USA Today bestselling
author Tiffany Reisz returns to the world of The Red with an
imaginative sequel full of lust and magic, and the dangers unleashed
when the two are combined…
On the day of Lia’s university graduation party, her parents—wealthy art collectors with friends in high places—gift her a beautiful wine cup, a rare artifact decorated with roses. It’s a stunning gift, and one that August Bowman, a friend of her parents and a guest at Lia’s party, also has his eye on. The cup, August tells her, is known as the Rose kylix, and it’s no ordinary cup. It was used in the temple ceremonies of Eros, Greek god of erotic love, and has the power to bring the most intimate sexual fantasies to life.
But Lia is skeptical of August’s claims of the cup’s mythology and magic—after all, he’s a collector himself, and she suspects he just wants to get his hands on this impressive piece of art. So he dares her to try it for herself, and when Lia drinks from the Rose kylix she is suddenly immersed in an erotic myth so vivid it seems real—as though she’s living out the most sensual fantasy with August by her side…
Realizing the true power of this ancient and dangerous relic, Lia is even more wary of giving it up, though August insists it is only safe with him. He’s willing to pay the full value of the cup, but Lia has another type of trade in mind. One that finds them more tangled up in each other—and in fantasy—than either was prepared for.
On the day of Lia’s university graduation party, her parents—wealthy art collectors with friends in high places—gift her a beautiful wine cup, a rare artifact decorated with roses. It’s a stunning gift, and one that August Bowman, a friend of her parents and a guest at Lia’s party, also has his eye on. The cup, August tells her, is known as the Rose kylix, and it’s no ordinary cup. It was used in the temple ceremonies of Eros, Greek god of erotic love, and has the power to bring the most intimate sexual fantasies to life.
But Lia is skeptical of August’s claims of the cup’s mythology and magic—after all, he’s a collector himself, and she suspects he just wants to get his hands on this impressive piece of art. So he dares her to try it for herself, and when Lia drinks from the Rose kylix she is suddenly immersed in an erotic myth so vivid it seems real—as though she’s living out the most sensual fantasy with August by her side…
Realizing the true power of this ancient and dangerous relic, Lia is even more wary of giving it up, though August insists it is only safe with him. He’s willing to pay the full value of the cup, but Lia has another type of trade in mind. One that finds them more tangled up in each other—and in fantasy—than either was prepared for.
"The cloud started it."
Many thanks to Harlequin for approving my request! I was so excited when I got the email from NetGalley, I had to reread it to make sure my eyes weren't playing a trick on me.
The Rose is set in the same world as The Red, and that was all I needed to know to put this book on my must-read list. I figured if I enjoyed it even half as much as I did The Red, it would be great. The Rose showed me how silly it was of me to expect so little. It surpassed The Red. I was in a reader's paradise these last few days I spent in the company of Lia and August. I knew Tiffany Reisz has a wonderfully wicked imagination — she proved it time and again — but this was on a whole other level. Greek mythology level.
Not knowing how exactly The Red and The Rose are connected, I reread The Red before jumping into the enchanting world of The Rose. Was that necessary? No. But I'm glad I did it. Lia and August's erotic and non-erotic adventures were captivating, but having a look into how Mona and Spencer's marriage turned out — well, I liked that, too, to say the least. Certainly, all the mentions of Malcolm were appreciated more than they would've been had I not reacquainted myself with the story of The Red. One of the first things we learn about the main character Lia is that she's involved in certain illegal activities at which I chuckled and thought: her great-grandfather would be proud!
The story starts with a party, a precious gift, a new acquaintance, and an unwelcome guest. Though her great-grandfather would've been proud, Lia's business could put her and others in a lot of trouble, so it had to remain secret. When the unwelcome guest came with blackmail on his mind, Lia was backed into a corner. Her way out was August Bowman, the new acquaintance. They made a deal, and thus began the days of erotic fantasies fulfillment and healing.
The gift Lia received, the Rose kylix, had the power making erotic fantasies come true. Lia and August, both well-versed in Greek mythology, had fantasies involving characters and stories from those myths. It's been a long time since I read ancient Greek literature. I hardly remember anything, but I do know it wasn't nearly as interesting or fun or erotic as this. Yes, those parts were all that, but I couldn't help but like the parts where Lia and August were Lia and August a little more. I grew fond of both of their characters early on and I wanted to read about them as much as possible. Lia — "a kitten with a switchblade". And August — that man was like sunshine, a mischievous sunshine. I adored them both, 'cause they were both so freaking adorable. Their story was one that would make me laugh at one part, and make me teary-eyed at the next. Not to forget it was a smoking hot magical story. Of course, since Tiffany Reisz wrote it, the story had an air of mystery surrounding it, and by the end it had some major twists.
To summarize, this is an imaginative, sweet, erotic tale with a twist, and laugh-out-loud moments. In the honor of those moments, and August, and a naughty cloud, I picked the quote with which I started my review.
In the Acknowledgements section, Ms. Reisz asks: Shall we go for three? I say: Yes, please! And then for four, and five, and six...
***ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***
Many thanks to Harlequin for approving my request! I was so excited when I got the email from NetGalley, I had to reread it to make sure my eyes weren't playing a trick on me.
The Rose is set in the same world as The Red, and that was all I needed to know to put this book on my must-read list. I figured if I enjoyed it even half as much as I did The Red, it would be great. The Rose showed me how silly it was of me to expect so little. It surpassed The Red. I was in a reader's paradise these last few days I spent in the company of Lia and August. I knew Tiffany Reisz has a wonderfully wicked imagination — she proved it time and again — but this was on a whole other level. Greek mythology level.
Not knowing how exactly The Red and The Rose are connected, I reread The Red before jumping into the enchanting world of The Rose. Was that necessary? No. But I'm glad I did it. Lia and August's erotic and non-erotic adventures were captivating, but having a look into how Mona and Spencer's marriage turned out — well, I liked that, too, to say the least. Certainly, all the mentions of Malcolm were appreciated more than they would've been had I not reacquainted myself with the story of The Red. One of the first things we learn about the main character Lia is that she's involved in certain illegal activities at which I chuckled and thought: her great-grandfather would be proud!
The story starts with a party, a precious gift, a new acquaintance, and an unwelcome guest. Though her great-grandfather would've been proud, Lia's business could put her and others in a lot of trouble, so it had to remain secret. When the unwelcome guest came with blackmail on his mind, Lia was backed into a corner. Her way out was August Bowman, the new acquaintance. They made a deal, and thus began the days of erotic fantasies fulfillment and healing.
The gift Lia received, the Rose kylix, had the power making erotic fantasies come true. Lia and August, both well-versed in Greek mythology, had fantasies involving characters and stories from those myths. It's been a long time since I read ancient Greek literature. I hardly remember anything, but I do know it wasn't nearly as interesting or fun or erotic as this. Yes, those parts were all that, but I couldn't help but like the parts where Lia and August were Lia and August a little more. I grew fond of both of their characters early on and I wanted to read about them as much as possible. Lia — "a kitten with a switchblade". And August — that man was like sunshine, a mischievous sunshine. I adored them both, 'cause they were both so freaking adorable. Their story was one that would make me laugh at one part, and make me teary-eyed at the next. Not to forget it was a smoking hot magical story. Of course, since Tiffany Reisz wrote it, the story had an air of mystery surrounding it, and by the end it had some major twists.
To summarize, this is an imaginative, sweet, erotic tale with a twist, and laugh-out-loud moments. In the honor of those moments, and August, and a naughty cloud, I picked the quote with which I started my review.
In the Acknowledgements section, Ms. Reisz asks: Shall we go for three? I say: Yes, please! And then for four, and five, and six...
***ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***
XOXO,
