ARC Review: THE ROSE by Tiffany Reisz

 

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.

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"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.***

 

 

Until next time, happy reading! 

XOXO,

 

ARC Review: THE CHATEAU by Tiffany Reisz

THE CHATEAU: AN ORIGINAL SINNERS NOVEL

As the Jack-of-All-Wicked-Trades for a secretive French military intelligence agency, 24-year-old Lieutenant Kingsley Boissonneault has done it all—spied, lied, and killed under orders. But his latest assignment is quite out of the ordinary. His commanding officer's nephew has disappeared inside a sex cult, and Kingsley has been tasked with bringing him home to safety.

The cult’s holy book is Story of O, the infamous French novel of extreme sado-masochism. Their château is a looking-glass world where women reign and men are their willing slaves. Or are they willing? It’s Kingsley’s mission to find out.

Once inside the château, however, Kingsley quickly falls under the erotic spell cast by the enigmatic Madame, a woman of wisdom, power, and beauty. She offers Kingsley the one thing he’s always wanted. But the price? Giving up forever the only person he’s ever loved.

The Chateau is a new standalone Original Sinners novel from international bestseller Tiffany Reisz, author of The Siren and The Lucky Ones.

 

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The only appropriate reaction to this is:

KINGSLEY! KINGSLEY!

KINGSLEY!!!



I had to pinch myself when I saw Tiffany Reisz was writing another novel about Kingsley — the news was just too good to be true! Kingsley Théophile Boissonneault was and remains my favorite character in The Original Sinners series. I feel like I should write the author a thank-you note for writing The Chateau, and not only for writing it, but for making it available on NetGalley this month, too. This book could not have come at a better time. When I had hardly any desire for reading, when I only kept on starting books and leaving them, and when I had a terrible cold, King's book was just what the doctor ordered.

The author, as I've learned long ago from her many erotic stories, has the best wicked imagination. Especially when it comes to Kingsley, although I admit I'm extremely biased when it comes to this particular character. Truth be told, Ms. Reisz could have written a whole novel about King reading the newspaper, and I would've found it interesting. The Chateau isn't about that; it is the story of Kingsley's time in a sex cult. It was the beginning of 1989. I was about a month away from being born, and Kingsley was sent on a mission to a sex cult, because of course he was. If anyone would be sent on a mission to a sex cult, it would be Kingsley Edge. But the story didn't start with that mission. It started with him.

The most compelling part of The Original Sinners series to me was the relationship between Kingsley and Søren. You can't speak about Kingsley without mentioning Søren. So, of course, The Chateau started with Søren. Kingsley was 24, living in Paris, doing unofficial official work for the French military, and years after parting ways with Søren, his dreams were still haunted by that blond monster who smelled like winter. Then he got a new assignment: rescue the nephew of his commanding officer from a sex cult. In that cult men served women. For Kingsley, who hadn't served since Søren, it wasn't just another assignment, but also an opportunity to satisfy the submissive part of himself.

The 24-year-old submissive Kingsley was just so freaking beautiful. I was quite taken with him. Luckily, lots and lots of pages were dedicated to the erotic games the women in the château played with willing Kingsley. The most intense game was the one Madame played. Madame, the owner of the château, was quite an intriguing character with the air of mystery around her and with extensive knowledge of Kingsley's life. While the other women Kingsley met in the château played pleasurable games, Madame, a sadist, played a cruel one. However, it did answer questions that had plagued Kingsley about himself and Søren. Søren, again. Always Søren.

As was the case with, I believe, all of the books by T. Reisz I've read, the story in The Chateau took some unexpected turns. Kingsley assignment turned out to be more complicated than saving his superior's nephew from Madame's home. The château and Madame hid big secrets for Kingsley to uncover. I guessed one twist, at least. What was interesting was how Kingsley's observations about that place and its owner reflected in the underground kingdom he built and ruled some years from then. That was a nice touch.

In the end, like in the beginning, there was Søren.

Kingsley leaned forward, wanting to kiss Søren, and it seemed —for once— Søren would let him. At the last second, however, Søren brought his hand up and clapped it over Kingsley’s mouth.

“If you ever try to kiss me again without permission,” Søren said calmly, “I’ll eat your heart like an apple and throw the core on the ground and let the worms have the rest.”

The Chateau is a book all Kingsley fans, all Søren fans, and really all Original Sinners fans should read.


***ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***

 

 

Until next time, happy reading! 

XOXO,

 

ARC Review: WICKED ATTRACTION (The Protector, #2) by Megan Hart

A female bodyguard with enhanced abilities. A billionaire playboy committed to destroying people like her. A romance they didn’t expect…

Dive into the second book in this fantastic new series set in the near future from New York Times bestselling author Megan Hart!


Ewan Donahue has made a lot of mistakes, but making Nina Bronson want to leave him has been the worst. With the initial threats on his life out of the way, he doesn’t really need her protection, but hiring her to take care of him again is the only way to get her back in his life. When Nina shows up ready to work —and nothing else — Ewan’s determined to win her back. If he can break through the walls his earlier betrayal built, maybe they can have another shot at love. When it turns out that this time, it’s Nina who’s being targeted for danger and possibly death, Ewan’s the one who has to keep her safe.

 

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Wicked Attraction is the second installment in The Protector series in which new dangers emerged, and things got more emotional and complicated for the main characters Nina and Ewan.

Poor Nina and Ewan... I had that thought many times throughout the book, especially at the very end. The title of the third book made me suspect the story was headed that way, but, still, poor Nina and Ewan. I had that same thought at the beginning of the book.

In the previous installment, Dangerous Promise, Ewan and Nina met and fell in love. They had a short blissful time together before the reality came crashing in, and Ewan's secret came out. Nina left after that. Soon afterwards, Ewan used trickery and hired Nina once again. That was the end of book one.

The beginning of Wicked Attraction revealed that Nina stayed with Ewan as his bodyguard. She treated it as any other assignment. For Ewan that was the only way to have Nina near him to try to get Nina's forgiveness and somehow repair their relationship. With the time period and the world they lived in described in the previous book, there was no need for detailed descriptions in this installment, so there little left to distract me from the relationship between Nina and Ewan. I liked that very much. Like I said in my review of Dangerous Promise, complicated and emotional love stories is one of the main reasons I love Megan Hart's books. Speaking of emotional, I have to talk about Nina here. Ewan was more-or-less his same likeable self as in the first book, though not so set in keeping the laws about enhancement tech as they were. Nina, on the other hand, was quite different from the woman I first met. I think I would call all of Megan Hart's leading female characters strong women, but Nina was on a whole other level. The enhancement tech had made her into a super soldier, a super soldier who at the beginning of the series was incapable of feeling any intense emotion. By the end of the previous book that changed -- she had started to feel too much. She was like that in this installment, too. It was strange from someone as fiercely strong as her. Unsettling, even, and sad because she was feeling negative emotions.

Luckily, though very slowly, Ewan won Nina back, and for a while they were happy. They were a couple madly in love, and they worked together to change the laws which would improve Nina's and other enhanced people's lives. However, living in a happy bubble couldn't last. This isn't the last book, after all. New shady characters entered the scene, and apparently the old shady characters weren't done with doing damage. The difference was this time around, the one in danger was Nina. It was a danger neither Ewan nor her enhancement tech could save her from. Like I said, poor Nina and Ewan.

All in all, Wicked Attraction was a great sequel to Dangerous Promise and a great lead-up to the final book. I couldn't be more ready to see these characters get their happy ending.


***ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***

Until next time, happy reading!

XOXO,

 

REVIEW: Bad Boy By Elliot Wake

Genre:

New Adult/ Contemporary Romance/ Psychological Thriller

Buy The Book:

AMAZON / B & N / KOBO / BD

Connect With The Author:

Blog / Twitter / GR

Summary On Goodreads:

Vlog star Renard Grant has nothing to prove: he’s got a pretty face, chiseled body, and two million adoring video subscribers. Plus the scars on his chest and a prescription for testosterone. Because Ren is transgender: assigned female at birth, living now as male. He films his transition and shares it bravely with the world; his fans love his honesty and positivity.

But Ren has been living a double life.

Off-camera, he’s Cane, the muscle-bound enforcer for social justice vigilante group Black Iris. As Cane, he lets his dark side loose. Hurts those who prey on the disempowered. Indulges in the ugly side of masculinity. And his new partner, Tamsin Baylor, is a girl as rough and relentless as him. Together, they terrorize the trolls into silence.

But when a routine Black Iris job goes south, Ren is put in the crosshairs. Someone is out to ruin his life. He’s a bad boy, they say, guilty of what he punishes others for.

Just like every other guy: at heart, he’s a monster, too.

Now Ren’s got everything to prove. He has to clear his name, and show the world he’s a good man. But that requires facing demons he’s locked away for years. And it might mean discovering he’s not such a good guy after all.

REVIEW

"An eye for an eye. I’d blind the whole world if I had to." 

Just as it was the case with Black Iris and Cam Girl, the last page of Bad Boy by Elliot Wake left me feeling emotionally drained and in urgent need of hugs, but as every emotional junkie/ masochist reader I'm addicted to this type of books. Books that make you feel and leave some profound impression on you.

First of all - before reading Bad Boy, I highly recommend reading Black Iris #1 and Cam Girl #2, because the stories and the characters are intertwined. Otherwise you'll feel out of the loop if you jump right on this one. Bad Boy is a story about Ren, one of the members of the vigilante group called Black Iris which is dedicted on getting revenge on those who have wronged women. But this is not your typical revenge story. The story is more complex and thoughtprovoking than that, where revenge only makes a small part of it. First and foremost, for me, it's a quite powerful and poignant story about everyday life and struggles of a transgender with the addition of gender and rape culture.

Without spoiling anything all I can say is that you should read Elliot Wake's books if not solely because of the writing which is outstanding. Whereas I adored Black Iris and Cam Girl and can't recommend them enough, when it comes to Bad Boy I'll have to agree with readers who said that the concept of the story was good, I liked it, but I wasn't exactly satisfied with the way the author concluded some situations. With this I refer especially to the ending which was in my opinion rushed and to some point anticlimatic. To sum it up- there were some parts I loved and then some not so much. That's why this time it's 3.5 stars.

Recommended to the fans of thoughtprovoking mindfucks!

“We’re all trapped by something. Freedom is an illusion. It’s the wind in your hair as you plummet off the cliff’s edge." 

RATING: 3.5 / 5 stars

xoxo,

Purple

REVIEW: Wildfire (Hidden Legacy #3) by Ilona Andrews

Genre:

Paranormal Romance/ Urban Fantasy

Buy The Book:

amazon /   b & n / kobo

Connect With The Author:

Goodreads / Blog / Twitter / Facebook

Summary On Goodreads:

Just when Nevada Baylor has finally come to accept the depths of her magical powers, she also realizes she’s fallen in love. Connor “Mad” Rogan is in many ways her equal when it comes to magic, but she’s completely out of her elements when it comes to her feelings for him. To make matters more complicated, an old flame comes back into Rogan’s life…

Rogan knows there’s nothing between him and his ex-fiance, Rynda Sherwood. But as Nevada begins to learn more about her past, her power, and her potential future, he knows she will be faced with choices she never dreamed of and the promise of a life spent without him.

As Nevada and Rogan race to discover the whereabouts of Rynda’s kidnapped husband and are forced to confront Nevada’s grandmother, who may or may not have evil motives, these two people must decide if they can trust in each other or allow everything to go up in smoke.

REVIEW

Ilona Andrews simply can't do wrong when it comes to creating a compelling, action-packed and breath-taking urban fantasy/paranormal romance story with a fair dose of humor and fierce, charismatic and lovable characters. They show that with their every next book, just as they showed it with the third installment of HL series. The book was simply addictive. Unputdownable. I've read it in one day.

These two authors are one of few authors who know the perfect receipt when it comes to my ideal uf/pnr romance book and they keep delivering it every time. The series is fairly new, but they've become one of my favs as soon as I've read the 1st book. One of the biggest reasons for that are kick-ass, witty main and secondary characters who never disappoint. And I can't finish this review without mentioning the main hero - the (in)famous Prime Connor Rogan who makes me think R rated thoughts...dayum... that guy is definitely my new Barrons. 4 stars because of the Rynda case which was a bit irritating in the beginning.

Highly recommended to every urban fantasy/paranormal romance fan!

***  My Review of Burn For Me (Hidden Legacy #1) By Ilona Andrews

RATING: 4/5 STARS


xoxo,

Purple

ARC Review: DANGEROUS PROMISE (The Protector, #1) by Megan Hart

A female bodyguard with enhanced abilities. A billionaire playboy committed to destroying people like her. A romance they didn’t expect…
 
Dive into the first book in this fantastic new series set in the near future from New York Times bestselling author Megan Hart!

Nina Bronson used to be all human -- until the experimental surgeries and internal technology that saved her life and enhanced her as a soldier also forced her to leave the army for private service. Now she and her peers are facing slow, painful deaths unless their technology is upgraded, and the one man keeping those upgrades illegal and unavailable is an obnoxious billionaire. A man too gorgeous for his own good.

A man she’s supposed to guard with her life.

Ewan Donahue is the public voice speaking out against the enhancement procedures of injured soldiers. But when his lobbying leads to death threats, he needs someone to protect him around the clock. He doesn’t want to rely on an enhanced soldier—Nina’s tech goes against everything he stands for. But he really doesn’t want her to be beautiful like she is. Doesn’t want her to suffer like she will.

Doesn’t want to succumb to the searing desire he feels for her. 

As a series of attacks on his life send them to a remote cabin, their close proximity brings them together in ways they never imagined. They know they must prevent the need simmering between them, resist each other at all costs. But when tensions are high and danger is close, passion burns hottest of all…

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Dangerous Promise is a science fiction (I think) romance set in the near future written by Megan Hart. I read it because Megan Hart wrote it — it's as simple as that. I didn't even have to read the full summary to know I would be reading it. All I needed to know was that one of my favorite authors wrote it.

Science fiction and futuristic stories don't find themselves on my reading list often, probably because authors tend to set their books in a future time that's far from something to look forward to, but I wouldn't let that deter me here. The disturbingly near future Megan Hart created in this series is bleak: a lot of species are extinct, synthetic food seems to be on the main menu for most people, while real food is something only the rich can afford, humans have messed around with the Moon, and caused damage on Earth, and the United States now called the North American United States have been in, surprise, surprise, yet another war.

Nina Bronson was a soldier who got severely injured in that war and died, but she didn't stay dead. Enhancement technology was implanted in her body, and she survived and became stronger, faster, she became a super soldier. However, that technology had become illegal, making necessary upgrades impossible, so the tech which had saved her life would end it an a matter of few years.

Being enhanced meant Nina had to leave the army and work in the private sector. She worked as a protector, and her newest job was being a bodyguard of Ewan Donahue, the man most responsible for making the enhancement tech illegal. Ewan was less than pleased to have Nina as his bodyguard, but the threats on his life called for having someone extremely capable to protect him, and Nina was the best. Neither of them was satisfied with their arrangement, but they were determined to push through: Nina was a necessity for Ewan, and Ewan was a job for Nina.

Like the time the story takes place, the relationship between Nina and Ewan was cold in the beginning. It was nothing surprising given their backgrounds. What was also nothing surprising is that that changed because of all the time they spent together which really was all the time. They would have friendly talks, other times they would argue. With each attack on Ewan that Nina stopped, they became closer. Despite himself, Ewan was becoming more and more attracted to Nina, and that attraction wasn't one-sided. They danced around it a lot. It wasn't until the plan to find out who was after Ewan led them to Ewan's secret property away from anyone that they finally acted on it. That's when it got complicated and more emotional.

Complicated and emotional love stories is one of the main reasons I love Megan Hart's books, and Nina and Ewan's is apparently so complicated it needed a series to be told. Having read this book and about a third of the second installment, I can see why that is. Staying together won't be easy for them. That was clear from the beginning. The story is told from both Nina's and Ewan's perspective. What we find out about Ewan and what Nina wasn't aware of is Ewan's involvement in the development of the enhancement tech, and his reasons for lobbying to make it illegal. That was why his attraction to Nina was unwelcome, and once he developed feelings why he was afraid of Nina finding out about it. For the first time he was with a woman who made him think about forever. Sadly, he was having a hard time figuring out how to make it happen. It was the same with Nina. They were in love. Away from the world and their regular lives, everything was perfect in their little bubble. But the bubble burst. Reality and hidden truths came crashing in leaving them with heartache.

In the end I'll say this was another Megan Hart book I really liked reading. Dangerous Promise did what any first book in a series should do, and that is to make me want to read the sequel. I not only want to continue reading, I am anxious to find out what happens with Nina and Ewan. Wicked Attraction, here I come!

***ARC provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.***

Until next time, happy reading!

XOXO,