I've never loved a Rina Kent book. Never liked any of the heroines in the books I've tried by her. And this was nothing different. Every time I pick uI've never loved a Rina Kent book. Never liked any of the heroines in the books I've tried by her. And this was nothing different. Every time I pick up a book by this author, I end up DNFing it because literally every story seems the same, more or less, not to mention the characters. I thought this trilogy was a standalone trio and wasn't connected to any other book. And while it can be read as a standalone, the characters of the deception trilogy appear in this. Makes me wonder is there a book in existence by Rina Kent which is not connected to another one of her series?
It's honestly frustrating. Specifically when we see more than 2 books of the same couple when that story could've been perfectly wrapped up in one single book. When a story is stretched too far that it becomes a trilogy, you'd think the cliffhanger would be a top notch mystery but nah! these are booktok books, there's no need to hope for excellence. Because after books like this reaches that booktok level hype, it is only ever a let down....more
JFC I'm sorry for cursing so much but WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK
WHY the fuck wasn't I informed about tYes, I stayed up till 4am to finish this.
because WTF
OMFG
JFC I'm sorry for cursing so much but WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK
WHY the fuck wasn't I informed about there being a new magical realism book in existence? Why, oh why do i have to stumble upon the most important books randomly as a luck of chance.
jfc
I have scoured the earth to find all the romance books in existence consisting of my favorite fucking trope - magical realism and you're telling me it has been more than a freaking month since a new one came to the world and NOBODY TOLD ME??? It is already so freaking rare to find magical realism in romance books. It is 10x more freaking hard to find the books which does the trope justice and does it right.
Look at my all time fav shelf, look at the magical realism shelf, both contains common books, and unfortunately, the latter has only 21 books. My magical realism fav books. Obviously, Transcend duet is no.1
I can go on and on about this trope and the significance of it and how it should be done blah blah blah but this 524 paged books which kept me up all night with its absolutely heart-wrenching, breathtaking and beautiful story, deserves all the love in the world. This book became my fav not only because it has my fav trope. It's because this has another thing i look for which i rarely ever get. The childhood element. The one where one character is a kid and their whole childhood is shown not just a flashback of time. This story managed to remind me so much of Ren and Della: Boxed Set aka Ribbon duet and that book was other-worldly. So combine the two rarest finds of the romance book community and tell me how should I not consider this book special?
I knew that as long as she remained a little kid, she is never gonna be anything but honest, and those refreshing moments spent of her as a kid with Alex, is what i cherish the most.
And because i cannot talk about the book without giving spoilers and i love this book too fucking much to give spoilers, I present to you the quotes:...more
I'm definitely in the minority of hating this book. While I'd love nothing more than to give this a one-star rating, the plot twist – not the final onI'm definitely in the minority of hating this book. While I'd love nothing more than to give this a one-star rating, the plot twist – not the final one, mind-blowing as it was, didn't do anything for me – itself deserves a star.
Let's get on with it (proceed with this review only after reading the blurb) :
➺ Married heroine cheats on her husband. While that's not my cup of tea, I did anticipate something like this after reading the blurb. I've enjoyed novels where an amnesiac hero works to mend past marital infidelity, so the reversed role doesn't bother me. What did bother me, though, was the fact that she cheats on him again after the amnesia.
➺ Even if we let it all go. What I absolutely loathed here was the justifications of cheating. Oh it was subtle. Never explicitly stating that her involvement with Nathan (om) was due to her issues with Damien (H-the husband) during those moments. However, the extensive justifications characters employed to rationalize their cheating, coupled with the artful writing style that manipulated readers into siding with the heroine, were truly impressive. Trust me, had I approached this book thinking it was a typical contemporary romance, rather than picking it up as a romantic thriller/suspense, I might have fallen for the manipulation and maybe even loved it. But I wasn't in the mood to be swayed; I was fully immersed in thriller mode and left my empathy behind.
➺ The result of this was that the plot twist (especially the final one) didn't strike me as a mind-blowing twist of the century; it came across as a contrived plot device deliberately used to rationalize her cheating. And in the end, if you don't find the heroine likable, disapprove of her actions and character, there's the last chapter to level the playing field between her and her husband. This gives you the impression that her actions don't matter as much because her husband isn't squeaky clean either.
Someone needs to understand that two wrongs don't make a right. Just because both characters are flawed doesn't make the initial wrong acceptable. This is where I take issue with books centered around cheating. For example : revenge cheating is one thing, But if you cheat on your partner and then find out they cheated too (not the case here; Damien remained faithful throughout), it doesn't justify your cheating. Because you did it believing your partner was faithful. Another common theme I've noticed in these cheating heroine books is that they often stray due to feeling neglected. Here it's even more perplexing, considering it hasn't been long since the loss of their child – just five days ago. She can't remember her pregnancy or the accident that led to the loss, yet she's upset that her husband isn't openly grieving with her. I'm not one to pass judgment on the struggles of a fictional married couple, but what got to me was her contrasting understanding of Nathan's grief (who also lost his son -9yo maybe- a year ago) and her lack of understanding towards Damien's grief, which is fresh – it happened just 5 DAYS AGO!
➺I did not like the subtle way it was implied by sentences like these, that whatever led to her cheating with Nathan was due to the strain in her marriage and the challenges they were facing, which says a lot about your marriage, and don't get me started on how she blamed Damien for her about-to-happen cheating, Damien apologising for HER cheating:
"disappointed her husband wouldn’t share his grief with her the way Nathan has been."
"Inappropriate thoughts of Nathan fill her mind. She blocks them, forces her thoughts to her husband. She glances at her phone with disappointment. Damien never called. She rises from the bed."
and when she says stuff like this :
“I blame you, Damien. Whatever happens with Nathan, I blame you. You got us into this mess.” Had she known she had an affair with Nathan before Rebecca called about the assignment, she would have declined it on the spot. Fuck her job. Not when it interferes with her marriage.
then proceed to force her way to go with Nathan on his Alaska trip AFTER knowing she had a fling-affair with him before the accident. Her "reasons" seemed quite feeble to me, honestly...more
I know it was a twisted journey, where the end was the beginning and the beginning was the end. I know that, and I did i
Like the author said :
I know it was a twisted journey, where the end was the beginning and the beginning was the end. I know that, and I did it on purpose. I wanted to try to take you down a path where your mind wasn’t your own, just like Calla’s. It had to happen in order. And it did.
I don't know who's crazy and who's not. But one thing is for certain, this series has made me crazy.I don't know who's crazy and who's not. But one thing is for certain, this series has made me crazy....more
❥ Jewel E. Ann holds the top spot as my favorite author for several compelling reasons. One
“I’ve spent my whole life waiting to love you.”
❥ Jewel E. Ann holds the top spot as my favorite author for several compelling reasons. One of those reasons, which is especially relevant here, is that in a vast sea of countless authors, some of whom write simply to capitalize on popular tropes which sells and brings fame, JEA belongs to the rare category of authors who go beyond constructing stories about fictional characters. Instead, she has this remarkable ability to infuse her characters with life and depth, making them humans. They each have their own distinct story to tell, one that is rich in significance and authenticity. It's simply amazing how she brings them to life on the page.
❥ To my disappointment, "Jersey Six," one of her remarkable works, remains highly underrated. It came as a surprise when I chanced upon a recent Instagram post by JEA showcasing this book. In fact, it felt like a new release to me since I had never encountered it before, nor had I included it in my tbr. This oversight stirred frustration within me as I berated myself for not being acquainted with all the books by my favorite author. Motivated by this realization, I made the decision to read it without delay.
❥ When you've read a bad book and then read something worse, that bad book doesn't seem that bad in comparison. Similarly, I hold a personal theory that when one experiences the magnificence of a good book and then encounters a truly exceptional masterpiece, the former pales in comparison. Every other outstanding literary effort loses some of its brilliance when one has read the pinnacle of excellence. When I first heard JEA's "Transcend" duet about two years ago, I also had this discovery. Since then, I've discovered how to preserve such literary perfection in the romance genre for those occasions when I crave something extraordinary, exceptional, and unparalleled.
❥ On every occasion when I have delved into the pages of a JEA creation that captured my heart, that story has consistently outshone and surpassed all my recent readings, which I had previously considered good. "Jersey Six" confidently joins the ranks of these extraordinary works.
❥ When you find a really good book, you can talk about it, describe it, what you liked and loved about it. When you hate a book, there's no limitations on the amount of words you need to get out of you. When you find a great book which you love to the moon and back, something which you can't ever recover from, words escape you and you cannot pinpoint the exact things you loved in the story with such intensity.
Atleast that's what happens to me and why i'm unable to say anything about this story. So, here are some of my fav impressionable quotes and highlighted scenes :
"Let’s not even get into what must have happened to you that left you looking like you do. Clearly … life hates you.” Jersey sucked at subtle. She sucked at a lot of things, like patience, restraint, kind words, and giving a shit. Low on sympathy and high on the memory of knocking Judd out, she strutted toward the back of the gym
✿✿✿
“Less than a year ago, Jersey gutted a man from groin to throat when he tried to take photos of her naked in the shower.” Amy gasped, meeting Jersey’s gaze. On a heavy sigh, Jersey rolled her eyes. “Gutted is not the correct word. It implies I removed his organs. Slashed, sliced, cut, maybe even lanced … but definitely not gutted. That’s gross.” Jersey had a limited vocabulary, except when it came to knives. She knew everything a knife could do.
✿✿✿
"Jersey Six…” Ian reached up and gave the hat gave me, a gentle tug “… I’m going to show you the world.”
✿✿✿
“You can leave your bag.” “Nope.” She shot him a challenging look. “My bad. You should definitely bring it. That was my second suggestion. Do I have anything in my teeth?” He bared his teeth and pink gums.
✿✿✿
"You know … there’s the glass-half-empty people who always ask why me whenever something goes wrong, like they are more deserving of a flawless life than some other person. But when someone asks why me because something good has happened to them, it just makes the answer that much sweeter.”
✿✿✿
She knelt on the floor and opened it, using her fingers to scoop up the long strings of spaghetti, sucking it into her mouth. “There are more forks in the sack.” She paused, glancing up at Ian while slurping the last inch of spaghetti into her mouth. Her cheeks turned red. He didn’t mean to embarrass her. Without giving it a second thought, Ian kneeled on the floor at the opposite side of the coffee table, pitched the fork over his shoulder, and dug his fingers into the pasta, bringing it to his mouth and slurping it up.
✿✿✿
Control slipped. She needed to take it back, but she couldn’t because the lie felt too good. It poisoned her mind and manipulated her body.
✿✿✿
"Why do I feel like you’re making up for something? Why do I feel like you didn’t simply meet me by chance? Why does it feel like you found me?” Her lips touched his mouth.
✿✿✿
“But …” Grace’s voice quivered. “This is my room.” Jersey’s eyebrows shot up her forehead. “Is that so?” She took another step toward Grace, forcing her to retreat a step, then another, until her body crossed the doorway’s threshold. “Gracie … go tell the curious people out there that the new merch girl is fucking Ian Cooper in your bed.” Jersey slammed the door in Grace’s face and locked it.
✿✿✿
I have a full-time job to do, but I’m going to suck at it. It’s the only thing I’ve been good at— and I’m going to suck at it. Because missing you will be my full-time job. And it doesn’t matter if anyone has ever missed you before, because I will miss you enough to last a lifetime.”
✿✿✿
“Yes. Just ask me. Ask me to get you tampons. Ask me to take you boxing. Ask me what something means. Ask me for the world. Or just ask me for a kiss.” “Kiss me, Coop.” She grinned, a breath away from his lips.
✿✿✿
“I don’t belong to you, Coop.” He sat up, standing behind her with his chest to her back. Grabbing her face, he turned her head just enough to kiss her, tasting every inch of her mouth once more before pulling back a fraction of an inch to meet her eyes— her hard gaze. “No. You don’t. But you belong with me.”
✿✿✿
“Wish me luck, Jersey.” He cradled the back of her head and kissed the top of it. She rested a flat hand on his chest over his heart.“Luck, Coop.”
________________________________
P.S : This bears repeating, wthout a doubt, Jewel E. Ann is a must-try author for anyone seeking the real deal in the romance genre. If you haven't had the pleasure of reading her work yet, you're truly missing out. Her ability to captivate readers with rich and authentic storytelling is unparalleled. After experiencing her writing, I'm eager to own all the paperback copies of her books (not just Transcend duet), as they are undoubtedly worth treasuring in my personal collection.
Okay, first some quick info to understand this review better : ➺This book isn't a standalone ➺The first book is Empathy. ➺All the characters in this one Okay, first some quick info to understand this review better : ➺This book isn't a standalone ➺The first book is Empathy. ➺All the characters in this one were introduced in the first book. ➺Empathy main couple : Blake (H) and Melody (h) ➺This book exactly like the first had 3 povs (first person) ➺The male protagonist here is that third character : Ryan (Blake's brother) ➺Ceruse is the daughter of Blake and Melody who only appeared briefly in the epilogue of Empathy ********************** REVIEW :
My mistake, thinking this was a romance book featuring Ryan, the villain from "Empathy." However, it turned out to be a thriller with some romantic elements that don't involve Ryan. If you remove the povs of Blake and Melody, the romance aspect disappears. .
➺ Jesus Christ. In my previous review of Empathy, I compared Ryan to the American Psycho and expressed my hesitation to read his story. I was right to be cautious because Ryan is an entirely different kind of dark romance hero, particularly due to his psychopathic nature. There's nothing romantic or admirable about him. He resembles Ted Bundy, except he kills indiscriminately. The only way he can achieve any form of "hea" is by living a separate life with Ceruse as his partner, not out of love but simply because she's the only person he doesn't get a knee-jerk reaction of committing murder in a gruesome manner.
Initially, I intended to give this book a three-star rating, but by the end, all the characters, including the ones I had no issue with, started acting foolishly. And then there's the so-called heroine, Ceruse, who doesn't quite live up to that title.
➺ Ceruse is portrayed as a teenager who supposedly stands out from others, being labeled as "different and mature for her age" by every character in the story. Apparently, she's the only teenager who aspires to be an artist, claims to hate people, argues with her parents, and doesn't relate to her peers. She considers activities like shopping and partying immature and prefers indulging in her hobbies to increase her chances of getting into a good art school. The constant reminder that she's unlike other kids her age is forced upon the reader.
Truthfully, she does possess some distinct qualities. Remember when your parents first warned you about not trusting strangers? Now, imagine meeting a stranger a few weeks ago who suddenly claims to be your secret uncle, one that your father never mentioned. Furthermore, this person insists that you keep this meeting a secret from your parents because they would prevent you from seeing him. A mature person would clearly know what to do in such a situation. Ceruse's mature response was along the lines of, "I don't want to hear about you from them; I want to hear from you directly. I won't tell them we met. I trust you."
Thus, her response supposedly proves that she truly is "mature for her age."
"Calling her beautiful was like calling the sun lukewarm. She’d blazed like the hottest part of a flame in that dress. And fuck me, I’d felt the he"Calling her beautiful was like calling the sun lukewarm. She’d blazed like the hottest part of a flame in that dress. And fuck me, I’d felt the heat."
When you throw the ultimate forbidden professor-student trope in a dark gothic romance AND promise some panty-melting smut, you know who you guaranteed as a reader? Me. Like can you think of a way to get me to read fantasy? This would be it. As a slooow burn hater, i couldn't give a fuck while at the same time was shocked to see this being a sloooooow burn i was hooked on from the very beginning till the very end.
“You’re the fever in my veins,” he said through clenched teeth, as he drove into me with furious determination. “An incurable madness I can’t shake. Fucking you is the only thing that keeps me sane, Lilia.”
I read this in a span of 2 days, and in those 2 days, i started this, went to see Barbie, came back and finished this. Was that information relevant to the review? no. Then why did i mention that? to waste your time because seeing as you're reading a review (granted, mine) instead of reading this book, you clearly love wasting yours.
If i had to describe this story in a sentence, it would be this :
A beautiful complexity that was as pure and thrilling as it was forbidden.
There's literally no element missing in this. We got tantalizing mystery, dark gothic academia, HUMOR, sexual tension that'll blow your mind (among other things worth blowing), gore (and don't take this lightly), a secret society, plot-building, character development, an enigmatic morally gray black professor and THE SMUT.
“Did you just threaten me? Like, with death that time?” He didn’t flinch beneath the accusation. “Don’t fuck with me, Miss Vespertine. You want to play hardball? Know that mine are made of steel.” “That sounds painful.” His lips twitched as if he were trying to hold back a smile.
Huh. I was wondering when will I ever get the chance to read this enormous book that's been on my TBR for ages, figures (Huh. I was wondering when will I ever get the chance to read this enormous book that's been on my TBR for ages, figures (...more
The thing I love the most about Shadowman is the fact that he says the most beautiful things to ever exist and they Re-read III : Aug 26, 2024 Review :
The thing I love the most about Shadowman is the fact that he says the most beautiful things to ever exist and they are so romantically poetic yet he is the person who cannot feel emotions so he says them as universal and scientific facts more than anything else. Like, you could expect this from Dante, he is a really feeling person and you could expect this from even Tristan sometimes who is dark but only light for Morana. I don't even count alpha lol. But shadowman has the level of intensity that is so unparalleled to every other fictional man including the other dark verse men that everything he speaks, and when he speaks you know it means something and not a single word from his mouth is a waste. Even his simple "yes" or "okay" or "good" has power in them.
So yeah when I rank the books, these characters —it sounds so ridiculous when I say characters, because I feel like I know them as actual humans— I love Dante and Amara's story the most but Shadowman comes on top of my fav dark verse hero and then Dante. Book wise it's - Emperor, Annihilator, Reaper, Predator and Finisher.
Alpha and Zephyr are my least favourite characters and the story as well.
Blackthorne>>> After all, he is the most dangerous and the most powerful among all of them INCLUDING the whole Syndicate
Re-read II : Nov 19, 2023 Read : Feb 15, 2023
Initial review :
“Your trust, flamma, is the most addictive drug.”
Oh fuck. Oh fuck.
10/5 stars✰
“If there was any love in this world of mine, Lyla, it would be you.”
After reading this, now i feel like lowering the ratings of all the other books in the series (save for Dante's).
Because oh fucking hell.
THE SHADOW MAN CAN GIVE TRISTAN A RUN FOR HIS MONEY. I'm actually conflicted about who do i love more? Dante and Amara? Whom i loved from the very beginning, who were my all time fav couples and are my comfort characters? Or Blackthorn and Lyla? Who SURPASSED everyone and made me feel more than I ever thought possible?
If you ever choose another, make sure you kill me first. Because I—” he bent to whisper against her lips “—will annihilate the fucking world before I let you go.”
I don't know how should I describe the characters. I want to put all my fav highlighted quotes here but there are literally more than fucking 80.
Also, HATTS OFF TO THE AUTHOR for how she has left me speechless and it's still astounding to me how every little piece fucking falls into place in every book, and it all comes full circle in this Dark Verse series, how perfectly she has woven this world and everything connects so fucking flawlessly. Just ...more
This was so much better than AngeloRory story which i DNFed around 16% and even knowing how their story turns out from this book, i have no intention This was so much better than AngeloRory story which i DNFed around 16% and even knowing how their story turns out from this book, i have no intention of ever picking it up again either.
➺The heroine in this book is just chefs kisses really. I had my doubts about her personality when from the prologue we got to know there was going to be a "queen of hearts" who'll bring Rafe "to his knees" and let's be honest, it wouldn't be the first time a meek heroine is labelled as such.
Imagine my surprise when i not only found Penelope to be a wild firecracker, but also found myself loving the fact that even though she is averse to mafia violence and stuff which isn't anything new but she makes up for it by being such a fucking trickster. The amount of times she took me by surprise along with Rafe and manages to shock me by her boldness dissolved any doubts i had about her being his doom card.
➺Rafe, he is a made men who is a gentleman but not a gentle man. That about sums him up and the sexual tension between these two were not hot because it was written masterfully but rather how both of them were equally dominating. This is those rare mafia romances where i encountered an equal couple and not another Intimidating-killer-H & meek-submissive-h.
➺The length of these books bothers me because i don't see any point of a romance which isn't a fantasy being more than 350+ pages. Especially when this isn't even a standalone.
Shantel Tessier has never disappointed me in her dark romance world. its straight up wild, unhinged, sacrilegious and so far beyond over the top. If iShantel Tessier has never disappointed me in her dark romance world. its straight up wild, unhinged, sacrilegious and so far beyond over the top. If i had to describe her books and this book in particular, i would say : Dark erotic romance.
If there's something called dark smut, this is it. Tyson can give Ryat a run for his money that's for sure. ...more
I was, obviously, loving this so much specifically because of the ferocious smut that this L.O.R.D.S universe never ceases to amaze me with.3.5 Stars✰
I was, obviously, loving this so much specifically because of the ferocious smut that this L.O.R.D.S universe never ceases to amaze me with. But then, out of the blue, in the last 20%, things got kinda crazy real fast. It annoyed me at first with that four years time gap, and just when I got over that, bam, some wild and unnecessary stuff happened with the heroine. While the crazy twists involving the heroine could have been acceptable, their placement towards the end left little room for a satisfying aftermath. To wrap things up quickly, the HEA epilogue hit, and it's like all the crazy stuff that happened before just vanished....more
I'm disgusted. And I'm hot. Then I'm disgustingly hot. Now I'm disgusted that i am hot. – Me throughout the book.
Now this is the literature my brainceI'm disgusted. And I'm hot. Then I'm disgustingly hot. Now I'm disgusted that i am hot. – Me throughout the book.
Now this is the literature my braincells are familiar with! This is the type of nonstop fucking i don't want to watch in porn but i can't help but love to read.
My experience with Shantel Tessier's dark romances has led me to reach this conclusion that she doesn't write the 'she is the light to his dark' type of characters, rather it's 'one is dark and the other is darker' and both the MCs just blend with each other and they are dark together.
When they are not constantly fucking each other, there are like a thousand mini plot twists and major ones which just comes out of nowhere and throws me off, and it's unlike any actual romantic thriller I've ever read.
::::quotes/dialogues::::
“What is one person’s heaven is another’s hell,” I state and then reach up and yank on her dress, pulling the thin straps down over her arms to expose her breasts to me. “You’re my heaven, and I’m your hell,” I whisper, making sure she understands her current situation.
**
He told me that my eyes were so beautiful that he wanted to cut them out and place them in a jar in his room so he could look at them every day. It made me wet. It also made me realize that I’m more fucked up than any patient my mother had ever seen.
My reading goal of 2023? – 1 book My first read of 2023? – 1 star read
Why did i read this, the voices in my head ask?? I was stuck in a place with no inMy reading goal of 2023? – 1 book My first read of 2023? – 1 star read
Why did i read this, the voices in my head ask?? I was stuck in a place with no internet, no kindle and the only unread ebook on my phone was this piece of trash.
Loading...
