This is War, Baby - K. Webster

I am still struggling to find the right words to describe how I feel about this book, but I am going to try. Heed this warning though, This is War, Baby is a dark read, it ends in a cliffhanger, and you will have more questions than answers. If you can handle it, read it! Out now for just 99 pennies!

Rating: 5 Stars
Published: February 29, 2016
Genre: Adult, Romance, Dark
Many thanks to K. Webster for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Amazon Goodreads

My life had a plan. Until he invaded it and stole it all away. My captor took me and I became a pawn. 
His strategy changed and he sent me away to WAR, because money is everything in this world. 
In my WAR, though, I found peace.
I couldn’t help but find love where I least expected it, with a man who lived a battle every day of his life
…all inside his head. 
But then my captor came back for me.
Yet, this time, battle lines had been drawn and I was protected.
So we thought.
Even though my WAR was raging,
my captor would fight to the death.
The good guys always win, right?
Not always.
All’s fair in love and WAR, right? 
Not this time.

"I'm completely at his mercy. Cast under his evil spell."

It is easy to take this book at face value and decide to give up on it at 15%, because it is dark, it is ugly, and there is very little hope. Stick it out if you can, it will all be worth it in the end. As a huge fan of K. Webster, I know there is a reason for everything so when the going gets tough, I keep reading, because I know it all leads to something. I was uncomfortable, I was upset, and I was 100% glued to the pages of this book. Told in two parts from dual POV's, This is War, Baby is the story of seventeen (yes, 17) year-old Baylee and her life in captivity. Part one I like to think of as "Before War" and part two is "With War," if you caught the part where I say there is a cliffhanger you know to expect something more in book two.

"She'll belong to me and nobody will say a fucking word. Her father will thank me. Her mother will hug me. Her boyfriend will hate me. And she will love me." 

I loved Baylee, she's the kind of heroine you want to protect, you want to see her win the war, to see her make it through the other side of all the horrors. Then there's Gabe, oh Gabe. Like Baylee, it is hard to know what you feel about this man and all the dark parts of him. He's hard to forget, but easy to leave behind until he's right in front of you. Then there's Warren, a man at war with himself, who finds companionship in an unlikely person. He's a man with an ugly past he can't overcome. I can't say more about the plot, but I can say this, I equally hate and love all of these characters, I was blown away from start to finish, and I am quite literally choking on the questions I have. The cliffhanger is a doozy, it will absolutely mess you up, but it is worth it. I repeat, all of this is worth it. In just one month, yes one month, we will get This is Love, Baby, and I personally cannot wait.

“Why won’t you move your queen, Bay? It’s the only move.”
She starts toward the door but gives me a tender smile.
“Because the queen always protects the king.” 
And then she whispers the last part. “Even from himself.”