Rating: 3 stars out of 5
Rawley isn’t the type to crush hard and fast on anyone, but he’s somehow helpless when it comes to the new mailman. Even his bikes and his job as enforcer for a local motorcycle gang, the center of his world, don’t compare to his interest in Reign. Unfortunately, Reign doesn’t seem to be as interested—but secrets and magic have a way of turning everything upside down.
Elemental Ride is a short story by Mell Eight in the Roughhouse Riders series (written by different authors) by LT3 Press. Many of the things I liked about it can’t really be discussed here as they fall into spoiler territory and take away the aha moments the author has in store for the readers.
Lets just say its a neat idea and I can’t say that I’ve seen it in another story before, at least handled in this manner. Its both a strength of Elemental Ride and one place where the story falls a little short. Short as in length. For such a complicated aspect to this plot line (and trust me, this is Mell Eight’s typical weird, twisted little world), this story needed to be far longer than 65 pages.
I liked Rawley. I got a real sense of the man, his place but not his gang. Since motorcycles clubs, it is their series after all, are his family, they should play a huge part of this, and I never got that really. I needed more background here. Perhaps there’s another book I’m missing.
There is romance but it is not the focus but the mysteries that the author is playing with that are the key here. So when the romance/love does occur, the connection you have with it isn’t as strong as it might have been, at least in my opinion. Again, had this story been enlarged to the degree that all the elements had the layers they deserve and the time for the author to enrich them with dimension, more scenes, and way more dialog, then I believe this would be not only a superb story but one that showcases this author’s amazing imagination just as it deserves to be.
I enjoyed Elemental Ride, but I was always aware that it could have been so much more.
Cover art by Natasha Snow is hot and works for the story. Loved it.
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Book Details:
ebook, 65 pages
Published November 8th 2016 by Less Than Three Press
ISBN139781620048863
Edition LanguageEnglish
Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words 