An Unlocked Mind

Independent reviewer for Divine Magazine, I was gifted the audio file of this book.

Rob is TRYING to be better person than the one who nearly ruined his brother’s life, he really is. But it’s hard when no one will help you. A visit to the opening night of Secrets is just what he needs. Til a demonstration has him running. But he returns the next week, and runs straight into Vic, along with giving Vic attitude. Rescuing the obnoxious little git wasn’t in Vic’s game plan for the evening, but he can’t leave Rob walking in the pouring rain. After depositing Rob at the train station, he never expects to see him again. Although, something about Rob calls to him, it really does. When Rob starts turning up every weekend, Vic begins to look forward to his visits. Then Life throws Rob under a bus and Vic knows this is his chance to get into Rob’s head, and for Rob to get out of it.

This is book 2 in the Secrets series, but you don’t NEED to have read/listened to book one first, but I think you should. It’s bloody good!

As is this one!

Vic isn’t what I would call a Dom Dom, his speciality is getting a sub out of his head, rather than floggers and whips. And he KNOWS something is eating away at Rob’s mind, he just needs to unlock it. But to do THAT, Vic needs to get to know Rob, on his weekly visits to London. When Rob loses his job in Manchester, Vic offers him a lifeline, under strict terms that Vic lays down. And Rob, desperate for help and starved of any real human interaction, jumps at the chance.

Rob did some things as a younger man, that come back to haunt him, that STILL haunt him. A conversation with his mother turns his brother against him, and Rob is suffering that guilt so bad, it’s a dead weight on his shoulders. Meeting Vic, though, lets something free in his soul, something he had been so afraid to admit before. Something his mother would not approve of. Something he so badly needs, it brings him to the brink of his limits and budgets and his money runs out faster than it should. But Vic? Vic gives him a chance, so long as he sticks with the rules, and those RULES are what Rob needs, He needs to find himself again, deep within himself, before he can forgive himself and to make amends with his brother, should his brother want to.

What I particularly loved about this one, was the lack of the physical BDSM stuff that usually comes with these books, I mean I LOVED the lack of it. Oh don’t get me wrong, this is a sexy book, and it has a crazy amount of heat but there is a distinct lack of floggers and paddles. This was very much a MENTAL book, as in Rob needed to get out of his head so bad, and Vic knew just how to do that.
Rob is, quite simply, a wreck at the start of this book, and it’s a long while before Vic can get him to admit what’s eating him the most. That is: what he did to his brother. But when the FULL picture comes clear, I cried for Rob, I really did. He felt so bad for something he did not do, it messed his head.

Vic, being the most laid back Dom I have quite possibly EVER come across, is just the man for Rob, just the Dom to get to the bottom of his pain and release it. Rob calls to his soul, he really does. But not immediately. It takes a little time for Rob to worm his way in, but once he does, Vic is all in.
I NEED to listen Rob’s story now though! I need to know what a little shit Rob was, and how Rob was affected by what happened, I really do. So, books one and two of Collars and Cuffs are nicely lined up for when I’ve got time.

Joel Leslie narrates this one, as he does book one. I cannot, CANNOT fault the narration of these books, this one especially. Leslie pours so MUCH into Rob, and to Vic to, but to a lesser extent. The emotion pouring out of Rob when he finally breaks down and tells Vic all made me cry, great wrecking sobs that I have no doubt might NOT have come had I been reading.

Leslie is, quite simply a Master at his craft, and coupled with the work of Wells and Williams, I can only give this book. . . .

5 stars for the book
5 stars for the narration
5 stars overall.

**same worded review will appear elsewhere**

REVIEW BY Trio of Kimmers' Erotic Book Banter: https://bit.ly/2tliEr6

'An Unlocked Mind', the second book in K.C. Wells and Parker Williams’ Secrets series, is now available in audio. I’ve waited over a year to listen to Joel Leslie read this one to me, and I’m so happy! Mr. Leslie’s performance is excellent. He brings these characters to reality and infuses so much emotion into this story. I can’t imagine enjoying a Secrets novel any other way.

K.C. Wells and Parker Williams have created an amazing world in their interwoven Collars and Cuffs and Secrets series. The characters are passionate and they deal with some powerful issues. When I saw we were finally going to get Rob Daniels’ story, I knew An Unlocked Mind was going to be intense.

Fans of the Collars and Cuffs series will remember Alex’s bratty younger brother Rob from 'An Unlocked Heart'. If you don’t, or haven’t read books from either collection yet, don’t worry. The authors do a wonderful job of blending the brothers’ stories into this one, so you won’t miss a thing. Just like the rest of the novels in both of these series, 'An Unlocked Mind' can be enjoyed as a standalone.

Rob is headstrong and stubborn and I honestly couldn’t believe some of his antics. Basically the Best. Brat. Ever! This mischievous boy is definitely not like any submissive Vic’s known before. Rob’s spunk and sass are just what Vic needs to get him out of his rut.

While all of the relationships in this series are unique, I’ve got to say Vic and Rob’s journey stole my heart. From their very first interaction these two men light a spark in each other that results in great chemistry. I can’t wait to see where they go from here.

As the series grows it appears Wells and Williams are having great fun blending scenes with characters from previous books. I’m enjoying watching how everyone’s progressing and how they impact each other’s lives. I can’t help it; at this point I’m totally invested. 'An Unlocked Mind' is a great addition, but buyer beware: once you try one, you’ll want more!

Book two in the Secrets series turned out to be my favorite in the series so far, including its predecessor Collars and Cuffs. Rob and Vic had an unfortunate encounter one night at the newly opened BDSM club called Secrets. Vic is taken back by the young man who calls him a derogatory name and storms away from him at the club. With his night ruined, he decides to head home and spots the young man walking and shivering away from the club. He decides he can’t in good conscience allow the man to walk alone and offers him a ride. What he didn’t expect was the man who insulted him would turn his world upside down, in the best possible way.

Rob is such a complicated character. If you read book one of the Collars and Cuffs series, you’ll remember Alex and the brother that humiliated him and made his life hell. In this book, you’ll see the same Rob we already met, and then we see the side of him that had me falling in love with his hot-mess self. He’s been so angry and hateful for so long that he doesn’t know how to break out of it. He starts going to the BDSM clubs to prove to himself that his brother is weak. Rob wants to prove to himself that he’s a real man unlike the naked men on their knees. Of course he’s in complete denial. He’s never found anyone at the club that’s caught his attention until he sees the big sexy man in leather. After their disastrous encounter, Rob seeks the older man out and starts a friendship between them. Rob pulled my heartstrings from the very beginning. I love the side of him that Vic pulls to the surface. He’s such a brat, and I laughed so many times at his sassy self.

Vic is not the typical Dom I’ve read so many times. He’s this handsome, intense man, and has the biggest heart. He wants to help this damaged young man find his way and help Rob mend the hurt he has caused. He wants Rob to be a better man. Vic’s strength as a man and a Dom is exactly what Rob needs. As Rob begins to assert himself into Vic’s life, Vic realizes that Rob is exactly what he’s been missing.

I love how these two characters developed throughout the book. The relationship starts out tumultuous at best but evolves into something so beautiful. Rob has so many layers to him, and I love how Vic is able to pull them back so we discover the real Rob. These two have become my favorite BDSM couple. I absolutely adored this book. I really hope this series continues and I find more characters to fall in love with. I highly recommend this series by these incredible authors. I also love the books they each write separately.

Parker Williams writes in a way that’s gritty and intriguing. He’s like a chameleon. None of his characters are the same. They are each so very different. KC Wells is such a sassy romantic. Her guys are always lively, and her storylines are some of the best.

I mentioned in my review of book one in this series how happy I was to see the former series, ‘Collars and Cuffs’, come full circle with Eli and Jarod taking over a BDSM club, Secrets, in London. Now with ‘An Unlocked Mind’ this exciting writing duo is bringing another thread from C&C into this world. Rob is Alex’s younger brother and Alex was featured in ‘An Unlocked Heart’, book one in the C&C series. In that particular novel Rob was a repugnant little sh*t who made Alex’s life far more difficult than he needed to. To say I was excited to watch Rob’s evolution is a mild description for what I felt.

Tears trickled down his cheeks. I am such a fuckup. He ruined everything good he wanted in life by being a little prick. Anger and jealousy had driven him to create a schism between him and his brother. And now Rob was alone....... Alex hadn’t done anything wrong. All he’d done was find love. Love. What must it be like to love someone like that?

I was thrilled with the direction the authors took this story as it really could have gone many ways. Vic is a remarkable reader of people and I don’t believe anyone else could have begun to understand Rob, except Vic. Rob views himself as scum. In fact, he can’t remember a time when he ever liked who he is. The regret he feels over what happened with Alex, even though it was their mum who made it worse, continues to torment Rob. He has so much anger and hatred - directed within - that he’s just a ball of boiling emotions. When he and Vic meet, Vic is positive Rob is buried in a closet, perhaps not even aware of his feelings. What Vic is sure about is that no one has ever treated Rob with kindness or believed in him.

Rob surprised me at almost every turn. He is so much more than he believes he is, or can ever be. I was amazed at how quickly Rob took the difficult task of looking inside and admitting to his feelings. Even more incredible is that he then admits them to Vic; that Rob is turned on by some of the things he sees at Secrets and that Rob wants Vic as more than just a friend. It is him realizing he finds the BDSM club stimulating and that he wants to partake of that lifestyle that has him realizing he is just like Alex, and that’s what originally scared him.

Rob took a good, long, searching look at himself. The old Rob was a jealous, spiteful, petty person whose sole outlook was what was in it for him. In only two months, Vic had shone a spotlight on that Rob, forcing the truth to come out. Rob hated that person. He never wanted to be him again.

The dedication from the authors at the beginning said this book was for all of us who thought Rob Daniels was an irredeemable little sh*t (I was one) and they hoped to change our minds. They certainly succeeded where I am concerned. I’d like to believe that Rob would have made it through all of his issues eventually, even if he’d never met Vic. But I don’t think he would have. Rob needed Vic but it was glaringly obvious how much Vic needed him too. I adored seeing Rob and Alex’s dad stepping up to the plate again, and watching Alex and Rob’s hesitant steps back to being brothers was heartwarming.

Ms. Wells and Mr. Williams, you have outdone yourselves with ‘An Unlocked Mind.’ It is far more than I ever expected it to be and not only did I fall for Vic - which was kind of guaranteed since I’m a bit of a wench when it comes to the tall, strong, quiet type - but I fell hard for Rob, the cheeky bastard. Their romance was beautiful to watch. Thank you. I’m looking forward to more books and I can’t wait to see who the next story will be about.

NOTE: This book was provided by Dreamspinner Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews

Rob is going through a lot. He has moved our of his mom's house and trying to make it on his own, but its rough. The manager of the grocery store he works for picks on him, he is barely making ends meet, his rent is raised, then his so-called best friend turns on him making matters worse. He is also going through a lot in his mind with mixed feelings about his brother's lifestyle and a free grand opening pass to Secrets draws him.

Vic is a well-respected, sought-after Dom, but hasn't been able to get to the club in a while and he missed grand opening. He finally goes to check it out and a young man runs into im ( literally) and is rude. Leaving the club he sees the young man walking down the road in the cold rain with no coat. Part of him wants to leave him but something inside calls to him so he picks Rob up.

An Unlocked Mind is book two in the Secrets series and can be read as a standalone, Though Wayne and Ellis are in this book. Also, a lot of mention of Alex, Rob's brother and their past though that is eventually brought to light. You just have to be patient. I recommend reading Alex and Leo's story in the Collars and Cuffs series.

An Unlocked Mind is a very good angsty story. Rob is struggling and I like how his thoughts and feelings and confusion is addressed. I liked Vic as well but him being a dom I did expect more of the BDSM and dom factor in this book. Don't get me wrong there are some hot scenes and they are even unique but ninety percent of the book is Rob's emotional turmoil and the building relationship between the two men which was awesome.

If you like second chances, second-chance at life, gay for you or bisexual men, BDSM, angst and some hot man-sex you will like this.

If you are considering reading BDSM but not sure, this would be a good place to start. No Whips or paddles here.