Mesmer (Dark Hearts)

I couldn't wait to read this simply because Cari and Jennifer are two of my favorite authors and I always love a dark read. Together, I really wanted to see what they would do in Cari's Mesmer World. A world I loved in her Dark Hearts trilogy. They went, how to say this, much, much darker than even I was expecting.To be honest, I read about 1/3 of the way through this and literally needed to start over. That was my own fault. I was so excited and I read it too fast for my own good. I wanted to make sure I was getting it right. It was a bit confusing until I read the beginning again and going on from there it came together for me wonderfully.I loved Hannah, even though she wasn't what I expected. Normally Cari's women are strong characters that fight back and are usually sassy little spitfires. Hannah wasn't like that at first. In fact, I still don't think of her like that. She did finally come into her own with some help. Little grey Greta. Real or imagined in Hannah's mind, we never really know. Now she was Cari's type all the way. But Hannah came with a strength that I never saw coming. She endured some horrific things that only a Mesmer (or a few) could conjure up.Now Tomik, how do I feel about him? Strangely, I liked him a lot and even came to love him. If only because of his love for Hannah and what he did for it even when he couldn't admit that to himself. How can you not love a man, Mesmer or not, that tries as hard as he did to do the right thing? But don't get me wrong, there were times when I hated him for what he allowed to happen. Even as bad as he was, he was someone I really felt for. Maybe because I could see how much he cared about Hannah even in the beginning when that was hard to see.There were some truly horrific things that went on in this story. But there were also times when Tomik and Hannah were so very good together it gave me hope. There were some very rough times when I almost didn't have that hope. I had to dig it out of me and keep it close.One other thing I'd like to say. I tried my hardest to see if I could tell which parts were written by Cari and which were written by Jennifer. It still amazes me how two authors can write a book together. And especially halfway across the world away from each other. But because I already knew how good a writer Jennifer is, I could not, for the life of me figure who was writing what. The story went together so seamlessly that I never had a clue. Although there were times that I thought I knew, I'm keeping those all to myself.If you love a dark read, but truly a love story, then this is a book you should read. It will give you both in spades.

So this story is in the same world as Silverwood's Dark Hearts, which introduced the readers to Mesmers. I don't know if I'm shell shocked or what, but this book affected me deeply. It's very dark, and pushed my reading boundaries. "I can't believe I'm reading this" kept running through my brain as I compulsively read every chapter. I couldn't get enough. It was a similar feeling I would get watching a raunchy comedian and laughing...then thinking, should I be laughing at that?This book definitely elicited a major emotional response from me, and I loved it. The book is written so well that you can't tell who wrote what. (Except for the suitcase scene, which was clearly a call back to Silverwood's short story Used) Hannah is a instantly sympathetic character as a collectible...but then we meet Greta and everything changes. The mesmers are frightening and truly evil, but the authors temper their evil with the idea that it is a virus that makes them that way. But they were still super villains. Some of the scenes with them are cringeworthy and horrifying.I really liked the ending, and for those who need an HEA, don't worry. There is one, but a bit unconventional. When it comes to Silverwood and Bene, who wants conventional? These two worked hard at creativity and boldness in this writing, making them excellent partners in crime. Perhaps they are exorcizing demons with this book? It doesn't really matter honestly. It's such a memorable story that might make you cry. Don't tell the authors though. They might cackle evilly and plan their next assault on our literary senses

I must admit this story has the most continuous violence that it initially put me off requiring return visits to see if anything evolved beyond pure manic sadism. I have been wrestling with this review as I am a fan of Ms. Bene’s work. I am not familiar with Cari Silverwood but apparently she is the source of the Mesmer concept from her trilogy on the subject. In this story we see mesmers as muscular, insatiable sex fiends bent on abuse, mind control and inclined to summarily terminate their human “collectibles.”. A literary snuff filmI decided to give this book 3 stars primarily for the magnitude of abuse, self mutilation and orchestrated suicides of several characters. I found it hard to initially engage with the story as it seemed nothing more than relentless torture. Finally, when Greta appeared she presented a diversionary character providing Hannah inner strength to survive the relentless molestations. Alas we never did find out exactly what Greta was and if she will remain as Hannah’s guardian. As the wild card in this story, involved in every significant event, it is unfortunate we don’t know anything of her continued role. An opportunity lost in the epilogue.Tomik and Hannah are lovers and this is a love story, however, that being said, you must allow for there being mesmers, disembodied spirits and unconditional love for you to enjoy the experience. Yes there is an HEA but get ready for some tough sledding to get there.

Less "Lions and tigers and bears oh my!" More "Mesmers and bottles and hooks, oh my god!"Between Zombie Robot girls, reboots, resets, glitches, *nasty men*, evil twins and lies this is one truly dark, evil and twisted tale. Hannah most certainly isn't in Kansas anymore and if she's in Oz it's not the one with nice little munchkins, a yellow brick road and Glenda, it's that scary place with the flying monkeys and evil mind twisting wizards called mesmers.It almost proved to much for me at first, partly because the start is deliberately disjointed but mainly because I hadn't pulled my big girl pants up far enough. In fact I had to do that 'skip to a couple of chapters before the end' stuff just to assure myself that this book wouldn't destroy my soul forever. Along with some deep breathing exercises and repeating the mantra "It's fiction and not real life" because boy this duet's writing has you there in the midst of the carnage and mayhem feeling every emotion and stab of the needle.Mesmer is so much darker than The Dark Hearts trilogy and Wolfe , so much bleaker, less hopeful but thankfully not hopeless. It felt as though the authors recognised perfectly when the plot was becoming overwhelming, throwing in the tiniest speck of light to buoy your spirits and keep you afloat in their tumultuous sea of darkness.Hannah is a collectable, a female susceptible to the powers of a mesmer. Tomik is the mesmer who is currently pulling her strings like the puppet she has become. However the pair have history, unresolved feelings and a bond that keeps drawing Hannah back. Greta (Oh you'll love Greta! I'm fairly certain she's the spirit guide of Cari Silverwood herself) thinks Hannah is stupid, Greta wants to destroy Tomik, but Hannah loves him too much to allow that. The only problem is how do you truly know what you want, think and believe when you don't have full control of your own mind?If you've read any other mesmer books then Tomik, despite being our hero, is one of those really nasty ones. Happy to use and abuse for his own kicks, well that and the fact that he doesn't have full control of his mesmer side. Oh this leads to some nastiness, it's also made me wonder if I should get the old rocking horse out of my attic. He has an obsession with needles and making holes in Hannah, actually I think that it's really the aforementioned author and her current fascination. He has a need to hurt her, whether she's willing or not. But therein lies the crux of the issue - he can make her like it but then he wants her to still be Hannah.And that is only just touching on the surface of the depravity contained within this book - I'm not sure I'll ever look at a shopping trolley/cart in the same way again. I just hope to goodness I'm not putting my fruit and veg into one that's been used in the ways described in Mesmer . The story is sick, wrong, perverted, deviant, degenerate, debased and immoral, so if you're looking for light and fluffy you need to step away right now. However if you enjoy falling down the rabbit hole and getting very dirty on the way down, then this is a must read book that needs to go straight to the top of your TBR list - especially as it pays homage to Dr Who.

If you're into something wicked this book is for you - and if you're not then it's still for you as it gloriously draws you in and won't let go. The mesmer Tomik will seriously mess with your mind, and his 'angel' Hannah will not help you (though Greta might). Yes, this is a love story, albeit a wickedly dark graphic one (and totally unapologenic for being so), between a mesmer and his 'collectable'. The main characters Tomik and Hannah are in perfect sync - and that's why this book works so well on all levels.Mesmer isn't just dark - it's obsidian! Just when you think you know where the plot is going, it twists and turns and leaves you with a 'what the ----' moment. From the Dark Hearts trilogy (and Wolfe) we know mesmers have few scruples, in this book Tomik's mesmer brothers plumb new depths.Sometimes books don't live up to their covers, this book exceeds it's superb cover and more - everything your naughty mind could want. Welcome to the dark side.

Modern retelling of the incubi/succubi theme but the men are given absolutely no redeeming qualities, just outright abusers, abusing women violently.Other books by the author generally switch the power paradigm so the the sub at least gains some autonomy, some control or power exchange but not with this one which feels off.