Never Hollowed By The Stare

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  • Uncategorized

    RELEASE BLITZ: Every Broken Promise by Ashley James

    November 15, 2024 / No Comments
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    NEW RELEASE BLITZ: Nuclear Sunrise by Jo Carthage (Excerpt & Giveaway)

    December 23, 2023
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    RELEASE BLITZ: The Sinner’s Sanctuary by August Jones

    November 13, 2024 / No Comments
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    FIRST LINES FRIDAY 56: I Woke Up With A Vampire Licking My Face. Ask Me How.

    March 19, 2020

    BLOG TOUR: Forever Again by Skylar M. Cates (Excerpt & Giveaway)

    April 2, 2022

    COVER REVEAL: Edge Lines by Ava Marie Salinger (Giveaway)

    January 18, 2022
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    RELEASE BLITZ: His Secret by Isabel Lucero

    October 7, 2024 / No Comments
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  • Uncategorized

    COVER REVEAL: Every Promise Broken by Ashley James

    October 4, 2024 / No Comments
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    April 9, 2023

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    RELEASE BLITZ: Denver by Laura John (Giveaway)

    September 28, 2023
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    RELEASE BLITZ: The Defending Goal by Crea Reitan

    August 15, 2024 / No Comments
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    MUSIC MONDAY: Feet by Fat White Family

    March 15, 2021

    PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE (Feb 19, 2020)

    February 19, 2020
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    RELEASE BLITZ: Awfully Ambrose by Lisa Henry & Sarah Honey (Excerpt & Giveaway)

    July 30, 2024 / No Comments
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    May 12, 2020

    MUSIC MONDAY: Crown Vic (Black Cloud) by Joe P

    December 6, 2021

    BOOK BLAST: Midas Touch by Alex Hall (Excerpt & Giveaway)

    November 25, 2020
  • book,  Uncategorized

    REVIEW: Be Mine, Twisted Valentine by Gianni Holmes

    July 20, 2024 / 2 Comments

    Corrupt Cupid: Be Mine, Twisted Valentine – Gianni Holmes

    Fifteen years ago, I helped put my abductor behind bars.
    And shunned the events of my traumatic past.
    I’ve lived a content life with my wife.
    Until the dreaded phone call.

    Duncan Whittaker’s out on parole.

    The first time I confront him, I intend to kill him.
    But when we’re face to face, everything changes.
    I’m still codependent on him.

    Duncan’s the only man who’s ever made me feel desire.
    He’s also the one who held me captive for almost a year.
    Isolated me from others to make me grateful for his presence.
    Deprived me of sensation to make me crave his unwanted touch.

    Duncan Whittaker’s the sadist who broke me in the name of revenge.
    Now his twisted obsession is about to ruin my life a second time.
    And God help me, but I don’t know how to stop him.
    I… may not want to stop him.

    Be mine, Twisted Valentine is part of a multi-author collab. Ditch the hearts and flowers and step into the dark world of Corrupt Cupid. Each book can be read as a standalone, but why not grab each and every deranged romantic tale as you slip into a place where darkness rules?


    I thought I had a strong stomach when it came to dark romance. Be Mine, Twisted Valentine, Book 1 of Corrupt Cupid, a multi-author collab, proved me wrong. The opening chapter alone churned my insides with how exceedingly creepy it is inside the mind of Duncan Whittaker.

    The story is a Stockholm Syndrome romance between Duncan and his captive, Teddy Scott, son of the police captain who killed Duncan’s younger brother. As revenge, he abducted Teddy and kept him in a white-out room for nine months, deprived of all senses, driving Teddy mad and desperate to feel anything.

    Teddy was so desperate that he started making himself bleed so that he could feel something. Duncan tortured the young man and eventually had BDSM sex with him because Teddy responded the most to pain, then later to the few crumbs of kindness and affection the psycho deigned to dole out, so deprived Teddy was.

    The story opens with the courtroom scene, Teddy on the witness stand and in Duncan’s POV. His chilling thoughts showed how much power he had on Teddy. He was spectacularly confident of his hold on the young man, and everyone was shocked when Teddy reversed his testimony just because he saw Duncan looking straight at him.

    Fifteen years later, Teddy’s carefully constructed ‘normal life’ crumbled when he received a phone call that Duncan Whittaker was out on parole. He grabbed a gun, drove to Duncan’s house, and started stalking his former captor. Meanwhile, Duncan has court orders to stay away from his victim.

    I spent the majority of the book disturbed yet riveted. It was a trainwreck I couldn’t look away. I was hella curious how, HOW is this relationship going to work. How is this romance when it’s nothing but insidious lust and the most toxic co-dependency I’ve witness?!

    No matter how dark the romance is, for it to work, there should be some kind of redeeming quality, something that would make me root even just a little for both characters. Here, you have to dig extra deep, because the kernel of good is buried under layers and layers of manipulation, denial, and violence.

    Duncan is still as manipulative and unrepentant of the abuse he had done. He’s cold and brutally direct. He says exactly what he means, so at least, he can claim he doesn’t lie. Once in a while, we glimpse a softer side, a tiny, tiny kindness, some niggle of conscience that shows he got a heart somewhere deep down.

    Duncan voices things Teddy is too afraid to admit to himself. He confides that he himself is bewildered by this magnetic pull towards Teddy, his pet, likening it to a disease that took hold and spread like cancer that consumed his entire being.

    Teddy, oh boy, the man is a mess! A tiresome one too. Teddy says one thing and does the opposite, always in denial but acting otherwise. Goes to Duncan’s house then does his hairpulling routine after having sex with Duncan. Then sneaks out of his house in the middle of the night, leaving his pregnant wife, for more of the same.

    One thing I liked about him is that he is fiercely protective of Cassie. The cheating disaster of a husband that he is, he actually shot Duncan when the man threatened her.

    Cassie drops her own bomb near the end. I already had my suspicions, and it’s just another proof of the lengths Duncan will go to for his pet.

    Just when I was about to lose hope of these two ever getting their shit together, Duncan started making certain decisions. I wouldn’t say things became swoony, this story will never be squees and fluff. But it was a genuine effort to redeem himself.

    Teddy too, resolved his internal conflict and blurted out his truths. And just like that, everything clicked! It was completely fucked up but it worked! I heartily applaud the author for taking a huge risk with this story and it is a risk that paid off big time!

    Be Mine, Twisted Valentine is a game of revenge, obsession, and dare we say, love in all its twisted glory. Deep, dark, and all-consuming.

    Rating:
    4.5 Stars – perfection is only half a step away

    Soundtrack: Twisted By Design
    Artist: Sum 41
    Album: 13 Voices


    If you like my content, please consider using my Amazon affiliate links below to buy your copy of Be Mine, Twisted Valentine As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying Amazon purchases at no additional cost to you.

    BE MINE, TWISTED VALENTINE: Kindle I Audiobook

    If you like my content, please consider supporting me on Ko-fi or PayPal. Your donations will help keep this website going. Thank you so much!

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    2019 MIDYEAR WRAP-UP

    June 15, 2019
  • Uncategorized

    COVER REVEAL: For The Night by Cara Dee

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    FLICKer: Lloyd

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    RELEASE BLITZ: Repulse by Lesley Jones

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    BOOK TOUR: Lovesick Falls by Julia Drake

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    RELEASE BLITZ: The Caretaker by C.P. Harris

    March 28, 2024 / No Comments
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🌈boy's love manga | MM romance | music | giveaways and more 🐾

neverhollowed
neverhollowed Never Hollowed By The Stare @neverhollowed ·
10 Jun

𝐏𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐮𝐦 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲—𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐭𝐢𝐩𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬.

COVER REVEAL: Shaken and Stirred by Lilly Atlas



https://neverhollowed.com/2025/06/10/cover-reveal-shaken-and-stirred-by-lilly-atlas/

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neverhollowed Never Hollowed By The Stare @neverhollowed ·
10 Jun

NEW RELEASE BLITZ: The Spy by Mell Eight (Excerpt & #Giveaway)


https://books2read.com/the-spy

https://neverhollowed.com/2025/06/10/new-release-blitz-the-spy-by-mell-eight-excerpt-giveaway/

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neverhollowed Never Hollowed By The Stare @neverhollowed ·
9 Jun

Unrequited love can make you blind.

COVER REVEAL: Doink by Crea Reitan



https://neverhollowed.com/2025/06/09/cover-reveal-doink-by-crea-reitan/

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neverhollowed Never Hollowed By The Stare @neverhollowed ·
9 Jun

Sometimes growing up means growing apart in this queer take on As You Like It featuring first loves and friend breakups, from award-winning author Julia Drake.

BOOK TOUR: Lovesick Falls by Julia Drake



https://neverhollowed.com/2025/06/09/book-tour-lovesick-falls-by-julia-drake/

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