Dollar$

by Pepper Winters

There is definitely something to be said about taking your time, this refused to be rushed, the lilt of the story ran at such a languid pace that, as odd as this may sound it was difficult to find a space to pause and take stock.

The story continued to build in such a way as to almost insinuate itself in my subconscious, it was creeper and I say that as a compliment.

As you would expect the detail was exquisite, the depth of content that Ms Winters poured into Pim and Elder was staggering. There connection was far from easy and in some respects I felt as if it was a necessary step, they were forced to face the horrors of the events that had happened and by doing so it allowed them the motivation to move forward.

Pim weighed every action carefully, she was skittish almost but I felt as if the author was able to show just how fragile she was after having been held captive. I am not trying to undermine the effect that being held hostage had on her by saying she was fragile, heck she had an inner strength that defied description but that didn’t mean that it wasn’t tempered with a tentative apprehension and wariness of those around her and that included Elder.

The effect those painful events had on her were heart-breaking to relive with her, the impact that they had and continued to have were harrowing but I thought she was beginning to see that she was worth more, but as the story started to take shape I couldn’t help but worry that she might never realise just how much?

Elder on the other hand plays his cards very close to his chest and rightly so, he was significantly more to deal with than I thought he was going to be. He tended to second guess himself at times, not only his actions but his motivation, and because of that I couldn’t quite get a handle on which side of his personality was going to win.

The story never seemed to hit a lull, it was constantly evolving. I loved seeing Pim begin to find not only her feet but her voice again, to take steps towards reclaiming her life and growing into her own skin so to speak but it doesn’t come easily or quickly for her. I worried for her as she started to piece her life back together, as she struggled to make sense of her world and to try and make sense of Elder, I couldn’t help but think that she could see under the surface or maybe that was just wishful thinking.

As the story journeyed towards the end I found myself becoming more and more apprehensive about how the author was going to wrap up the story, I had a feeling that she had an ace up her sleeve but would she show her hand or would she hold it over? Well, that would be telling but what I will say is that the depth of the ending caught me completely unawares and I can assure you that it will bring a tear to your eye!

With more to come I am super excited to find out what happens next and what direction the author had planned for Pim and Elder next…its exciting!