The Finish Line by Kate Stewart

|Synopsis|

Secrets and Lies…

I’ve lived the entirety of my life wrapped up in subterfuge for one purpose—revenge.

Through the years, I lived more as an enigma than a man.

For so long, I denied I had a beating heart of my own.

Until her. Until she unearthed the starving vessel inside, forced me to acknowledge it, forced me to understand that I’m capable of bleeding the same as any other.

For that, we paid. We’re still paying.

Yet, she demands it still, the useless heart of the ruthless thief and shameless villain she fell for. My fear is, I’m no longer that man.

With the lies I’ve told, the life I’ve led, my mistakes are beginning to catch up with me, day by day, one by one.

This is my last chance, and I have no intention of losing her again, but as the deception of my past starts to unravel and close in, shedding my humanity may be the only thing that can save us both.

Maybe it’s already too late.

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|Review|

I am going to put this book aside at 70% and maybe come back to it later. It’s starting to feel like a chore to read and considering how much I loved the first two books and these characters I just need to back off for now.

60% of this book was Tobias in the dog house. I expected some kind of discord between the two after the events in Exodus, but it was excessive and unnecessary. Cecelia went to Tobias in Exodus with the intent of being with him so now that he’s wrapped everything up and is ready he’s having to work to get back into her good graces. I understand it takes time but I was frustrated to say the least. 65% in until our first hot and steamy scene. Even those started to get cut to black though.

That being said, I enjoyed learning about the past from Tobias. We got this inside look not only into his childhood but Dom and Sean’s as well. The boys had this brotherly connection we were told about in the previous books but actually get to see firsthand in this one from Tobias himself. How Exodus came to be and why the relationship between Dom, Sean and Cecelia was such a huge deal beyond their intent for exacting revenge on her father. I looked forward to the flashback chapters the most.

I think this book could have benefited from a faster timeline of events and being shorter in length. I like Tobias but I loved Dom and Sean, and seeing just how much they loved Cecelia and how they betrayed each other for her love made me kinda not like the second book and wish things had played out different romantically between all of them. It is what it is though and we know Tobias and Cecelia hit their “Finish Line” I just can’t read about it anymore.

A NOTE ABOUT KATE STEWART: Since this review was written, it has come to light that Stewart has written a number of books that include blatant racism. While this book is one of the few that doesn’t contain such content, we will no longer be reviewing or promoting any of her books.