When All the World Sleeps in Riptide Publishing

Sep 26, 2013 Debra ~~ seriously slacking on her reviews ~~ rated it really liked it

Shelves: m-m, mystery-suspense-thriller, dark-and-disturbing, bdsm, cops-detectives-feds-investigators, m-m-br-central-group-read

Another fantastic, dark read from Lisa Henry and J.A. Rock, I found it to be very different from some of their other collaborations. The writing is wonderful, but there is no comic relief in this book, which fits with the intensity of the situation Daniel finds himself in. The romance really is secondary to the story of Daniel coming to terms with his past and trying to find something that will give him hope for a future.

There is a lot at play in this book. Daniel has committed a crime, served h Another fantastic, dark read from Lisa Henry and J.A. Rock, I found it to be very different from some of their other collaborations. The writing is wonderful, but there is no comic relief in this book, which fits with the intensity of the situation Daniel finds himself in. The romance really is secondary to the story of Daniel coming to terms with his past and trying to find something that will give him hope for a future.

There is a lot at play in this book. Daniel has committed a crime, served his sentence and is on parole, but is being crushed by the guilt he feels. Living in a small town where most people hate him for what he has done, a family that does not understand him and seemingly has given up on him, and dealing with a condition that few understand and leaves him emotionally and physically exhausted, Daniel is just trying to exist day-to-day while leaving his house as little as possible. He believes he deserves pain and suffering for what he has done. There are constant, escalating threats from the friends of the man he killed, the same men who took part in a beating that was supposed to end with his death, but was the catalyst for the crime he ultimately committed. When someone sets fire to his house while he is in it and unable to get out, Bel rescues him.

Bel remembers Daniel and his crush on him from when they were kids. He does his best, taking a chance on understanding Daniel's condition and ultimately babysitting him through the nights and witnessing his sleepwalking first hand. As their relationship progresses, Bel realizes that if he stays with Daniel, not only will he likely need to leave his job and hometown, but he will always be Daniel's caretaker. Although Daniel seems better able to get through the nights with therapy and Bel there, Daniel will never be out of danger at night. While Bel is more than willing to take the chance for them to be together, Daniel is not always able to accept the kindness and doesn't want to be the one to drag Bel down.

Daniel's pain was palpable and there is a sense of sadness throughout this book, but there is beauty in the way Bel cares for Daniel and encourages him to make peace with his past and try to move forward. There are also other people that want Daniel to succeed, including his parole officer Dav (thank you to the authors for giving the readers a great female character). While there is a hopeful ending, there is no question that life will never be easy for them.

BR April 1st M/M BR Central ...more

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Apr 23, 2014 BookAddict ✒ La Crimson Femme rated it really liked it

Shelves: bdsm, netgalley-reviews, m-m, oblreview

Sleep walking taken to another level is definitely a unique conflict in a book. Authors Ms. Henry and Ms. Rock bring a thought provoking story involving hatred, bigotry, fear and hope. Daniel Whitlock is a man with a medical condition most people find unbelievable. When he is asleep, he's liable to kill someone, bend over for some sexy time or draw amazing pictures. Daniel is also a man who's been persecuted all his life with no safe haven, even with his family. Joe Belman's known Daniel for mos Sleep walking taken to another level is definitely a unique conflict in a book. Authors Ms. Henry and Ms. Rock bring a thought provoking story involving hatred, bigotry, fear and hope. Daniel Whitlock is a man with a medical condition most people find unbelievable. When he is asleep, he's liable to kill someone, bend over for some sexy time or draw amazing pictures. Daniel is also a man who's been persecuted all his life with no safe haven, even with his family. Joe Belman's known Daniel for most of his life. At one point, he's even been attracted to Daniel. Joe labels Daniel as a murderer and treats Daniel just as poorly as the rest of small town.

What is it about small towns that make them so vicious? Small towns come across as small minded and filled with hatred and violence against those they don't feel fit in. Truly, the authors did a great job of painting a horrible town which would be better off burned to the ground. There is very little redeeming about this place. Yet Daniel and Joe live there as willing hostages in their own purgatory.

The hatred against gay men is not something I can comprehend. It just doesn't make sense to me because I don't understand why other people's sexual preferences is anyone's business. The premise of this book is based on a hatred of gays which makes me sick to my stomach. The bullying both physical and emotional to an already emotionally insecure man makes me see red.

The authors do a great job of changing Joe's perspective of Daniel. The growth Joe goes through is beautiful. If only more people could become as non-judgmental. Daniel's change as he's being accepted and works through his fear is an excellent message of hope. This dark story is given a light at the end which makes this a lovely happily for now story. The way Ms. Henry and Ms. Rock balance the dark and light in this story gives it a realistic gritty feel. I enjoy this because it comes across as more authentic. The characters are fabulous and the way they pull together is heartwarming.

The BDSM element in this story is a surprise. The focus isn't on the BDSM, it's just an element to Daniel. The way BDSM is incorporated into this story is refreshing because it comes across as a lifestyle choice. Just as if someone preferred vanilla sex. The BDSM isn't forced in here to make a point or teach about BDSM scenes. Instead, it enhances this story and allows the readers to see another side of Daniel and Joe. Generally BDSM in a story would make it erotic. In this one, it is a way for two people to connect. BDSM is shown in two ways; those that are into the lifestyle and those abuse the concepts. The two views also add an additional layer of complexity to this story.

I enjoy stories which make me think - stories which are dark and leave a reader wondering what will happen to the two lovers. While this story is filled with a lot of negative elements, the authors also temper it a message of hope and redemption. This is lovely and what makes the story so good for me. Highly recommended to those who enjoy thinking about "what-if" scenarios.

*provided by NetGalley ...more

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Feb 23, 2014 Feliz rated it really liked it

Shelves: contemporary, m-m, cops-detectives-lawmen, crime, hurt-comfort

Who hasn’t, one time or another, dreamt of hurting or harming a hated enemy? Who hasn’t woken, half-glad and half–regretful that it was only a dream?
Daniel isn’t so lucky. A sleepwalker since his childhood, his subconscious turned his anger and hatred into violence in his sleep. Oh, according to law he paid for what his body did without his mind’s consent, but for the people in his home town, this isn’t enough. Nor for himself; he’s still paying for his sin, beating himself up over it, deprivin Who hasn’t, one time or another, dreamt of hurting or harming a hated enemy? Who hasn’t woken, half-glad and half–regretful that it was only a dream?
Daniel isn’t so lucky. A sleepwalker since his childhood, his subconscious turned his anger and hatred into violence in his sleep. Oh, according to law he paid for what his body did without his mind’s consent, but for the people in his home town, this isn’t enough. Nor for himself; he’s still paying for his sin, beating himself up over it, depriving himself of sleep and chaining himself to his bed when he absolutely can’t stay awake any longer, just as scared and disgusted with what he might do in his sleep as anybody else. It’s a fight he’s fighting utterly alone, thinking he doesn’t deserve any better—until he meets sheriff’s deputy Joe Belman, the first person to look past Daniel’s issues at the man, at the human being behind the fault and fear of the town bogeyman.

This was not a light read. Daniel’s guilt, his depression and loneliness set the predominant mood for most of the book, with the redeeming moments of Bel’s understanding and compassion and growing affection barely balancing it. It speaks for the quality of the writing how deeply I, as the reader, could feel both; how well I could relate to both Daniel’s black despair and Bel’s helplessness in the face of nearly insurmountable obstacles.

Speaking of which, Bel was a fantastic character, straightforward and determined and stubborn in his loyalty once he made up his mind about Daniel, and him and Daniel made an eerie kind of sense. Lost soul and savior—even if their roles seem firmly set in the beginning, they blur over the course of the story to a point where it becomes barely distinguishable who saves whom. And there’s far more depth to this book than a simple love story, though it is that, too. Love, though crucial in many regards, is not the be-all and end-all of this story; the realities of life in a small town don’t magically dissolve into thin air only because this unlikeliest pair of lovers finds each other, and neither does Daniel’s guilt.
The socio-critical subtext is unmissable and yet never blatant; it’s simply there, and might divide minds about this story as it clearly and judgmentally borrows the cliché of small-town bigotry.

This book is certainly not for everyone, not even for every day. However, letting oneself in for it readers are rewarded with a very well-written, engrossing insight into the lives of two unusual men for whom I, for my part, couldn’t help rooting despite all their flaws. Recommended.

Read the full review at http://www.mrsconditreadsbooks.com/?p... ...more

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May 13, 2014 Dee Wy rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: m-m, mystery-suspense, m-m-contemporary, disability-illness, over-250-pgs

A friend's review warned that you need to be in the right frame of mind to read this book, and it seems I wasn't (and maybe never would be). I found it to be the most depressing story I've read in years, maybe ever, as I usually have the good sense to DNF something so unappealing. What little romance the story had, felt off to me, and I never felt good about any of the characters. No spoilers here, but I cannot recommend this to anyone.

Now I need something upbeat to scrub my brain. ...more

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Mar 28, 2015 Molli B. rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: genre-m-m, length-novel, 2015-shelved, 2015-read, format-epub, theme-men-in-uniform

I am super glad that I bought this solely on Lisa Henry's and JA Rock's names, rather than because I read about it on Goodreads, because if I'd read about it here, I would have seen the BDSM tag and I would have skipped it. And that would have been a loss, because this was a really good book--darkness and tough topics included--and I'm glad I read it.

It's as well written as their Playing the Fool series--they obviously work/write well together. I liked pretty much everything about it (characters ...more

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Mar 23, 2014 Jody rated it liked it

In dreams we can be and do whatever we want. In dreams our lives are what we make them and in this suspenseful release Daniel's dreams have greatly impacted his life since he was young. In his dreams Daniel acts completely different from his waking self. When sleepwalking he's a darker man willing to fight those who hurt him as well as experiencing the grittier aspects of life. Between his sleepwalking self and his awake self is as if there's a split personality. His sleepwalking self exudes con In dreams we can be and do whatever we want. In dreams our lives are what we make them and in this suspenseful release Daniel's dreams have greatly impacted his life since he was young. In his dreams Daniel acts completely different from his waking self. When sleepwalking he's a darker man willing to fight those who hurt him as well as experiencing the grittier aspects of life. Between his sleepwalking self and his awake self is as if there's a split personality. His sleepwalking self exudes confidence and surety whereas his awake self lives in fear and guilt over an act he unconsciously committed years ago. The guilt's led him to seclusion where the only one permitted inside is Bel who's desperate to help him with his ailment.

Bel is clearly the more confident of the two. He's not ashamed of his sexuality or his dark desires. He becomes more of a caretaker to Daniel rather than a lover though. He stays with him through all hours of the night and day, changing his life to accommodate Daniel's needs. He scours the Internet for ways to help Daniel while Daniel continues to wallow in guilt. Daniel's a rather immature character constantly afraid and needy. He's more than willing to use Bel in every aspect of his life, from sex to everyday living, but not willing to find a cure for his ailment. He's too busy hiding from his ailment to face it head-on and find a cure. I felt empathetic towards Daniel but never found him admirable in how he dealt with his past or future.

The authors have written a compelling story that fully immerses you at the start with its suspenseful feel but with an ending that fell a bit flat. The sleepwalking sequences are almost dreamlike and lyrical in tone to draw you into Daniel's other world. The BDSM scenes are nicely handled and further demonstrate Bel's tendency to act as caretaker along with his need to take charge. The scenes aren't too extreme in their depictions so those uncomfortable with the genre will not have reason to complain. The good and bad aspects of living in a small town are vividly depicted with all the usual stereotypes on display. Some of the secondary characters I therefore found entertaining and likable but Clayton is one I found annoying in the extreme. His constant bullying and threats got old and stretched out this story unnecessarily. On a whole though this is a well-written and compelling story with just a few issues. I applaud the authors for doing something unexpected and look forward to their next collaboration.

3.75 STARS! ...more

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