The Thorns Remain

By: Jennifer Hartmann, Chelley St Clair

Narrated by: Neill Thorne, Kelley Huston

Vengeance.

Hiding deep within the shadows of human nature, it smolders…

Simmers…

Waits.

Only, for me, it was no longer a hibernating beast.

The day I discovered the wrongs committed against me, vengeance clawed its way right through me. The beast had emerged from its lair with a burning need to destroy the man who tore my marriage apart.

And now?

Now, it was my lifeline.

My dark lover.

My. Whole. Purpose.

Revenge.

They say it’s sweet in the end, and I believed them. I could almost taste that honey on my tongue, like a balm I needed to quell the bitterness.

But it was all a lie.

I was blindsided.

And not once did I think about who I might hurt along the way. I never considered the casualties that may fall across my path of destruction.

No…

Revenge is not sweet. Retaliation does not end in reward.

Vengeance is not justice.

The promises whispered by that beast within?

They’re all hollow.

All it ever wanted was to be set free.

In the end, I never expected things to be worse than when it all began.

I never expected the wreckage left in my wake.

I never expected her.

©2021 Jennifer Hartmann and Chelley St. Clair (P)2022 Jennifer Hartmann and Chelley St. Clair

Narrator

This is a new narrator for me, and I loved him! Loved that is was all narrarated by him as well. I pushed through the story line, although not my favorite from Jennifer Hartmann, u am glad I read it.

A captivating journey of a lost and broken soul finding redemption and a stunning must listen to performance!

The Thorns Remain, written by Jennifer Hartmann and Chelley St Clair and narrated by the fabulous Neil Thorne was an absolute amazing listening experience! Right from the start the narrator’s raspy sexy voice pulls you right in to this story as the MC goes on a dark journey of vengeance and revenge. This book will tear your heart out as it takes you down a dark road of deceit, revenge, betrayals and finally redemption but man is it worth it!

Evan, our deeply emotional yet ruthless MC, is a man on a mission. He’s a man destroyed by another’s careless actions of betrayal and deceit—a betrayal so heart wrenching it takes this once lovable man and turns him almost into a super villain seeking vengeance against those that wronged him, without any care of the innocents in his path. An innocent such as Josie, the wife of the man that stole Evan’s own wife…

“Anger has became my fuel while my heart bleeds retribution.”

Josie on the other hand is clueless to the inner ramblings of Evan’s mind and his ulterior and falls perfectly into his trap. And really, she has such a beautiful peace and kind energy about her you can’t help but fall in love with her and feel for her as Evan starts down the dark path of revenge fueled by rage and vengeance. Yet, while his original intentions were to destroy the man he hates most by winning over his sweet wife, Evan’s plans soon go awry as he realizes Josie’s not at all what he thought she’d be…especially when she starts to make him feel again.

This isn’t a sweet beautiful unfolding of a romance by any means. No, it’s the awakenings of two souls connecting out of the ashes of betrayal and ruined relationships caused by the darkness of deceit and the slow beautiful growth of new connections. And while you’ll feel for both of these characters and hope for the best, you’ll also recognize the irony of their relationship and find yourself unable to look away from the inevitable train wreck that’s about to happen.

Overall this story was a brutal, messy, raw emotional and angst filled journey that will take you in an emotional roller coaster of a ride right alongside Evan and his broken heart as he find not only himself but also perhaps a new love and outlook on life. So if that’s your kind of thing, then buckle up my friend and prepare for an epic journey. And yes, while this book is definitely a slow burn, the emotional connections and angst (and the narrator!) makes it so enthralling you can’t stop listening so grab it today to see for yourself!

powerful book, powerful performance

** as a reader I appreciate when a reviewer doesn't regurgitate the whole book into their review. I want to know how the book made you feel. I don't want a play by play or the blurb. This book made me FEEL ALL THE EMOTIONS! heartbreak, rage, despair, frustration, love.

This book was intense, from the first page to the last. It gripped my heart and didn't let go. I needed to do some deep breathing to lower my blood pressure with some of the more intense chapters. Plus a couple of those hot scenes were... phew, like I would've needed a cigarette after listening if I smoked!!

Ethan, oh Ethan! He had so much hatred and anger inside him yet his heart was so full of love for his daughter. This book chronicled the cycle of his love, loss, betrayal, hope, forgiveness.

This book was a gut wrenching, nail biting, want to throw my phone but also had to keep listening kind of book!

It's about love, revenge, redemption, second chances, forgiveness.

Neill Thorne is hands down one of the most talented and emotional narrators I've ever listened to. I don't think ANY other narrator could've brought these characters to life the way he did. I felt all his feelings and thanks to Neill's ability to convey those emotions I could tell when it all clicks and he let's go.

Jennifer and Chelley together wrote such an emotional journey for this character and even though there are many other vital characters in this story, it's told from Ethan's POV.

As a reader, I appreciated the emotional ups and downs of this book in order to fully grasp the feelings he felt.

3.75 STARS

What starts off as revenge turns into much more than Evan expected. I liked Evan which is good since it’s in his POV. It allows you to see that he is a good person deep down who has been hurt and is doing what he thinks he needs to do. He’s lonely and angry and my heart did break for him. Josie comes across as a spoiled trophy wife, at least to him. They have much more in common than at first glance. I enjoyed the beginning but then for me it lost steam. I also found myself speeding up the chapters in this past. I much prefer to start in the past and then move to the present vs back and forth.

Narration was great!

Didn't know I needed this?

I also have been a victim of this kind of betrayal and have thought about revenge. The same overwhelming emotion comes to me, that it will not heal my heartbreak. In the beginning of this book, I didnt think I could finish it. Then I felt his heart in some ways turning around and it made it easier to continue. Thank you again JH for ripping my heart out and then tying it up with a bow.