TBT #35 - Review: It Ain’t Me, Babe (Hades Hangmen #1) by Tillie Cole

★TBT #35★

Featuring on this week's ‪#ThrowbackThrusday‎ is Author Tillie Cole's dark and riveting, Hades Hangmen Series (#1 and #2). The world of ruthless MC bikers meets the innocent "cursed" women of the cult is not for faint of heart but with the beauty at which the author entwined the love, pain, struggle and salvation is just soul-touching!

Title: It Ain’t Me, Babe
Author: Tillie Cole
Series: Hades Hangmen #1
Genre: contemporary romance, dark

Sinning never felt so good…

A fortuitous encounter.

A meeting that should never have happened. Many years ago, two children from completely different worlds forged a connection, a fateful connection, an unbreakable bond that would change their lives forever…

Salome knows only one way to live—under Prophet David’s rule. In the commune she calls home, Salome knows nothing of life beyond her strict faith, nor of life beyond the Fence—the fence that cages her, keeps her trapped in an endless cycle of misery. A life she believes she is destined to always lead, until a horrific event sets her free.

Fleeing the absolute safety of all she has ever known, Salome is thrust into the world outside, a frightening world full of uncertainty and sin; into the protective arms of a person she believed she would never see again.

River ‘Styx’ Nash knows one thing for certain in life—he was born and bred to wear a cut. Raised in a turbulent world of sex, Harleys, and drugs, Styx, unexpectedly has the heavy burden of the Hades Hangmen gavel thrust upon him, and all at the ripe old age of twenty-six—much to his rivals’ delight.

Haunted by a crushing speech impediment, Styx quickly learns to deal with his haters. Powerful fists, an iron jaw and the skillful use of his treasured German blade has earned him a fearsome reputation as a man not to be messed with in the shadowy world of outlaw MC’s. A reputation that successfully keeps most people far, far away.

Styx has one rule in life—never let anyone get too close. It’s a plan that he has stuck to for years, that is, until a young woman is found injured on his lot… a woman who looks uncannily familiar, a woman who clearly does not belong in his world, yet a woman he feels reluctant to let go…

Contemporary Romance/New Adult Novel.

Contains sexual situations, violence, sensitive and taboo subjects, offensive language and mature topics. Recommended for age 18 years and up*

Amazon US | Amazon UK

SANDY’S REVIEW

It Ain't Me, Babe by Tillie Cole
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

“We were always fated to be together. He is my everything. He is my entire world... ...Styx is my salvation.” 

It ain’t me, babe is dark, gritty and gut wrenching story of two people from different cultural worlds destined to be together.

Styx the infamous ‘Mute Hangmen’ is the president of the outlaw MC club Hades Hangmen. Despite his speech impediment, he is feared and respected by all. Even being a cold blooded killer, a reputation he earned to overcome his disability he has a secret! The one he’s been keeping since he was eleven, the girl with the wolf eyes whom he met in the woods captured his heart for so long that it became his obsession, his lifelong desire. After 15 years of nurturing his secret, fate finally brings his wolf eyed girl to his door step in the form of bleeding, bruised and unconscious Mae!

“Mae was mine. Fifteen long years of wanting her to be mine, and here she sat, curled up in my arms – a fuckin’ angel in hell.” 

Mae is one of the four ‘cursed’ sisters belonging to the religious commune ‘The Order’ located in middle of the woods, guarded with heavy fence having no connection to the outside world. Mae and her sisters have been abused all their lives and one night after witnessing her dear sister’s horrific death she runs for her life and somehow manages to go beyond the safety of the fence after being chased by the guards, bitten by the dog, bleeding to death only to find herself waking up to meet the boy who stole her first kiss her only kiss when she was eight.

“He was my only secret... my biggest ever sin. He had become almost like a dream to me.” 

The concept of MC book with a cult twist was quite unique and fascinating. Most of all I loved the connection between Mae and Styx. Their romance was the best part of the story, it was typical prince charming saving the damsel in distress with lot of fucked up things thrown in their way but every moment shared with them was so very beautiful. The secondary characters are to die for; they were cruel badass bikers but funny and damn protective of their club. I’m so glad most of them are getting their own stories!

Rating clarification: Even with the great plot and amazing writing the story felt flat at certain aspects like for instance Mae has been abused, used and tormented all her life and after being taken under the wings of the hangmen she shows not sign of depression, nightmare, withdrawals or behavioral changes and for the girl who never stepped into outside world, she adjusts very well with her new found life. Instead of giving a month leap every now and then, the author could have dealt with developing her character and making it more realistic!

Now for the part I’m dying to say since I read the glossary : *RANT ALERT*

[The religious cult is a whole lot of fucked up shit! I mean, what the fuck is wrong with those motherfuckers! It was insane level of brainwashing, I’ve never seen anyone degrading woman to this level like this so called cock sucking “elders” did! Every time they opened their mouth I wanted to punch their shit ass faces! “Lord sharing” my ass, grow a pair of balls and use your hands to jerk off but leave those innocent girls/women alone! Seriously if it were me writing the story I would have used at least 50 pages to describe the ways to torture/kill those sons of bitches.] To the prophet, elders and the bitch sister Eve

Buddy read with my bestie Eda♥
P.S: Thanks for trusting me and going in blind babe, sorry for the freak out over the glossary! Next time let’s make sure to read the blurb before diving in:p