Tears of Tess Review

A New Adult Dark Contemporary Romance, not suitable for people sensitive to grief, slavery, and non consensual sex. A story about finding love in the strangest of places, a will of iron that grows from necessity, and forgiveness that may not be enough.

“My life was complete. Happy, content, everything neat and perfect.
Then it all changed.
I was sold.”

Tess Snow has everything she ever wanted: one more semester before a career in property development, a loving boyfriend, and a future dazzling bright with possibility.

For their two year anniversary, Brax surprises Tess with a romantic trip to Mexico. Sandy beaches, delicious cocktails, and soul-connecting sex set the mood for a wonderful holiday. With a full heart, and looking forward to a passion filled week, Tess is on top of the world.

But lusty paradise is shattered.

Kidnapped. Drugged. Stolen. Tess is forced into a world full of darkness and terror.

Captive and alone with no savior, no lover, no faith, no future, Tess evolves from terrified girl to fierce fighter. But no matter her strength, it can’t save her from the horror of being sold.

Can Brax find Tess before she’s broken and ruined, or will Tess’s new owner change her life forever?

Firstly, make sure you’ve read the first line of the synopsis to decide whether or not this is the book for you.  If you’re still with me, I’ll tell you outright that this is a really difficult review to write and I’m going to attempt to tell you why.  Tears of Tess was certainly an entertaining read and I enjoyed every minute of it, so much so that I would sneak away from family over the Christmas holidays just so I could read a little bit more.  So there's that.

BUT (and it’s a pretty big but)

I know I would have enjoyed it far more had I not read Captive in the Dark by C.J. Roberts first.  Captive in the Dark is a far superior book and deals with the same subject matter (human trafficking) albeit in a slightly different way.  It's incredibly written and has become one of my favourite dark stories ever.  Where Captive in the Dark is a dark and disturbing read, Tears of Tess is somewhat lighter and perhaps more suited to a New Adult audience but sadly, it just wasn’t as good and once you’ve tasted chocolate, vanilla just feels a little ordinary (no puns intended). 

With Tears of Tess, I also had an issue with one of the main characters “Q”.  He was definitely a man of contradictions and I couldn’t understand him all the time.  At first, I thought he just liked to be a bit naughty in the bedroom but I will never understand feeling joy or pleasure at hurting another person. Sorry, I just don’t get that part of things and I never will.

All in all, I did enjoy the book and I think I would recommend it to readers who think that Captive in the Dark might be too much for them, although I highly recommend Captive and you would be missing out if you didn’t read it.

Tears of Tess was published on 30th August, 2013 and is currently on sale for 49p.  To find out more about Pepper Winters and her books, please click here to visit her website.