Author: Raven Kennedy
Series: The Plated Prisoner
Series #: 3
Genre: romance, dark romance, fantasy, retelling
Age Group: adult
ARC?: no

King Midas made me the woman I am today. Notorious. Unattainable. His.

The thing about being confined is that you believe it’s to keep the bad out… Until you realize it’s about keeping you in.

I’m now in a strange kingdom surrounded by liars, with no allies of my own, but I won’t sit idly by and let myself wither. No, there’s something that’s bloomed from the pit of my repression. Something dark. Something angry.

But the last thing I expected was for my anger to call out to him. King Ravinger.

He’s sinister and powerful and entirely too seductive. I’ve learned my lesson with trusting manipulative kings, so why does my chest constrict every time he’s near? I need to tread carefully, or I’m at risk of losing much more than just my freedom.

Regret and revenge war inside of me, and I need to figure out a plan fast before I get tangled up in the schemes of kings and queens.

Because I won’t be caught in a cage again. No, this time, It’ll be me setting the trap… I just hope my heart comes out of this unscathed.

Review

This is my favorite of all the books so far. The payoff is totally worth it in this one. We finally see Auren become strong and sure of herself. We see her become the person we knew she was going to become. But we also get to join in on a little political intrigue between King Ravinger and King Midas. And the interplay between the two of them has some of the best moments in this book. Kennedy really shows off her writing talents in this one.

While I didn’t mind the pacing in the previous ones, in this we do get much better pacing, AND even better plot. I feel like the series is really picking up at this point. And I am definitely rooting for Auren. And Rip. Both of them. That was another great development is their relationship in this book. I feel that we’re finally starting to see them open up. And Auren realizes that she can trust and doesn’t have to be trapped in a cage. Their relationship is definitely swoonworthy.

This book is steamy in the best of ways (finally!) and I loved every moment of it. I loved how Kennedy wrote this book, her writing is as good as ever.

This book is almost impossible to talk about without spoilers – but if you can get past Gild, somewhat enjoy Glint, Gleam is where all the payoff is. This book has everything I could love and more. This was a total five star read for me, and has me eagerly waiting for the fourth book in the series. I think I may combust if I don’t get to read it soon.

We finally also get some more concise worldbuilding and more backstory and secrets are revealed. I do feel like we finally get some payoff, and this was the most enjoyable book of the bunch.

Rip and Auren forever!!!! My heart beats for them. Also the entire Fourth. They are all so freaking amazing and I definitely would love to see more of them!

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Author: Raven Kennedy
Series: The Plated Prisoner
Series #: 2
Genre: romance, dark romance, fantasy, retelling
Age Group: adult
ARC?: no

For ten years, I’ve lived in a gilded cage inside King Midas’s golden castle. But one night changed everything.

Now I’m here, a prisoner of Fourth Kingdom’s army, and I’m not sure if I’m going to make it out of this in one piece. They’re marching to battle, and I’m the bargaining chip that will either douse the fire or spark a war.

At the heart of my fear, my worry, there’s him—Commander Rip.

Known for his brutality on the battlefield, his viciousness is unsurpassed. But I know the truth about what he is.

Fae.

The betrayers. The murderers. The ones who nearly destroyed Orea, wiping out Seventh Kingdom in the process. Rip has power sizzling beneath this skin and glinting spikes down his spine. But his eyes—his eyes are the most compelling of all.

When he turns those black eyes on me, I feel captive for an entirely different reason.

I may be out of my cage, but I’m not free, not even close. In the game of kings and armies, I’m the gilded pawn. The question is, can I out maneuver them?

Review

Glint is book 2 in the plated prisoner series. I liked the first one, but this one is where things really get good. This book is very slow compared to the first book. It feels a bit like nothing is happening at the beginning, but that isn’t quite the truth. Auren is slowly figuring herself out, but she has yet to leave that gilded cage Midas has set up for it. Auren is aggravating in turns. But honestly Rip is totally worth it in this book. He is probably my favorite character of them all. We also get some of the Fourth in this book and get to know more background characters.

We also get more worldbuilding in this one! Yay! I love good worldbuilding. Even if they are mostly trekking through a tundra…anyways. Yes, some of it was boring, but Auren finally starts to get some sense knocked into her. She is kind and she cares immensely, and she struggles to make friends with the saddles.

When a secret is revealed she has to make a bargain…and it doesn’t really benefit her. Auren is still stuck in her belief that Midas saved her – which is ANNOYING but we began to get a bit of romantic tension between Rip and Auren and that is amazing to read about.

Honestly, I liked this book because it was further developing all the characters. As we get towards the end of the book my suspicions begin to be confirmed. I will admit I was not surprised in the least at the reveal that we got at the end of the book. It was predictable, but it definitely wasn’t a bad thing at all.

I also enjoy the fact that the fae in this book don’t seem to be like all the fae in others. It is a nice difference.

Overall, I’m obviously really enjoying this series.

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Author: Raven Kennedy
Series: The Plated Prisoner
Series #: 1
Genre: romance, dark romance, fantasy, retelling
Age Group: adult
ARC?: no

The fae abandoned this world to us. And the ones with power rule.

Gold.

Gold floors, gold walls, gold furniture, gold clothes. In Highbell, in the castle built into the frozen mountains, everything is made of gold.

Even me.

King Midas rescued me. Dug me out of the slums and placed me on a pedestal. I’m called his precious. His favored. I’m the woman he Gold-Touched to show everyone that I belong to him. To show how powerful he is. He gave me protection, and I gave him my heart. And even though I don’t leave the confines of the palace, I’m safe.

Until war comes to the kingdom and a deal is struck.

Suddenly, my trust is broken. My love is challenged. And I realize that everything I thought I knew about Midas might be wrong.

Because these bars I’m kept in, no matter how gilded, are still just a cage. But the monsters on the other side might make me wish I’d never left.

Review

First off, Gild is my new obsession. I am literally obsessed with it (and the entire series). I was a little nervous going into it, but I am so glad that I read it. It has quickly become one of my favorite adult indie fantasies. It deserves all the praise that it gets, and rightfully so! This book does come with a lot of trigger warnings, so make sure you check them out before you pick this book up, as I am sure some of them will be triggering. Anyways, aside from that disclaimed I will rec this to people who love complex characters, fae and SJM/JLA books.

Auren is a prisoner to Midas. (We hate Midas FYI. We do not stan). Auren’s sitaution is terrible and untennable. I wanted to throw my kindle across the room on SEVERAL occassions because Midas pissed me off so bad. He’s a great antagonist, but a terrible person. Do not like. Auren is a great character. She starts off reserved and very weak, she believes Midas in everything he does. THey have a past together which is slowly revealed. Auren has to learn to be strong after a traumatic even leaves her essentially stranded and alone among people that dislike her. It’s at this point the book turns around.

I will admit, I struggled to get through the first half of the book – but I pushed through and am so glad I did, because we meet some of my favorite characters later in the series.

I did enjoy the worldbuilding in this book, but it wasn’t all that fleshed out, it left a bit to be desired to be honest. I will say some of it was interesting, but at other times it was a bit confusing. I think it could have used more refinement.

What I really did enjoy was the writing. I love Raven Kennedy’s writing style. It made the parts of the book I didn’t like go a lot faster, but the book was continually on the move and the pacing was well done. The plot was as well, it kept me hooked until the end.

I’m stopping my review here because I binge read all three, and I don’t want to include spoilers for book 2 on this review. Suffice to say, I really did enjoy this book overall, even with the parts that I didn’t like.

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Author: Harley LaRoux
Series: Souls Trilogy
Series #: 1
Genre: paranormal, fantasy, dark romance, erotica
Age Group: adult
ARC?: no

Leon

I earned my reputation among magicians for a reason: one wrong move and you’re dead. Killer, they called me, and killing is what I’m best at.

Except her.

The one I was supposed to take, the one I should have killed – I didn’t.

The cult that once controlled me wants her, and I’m not about to lose my new toy to them.

Rae

I’ve always believed in the supernatural. Hunting for ghosts is my passion, but summoning a demon was never part of the plan. Monsters are roaming the woods, and something ancient – something evil – is waking up and calling my name.

I don’t know who I can trust, or how deep this darkness goes.

All I know is my one shot at survival is the demon stalking me, and he doesn’t just want my body – he wants my soul

Review

Her Soul To Take is a great steamy paranormal romance, and was quite well written. This was another Lauren recommendation, and I’m so glad that I picked it up. It was a fairly quick read overall, and was on KU which made me happy. I originally gave this three stars, but on further thinking I think it’s between a three and four stars for me.

I have always loved paranormal romances and this one was a good one too! It involves summoning a demon and a woman. I really liked Rae as a character. I found her strong and endearing. And sometimes a bit in denial. But I just loved that she felt so empowered. She knows what she wants which is a nice change of pace from some characters who don’t.

Leon was a great demon. I loved his relationship with Rae and the world at large. He was a great character because he was a demon but not necessarily evil, which is a juxtaposition to the humans who are evil. I liked that take on it very much.

The banter between Leon and Rae is great, they have an undeniable chemistry and snark with each other. There are several parts that made me laugh out loud. And this book is SUPER steamy. But it also has a bit of a dark tone to it, so be sure you look at the trigger warnings before you read it.

There are a few side characters who are really awesome as well, and I enjoyed all their introductions in this book. I assume they will be in the later books?

The writing was really good. I found myself becoming absorbed in this world and drawn into it. Laroux crafted a world that is so good. But it is also highly atmospheric. You could get lost in this book. It felt so real – and I liked that about it.

I loved the plot – I was on the edge of my seat wondering what was going to happen next, and if our leading couple would emerge triumphant. Sometimes you’re not sure with these dark romances…anyways, the plot was great. As I mentioned earlier the juxtaposition between good and evil in this book was creative, and I felt drove home the point that what you think is true is not always necessarily true.

I would recommend this book to those who like paranormal romances and are looking for something a little different and well written! 

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