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beckyrendon's review
4.0
Absolution is the kind of story that leaves a dry dusty feeling in your mouth. The kind that makes you grip the book harder and hope for the best. It is fear, loathing, love, and confusion.
I spent the entire book fighting my inclinations. I was angry with myself and you will be too. Ms. Johnson doesn't write for the faint of heart. Conflicting Emotions must be her spirit name.
It was a roller coaster of emotions and it was a wild ride. She can twist and turn your emotions, your mind, and your feelings with the simplest clicking of her keyboard.
Enjoy your confession. Father Declan will be waiting.
reviewed for Naughty Book Blog
I spent the entire book fighting my inclinations. I was angry with myself and you will be too. Ms. Johnson doesn't write for the faint of heart. Conflicting Emotions must be her spirit name.
It was a roller coaster of emotions and it was a wild ride. She can twist and turn your emotions, your mind, and your feelings with the simplest clicking of her keyboard.
Enjoy your confession. Father Declan will be waiting.
reviewed for Naughty Book Blog
anasatticbookblog's review
3.0
Absolution by Missy Johnson
Standalone Contemporary Romance
3.5 stars
Absolution by Missy Johnson is the first book I have read by this author (edit: I thought it was until another review linked to this one! lol!). I enjoy a taboo romance and there blurb really grabbed me. This was a double taboo! Not only was the hero the person who ruined the heroine’s life, but he is a priest as well!
The story begins where we meet a family suffering from a daughter’s suicide after being raped by her boyfriend. Hannah is her little sister, and this rape had lasting effects that reached even further than her sister killing herself, her father died from it as well. At the age of ten, Hannah had to take care of her and her little sister as the family fell apart. And there was one person to blame for it all. Declan James, her sister’s rapist.
Fourteen years later, Hannah is working at her dream job, being a social worker in child protection. It is a brutal job, and she puts her whole heart and soul into it. After a horrible, heartbreaking case ends with a young child orphaned, the only person this girl would respond to is a local priest. A priest Hannah finds herself drawn to. Until she realizes—it’s Declan James.
Torn between knowing this man’s past as a rapist and wanting to protect and heal the young orphan, Hannah realizes the only thing she can do is supervise the time between Father James and the girl, which, of course, has them together a lot.
"I've fallen in love with the one person I never should've even given the time of day."
I have to say, while this kept me involved and I liked the story, I didn’t really love Hannah, and loving the heroine is what I need to love a book. I felt like she thought she knew everything and never gave any chance that things aren’t always what they seem, especially to a someone who was only 10 at the time. But the thing that really bothered me was that she was the aggressor. He was trying to be a man of God, trying to atone for his sins and she kept pushing. Yet she was betraying her entire family and corrupting a priest.
And while I liked him more, for goodness sake, he is a priest, he could have fought harder!
“He won’t meet my eyes, and I won’t meet his. We’re both embarrassed and ashamed, but for different reasons. He’s betraying his God, and I’m betraying my sister.”
Maybe if I really felt their connection build up I would have felt differently, but there wasn’t really a build-up. I didn’t feel that connection. It happened quickly, and I just didn’t get it—why would she push it with a priest? How can he betray his vows that easily?
*Note: I received an ARC for my honest review that had more errors than most arcs, but I do not know if they were all fixed in the final copy.
Likes:
- •I love a forbidden romance.
- •The story itself was a good one.
- •Kept me interested and turning pages.
- •I’m so glad that the twist happened, I assumed it would, and I’m glad it did.
Dislikes:
- •I didn’t love the heroine.
- •Didn’t feel the connection, it moved too quickly.
- •I couldn’t understand why she pushed him so hard to break his vows.
The Down & Dirty:
If you like taboo, this is certainly the book! Missy Johnson is a good storyteller that kept me involved the entire time, but sadly I never fell for the heroine and didn’t feel the connection build up so I never understood why she seemed to push him to be with her. It had the bones and storyline to be such a great novel, but it fell short somewhere, I just never felt like there was enough emotion for them both to go against everything they are for each other. Add another 50 pages of them connecting and falling for each other, and this could have been amazing.
Rating: 3.5 stars, 3.5 Heat
Purchase Absolution by Missy Johnson
bookwormbetty's review
5.0
This was my Missy Johnson book; I can tell you will not be my last either. This book isfull of love, angst, suspense, redemption; her writing is amazing and this book held my attention all the way through. I really enjoyed it immensely, finding it difficult to put down.
I loved Hannah and Declan, their relationship, the problems were so unique and very well thought out and developed, nothing seemed contrived just to create issues. The chemistry between the two of them was great,very believable and it helps you connect to them. The characters as well as the plot were something different from your boy meets girl, and it was so interesting to see how it all played out. The secondary characters played a significant part in the book also and were well developed. This story is told in alternating views.
I loved Hannah and Declan, their relationship, the problems were so unique and very well thought out and developed, nothing seemed contrived just to create issues. The chemistry between the two of them was great,very believable and it helps you connect to them. The characters as well as the plot were something different from your boy meets girl, and it was so interesting to see how it all played out. The secondary characters played a significant part in the book also and were well developed. This story is told in alternating views.
kat_cami's review
5.0
This is such a great book! I was really surprised that I enjoyed it as much as I did. When I read the blurb, I thought this wasn't going to be for me, but I'm so glad I gave it a chance! Missy is an amazing writer! I love how unique her books are. Her writing flows so smoothly and her characters have great depth. I can't wait to read more from her. I voluntarily received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
becsa's review
4.0
I enjoyed this book and right from the beginning I believed that it would turn out the way it did which I think allowed me to get attached to both Hannah and Declan.
Hannah worked hard and long hours to almost make up for not being able to protect her sister so many years ago. When Anna is left with no family Hannah vows to protect her but when she learns the truth about her real family she wants to do what is right but at the same time is at odds with it because of all the implications involved with it. Hannah is so at odds within herself in regards to Declan as she knows he has changed but feels like she can't have any feelings towards him and believes she can't trust him. She is so conflicted as what she feels is so different than what she needs to portray due to the past events.
Declan paid for his crime with Cecily but part of me wondered right from the beginning what happened that night as he has no memories. He vowed to turn his life around which was why he became a priest. He needed to do right by Anna but also knew what that meant as well due to what happened with Amanda, her mom.
Hannah and Declan were so attracted to each other but both knew that lines couldn't be crossed until they were. Then each was so conflicted and it nearly drove them crazy. I honestly wasn't surprised at all with what was revealed by Tully and I am glad that Declan did the right thing at the end with Nash.
Hannah worked hard and long hours to almost make up for not being able to protect her sister so many years ago. When Anna is left with no family Hannah vows to protect her but when she learns the truth about her real family she wants to do what is right but at the same time is at odds with it because of all the implications involved with it. Hannah is so at odds within herself in regards to Declan as she knows he has changed but feels like she can't have any feelings towards him and believes she can't trust him. She is so conflicted as what she feels is so different than what she needs to portray due to the past events.
Declan paid for his crime with Cecily but part of me wondered right from the beginning what happened that night as he has no memories. He vowed to turn his life around which was why he became a priest. He needed to do right by Anna but also knew what that meant as well due to what happened with Amanda, her mom.
Hannah and Declan were so attracted to each other but both knew that lines couldn't be crossed until they were. Then each was so conflicted and it nearly drove them crazy. I honestly wasn't surprised at all with what was revealed by Tully and I am glad that Declan did the right thing at the end with Nash.
thesassybookworm's review
5.0
This is a really great cover. Good representation of the story. Great composition. Interesting and eye-catching typography.
There is something about this author's writing that pushes me to step out of my box and read a book I would usually avoid like the plague. Be it a non-traditional HEA or in this case Spoiler
sibling sharing.I enjoyed this one a lot. It was well-written, and I found it well-paced (if a little rushed at the end, but more about that in a bit.) No OW/OM drama. I wouldn't even say it had a lot of angst. It's was also very low on the heat scale with just some kissing and one not very descriptive sex scene. That said, I didn't feel like that took away from the story in the least. There were a few interesting side characters, and both main characters were likable. All wrapped up in an OK ending. I would have liked to have seen some more details about how certain aspects were dealt with primarily concerning Declan.
So back to my issue with the pace. The first 70% of this book was slow relationship wise. I guess not slow, but more there wasn't much romance other than the heroine thinking Declan was hot. Then BAM the story goes from their somewhat friendship to kissing, sex, and "I love you" at the speed of light. I'll admit it was a little bit jarring. From that point on I felt we were rushed towards a conclusion. I would have liked to have seen us reach the kissing part a bit sooner and bit more time used to flesh out the romantic relationship and some of the details that are just glossed over. The church. Retribution...etc
Still, even with that issue, this was still a very enjoyable book, and I can't wait to see what this author has in store for us next. Two thumbs up from yours truly.
reading_with_2_book_lovers's review
4.0
wow missy does it agaib with a great tear jerking book, Declan a convicted rapist And priest and Hannah make amazing main characters.
I volunteered to read a copy of this book
I volunteered to read a copy of this book
lilta08's review
4.0
Not the typical romance book I would read. But I will say this it was a great read. It kept me interested the whole time. Hannah had a rough childhood from loosing her sister to suicide and then her father in an accident. She went 14 years thinking that Declan was responsible for all the bad in her life. When she is confronted with him being the caretaker to Anna a little girl who just lost her mother she doesn't know what to do. She finds herself being attracted to this man who once caused her family so much pain. A real page turner. Great book!
tracy_wilkin93's review
5.0
I had a really strong feeling about Absolution before I even opened it. I love Missy Johnson’s work and knew with my whole being, that Absolution was going to rock my world. I had no idea that it would blow my mind, shatter me, yet complete me. Full circle.
Hannah and Declan both knew pain. After events directly involving Declan almost destroys Hannah, she tries to live her life one day at a time and devotes herself to helping others. She meets Declan after years of no contact, and struggle to do the right thing and to not see him as someone who deserves her forgiveness. The attraction grows quickly between them and it tears them both up. Declan is not in a position to act on his feelings and never expects that Hannah could ever feel anything but hate towards him.
Their struggles were mammoth and plentiful. The future looked so bleak that I was unsure if anything could possibly come of this this intense attraction they had for each other. I admired Hannah’s strength and her ability to want to risk it all because she cared. My heart hurt for them both, as their story was one of heartache, tragedy and monumental misunderstandings. It was like the world shone for everyone else, while their world had lost all colour. Their whole lives were changed due to horrible circumstances, but they still had the capacity to show empathy, compassion, courage and love. While Absolution wrecked me for most of the story, it is a book I became instantly absorbed in and one I will always remember.
Missy Johnson gives readers a story with a shocking, yet beautiful difference. Absolution will have you nervous, leave you breathless, have you crying rivers, break your heart, and anticipating the next shocking plot twist. It will leave you feeling like you have taken on the world. And WON! A story that is so fulfilling, it is a MUST read. It is not an easy read, but the best ones never are. Missy Johnson will make you work for your HEA. Let me share that Absolution is one of the BEST stories I have ever read. Missy Johnson books are always deeply emotional reads and make you feel like you have been put through the wringer, but at the end, you will sigh, take a little time to pull yourself together and reflect, then smile deliciously, thinking to yourself, “Now that was one mighty fine read.” And take a couple of days to get over the insane book hangover reading Missy’s books will cause. I always have serious difficulty finding another book to read after a Missy marathon. No book quite measures up for a while.
5 gigantic mega stars for this exhaustingly talented author and her heart's work.
Hannah and Declan both knew pain. After events directly involving Declan almost destroys Hannah, she tries to live her life one day at a time and devotes herself to helping others. She meets Declan after years of no contact, and struggle to do the right thing and to not see him as someone who deserves her forgiveness. The attraction grows quickly between them and it tears them both up. Declan is not in a position to act on his feelings and never expects that Hannah could ever feel anything but hate towards him.
Their struggles were mammoth and plentiful. The future looked so bleak that I was unsure if anything could possibly come of this this intense attraction they had for each other. I admired Hannah’s strength and her ability to want to risk it all because she cared. My heart hurt for them both, as their story was one of heartache, tragedy and monumental misunderstandings. It was like the world shone for everyone else, while their world had lost all colour. Their whole lives were changed due to horrible circumstances, but they still had the capacity to show empathy, compassion, courage and love. While Absolution wrecked me for most of the story, it is a book I became instantly absorbed in and one I will always remember.
Missy Johnson gives readers a story with a shocking, yet beautiful difference. Absolution will have you nervous, leave you breathless, have you crying rivers, break your heart, and anticipating the next shocking plot twist. It will leave you feeling like you have taken on the world. And WON! A story that is so fulfilling, it is a MUST read. It is not an easy read, but the best ones never are. Missy Johnson will make you work for your HEA. Let me share that Absolution is one of the BEST stories I have ever read. Missy Johnson books are always deeply emotional reads and make you feel like you have been put through the wringer, but at the end, you will sigh, take a little time to pull yourself together and reflect, then smile deliciously, thinking to yourself, “Now that was one mighty fine read.” And take a couple of days to get over the insane book hangover reading Missy’s books will cause. I always have serious difficulty finding another book to read after a Missy marathon. No book quite measures up for a while.
5 gigantic mega stars for this exhaustingly talented author and her heart's work.
pam_yarborough's review
4.0
I'm a huge fan of forbidden romances, especially with a priest. But this one fell short to me. I loved the storyline as it was a bit different, however, I had a difficult time relating to the characters once I was halfway in. I feel as though it was rushed when they finally gave into each other. I really enjoyed this unique story!