Beard Mode

by Lani Lynn Vale

One sitting !!! That was all I was willing to allow myself allowed, I just knew if I put it down I would be scratching around half-heartedly until I could get back to it, so I made myself comfy and set about devouring this the latest series from Ms Vale.

I fell in love with the Dixie Wardens in the previous series, so had no doubt that The Dixie Wardens Rejects MC, were going to have a very similar effect and I was not disappointed, the author kept the format and feel very much as I would have anticipated and I think I will be eternally grateful to her for that.

She has the ability to make me feel as if I am boots on the ground involved, the descriptive tones and saturation of detail meant that I could not only clearly visualise the events as they unfolded, I could almost hear the conversations, touch the characters and absorb the atmosphere. This is a new series, yes, in a new town with a whole new club and members but there are ties to the previous series that give the book and I hope the rest of the series that is to follow a depth, these guys have history even though neither we nor them know it yet, but I rest assured that Ms Vale will endow them with everything that they need to become family.

Aaron made his first appearance in the Kilgore Fire series, and I had a feeling then that if and when we got his story it would be one that would speak to me and it did. Aaron was good guy but it appeared as if he lost everything when his psychotic ex-wife almost killed him. I think emotionally it took a much harder toll on him that he was probably willing to admit but when he couldn’t get his job back, he took that to mean that his time in Kilgore was reaching an end, so he upped sticks and moved on, joining up with the Rejects and taking up a position at the local jail. Hardly what he wanted to do but he needed to work, his ex-wife made darn sure of that!

Aaron’s story was so touching, a beautiful soul, marred physically by the actions of someone who had professed to love him, Aaron might have been intense but it was his heart that shone through. I thought he carried his scars well, refusing to be defined by what had happened to him but my favourite thing about him…this was a guy that loved to read!

Imogen was the other half he was missing, the puzzle piece that was made to fit him perfectly, the woman that saw the person he was inside not just the outer shell. She had a sharp wit and was fiercely protective but of everything it was her compassion that spoke volumes about the woman she was and the man she chose to love.

I loved the banter between the two of them, she stood her ground and made darn sure that she got her point across, there was no half measures with her and I think Aaron needed that, he needed someone who wore their heart on their sleeve, how didn’t elude or evade, he needed clarity, someone who called him out when need be and didn’t hold back and for him that was most definitely Imogen!

As you will probably know there is always something more running through the story and with this it did more than just deliver Aaron and Imogen, it did more than introduce the Dixie Warden Rejects, it set the scene, it set the tone and it set my nerves tingling…I can’t wait for the next instalment!!