The Bruise-Black Sky

More Heat than the Sun, Book 5

By: John Wiltshire

Narrated by: Gary Furlong

Length: 7 hrs and 48 mins

Publisher's summary

It's either a brave or a stupid person who threatens anything Nikolas Mikkelsen loves.

Ben usually overlooks Nikolas' occasionally jarring dissonance. Not this time. A deep rift, a terrible lie, separates them. Eleven thousand miles from Nikolas, in New Zealand, it's bitter winter as Ben films the tragic story of a post-apocalyptic gladiator, a victim of his own personal darkness. But on receiving a death threat, Ben suspects the truth of actor Oliver Whitestone's suicide. Someone doesn't want this movie made. It's fortunate for Ben, therefore, that dissonance is a state of unrest, a longing for completion. As if Nikolas would stay at home in disgrace while Ben Rider-Mikkelsen becomes the target of a crazed stalker....

©2021 Decent Fellows Press (P)2021 Decent Fellows Press

love this series

have loved every book, great narration, Gary has become a favorite. The authors great also!

Another fabulous book - Love Nik & Ben

The Bruise-Black Sky is the fifth book in Wiltshire’s More Heat Than the Sun series. These books follow the same couple and each book builds off some events from previous ones. In some ways these stand on their own but as there are ongoing storylines, I’d definitely recommend reading them all and in order – starting with Love is a Stranger.

NOTE: This review contains spoilers to earlier books.

The pacing of this book is a bit slower and the emphasis is much heavier on the relationship between Ben & Nik and less on the thriller/suspense aspect. That’s not a complaint at all. I still thoroughly enjoyed this one, just in a different way.

Nik & Ben’s interplay has shifted a bit during this one. Ben has a new perspective on their power dynamic after recovering from amnesia and they’re both still dealing with Kate’s betrayal. More of Nik’s past is revealed. Layering in a stalker who threatens Ben’s life and they are thrust into world-wide travel in an attempt to stop the person responsible.

Wiltshire gives us new insight into Nikolas the father-figure as his bond with Emmy deepens and he teams up with one of her classmates in an unlikely adventure. At the same time, he is Nikolas/Aleksey and protectiveness for those he loves is expressed in dark and twisted ways.

Sprinkled in all this is humor. So many laughs, giggles, and smirks in reaction to the interplay between all the characters. Squeezy continues to be one of my favorite side characters and I was thrilled to see more of him in this story. While the “bro banter” between Ben & Squeezy is delightful – the antagonistic collaboration of Nik & Squeezy to keep Ben safe is truly hilarious.

Then – the ending. I was totally caught off guard. I loved it and hated it and loved hating it. An emotional roller coaster. While this does not end on a cliffhanger – a new mystery and whole new direction for is opened up. I’m thrilled that book 6, Death’s Ink-Black Shadow, released today so I can jump right in.

Narration:
Gary Furlong. It’s repetitive, but his narrations are glorious. Complicated emotions come across effortlessly with Nik at turns dark and vulnerable and Ben generally cheerful yet deviously provoking Nik. He has even more accents to work with here (hello New Zealand & America!) and they are wonderful. The hacker was obnoxiously comical.

While I borrowed the ebook through Kindle Unlimited, I received a free copy of this audiobook from Decent Fellows Press and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.

enjoyed it

John Wiltshire is an unknown author for me. I picked up this series because I was looking for another long series (more than 5 books) revolving around the same characters and something a little "gritty" - it was a bonus that it was narrated by Gary Furlong. My overall comments are reflective of the whole 9 books, because I feel the 9 books are well worth the investment and it's been a very long time since I finished a series and went straight back to the beginning to listen again. 👍👍

Each book has a good pace and builds on events from the previous book as time progresses through the 14 years Ben & Nickolas are together, I was taken on a roller coaster ride of the best parts of an action/adventure movie, ran the full gamut of emotions and while the character development was subtle, it was well written and builds a relationship with a solid foundation that can withstand any force thrown its way.

Despite certain elements of some of the books not being to my liking, I was completely emersed in the stories, entertained from beginning to end and will definitely look for more from this author in the future.

📖 Story comment: The Bruise-Black Sky - enjoyed it, how is it trouble follows these two wherever they go! Another enjoyable adventure with twisty plots and interesting characters - never a dull moment.

🎧 Narrator comment: I enjoyed Gary Furlong's narration, he suits the characters, has good cadence, inflections and intonations and it's easy to distinguish the characters from each other. Overall an enjoyable performance and he bought the characters of the book to life

-------
Note to self ... the lack of lube drove me nuts ... 9 books and only one instance of "gun oil" to ease the way?

📌 Where does it fall on my personal scale? 7
• 1 not my thing • 2 didn't like the narration • 3 didn't keep my attention • 4 was good, but once was enough [3⭐] • 5 enjoyed it [4⭐] • 6 will listen again if i'm in the mood for the narrator [4⭐] • 7 goes on the "re-listen" list [4⭐] • 8 kept me up past bed-time [4.5⭐] • 9 recommended to family/friends [4.75⭐] • 10 own it in all formats [5⭐] • 11 keep a copy with me at all times [5⭐]

Ben’s time on a film set turn dangerous

Ben is off to New Zealand to film a biopic… so naturally all hell breaks loose and lives are threatened. Someone is sending death threats, so security is already high. And naturally Nik isn’t sitting at home while Ben might be in danger.

Every one of the books in this series is amazing. So much complexity of plot and characterization that you feel you are living lifetimes along with Ben and Nik.

Amazing reading by Gary Furlong, as usual.

Great story. Great narration.

Two things stood out for me in this book. First, the author has a talent for creating unexpected plot twists. I didn't expect the ending of this book. Nikolas is outmaneuvered from time to time, but I wasn't expecting this. I am rarely surprised by this style of plot twist, but the magician's handwaving trick worked on me this time.

Second, John Wiltshire has a talent for writing steamy romantic scenes. I read romance frequently, but I tend to skim excessive sex scenes because most authors miss the mark on building an emotional connection in a sex scene. This seems important if you are writing an actual romance rather than smut. I don't consider literally porn to be even remotely the same as romance. Virtually very sex scene with Ben and Nikolas showcases the personal connection between them. Each scene has carefully chosen language, rhythm, and pace that matches the chemistry between them at that moment.

Once again, Gary Furlong's performance was excellent. His rather soothing voice can lull you into a sense of peace just when you are ready to hunt down the author and torture said author until they stop torturing your favorite character. Anyway....

Great book. Great series. Probably gonna be rereading/relistening to this series over and over. As long as the end doesn't push me to drastic actions. I have been known to throw an ebook reader across the room before. I'm only on the sixth one. Significant other bought me a phone with a battle tested Gorilla Glass screen. Nikolas really needs to look into that for his next phone.