THE DARK LIGHT OF DAY by T.M. FRAZIER

Reviewed by Jenny & Gitte

Jenny – 3.5 Stars

Gitte – 3 Stars

Jenny: Bloody hell, I sat through this book with feelings of uneasiness, trepidation and dread. Just when I thought I could relax I was hit again and again with the fear of what was to come and always felt as if I had to be on guard. Don’t think you can rest on your laurels in between the fleeting moments of tenderness in this story because you can’t. It one messed up rollercoaster of emotions isn’t it Gitte? The Dark Light of Day certainly was gritty, raw, shocking and at times downright uncomfortable reading.

‘We were just us. Broken and bruised. Fucked up and messy. And together we were everything we ever thought we could be. ‘

Jake and Abby’s story left me you gasping and wondering what was to be thrown and me next and despite some reservations, I definitely found this to be an addictive read that I couldn’t put down. Did you feel the same Gitte?

Gitte: It sure was an addictive read Jenny. I don’t even know where to start or actually, what I truly think of this story. I guess I have to start with the fact that I just couldn’t put it down, it was another one of those train wreck books that left me reading with my mouth open wondering what the hell could possibly happen next. It was shock upon shock, drama upon grisly drama. Was it too much, yeah I thinks so but then again the Author did something right for me to keep wanting to read it. Two tragic lives that kept being tested individually and together. So much pain and violence, it was quite heartbreaking.

‘How could broken plus broken ever equal whole?

Jenny:  It was heartbreaking that’s for sure and Jake was such a contradiction. Whilst I did love this intense, deep, troubled man who carried so much pain and who felt unworthy and incapable of love, I would have loved to have heard more of his voice so as to connect with him on another level and to enable me to understand him a little more. Jake had forged a path in his life out of necessity, hurt and hate. Jakes sins and troubles from his past leave him with an inability to completely trust and feel. At times, Jakes worst enemy was himself and he could be self-destructive. I applaud the author for writing such an anti-hero in Jake. This man had been forced into a life and he made absolutely no excuses for who he was and what he did and I liked that aspect of the story.

‘They may have known the Jake Dunn who was a screw-up as a kid, but they had no fucking clue who I was anymore. Not to mention, what I was capable of.’ Jake

Hate and pain drove Jake away from his home and he was to return a very different man whose life was to take a very different turn with the intensity of his feelings for Abby. If you’re told you’re good for nothing, feel unloved and downtrodden, you begin to question your self-worth and carry that pain around with you like a dead weight, such was Jake’s load to bear.

‘ I contributed nothing and took everything. But to be fair about it, I also expected nothing from the godless world that ripped me apart at every turn.
I expected nothing, until the night I met a certain redhead with an attitude.
The night I met Abby Ford, my life changed forever.’ – Jake

Jake finds his other half in Abby but can this equally damaged woman possess the heart to heal our hero?

“I want to fucking touch you because you are the most beautiful person I’ve even seen, and I can’t imagine never being able to hold your hand or kiss you.” – Jake

Could he force her to break down her emotional walls?  Abby really was such a sad and tragic character wasn’t she Gitte? To have the strength she did….I mean, really, how much can one person take?  I think we both felt the same about Abby though.

Gitte: She sure was Jenny. Her whole life was drama ridden with drugs, neglect, foster care homes and violence. Throw in some sexual abuse and torture and you have our Abby’s life in a nutshell. This is where my trouble with the story lay. This girl has suffered so much at the hand of others, her fear of people should have been immense, her emotions should have been profound and intense, but I just didn’t get that from her. She was almost too hard, too strong and too much of a survivor. I never really saw her as vulnerable, even after one despicable act of violence and degradation. She just doesn’t really break, she almost, to put it simply, dusts herself off and stands upright again oh and that’s with broken bones and torn orifices, which magically heals in her sleep. Is this a criticism, well yeah, because to be so extreme one way made me unable to connect or feel much emotion for her, because basically she didn’t show any herself, which then made it difficult for me to understand and believe her emotional connection to Jake.

Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed aspects of her journey and cried or swooned alongside her. I just thought that her character lacked the likeability factor and the emotion necessary to make me connect. Feeling extremely sorry for someone is not enough in this case. This heroine was in my opinion over written and it affected the relationship storyline consequently almost ruining a raw, intense and gritty read for me. This made me sad as I love stories that tests my boundaries and make me feel!

‘Sick, twisted Abby was in love with sick, twisted, beautiful Jake.’

J&G:  So yeah, this book definitely had us feeling a whole range of emotions, just not always what we wanted. It was heartbreaking and at times it was hopeful. It was raw, gritty and cruel. We’re warned in the Synopsis that Jake & Abby’s story isn’t your typical romance and it most certainly wasn’t. Two misfits, individually so broken, but together…so whole. The Dark Light of Day had us completely transfixed, squirming with fear and trepidation but we also revelled in the relationship of Jake and Abby and even if we didn’t always feel the connection, we certainly had hope in our hearts that these two would make it. Theirs was no easy path that’s for sure so you need to strap yourselves in for one hell of a ride.

“You think a hug is going to heal me? You can’t help me. Nobody can help me! I help myself. I’m okay, because I fucking want to be okay! .” – Abby

 As we said, this is no typical romance and Jake is no typical hero nor is Abby your typical heroine but together, despite everything that passes between them, they fit.

The story did not hold back and although we did feel a little exhausted at times with the never ending dramatic situations being constantly thrust upon us, together with a few scenarios we felt were a little contrived and convenient, we did nonetheless find this to be an intense, raw and brutal love story which we couldn’t put down.

‘..the pain of being almost healed is worse than the pain of being broken to begin with.’ Abby

Abby and Jakes story is hard to fathom and our two damaged and tortured characters are fraught with pain and suffering, secrets and lies throughout. It’s a story of love, loss, hate, pain, healing and accepting. It’s about finding that half of your soul to heal and complete you. This is a standalone and the story does have a conclusion in this book.

‘We were looking right into each other. Broken soul to broken soul.’ – Abby

‘ARC provided by the author in exchange for an honest review’

Check out and purchase The Dark Light of Day here:

 The Dark Light of Day