A review by tee_en
Torrent by Gemma James

2.0

One thing I loathe is picking up a decent book to read, only to learn that it's an attempt on the author to squeeze pennies from stone for a story that really could have been 1 book. Cliffhangers are supposed to make you want to hop to the next book in the series, but the way this book started and ended left a sour taste in my mouth.

Here's my takeaway **** SPOILERS AHEAD ****:

1. Gemma James is a wonderful writer and gives just enough descriptive and scene development for the reader to become mostly engaged in the story. There aren't any glaring edits or errors that distract from the story at all.
Spoiler
2. I fully understand that dark romances often mean non-consensual scenes of "intimacy" however, there's some character development missing. There wasn't anything of depth about Zach, what triggered his past behavior as a predator and why he picked Alex of all people to sexually assault well into their adult years.
- I also understand the mentality of victims and the shame, fear, and other powerful emotions that come with it, and while I wanted the MC to be someone different from the very beginning of this book, she is not.

3. A miscommunication is what this all boils down to. Rafe didn't know her side of the story and didn't care to figure it out until he's already forced himself on her and let his roommate participate in the debauchery. Granted Rafe has every right to be angry, but where were the police in this? I get it, that Alex's father has tons of money, but actual police work? Did Rafe not have an alibi. He was 21 right? But I understand that this author wanted to really hash out that Rafe was assaulted in prison as a direct result of Alex's actions to condemn him.

4. The cliffhanger is ridiculous at best. With Rafe and Zach arguing and Zach getting the upper hand and having a gun, he only shoots Rafe in the shoulder. As angry as Zach was and as obsessed as he is with his step-sister, Alex, his violent nature seems like he wouldn't have stopped at a simple bullet to the shoulder, but I guess Rafe has to survive for this series to trudge on.

I digress. It's a compelling story that makes you wish you had just a little bit more and that it didn't nickel-and-dime you to get the entire story. 6 books with 5 of them at $4 a pop (for me) isn't worth it. I'm okay with not knowing how this relationship ends up and honestly, I'm glad that I perused the reviews for the rest of the series. It's saved me a lot of time and only solidified my decision to stop it right here.