Capture (The Flesh Cartel #1) in Riptide Publishing

Oct 02, 2012 Darien rated it it was amazing

Shelves: in-a-series, my-m-m-lovin, m-m-short-stories, let-the-tears-flow, 2012-reads, serious-stuff, release-2012, when-fucking-crazy-happens, pants-off-reviews

~ CRAZY GOOD!!!~

4.5

I just don't have the words to describe how this story just turned my world on its head. I had seen the warnings and read about how intense it was but it is a different feeling when you start to reading. My heart literally felt like it was going to come out of my chest, and I noticed that my breathing had changed (I even stopped breathing at one point). You get sucked in and once it has you, there is just no letting you go.

Mat is a MMA fighter and all he has on his mind is wi ~ CRAZY GOOD!!!~

4.5

I just don't have the words to describe how this story just turned my world on its head. I had seen the warnings and read about how intense it was but it is a different feeling when you start to reading. My heart literally felt like it was going to come out of my chest, and I noticed that my breathing had changed (I even stopped breathing at one point). You get sucked in and once it has you, there is just no letting you go.

Mat is a MMA fighter and all he has on his mind is winning. Winning means money and that money will be able to help provide for his brother to finish his PhD. Dougie knows what Mat gave up for him to provide that he gets the best. Now he comes home with bruises and money and Dougie has no clue what's doing but whatever it is, it can’t be good. Suddenly Dougie is faced with men breaking into his home, and maybe the reasons for Mat bruises have finally caught up to him.

What comes to pass is a plan so sinister that it left me shaking (quite literally). For me the impact lies with the writing and the emotional web it spins. Yes, there is violence and it is crippling but it's experiencing that violence through Mat that broke me. Imagine someone hurting the most precious person in your life, and you are helpless to stop it. You can only sit there locked in a cage and do nothing. That scared me. The brothers are then taken to a facility to be cleaned, made to perform, and speak to robots passing as people. Because only robots can be so unfeeling, uncaring, at the pain they are inflicting.

From the get go this book screams sex, most of it extremely violent and all of it non-consensual. It’s like watching a movie mystery take shape, and all question just leads to WHY. Why the hell are they doing this? Why did they choose Dougie? What will happen next? How will Dougie remain any form of normal after this? Can this shit get any worse? Seriously, can this shit get any worse? I am on the edge of my seat in anticipation.

This really played on a few fears of mine (hey Heidi and Rachel get out of my head). No matter how crazy or how unbelievable the story there is a fine line of realism. People/children are taken everyday due to human trafficking and pushed into a life of sexual slavery. All I kept thinking not like this, I hope never like this because that fucks my shit up and by shit, I mean my mind. It also feels like science fiction, some dystopian world made of taking unsuspecting humans and turning them into the perfect sex mates/pets (broken and without a thought of their own). I think fans of the manga Ai No Kusabi would like this one. It really has that feel.

So yes, The Flesh Cartel is explosive, it’s wicked, and it’s violent. It is made of awesome. Do be cautious when going into reading this one, there are warnings for a reason. Use them; there should be no surprises so no one can complain (just saying). Get ready for vile characters (they probably go home to their spouses and kids) that will make your blood boil and all you wanna do is go Jet Li on their asses. It’s not a romance, there is no fluff and stuff but there is love. It shines through in Dougie and Mat, which makes your heart break even more for them.

I do not know what expect in the next episodes but I am freaking looking forward to it. I just know shit is about to get critical, after all its Heidi and Rachel. I have my big woman pants on (or off) and I am ready.

All I can say is "dolla dolla billz yawl" money makes people evil when you have it and can make too much of it. ...more

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Sep 27, 2012 BookAddict ✒ La Crimson Femme rated it liked it

Shelves: netgalley-reviews, arc, slavery, m-m, bdsm, rape

Mat and Dougie are brothers who have unfortunately caught the attention of some not so good people. Specifically, Dougie is the desirable virgin to be raped and then trained. Mat is just along for the ride.

This is a BDSM non con fantasy story which is what makes it so appealing. It's only the beginning of this series. The initial installment is filled with a wet dream of dark gritty rough treatment. The rape of young Mat is nasty and detailed out well. It doesn't go into extreme specifics, yet j ...more

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Dec 05, 2012 Jason Bradley rated it really liked it

Shelves: ebook, m-m, bdsm, dub-con, abuse

I enjoyed the violence and non-con in this book. Can't wait to get to the next one. :) ...more

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Sep 08, 2012 Evaine rated it it was amazing

Shelves: e-books, m-m, psycho-sexual-thriller

I'm giving this 5 stars because it's SO outside my comfort zone and I couldn't put it down. I think it's probably the most hardcore thing I have ever read - if you're going to read it, HEED THE WARNINGS! It was released for pre-order download last night at midnight, so I downloaded before heading off to bed.

It's violent, it's intense and it's so dark and painful; but I could not put it down. 18K+ words, so not a really long read - it's part one of a serial - I figured I'd read the first chapter ...more

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Sep 19, 2012 Leigh rated it really liked it

Review can also be found at Under the Covers Book Blog

Wow….just wow!! Well I did it – I read and made it through my first Rachel Haimowitz book. I had been told that her characters endure a lot and that her stories are filled with God-awful events (and this story was no exception), but I challenged myself to do it, I did it, and I survived…just barely.

The Flesh Cartel is one amongst the beginning of the newly-revived serial books. Like a television series, the stories can be likened to episodes Review can also be found at Under the Covers Book Blog

Wow….just wow!! Well I did it – I read and made it through my first Rachel Haimowitz book. I had been told that her characters endure a lot and that her stories are filled with God-awful events (and this story was no exception), but I challenged myself to do it, I did it, and I survived…just barely.

The Flesh Cartel is one amongst the beginning of the newly-revived serial books. Like a television series, the stories can be likened to episodes that are published to the reader in short story form, and with greater frequency than we are used to between regular series book releases. The Flesh Cartel #1: Capture is the first installment in this psychosexual thriller, and the title is exactly what it says it is: the Capture. This series is about black market human trafficking, and we see first-hand the ugly side of the inhumane lengths that people will go to to capture what will be a most lucrative prize for the trade.

Dougie and Mat Carmichael are orphaned brothers, living together but working toward making a living in order to help the other. Dougie is in the process of getting his Ph.D. in psychology, and Mat supports him as an MMA fighter. Before long, they find themselves being beaten, tortured, and violated in the worst possible ways. Dougie apparently is regarded as a highly lucrative prize in the Flesh Cartel, and while he is being captured, Mat comes home and tries to fight off the kidnapping abusers, but he is outnumbered and captured as well.

This story takes the reader through their capture, their delivery, and what appears to be their preparation to be sold. As the warning on the book blurb indicates (see below), these brothers endure the worst of the worst, and really, the unimaginable. This book is NOT for the faint-of-heart, and so far, there is nothing happy-go-lucky about this story. I am a person who loves my romance and my HEA’s, but I have heard so many good things about Belleau and Haimowitz’s books that I knew I had to just try this one. And the fact that this is being released as a serial was intriguing to me as well, so I thought I would give this new format a shot. While this book is not for everyone, I am glad I read it. The writing is excellent, and together, the team of Belleau and Hamimowitz made me feel. I felt sadness, anger, repulsion, shock, shame, and disgust, to name a few. But their writing made me feel that, and I felt those emotions strongly. And even though I know the road ahead for each of these guys will probably be full of more of the same, I look forward to reading future installments, seeing them through, and rooting for them to come out on top at the end (along with getting a good healthy dose of revenge on all of the people who have had a hand in their torture along the way). ;)

(Publisher’s note: This title contains material some may find objectionable or trigger-inducing, including explicit violence, non-consent, and forced incest.)

*ARC provided by the publisher. ...more

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May 13, 2013 Dina rated it it was ok

Shelves: amazon, series, short-read, short-story, not-romance, cliffhanger, non-con

I can't read this anymore. Nothing wrong with the story. The author did a good job, but I just don't do well with cliffhangers. ...more

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Mar 20, 2014 Liz (Bugetta) marked it as dnf

Shelves: contemporary-fiction, freebies, e-book, horror, 1st-in-a-series, m-m-erotica, not-my-cuppa

This was a DNF for me. I didn't even get to the truly taboo aspect of the book. It was just way to violent and so not what I'm looking for in a book. There was no problem with the writing, but the content is not for me. ...more

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