Release Day Review & Excerpt: Used by Kate Dunbar

This is all of me. The good, the bad, the used, and the broken…

Heartbreakingly beautiful and completely engrossing, A young woman's life takes a disturbing and utterly fascinating turn as the past she's put behind comes back to haunt her.  USED is packed full of twists, turns, and a gripping romance sure to leave readers emotionally spent and asking for more.

USED, a brand new standalone romantic suspense from debut author Kate Dunbar is OUT NOW! Grab your copy today!

“USED was amazing. Like seriously amazing. I can't remember the last time I hated to put a book down so I could go to sleep and then immediately pick it up to finish it the next morning. And yet, here we are and that's what I did.” ~ Samantha Chase, New York Times Bestselling Author

“Rarely have I read a book so vividly described, so rich with emotion, that I felt like I lived it. USED is the kind of book that engages your heart and takes you on a journey that leaves you hopeful and empowered by the end.” ~ Erika Kelly, Award Winning Author of the Rock Star Romance Series

Photography by K Keeton Designs
Cover Design by Uplifting Author Services

Model: Cameo Hopper

About USED (Coming 3/8/2021):

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.

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“Heartbreakingly beautiful. This book isn’t about angst and pain. It’s about a fighter-a survivor-that we all attain to be. The story tears you apart in the best ways and builds you back up in the most beautiful.” ~ Nichole Chase, New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author

“Used is a raw, heart-wrenching story of surviving trauma, but it's also so much more. It's a romantic, emotionally gratifying tale of unflinching, all-in love. I couldn't turn the pages fast enough.” ~ Brenda Rothert, Author

USED is being narrated by Stella Hunter is out now!

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Excerpt

“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.

What I thought about Used

The book opens with Sabra Valentine carefree and considering her relationship with Trevor, her boyfriend. She comes across as sure of herself and with a bit of a love em and leave em attitude.  She's almost cocky in her attitude.

Until she gets a phone call telling her that her brother has been released from prison.

It's at this point, her personality seems to change as her anxiety builds.  When it is discovered that someone is potentially stalking her, things take an even more dire direction.

I don't want to say much more because it will spoil things for you. Familial abuse is not a common topic and there is buildup of tension as things come to a head.  I found Sabra to be most interesting in how her personality changes as the story moves along.  I don't know if that was intentional on the part of the author. 

The story is engaging as Sabra tries to avoid her brother, but unfortunately her brother has other ideas of the type of contact he wants with his sister.  

Overall, a good debut effort in a psychological drama.There's a nice build-up of tension as the story progresses and an explosive conclusion that works in this story.

A complementary copy was provided.  This is my honest review.

About Kate Dunbar:

Kate Dunbar is a wife, mom of three, and obsessive tea drinker who loves a great story. She’s passionate about people and learning what makes them tick. You can find her eavesdropping, people watching, and living her best life wherever the winds take her.

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