Book Review: Helpmate, Chess Series #4 by Sean Michael

Helpmate, book four in the Chess series by Sean Michael, is so sad in many ways, it’s sad and painful because honestly you don’t know if Knight will make it or not, and his so very lost and hurting more than because he broke every damn bone in his body. Not quite but almost. Knight seems ok at first but after a while he just gets so depressed that you think he might just be dramatic enough to end his own misery.

I love this book, just like the others, but I have to say this book is a hard read in a way, an uncomfortable read, because I feel as if the characters are being disconnected somehow to each other. I think this is on purpose by the author to put doubts in the reader’s head, to make us wonder what the hell is going on here, to build angst and questions. I feel especially sympathetic towards Jason and Rook, because yes, they have each other and they love each other best, as they say. But Knight and Bishop seem to have this bond and connection that leaves Rook and Jason on the outside, or maybe it is just my thoughts on the matter because much of the book is about helping Knight and getting him back not just home from he hospital and alive, but having him back as the man that he once was.

The best thing in this book besides the angst and the harsh story of dealing with a hurt lover, is that Jason gets to shine. He really steps up to the plate in this one and not only speaks up but shows that he’s not just this random guy who lives with them but that he’s a part of their family and is there to stay. He fights for Knight and him getting better and truly show that he loves him. That after already being the pillar supporting Rook and Bishop when things were touch and go with Knight.

Book four in the Chess series is very much about dealing with crisis, in coming together when it counts and being there for each other when it counts. It’s about being together when you are apart, to know that even if one of you or several of you need time away it doesn’t mean that you are loved less. And it is about believing in that and fighting for that. Helpmate is about becoming a family for real and all members of it believing that they belong.


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