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quorrathelastiso 's review for:
Hitting the Wall
by Cate C. Wells
This book gets a lot of hype. I'm a big fan of the Steel Bones MC series by [a:Cate C. Wells|19392438|Cate C. Wells|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1688385018p2/19392438.jpg], and the Stonecut series includes characters that also appear or are featured in Steel Bones. I found this story and it's followup, [b:Against a Wall|59725768|Against a Wall (Stonecut County, #2)|Cate C. Wells|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1638226255l/59725768._SY75_.jpg|94055128], incredibly frustrating - which is part of the point; they feature a rich, upper-crust family that's omnipresent in a small town and as someone who grew up in a rural small town that contained a few families in this "ruling class," where everyone knows and will do everything for you, talk to you differently, and make your life easier - I did not like the Wall family at all. And again, that's kindof the point. Something that Cate C. Wells does incredibly well is writing poverty and people who are disadvantaged or disenfranchised in some way, whether it's income, stigma from past actions, illness, or some other factor. Sometimes it's downright disturbing or brutal. But it's good - or if it's not "good," it's certainly effective. And it hits different people differently - some of the stories I've liked best are really hard for others to read. Personally, I found dealing with MMC Kellum Wall, who grew up in the privilege and insulation of his rich family, exhausting.
MMC Kellum grew up with a lot of privilege; now he's a hero sheriff's deputy well known and loved in his town; unfortunately, he knocked up a teenage girl (our FMC Shay); in the beginning we see what happens when she's pregnant and his family and boss show up and throw her a paltry sum of money to leave town and never tell Kellum that the baby it his, as it'll "ruin his reputation" and he'll "lose everything." (Whatever. It won't. They're just trashy rich jerks.) Shay eventually ends up in poverty and with no option she can think of to escape than moving back to Stonecut County. She eventually reconnects with Kellum, who she's (understandably) INCREDIBLY wary of, and who had no idea that any of the above happened or that her child is his. When he finds out, he absolutely cannot fathom why no one told him and cannot reconcile his fluffy, good-boy world view with the fact that a lot of the people around him are not good people. Like he legitimately refuses to believe it. And Cate C. Wells shows Shay grappling with that and even getting after Kellum for it. While I was REALLY hoping that by the end of the story What we got is probably more realistic, though I will say it wasn't as satisfying; personally, I just don't have patience for people like the Wall family and in my opinion if Kellum That could just be my own baggage talking.
All in all, 3 stars - definitely glad I read it, but it was a tough one for me. I'd give it 3.5 if I could. I prefer the world of Steel Bones than the world of Stonecut County, and I guess if characters are going to be morally gray, I'd rather they be honest about it like the bikers in Steel Bones are as opposed to members of an "upstanding" small town family that runs everyone not useful to them into the ground.
MMC Kellum grew up with a lot of privilege; now he's a hero sheriff's deputy well known and loved in his town; unfortunately, he knocked up a teenage girl (our FMC Shay); in the beginning we see what happens when she's pregnant and his family and boss show up and throw her a paltry sum of money to leave town and never tell Kellum that the baby it his, as it'll "ruin his reputation" and he'll "lose everything." (Whatever. It won't. They're just trashy rich jerks.) Shay eventually ends up in poverty and with no option she can think of to escape than moving back to Stonecut County. She eventually reconnects with Kellum, who she's (understandably) INCREDIBLY wary of, and who had no idea that any of the above happened or that her child is his. When he finds out, he absolutely cannot fathom why no one told him and cannot reconcile his fluffy, good-boy world view with the fact that a lot of the people around him are not good people. Like he legitimately refuses to believe it. And Cate C. Wells shows Shay grappling with that and even getting after Kellum for it. While I was REALLY hoping that by the end of the story
Spoiler
he would have reconciled that some of the people in his life were really horrible, he never really seemed to get there, which was incredibly frustrating. It's really admirable that he stepped up and didn't act like a complete tool I guess, but that seems like the bare minimum; if I were Shay, I'd still want nothing to do with his family. I wanted more comeuppance than what we get.Spoiler
never admits how messed up his family is, then he's never done Shay completely right.All in all, 3 stars - definitely glad I read it, but it was a tough one for me. I'd give it 3.5 if I could. I prefer the world of Steel Bones than the world of Stonecut County, and I guess if characters are going to be morally gray, I'd rather they be honest about it like the bikers in Steel Bones are as opposed to members of an "upstanding" small town family that runs everyone not useful to them into the ground.