Title: Deadly (an Empathy novella)
Release Date: August 24,2015
Genre: Dark Thriller
Normal is not something Ryan and Cereus have ever been, where’s the fun in normal?
When Cereus’s dreams follow her into the waking hours, she has to come to terms with the fact, Ryan is not the only monster in her madness.
That she herself… can be just as deadly.
That she herself… can be just as deadly.
*Must be read after Vacant to fully enjoy this novel
Deadly - Ker Dukey - Empathy series book 3
For me I was left feeling wtf after I read this one. I wont deny that I was draw to Blake in books 1 & 2. But I never got the lovey feeling for Ryan. I am probably the one reader over here who is praying this story isn't done and is hoping for some redemption for Cereus and Ryan.
Ryan coached her on how she needed to accept what she was. Instead? She has allowed her demons to torment her in her nightmares. She fights with acceptance of what shes done, therefore she feels as though it has all been a dream. A dream that has crashed into her reality and brought her back to where it all began.
I haven't - in the past - been a fan of dark, twisted reads. I have to be in a certain mood for them. The Empathy series is a twisted, fucked train wreck that I can't stop reading. No matter how much my stomach is turning from the words I read on the pages.
Even though, I felt this series - minus book 1 - was a bit much for my conscious, I can only say that Ker Dukey is one amazing author. Her and Stephen King could have some kickass conversations.
Empathy ~ Ker Dukey
Sweet Jesus...
What the fuck did I just read?
Normally, I am a speed reader. I can knock out a book in no time at all. This series - 2 novels, 2 novellas - took me over a week to read. Why you ask? Because O.M.G. what a mind-fuck.
Empathy - Blake is blank. He has no empathy. It's one thing that is missing from the make up of his soul. Being a contract killer, not having that particular emotion is necessary. Being a police detective, he exceels at acting. Blake lives his life to provide for that of his brother. Everything he does is for Ryan. He lives to make sure that Ryan doesn't live without.
Melody is your typical college student. She's the happy-go-lucky girl next door who comes from one of the best families you could ask for. One trip home - one fateful weekend - her world shatters around her. Everything she has known is gone. With her world in shambles, it's one man who settles her. The brother of her best friend. Blake. She doesn't understand why she is drawn to him. She doesn't understand the affects he has on her. But he shows her a side of herself she never knew.
When all the secrets are revealed... who will be left standing? As hell rains down around Melody and Blake, everything they thought they knew about themselves is questioned.
Ker Dukey..... as much as I would love to live in your brain, the thought scares me. Never - NEVER - have I had a series screw with my head as yours did. This book. Sweet baby Jesus. MASTERPIECE!
Desolate - Ker Dukey - Empathy book 2
Fast forward 18 years in the future.
The past 18 years has been the epitome of perfect.
Cereus is discovering parts of herself that she has often squished in the dark portals of her mind. Those thoughts. That dark little angel sitting on her shoulder has decided it wants to play. But can she control it?
Meeting Ryan, Cereus has found a missing peice of herself. Two peas in a pod, they have a connection that goes beyond anything either ever imaged.
Blake & Melody run into their own set of issues as murders are happening, fingers are being pointed, secrets are being kept that's causing a deeply emotional rift between them. When Blake finishes his investigation.... It will come down to him to save everyone he loves.
Ker Dukey once again screws with the mind. Desolate is one that I had a difficult time reading. I would read a couple of pages then have to walk away. The emotions are on full display in this novel, from the psychopathic Ryan to the confused Cereus to the heart-wrenching that Blake and Melody are feeling. Desolate is a novel that will need your full attention. Think of it like a movie that you can't step away from or you are lost.
Vacant - Ker Dukey - Empathy series book 2.5
I have questioned exactly where this series is going to go after reading books 1 & 2. The relationship between Ryan and Cereus is one that has consistently had my head spinning. They love each other yet not in a sexual way. Not in a "niece/uncle" way. Could it even be considered love? As Ker explains it, it's soul spotting of sorts. They are connected by the likeness in their souls.
Cereus is on the track of allowing her darkness to fill her. Feeding it's need. Ryan is high on his ability to control his Cereus. On his manipulation of her. In his belief that they aren't "sick".
Ker's mind hasn't failed me. I will admit that this is the first series of hers I have read. I hadn't realized just what I was getting myself into when I agreed to read them. Vacant is a fast moving novella that follows along with Cereus' self discovery of who she is. What she is.
I have always had a passion for storytelling, whether it be through lyrics or bed time stories with my sisters. I wanted to be an actress growing up so I could live many roles but I learned early on that my mind was too active… I would want to change the script.I would watch films and think of ways they could have improved the story if they took another direction so i thought it best that i tell my own.
My mum would always have a book in her hand when I was young and passed on her love for reading, inspiring me to venture into writing my own. I tend to have a darker edge to my writing. Not all love stories are made from light, some are created in darkness but are just as powerful and worth telling.
When I’m not lost in the world of characters I love spending time with my family. I’m a mum and that comes first in my life but when I do get down time I love attending music concerts or reading events with my younger sister.