Tame His Beast Part 1

Devil's Highwaymen MC: The Nomads

by Claire C. Riley

* A Devils Highwaymen MC Romance Story: anti-heroes with hearts of gold *

A Devil's Highwaymen story

"Remember, the Devil was once an angel too."

Beast, an enforcer for the Devil’s Highwaymen MC, wakes up months after being captured and tortured by another club and discovers brutal and ugly scars covering over half his body.

Once a beautiful man, able to woo any woman into his bed, now his face and body are their own horror story.

Though the torture has stopped, Beast continues to relive the agony. He can’t tell anyone about the nightmares he keeps having or about the fear and depression that are tearing him apart inside. He’s the club’s weapon, and he can’t show weakness.

With no one to trust and nowhere to go, his fear slowly dissolves into rage.

Belle is working as a trainee nurse at Emory Saint Joseph’s Hospital when Beast is brought in. She’s at first fearful of the dark-eyed man, and the MC behind him, but refuses to let anyone see that.

Brought up by her godmother, she’s been taught to trust her instincts and always see the beauty in people…even if at first you only see the ugly.

He’s full of loneliness and anger.
She’s full of hope and love.
Can Belle see behind the beast and thaw his heart before his rage engulfs him? Or will the broken monster destroy her right alongside himself?

‘Tame his Beast’ is a standalone MC romance and is part of the Once Upon a Fairy Tale Night Series, a collection of multi-author fairy tale romance retellings.

Genres: Romance, Enemies To Lovers, Beauty and The Beast, Dark, Mental Health, Retellings, Fairy Tale Retellings

129 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 18, 2020

About the author

Claire C. Riley is a USA Today and International bestselling author.

She lives in the United Kingdom with her husband, three daughters, and ridiculously naughty rescue beagle.

* Gryffindor * Targaryen * Zombie slayer *


MC ROMANCE:
Devil's Highwaymen Ride or Die Series (3 books)
The Devil's Highwaymen Nomad Series (4 books)
Tame his Beast duet (2 books)

MAFIA ROMANCE:
Deviant Prince #1
Twisted Princess #2
Royal Blood: The Brotherhood

ROMANTIC SUSPENSE/THRILLER
Beautiful Victim (standalone)
Fragments of Delores (standalone)

NA ROMANCE
WRATH #3 in the Elite Seven Series

POST-APOCALYPTIC
Odium The Dead Saga Series 8 books
Odium Origins Series 3 books
Out of the Dark (standalone)
Red Eye The Armageddon Series - co-authored with Eli Constant (3 books)
Thicker than Blood series - co-authored with Madeline Sheehan (3 books)

PARANORMAL ROMANCE
Limerence (The Obsession Series)
Twisted Magic (standalone)

ROMANCE
Shut Up & Kiss Me - Co-authored with Madeline Sheehan

HORROR
Blood Claim (standalone)

FIND ME
She can be stalked at any of the following and always welcomes any questions readers may have.

www.clairecriley.com
https://www.facebook.com/ClaireCRiley...
http://bit.ly/clairecrileyamazon/
https://twitter.com/ClaireCRiley
https://www.google.com/+ClaireCRiley
and redheadapocalypse on Instagram

Reviews

[A Book Obsessed Brit · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ahhhhhh it was so good to be back in the Devil's Highwaymen world, Claire always sucks me in with her MC romances. Add to that a modern, gritty twist to a retelling of Beauty and the Beast and you have a stroke of genius!

Belle the heroine is a nurse hired to care for Beast, a club member who was attacked and severely injured by an unknown enemy. Beast is used to women falling at his feet, using his good looks to charm his way into anything he desires. Now that's been taken from him Beast is an angry, vengeful, bitter shell of the man he once was.

I love the juxtaposition between the innate sweetness in Belle and the rough, bitter edge of Beast, it amps up the fairy tale and adds a bit of darkness to the tale. Beast truly is an A hole towards Belle and feeds off her fear and her fragility. When he realises perhaps she is the only thing to bring a little light into his bleak existence, their relationships changes. No not in the ways you may expect, Claire's writing keeps the story progressing and add's some twists and some mystery to the plot that leaves you wanting more of this story. Right at the moment things get heated and Belle and Beast cross into new territory, you realise you have run out of pages to turn and words to read.

If you are looking for a different twist on a well known fairy tale then look no further than Tame His Beast.

[Bex (Beckie Bookworm) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m always up for a beauty and the beast inspired retelling its my favourite ever fairytale and I've now consumed a fair few over the years. I think this was my first ever MC one and I can't believe this has been sitting on my bookshelf unread for so long. This is the first instalment in a duet and I’m going to be picking up the conclusion straight away as it definitely hit the spot.

Beast is an enforcer for the Devils Hangman after a job he and his club brother are waylaid Echo is killed and Beast is tortured before being left for dead. He should have died but somehow manages to survive but not without some catastrophic injuries which land him a long spell of pain and recovery in the hospital.

Belle is a nurse she is all goodness and light and believes nobody is beyond her care and compassion believing the best in people. Despite her optimism Belle hasn't had an easy time of it herself abondened by her own mother she's been raised by her godmother Jenna. All of this hasn't dettered her Pollyanna attitude but she'd never come up against anyone quite like Beast before.

When she's coherced into being his private nurse at the hospital as nobody else wants to deal with Beasts feral temper it comes served with a huge dose of Beasts shitty misogynistic attitude. He's a total beast to belle but to be fair every ones get this treatment from him. He's drowning in a world of hurt and hate and the way he deals is by deflecting this pain onto everyone else. Despite the constant tension and crappy behavior a bond is formed until unfortunately Beast manages to push Belle to her breaking point and even she refuses to take the constant abuse any longer.

This wasn't a complicated read and the majority of this was focused on Belle and Beast but I was so invested in what was developing between them. They are so polar opposite that it just shouldn't have made sense. But somehow and despite all evidence to the contrary Belle managed to crawl past Beasts defences and crack his tough shell. I don't think he even knows how she's done it.

This concludes leaving you wanting part two and a HEA for these two even if Beast appears to be the biggest assole on the planet. Not sure though I think Belle might be jumping out of the frying pan straight into the fire as I don't trust Lorenzo one little bit. At least with beast its all on the surface Lorenza feels way more sneaky and is giving me some seriously shady vibes.

Expect plenty of misogynistic behaviour and language this is a dark MC romance after all and Beast definitely lives up to his namesake throughout. This one was a sure winner for me and I'm definitely team Beast.

[✰ Charlie ✰ Chisholm · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book.

This book is so good I loved the characters Belle and Beast.
I really enjoyed Belle she is innocent but at the same time is feisty and don't take anything from anyone. Beast is well a Beast he is dangerous and dark. It is a different take on the story beauty and the beast. but just as amazing what girl doesn't like a fairy tale, you need to read this book.

It is well written and will have you turning the pages to find out whats going happen. I am so glad we are getting another full length book cos i can't wait to be in their world again.

[Sybil-Ann’s Reading Journey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tame His Beast part one Claire C. Riley

“She was a saint and I was a sinner, and that was what made this all the more perfect.”


Claire C Riley has left me shooketh!! Did I use that term right?! 🤔

Tame His Beast part one is brutal and raw, it is dark and alluring and I was on tenterhooks right from the very start until the every end!! My mind is well and truly blown by Claire’s riveting storytelling. It was like she was building a time bomb inside of my heart, only to pull the pin and detonated my freaking heart before the countdown was over!! I’m still looking for missing pieces.

Beast and Belle are ying and yang- complete opposites, but now their paths are intertwined and their story begins.
Beast is pulled from the brink of death. While his body begins to heal, the scars run far deeper than the surface.
Belle is entranced by Beast, she doesn’t see the surface- the darkness and ugliness that mars his life seems to drawn her in deeper. Belle had a naive innocence and her world is about be wrecked— just the same way Claire did mine!

*as with a dark MC romance, expect DARK scenes.

5 ALL CONSUMING STARS

[Philomena Callan Cheekypee · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. This was so so good. I really do need to read more by this author as I loved this story.

Beast is broken. He knows he will never be the man that he use to be. He has so much anger and all he wants is revenge. Belle is a trainee nurse employed to be his nurse. Both are complete opposites. Beast knows he’s not a nice person. Each of them have their own past demons to deal with.

I’m so looking forward to more of this story. Hope we don’t have to wait too long.

[Kimothy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this story, short enough to get through and yet still leaving me wanting more. Dark and powerful alpha hero who is damged and the woman who can tame him and show him love. Add in danger and an MC crew and you have everything i am looking for in a book. I fully recommend you pick up this story.

[Ez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a great read and just what I needed to grab my interest after coming down from reading a long series prior to this. I'm not always a fan of MC books unless they're done well and for me, this one was. It had the perfect amount of dark, edgy, grit to it without being over the top, something that a lot of other authors tackling this genre struggle with (which is generally what puts me off about it to begin with). What I am a fan of, however, is a fairy tale retelling, so the unique MC spin the plot had around Beauty and the Beast suckered me right in. This book had bang for buck while staying believable as well as highly entertaining. This is a two-part retelling in case you didn't bother to read the title or the description, so if you prefer to wait until both books are out, don't say you didn't know. Personally, I'm glad I've read it now because I'll happily be reading it again in September when Part 2 is released.

The story starts quite brutally as Beast, an Enforcer for the Devil's Highwaymen, is going to town on a traitor. Without revealing too much, he senses something is off but doesn't give it much thought. This ends up being a massive mistake with dire consequences, one of which is his brutal torture at the hands of unknown assailants where he is also left for dead. Beast is terribly disfigured, segueing our story three months into the future where he's still recovering in hospital.

The lovely Belle is tasked with caring for him while he's on the mend (and in hiding) in hospital and while she did weep every now and then, it was justified (meaningless tears that make women weak in stories is another no-no for me - none of that here, so yay for Belle). I loved that she showed a bit of backbone and was a perfect balance of strong and caring and empathetic. She was young and somewhat naive, being raised by her Godmother after her mother left her at the age of three. She was the perfect counterbalance for Beast. Hands up if you love a grumpy hero? Well brace yourself, because he's the epitome of grump. Once a handsome player, Beast is now reduced to being weak and a shell of who he was due to his injuries. As a result, he's cantankerous, rude, angry and, quite often, a Jerky McJerkface. Oh, add to that the fact he's often crude, downright mean and an abrasive a-hole. So why didn't I want to punch him in the junk? Because the author did a great job of revealing the man behind the scars, giving a bit of cause for his poor behaviour without it being cheesy or excusable. His role and background had him playing the part of a biker while showing just a teensy amount of vulnerability and hidden loneliness.

A bit of a warning for those that need it - there is intimacy with another man and another woman for both Belle and Beast respectively. It didn't worry me (and I hate cheating) but I'm mentioning it for the crowd that love to read books they know it's in and then leave an undeserved, lower review because it annoyed them even though they knew it was there. There was a tiny bit of repetition to emphasise how angry Beast was as well as his determination to find the perpetrators of his torture while he also dwelt on the loss of his MC brother which he took the blame for.

As I mentioned, this is only Part 1 of this duet, so hurry up already September! The author left us with a nice array of breadcrumbs that I'm sure will carry over into Book 2. While it wasn't a massive cliffhanger, so to speak, the story definitely isn't finished.

I'm relatively new to this author after only recently falling straight down the Odium rabbit hole over the past few months (quick note - I loved seeing some of the Odium MC characters here. Oh yeah, and I'm also going to take the opportunity to say that I love Shooter but am still firmly on Team Mikey, thank you very much, Ms Riley, lol). I love what I've read and can't wait to get into the other books of hers sitting in my TBR folder.

[Lisa Lou · Rating 5 out of 5]

WOW this is a perfect modern retelling version of the Beauty and the Beast story.
This is also an installment of Claire's devils haywaymen series, which i have read so for me made this book even more amazing. You do not need to have read that series to read this story but i deffinently recommend reading them at some point, i love them.

Beast is a big, bad, brooding biker with a lot of hotness that has been and still going through a lot of pain and turmoil. He is bewildered with Belle, With all his scars, bad attitude and violent tantrums she still shows up and gives him kindness. I loved it when he pouted over his pudding, his sensitive side subtly comes out at very rare times but when it does, swoon.

Belle seems very reserved and quiet at first but the more time she spends with Beast, she gets more tenacity. She is a very beautiful soul with a hidden feisty side that i think will come out more over time ( roll on part 2). These pair together are endearing, ferocious and simply PERFECT!

I cant wait to read part 2 of this in september. This is also part of the Once upon a fairy tale night series from a collection of multi author fairy tale retellings. So excited.

[Wendy Hodges · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found Beast to be a heart breaking character, on the surface battle scarred, angry at everyone and everything, but underneath was a heart that needed love and acceptance. He needed someone to look further than the surface, I think Belle does that but then he gets scared so pushes limits till she leaves. He needs revenge, not just for himself and his body but for his friend and he feels himself torn between wanting and not wanting Belle. It's a gripping story full of pain and anger, but also the stirrings of love. I can't wait for the next part... yes that's right, this is just part one and ends on a cliff but so worth reading and waiting.

[K. Ramjohn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tame His Beast is a fairytale retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a modern gritty twist. This is not a fairytale, its a MC romance that was violent, dark and emotional and you will be engrossed in the story until the end. Beast and Belle were two characters who were totally opposite each other. She was innocent and sweet while he was dangerous, hurt and angry. You heart will go out to these two characters and while their story was well written its far from over. This is part 1 of a duet and we are left with a cliff-hanger. I can't wait for part 2. Tame His Beast is part of the Once Upon a Fairy Tale Night Series. I enjoyed it and would recommend it to all lovers of MC romance.

[Kaye Springett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely devoured this book loved it
A re write of Beauty and the Beast done Devils highwayman style
Beast goes from having women fall at his feet never having to try to a scared burnt man and a true Beast. After escaping death and spending mths in hospital he meets belle who becomes his nurse.
Can’t wait for the rest of the story to finish .

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I voluntarily read this book as an ARC and wow!!!!!! Absolutely bloody amazing, you will instantly fall in love with ‘Beast’ even though he’s a grade A prick! But you won’t realise your heart has already let him in until you have to wait for part 2 😭😭 I NEED it NOW!!!!! And Belle, well she’s just the right little ‘spitfire’ Beast needs. Well done Claire C Riley 👏 👏

[C.L. Riley · Rating 5 out of 5]

More Beast and Belle!

Holy hotness! Take this Beast was dark, gritty, and exciting, everything a MC Romance should be. I need book 2 now.

[Halima (Starlight_and_blooms) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing! Review to come

[Julia Butterfield - Stevens · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this modern day Beauty and the Beast retelling and loved getting back to The Devils Highwaymen MC. The cover is gorgeous too!

Beast is a beast by name and by nature. He's fortunate to be alive but is now covered in scars and burns. He's in pain and he's is angry, angry at the world, full of guilt and hellbent on revenge.  He's rude, abrasive, hates everything and everyone, no-one more than himself.
Belle is a sweet, kind, gentle soul who tries to see the good in everyone and being a trainee nurse wants to help Beast, but he doesn't make it easy!! Oh no..... Poor Belle has her work cut out as he's big and bad, mean and rude, but it's his best defence. She had a feisty side though that grew the more time she spent with Beast and I loved how he showed her little glimmers of his good side when he got outside his own head for a moment.

It was a quick, easy read and I'm looking forward to part 2 to see if beautiful Belle will get through to Beast before he self destructs!

[Mrs Jayne Rushton · Rating 4 out of 5]

.

I had seen this book when it originally came out but forgot to put it on my to read list.....

For the first, large part of the book I went back and forward at being annoyed at the characters Beast and Belle. Beast because he was downright nasty, and Belle cause she just..... took it. I understand about her good heart, and trying to find good in everyone, but to just let him walk over her the way he did really annoyed me. That doesn't mean it was badly written, it just means I was annoyed!!!!!

Things started picking up quite late into the book, so I'm assuming that all the characterisation that went into this book will be needed for the next book.

.... so bring on book 2. Let's see if she's found her lady balls, if Beast can calm his tits long enough to get her back on side, and to see if Lorenzo is as slimy as I think he is.

[Donna Purcell Zappone · Rating 4 out of 5]

OMG.... there are lots of words running through my head but they are all over the place just like my emotions after reading this new to me authors book. First let me say I was horrified and completely heartbroken at the extent of the injuries that Beast inducted from the “unknown”assailants. Secondly, I have so much compassion for Beast. All he wants is to be lived by someone... anyone. He just needs someone to break down his walls enough to allow that person to infiltrate said walks.

I could not put this book down. Onto the second part ... can’t wait. I see binging in Claire’s books in my future.

[Brittney Faye Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

I. NEED. MORE. BEAST. I am so glad that Beast and Belle are not finished. I don’t think I can handle it. It has taken me a full 24 hours to write this review because I can’t put into words how much I love their story. I haven’t even been able to pick up another book because I can’t quit thinking about Belle and Beast!! Way to go Riley, you’ve ruined me for all other bikers.

[Sharisma Thornton · Rating 5 out of 5]

I freaking loved, loved this book💗💗

Omg!!! This is one of 5 books on Amazon prime that I can say is a favorite. The characters are awesome and the chemistry, relationships between Belle & Beast are phenomenal. I know this book probably wasn't supposed to be funny but omg Beast made me laugh so much. I would recommend this to everyone.

[Tamotha clark · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beast so lonely

Beast so lonely as a child, a enforcer as a adult, and alone as a man in adulthood in a hospital. In a way Bella a nurse, is the only one that cares about Beast as a person.

[Nessa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting retelling on BATB, though it wasn't perfect or seamless and the characters did want to make me tear my hair out sometimes....I still enjoyed it thoroughly.

THIS REVIEW IS BASED ON THE DUOLOGY.

Frankly, Book 1 was preferable to me. I could have done without the heroine dating someone else and I would have liked it if Belle was much more dedicated and obsessed with Beast to the point of wholesomeness. Belle irked me at times with her indecisiveness, and stringing two men along...that just felt...Ick. I wanted it to be Belle and Beast all the way. Fuck Gaston or rather Lorenzo in this retelling.

BEAST was a very angry man and horrible patient. He definitely wasn't a good man, and well..what goes around comes around, right? Ironically, the torture and pain he inflicted on someone else was done to him, leaving him half dead, scarred and his body a canvas of terror living flesh. I won't lie, him being alive in a useless body sack now seemed a nightmare, coupled with his PTSD and guilt...it's another miracle he hasn't gone insane. No wonder he was so angry at the world and everyone. He was miserable. The author did a good job in portraying his disturbed soul.

The chemistry between Beast and Belle wasn't quite there like I hoped, though their sexual chemistry was indeed mind-blowing. I'm amazed Belle never got knocked up by the amount of unprotected sex she has been having.

BELLE while unguarded and sometimes naive, seemed TSTL at moments. While I liked how she cared for Beast despite his horrid behaviour, I wished the author had the woman devote her time mostly to the MMC and not on another man. Reading Belle's sex scenes with Lorenzo was ick! Anyway, her indecisiveness about both men was just annoying. Clearly she was very attracted to Beast, but just because he treated her shitty while Lorenzo was Prince Charming wrapped up in Armani...she chose the latter. HAH! She didn't even know that the worse snakes hide beneath a good packaging.

OVERALL this would have been much better had Belle's character been stronger, decisive and really all for Beast like the original (disney) version. I think the story would have kick-assed had she turned to Beast earlier and trusted him enough, though the man was almost impossible to get along with. Like I said, this wasn't perfect and lovey-dovey. In fact, now that I've written this review, I can say it can be frustrating.

Angsty, just the way I like it.

[Andrea Morgan -Bookaholic Sisters blog · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beast is the perfect blend of rugged sexyness and complete alpha asshole all wrapped up in a dark and dangerous package ....and oh do i love him....

Tame his beast is a dark and steamy re telling of beauty and the beast ,its part of the Once upon a fairytale night collection and oh is it a good one!!!!

A fantastic gripping ,hot and steamy read that definitely leaves you NEEDING more I cannot wait for the continuation of beast and belles story after that ending I've got questions that need answering !!!

[Baby Got Books · Rating 1 out of 5]

It’s been a while since I was mad at myself for continuing to read a book I just knew wasn’t working for me…I gaslighted myself hard thinking that part two would have a huge redemption, explanation, grovel, justified resolution. Ugh…why do I do this to myself

I’m rating this part of the duet lower than the second because there were parts of the second book I found moderately more readable than the first…I hoped against hope that the second part would redeem the first part thus raising the potential rating but alas that was not to be.

[Julie Workman|Bookaholic Sisters Blog · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh yes!! Claire does it again I love these boys, ive missed the devils highwaymen so much.

And again I was up till past 4am reading about this angry brooding man, I couldnt put it down, every aspect made my hair stand on end.

I love him,( I knew I would) yes hes an asshole, hes angry and has a foul temper, but hes in agony every minute of everyday, nearly dying will do that to you.

Flove this story so hard.

I need more NOW though please because I need to know what happens ❤

[Emma White · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the Devils Highwaymen.
So this was a must read for me.
What can I say didn't disappoint at all.

Beast is one character you have to hate but love so deeply for his broken soul.

Belle likes to help everyone, no matter how broken or how much they try to break her.

A few of the Highwaymen get mentioned with funny one liners
"Styrofoam cup" even made me laugh !!

Looking forward to September now

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

I always try Beauty& The Beast Retellings...

Didnt love it. I dont know why but as soon as Belle was revealed to be a 19 year old nurse. Took me right out of it... and her naivety and innocence were a bit annoying. Stuck around to the end but there wasn't enough for me to want to buy the 2nd book.

My guess is the Lorenzo Nice Guy she's dating is involved with the guys who tried to kill Beast... its foreshadowed so hard and that idea is so cliché. Call me clairyovant...

[Claire Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

MR retelling

This was part one of an interesting motor cycle club retelling of beauty and the beast and can I just say dang..... The beast has got his work cut out for him. I expect some major getting down on his knees and apologising to Belle in the second half for that crap he pulled. I know the man his hurting but give the girl some respect. Overall it was an interesting take on the well known tale and I'm interested to see how it will all end.

[Bonnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to say this I did not read Part 1 and had no idea that this book was about a MC group. Therefore I can not give an honest review. I was hoping it was in the line of the fairy tail not a MC story. I just could not get into it and for that I am truly sorry.

It has nothing against the author it is just me. Sorry

[Tammy Barrentine · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hard to read sometimes

This book was hard for me to read at times. Beast was just mean to everyone!! I understood he was in a lot of pain but dang he was ugly to anyone and everyone especially Belle because she just wanted to help him. I really hope Beast mellows out some in the next book. I love Claire Riley's writing and will always read her books.

[Gemma · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good first book

This was an interesting look on the fairytale, This was a good read the characters were a little crazy and very brash, Our fmc was a shy tiny woman who when pushed gave as good as she got. This book had more profanity that could even make a nun blush but was enjoyable.