Book Review – Bone Deep by Bonnie Dee

Bone Deep
THIS was an absolute find! What a treasure of a book, and even though it’s considered a “short” (248 pages) it was long enough to absolutely consume me for quite a few hours, and had just enough of everything for me to be 100% focused completely on this story. Now it wasn’t the first time I heard about it. When I raved about “Finding Home” (that unorthodox story had me riveted) many chimed in and let me know that Bonnie Dee had a few other gripping tales up her sleeve. This being one that was most often recommended.

Karen sent me this recommendation first:

I’m currently on a Bonnie Dee kick (author of Finding Home). Bone Deep was really, really good and Four Kisses was okay except it needed another chapter (but it is a kindle freebie so I can’t complain.) Right now I’m reading Opposites Attract about a rock star & a concert cellist. lol…sound familiar? I’ll let you know how it goes!

And I absolutely made a mistake, by not reading it right away, when I saw that the story takes place in 1946. I thought to myself, hrmmm… really? Will I connect to something about a tattooed guy from that time period? After all, I had just finished a book (Finding Home) from the same author about a modern-day street kid trying to get his life back together with the help of a young woman (and all the complications that arose with that situation). Would I be just as excited over a love story from the 1940’s?

*shakes head* Maryse! When will you ever learn? If the writing is good, the “period” won’t make a difference because a broken heart is a broken heart, and that ended up being true. Sure enough, it was a rare occurrence when I fretted about the “1946” issue, except for some of the social issues, which actually added to the story.

and then Gitte just recently brought it up again:

“I just finished ‘Bone Deep’ by Bonnie Dee, the freebie from a few weeks ago. I LOVED it…what a beautiful, harrowing yet inspiring story!! Can really recommend it!! ♥ x”

This time, I was on it. I was craving something “deep”, thought provoking and possibly heart wrenching. Something out of the ordinary where two very different people find out that they have very compatible souls. And boy did I get it! In fact, they both need healing, and the journey this story takes us on, is an arduous yet wonderful story indeed.

So is he our usual tattooed bad boy?

No. There is nothing “bad-boy” about “Tom”, but he is tattooed from head to toe. Unable to lead a “normal” life because of his body art, he must travel with the carnival and be gawked at, leered at, and chastised for his appearance.

“Where would I go? Where else would I fit in?”

Until one day, “Sarah”, a recently widowed young women happens upon his “show”. She notices that he is heartbreakingly stoic and still, avoiding the spectators eyes, until he looks deeply into hers. And the connection is made.

Just then, he turned his head and his eye caught and held Sarah’s.

Her breath stopped and her heart pounded. He was gazing at her as intently as she had been looking at him, peering deep inside her.

She felt naked in front of him and longed to run away from his searing gaze, but found it impossible to move her feet. It was as if he saw her marked pain, still percolating underneath the veneer of dull ennui. His scalpel gaze hurt as i cut through her scars.

And how these two progress in their potential friendship together, his story, his tattoos, all of it… as Gitte said. Harrowing. Yet it absolutely seduces the reader in every sense of the word. You will fall in love with him and their story. And you will feel every moment of it. The stolen looks, the sensual moments, and the agonizing realities that await them.

“They’ll see you’re not dangerous, that you’re normal.”

“I’m not normal.” For the first time since she’d met him, his voice raised. He glared at her and spread his hands, indicating his body. “Look at me.”

He may be tattooed from head to toe, but something about him… everything about him. I fell hard. He was simply beautiful.

His eyes were the saddest she’d ever seen.

I’m going to end it there, however I must insist. It IS a must read!!

As I told my Facebook crew:

Maryse’s Book Blog: Okay I’m writing a review but I was too excited about this book, I just had to tell you (even before my review is complete) RIVETING!! I LOVED it. Loved it while reading it, and love it even more now, ’cause I can’t stop thinking about it. This is making one of my top lists (or two). Absolutely. And many of you got it free a few days ago! Bone Deep by Bonnie Dee. Read it!

Gitte: YAY I knew you would!!!

Tiffany: I loved this book too!

Bonnie: Read it. Freaking loved it!!!

Jeannie: Loved this book! A really beautiful love story.

Lise: Yeah…. I LOVED this book too. So glad you read it.

P.S. I started this book late last night and could barely put it down until I passed out of exhaustion at 4am. Every word, every situation, every possibility held me captive. Titillating. Thought provoking. In fact, I don’t remember dreaming about anything else but this story. Over and over again. It consumed me even in my dreams.

4.5 stars (would have been 5 stars if the book had been full length). While the author really REALLY took her time throughout the novel, and every bit of letting us get to know “them”, their introduction and the problems they faced, I found it slightly rushed towards the end. Another fifty or so pages would have probably made this perfect for me.

Off I go to find more. It appears many of her stories on Amazon are super short, but I’m going to search out some of the lengthier ones… I definitely I like her writing style.