End of the Line

Rail Riders, Book 1

By: Nicky James

Narrated by: Nick J. Russo

Length: 10 hrs and 56 mins

Publisher's summary

When a boy who has everything meets a boy who has nothing, life will never be the same again.

Leopold Van Eschen is in big trouble. All the money in the world won’t save him from what he’s done. On the run, desperate to get away, Leo finds himself seeking help from a bunch of vagabonds he meets in a railyard.

Leo has no idea his whole world is about to change.

Killian has been homeless and living on the fly for nine years. The closest thing he has to family is a group of fellow freight-hoppers. With the wind at his back and the whole world stretched out before him, he’s happy. It’s not an easy life, but you can’t put a price on freedom.
A chance run-in with a wealthy stranger turns Killian’s world upside down. Leo’s cute and desperate to get away. Without knowing a thing about him, Killian and his friends help Leo escape the city.
It doesn’t take long before Killian realizes the boy he’s slowly falling for has dark secrets.

Who is Leo running from?
What happened to make Leo want to give up a life of wealth to live the life of a vagabond instead?

**End of the Line is the first book in a queer romance series. It’s a story of two men from vastly different worlds who fall in love while on a journey of self-discovery. It’s a story of friendship and found family. No cliffhangers. 100% HEA**

©2021 Nicky James (P)2023 Nicky James

Amazing story

I love Nicky James' writing and particularly appreciate the variety of stories she tells. End of the Line is amazing, one of her best. It has a unique premise and a captivating storyline with a little bit of everything - some action/adventure, suspense, romance, hurt/comfort. It's perfectly crafted and expertly executed. The found family dynamic James creates between Leo, Killian, and their fellow rail riders is so strong. I adored it and am so glad several stories follow this fascinating group of created family. Highly recommended.

Unfortunately, I didn't love Nick J. Russo's vocal performance on this title. Russo is a skilled narrator, and he hits it out of the park when he's on. But he can be inconsistent and his interpretation of the characters here is a miss, at least for me. TBH, Russo isn't the strongest with accents and he tries for it here with Leo, but it's not quite right to start with and then he drops the accent fairly often. All in all, it made for a confusing listening experience. Russo's fundamentals are otherwise solid and he captures the scenes' emotions and dynamics. But because I found the accent issue distracting, I'd probably revert to just text for this story on rereads.

Leo & Killian

Wow!! This was an amazing action packed story and I absolutely loved Leo and Killian’s story! When the audio was released I was so excited to relive their story, and it did not disappoint. I was sucked in from the start and my heart was racing by the time I finished the first chapter! Nick J Russo did a great job in bringing these two, and the rest of the rail riding crew, to life! Killian and his friends who came together by rail riding and made a found family. The group came across Leo running for his life, and took him under their wing. No one more so than Killian. I was pulled right into their immediate friendship and chemistry. I loved the way Killian took care of Leo and how present he was for him when he needed him most. I was so there for the way their relationship developed. It was organic and swoony and made me smile. I felt their connection immediately and I loved how open they were with each other. I loved how the group rallied together to get through some heart stopping scrapes! I was so drawn into the action I found myself wondering how they were going to get out of some pretty sticky situations. I had no idea about rail riding before reading this book. Nicky did such an amazing job painting the picture of rail riding that by the time I was done I felt like I could catch my own train! I know I will never look at a freight train on a railroad crossing the same again! I loved getting to know all the friends in this story. The amazing sense of friendship created here was wonderful to read! I know there are some amazing stories behind these friends, I can’t wait to learn them all!

End of the Line. Great book

great writing, great performance. I couldn’t stop listening. The book kept me engaged throughout. The narration was spot on.

Incredible Journey!

I was so thrilled to revisit this glorious book on audio! Nick J Russo's narration helps bring the story to life. In true Nicky James fashion, she hooked me from the very first page and I went on a glorious ride with Leopold as he went on an incredible journey of self-discovery.  What started with him running from his life and a terrible incident evolved into him finding himself, finding his happiness, finding a found family, and finding love.  Leo was on the run and came across a group of friends who were rail riders. We are then emmersed into the fascinating world of rail riding. Who knew this existed? Who knew the danger and the thrills that you could experience living this life? I surely didn't, but as she always expertly does, Nicky James just paints such a detailed picture with her words that the reader is completely there experiencing everything right along with the characters. It was so interesting and such a unique thing to read about, I was captivated. 
This story had so much meat to it and such incredible character development. Yes this was a romance between Leo and Killian, and a swoony, steamy, heartmelting romance for sure, but it was so much more than that too. The relationships that developed between Leo and all of the group of friends was so touching. There were bonds formed and relationships mended that made me have all the feelings! I got emotional quite a few times throughout the story! This was just such a complete and utterly satisfying story of finding true friendship and love. I am just thrilled this is going to be a series because I am not nearly reading to say goodbye to this group of found family!

Wonderful!

This may be my favorite of Nicky’s books yet, oh my heart! 100% recommend! There’s suspense, danger, laughter, romance, more suspense, heartache and a perfect HEA!

wonderful start to new series!!

The Story:
Another great book from NJ.
Guys from opposite sides of the tracks forming a friendship and falling in love, while trying not to fall while catching.

End of the Line is an interesting premise for the newest series by the very talented Nicky James.
Leo, the son of a billionaire is running... from something, what? we don't know yet.
Killian has been catching freight trains for most of his life with his trusted 3 friends is also running. Killian is just running from life.
An accidental meeting has brought these two men together.
End of the Line is a slow-burn romance. It's a well written story that takes us on a "journey" that you won't soon forget.

I'm so looking forward to reading upcoming books in this series!!

The Narration:
Nick J Russo has done a phenomenal job with this book. His narration and accents brought this amazing story to life for me.

Life Adventure!

I love Nicky James stories!! She doesn't waste words with filler. This was such a wonderful adventure!! I loved the found friends and acceptance. I loved the traveling, and how Leo learned the lingo. I fell in love with all the characters and how they supported and loved each other. It had some angst and was a slow burn. The spice isn't super hot but adds nicely to the story. I am def love this couple and I hope there's more stories with the other characters!
Nick J Russo was wonderful as always and brings these folks to life perfectly!

Truly Outstanding 💖

WOW...... Simply brilliant was hooked from the start absolutely love the book by Nicky James and now listening to audio with the narration of Nick J Russo which is simply fantastic he pulls you in and takes you along on this amazing and emotional journey with these amazing characters love Killian & Leo they are perfect for each other truly magnificent cant wait for more in series recommend so much. 💖

Unimagineable lifestyle

This is a great beginning to this series about rail riders. There is such raw emotion in all the characters. As the author introduces them it is so easy to picture each.
Leo is on the run. When he decides his only answer is to hop a train and he is in for a surprise. It isn’t like in the movies and not as easy as it looks. Luckily he has Killian there to save him. This is the start of a very complicated relationship between Leo, Killian and the other rail riders.
There are so many emotional times in this story, funny and sad. This author knows how to play on my heartstrings and the characters do that. Leo is so innocent about life yet so caring. Killian has a heart of gold. Their interaction with the others gave me more than a few laughs. Nick’s narration is perfect here. He brings the characters and settings to life in ways my imagination can’t compare. I’m anxious to hear the next in the series.

Emotional and fascinating

Story: First and foremost, as usual with Nicky James books, we are served with fascinating characters! The personalities, experiences and feelings of the MCs are all there, ready to be delved into and written with amazing skill.
Then there is the setting of the story, which is described in a very enjoyable way. The research shows and it's a setting I haven't encountered before, so all the more fun to learn something new.
The story is dynamic, full of difficult and not so difficult feelings, and it pulled me in from the get go.
Narration: Nick J. Russo did an amazing job acting out the emotions with his impressive skills. The narration amplifies the story, giving the characters even more dimensions and the mood of the story was really well matched.

Loved every minute ❤️

I’m struggling to see how I can write a review that will give justice to this masterpiece written by Nicky James.
The originality of the storyline, the strength and depth of the characters, the way I was fully engaged from the very first line and was compelled to keep listening until way into the night. It’s everything I expected from this author and more.

Circumstances bring Leopold and Killian into each other’s orbit and so begins a literal cross country journey that’s not only about freight hopping but also about finding a group of friends that become family and also finding that person that is meant for you.

I laughed, I cried, I felt the adrenaline rush of jumping on and off trains and I felt my heart melt when Leopold and Killian found their way to a well deserved HEA, the “End of the line...and beyond.”

The superb narration by Nicki J Russo made each character easily distinguishable from the others and not once did the tone or cadence for each deviate throughout the entire performance. A truly magnificent listen that I cannot recommend highly enough.

absolute amazing performance

nick j russo brought this story and the characters perfectly to life I loved every part of the narration and the beautifully written words

I felt every emotion and was not disappointed