Does it Hurt?

Rating: 4 Stars

"When have we ever been able to let go of the things that hurt us most?"

Who am I? I've forgotten the answer to that question long ago. Ever since I ran from that house, so desperate to escape, I left with only the clothes on my back and socks on my feet. After that day, I've only ever walked in stolen shoes. Could I be a girl who is searching for the meaning of life in faceless men? They were all so forgettable. Until he came along. He took me under a waterfall and made me forget my name, and in return, I took his instead. Enzo Vitale. An enigmatic man that will only ever love the deep sea. Or rather the predators that inhabit it. Turns out, he's not so different than the monsters he feeds. He lured me onto his boat like a fish in the ocean, seeking vengeance for my crime. Had I realized his intentions, and that a massive storm would leave us shipwrecked, I would've run. Now, I'm a girl who's seeking refuge in a decrepit lighthouse with a man who loathes me almost as much as he craves me. He wants to hurt me, but the old caretaker of the abandoned island may have intentions far more sinister. It's no longer a question of who I am, but rather, will I survive?

I went into this book with zero idea of what it was about. It was dark and twisty in all the ways that kept me invested. It was one of those books that once you started... you had no choice but to finish to see how things were going to play out, and just exactly what had happened. Sawyer is a sarcastic, resourceful and strong character who actually feels bad about doing what it takes to survive. She's on the run and to make her way she steals the identities of men that she sleeps with. Enter Enzo, the dark broody man, who works with sharks. Once he learns what Sawyer has done he is out for revenge. And that revenge lands them in a predicament that is much worse.

I think these two had excellent tension and chemistry it was a gradual shift in their relationship, but also a very precarious shift, which the author does an amazing job of highlighting. The lighthouse and Sylvester was a whole extra level of twisty that I wasn't anticipating in this book. It was dark and I spent the whole time needing to know what was actually going on with the lighthouse keeper. It is the lighthouse dynamic, with forced proximity and only one bed, that really forces Enzo and Sawyer to confront their love/hate feelings for one another, all while being terrorized by Sylvester. I really enjoyed this book and the characters. I have to say I was shocked a couple of times by the revelations in this one.