Still Beating By Jennifer Hartmann .......Review by Dawn 5 Clocks Top Pick for 2021

 

***WARNING: This book contains subject matter that may be sensitive for some readers. There is dark and triggering content between these pages. 18+ only. Please read responsibly.***

When Cora attends her sister’s birthday party, she expects at most a hangover or a walk of shame. She doesn’t anticipate a stolen wallet, leaving her stranded and dependent on Dean—her arch-nemesis and ultimate thorn in her side.

And she really doesn’t anticipate waking up in shackles in a madman’s basement.
To make matters worse, Dean shares the space in his own set of chains. After fifteen years of teasing, insults, and practical jokes, the ultimate joke seems to be on them. The two people who always thought they’d end up killing each other must now work together if they want to survive.

But Cora and Dean have no idea their abductor has a plan for them. A plan that will alter the course of their relationship, blur the line between hate and love, and shackle them together with far more than just chains.

Review

There are books that stay with you, however long it may be they just stay with you, and Still Beating by Jennifer Hartmann will always stay with me. This story is so beautifully written. I feel like this is such an odd thing to say when dealing with the subject matter. But oh the writing is superb. This is easily one of the best books I have read this year. 

Please do not take the trigger warning lightly, this is a dark deep subject that could possibly trigger someone. I just happen to be a person that lacks in the trigger department and the dark books call to me. 

Dean and Cora endure each other throughout their lives tied by her sister being in love with Dean and about to marry him. Dean has always been the thorn in Cora's side, always set to embarrass her and quick to laugh at her, no matter the audience. Now, Cora is no wimp when it comes to payback, she will give it right back to Dean tenfold. Their banter and back and forth with pranks and jokes is what their relationship is built on. But when forced to rely on one another to survive brings out more than pranks and jokes, can they deal with the fallout?

Just because they survive does not mean they are surviving. Both are suffering and do not know how to let other people help or how to be honest with their loved ones. No one understands what they are going through they only have each other and that causes problems. 

This book to me is 2 halves. The first is the dark stuff and the second is the trying to live with the dark. The writing is perfection. The way the author weaves the aftermath of a horrendous event is masterful. The way she uses delicate words to describe what must be absolute torture to your soul, you feel it. I loved that she didn't just single out Cora and her feelings. Dean was handled with the same respect and his feelings were as important as Cora's. THAT is FANTASTIC storytelling!!!!

Please again, take the trigger warnings into account before you read this amazing story! 

Still Beating

by

Jennifer Harmann
5 Clocks