"I finished this book a few days ago, but I had to take some time to re-acclimate myself to my surroundings." Zakiyya read Fragments, part of the Alabaster Penitentiary series.
From the blurb:
Survival is all that matters in here.
Still, it gets tricky when evil lurks around every corner, wanting to play.
To the arsonist, everything is a game.
Warren Xavier isAlabaster Pen’s resident manipulative liar. The former pretty boy prince of Manhattan’s elite is now locked away with the rest of us. Nothing but time to sit and stew… Scheme and obsess. And I’m the unlucky soul he’s made the object of his cunning affections.
On the outside, I would never entertain the kinds of things Ren wants from me… Unfortunately, being trapped for so long in such a hellish place can wear down even the strongest of minds.
I’d be a fool to fall into his mess of lustful deviance again. After all, I’ve been burned before.
But that silver tongue is wrapped right around my heart. The next time his flames engulf me… I might let them.
Prison life can be fun when you hold the handcuff keys in your sullied hands.
My skills give me power over guards, prisoners… Pretty much everyone. I control these men without lifting a finger. Maybe bending at the waist...
But not him. Not the one I truly want.
Lex “Luthor” Deon is too perfect to be rotting in this dungeon. He’s a hacker, a genius; a shimmering diamond lodged in a dreary black pit of decay. Sweet, loyal… inexperienced.
In short, he’s way too good for me.
But I’m too stubborn and volatile to ever let him go.
I won’t allow fragments of the past ruin us. When it all comes crumbling down, Lex will have to make a choice… Risk everything, or play it safe.
Whether he likes it or not, he wants to believe me…
But sometimes even I can’t tell when I’m lying.
**Fragments is a dark MM romance set in the world of Alabaster Penitentiary. While it follows a new couple with their own HEA, it is recommended to read the rest of the series first to avoid spoilers and get the full effect of the Isle. May contain sensitive subject matter. Heed foreword and proceed with caution.**
Zakiyya's Review:
THE ALABASTER PENITENTIARY SERIES is the kind of hypnotic thrilling fiction that slowly draws you in before you see just how the story’s compelling cage is going to lock you into the suspenseful dynamic of various people trying to piece their lives together.
FRAGMENTS is primarily Ren and Lex’s tumultuous love story, but I would be lying if I said that was what kept my heart pounding throughout.
Not that they were any less interesting, but we already got enough of Ren’s personality to know that his and Lex’s HEA would most definitely not be easy—even if exhausting at most times. And let me tell you, Ren, was bloody exhausting.
No, my dear friends, what made my put this down on several occasions, smack my palm to my forehead and go, ohhhh fuck no, was the brilliant and much sought after puzzle pieces throughout that you finally get to place in its rightful spots, especially the ones surrounding DISTORTED.
Things like the cock cage, where Dash got the name “Callum” from and ALL those many interactions that Dash had with Kemper while in prison…. Sweet Lord, have mercy…🤯
Dash and Felix still remain my absolute favorites and most fascinating characters to date and I will never get tired of hearing about them.
Every book so far has left me more and more intrigued when it comes to The Ivory—Manuel Blanco – but this book has brought him to the forefront like never before. There has never been a character that I’ve wanted to unravel more than him. But the one question that’s now left me more enthralled? Who is Manuel Blanco’s ‘birdie in the cage’?
I cannot even try to grasp the brilliance that is Nyla K’s mind with how she’s interwoven these stories, so I won’t even bother. For as many questions as she answers, she leaves several more mysteries in their wake.
The current state of the prison has left my mind blown and even more eager for what’s to come.
Loving this series so, so much.
Rating: 5 Stars
Fragments is available to buy as an ebook, paperback, or to read with Kindle Unlimited subscription.
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