❤~🌟~❤ 4.5 SAVAGELY DELICIOUS STARS ❤~🌟~❤
“Marisol would be mine.”
The Captive series by Julia Sykes is my KRYTONITE! She is my go-to author in regard to penning the thrillingly evocative and scorching hot capture fantasy trope--so whenever she announces the next book in his wildly addictive series I am positively euphoric know my next fix is forthcoming !
PREMISE:
Marisol Cortés has been a captive of the cartel for years and now Carmen Ronaldo’s beleaguered maid is Raúl Guerrero‘s property. Ever since she and Raúl first crossed paths, there’s always been something about the fragile “little lamb” that roused his every primal, possessive, predatory instinct. And while Stefano Duarte’s right-hand man knows his skittish captive is STRICTLY OFF LIMITS she makes him nearly bloodthirsty with the need to protect her from his enemies!
Marisol has suffered so much in her life, at the hands at vicious, cruel, evil men. But despite the fact that the traumatizes beauty yearns for freedom outside the drug lord’s fortress, there is something about this savage cartel enforcer that taps into her most hedonistic, forbidden desires. Because, as it turns out, rather than cowering in the presence of her ferocious keeper, she feels cherished and cossetted by him. And even though her raw, unbridled need for him fills her with fear, her traitorous heart aches to his domination! But regardless of her tumultuous feelings for Raúl , she knows all hell will break loose once her dark secrets are exposed and she must follow through on her plans to slip from his clutches.
Yet her beastly captor will not only go to the ends of the earth to hunt down his sweet prey if she dares to escape , but her defiance and betrayal will unleash his primal, PUNISHING wrath! As the forced proximity between this powerfully commanding criminal and his pretty little hostage soon morphs into a dangerous, all-consuming love, will the sins of their pasts , and their mortal enemies, permanently tear them asunder?
MY MUSINGS:
Holy moly! Each new books that Julia Sykes pens in the Captive series somehow feels even more exhilarating than the last one, and RUTHLESS SAVIOR is no exception. This hauntingly beautiful, dark mafia tale, which features a ruthless mob enforcer who is tasked with guarding his pretty hostage at all costs, completely electrified my heart!
I will preface this review by saying that while overall this story reads fine as a standalone, the circumstances leading up to Marisol and Raúl’s alliance overlaps with the plot of WICKED KING so their story begins “mid-action.” I think a prologue setting up how she became Raúl ’s hostage, and the subsequent fallout of her desperate actions to try to save herself and Carmen, would have provided a smoother segue to this story and would have been particularly helpful for readers who are not privy to the chain of events in Carmen and Stefano’s book.
That aside, I was so transfixed by Raúl and Marisol’s brutally tender romance that I was breathlessly turning the pages from beginning to end! RUTHLESS SAVIOR has the perfect blend of darkness and light, edge of your seat peril, aching poignancy and fiery passion to satiate my wickedly besotted heart. I just TREASURED the journey that these two traversed together. Both have tumultuous pasts that have been riddled with pain and betrayal, treachery and torment, that have rendered them incapable of trusting again. Until they find each other that is!
Gah! I just swooned so hard for Raúl in all his growly, GLOWERING caveman glory! He is big and menacing, a lethally dangerous cartel enforcer who is not to be crossed. Yet just so happens to have a soft spot for his pretty hostage. But even though he would not hesitate to lay down his life for her, this savage beast WILL mete out severe consequences if she dares to defy him. One of Ms. Sykes extraordinary gifts is her talent for crafting her characters with so many nuances that even when you have a baddie like Raúl who has done “monstrous” things in his brutal line of work, she never fails to shed light on his humanity. Through Marisol’s eyes we see the “shred of goodness in him” but at the same time the author brilliantly showcases how mighty he wrestles with his inner demons.
And while his “corderita,” soothes the feral beast in him with her “soft sighs and sweet submission,” and he yearns to stake his claim on his lost little lamb, he cannot. For he’d “made an oath, issued an edict: No one touches her.” It is this dichotomy within himself, as he struggles to not succumb to his dark proclivities and to keep her at a physical distance—for her sake- that’s utterly riveting. And yikes anyone who dares to even THINK about hurting a hair on her head, or tries to betray him, will HEAR HIS BEASTLY ROAR! Bottom line? The more I immersed myself in his plight, the deeper I fell under his primal mafia enforcer’s hypnotic spell!
As for our beleaguered heroine... Marisol has been trapped in a world of vicious drug lords and their brutal power plays, and is haunted by her past. She has been horribly used and abused by sadistic men and has lived in a constant state of terror. But there’s something different about her ruthless savior with the hard jade green eyes and forbidding scowls that burrows into her morrow. Raúl is merciless with his enemies , and demands she obey his every command, but he is exquisitely kind to her and makes her feel safe and cherished. Which ignites her own molten lust and dangerous dark impulses. But he is her jailer, a dangerous criminal, and as a woman whose been conditioned to fight for her survival very second of every day, she’s left feeling both empowered AND petrified by her fierce protector’s lordship over her.
“Lust was my ruin, my curse.”
But even though she’s delicate and emotionally fragile, she’s also a woman of immense courage and incredible resilience. She can’t bear the thought of history repeating itself and lives for the day when she can break free from the shackles that keep her imprisoned. But when she falls for her criminal captor will her quest for liberation be worth it in the end?
I loved this books foray into the dark and dangerous cartel world—the plot is chock full of riveting action,, cruel betrayal, bloodshed and nail biting suspense—but as is always the case with this author’s novels, the main allure is the enthralling, emotion fraught love story between Raúl and Marisol. The metamorphosis of both these characters as they find sweet salvation, soul deep healing and emotional awakening in one another’s arms despite the danger and treachery swirling around them was absolutely breathtaking. And ultimately, this magnificently penned, darkly entrancing, gloriously sensuous and fast paced mafia romance took me on a truly unforgettable emotional odyssey that had me shivering with ecstasy, blinking back tears, and left me all aglow when our beloved duo eventually slayed all their dragons and finally got their HEA!
Now I shall wait with bated breath for the next book in the series,
HIGHLY RECOMMEND!