Book Review: Raze

The pick for my first shot at the Russian Roulette in My Vampire Book Obsession Click! Read a book with a connection to Russia

🌟🌟4.5 heart-wrenching stars!! 🌟🌟

'They were always meant to be together, one boy and one girl, two hearts split into two, sent to far off lands on their own. For God wanted to see if true love could be tested. He wanted to see if two halves of one soul could find each other again, even against the odds. Years would pass. They would both be hurt. They would both be sad, but one day, when they least expected it, they would stumble into each other's paths. The question is: would they recognize each other's soul? And would they find their way back to love...'


This is only my second book by Tillie Cole and I fell in love. It's not something everyone would like. The story is dark, bloody, brutal, crazy, vicious and cruel and contains pretty much every kind of abuse you could think of. It is not for the faint of heart. If murder, rape, beatings and psychotic possessiveness are not your cup of tea, you may want to skip this one. But you should know that underneath all that darkness, you'll find one of the most beautiful love stories ever written.

Prisoner 818 was held for years in captivity in the Gulag, an underground hell where boys were forced to fight to the death and groomed to maim, kill and slaughter, until all humanity was
stripped away and they turned into nothing but hate-filled monsters, rage-fueled killing machines.

Allowed no name but a number, and with his entire past repressed through drugs, prisoner 818 survives abuse and torture and becomes an unremorseful, unrivaled and unstoppable fighter in the ring. He knows nothing but violence, death and brutality. To survive, 818 becomes Death.

A Fucking Stone Cold Killer


The only name prisoner 818 had ever been called was Raze, because he razed any fucker that got in his way.

And he survived for one thing only: REVENGE! Bloody, slow and violent revenge.

Revenge on the man who lied.
Revenge on the man who wronged him.
Revenge on the man who condemned him and turned him into this: a rage-fueled killing machine. A monster void of humanity; a monster filled with hate.

He doesn't remember the life before the cage. He doesn't know the world outside his prison. His whole existence is narrowed down to a small cell, blood, anger, hate and the next fight to the death. Day after day with no end in sight. Until he gets a chance to escape. And then he's free to go after the only thing he survived for: a name, a place, REVENGE and the need to KILL!

Kisa Volkova is the only daughter of Kirill ‘The Silencer’ Volkov, head of the infamous ‘Triad’ bosses of New York's Russian Bratva. Her life is protected. In reality, it’s a virtual prison. Her father’s savage treatment of his rivals and his lucrative and coveted underground gambling ring—The Dungeon—ensures too many enemies lurk at their door.

Stripped of her freedom, her morals...her life, Kisa dreams to be free!

A dutiful Russian Princess, Kisa must be the perfect Bratva woman, obey her papa's orders and stay completely under the control of her husband to be, Alik Dubrov, the heir to the Russian Bratva. Alik is no better than the stone cold-killer of the Gulag. A crazy m-**er nicknamed 'The Butcher' for the pleasure he takes in the cage, he controls every facet of Kisa’s life, dominates her every move; keeps her subdued and dead inside. Alik is a sadistic psychopath who loves to inflict pain and keeps Kisa always by his side because she 'silences the voices in his head'. Which should tell us how utterly f**ed-up the guy really is.

And then one night, everything changes.

While working for her church—the only reprieve in her constant surveillance—Kisa stumbles across a tattooed, scarred, but stunningly beautiful homeless man on the streets. Something about him stirs feelings deep within her; familiar yet impossibly forbidden desires. He doesn’t talk. Doesn’t communicate with anyone. He’s a man beyond saving, and a man she must quickly forget...for both their sakes.

But when weeks later, out of the blue and to her complete surprise, he’s announced as the replacement fighter in The Dungeon, Kisa knows she’s in a whole lot of trouble. He’s built, ripped and lethally unforgiving to his opponents, leaving fear in his wake and the look of death in his eyes.


I LOVED Raze!! He managed to find the man he needed to kill. But in his path he encountered a girl. A blue-eyed girl who called to something inside of him. A blue-eyed girl who haunted his dreams. He cannot remember his past, he doesn't really know her, but he somehow feels she means something to him.

My heart broke for Raze, because he was so scarred, so broken and so alone! What he went through was pure hell! And when he got out, he had to learn how to live outside the cage the same way a child first learns about the world as he grows. With no notion of love, of friendship or compassion he lived an empty life. He didn't know or remember kindness, caresses or care and had to learn them all over again. What is a friend? What is love? Raze didn't know their meaning. And the way he learned was heart-wrenching!! He is so beautiful as a character!! One of the best I've ever met within the pages of a book!

I don't want to spoil to much of this so I'll just say: this is a story of two lost souls being driven apart, horribly hurt and then finding their way back together. it is a brutal story of suffering and redemption, of hate and love!
“I need you with me. I only feel at home with you.”


'Can I have you?' - A question that brought tears to my eyes because of the way it was asked!! So sweet.. so innocent... so hopeful.. so unlike the stone-cold killer who asked it! And yet so alike him!!



'Can I have you?' - A question that started it all! One of the most beautiful love stories ever written! Full of pain and hurt but also full of love and hope!


If you love dark, bloody and gritty, this read is a MUST!

Check out this book and others by Tille Cole at www.tilliecole.com

Grab a copy of the book HERE.