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text 2020-06-04 19:29
Meine Autorinnen Challenge 2020 - Stand Ende Mai Anfang Juni
Nach einer wahren Geschichte: Roman - Delphine de Vigan,Doris Heinemann
Wir holen alles nach - Martina Borger
Und wie wir hassen! - Lydia Haider
Was wir voneinander wissen - Jessie Greengrass
Die neue Scheherazade - Lilian Faschinger

Hallo meine Lieben!

 

Der Mai war wieder geprägt von vielen Büchern und großartigen Autorinnen, aber auch von einigen Enttäuschungen. 5 Bücher von Schriftstellerinnen konnte ich in diesem Monat lesen und rezensieren bei einem Buch fehlt noch die Review.

 

Meine Wunschliste und der grobe Leseplan das meiste von meinem SUB

6.) Lilian Faschinger: Die neue Scheherazade ⭐️⭐️,5 Sterne (29.5.2020)

5.) Delphine de Vigan: Nach einer wahren Geschichte ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️(18.05.2020)
4.) Birgit Vanderbeke: Muschelessen ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️,5 Sterne (11.03.2020)

3.) Yazmin Reza: Glücklich die Glücklichen ⭐️⭐️ Sterne (08.03.2020)

2.) Amelie Nothomb: Der japanische Verlobte ⭐️⭐️⭐️,5 Sterne (25.2.2020)

1.) Natascha Kampusch: 3096 Tage ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️  (09.01.2020)

 

Lust oder die Liebhaberinnen, Elfriede Jelinek

Lady Orakel, Margaret Atwood
Vernon Subutex 3, Virgenie Despentes
Zehn, Franka Potente
Landgericht, Ursula Krechel
Erebos, Ursula Poznanski
Macht, Karen Duve
Christine Nöstlinger, Maikäfer flieg
Jessica Durlacher, Die Tochter

Raphaela Edelbauer, Das flüssige Land

Ingried Brugger, & Bettina  M. Bussse: The Cindy Sherman Effect

Bestellte Rezensionsexemplare

14.) Vine, Barbara: Astas Tagebuch (currently reading)

13.) Lappert, Simone: Wurfschatten (currently reading)

12.) Greengrass, Jessie: Was wir voneinander wissen ⭐️⭐️,5  (04.06.2020) 
11.) Haider, Lydia(Hrsg.): Und wie wir hassen! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️  (29.05.2020)
10.) Borger, Martina: Wir holen alles nach ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️  (08.05.2020)

9.) Marketa Pilatova: Mit Bat'a im Dschungel ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️  (24.4.2020)

8.) Sibylle Berg: Nerds - retten die Welt ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️  (11.04.2020)

7.) Lucia Leidenfrost: Wir verlassenen Kinder ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️  (24.3.2020)

6.) Simone Hirth: Das Loch ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (19.3.2020)

5.) Elisa Tomaselli: Wen kümmert's ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (15.03.2020)

4.) Angelika Hager: Kerls! ⭐️⭐️⭐️ (23.2.2020)

3.) Heidi Emfried: Des Träumers Verderben ⭐️⭐️ (12.2.2020)

2.) Natascha Kampusch: Cyberneider ⭐️⭐️ (03.02.2020)

1.) Dora Cechova: Ich wollte kein Lenin werden ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (09.01.2020)

 

Verena Stauffer: Ousia Gedichte
Mornštajnová Alena: Hana

Revedin Jana: Margherita

Happy End für Mrs Robinson, Evelyn Steinthaler

Nothomb, Amélie: Happy End      
Petra Piuk, Barbara Filips: Wenn Rot kommt
Barbara Rieger: Friss oder stirb

 

 

 

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review 2020-06-04 17:02
Handlungsstränge völlig losgelöst und in Quarantäne
Was wir voneinander wissen - Jessie Greengrass

So überhaupt nicht erfreut war ich von diesem durch renommierte britische Literaturpreise ausgezeichneten Werk. In all den Szenen, Geschichten, Zeilen und Seiten verspürte ich nicht mal irgendwie und zu irgendeinem Zeitpunkt annähernd einen Funken von lauwarm. Für mich fehlten der Flow, der Zusammenhang der stilistischen Mittel und die Konsistenz des Romans.

Dabei sind das Hauptthema und der Haupterzählungsstrang der Geschichte doch ganz mein Metier. Eine verkopfte, überanalytische und -ängstliche Protagonistin erzählt ziemlich detailliert von ihren Sorgen, Phobien und auch in Rückblenden von ihrem Leben. Das sind normalerweise Geschichten, die ich sehr mag, aber diese war in der Umsetzung einfach für mich überhaupt nicht adäquat.

 

 

Das beginnt damit, dass die zu Beginn von der Autorin präsentierte Sprachfabulierkunst und einfühlsame Beschreibung von Ereignissen mit jeder weiteren Seite so exzessiv und inflationär zelebriert werden, dass sie für mich in eine richtiggehende Überperformance im Methaphernschwängern der Szenen ausartet. Zuviel Blumiges und mit unzähligen Adjektiven Beschreibendes ist eine stilistische Überdosis, die ein gut gewürztes Werk ins Giftige abgleiten lässt. (Huch jetzt habe ichs auch gerade getan )

 

Zurück zur Handlung: Die Hauptdarstellerin hat Angst, ihren Kinderwunsch zu verwirklichen und erinnert sich an den tragischen Tod ihrer Mutter, der in einer gut geschilderten Sterbeszene beschrieben wird. Zudem existiert – völlig von der Handlung losgekoppelt – der Biografie-Erzählstrang des Wissenschaftlers Röntgen, der überhaupt keinen Bezug zur eigentlichen Story aufweist, er wirkt wie ein unangenehmer Fremdkörper im Buch. Bevor die Leserschaft schon fast das ganze Leben von Röntgen erfahren hat, kommt kein irgendwie gearteter Konnex zwischen der Protagonistin und der Biografie des Wissenschaftlers auf. Erst auf Seite 61 wird erstmals erwähnt, was die Autorin uns offenbar mit diesem extrem schwachen Bezug sagen will. Die Ich-Erzählerin hat vor einem MRT Panik und lenkt sich mit dem Lesen der Geschichte von Röntgen vor dieser Angst ab. Das war es aber schon mit den Wissenschaftsbezügen zur Protagonistin, der erste eingestreute Handlungsstrang ist so steif wie die geröntgten Knochen. (uups I did it again)

 

Im zweiten Teil der Rückblenden mit einer weiteren drübergestreuselten Lebensgeschichte von Sigmund Freud bleibt diese wieder ein Fremdkörper im Roman. Zugegeben, die Beziehung von Freud zu seiner Tochter Anna könnte marginal etwas mit der Familiengeschichte der Hauptfigur zu tun haben, aber die Gemeinsamkeiten werden nur nebeneinandergestellt, weder verzahnt noch in Bezug zueinander gesetzt. Nie reflektiert die Autorin, was ihre eingefügten Biografien denn so mit den geschilderten Figuren zu tun haben könnten. Den Kontext muss sich der Leser selbst aus den Fingern saugen. Das irritierte mich zunehmend, denn ich habe Probleme damit, wenn ich mir aus unzusammenhängenden Versatzstücken selbst eine Geschichte zusammenbasteln muss. Das ist für mich Aufgabe des Autors und Erzählers und kann zumindest für mich, als literarische Realistin, nicht komplett an die Leserschaft outgesourct werden. Mitdenken ja, aber nicht ohne jeden Hinweis. Denn dann bleiben die servierten Häppchen total unverbunden.

 

Was ich mir letztendlich zusammengereimt habe, ist folgendes: Die selbstbestimmte autonome Mutter-Kind-Beziehung seitens des Kindes, wie sie in der Familie der Ich-Erzählerin gelebt und in Rückblenden geschildert wird, steht im Gegensatz zur symbiotischen Eltern-Kind-Beziehung, die Freud zu seiner Tochter Anna pflegte und die die Entwicklung von Anna Freud zu einer selbständigen Persönlichkeit verhinderte. Die Protagonistin sorgt sich neben all ihren anderen Ängsten um die Erziehung ihrer Tochter und schildert ihre Probleme mit dem Loslassen des Kleinkindes, um ihm die in der Familie übliche Autonomie einzuräumen. Dieses Thema wird auch in der Psychologie und in der Pädagogik kontrovers diskutiert, vor allem heutzutage in der Ausprägung Helikoptereltern. Doch ich habe nicht mal den Hauch eines Fingerzeigs, ob ich richtig liege, denn die Autorin versagt mir ja sogar den Hinweis, ob die Großmutter der Protagonistin als Psychotherapeutin den Theorien Freuds, Jungs oder einer anderen Schule folgte. Aber wie gesagt, ich habe keine Ahnung, ob ich auf der richtigen Spur bin.

 

Im dritten Abschnitt ist die Hauptfigur erneut schwanger und leidet sehr unter den körperlichen Einschränkungen. Die analoge Wissenschaftsbiografie dazu ist jene der Anatomen und Gebrüder Hunter. Es tut mir leid, aber in diesem Teil des Romans hatte ich dann schon die Lust verloren, mir irgendeinen Bezug zum Leben der Protagonistin an den Haaren herbeizuziehen, aus den Fingern zu saugen und zusammenzufantasieren.

 

Versteht mich nicht falsch, das Leben einer Familie zu zeigen und dann in Einschüben von Wissenschaftlerbiografien darzulegen, was die Protagonisten von den berühmten Intellektuellen, ihren Thesen und ihrem Leben lernen können, fände ich ein äußerst charmantes Konzept, inhaltlich wie stilistisch. Eigentlich war das auch exakt jener Roman, den ich beim Lesen des Klappentextes erwartet hätte. Wenn in der Geschichte aber keine Brücke und keine Verbindung zwischen den Handlungssträngen, zwischen Wissenschaft und Fiktion geschlagen werden, bleibt das Ganze sinn- und leblos – nebeneinander gereihte, sich nicht tangierende Fremdkörper oder eben auch zwei getrennt voneinander erzählte Geschichten, die in einem Buch einfach nicht zusammenpassen. Und das war dann lesetechnisch und auch intellektuell extrem unbefriedigend für mich.

 

Fazit: Überhaupt nicht mein Roman!

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review 2020-04-16 23:23
Book Review for Crimson by Jessie Cooke
CRIMSON: Southside Skulls Motorcycle Club (Skulls MC Book 31) Kindle Edition - Jessie Cooke
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Title: Crimson
Series: Southside Skulls MC
Author: Jessie Cooke
Genre: MC Romance Attitude
  • File Size: 2542 KB
  • Print Length: 259 pages
  • Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
  • Publisher: Redline Publishing; 1 edition (April 6, 2020)
  • Publication Date: April 6, 2020
  • Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
  • Language: English
  • Reviewed by Angels With Attitude Book Reviews
  • arc provided for honest review
  • 5 stars from us
 

 

Eric “Crimson” Adair came from Scotland to America with one thing on his mind, to find his little brother Lucas and take him home. Amelia Sanders is looking to escape her overbearing brother. A mysterious woman named Mia will bring the two together and while Crimson turns to the Southside Skulls for help finding his brother, Amelia will struggle to escape from the ranch, and from Mia. The only problem she’s facing: How does a person escape a part of herself?

Dax Marshall is smart, savvy, and sometimes ruthless. His leadership of the Southside Skulls has taken them to places that even his father, the legendary Doc Marshall, never thought they could go. But when he agrees to help Crimson track down Lucas he inadvertently pulls the club into a dangerous web that involves a hit man, a Mexican drug lord, and the FBI. Dax and the Skulls are prepared to fight to defend their club and their territory, as always, but what Dax never bargained for was the kidnapping of his sweet little girl, and the turmoil that follows.

From Mexico to Boston, this action-packed story will explore mental illness, family loyalty, and the tightrope that is often walked between the right and wrong sides of the law. As usual, the Southside Skulls, led by the one and only Dax Marshall, are ready to take you on a wild ride.

 
 
 
This was another great story in this ongoing series !The story had really great characters and we loved seeing some of the original cast members in this current story as we miss them so this was a really nice touch and treat for us. The story was interesting and suspenseful right up to the bitter end.Crimson was a very interesting character as we immediately fell in love with him the moment he didn't run for the hills  when learning the complicated mess with Mia and Amelia because he was the complete opposite of what we thought he would be he was supportive and gentle and loving and kind.
 
I have to say that we loved when Mia popped up that women was a force to be reckoned with and she made us laugh out loud more than a handful of times with Amelia it was quite the opposite she brought out our protective instinct and all we wanted to do is smother her with love and affection.
 
We are giving props to Angel as she was one bad*** old lady and also a force to reckoned with  too !
 
Overall this was a very touching story that had suspense and a great cast of characters and a web of lies and deceit at every turn and so much more.We loved the chemistry that Amelia and Crimson had it was slow burning and passionate and heartfelt and they were perfect for one another and we loved that love was found in a most unusual way. 
 
 



 

https://amzn.to/2RKgD4v 
Prologue - Acapulco, Mexico
Ernesto De La Cruz knew he wasn’t an easy man to look at. He’d been cursed as a teenager with a case of acne that would have rivaled any leper in the Dark Ages for the scars it left behind on his skin. His entire body was covered with them, but the ones on his face he couldn’t hide. They were deep and made his cheeks look like those big craters out in the desert, the ones people paid money to look at, where some shyster claimed a meteor had struck the earth. Ernesto didn’t believe that bullshit. He also didn’t believe that the pretty dark-haired señorita who was currently batting her long eyelashes at him found him in any way attractive. What he knew she saw was the expensive watch, the designer suit and sunglasses, the shiny, two-thousand-dollar shoes...and maybe she’d gotten a glimpse of the fat money clip he’d pulled out of his pocket to pay for his drink. He was no fool, for sure...but that didn’t mean he was crazy enough to not take advantage of every opportunity that came his way, either. He raised his drink to the dark-haired, dark-eyed beauty and then downed the amber liquid and felt the burn as it slid down his throat and into his stomach.
He kept his own dark eyes, covered by the mirrored sunglasses, on the señorita, and took the buzzing phone out of his pocket. He knew who it was without glancing at it. The phone was a burner, and he’d been given it for one thing only, so that Tomas could get in touch with him. Tomas was the go-between for Ernesto and the man who was actually paying him for this job. Ernesto knew who he was working for, and he didn’t like having to deal with him through a “yes” man. He thought it disrespectful that a man who wanted another man dead couldn’t talk to him face to face.
Not that Tomas Locastro was a nobody. In the impoverished community that clung to a hillside in Mexico, where his boss had built an empire, Tomas was known as “El Dimonio,” or “The Demon.”
“Hola,” he said into the phone to Tomas.
“Speak English, puto!” Tomas snapped at him, and not for the first time. Ernesto didn’t like to be talked down to, especially by a “yes” man. Ernesto barely spoke Spanish. He only did it to antagonize Tomas, and it worked. Ernesto was born in Philadelphia and he’d even worked hard to rid himself of the strong East Philly accent. People thought it made him sound “stupid,” and that couldn’t have been further from the truth.
Tomas was born in a border town in Texas, and it was obvious to Ernesto that he had worked hard to rid himself of his Spanish accent, which was why it annoyed him so badly when Ernesto spoke Spanish to him. What Ernesto knew about Tomas was that he had graduated high school, and he’d been the first in his family to go to college, and on an academic scholarship to boot. The man was said to be brilliant, and at that time he’d had an eye on politics. After obtaining a degree in liberal arts with a major in civics and minor in economics, Tomas had gone home to Texas and he had run for a local city office in his hometown, and won. He went from there to mayor of his home town, and then, just when he could almost smell the expensive interior of the Governor’s mansion, his little brother called him, and what he had to say changed the course of Tomas’ life.
His brother told him that their sister was in Mexico, in prison. She’d been in trouble before for drugs and prostitution, and this time she’d been caught trying to smuggle drugs across the border, but she was caught on the Mexican side and a Mexican prison was no place a man could leave his sister, even if she was worthless. The rest of the story was all rumor, but Ernesto heard that somehow El Dimonio had enlisted the help of one of the most powerful drug lords in Mexico City. His sister went home, but Tomas Locastro stayed. Whether it was out of debt to the cartel, or a liking for the lifestyle, no one seemed to know, but what Ernesto did know was that demons never worked alone. Tomas was working for the devil himself, a cartel leader named Pancho Gutierrez...and that was the man who had hired Ernesto for this job.
“How can I help you, Tomas?”
“He said he’ll see you.” Ernesto smiled. The money they were offering for such an easy job was more than he was willing to turn down, but he hadn’t let on to Tomas that he was even considering the job. Instead, he’d insisted on meeting the “Boss” first. He wanted one of the most important men in Mexico to look him in the eyes and tell him he needed his expertise. Ernesto made his living as a hitman, and he made a good one. But what Ernesto wanted, and needed, more than anything was not money. It was notoriety and respect, and a face-to-face with Pancho Gutierrez would be a giant step in that direction.
“Perfect,” Ernesto told Tomas. “Where and when?”
“We will meet you at the resort for breakfast at 9 a.m. tomorrow. You’ve had time, I trust, to map out your plan?” Tomas was staying at a posh resort in Acapulco, only minutes from the violence-ravaged community where the cartel had set up shop.
“Of course I have a plan.” Tomas and Ernesto had been talking for a week, but Ernesto had already “mapped out his plan” within the first forty-eight hours. He’d flown from Philadelphia to Boston, found his mark, followed him for a day, and decided this would be the easiest job he’d had so far. But of course, he wasn’t about to pull the trigger until he had exactly what he wanted...a meeting with Pancho Gutierrez, and a bag full of cash.
“Good. He’ll want to hear it.”
“And he will,” Ernesto said.
“Cabana 100, and don’t be late. Come alone and unarmed. If you try any funny business, you’ll wish your wop mother had never spread her legs for that filthy border rat of a father of yours.”
Ernesto felt the hot blood race through his veins. Obviously, Tomas had done his research as well. Nothing flipped his switch faster than someone calling his father a “border rat” or his mother a “wop.” His Polish mother had gone on a high school trip to Texas, where she met his father. She’d run away with him, but the two of them eventually returned to Philadelphia when they were out of money and had a child to feed. His mother’s grandfather had set them up in a place to live and he’d given her new husband, Ernesto’s father, a job in his landscaping business. His father worked hard, and his mother came from a good family, but Ernesto and his father never fit in. Their dark hair, eyes, and skin, and his father’s poor grasp of English, left them ostracized, and on top of that, Ernesto was teased unmercifully for his terrible acne. The kids called his father a “border rat” and when they were feeling really mean, his mother a “wop.” Ernesto took the abuse for years, but at the tender age of fourteen, he finally snapped, and he also snapped the neck of some asshole who dared to call his father names to his face. At first, he was euphoric. It felt better than anything he’d ever done. But of course not long after, he panicked and because he didn’t know what else to do, he went to his father and confessed. His father told his mother, and wanted Ernesto to go to the police and turn himself in. His mother had put her foot down then. Ernesto liked to think he got his cool head from his mother. Without so much as raising her voice she said, “This is what you’re going to do...” She looked at his father and said, “You’re pouring cement at the Lawrence Estate this week, right?” When he nodded she said, “Take that body, and plant him under the cement. Then, not a one of us is to say a word about this again, ever.” That was exactly what they did...and now at the age of thirty, Ernesto was working on his fifteenth kill.
He took a deep breath now, knowing that Tomas was only testing him, and he said, “I will be there, alone, and unarmed.” He hung up the phone then and motioned the cabana boy for another drink. After slamming that one back, he finally crooked a finger and motioned for the sexy señorita. She didn’t hesitate to come to him and he couldn’t take his eyes off the way her huge tits jiggled over the top of the sexy little pink minidress she was wearing. It was so short that if he tipped his head slightly to the side, he could probably make out the lips of her pussy. But he didn’t need to do that; he knew he’d be taking her back to his room and seeing all of her, all night long.
“What’s your name, beautiful?”
She batted those long, fake eyelashes at him and said, “Blanca.”
“Blanca, are you a whore?” She looked taken aback and with her painted-on eyebrows drawn together she said:
“No sir, I am not.”
She spun on her high heel and he watched her big ass jiggle before saying, “Wait! It was an honest question, considering where we’re at, and that you’re here alone.”
She turned slowly back toward him and now her eyes were filled with tears. “I’m in Acapulco with my girlfriend, but she found some hombre at the club last night and I haven’t seen her since. We leave tomorrow and I just decided that it was time I had some fun too.”
He put a big hand out and let it rest against one of her meaty thighs. She didn’t flinch. She might not be a paid whore, but this girl was no virgin. Ernesto was glad of that, and of the fact that no one would be the wiser if things back at his room went further than he wanted them to. He never meant to hurt them...but sometimes he lost his head, and one had to make the sacrifice. That was why he always chose whores, or society’s forgotten. He liked his fun, but it wasn’t worth prison time because he pulled the belt just a little too tight around that long, pretty neck by accident. “Well, Blanca,” he said, “my name is Ernie, and I think the two of us are going to have a great time together tonight.” Blanca blushed and giggled as his hand rode up higher on the back of her thigh. He liked that. But what really turned him on, what he really liked, was to hear them scream...
 
 
Jessie Cooke writes hot romance novels about tough guys, bad boys, bikers, fighters and lovers and the women of strong character who tame them. 
 
 



 

 
 
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review 2020-02-09 15:35
The Confession - Jessie Burton

So many things happen by chance and so did the meeting of writer Connie and the good looking, younger Elise. I knew from the very first few lines that I wasn’t going to like this book (although I’m sure plenty of others will love it) and sadly that’s exactly how it worked out. It was tedious and long drawn out which is a shame as the blurb made it sound great, just the sort of thing I’d enjoy. Fabulous cover I thought. I didn’t care much for any of the characters so had no interest in where they were or what they were doing - sorry!

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review 2020-01-02 18:43
Aurora Blazing Jessie Mihalik
Aurora Blazing: A Novel (The Consortium Rebellion Book 2) - Jessie Mihalik

I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

 

Lady Bianca von Hasenberg still emotionally and physically deals with the trauma her first marriage caused. Now a widow, she works to help other girls and women through her network of spies and her technological skills. When her brother Ferdinand and the von Hasenberg heir disappears, she won't be patted on the head and told to stay home by her father or their Director of Security, Ian Bishop.

Ian shut down Bianca's flirting when he was her bodyguard and even now as the Director of Security, he still doesn't think he is worthy of her, but he can't stop his protective feelings for her. Bianca manages to get information he needs and she won't take no for an answer when it comes to rescuing her brother. Ian needs to rescue the heir, keep his own secrets, and never let Bianca know how deep his feelings really go.

 

Softly, he asked, “Why do you have to fight me on everything?”

 

Second in the Consortium Rebellion series, Aurora Blazing stars Bianca von Hasenberg, the sister of the heroine from the first book, Polaris Rising. The first book gave us glimpses of Bianca as she helped her sister and a few glimpses at the tension between Bianca and the Director of Security Ian Bishop. The author makes good on the tension and slow burn she hinted at in the first. Polaris Rising was a debut and one of the complaints I had was about the story needing a lot of fat trimmed, Aurora Blazing had none of those problems, the author did a great job shoring up the story and fulfilling on the promise I found in the first.

 

The Consortium series, so far, follows two main characters threads, one has readers following one of the three major ruling houses, the von Hasenbergs. Aurora Blazing is told solely from Bianca von Hasenbergs' point of view. The second is about soldiers that were part of the Genesis Project (soldiers who were experimented on to create “super” soldiers), Ian Bishop is hinted at being tied into that. These two threads are swirled into plot threads that involve the three ruling houses conspiring, maneuvering, and possibly going to war with each other for power and resources. This creates a fun, absorbing, and intriguing space opera/scifi ride.

 

I promise I won’t ever use any of your secrets against you,” I said quietly.

 

As I mentioned, the romance is a slow burn, as in you won't see the (soft) snap in the fraying rope between these two until around 50%; the space opera aspect controls more of the attention in this series with the romance being more of a very important secondary character. I loved the dynamic and tension between Bianca and Ian, I could feel the emotion bubbling underneath. For the most part, I enjoyed how the author didn't blatantly spell out Ian's emotions but towards the end of the story, when we're supposed to get the big payoff, I felt like things were rushed. The ending sex scenes also felt out of place, they felt graphic and jarring placed at the end because the preceding 90% of story had a different tone between the couple.

 

His gaze was scorching, his eyes hot with desire. “We are not done,” he said, his voice a low command.

 

Without Ian's point of view and more of a look into his background, I found Bianca to be the stronger of the two characters. Learning about her first marriage and how her health issues causes her to lie to her family, thus isolating her even further, was heartbreaking. It was immensely satisfying to watch her not gain emotional and mental strength from what was done to her but instead use the strength that she already had but had been a bit too young to mature to. The times she refused to back down because she knew she had the skills and know-how to get the information quicker than Ian made me cheer for her even harder.

 

I was engrossed in the first half of this story and while I was locked into the space opera plots, the romance was too rushed for a satisfying payoff. I would love if Bianca and Ian got a second book as I think their story definitely supports it and the series would benefit from it. I don't know if it is due to the first person pov structure but there were at times I felt like I was only getting half the story on some things, scenes felt left out, and more background was needed. Overall, though, I found this an amazing continuation of the series and the author has dangled threads (the leak in the von Hasenberg house, the war between the three houses, and Ferdinand and his romance with the daughter of an enemy house) that I'm fully on board and can't wait for the next in the series.

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