The cold was emotionless. The cold was power.’

This story is so detailed, and I really don’t want to give anything away because it’s a very unique story, IMO. There are so many little things that could have gone wrong, but for me…she wrote it brilliantly. It felt like there were no details spared and the story is so intricate, I was hanging onto every aspect because I didn’t want to miss a thing. My mind was racing the entire time…I truly never know what to expect out of Pepper’s awesome imagination…she never ceases to amaze me…but her surprises keep getting better and better. She challenges me as a reader…it’s astounding how gorgeous her writing is and yet her characters are depraved, evil men doing horrible things…murder, kidnapping, terrible crimes…the situations Nila is faced with are terrifying…but Pepper is clear and concise with everything. From the details and descriptions to the rawness of the emotions, I was completely enveloped…it was amazing.

‘I knew who Jethro was – I knew this was all a game to him. But why couldn’t two people play? Why did I have justify his touch as bad when it was so amazingly good?
Death was coming. Shouldn’t I try to live before I died?
Shouldn’t I embrace the lack of control by throwing away my submissive behavior and fight for what I wanted?
For once in my life.
Be true and honest and raw.
Why can’t I use him? Just once be the bad girl and use the monster. Win by not fighting. Be stronger by giving in.’

Pepper Winters has a rare talent. She writes beautifully about completely fucked up and twisted people and situations. The entire time I’m cringing about what’s happened or about to happen…but damn, the words she is using are just gorgeous. Her use of description…it’s not flowery or fluffy, but it’s perfectly descriptive. It’s elegance personified…and we’re talking about murder and violence and death – this stuff is not exactly elegant! And just when I think she can’t get any darker than Q and Fox…well, the joke’s on me. Jethro is possibly the darkest male MC I’ve met…he and Caleb from the Dark Duet Series could be best buddies. Every time I think Pepper has pushed the envelope far enough, she takes it that one step further. I guess for some readers it could be ‘too much’…too violent, too crude…her stories definitely toe the line and for some, it’s too much – I get that. She can take it to some really scary places…uncomfortable and painful situations…things that could be someone’s worst nightmare. For me…the dark stuff makes me appreciate the journey, the love, the passion that much more…it’s rough going through it but it’s always worth it…especially with Pepper’s books.

‘The longer we stood, the further we blurred the lines between debtor and debtee. Weaver and Hawk. In that tiny moment, we were each other’s answer to freedom. A mind-blistering coupling that would surely ruin me for life. But at least I would’ve lived.’

So that ending is pretty rough…I’m not going to lie, I kept clicking praying that there was going to be more…and yet, there was not. On the cliff measurement scale it’s…pretty high and I will be waiting on pins and needles for the next book. There are still so many questions left to be answered…and I am excited to see where Pepper does with it.

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Pepper Winters wears many roles. Some of them include writer, reader, sometimes wife. She loves dark, taboo stories that twist with your head. The more tortured the hero, the better, and she constantly thinks up ways to break and fix her characters. Oh, and sex… her books have sex.
She loves to travel and has an amazing, fabulous hubby who puts up with her love affair with her book boyfriends.

Her Dark Erotica books include:
Tears of Tess (Monsters in the Dark #1)
Quintessentially Q (Monsters in the Dark #2)

Her Grey Romance books include:
Destroyed