REVIEW: 'The Cycle' by P.T. Denys

Title: The Cycle

Series: Violence Begets #2

Author: P.T. Denys

Published: July 7, 2017

Publisher: Self-Published/Indie Artist Press; Wilde Works Genre: New Adult; Dark Contemporary Romance

Length: 347 Pages

Tags: M/M; Gay; Angst: Heavy; Cliffhanger; CW: Child Abuse, Domestic Violence, Animal Abuse

About The Cycle

Almost 15 years ago a brutal attack by a violent psychopath changed everything.

In Violence Begets... despite horrific child abuse, Rick St. James and Kevin Vincent were able to find love in each other. They discovered that violence only begat violence when they allowed it to.

They had a choice.

They chose love.

Now Rick's little brother is faced with the same painful reality that Rick once had to endure. Returning home to help his brother causes the nightmares of the past to crash and merge with the demons of the present.

Love is put to the test and it may not be strong enough to survive The Cycle!

5 HEART READ

REVIEW:

The Cycle, by author P.T. Denys, is the long awaited sequel to Violence Begets and cannot be read as a standalone. It takes the reader through Rick’s journey to put together the pieces of his life after the events in Violence Begets.

This book begins with the epilogue from Violence Begets and includes a shocking twist that I didn’t see coming!

A little warning up front - if reading about child abuse/domestic violence is a trigger please do not read this book. Seriously!

I vividly remember finishing Violence Begets and being crushed. At times Violence Begets was so very hard to read, yet I couldn’t help but hope that the two of these boys would make it and get their happily ever after. After all of the abuse that Rick and Kevin endured at the hands of their father’s, and the love they found with each other, I was simply devastated at the ending. It was a story that stayed with me for many months!

When I heard rumblings of a sequel to Violence Begets I couldn’t have been more happy. P.T. kept tantalizing readers with teasers and I have to admit I wasn’t looking forward to seeing Rick move on, the romantic in me wanted Rick and Kevin together forever. But with the ending of book one - in my eyes I knew that couldn’t be possible.

This is a tough review to write as I don’t want to spoil anything for the readers. P.T. Denys is such a talented writer drawing out so much heartache in this book. The same level of pain and anguish found in book one are very present in this installment.

The range of emotions that I felt while reading The Cycle are all over the place and there were times I had to stop reading and just remember to breathe.

Ms. Denys made me feel sorrow, shock, hope, love...so much so my head is still spinning

The Cycle picks up 13 years later and Rick has picked up the pieces of his life and is now settled in New York. He’s gone to college and now works as a consultant. His life is quiet and comfortable. He fulfills his dream of playing guitar in a local bar and he has a good friend in Tristan, an older bartender who works at the bar Rick plays in. Tristan definitely has a past and I am eager to learn more about who he is.

The author introduces us to new characters. Namely Rick’s younger brother, Isaac, who is the primary focus of this story. Denys puts you inside Rick’s head, and the devastation he suffered at his father’s hands, when he gets a simple phone call that forces him to return to the one place where he thought he’d never have to go. Home.

You can’t escape your past.

All too soon Rick returns to Utah and confronts his father about the abuse that Isaac has been suffering. I could feel the fear Rick felt and in my mind’s eye I could see his face. The past horror he suffered is now being inflicted on his 12 year old brother. To find out the abuse has been going on since Isaac was a baby is horrifying.

This is where I knew the story was only going to get harder and harder to read. The scenes between Rick and his father are so emotionally charged. Rick is confused at the love he sees in his father’s eyes and I could literally feel the hurt, confusion, and anger in Rick.

The author does a tremendous job in showing how the years of abuse have affected Isaac. He’s very troubled and angry and Rick has his hands full attempting to heal the damage his father has inflicted. Isaac and Rick struggle to get along and Rick finds himself doubting himself at every turn.

In the beginning of the story Rick has clear ideas and plans on how to help Isaac. Only he didn’t realize that being back in Utah would open old wounds and affect him as deeply as it does and those plans and ideas quickly unravel. It’s no shock that he sometimes stumbles when trying to care for Isaac but he finds a good friend, Jonathan, who becomes a beacon of light and safety for him.

The Violence Begets series is not easy to read but I think P.T. Denys does a tremendous job in showing what abuse can do. It can destroy you and bring you to the lowest depths yet with unconditional love it has the power to build you up.

As Rick says, “‘I knew what I had to do. I had to break the cycle of violence. I had to love myself, to love my brother, to love… I had to choose love.’”

Even with all the pain, The Cycle ends on hopeful note and I eagerly await for more of Rick’s story.

A copy of The Cycle was provided to Kimmers’ Erotic Book Banter, by P.T. Denys, at no cost and with no expectations in return. We offer our fair and honest opinion on behalf of our readers.

Looking for more Dark Contemporary Romance? Try Lynn Kelling's Arctic Absolution series.