Book Synopsis:
Besieged by memories of a brutal abduction, Claire Nichols wakes
in an unfamiliar bedroom, within a luxurious mansion. Her recollections have
one common denominator, the man she just met, Anthony Rawlings.
Unbeknownst to Claire, for a very long time, she has been within Anthony’s
sights. Many of the pivotal events in her life occurred, due to his sinister
manipulation. Every action has a consequence, and his actions result in their
chance meeting.
More than a psychological thriller, Consequences is a vivid story of one
woman’s struggle to survive incomprehensible circumstances. Every aspect of her
being suddenly depends upon the tall, wealthy, dark haired, dark eyed
businessman. Anthony Rawlings is known to the world as prosperous, benevolent,
and kind. Claire quickly learns that he can also be a menacing controlling
captor.
With few options but concession, Claire attempts to earn her freedom, while
enduring a hellish existence that truly appears perfect. Persevering tests and
trials, she struggles to retain her pure Midwest
values and beliefs. Encouraged by memories of a loving upbringing, she gains
strength in the simplest of joys: solitude in nature and good in the face of
evil.
His goal in sight, Anthony’s calculated agenda encounters an unforeseen detour.
He becomes captivated by Claire’s beauty, resilience, and determination. The
interaction of these two compelling characters instigates strong emotions:
fear, anger, love, and lust. Claire and Anthony’s tumultuous journey flows into
uncharted waters of intrigue and passion.
Utilizing vivid detail, this 167,000-word novel unfolds like a movie, before
the eyes of its readers. From the opening criminal abduction, through twists
and turns, to the unlikely romantic thrills, the suspense climaxes as Anthony’s
motivation becomes evident.
Anthony and Claire must decide if they will stay true to one another, or allow
preceding actions to result in justifiable Consequences.
Review:
Where do I begin? My head
is still spinning and all I can manage to say is, WHAT THE F*CK !!!!!! Consequences
is a book that totally f*cks with your head.
I have to say that Claire is VERY strong because if I were in her shoes,
I would have slit my wrist with the butter knife or hung myself from the bed
post. Aleatha did a FANTASTIC job with her debut book. The emotions that you get from reading this book are hard to put into words. Consequences definitely makes you stop and think...
Claire Nichols graduated from college with her degree in Meteorology and was a weather forecaster but with the recent buy out of her station, she was laid off. Claire was minding her own business while bar-tending at a local bar, "Red Wing" when a good looking guy approaches the bar and orders a drink. The handsome guy could not take his eyes off of Claire the entire night. This handsome guy's name is Anthony Rawlings. Anthony asks Claire to have a drink with him and against her better judgment, she agrees to have a drink with him when her shift ends.
Anthony Rawlings (a/k/a Tony) appeared to be different from any
other man that Claire had met. Yes, indeed he is different. Anthony is a
sadistic crazy ass lunatic that gets pleasure from causing pain to others. To say that he was cruel to Claire is an understatement. He was controlling, demeaning, abusive,
demanding, dominant, just plain TWISTED
and DEMENTED!!!!
Now let’s discuss the storyline. Anthony Rawlings kidnaps Claire
and convinces her that she signed a contract to become his “personal assistant” and I mean she was
to personally assist him in ANY which way he demanded. Whether it was on her back or on her knees. I think Claire was just shy from having a collar around her neck attached to a leash. Anthony advised Claire that she was “HIS” until
she worked off her $215,000 debt that Anthony had paid. Claire became a
prisoner in Anthony’s home. The only interaction she had with people were with
his house staff and Anthony.
Thank the lord that Claire would think back to memories that her grandmother had instilled in her. I think that is the only thing that kept her sane. “It is not the circumstances that makes a person a success. It is how that person responds to those circumstances.” Her grandmother believed that every situation could be handled better by the right attitude.
Claire was told the rules in which she had to obey time and time
again. Anthony drilled them into her
head.
Rule #1: Do
as you are told
Rule #2: Do
not divulge personal information
Rule #3:
Actions have consequences
Rule #4: Appearances
were of vital importance
Rule #5:
Public failure was not an option.
“Disobeying
these rules is NOT an option; the consequences will not be pleasant.” ~ Anthony
Rawlings
“Behaviors
have consequences, consequences can be unpleasant” ~ Anthony Rawlings
Claire walked on egg shells all the time with Anthony. She never knew if she would do something to
irritate him and she feared if she made him angry, she would be punished. After being with Anthony for several months,
she began to develop feeling for him. At times, Claire questioned her
sanity. How could she be having feelings
for a man that causes her this much pain?
I myself was baffled by her feeling for Tony. Granted, there were times
throughout the book where Anthony would be affectionate, gentle, loving and
caring with Claire. Under his dark
exterior and blackened heart, Anthony was developing feelings for Claire as well. Feelings that he wasn't sure were possible.
“Claire,
the other night you asked if I cared about you.
Honestly, with our initial arrangement I never intended to. But, without a doubt, I do. Do you care about me? Do you enjoy being with me?” ~ Anthony
Rawlings
The relationship between Claire and Anthony is bizarre to say
the least. Anthony decides if and when Claire may leave the house, speak on the
phone, attend engagements, etc. Claire’s
life is dictated and controlled by Anthony.
Throughout this book, my head was spinning. I gave myself a
headache from shaking my head back and forth and saying Oh My God,
he did not just do that, or what the hell is she thinking. Consequences is a book that is in a league of
its own. When I got to the end, I was like OH MY GOD... WHAT THE FUCK!!! I could not wrap my head
around it, I still can't believe what happened to Claire at the end of the book. Obviously, I am NOT going to say what happened, you will have to go
through this torment just like I did. All I will say is, I hope the REVENGE that Claire gets will be sweet. I am going to read TRUTH (BOOK #2) and pray that is what
Claire will get. I will leave you with this...
Claire is consumed with the memories of what Anthony did to her.
“Two and a half years ago, she had one goal – survival. Now she had a new one – revenge. Mr. Anthony Rawlings would learn that his actions have consequences.”
This review was prepared by Heather.
Author Bio:
Aleatha Romig voted #1 "New Author to Read" on Goodreads,
July 2012 through now! She is a "Published Author's Network" member
of the Romance Writer's of America.
She has lived most of her life in Indiana,
growing-up in Mishawaka, graduating from Indiana University,
and currently living south of Indianapolis.
Together with her husband of twenty six years, they've raised three children.
She works days as a dental hygienist and enjoys spending her nights writing.
She also likes to spend time with her family, friends and patients. Her
pastimes include exercising, reading and writing.
Aleatha enjoys traveling, especially when there is a beach involved. In 2011
she had the opportunity to visit Sydney, Australia to visit her daughter studying at the University of Wollongong. Her dream is to travel to
places in her novels and around the world. CONSEQUENCES, her first novel was
released in August 2011 and has sold over 20,000 copies. TRUTH, the sequel was
released October 2012 and has surpassed 10,000 copies in less than 3 months!
Aleatha originally published through self publisher Xlibris a subsidiarity of
Author's Solution/ Penguin Publishing. In October of 2012 she re-published on
her own, a true Indie Author. Later that month she published Truth through
Romig Works. Aleatha is happy to be represented by Danielle Egan-Miller of
Browne & Miller Literary Associates.
Author Links:
Today we would like to welcome the fantastic
Aleatha Romig to the blog! Thanks so
much for being here today!
Author Interview:
What
inspired you to write Consequences?
I’d always wanted to write a book. It was a bucket list type thing. In 2008 my husband lost his job, it was in
construction materials and the economy tanked! He began working a third shift
job. Our two oldest children were off in
college. Our youngest was going to bed
about 8:30. That left a lot of alone
time.
I had this idea of a woman in a room... I
decided to sit down and see where the story would take me. I didn’t write Consequences to publish. I wrote Consequences as therapy or escape
from my life. I could totally manipulate
and control the lives of these characters.
It was more than I could do for myself.
How did you come up with the storyline for Consequences?
I had the “vision” or “thought” of the opening scene. I didn’t know any more, but wanted to learn more. That’s how it started..
What
was the hardest part of writing Consequences?
The hardest part was deciding how much detail
to put in my manuscript. My original draft had more detail. It was so disturbing to my mother and
sister-in-law that they couldn’t read the story. So, I decided to employ more of the “fade to
black” technique. Honestly, I still have
people who think my reading is too disturbing and others who want more
detail. I’ve come to the conclusion; you
can’t please everyone – so please yourself.
What books have most influenced your life most?
There are many books I’ve loved. Gone with the Wind is my all-time favorite. I also enjoy thrillers; John Grisham brought me back to reading when my children were young. I like the older Patterson’s and enjoy Greg Isles. I also have started to find more erotic romances, and admit to liking those too. These have all been entertainment, a means of escape! Your question is “influence” the only book I can say has “influenced” me is the Bible – best seller of all time!
What author has influenced you the most?
I belong to the Indiana Romance Writers Association. In our local chapter there are many talented writers, and I’ve learned and been influenced by these woman in many ways. Most of them have much more experience than I. Their willingness to share and encourage has been invaluable.
In a long distance, no direct influence kind of way, I will say E.L. James. Not because I found Fifty Shades amazing... it was good. But, she opened the door to “different books” hitting the mainstream. Consequences Series isn’t erotic; however, it is dark. I breach subjects that previously were taboo. I’m not sure that my series would have received the acceptance it has, pre Fifty Shades.
What
were the challenges in bringing Consequences to life?
I was and am so inexperienced.
Consequences was published in August of 2011 by a self-publishing
publisher. In October 2012 I rereleased
Consequences completely Indie. Just last
week I entered an agreement with a copy editor.
I’d had Consequences and Truth line-edited... and as many have pointed
out, there are still mistakes. Being
self-published I’m not accustomed to having someone tell me “consider deleting”
or “consider re-wording” or anything else...
I’m excited and scared.
The truth is, I believe I have wonderful stories and want to do
anything and everything to bring the best version to the world. To date Consequences has sold almost 50,000
copies! That amazes me!
How would you classify Consequences? I mean its not exactly
romance
when people ask me how to best describe it I say it's kinds sorta
like the TV show Revenge (which is my current addiction)
I think I’ve invented my own genre: Contemporary
Dark Romance / Psychological Thriller.
Obviously, Consequences by its self isn’t a romance. However, since it
is the relationship of Claire and Tony that propels the series, I’ve been told
that makes the series a romance. Now, that said, I definitely believe it
qualifies as DARK and PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER.
Did you have any specific people inspire your characters
physical attributes?
My husband! (lol)
No, I honestly made my characters up, their physical characteristics and
their personalities. Then, one night after I’d completed Consequences, I was
watching True Blood with a friend. Alcide, Joe Magellano, came on. Another character asked him how tall he was,
Alcide replied, “Six four – six six.” I was like , OMG, he’s Tony!
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