Born without the ability to feel pain or fear, Pennsylvania has lived his life believing he’s a monster and a freak. Because most people either keep their distance or are cruel, Penn has spent the last few years wandering from town to town, never putting down roots, never letting anyone know who he really is. Then one night he steps out of the shadows and into the light to save children from a burning house, not knowing he’s saving a mob boss’s kids. That split-second decision changes everything for Penn.
Gideon is a dangerous and powerful man trying to keep his territory profitable and safe, and it’s been peaceful for the last couple of years. Though raising twins as a widower is hard, at least he has family to help him. Family is everything to Gideon, so when someone tries to take them away from him, the once quiet streets turn into chaos. Determined to find his family’s savior, Gideon discovers so much more. His heart, which has felt like it’s barely beat since his wife died, comes to life again when he looks into Penn’s eyes for the first time…the man who risked everything to save his family.
With a war on the horizon, Gideon and Penn have to navigate staying alive, figuring out if there’s a future for them, and destroying the real monsters trying to dismantle everything Gideon’s built.
Davidson King has once again proven she is the Queen of Mayhem. Be My Monster is danger personified and lets face it, despite what Gideon calls himself, it's a mafia setting, or at least maifa-ish😉. Now, there are several mafia-style books out there so you might be wondering what makes King's stories stand out? Honestly, it's the heart of the characters. If you live in that life, I think its safe to say you aren't reading this review so I think it's equally safe for me to say none of us can speak from personal experience and doubt any of us will ever face that kind of danger in our lifetime and she creates these characters we'll never meet in our daily lives and yet, you feel as if you could. Her characters are a mixture of OTT-can't-possibly-be-real and family-is-everything-could-be-my-brother-from-another-mother and it's that bat-crap crazy which makes King's mayhem stand above the rest.
I'm not going to talk specifics about the danger the author has created within the pages of Be My Monster so as not to spoil anything but know that it doesn't slow down at all, fast-paced, adrenaline-pumping, knee-bouncing grit that hooks you quick and doesn't let go. When I swiped the last page, I was not prepared to say goodbye.
How can one not love Penn? He is just so darn lovely, I want to wrap him in bubblewrap and never let him go. I think in general most people are inherently good and want to do the right thing with little to no recognition, or at least I'm that way. I would help others, as Penn does when coming across a burning home, and though my reasons behind it may differ, I'd be happy to slip away with my identity unnoticed as I'm definitely on the introverted side. This plays a huge part in what connected me to the character(I'll mention a little more on connecting to Penn further down) and added to the heart I stated above.
As for Gideon, despite his penchant for provoked violence, and "provoked" is very important here and also adds to what I mentioned in the beginning of this review, I think he is also very freakn' lovely. Family seems to control his every action, or reaction in some cases, and I can certainly relate to that aspect of his character. Don't get me wrong, he is no pushover and he has no qualms about letting his monster side out when it needs exercising but he is not fueled by power for the sake of power.
Throw these two guys together and the result is explosive, a well balanced journey. I just learned this morning there are plans for further Penn/Gideon stories and I'm ready to reserve my seat to hitch a ride whenever they let the author in on more of their tales.
As for the supporting cast, well the kids are super uber adorable. Kids can be tricky to write, too often they either come off as spoiled brats who need a hard timeout or sugary sweet they should be living in the dentist's waiting room. Olivia, Owen, and Mateo are definitely the kind of kids you wished you saw more of in stores and restaurants, energetic but respectful. Little Olivia is a spitfire and I have a feeling she'd be the sure fire fit to take over Gideon's position if it really was a mafia household, which we all know it's not😉😉.
I can't mention this next part without a little personal backstory so #sorrynotsorry. I have no experience with the very rare no fear & no pain gene mutation, FAAH-OUT, Penn lives with, I do however have extensive experience with peripheral neuropathy, which is not "no pain" and certainly not "no fear" but it does come with similar warnings. Both of my parents deal/dealt with neuropathy(my mother who passed away last year lived with it for 20+ and my dad only the past couple) where the limbs, legs and hands, are numb so even though there is technically no pain there is more accurately "no feeling" or complete numbness. Most recently my dad, for example, was testing the softness of the pasta I was cooking for him and his fingers came out wet. Luckily I had turned the temp down so there was no lasting damage but he never felt the near boiling temp or even the wetness. We all wish we didn't feel pain, it sounds like a very good thing actually but what most of us don't think about is pain is how our bodies tell us something is wrong so having no feeling of pain is in fact a very bad thing. I mention this, probably wordier than needed to be, because I want to commend and thank the author for getting this danger behind no pain concept spot on. I also want to talk about a scene towards the end, Penn has a memory flashback of sitting at Tenny's bedside telling her he wished he could take her pain away and Tenny responding "I wouldn't let you", it's as if the author was inside my head because I can't begin to guess how many times I said that to my mother over the years with her chronic pair and that was always her response as well, “I wouldn’t let you, Heather”. I mention this because, yes, that simple line made the tears fall uncontrollably at the memories it brought to mind, it also speaks to the realism behind the characters and helped me connect to them. So thank you, Davidson King for a great story but more importantly, the research and respect you put into the "little details" that connect readers and characters.
PROLOGUE
Past
“This is not a typical situation, Tenny. His parents clearly know people and have the money to make this happen so easily for them.”
“I don’t understand, sir. Why would they put their five-year-old son up for adoption? Has he done something? Have they?”
I sat on the bed, my back to them as I stared out the window. My focus was on the pond across the way and the group of ducklings swimming in circles around their parents. Did they love their ducklings?
“The file I was given says very little, Tenny. It does say he isn’t dangerous, just…different. They couldn’t deal with him.” That last part was said under the older man’s breath.
I’d glanced at the two adults as they’d come in. One was older like my grandpa before he died. The other was a real pretty Black lady with braids and a friendly expression. She was older than Mommy but not by much.
“And you want me to talk with him?”
“Please, Tenny. You have a way about you.”
She sighed. I was used to that sound—Mommy and Daddy did that anytime I did something I wasn’t supposed to do.
Footsteps approached, and I dropped my gaze to the floor. A pair of Mary Janes came into view, but I didn’t look up.
“Hey there, Mitchell. My name is Tennessee. It’s real nice to meet you.” She held out her hand. Daddy always said that was a polite way to greet people, so I took her hand and shook it.
“May I sit down?” She motioned to the spot beside me, and I shrugged. I didn’t care.
She was quiet for a bit, and then she finally spoke. “This feels like an unfair situation, doesn’t it, Mitchell?”
Slowly, I turned my head to peer up at her. Honey-brown eyes glimmered, and a small smile played on light-pink painted lips.
“Yes, ma’am.”
“I bet you’re feeling all sorts of ways, am I right?” I nodded and she hummed. “I have no doubt about that. I can’t imagine all that’s buzzing around that head of yours, but you know what, Mitchell?”
“What?”
“I’d like to find out. I know you don’t believe this, or me, and likely all trust for everything has been thrown out the window, but I want you to know I’m here for you, and I’ll wait as long as I have to for you to believe me.”
I didn’t believe her. I didn’t believe anyone. Mommy and Daddy would tell me they loved me; then I’d hear them tell people I was a monster, a freak. I didn’t understand why. I was sure Tennessee would find out soon enough.
I looked out the window once again. The ducks were gone, and even though Tennessee sat beside me, I felt alone.
“Go on now. Lift your shirt and let me see your back—you know the routine.” Tennessee spun me, forcing me to laugh. I lifted my shirt as she’d ordered, and she hummed. “Good, good. Okay, go wash those filthy hands and help me snap these green beans.”
“Okay, Tenny.” I rushed up the stairs. I’d lived at Sunshine House for five years, and in all that time Tennessee had been right beside me.
She was determined to get inside my head, and she asked a lot of questions. I didn’t know why my parents stopped loving me or why they thought I was a monster. It had taken time for her to break the mold with me, but eventually she did, and she’d always reiterated to me that I wasn’t a monster but that I was special.
She never gave up on me and dragged me to more doctors than I’d ever cared to see again. It wasn’t until I was eight years old that we’d gotten some answers about why I was so weird.
“He has a gene mutation called FAAH-OUT. It’s extremely rare and was quite hard to determine” a doctor had diagnosed, and immediately I’d thought I was one of the X-Men, and how cool was that?
Then came the serious talk. We’d gotten back to Sunshine House, and Tennessee told me to join her at the kitchen table.
“I didn’t really notice it all before. I knew there was something unique about you, Mitchell. You don’t get scared about anything. Thunder, loud noises—heck, that bonfire last summer got crazy, and you didn’t even flinch. Last year you fell from that tree house, broke your arm. You didn’t cry, promised it didn’t hurt. You even healed faster than the doctor thought you would. Now I understand why.”
Apparently, this gene mutation allowed me to feel virtually no pain, and no fear, and I healed faster than others. This mutation was so rare that there were only a few cases worldwide…like seriously, only a few.
Tennessee explained things that I should be wary of—like fire, things that could potentially harm me. And because I felt no pain, she made sure I checked myself over every day, twice a day, and any time I did something that could hurt me.
She told me all the time that I wasn’t a monster or a freak. Mostly, I believed her. But the kids in school thought I was weird. I guess my mutation showed or something, I dunno.
I was sitting at the table, helping Tennessee with dinner, when I got up the nerve to ask her a question that had been poking around my brain.
“Hey, Tenny?”
“Mmhmm?”
“Remember that time you told me all the people in your family were named after states?”
She smiled. “I did say something like that. Not everyone, though. My brothers Dakota and Montana, yes, and then me, Tennessee. All because my daddy’s name was Washington. But my mama, her name was Charlotte.”
“I like that. Um…I was wondering…if it’s okay with you, and if you say no, I understand.”
She dropped her green beans onto the towel and took my hand. “Whatever it is, Mitchell, you go on and say it. You know there’s nothing you can’t ask me.”
“Ok, maybe once I’m eighteen, and I’m an adult, I can change my name.”
She cocked her head. “You want to get rid of your name, Mitchell?”
I nodded. “My parents named me that, and they didn’t want me. I hate hearing my name.”
She pursed her lips and smirked. “What name were you thinkin’?”
She wasn’t saying no yet, but as soon as she heard the name and why, would she reject it, not wanting me to be part of her family traditions?
“I was thinking Pennsylvania? Penn for short, like people call you Tenny.”
“You want to…” She covered her mouth with her hand and I braced for rejection, but it didn’t come. A single tear fell down her cheek. “Why do you want that name, dear boy?”
I took a deep breath. “I want to be your family, Tenny, and it makes me feel like I am every time I think of my name as Pennsylvania.”
She wiped her cheek and beamed. “When you turn eighteen, if you still feel that way, I’ll help you change your name. I’d be honored…Penn.”
She never called me Mitchell again. Only Penn—or if I was in trouble, Pennsylvania. And two days after my eighteenth birthday, she kept her word. Soon enough, Mitchell was officially dead and Pennsylvania was born.
Davidson King, always had a hope that someday her daydreams would become real-life stories. As a child, you would often find her in her own world, thinking up the most insane situations. It may have taken her awhile, but she made her dream come true with her first published work, Snow Falling.
She managed to wrangle herself a husband who matched her crazy and they hatched three wonderful children.
If you were to ask her what gave her the courage to finally publish, she’d tell you it was her amazing family and friends. Support is vital in all things and when you’re afraid of your dreams, it will be your cheering section that will lift you up.
EMAIL: davidsonkingauthor@yahoo.com
