jamieb_19 's review for:

Bittersweet Revenge by Riley Hart

4.0

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: N/A

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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This powerful, charismatic man is a terrible person in all the ways that matter, but then again, maybe I am too. Regardless of why I’m here or how much I despise him—or myself—it doesn’t change the fact that I crave him.

When Dean was a child and witnessed Sloan O’Shea kill his father, he made it his mission to get vengeance. Putting his computer skills to use, Dean has stalked Sloan’s son, Tiernan, online for years. Setting in motion a plan to get close to Tiernan so he can ultimately get close enough to Sloan to kill him and get revenge for his father’s death. Dean doesn’t expect to find that he fits with Tiernan and his closest friends, and he doesn’t expect to fall for Tiernan, but that’s what happens. But electing the revenge he’s spent his whole life pursuing could end up costing him everything.

I’d felt so fucking alive last night. With him. How could I feel so alive with the person I’m supposed to hate?

If you’re into possessive and obsessive MCs, then I think you’ll like Dean and Tiernan. Pretty much from the first time they met, they couldn’t stay away from each other. Even when they hated each other, they were continually drawn back together. I liked how Dean went toe-to-toe with Tiernan. I think that was one thing that attracted Tiernan to him. Dean was fearless and spoke to Tiernan unlike anyone else dared to. These guys really were very similar, even though Dean wasn’t raised in the lifestyle like Tiernan was. But it helped validate that Dean fit, and I did enjoy seeing him find some sort of family after being largely alone for his whole life.

“This is where I belong… with you… in you… filled with you… protecting you, partners with you.”

Honestly, not much comes of the revenge plot until very late in the book. Most of the book is just Dean and Tiernan going at it like rabbits. Truly, they were obsessed with each other. But things do eventually come to a head, and I liked how it played out. I just wish that maybe there had been a little more woven throughout instead of all hitting at once. But anyway, for a group of morally bankrupt characters, they showed just enough goodness to make me not hate them. I look forward to what’s in store next for the series.

We’re not good, any of us, but we’re not all bad either. There are layers and nuances to all of us, and we’re all just doing the best we can.