Book Review: Brothers LaFon, Part 1: Crucial Lessons by Joseph Lance Tonlet

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Brothers LaFon, Part 1: Crucial Lessons
Author: Joseph Lance Tonlet
Series: Brothers LaFon #1
Heroes: Alexander and Jeremiah LaFon
Genre: MM Thriller
Length: 60 Pages
Publisher: Joseph Lance Tonlet
Release Date: February 28, 2015
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Please see and take seriously the tags below.

Alexander LaFon lives a nightmare, but he deals with it. Deals with the fact that his mother abandoned him as an infant, deals with the fact that his father is never home, and deals with the fact that his older brother, Jeremiah, tortures him.

He dreams of escaping his mobile-home prison and finding a normal life. Of breaking free of his agony, finding a woman to love, becoming a teacher.

But some horrors you can never outrun. There’s nowhere to hide. Some nightmares chase you in your sleep and steal your freedom like a brutal thief. Some brothers never give up and never answer why.

Note: This book contains graphic violence, non-consensual sex, child abuse, and animal cruelty.

Review: I truly don’t know where to start with this review. I was blown away with the storytelling abilities of Mr. Tonlet in Grif’s Toy, and though this story is so very different from that one, the underlying skill is what still strikes me the most.

I guess it can’t be said enough that this story is not for the faint of heart; that the warnings are there for a purpose and should be heeded seriously. With that out of the way, this is the extremely twisted tale of two brothers, one who is an extremely disturbed and sadistic bastard, and one who is…not.

This story starts in current day giving you a sense of how things are being played out now, but it quickly goes back to the horrors of their childhood. Jeremiah (Miah) lords over Alex, often in very cruel ways. The lessons he chooses to force Alex’s compliance are nothing short of chilling. My heart was in my throat through much of this, and I just wanted to wrap Alex up and steal him away from Miah, while at the same time, hoping Miah gets what is coming to him in spades.

Disturbed, sadistic and manipulative bastard. That is Miah on the outside. On the inside, he is very complex, and the whole time, you just want to understand, though I don’t think we ever truly will, what the heck is going on in his brain. The level of psychological, let alone physical, trauma he inflicts on Alex is a bit mind blowing. Does he care, even a little? Clearly he must on some strange level to have basically made Alex his life’s work.

Alex is so sweet and conflicted and just trying to survive. My heart broke for him so many times until he finally makes his break. How he managed to make a life for himself is beyond me, though, as I said earlier, Miah has not given up, even all these years later. The level of Miah’s control seems to have no boundaries, nothing holding him back from doing whatever it takes to bring back Alex and restore things to the level they were throughout their young lives. Just when you think Miah can’t stoop any lower…

This is one of the most powerful short stories I have ever read. You will zip through this on the edge of your seat, cry and scream at the words being told and yet long for more at the end. The words just flow and you won’t want to skip a single one. If you like these kind of deeply dark psychological mindfucks, I highly recommend and strongly urge you to pick this story up. It does not disappoint on any level. I cannot wait to see where Mr. Tonlet is going to take us in the next segment, but I have no doubt it will be another amazing ride.

Overall Impression: It was amazing

*I received a copy of this book from the author in return for a fair and honest review.*