USED by Kate Dunbar – Tour and Review

by Kate Dunbar
Published by Self published Genres: New Adult
Format: eARC

At the age of seventeen, after a decade of lies, hurt, and severe abuse by her brother Lucas, Sabra Valentine is able to breathe.

Lucas is behind bars thanks in large part to Sabra’s quick thinking and self-preservation-even if that’s one more secret she has to keep.

Now, seven years later, life is moving forward, and Sabra is starting to heal, live, and love again with her friends and Trevor Collins by her side. He’s tall, dark, and sexy, and he doesn’t fall for Sabra’s games. The future is finally looking bright-until one phone call shatters everything.

Used is a romantic suspense with domestic thriller elements. Please be aware that there are topics that may be triggers for some readers, and this work is meant for mature readers.

CHRISTINA’S FOUR STAR REVIEW

I’m SOOOOOO happy I didn’t read the blurb before I started reading this book. Why? Because it just added to the suspense. Sure, I knew it was a romantic suspense book, but I had NO IDEA what the topic was going to be about. Boy was I surprised!

Sabra is in her final year of college, just months away from earning her master’s degree. She’s sassy, beautiful and knows exactly what to do to gain the eye of a man. She’s even enjoying her time with her new beau Trevor. But everything comes to a screeching halt after receiving a phone call from the last person she wants to speak to. And now that she’s heard his voice, the question is, can she continue living her life the way she has been for the last few years?

Obviously, being a suspense thriller, we’re pulled in to this story pretty quickly. One of the things I really liked about this were the flashback sequences. Each one allowed us a smaller glimpse into what the past held and how it related to the current events of the story. The only thing I can say I wish there was more of would be more details of the “trauma”. I’m pretty sure we can all use our imagination while reading (which is always an added plus with reading), but I felt as though I needed a little more detail to allow my imagination to REALLY run wide. But that’s just me and my cray cray ways.

All in all, this book was well written, keeping me engaged from the very beginning. I mean, I DID stay up all night reading it…LOL And now I can’t wait for the next one!!!!

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Excerpt from USED by Kate Dunbar:

“So, that’s rule one. What do you think?”

I shake my head and snap out of my reverie. “What?” I inch my way toward him and place my hand on his thigh. “I’m sorry. I got distracted. Tell me again.” Trevor’s jaw tightens. His eyes shift toward my hand.

“You got distracted? I’m telling you the rules to our relationship, and you got distracted? How is that even possible?”

“I started thinking about last night and your lips on me. And that made me start thinking about your lips on me again. And that made me think about your hands on me. And that made me think about everything else on me.” Trevor stares at me with his mouth hanging open.

“I swear, you never cease to surprise me, Sabra.” He grabs my hand and pulls me toward his chest. After a few moments, he uses his finger to gently lift my chin and brush his lips over mine. “Screw the rules. We’ll just wing it.” I smell his minty breath as he moves down my jaw with those magical lips and across my collarbone. Trevor’s fingers grasp the edge of my shirt. All I can think about is that same breath and those same lips scorching my skin again.

I’m losing myself in his touch. His kisses. The sweet words he’s whispering into my ear. I’m lost in him. And then my phone rings, blasting through the room. Shaking us out of the moment. Trevor pulls back to look over his shoulder at the intruder.

You have got to be kidding me. How is it possible the entire world seems to be calling me this early?

I glance at the phone sitting on the coffee table beside us and realize I don’t recognize the number. “I’m sorry. I have to answer this.” Trevor grabs my hand and settles it on his lap. I can feel how much he doesn’t want me to answer it.

“Are you sure it can’t wait, Say?” He smiles his crooked grin and cocks his head to the side. “Can’t they leave a voicemail, and you call them back?”

“It could be my agent. I had that audition yesterday. I just need a second.”

“Fine. I’ll go get a donut hole.” He grins and stands. “And then I’m coming back for yours.”

“Ew, gross.” I snatch my phone and slide my finger across the screen, rolling my eyes at him as he walks into the kitchen laughing. “Hello?”

“Hello, Sabra. How are you, sis?”

*****

No. No. Nooooo…NO. This can’t be happening. I yank the phone away from my ear and stare at it. Absolutely not. The air feels thin. My lungs feel like they’re about to burst.

“Sabra? What is it?” Trevor stares at me with this look on his face, like he thinks I’m crazy.

Did I say that out loud?

I hit the end button and get up, pacing from one side of my extremely small living room to the other. This is a nightmare. No. It has to be a wrong number. He’s in prison. There’s a chant happening in my head.

He’s in prison. He’s in prison. He’s in prison.

“Sabra.” I flinch as Trevor touches my arm and instinctively move away.

“Don’t touch me.” The hurt in his eyes is obvious. So deep. I might as well have slapped him. And I don’t care. “Don’t. Touch. Me.” I growl it at him.

He’s in prison. He’s in prison. He’s in prison.

“Sabra, what the hell is going on? What happened?” Trevor paces a step away and turns to look at me. “Who was that?”

“No one. A wrong number. No one at all.”

But I know it wasn’t. He’ll call back. Come back for more. He always comes back for more. Dammit. How is he coming back for more?

He’s in prison. He’s in prison.

I feel Trevor’s heat before I realize he’s next to me. “I don’t believe that. It was someone.” He grabs me by the upper arms and shifts me back against the wall. “You’re shaking and white as a sheet. What’s going on? Who the hell was that?”

I’m shaking?

He’s in prison. He’s in prison.

Wait. My mom called…

And I realize why she was calling so early. Dammit. Everything clicks into place. Tremors course through my body. I can’t control them. The chant changes in my head.

He’s out. He’s out. Oh my god, he’s out. I. Can’t. Breathe.