SYNOPSIS:
People say Tomas Mendoza is dangerous.
They’re right.
But he saved my life.
I owe him, and all I have to repay the ruthless crime boss… is me. I tell myself it’s not pity that burns in his eyes when I dance for him, that my walls are so high he can’t see how broken I am inside.
Now danger stalks me again, and Tomas swoops in, only this time he shows me a different side of himself. Fierce protectiveness. Raw hunger. A tenderness that could sear through the barriers I raised to safeguard my heart and soul.
My past taught me not to trust. But this glorious sinner might be the one man I need to learn to love again.
REVIEW:
A-mazing! That’s the
only word to describe this awesomeness of a novel. Whoever would have thought that a crime
kingpin could be such a sympathetic character. Having only read the prior Lawless Kings book (Ruthless
Protector), not all of the series, I only had a brief introduction to
Tomas previously. But he was definitely portrayed as
attractive, appealing and so very dangerous.
(The fact that in that story he went to Jude when Willa tried to borrow
money from him, acting like a concerned friend rather than just a loan shark,
spoke volumes to me though about how much he is truly a complex character.)
Tomas this big, tough guy, crime boss, who, by his own
admission, has done a lot of things both illegal and immoral, things that would
scare most regular people. And yet… with
Stephanie he is almost a different person entirely. He is so kind, considerate, gentle and
caring. He has loved her from the moment
he first saw her and never stopped.
Despite huge barriers to their relationship, both real and perceived, he
has always been there for her.
"That’s why I came in all those nights, because I couldn’t
stay away, because I’ve wanted you since the first time I laid eyes on
you. You have all the control, baby, all
of it. I’m yours to command."
But Stephanie is, sadly, very much damaged goods. Tomas finally decides that he can’t be around
her anymore with things how they are – or rather, aren’t – between them, so he
tells her that he’s going to stay away.
The ball is in her court though, because she knows how to get ahold of
him. Almost luckily, her psycho estranged
husband shows up to threaten her, and she is forced to ask Tomas for his
protection. Luckily, she does so at
least (rather than try to run away from her problems like Willa did).
Other than the fact that Ryan is a sick prick who terrorizes
them for a couple of weeks, things actually work out well. Tomas and Stephanie are forced into close
proximity, she finally begins to believe how much he truly cares for her, and
even starts to let him within the shell she’s erected around herself. Despite feeling that he was never good enough
for her and fearing that he can’t give her what she needs, Tomas instinctively does
help her regain her self-esteem and control of her own life.
“…And as much as I wanted you before now, you weren’t
ready. Now you are, and because of that,
I have all of you.” He kissed me
softly. “I’m going to make sure you don’t
regret giving that to me, not for one moment.”
Warmth
curled in my chest. “How could I, when I’m
with the man I love?”
He made
a rough sound.
“Until you…” I had to
swallow the lump forming in my throat. “I
never know… I had no idea…” I took a
steadying breath. “Thank you for showing
me what real love is,” I said.
These two are very much the central two characters of this story. Even crazy Ryan only plays a real minor
role. We are treated to glimpses at least of most of the characters
from prior books in the series though, which is always fun.
And the expanded character of Arthur the butler is one that I found
delightful; he is definitely good people.
One of the only real problems that I had with the novel (other than the abuse that Stephanie suffered at the hands of her ex obviously) related
to the plotting of the last dramatic scene. I found it
totally implausible that Tomas, even after seeing Ryan at his house, leaves the
premises with Stephanie and old man Arthur totally unguarded. Sure, they had an excellent security system
on the house. But electronic devices can
malfunction or fail, and as we saw in this instance, they only work when you
actually remain inside of them. I couldn't believe there was anyway that Tomas wouldn't have left some of his thugs or the King Agency guys or someone to protect them.
All in all, however, this was an incredible book and an
amazing love story, and Tomas is most certainly one of the best book
boyfriends EVER!
I received a free eBook copy of this title from the author,
and have willingly provided an honest review.
Buy Links:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2Ni0Z04
iBooks: https://apple.co/2NcoJm6
Kobo: http://bit.ly/2Ndo4AQ
B&N: http://bit.ly/2NcoQ10
Google Play: Link unavailable until release day
Author Bio:
Sherilee Gray is a kiwi girl and lives in beautiful New Zealand with her husband and their two children. When she isn't writing sexy, edgy contemporary romance, searching for her next alpha hero on Pinterest, or fueling her voracious book addiction, she can be found dreaming of far off places with a mug of tea in one hand and a bar of Cadburys Rocky Road chocolate in the other.
Social Media Links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sherilee_Gray
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.nz/SherileeGray/
Website: https://www.sherileegray.com
Giveaway:
$30 Amazon Gift Card
#EnticingJourneyBookPromotions
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