Monday, October 17, 2016

Away from the Dark by Aleatha Romig


TitleAway from the Dark
SeriesThe Light #2
AuthorAleatha Romig
PublisherThomas & Mercer
Release DateOctober 18, 2016




Women are disappearing. What is happening when they step into The Light?

Nine months ago, Sara Adams awoke with no memory. The man holding her hand told her she’s a member of The Light, a tight-knit religious group led by the terrifying and charismatic Father Gabriel. As a woman in the community of The Light, her duty is to be unquestionably obedient and to submit to the will of her husband.

But as Sara’s memory starts to return and she remembers her past, she sees that everything she’s been told is a lie. The Light is an insidious and dangerous organization, and its corrupting influence reaches well beyond the confines of the remote campus where Sara is being held.

With everything at stake, Sara struggles to sort out her true memories from her indoctrination. The desire to escape consumes her, but who can she trust? And which other followers of The Light were forced into this life, brainwashed to believe they belonged? The more she remembers, the more it becomes clear that Jacob, the man who calls himself her husband, is keeping shattering secrets of his own.

But Sara cannot flee alone, leaving innocents behind. She must fight to extinguish The Light.












“Sara loves Jacob, and Jacob loves Sara.”

I'm thrilled! Away from the Dark was as good as Into the Light! 
I'm always worried that the second book in the series is not as good as it's predecessor but I'm glad to tell you that this was not the case. There was no huge twist like the one we had in Into the light but the suspense was killing me!

This book is not intended to be read as a standalone. For you to experience the full events this couple has to go through, you need to read them in order. In Into the Light, a few characters were introduced. There is Stella, Jacob, Sara, Mindy, Father Gabriel. 

Father Gabriel is the top man in this organization/cult. Whatever his word says, it goes. He uses "faith" as his weapon. Jacob and Sara are part of this world. Sara wants to leave and she would do whatever is necessary to get her freedom. She has a hard time getting away from the indoctrination she has been part of for nine months. At times, she is not sure how can she prevail. She finds herself questioning every move she makes. The worst part is that she's not sure of who she can trust or who she should try and help.

I read this book in one sitting. I think I took a break for food but don't quote me on it. My full attention was on consuming the pages and hoping that Jacob and Sara make it.  

Sara was such a strong person despite everything happening to her and around her. She couldn't stop her inquisitive mind from asking questions. More than once I wanted to scream at her for asking too many questions. Didn't she learn the first time?  Her saving grace is that she knew when it was best to be obedient too, which came in handy a couple of times. 

Jacob, what can I say? I think he was perfect for Sara. He was smart, strong, and his love for Sara was deep. All is forgiven, my boy! Everything he did was to keep Sara safe and it only made me love him more. He fell for her hard and she became more important than the Light and his mission. 


“So that I could meet the most intelligent, beautiful, amazing woman, and she could royally f*ck up my life.”

In Father Gabriel, Aleatha created a cruel, selfish and sick character. He was evil and I hope he rots in hell. 

The last scene of the epilogue left me wondering if Aleatha is planning to write more books in this series. I think she has plenty of material. I want to know more about a lot of the characters/couples and about their journey to the light. Of course, I want to know more about Stacy too. 

Well done Mrs. Romig. You wrote a fabulous duology!


“I’m getting us out—away from The Light and away from the dark.”

5/5 Fangs

A complimentary copy was provided by the publisher via netgalley in exchange for an honest review.




Sara
Shrill screams echoed throughout our dimly lit bedroom, accelerating my heartbeat and pulling me from the terrible nightmare. I waited for more, until the realization struck. The screams were my own.

“Jacob?” I called, my voice shaking with dread as I reached for my husband. Instead of reassurance, my fingers met cold empty sheets. He was gone—still away at another campus.

What just happened? Was it a dream?

I clung to the covers as I puffed my cheeks and slowly exhaled. While each breath helped to still the chaos, the exercise wasn’t enough.

Who am I? Who is he?

Jacob’s questions from months ago came back. They were my security. They’d worked before.

I am Sara Adams and my husband is Jacob Adams.

Pushing the images from my dream, or nightmare, away, I imagined Jacob’s comforting embrace. Slowly I threw back the down comforter and willed the cool air to soothe my perspiration-drenched skin. From the way my heart galloped in my chest, I might have been running a marathon, not sleeping.

In my sleep I’d been battling to escape a vehicle, and then an explosion of heat.
It had been a dream, I reassured myself—a nightmare. The accident I’d had, nearly nine months before, had been different. I couldn’t remember it, but I’d been told that I’d been injured and gone unconscious. In the nightmare I had been out and away from the wreckage.

I shook my head.

It seemed so real.

In my dream I hadn’t been able to see past the darkness, yet I’d known I wasn’t injured.
My arms surrounded my midsection as the memories replayed like pictures in my mind. Someone was hurting me—purposely harming me, and there was a voice—a deep voice.

Jacob’s voice?

No. He wouldn’t hurt me.

My entire body shuddered as goose bumps peppered my skin. Sitting upright, I reached for the bedside lamp. With trembling fingers I turned the knob and my eyes adjusted as the soft light combined with the sun’s perpetual summer glow.

I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate on Jacob’s questions.

Who am I? Who is he?

This time I said the words aloud, praying that if I spoke the truth, the images would disappear. “I am Sara Adams. He is my husband, Jacob Adams.” I pulled myself from the bed and walked to the bathroom. Turning on the light and the faucet, I cupped the cool water and splashed my face. As I reached for the cup and began to fill it, a metaphoric dam that had been constructed to hold back my past burst.

My mind was flooded—no longer with simple images, but with scene after scene.

For the first time since I could recall, I knew the woman in the mirror.

I knew me.










An investigator’s search for a friend draws her into a world darker than she could have imagined.
Sara Adams awakes bling, unable to remember the most basic details of her life, but her darkness seems a blessing when she discovers the terrors of The Light.
Stella Montgomery investigates the news on the mean streets of Detroit, where she’s noticed a disturbing trend: young women are vanishing. When her best friend disappears, Stella investigates—despite warnings from her police detective boyfriend—following a twisted trail that leads her through the city’s most dangerous and forsaken precincts. There she uncovers something more sinister than she could have imagined: a shadowy organization known as The Light, led by the enigmatic Father Gabriel.
As Sara struggles to understand her place in these strange world she’s awakened to—an oppressive cult demanding unquestioning obedience—and her feelings for Jacob, the husband she can’t recall and whose harsh and tender attentions confuse and beguile her, Stella risks all to discover the truth. But enlightenment always comes with a price…

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Audible | B&N





Aleatha Romig is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who lives in Indiana. She grew up in Mishawaka, graduated from Indiana University, and is currently living south of Indianapolis. Aleatha has raise three children with her high school sweetheart and husband or nearly thirty years. Before she became a full-time author, she worked days as a dental hygienist and spent her nights writing. Now, when she’s not imagining mind-blowing twists and turns, she likes to spend her time with her family and friends. Her other pastimes include reading and creating heroes/anti-heroes who haunt your dreams!
Aleatha released her first novel, CONSEQUENCES, in August 2011. CONSEQUENCES became a bestselling series with five novels and two companions released from 2011 through 2015. The compelling and epic story of Anthony and Claire Rawlings has graced more than half a million e-readers. Aleatha released the first of her series TALES FROM THE DARK SIDE, INSIDIOUS, in the fall of 2014. The standalone thrillers continue Aleatha’s twisted style with an increase in heat.
In the fall of 2015, Aleatha moved head first into the world of dark romance with the release of BETRAYAL, the first of her five novel INFIDELITY series. She also began her traditional publishing career with Thomas and Mercer. Her books INTO THE LIGHT and AWAY FROM THE DARK will be published through this mystery/thriller publisher in 2016.

Aleatha is a “Published Author’s Network” member of the Romance Writers of America and represented by Danielle Egan-Miller of Browne & Miller Literary Associates.




 

No comments:

Post a Comment