Complementary Colors by Adrienne Wilder

Complementary Colors is a beautifully written heart-wrenching story of a broken artist and the man that wants to love him. Adrienne Wilder knows how to write hard fought for love, steam and hard life moments.  

From the blurb:

My sister Julia manipulated my life into a prison to keep me silent about our dirty family secret. Her greed made me a slave and circumstance left me with no way to escape.

Trapped, the only way I could silence the nightmares driving me to insanity was to wrap them in color, hold them with shadow, and stitch them to negative space with line.

But no matter how bright the pigments, no one could see my confession.

Except for Roy Callahan.

I thought he was just another nameless one-night stand in a long line of many.

But I was wrong. Roy could see past the façade of my life and through the veil color over the canvas. He could see what the world couldn’t.

And with him I’d find the courage to tell the truth about the boy.

The boy who kissed me.

The boy who loved me.

The boy whose name I couldn’t remember. 

SNik's Review:

Standalone. Hurt/comfort. Content warning for abuse, mental illness and suicidal ideation. Single POV. 

Beautiful, broken artist, Paris is caught in an endless loop of drugs and sex, his mental illness and past trauma keeping him under the control of his abusive sister. 

A chance meeting with handyman Roy brings a feeling of safety and new colors to Paris, and Roy is instantly drawn to protect and possibly love Paris. 

This was a horrible and beautiful story that was hard to put down, the gut wrenching descriptions of Paris’ pain and struggles, and his grasping at the only hope and love he has ever been shown was hard to read. Yes, the emotional side of Paris and Roy’s relationship moves quickly and perhaps doesn’t have much depth initially, but it still is a love story with two men striving to be together. 

Complementary Colors is about Paris healing and finding love with an unexpectedly caring, supportive and committed partner, plus Wilder writes steamy scenes that stay with you long after you put the book down. Adrienne Wilder has a way with descriptive wording and emotional passages that really bring all the feelings and this story doesn’t disappoint. 

Rating: 5 Stars

Complementary Colors is currently available as an e-book and paperback and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription