It Aint Me, Babe - Book #1 in the Hades Hangmen Series by Tillie Cole - 5 STARS!!!

It Ain’t Me, Babe by Tillie Cole



Five Outstandingly Brilliant Stars!

Blurb - 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…

It Ain’t Me, Babe is book #1 in the Hades Hangman Series by Tillie Cole.

Ok so I love Tillie Cole’s books, Sweet Home, Sweet Rome and Eternally North are all fantastic, sweet but funny and heart warming stories.

All that being said It Ain’t Me, Babe is outstanding!!! It’s the easiest FIVE stars I’ve given since I started this blog.

So the best bits....

·         Styx, seriously can I have one pretty please!!!

·         Mae is adorable.

·         The other Hangmen are all sexy as hell.

·         This is a horrible taboo subject but somehow it draws you in.

The not so good bits...

·         I read this book far too quickly!

God I’m not even sure where to start with this review, I just loved everything about it!!

Ok so Styx is a mute but although this should be odd it’s not, it’s endearing and allows him to be a total badass, kill people and generally do pretty bad things yet still be engaging and human.

I was almost in tears whilst reading the first meeting between Mae as an 8yr old and River as an 11yr old it was heartbreaking. Yet this was the perfect introduction to these characters it was a big ole slap of a reminder that no matter what happens to you in life we were all innocent children once upon a time.

I know that cults are much more real in the USA than here in Britain but the whole idea of essentially religious brainwashing is terrifying. What makes it even more real was the dedication at the front of the book where the author says that she spent time talking to people who had been in cults and had left or should I say escaped. The idea that people especially children are being abused and tortured and it’s being done in the name of god or religion is sickening.

That being said the whole subject of Cults and extreme religious views is dealt with in a sensitive and yet real way.

Mae I don’t think I have ever engaged with a female lead character so quickly, she made me feel instantly protective and I willed her to escape and be free.

I loved the way she saw everything in a very childlike way yet she wasn’t immature because even though she had been sheltered and cosseted her whole life you feel as though she has seen far too much pain and suffering in her twenty three years.

Styx I love him, he went straight into my top ten book boys. He is a nasty prez of a motorcycle club and this should make him terrifying, but even as he’s sadistically torturing someone I kind of overlooked it. Because regardless of his reputation he is still obsessed with Mae and has been since he first met her as a child. I love the idea that he has been dreaming about her for 15 yrs and even tried to search for the fence again in the hope of finding her.

Now don’t get me wrong the fact that he is big, muscley, gorgeous and alpha defiantly helps him lol.

Now the whole MC genre tends to lean towards men being disrespectful towards women but Styx is touchingly sensitive towards Mae. He is never aggressive towards her and it’s so obvious that he is hook, line and sinker in love with her even from the start.

The chemistry between Mae & Styx is so palpable that you can feel it in every word, look and touch yet it’s not overtly sexy. Their relationship is so surrounded by the epic love story they create that even the sex scenes are not sordid or tacky.

The Order..... What to say.... Tillie Cole can really write evil!!!!

To be honest even sitting and thinking about the Elders especially Gabriel gives be the heebie jeebies. I’m not entirely sure I believe that they really cared about the religious bullshit; it felt more like they were just exploiting the young women who are born into a cult and forced into sexual slavery.

I’m so glad that the hangmen went and dealt with the evil Order disciples and elders I can’t help feeling like they deserved it, harsh I know but some people are beyond redemption.

I’m not entirely sure how I feel about Rider, I’m not sure he deserves a happy ending but I may be converted on that.

I devoured this book I read it start to finish in about 4 hrs, I love any book that complete takes me over and I have to say that I lost myself in this book.

I loved Lilah and Maddie being rescued and taken to the Hangmen’s compound and I can’t wait to see them tame Ky and Flame.

Flame, Flame, Flame OMG I kinda fell in love with him too, don’t get me wrong he’s mad as a box of frogs but hell I don’t care!!!

When I finished this book I had no idea that this was going to be part of a series (gotta love facebook, not!!!) and I have to admit I was gutted!!! I sat there kinda shouting NO!!! I have to know what happens to the other girls. I am very happy to admit that I facebook stalker Tillie Coles page searching through posts hoping that something would be mentioned about a follow-on book or even an extended epilogue. I actually jumped up and down when I saw that there is going to be at least another three books.

This book is officially the best book I read so far this year, now to most that might not sound a lot but considering this is the 234^th book so far since January it means I thought it was pretty fantastic.

This epic tale of enduring love is heartbreaking, heart warming and perfect, Five outstanding stars!!!!