Knotted

I thought it was worth it. My heart was pounding leading up to the horrible scene. Don't give up though, it was a beautiful road back to peace.

"A tragedy that began and ended on a birthday with a passionately knotted rope"

What a way for this author to branch out into cowboy romance with a story of forbidden love and dark consequences. Though different than some of my other favs by this author, this one shows yet another side to author's skill at erotic romance, filled with twists and turns and plenty of surprises to keep you guessing. Beneath it all is a potent tale of separated lovers that claw their way back to each other.

This is the first book in the TRAILS OF SIN series. It involves a pair of intertwined families on a joint ranch. Two widowed fathers. Twin sons JAKE and JARRET (16). Their best friends CONOR (16) and her brother LORNE (18). All of it torn apart in a night of horrific tragedy that will gut and leave you speechless. Murder, prison and separation follow. The forbidden romance between twin Jake and Conor ended by their disapproving fathers, and Conor banished far away and denied future contact. Six years later, still suffering from PTSD from that night, brave Conor escapes a nightmare existence with her father and returns to the ranch for answers and to fulfill a pact she and the boys made that horrific night. What she discovers is not what she left. What she believes to be true turns out to be deceit, omissions, and manipulations …

All that, and you still really have no idea what is happening. Go into this darkly sexy and mysterious story as blind as possible to fully experience it without preconceptions. It’s much more than a reunion romance. There are plenty of mystery layers to this onion. The symbolism of “knots” is a character all by itself -- the running theme so beautifully woven into all that happens, particularly as a language of love between Jake and Conor. OMFG. The metaphor perfectly suits the cowboy element and shows many ways that knots separate, then tie the lovers back together. Each mention is so perfectly timed, and never overused, while underscoring passion, loss, reunion, healing, and restoration of soulmates.

The dark and convoluted mystery and suspense of what happens, why it happens, and what it all means for both families make for an impressive story of forbidden love and devious machinations. The rocky road to answers is rough, with misunderstandings, sacrifices, and murky complications. I like that, by book's end, it doles out only piecemeal answers to the mystery of the tragic night and the couple’s separation. It resolves as needed for their story, but leaves plenty unanswered to carry forward and play out in the upcoming books about Jarret and Lorne. NO CLIFFHANGER.

The characters are riveting; and the bond between the four friends deep. I loved the contrast of Conor being broken and vulnerable, yet resilient and strong. Jake consumes this book with surprising maturity for his age, and HAF in his methods and determination to heal damaged Conor with his own brand of therapy, relying heavily on knots and sex, while also being a fixer in the mystery. He’s much more than meets the eye and it shocked me repeatedly in a good way. Quite simply a hottie of perfection. There is a devious, poetic justice to the friends’ pact that made me want to cheer out loud as it gives some closure to that night, but leaves more for us yet to learn. The irredeemable fathers are vile and despicable, but the taste of Jarret and Lorne makes me salivate for their books.

But Jake … aaahhhhhhh. Words aren’t enough. Who wouldn’t swoon for this man? The cover alone ....
“I did the only thing I could to protect her. I broke her heart because I love her. I’ll bleed for her, because I love her. I’ll kill for her, because I love her. I’ll make sure she realizes her dream, because I love her. I’ll hunt down her enemies. I’ll protect her from afar. I’ll let her believe that I don’t love her. Because I love her.” ~~ Yeah, that makes me love HIM.

This story is as visceral as it gets. If you know Pam Godwin’s books or not, it's a must-read, followed by BUCKLED and BOOTED. Who doesn’t want a fresh and original cowboy, erotic romance? Always a one-click author for me, this book does not disappoint.

General story..

Great plot line. The story kept you guessing and was very brutal. I was a hard read but worth it!

Right now pam is my go to author.
I normally don't for cowboy series . At first the first couple pages i cringed but kept reading and boy am i ever glad i did.
Pam doesn't disappoint. Couldn't help myself bought the next 2 in the series. Gotta get reading

This book was amazing. It was dark and sad. But it was also powerful and sexy. The story focused more about the two characters unique road to healing and I loved every minute of it.

The first chapter had a good storyline going, the characters were built out, male and female leads were sweet, but then it turns absolutely ridiculous at the end of chapter one. Deleted it from my kindle library and moved on to another book.

Ok, there are triggers. Like a lot of them. But the way the author dealt with them fit the story line. And despite the fact that I did not agree with what was happening, they were all addressed in a manner that does have some basis in reality. The part about dealing with Levi Tibbs smartly makes me laugh so hard because she will actually be the first person questioned when he goes missing. I liked the story despite the things that irked my personal and professional preferences. Right up until that AWFUL ending. You can’t say To Be Continued if the next book isn’t even about these characters. And since the books about Jarret and Lorne are about them, there’s no reason the ending couldn’t have made up for the heaviness of the rest of the book.