Book Blitz ~ Every Breath You Take by Robert Winter
Title: Every Breath You Take
Author: Robert Winter
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: May 5, 2017
Heat Level: 3 - Some Sex
Pairing: Male/Male
Length: 221 pages
Genre: Romance, Thriller/Suspense
Synopsis
When Zachary Hall leaves Utah for a job in Washington, it’s finally his chance to live as a gay man and maybe find someone special. In a bar he meets Thomas Scarborough, a man who seems perfect in and out of the bedroom. But Thomas never dates. He never even sleeps with the same man twice. Despite their instant connection, he can offer Zachary only his friendship, and Zachary is looking for more.
Thomas is tempted to break his own rules, but years before, he became the victim of a stalker who nearly destroyed his life. Even though his stalker died, Thomas obsessively keeps others at a distance. Despite his fascination with Zachary, he is unable to lower his barriers. Frustrated, Zachary accepts he will never have what he wants with Thomas and soon finds it with another man.
But young gay men in Washington, DC are being murdered, and the victims all have a connection to Thomas. Once again someone is watching Thomas’s every move. Can it be a coincidence? When the depraved killer turns his attention toward Zachary, Thomas must face the demons of his past—or lose his chance to open his heart to Zachary forever.
Excerpt
Across the street the man with the silver-framed glasses stood back in the shadows and stared at the front window of the garden apartment. He could see the back of his quarry’s head as he watched a small flat-screen TV.
Time passed.
Eventually the head nodded forward and then jerked up. When it happened a second time, the creature turned off the TV and then the lamp and headed to bed.
The man waited for another half hour with his back pressed against an alcove formed where two brownstones met. The street was quiet. Almost no one walked by, and the lone person who came down the street failed to notice him in the shadows.
The man felt his breath grow hoarse, and blood rushed in his ears as his heart began to pound. He cultivated that sensation as he reached into his coat pocket for the screwdriver that rested there and made himself imagine the creature’s hands touching the Beloved’s face. Stroking his body. He curled his fingers around the screwdriver and then clenched and unclenched rhythmically. Its thick handle felt rough against his palm because of the grooves and sharp edges he had chiseled into it. He had ideas for other implements that would serve his purpose, but for now, this would do just fine. This would make his point.
His throat was dry, and his eyes burned from focusing on the darkened window, but he felt invincible. The tension in his body climbed exquisitely, and when he could take no more, he slipped across the street and stepped down to the locked gate. It opened easily with his small set of picks. The gate made no noise when the creature went through it earlier, so he was confident and quick and didn’t bother to lock it behind him. Child’s play, he thought as he worked the lock on the apartment door.
The tumblers clicked into place.
He stored his lockpicks, slipped inside the darkened apartment, and then closed the door behind him as silently as he could. Streetlight came through the slatted blinds the boy had failed to close completely. He waited quietly until he heard a faint snore from the back and then removed his glasses and tucked them in an inside pocket of his jacket. The scarf his quarry had been wearing caught his eye, and the man bared his teeth as he lifted it off the coat tree and tugged it tightly between his hands. It was well made. It would hold. He smiled.
He slid through the gloom toward the room where the creature lay sleeping. He was hard, and the blood in his erection pulsed in time to the pounding of his heart. That boy had dared to touch his Beloved. He had probably even been fucked by him. But that wasn’t enough—oh no. He came back for more.
It had taken the man so long to find his Beloved and interpret his subtle clues. He finally understood what was required of him. The undeserving gnat must be chastised, and he would be the Beloved’s angel of retribution. He was conscious of the weight of the screwdriver in his pocket, the scratch of the wool scarf in his hands, and the power in his arms.
He reached for the boy on the bed.
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*Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie by Dreamspinner Press for my reading pleasure in hopes of an unbiased opinion, a review was not a requirement.*
There's going to be no guessing in this review about how I felt about this book, I absolutely loved it! I stayed up way too late to finish this because there was no way I could put it down! Every Breath You Take is the second book from Robert Winter, and completely different than his first book, September. This book is a mystery/suspense book and is very, very well done!
I loved Zachary, one of the main characters. He came from a religious, conservative background and finally had some freedom when he moved to Washington for a new job. Of course, Zachary's first time in a gay bar, with the freedom to be out of the closet, he can't take his eyes off of Thomas. Zachary thinks he's the most beautiful man he's ever met, and agrees to go home with him for the night. Zachary isn't looking for a one-night stand, but Thomas makes sure he knows that's all that they will have. And though Zachary is interested in more, he accepts what he's told, dates others and accepts what Thomas says. I was so happy with this! In many romance books, this doesn't happen, and I truly think it's a disservice to characters (and readers). Zachary is such a strong character! He stands up to Thomas' back and forth, and calls him on his behavior. Zachary knows how he wants to be treated and isn't willing to accept less.
I didn't dislike Thomas, but he was a little harder for me to like. He's very cocky and has spent his whole life on one-night stands. This I was fine with, but his behavior toward Zachary made me not like him. Thomas doesn't do relationships, no matter how much he wants more with Zachary. When Zachary accepts what Thomas says and tries to move on with his life, Thomas goes into a hot/cold and push/pull behavior. He tells Zachary to move on, then when Zachary tries to, Thomas is there to pull him close again until he scares himself and pushes him away. Throughout the story, it becomes understandable why Thomas has this behavior, but then I think, did he not learn anything from his past? But, Thomas gets it together and finally admits to himself what he wants.
The murder/mystery/stalker/craziness was brilliant, and kind of makes me question the mind of the author :) Seriously, you have to read it to find out how dark and twisted the author's writing is. The death of the men in this story was truly horrific; and the killer was a very twisted person. This story sucked me in and wouldn't let me go until I had read everything; and then I regretted that I was finished! There was absolutely nothing I would change about this story, and I truly hope the author will write more mystery/suspense stories in the future!
Rating: 5+++++
Meet the Author
Robert Winter is a recovering lawyer who likes writing about hot men in love much more than drafting a legal brief. He left behind the (allegedly) glamorous world of an international law firm to sit in his home office and dream up ways to torment his characters until they realize they are perfect for each other. When he isn’t writing, Robert likes to cook Indian food and explore new restaurants. Robert divides his time between Washington, DC, and Provincetown, MA. He splits his attention between Andy, his partner of sixteen years, and Ling the Adventure Cat, who likes to fly in airplanes and explore the backyard jungle as long as the temperature and humidity are just right.
Blitz Schedule
Hoards Jumble
Bayou Book Junkie
Happily Ever Chapter
Babbling About Books and More
Books, Dreams, Life
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words
Dawn's Reading Nook
Dirty Books Obsession
It's About The Book
Booklover Sue
Out Of My Head
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