I LOVE books. We all know this. It is part of what this blog is about. Other peoples books and writings, fitness, and my own spin on poetry. But I have to talk about the book I just finished to ease my emotions.
Cole Denton’s Trial By Fire series touched me from the first book. It is terrible. It will twist your heart up so much you won’t know which way to turn. I am not sure why I related to the Ryan character on such a deep level, because my monsters may have a special place in hell, but his were what Hell was created for. Then as the series went on and people came in and went out of his life, he never seemed to give up on life. He may have continued to beat himself up and feel unworthy of compassion and love, like many of us with evil in our pasts do, but he kept going. He never took the chicken shit way out like I and many others have tried and/or succeeded.
This story includes many aspects that some of you reading this may never understand. BDSM. Same sex relationships. And the biggest of them all, that Love Is Love! And at least a little kink is part of most people’s life, no matter how much they try to deny and/or conceal it.
But I want to focus on what I most loved about this series. It may not be conventional. It may not have come easy. It may not be what either of the characters were ever expecting for their lives. But it truly is a beautiful love story that Cole brought to us so beautifully.
This book, Branded, is the 5th and final book in Cole’s Trial By Fire series. I honestly didn’t want to finish it. Saying goodbye is never easy. Even if they are, fictional characters that you have grown accustom to. It is like losing friends when life takes you in different directions. You love them. You don’t want to see them go. And maybe some day Cole will grace us with a novella to catch up with Russell, Ryan, and their family and friends. Maybe not. Maybe their continuing story will live only in my imagination. Either way, for me, they WILL live on.
Wonderful writing Cole. You brought every emotion to this series. Laughter, sorrow, hatred, loathing, was shocked. vulnerability, strength, weakness, despair, falling, rising up, and although there were probably more, above all was LOVE. Thank You again, Cole, for bringing these characters to life for so many of us by putting them on paper. I will always have a special place in my heart for Ryan. And Russell is my hero. I will always appreciate you sharing them with me.
OK, I am not nearly as good at all of this as Cole is, so I am going to stop my rambling, because one – I am crying again! lol! And two, I could never put into words just how deeply this story affected me.
Much Love! On to find the next great story to get lost in. ❤
B3T Books and Biceps 