Read this last night when I was upset at my husband. This cruel-bully Hero made my husband look like a saint! It actually made me appreciate him more.Read this last night when I was upset at my husband. This cruel-bully Hero made my husband look like a saint! It actually made me appreciate him more...my husband, not the Hero.
**SPOILERS** 2-stars OFF for: 1.) H’s malicious cruelty towards h due to his hurt pride and his overall malicious character (i.e., he got his kicks in high school by charming virgin teens to let him smex them and then promptly leaving them after he was done)
2.) H’s too-sudden ILY-ing and declarations (including apologies) towards h and their daughter hours after he cruelly accused her of betraying him for keeping their child a secret, if not for his younger sister making him see things from h’s POV (given how he rejected her after sex in h.s. and continuing on with her forced-affair or else he’ll hurt people she loved like he hurt her 1st male dance partner due to his jealousy and vengefulness for her continued resistance to him)
Half-star OFF for: 1.) h’s char did grow some but not enough—didn’t like h’s passivity and letting H get away with a lot of things especially in the end when he said he loved her and wanted her and their daughter in his life.
2.) H’s char growth was not enough and h still had to compromise a lot in order to prevent his violent and vengeful anger if she doesn’t give him what he wanted.
3.) HFN due to H’s moodiness and immaturity.
BUT: 1. Good emotionally-involving read. Angsty from:
#1. h’s secret pain over popular H not remembering her at all 4 years later, after that night he charmed her to let him de-virginize her.
#2. the resulting pregnancy which made her leave their high school and struggle with her aunt's help to raise her daughter and try to get into a top ballet college.
#3. H being a very cruel bully to h due to her repeated rejection of him and his prejudice against her for being poor.
2. Liked h’s wrestling with her conflicting emotions of physically desiring H and disgust/guilt/shame at wanting him when he’d been so cruel to her and threatening to her and completely forgetting her with no recollection that he knew her in high school and slept with her that 1 night.
3. Liked H’s uncontrolled and growing obsession jealous-possessiveness towards h and gave some balance to his deliberate cruelty towards h. He couldn't muster a physical desire for other women, when he saw h again (even though he didn't remember meeting her 4 years ago).
4. Really liked how H softened towards h after she was abducted for about an hour during their date night and actually became sweet/gentle/gentlemantly with her until he accidentally found out about their daughter & he said such cruel things to her with their 4yo child nearby.
Sexual History: 16yo virgin h had her 1st kiss and 1st sex experience with 17yo h.s.-senior H, who then told her to leave after he orgasmed on her face and chest. She left their high school after she found out she got preggo from that 1 time coz he wanted nothing to do with her even the day after having sex. She didn’t date anyone during their 4 years apart due to raising her daughter and working to perfect her ballet to get to a premier arts school.
21yo H de-virginized many of the virgin teen girls at their school as a challenge. He’d moved on from virgins in college and got into BDSM and wilder willing women. He had subs but seemed like no one he was exclusive with but part of an exclusive sex club. He didn’t tend to his subs after but, like all his other lovers, coldly left them right after he orgasmed or he’d tell them to leave. H has never had a GF but just a slew of lovers. When he saw h again 4 years later, he tried to 3-some with 2 sexy willing women but he couldn’t get it up because thoughts of h kept distracting him. Same thing happened all other times he thought of having his usual casual sex with other women. He only wanted h...more
Book 2: Good plot/emo/char dev/sex scenes/char development
Good exciting continuation of Book1, with 18y4-stars (this book & overall Duet) **SPOILERS**
Book 2: Good plot/emo/char dev/sex scenes/char development
Good exciting continuation of Book1, with 18yo popular senior H desperate to find 18yo senior h after her identical twin-sister (OW) told him that h left their house after a confrontation with their parents. When he found h & saw her bruises and scars, it was the moment of his great humility and grovel. Loved that big part of book2 was H's long grovel towards the wrong he'd done h and proving that he'd become a changed man because of her. Loved that h didn't mince word but told him that he was partly responsible for her getting physically abused by her parents. Also liked that h wasn't easily impressed by H's promises and actions. She was wise to be wary of his turnaround, given that they've only known each other for a couple weeks. She made him prove his worth without demand. h's character as brave/candid/simple/carefree/quiet became solidified in Book2.
Good character development for H too. Loved how he became OTT alpha-dominant with h and jealous-possessive & protective over her and he wanted to repeatedly show his claim on her publicly. Loved & thought it funny yet sweet how hurt & bothered he'd be whenever h called their romance “fake” and diminished their sex as a hookup or a friends-with-benefits thing. Their detailed bareback Sex scenes were hot, even the awkward yet rough de-virginizing of h. Their sex scenes showed H's increasing obsession with h and h's openness as well as their increasing closeness.
By 50%, their romance was quite solid and was only a matter of either 1 saying their ILYs.
By 60%, OW made more appearances with H&h and their group of friends, as she becomes their accomplice and trying to get out from their parents' inheritance greed.
By 94%, we get OW's POV as a prologue/teaser for her own book.
At the end, H told h ILY and proposed marriage at whichever date she'd marry him.
Sexual History: 18yo virgin h was homeschooled with her twin sister before they began attending their private high school 3.5 years ago. She didn't have any friend nor had she ever dated or been kissed by another than H since she isolated herself when she wasn't in classes pretending to be her sister. H was a player with casual hookups among the girls in their private school. He'd never had a GF until h. He'd de-virginized other girls before h but never took the care he did as he did with h during and after sex. He's never been as sexually voracious as he was with h....more
More lust-based with a side of mental game-playing. Romance was meh. Characters were roughly-hewn. Lacked emotional i**SPOILERS under Sexual History**
More lust-based with a side of mental game-playing. Romance was meh. Characters were roughly-hewn. Lacked emotional involvement. As a result, what sounded like it would be sexy and romantic ended up not being so. Such as:
#1. H may be stalker-obsessed with h BUT he ended up just acting/acting like a creep. Even h kept telling him he was being "creepy" and asking if he just had a thing for young girls. His sexual demands of h could've been sexier but the lack of emotional-sexual chemistry just them sound rough and kinky. But h's response to him was a big part of why this was so.
#2. h said "yes" to all of H's demands BUT she liked the "hot" teen guy (OM) at her school more h's was too emotionally-distant from H for most of the book except for sex. She was into H when it came to sex but didn't really like him unlike OM. Even when she found out OM was a drug-dealer after % 60% mark, she still seemed more comfortable and vulnerable with him than with H. She even wished that she met OM, after she was done with her secret affair with H after she was done with her class with him. Things only changed for her when she met H's large Italian family since having a family was important to her.
#3. many potentially-dramatic info BUT most skipped re: how it affected h and/or H Lots of dramatic teasers from just being mentioned (i.e., h's stalker @ age 13, h's wildness @ age 13, H being an undercover narc, how h's mom's death 1.5 years ago affected her & her sister, what situations made her sister moved them to 3 different CA towns in the last year) but no follow-through. So, caused major plotholes, under-developed characters, and emotional shallowness.
Sexual History: 18yo h had BFs before 28yo H. No info on how many lovers she’d had but that they were in her age group and that she started being “wild” @ age 13. Her being wild included smoking pot, skipping class, and underage drinking. She had stalkers before H, including a serious stalker @ age 13 which ended up in court. But no other info aside from that. No info on how long she’d been celibate since H. But she did mention how 1 month ago she didn’t have anyone interested in her and then now she had H and OM vying for her. She seemed to “like” h.s.-senior OM since he was nice and attractive. But she kept giving in to H’s sexual demands and threats.
28yo H wanted h @ 1st sight and got her to have sex with him their 2nd day of tutoring. No info on his previous Gfs or lovers, except for his mom telling h that he’s never brought any other girl to their family restaurant until h....more
Glad I read this 6-series book in its whole-book format coz I don't like cliffhanger endings.
A good read because it: **SPOILERS under Sexual History**
Glad I read this 6-series book in its whole-book format coz I don't like cliffhanger endings.
A good read because it: #1. was unpredictable and well-paced It started with a fun & sexy challenge to get h to agree to sign H’s dom-sub hush-contract (NDA) and became a deeper emotional connection as h’s past unraveled later. The addition of the mystery-suspense of h’s kidnapping past & how she got kidnapped again by the same man towards the end provided some unpredictability and kept my interest overall.
#2. was emotional involving with good sexual tension Funny, sexy, and had some angsty moments too. Hot detailed bareback S scenes but wished that h discussed condom-use before smexxing H coz he knew about her birth-control but she didn’t know about his sex-safety.
#3. had likable chars and good character development Liked h’s combo of sass and caution/sexy online Tweets but tight-lipped in person/realistic yet liked to fantasize. Also liked her candid introspection and ability to laugh and let go of her issues once she’s figured things out. Her character growth came from having major denial issues re: being kidnapped & brainwashed for 8 months by her family’s unknown masked killer as a kid.
Liked H’s mix of kinky controlling lover and his kindness/generosity with his family. His character growth was linked to their romance progress. At first, he tried to control h like he did with his other subs. But became deeply in love with h, despite her emotionally distancing from him. Love how he persisted with her--unwilling to take her rejections of his love and her self-denials re: her traumatic past.
Sexual History: 23yo h was celibate for 8 months before she and H 1st smexxed. She’s had casual lovers since high school or college. But no emotional attachments and no desire to get married due to her traumatic past (She was abducted when she was 13 by a masked stranger, after he shot her parents and brother in their farm home. He mostly kept her in a closet for 8 months and brainwashed her to eventually believe that she was his wife and belonged to him and would get rewarded some freedoms (i.e., be out of the closet, able to talk to him) if she obeyed his demands. He never touched her sexually but let it be known that he was going to sexually claim her when she’s legal age. She was upset when he suddenly freed her 1 day and wouldn’t talk to anybody for weeks after she was rescued.).
32yo H has a voracious sex appetite and likes to have various submissives, whom he requires to sign a NDA to protect his actor image. Many are 1-time only and others are longer but always ends their dom-sub relationship when he tires of them. He’s had 15 subs within the past 4 years. He never takes them on a public date. Public dates are reserved for his public girlfriends who he never sleeps with since they’re strictly business-only set up by his manager. He’s only had 2 real girlfriends ever—1 with his Disney teen-movie co-star when he was 16 and the other with a party girl he broke up with when he was 18....more
Funny and romantic with a secretly-obsessed manwhore Hero.
#1. I loved how H loved her: a.) how he fell in lo4.5-star **SPOILERS under Sexual History**
Funny and romantic with a secretly-obsessed manwhore Hero.
#1. I loved how H loved her: a.) how he fell in love with h's character. It wasn't lust-centered, although their sex chemistry was obvious.
b.) how secretly obsessed he was with her @ 1st sight. But couldn’t act on it due to her friend’s warning re: her current life situation.
c.) his somewhat-secretive jealous-possessiveness over her so he showed up on her date with OM and joined them the whole time,
d.) how he made time for her to do things she liked to do without her knowing that he was doing it just to spend time with her.
#2. Good romance/rom dev and emotion with bits of angst and humor. Some LOL-snickering moments due to h’s wit and snark.
#3. Likable chars with good char dev. Loved h’s char with her combo of realism and hope/frankness and secrecy/sexiness and sweetness/kindness and limit-setting. Loved how she handled life crises with practicality and general good attitude.
Loved how usually-controlled and -distant manwhore H became celibate and vulnerable with h because she mattered more and more to him. And, as used to sexual sharing as he was, he was adamant about not wanting to ever sexually-share h, whether it be with another man or woman.
Sexual History: 25yo temp-PA h had 2 lovers before H. Her 1st lover was her BF since high school who she was with for 10 years (lived with him in college and moved to LA from NYC with him for his acting career). Her 2nd lover was a ONS with her ex-BF’s friend as revenge sex and then ghosted him after. H was her 3rd lover and her first received-oral.
Popular 30s British plastic-surgeon H had some previous Gfs including his last GF who he was with for a couple years and who he was kinda engaged to when he agreed with her that it was “time” for them to be engaged when she dragged him to a jewelry store for an engagement ring. However, she cheated on him with his father when he was on a business trip and told him their relationship wouldn’t have worked out anyway since H didn’t have enough love for her since he only loved himself. She ended up marrying H’s father and having a daughter with him. After their breakup, H became a manwhore who smexxed a woman once with full disclosure of sex-only and then moved to the next. In the first week or so when h became his temporary PA, she had to shoo about 4 women out of his bedroom at different times except for the 2 women he had a 3some with one night. He became celibate for the next 2 months, after the 3some since he became only interested in h....more
The GOOD: #1. captivating writing Evoked a here-and-now experience (i.e., sword-fighting scene with Hero and another D**SPOILERS under Sexual History**
The GOOD: #1. captivating writing Evoked a here-and-now experience (i.e., sword-fighting scene with Hero and another Duke towards the end). Advanced in its theme/content since reads like a currently-written dark romance with a cruel but obsessed anti-Hero and virginal heroine with quiet strength and smarts.
#2. good char and character development Liked how h started speaking up more and fighting for what she wanted instead of being passive. Also liked how it was obvious to everyone that indiscriminate manho H became solely focused on h and spurned potential lovers (both men & women), even when he thought h was dead.
#3. H groveled Liked that H humbled himself and showed his vulnerability to h @ the end, when he confessed his love for her and how much she meant to him.
MEH or the BAD #1. H’s grovel @ the end seemed so sudden. Wished there was more of a lead-in or bridge between H being demanding and distant towards h and H groveling to h @ the end.
#2. Good-enough emo with some angst. Wished there were more details/explanation given on what it was about h he fell for @ 1st sight and why he became so obsessed/in love with her when it's only been about sex with all others. These skipped details would've strengthened the emotional involvement in this book.
Sexual History: 18yo sheltered h was a virgin in everything with 29yo new-Duke H (i.e., kiss, boob-touching, sex). She was kissed and boob-groped by the crazy Duke who won her @ a chess game with H towards the end, with H being forced to watch them. But H was able to stop him from smexxing h.
29yo H was an indiscriminate manwhore who had sex with men and women, no matter what age or social status. He impregnated his 1st stepmother’s serving girl and had sex with this stepmother at a church altar, after she told him she’d been secretly desiring him. He mostly had sex with time with someone. But he had some return lovers, including 1 of h’s maidservants. Since he 1st smexxed h, he’d only been with h....more
The BAD: #1. 18yo college-freshman virgin h's out-of-character behavior It didn't fit h's character to let her BFF talk her into se3.5-star **SPOILERS**
The BAD: #1. 18yo college-freshman virgin h's out-of-character behavior It didn't fit h's character to let her BFF talk her into selling her virginity to afford school and dorm. Her BFF talked to her about it and, in ONLY a few minutes, h agreed to sell her body for school money. It didn't make sense to go against her usual caution and reservations and make such a huge decision like this without giving up much thought or time.
The GOOD: #1. liked h's character for the most part (serious about school, quiet, reserved)
#2. liked that h reverted back to her usual character after her ONS with 30yo stranger H When she realized that H was her new art professor, she avoided him as much as possible because she didn’t want to jeopardize his job or her schooling.
#3. Good emotionality/S tension/detailed S scenes Her avoidance helped give some tension in their romance and give her more character depth. It also drove H to stalk her from a distance since he wanted to see her and protect her despite her avoiding him. Liked how this created a more even power play in their relationship so their epilogue 5 years later made sense—with h finishing college and H&h now married with their 1st baby on the way and both becoming successful in their art.
#4. loved H’s stalkery-obsession with his student h
#5. liked that H wasn’t a sleaze or a manho He had strong reservations about smexxing an escort despite his friend gifting it to him to break his celibacy streak and even more so when he sees shy escort h. He kept giving her a clear “out” to just leave and not be obligated to smex him, despite her already being paid to do so. He did eventually give in and smexxed her, after she told him she felt hurt and embarrassed that he didn't want her.
Sexual History: 18yo h had never been kissed or dated any guy due to being shifted in various foster homes and busy with school. 30yo H was her 1st and only everything (i.e., kiss, oral, sex). No info on H’s past Gfs or lovers. Only that he’d been celibate awhile when his friend asked him, which shows that he wasn’t so sex-led....more
My 3rd novella by this author. Definitely getting a mix of Jessa Kane and Jordan Silver vibes...the writing style (straightforw**SPOILERS under Plot**
My 3rd novella by this author. Definitely getting a mix of Jessa Kane and Jordan Silver vibes...the writing style (straightforward smut, questionable morality due to pseudo-incest/incest relationship) and content (OTT ridiculous that it makes me laugh, exaggerated sexuality and dumbness with unapologetic aggressive Heroes and shy/kinda-dumb/willing sheltered-virgin heroines).
What makes AR’s novellas different than Jessa Kane and Jordan Silver though are the lack of details re: pertinent character and relationship information. For example in this book, not knowing H’s previous relationship to h (is H blood-related to h? Or a step-family related by marriage?), his and h's ages, and H's dating/sexual history provided me enough emotional-sexual tension to keep me awake. Not knowing if their relationship was ok--consensual? legal? moral?--kept me on my toes for its 34 pages. It's also what made it not seem like straight-up porn.
PLOT: 18yo virgin h being sheltered at their mansion by her wealthy parents was actually a biding of time until h turned 18 per the debt-repayment orders of the 30s/40s mafia-boss H who her father owed money to. While biding time, h was video-surveillanced in her bedroom and other parts of the mansion per H’s orders to keep her safe from h’s lecherous father and for H’s voyeuristic desires. When H came to claim her when she turned 18, it was with his OTT alpha-demanding possessiveness with a twist. He made h’s father watch him touch/kiss/oral and eventually smex h as his way of claiming ultimate possession of h since he knew her father would’ve raped her if not for H’s blackmail demands. Good thing that h had a yen for exhibitionism.
I didn't mind the DD/LG exhibitionism since H made sure others only watched them but no touching of h. h’s exhibitionism only extended to men watching her and H smexxing. But she didn't want women watching H. She was possessive of H in this way. Hot detailed S scenes. Iffy romance/characters. Meh emotion but good enough sexual tension....more
Enjoyed the smut but lots of vagueness in this book, which is likely deliberate since it adds discomfort/tension/and interest to **SPOILERS after #2**
Enjoyed the smut but lots of vagueness in this book, which is likely deliberate since it adds discomfort/tension/and interest to my reading. Such as:
#1. virgin h & H’s ages and exact relationship are unclear. But h likely in her late teens and H likely in his 20s
#2. No details to clarify if h and H are blood-siblings or step-siblings. Except that h’s mom had been married a few times.
#3. Not enough detail given re: their relationship history, including:
a.) how long H had been sleep-drugging h and touching her boobs and undies while she's asleep? b.) why didn't h seemed shocked when H confessed to preferring that she be asleep while he did sexual things to her? c.) did h also have secret sexual desire for H all along?
***SPOILERS*** I didn't like H. He was a creepy rape-y perv who secretly sleep-drugged h so he can touch her however he wanted. At least, he had enough control(morals?) to touch her over her clothing since she was still underaged. I didn't find his obsession romantic. It was sexy/sexual but lacked love. His growing obsession with h became obvious to his mafia dad and h’s mom and was part of why h’s mom took off with h 1 day and ran from them with some money she stole from H’s dad. A few years later, H finally found h and kidnapped her to his cabin.
Hated that H anal-raped h while she was sleeping coz he drugged her since he couldn't wait to smex her in some way. At least he waited for her to wake up before he de-virginized her vaginally. Her consent didn't seem an issue for him since he was set to claim her as his and having to hunt her down for years to find her made him even crazier. So, he wanted her awake for her vaginal de-virginization so she knew he owned her. Good thing h didn’t seem to really mind his rape-y drugging ways with her since she trusted H as a brother. But not much emphasis on her romantic or sexual feelings for H so had a incestuous vibe to it.
H was h's 1st everything sexually and she never dated either due to being closeted by her mother. No clear info on whether H had previous lovers. It may be possible that he was also a virgin and waited all those years to be with h only but not clear....more
I don't know how Faye does it but she can write some gripping insta-love-lust novella.
It's not just the porn-y detailed sex scenes she writes. Faye'sI don't know how Faye does it but she can write some gripping insta-love-lust novella.
It's not just the porn-y detailed sex scenes she writes. Faye's able to infuse the intense emotions and sexual tension between H and h before, during, and after sex. Despite their big age gap and the fact that 18yo virgin h is a student and mid-30s H is the new school headmaster, I bought their emotional and romantic connection. And that H would forsake his new prestigious and respectable job as the private school's principal just to unashamedly be with h. And be with her now!
Both likable characters. h really wasn't a "bad girl". She's actually a quiet and smart person who only earned her "bad girl" rep for saving a girl from a pervy teacher's assault. She did damage his property but it was to send his a strong message, which he turned around to defame h @ their school. Loved H’s OTT obsessiveness and alpha-dominant possessive-protectiveness over h....more
4.5-star ***Major SPOILERS under Sexual History***
Made me cry a few times, especially in book2 due to H and h’s big misunderstandings re: each other’4.5-star ***Major SPOILERS under Sexual History***
Made me cry a few times, especially in book2 due to H and h’s big misunderstandings re: each other’s motives of being in their relationship and the great sacrifices they made for each other. Good emotional pull and character development. Lots of angsty moments.
Good char and char dev/rom and rom dev/sexual and emotional chemistry that were woven in well in plenty of Sex scenes. 36yo mafia loan-shark H was an anti-villain with his cold-hearted manipulations/bullying/threatening of 23yo vet asst. h. But his sometimes out-of-control feelings and actions towards h belied his true feelings for her. He became uncharacteristically open about his caring for h to the point of shunning his family and mafia life just to protect her. Loved H’s OTT possessive-protective jealous-dominant obsessive alpha-ness with h. h had a wonderful character with her mix of innocence and grit/kindness and firmness/practicality and hope. She kept rising above such trials with her general attitude. I admired her character.
Sexual History: 23yo h was not a virgin with 37yo H. She was raped and beat up by an unknown man who was with 5 others in the room when she was 13 but she had her eyes closed the whole time. It wasn’t until book2 that the video H’s cruel mom told her to watch that she found out it was H’s father who raped her. (They thought she was dead in the alley they left her but her beloved older bro found her and her family secretly tended to her. h’s mafia-linked father blackmailed H’s father with a video of the rape in exchange for leaving his family alone. But a car accident 2 years later killed h’s father & disabled her brother with brain damage. Soon after the accident, her mom died and h became the caretaker & breadwinner of her and her disabled brother. Unbeknownst to h, H’s father hired his goons to lightly protect h and her brother and had made a deal with her father before that instead of her marrying the man her father was going to bethrothed her to she was going to marry H instead. However, H’s mom didn’t want that and, after H’s father died, she derailed the arranged marriage to H and began her plan to put h & her brother in their debt so she could kill them for not paying.)
Due to the crime & poverty of their ghetto town, h was forced to pay for her brother’s debt with forced-BJs by a Zulu guy. She always spat his spunk out of her mouth right after. No other sexual stuff with him. Since her rape @ 13, she had never dated and was too busy trying to survive in their town and doing what she can to get her and her bro out of the town (i.e., taking vet classes, working at a vet clinic). She let H oral her before she later begged him to smex her.
36yo H was divorced from his 16yo daughter's mom, who he thought he loved when they got married when both were age 19. But he found out that she was repulsed by him and married him for money. She also couldn’t stand being pregnant and was a neglectful mother. They divorced within a couple years. He had many lovers after because he made it his goal to be a connoisseur of women’s pleasure. He didn’t think any woman would want to be with him due to his gruesome facial scars and limp.
Since meeting h that 1st time, he was captivated by her and stopped his mom's plan from killing h and her brother. So, he made her their live-in maid and his lover in exchange for their lives. It took him weeks to finally smex h since he just focused on her pleasure. Yet he didn’t want any other woman to satisfy him, including his most current lover who came to visit him at his house and tried to seduce him. His decision to delay sex with h was also because he believed her to be a virgin and he viewed himself as too monstrous/ugly to break someone pure like h. He actually told 1 of his goons to take h on a nice date and smex her. Then, he asked his other goon to tie him up in the basement and not unlock him until dawn so he wouldn’t go back on his plan to have OM smex h 1st. Fortunately, nothing happened. Before they finally smexxed, h's confession of being raped made H slow things down their first time together.
When they were separated for 10 months after h left him, both were celibate and not interested in others. H’s plan after his massive surgeries was to secretly stalk h and their son since he didn’t think h would ever take him back....more
1. H and h's romance got deeper with more setbacks and 4.5-star **SPOILERS are on my review of the full duet.**
Loved it! Even better than book1 since:
1. H and h's romance got deeper with more setbacks and revealed secrets.
2. H's character growth due to his love for h changed even his job and family choices.
3. h's huge setbacks made her even stronger but not in a way that emasculated H. More in a way that made her stronger and a better partner for this already-strong H.
4. Full of emotion and angst. Some secrets were heart-breaking.
5. HEA with epilogue years later with their young kids. And the villains got their due.
Good writing of realistic marriage matters 2 years after a whirlwind marriage of a couple who’s romanc***Major SPOILERS under PLOT & Sexual History***
Good writing of realistic marriage matters 2 years after a whirlwind marriage of a couple who’s romance is desire-based and lacked open communication.
Liked the point Lamb made for a 1979 HP that a woman can be in love with her husband yet still feel some attraction to other men. Also quite advanced of Lamb to show the more darker side of sex with h liking H’s roughness with her although H was the 1 who felt bad about it but wish it was addressed again @ the end when they reunited as either a mutual part of their sex life or H resolving his jealousy issues. Liked H’s jealous-posessiveness over h but not how rape-y and violent & accusing he was with her. Lacked character growth since no satisfying resolution by the end & h’s view of H softening up because he looked at their baby with love was not good enough indicator of his change. Good pacing/S chem/emo.
PLOT: @1%--H&h already distant in the last 6 months during their 2-yr marriage after a whirlwind courtship/@10% h sees H kissing his coworker after she overhears him mentioning his marriage frustrations with OW @15%--h stays at her old friend’s place & sees her male friend OM again since more than 2 years ago @23%-- H is greeted by OM when he comes for h & punches OM after accusing h of adultery/@30% H catches h packing at their house & rapes her after she tells H she wants a divorce & lies to him re: OM being her lover since he won’t believe her denials about OM not being her lover (h tells him “no” but he meant to “have her” anyway) @35%-- h moves in with her BFF & takes the acting job offer that OM pulled strings for her @47%-- h makes out with OM & seriously considered sleeping with him due to their sex chemistry but reconsiders after OW advises her to not divorce H yet due to his potential judge upgrade & tells h that she was only H’s confidant & have never had an affair with him @60%-- h&H openly talk about their issues including H’s jealous obsession over h & h’s sexual attraction to OM and H agreed to move to London & let h pursue acting while h assures H that she will only be friends with OM & she frankly tells OM of it @80%-- they smex but roughly due to H’s jealousy over OM coming over their house while he was away & H accusing h of cheating on him despite h denying it but h liked it rough and told H that after they got done smexxing & H was apologetic over how aggressive & out of control he became with h then told H he wanted a separation to figure out his lack of control & jealousy when it came to h @82%--h moves in with her BFF while getting acting jobs & going back to her friendship with h and soon learns that she’s preggo from H’s rape months ago @91%--@ending months later with h giving birth to their baby girl & she’s surprised at how H seems to taken with their daughter & has become softer overall like the man she fell in love with when they met.
Sexual History: 23yo theatre-actress h was a virgin when she married 36yo British lawyer H 2 years ago after a brief & passionate courtship. She & H had a sexually satisfying marriage until she miscarried from the pregnancy she pushed for after he explicitly told her he didn’t want kids but she thought having a baby would help her not feel so bored with her new life as a housewife. H raped her after she told him she wanted a divorce, after she witnessed what she appeared to be H kissing his coworker OW. About 1 week or so after she left H to stay at her BFF’s place, she let OM kiss her & she was quite turned on by him and considered sleeping with him that night of the party if not for H showing up there too. No info on H”s sexual or dating past but that he had many female admirers. He’d only been with h since they met and he’d been secretly very obsessed with her. He didn’t kiss OW....more
2.5-star **SPOILERS** Good writing overall but for the iffy HEA/romance at the end.
The GOOD: #1. Unpredictable drama & good emotionality made for good 2.5-star **SPOILERS** Good writing overall but for the iffy HEA/romance at the end.
The GOOD: #1. Unpredictable drama & good emotionality made for good pacing: *@5% H&h’s rom immediately established & set but h had to confess about having a fiance/@28% H stalks h at her house & rapes her *@30% h wakes up @ hospital with amnesia from her fall after her father came home & witnesses her nakedly falling from the stairs after she &H got done smexxing from the partial rape *@55% h sees H again & immediately gets her memory back but he thinks she lied & blackmails her to marry him or else risk her reputation & thereby hurting her crippled fiance who H knows she still cares for.
#2. Good characterization with depth that showed h&H's dysfunctions.
#3. Good sexual tension.
#4. Good emotionality & pacing.
The BAD: #1. Poor character development since h stayed kinda weak at the end & H became more unlikable. At the end, H was still unforgiving & vengeful so their HEA is iffy. Their romance was unresolved, although H&h did seem to love each other. Wished their epilogue showed H&h 1 or more years later being better together and H being as soft & loving as he was with h in the beginning of the book.
#2. Didn’t like how forceful & rape-y 36yo journalist H was.
#3. h cheated on her partially-paralyzed fiance of 2 years with H during the week they met at a convention together. h didn’t’ tell H until he came on to her & kissed her at their last convention day that she had a fiance, even though she already realized she had fallen for H.
#4. Characters weren't that likable mostly due to their dyfunctions (i.e., h with her passive-aggressiveness from falling out of love with her nice fiance (OM) and wanting more than him as both had changed in 2 years since OM's accident but yet sticking around with him & his family due to her people-pleasing tendencies & overall niceness, H with his self-absorbed and vengeful ways brought on from his life as a loner and a successful journalist in a cut-throat journalist industry).
#5. ok sex scenes since didn’t like how H raped h and put the blame on her more than taking responsibility for his actions yet excused them as his loving her
Sexual History: 23yo h was probably not a virgin since she was in love with her fiance (OM) whom she dated for 1 year before he proposed 2 years ago. She’d been celibate for 2 years since OM’s car accident. When she 1st smexxed with H, she said she was hurt but not sure if it was coz he smexxed her too roughly or when she wasn’t ready or if she was a virgin with him. Likely from H forcing himself on her before she was ready although she did end up reciprocating his S advances later. No other info of h’s dating life. H was known to be popular with women & he seemed to have a penchant for blondes like h. No info if he had any previous Gfs....more
Almost-DNFed @ 3% coz 20yo h sounded like a spoiled brat as she related why she left home 1.5 years ago. But by 5% sh**SPOILERS under Sexual History**
Almost-DNFed @ 3% coz 20yo h sounded like a spoiled brat as she related why she left home 1.5 years ago. But by 5% showed that she’d changed & was regretful and embarrassed with how she behaved before.
Much more character/emotional/romantic depth than Pargeter's Substitute Bride. The contrast between H&h’s characters & relationship 1.5 years before and the present time were intriguing and understandable. h’s POV was full of regret and humility but still had moments of determination and impulsiveness but more seasoned than how she used to be. Still, h showed her naivete and immaturity. So, her character change in 1.5 years based on experiencing life outside her rich father’s pampering (i.e., she worked as a nanny & housekeeper for free to help a struggling widow, she asked for and gave all the money she got from her father in order to help another lady) was believable and consistent. H's change from being open/vulnerable/patient about his interest in h into a cynical/mistrusting/and guarded one was understandable.
Loved when 35yo H’s OTT obsession and jealous-possessiveness would come out despite him trying to hide it from now-20yo h through his cruel and frank words and actions. Loved how H took then-18yo h’s rudeness and insulting misjudgments of him as a social climber and unwelcome replacement in her father’s business with patience and kindness. H wasn’t a total bully as he also showed moments of tenderness and care for h especially when she got sick. And his bullying her was about him believing she was promiscuous with other men but won’t give him the time of day. So, his bullying showed his hurt re: his unreciprocated feelings/desire for her.
Really liked the combo of humor/angst/frustrations from H&h. Good sexual tension as H&h both tried to resist their desire for each other as they dealt with their emotional 1-upmanship. Sex scenes were good and had good enough detail to crank up the heat for a 1983 Harlequin book.
Sexual History: 20yo h was a virgin with 35yo H, her dad's new business partner. She's beautiful and popular with men so dated a lot, especially during her rebellious few months of partying after her father let H live in their estate with before she suddenly left home. Aside from some kisses from only select few since she couldn’t stand being touched by most, there was 1 incident when she let a date do more than kiss since she was in some early state of undress when H rescued her from her amorous date. During her 1.5-year away from home, she didn’t date and was busy helping with her landlady’s household. When she was forcibly engaged to H around 70%, she allowed an old date who came by to declare his intentions kiss her a brief goodbye. She allowed the kiss and kissed him back too as a form of rebellion against H. When H devirginized her, it started out as somewhat forced (based on his anger towards her seeing that old date and another man that he forbid her to see again) but she wanted H and willingly participated in her devirginizing. But the pain from H’s first thrust and his shock that he totally misjudged her as promiscuous caused H to stop their smexxing and she sorta fainted.
H was popular with women and had lovers before but no one significant. He became celibate since he insta-loved h @ 1st sight 1.5 years ago. He tried to date other women when h left home but no one could stop his obsession with h....more
Reads like an improved version of James' Devil's Advocate (written 3 years before this in 1984). Even the Hero's name is the same4.5-star **SPOILERS**
Reads like an improved version of James' Devil's Advocate (written 3 years before this in 1984). Even the Hero's name is the same! It's as if James realized what was missing in Devil's Advocate and put all the improvements in this book. And it worked. This one has a tighter & better-written amnesia romance story. Better romance/romance development. Better character and character development. Even the sex scenes were better and more descriptive (lots of breast play).
For an improved version of Devil's Advocate, the story wasn't the same. This one's unpredictable & angsty. I liked the mystery of h’s amnesia & how we get to see her fuzziness/confusion/frustration/unresponsiveness as H tries to help her regain her lost memory from the last 5 years since the car accident. Angsty from H’s desperation to make h remember him/their romance by taking her to places & doing things that they did in the past to shake her memory but most of the time she couldn’t remember anything & he would try to be nonchalant in his disappointment. Loved former barrister & ex-con 30yo H’s angry obsession with h & his trying to hide his desperation over her not remembering him. Loved H’s sacrifices for h including going to prison for 2 years for falsely agreeing that he kidnapped & raped h per her stepfather’s & his brother’s schemes because he thought that h cheated on him with his brother per his brother’s lies & life was no longer worth living since h’s stepfather wouldn’t let H see her even after her accident. Really liked the full explanation of H&h’s misunderstandings in the end.
Sexual History: 19yo h was a virgin with 25yo H when they secretly eloped 5 years ago before her car accident. She didn’t date anyone in the next 5 years mostly because her stepfather tried to cloister her at the house he moved them to after her car accident and she took care of him during his illness until his death. No info on H’s previous relationships before h but he’d been in love with her since they were kids. H seemed to be celibate during their 5-year separation since he was in prison the 1st 2 years and was bent on planning revenge against h & her stepfather....more
NOTE: Read & rated this back in Jan 2020, when I was more tolerant and didn't do Safety Spoilers.
1. believable romance of dark characters for a GlinesNOTE: Read & rated this back in Jan 2020, when I was more tolerant and didn't do Safety Spoilers.
1. believable romance of dark characters for a Glines book. Twisted/dysfunctional/& promiscuous mid-20s mean-girl socialite h is secretly stalked by 30s mysterious grim & commanding secret-FBI-type-leader & known-cold-killer H. He'd been watching her from multiple hidden video cameras, including 1 in her bedroom and even shower. He began staging for her to fall for 1 of their secret-agents (OM) so she can spill info about 1 of her past lovers, who's a mafia leader & known pedophile sex-trafficker. But he ends up not sticking with the plan as he falls deeper for her
Loved how H became OTT alpha demanding-possessive & secretly-obsessed with h, although it didn't start out that way. In the 1st 50%, he forced OM to woo h back again. Even risking her falling for OM again & smexxing him. But H got jealous & “punished” her for letting OM kiss her after her 1st date with OM. Their romance development was complicated, fun, and real. Loved that h deliberately tried to get herself preggo with H at their 2nd Vegas affair. H knew about it coz he saw her birth control pills in her hotel-room trash. He viewed that as proof of her love & his way out of his secret-FBI leadership. Believable HEA.
2.) mean girl becomes likable Loved h's char development from being mean/cold-hearted/& manipulative in previous books in the series to becoming calmer/more of a homebody/& openly wanting the love of husband and kids like her other siblings. She became likable and H's love for her was understandable. However, in the 1st 50% of the book, some of h's dialogue & actions were not consistent with how mean/thoughtless/& impulsive she was in previous books.
3. good & sometimes funny weaving of the (sorta) love-triangle Great writing in how it weaves h's love triangle between H & secret-agent OM. H planned to stop his Vegas-weekend tryst with h by paying a showgirl to publicly claim that he got her preggo (He actually never slept with her ever). It was his setup to have h meet his teammate OM, who was coaching to get back in h's good graces via written notes about what made h beautiful & wining & dining her at her secret-garden spot with all her fave foods & wine.
It was funny how she became so annoyed with OM & would be frank with him about it coz she knew at that point that she only wanted H, even when he rejected her for the showgirl. Nor did it it stop her from going back to Vegas to hopefully see him again. Funny too with OM's POV re: his kinda-love for h but couldn't stop smexxing random OW per his usual & h knew about it coz of his reputation for smexxing many waitresses in restrooms & his disgust at h's fave food like olives while pleased that H would know how to get to h while hating him for being so controlling. It seemed fitting that OM was staged to be killed at the end, including a funeral with family & h & others so that he can then take H's place as the underground FBI-type leader. ...more
NOTE: Read & rated this back in Jan 2020, when I was more tolerant and didn't do Safety Spoilers.
Bit of angst from 26yo waitress h seeing her 1st loveNOTE: Read & rated this back in Jan 2020, when I was more tolerant and didn't do Safety Spoilers.
Bit of angst from 26yo waitress h seeing her 1st love 27yo restaurateur H ignore her & smexxing the lead server OW, when she sees him again 10 yrs later. She was forced to leave him by her foster mother. Her abusive foster-mom threatened to kill her & H if h came back. When she came back months later after she was rescued from her homelessness, h couldn't find him and was now preggo with his baby. She couldn't find any trace of him the next 10 years until just a few months ago. She & their 9yo daughter (who H had no idea even existed) moved to where he was coz their daughter wanted to meet her father. h also wanted to check him out 1st to see how he was before she'd introduced their daughter to him.
H became a big manho & killer the last 10 yrs, after h's mom told him that she killed h. As a result, he became hopeless & homeless after committing the mom to a mental hospital. He got trained to be an assassin by the guy who rescued him from the streets.
Liked that she was celibate after H since she never got over him and hoped to find him. It fit her strong survivalist and protective-mother character. Liked that H became OTT possessive-obssessive with h, after he found her again. He loved her and thought her dead. And he'd been trying to forget the last 10 yrs with his random hookups. Liked that both didn't resist their love for each other, when they saw each other again. So, no unnecessary drama. Both matureed enough to let jealousies & Big Misunderstandings go for the sake of their daughter & their 2nd chance....more
NOTE: Read & rated this back in Jan 2020, when I was more tolerant and didn't do Safety Spoilers.
Likable characters. Especially 19yo virgin 4.5-star
NOTE: Read & rated this back in Jan 2020, when I was more tolerant and didn't do Safety Spoilers.
Likable characters. Especially 19yo virgin h who just buried her beloved mom (who she took care of for 3 yrs from cancer) and who's neglectful dad has just sent her to live at the beach house of his wealthy stepson--famous-rockstar's son 24yo stocktrader H. Loved her inner strength and positive outlook. She also tended to be kind & forgive, despite the many negatives she's gone through in life the last 5 years (i.e., her ID twin died from car accident with her then-involved dad driving, dad leaves h & her mom after sister's death for his ex-GF who's H's stepmom, h's mom struggled with cancer for 3 yrs with h taking care of her, h's childhood BFF & BF cheats on her & not there for her during her mom's sickness).
Loved stepbro H's OTT alpha possessive-obssessive attitude towards h. Initially, he was cruel and acted like a jerk to her. He made sure h could hear/see them smexxing. He put her in the tiny room below stairs by the kitchen coz he thought she was a moocher like her dad. He strongly resisted his attraction towards her by bringing different OW in his house. Loved seeing H by Book3 solidly prioritize h & their baby first in his life. He made it clear to his sister and his mom clear that they come 1st.
Good emotionality with some angst from H, when he put his manipulative younger sister 1st & ignored h's calls/texts when she needed him coz he was busy trying to console his guilt-tripping sister. Written well with great pacing. 2ndary chars were written in a balanced way that introduced them w/o distracting from the main romance. ...more
1.5-star **Major SPOILERS under Plot and Sexual History**
Should've DNFed @ 11% but skimmed until the end since it picked up @ 33%. But then it went ba1.5-star **Major SPOILERS under Plot and Sexual History**
Should've DNFed @ 11% but skimmed until the end since it picked up @ 33%. But then it went back down after 58%.
The GOOD: 1.) Good-enough emotionality with some angst 2.) Hot detailed bareback S scenes
The BAD: 1.) Weak & shallow characters Due to 18yo H leaving town after their secret summer fling, 16yo h drowned her sorrows with sex & alcohol. She had no ambitions to pursue anything other than her just-to-pay-the-bills waitressing job she got via her aunt. Eight years later, she's still doing the same thing.
H cowered under his wealthy parents’ pressure & rebelled by leaving town instead of going to Yale. He didn't communicate his travel plans to h. Nor his plan to come back for her 2 years later, when she became legal. He slept with her, knowing she was underage and that he was going to leave town soon. Neither did that much to fight to stay together or be reunited soon or have a long-distance relationship since they could've easily been in contact secretly through H's many friends and h's aunt-boss. Or text/phone/Skype (This was written in 2014). Instead, they slept with other people to get over each other and h's pregnancy loss. And never reached out 1 year, 2 years, or more to discuss what happened. H had a bike so he could've come back to meet up with her at a secret location, if he really wanted to.
2.) H's inconsistent persistence & obsession with h One day (or 6 months), he's all possessive & stalkery obssessive. But then, with a little rejection from h or threat from his dad, he deflates and soon dates other women. He also lacked responsibility and was ok not working and just traveling around with his bike and golfing while being funded by his family funding. If it wasn't for h's frank talk about his joblessness and her worry about their future, he would've just kept golfing & puttering around. He was like a rich loser.
3.) Immature romance & unsure HEA
PLOT Highlights: @11% h's POV revealed that she slept around with “whatever wealthy hot guy hit on (her)” at bars to drown her sorrows after H left her 8 years ago & that included his close cousin OM who she 1st smexxed coz he looked like H but ended up falling in love with him and dating him the next few years until recently when OM died from an accidental drowning.
Skimmed until about 30% when I felt some angst & interest from the major tidbits dropped re: what else was involved in H&h’s breakup & subsequent heartache were dropped including a baby they lost.
@33% h finally let H talk to her re: the baby she thought she aborted (her aunt later corrects her that she miscarried the baby at the clinic but h was knocked out so she didn't know & just assumed they aborted her baby all those years) & her sleeping with other guys to get over her & H took the blame for leaving her to deal with the fallback of her aunt & his dad finding out about their affair when h was still a teen.
@40% they called a truce to be friends but both jealous when the other is with another potential date. @46% H declared his plan to talk with h about all that happened 8 years ago when h was ready so they can both heal.
@58% h let H finger her to orgasm & he soon after told her ILY but she said it was too late.
@63% 3 months later H dates his ex-GF (OW) from high school to get over h since she rejected him but seeing h again when she was serving him & his date at the restaurant & she seemed jealous of OW confused him. It wasn’t until his friend told him to not just give up on h but fight for her that he told OW he couldn’t date her anymore & then pursued h again.
@89% H&h’s 1st sex scene after he agreed with her plan to date each other casually although he wanted to be exclusive. But after they smexxed he got all possessive claimy & wanted to be exclusive but she frankly told him that she couldn’t without a firm commitment from him since he can just walk away again from her again since he didn’t have a job and she didn’t want to move out of town.
@96% h hadn’t heard from H in 5 days & thought they were done until he ask her to go with him to show her the actual locations of the hotel and their future home that he recently purchased with his inheritance money & then proposed marriage.
Sexual History: 16yo trailer-park h was devirginzed by 18yo wealthy college-bound H during their short & secret summer fling before he was forced to go to Yale after his dad found about his fling with poor h & blackmailed H into leaving her. Both of them slept with other people to get over each other over the next 8 years. Since her BF's death 2 years ago, h had been celibate until H.
H had 4 previous lovers before h, including his recent ex-GF of 2 years who his parents wanted him to date. After h, he slept with bunch of other women to get over h but it didn’t work. When he came back to town 2 years ago, he was single and silently watching h dating his cousin. He left town again for awhile & no info on whether he dated or slept with anyone. When he came back again 6 months ago, he silently stalked h to give her support over losing her BF and due to his obsession with her. He seemed to have been celibate for that 6-month period. He didn't smex his ex-GF during the 1-2 week period he dated her after h rejected his ILY. Not sure if he kissed or touched her but he was willing to date her since he felt rejected by h and wanted to be with someone who wanted him and she was a good lover in the past....more
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