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Imperia #2
The Pleasure Slave
The Pleasure Slave by Gena Showalter released on Mar 1, 2009 is available now for purchase.
259 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 1, 2005
106 people are currently reading
2484 people want to read
About the author
Gena Showalter
266 books27.9k followersGena Showalter is the New York Times and USA TODAY bestselling author of over seventy books, including the acclaimed Lords of the Underworld series, the Gods of War series, the White Rabbit Chronicles, and the Forest of Good and Evil series. She writes sizzling paranormal romance, heartwarming contemporary romance, and unputdownable young adult novels, and lives in Oklahoma City with her family and menagerie of dogs and cats.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 236 reviews
June 4, 2017
Re-read. Old rating 4 stars. New rating 2 stars.
I've been in a major romance slump lately. So it only made sense to me that I should re-read the books that I've already rated highly but read so many years ago that I don't actually remember them all that well. Because a good book is a good book, right?
So, the plot. Somewhere very far away, a thousand years ago, super-amazing-gorgeous-warrior-amazing-lover aka Tristan was sleeping with an absolutely horrible woman named Zirra. He's well aware of how awful she is so I don't really understand that. Anyway, he makes it clear that it will always just be sex and she refuses to believe that. When he finally makes it really really really clear, she freaks out and curses him to be a slave to her pleasure and stuffs him in a tiny jewelry box a la genie. He has to be a slave to the pleasure of any woman that possesses his box and the curse will only be lifted when he finds true love. After that, he'll be transported back to his home from wherever he happens to be. Due to some shady politics going on, the box is taken from Zirra and sent far away to protect that tenuous peace on his home planet. A thousand or so years later, the box ends up in a flea market where Julia, our heroine is shopping for her antique shop. She is drawn to the box and buys it. While cleaning it, she pops it open and Tristan appears. He explains that he is there for her pleasure and she makes it clear that she wants nothing from him. Tristan is taken aback by this and the two of them begin to fall for one another. Zirra, of course, is still alive in Imperia and still wants her sex slave, so she does her best to find Tristan.
So much of this book rubbed me the wrong way. Tristan endured neglect to the point of abuse as a child and then was forced into sexual slavery for centuries. He had to do everything his *shudder* "masters" commanded him. However distasteful, however degrading, he had no choice. How did my younger self somehow gloss over this really disturbing fact? When he finally understands that Julia really isn't going to use him for sex he thinks she so incredibly kind and then, of course, decides he wants to sleep with her for the fun of it. And as for Julia, she had a disastrous date when she was 16 that ruined her self-esteem and doomed her to a life of virginal awkwardness. She hasn't dated since that one horrible date. Tristan just can't believe Julia isn't going to command him to clean her toilets or murder a non-existent husband and Julia is just so excited that a man could actually find her size 8 body appealing. So of course it's true love. REALLY? YOU PEOPLE NEED TO GET OUT MORE.
As others have mentioned, the fact that Zirra was eventually cursed the same way she cursed Tristan did not feel like revenge. It was just disturbing. So now she has to spend an eternity as a sex slave. Was she unhinged and homicidal? Yes. But sentencing her to an eternity of non-consensual sex just doesn't sit right with me. Tristan endured it for a thousand years. What if Zirra endures it for 4 thousand? 10 thousand? I mean, anyone in a box is immortal. This didn't really feel like the right time for the whole "eye for an eye" thing. I didn't feel it was justice, it was just rapey and wrong. Death would have been better.
I found the idea of Tristan and Julia's relationship while Tristan was hers to command so...weird. He was still physically bound to do anything she said. If the roles were reversed people would be chucking this book out the window. It really ruined so much of the romance. It was like a constant cloud of weirdness that floated above everything that was supposed to be sexy or swoon-worthy.
Honestly, the only reason I'm giving any stars is the fact that everything that wasn't part of the romance was pretty damn funny. I actually laughed out loud when Tristan kept murdering phones in an attempt to protect Julia. Despite any complaints I have about Gena Showalter's books, they always manage to make me smile and occasionally laugh like a mad woman. However, I will most definitely not be reading this again.
I've been in a major romance slump lately. So it only made sense to me that I should re-read the books that I've already rated highly but read so many years ago that I don't actually remember them all that well. Because a good book is a good book, right?
So, the plot. Somewhere very far away, a thousand years ago, super-amazing-gorgeous-warrior-amazing-lover aka Tristan was sleeping with an absolutely horrible woman named Zirra. He's well aware of how awful she is so I don't really understand that. Anyway, he makes it clear that it will always just be sex and she refuses to believe that. When he finally makes it really really really clear, she freaks out and curses him to be a slave to her pleasure and stuffs him in a tiny jewelry box a la genie. He has to be a slave to the pleasure of any woman that possesses his box and the curse will only be lifted when he finds true love. After that, he'll be transported back to his home from wherever he happens to be. Due to some shady politics going on, the box is taken from Zirra and sent far away to protect that tenuous peace on his home planet. A thousand or so years later, the box ends up in a flea market where Julia, our heroine is shopping for her antique shop. She is drawn to the box and buys it. While cleaning it, she pops it open and Tristan appears. He explains that he is there for her pleasure and she makes it clear that she wants nothing from him. Tristan is taken aback by this and the two of them begin to fall for one another. Zirra, of course, is still alive in Imperia and still wants her sex slave, so she does her best to find Tristan.
So much of this book rubbed me the wrong way. Tristan endured neglect to the point of abuse as a child and then was forced into sexual slavery for centuries. He had to do everything his *shudder* "masters" commanded him. However distasteful, however degrading, he had no choice. How did my younger self somehow gloss over this really disturbing fact? When he finally understands that Julia really isn't going to use him for sex he thinks she so incredibly kind and then, of course, decides he wants to sleep with her for the fun of it. And as for Julia, she had a disastrous date when she was 16 that ruined her self-esteem and doomed her to a life of virginal awkwardness. She hasn't dated since that one horrible date. Tristan just can't believe Julia isn't going to command him to clean her toilets or murder a non-existent husband and Julia is just so excited that a man could actually find her size 8 body appealing. So of course it's true love. REALLY? YOU PEOPLE NEED TO GET OUT MORE.
As others have mentioned, the fact that Zirra was eventually cursed the same way she cursed Tristan did not feel like revenge. It was just disturbing. So now she has to spend an eternity as a sex slave. Was she unhinged and homicidal? Yes. But sentencing her to an eternity of non-consensual sex just doesn't sit right with me. Tristan endured it for a thousand years. What if Zirra endures it for 4 thousand? 10 thousand? I mean, anyone in a box is immortal. This didn't really feel like the right time for the whole "eye for an eye" thing. I didn't feel it was justice, it was just rapey and wrong. Death would have been better.
I found the idea of Tristan and Julia's relationship while Tristan was hers to command so...weird. He was still physically bound to do anything she said. If the roles were reversed people would be chucking this book out the window. It really ruined so much of the romance. It was like a constant cloud of weirdness that floated above everything that was supposed to be sexy or swoon-worthy.
Honestly, the only reason I'm giving any stars is the fact that everything that wasn't part of the romance was pretty damn funny. I actually laughed out loud when Tristan kept murdering phones in an attempt to protect Julia. Despite any complaints I have about Gena Showalter's books, they always manage to make me smile and occasionally laugh like a mad woman. However, I will most definitely not be reading this again.
November 8, 2015
Julia is an antiques dealer and one day at the flea market she finds an intriguing jeweled box. Imagine her surprise when she opens it and an attractive man with a huge sword pops out.
After a few hilarious misunderstandings, Julia manages to figure out that Tristan is a pleasure slave who belongs whichever woman owns the box. (Did I mention he's an alien from another dimension?)
Julia, however, has no desire to own a slave. Actually, the whole notion of slavery disgusts her. Tristan is happy and relieved that Julia treats him like a man and not an object, and they start to become friends.
Of course, this is a romance novel, and they start to fall in love. The evil sorceress who cursed him is trying to track him down, Julia's determined to seduce her next-door neighbor, there's some convoluted plot about Tristan giving her seduction lessons, etc. etc. etc.
...
Gena Showalter is legitimately funny. I laughed frequently for about 60% of this book. And not laughing at Showalter, but with her. She cracks one joke after another, and freely and easily puts her characters in ridiculous situations and then makes you double over in laughter as you watch them deal with those situations. I haven't laughed so much in a long time. It's always super-funny to me when people from different time periods or worlds or dimensions have to learn earth customs. For some reason this kind of humor makes me laugh like nothing else.
Things I Liked:
The characters
The dialogue
The preposterous situational comedy
The humor
The sex (there's not much sex, they don't go to bed together until 75%. If you were wondering.)
Things I Didn't Like:
- Gena Showalter insists on starting off each chapter with a 'slave rule.' Ugh, I found these so distasteful and repulsive. I understand that a lot of people who practice BDSM would probably find these fun, and even cute, but since I associate sexual slavery with actual sexual slavery instead of a fun game, I couldn't appreciate where she was going with this. Again, this is because of who I am, and I'm not blaming Showalter or trying to slap her wrist for this.
- The whole subplot of Tristan giving Julia "seduction lessons" so that she can get her neighbor Peter to fall in love with her. For one thing, I find the whole notion ludicrous. Julia should just be herself, and if Peter doesn't like her - screw him (not literally). I completely understood why Showalter did this - she needed a way to put Tristan and Julia on more equal footing (Tristan playing teacher to Julia's student to counteract Julia's master to Tristan's slave). But I didn't enjoy it and thought it was weird.
- Gena Showalter implying that a size 8 is fat.
- The part at the end where
- Virgin heroine again. Sigh.
Tl;dr - This book is a sweet piece of fluff with no deeper meaning. However, it's a well-written romance novel, the sex is appealing, and it's very funny. It's not going to give you anything of substance, but it might provide you with that belly laugh you have been missing lately. 3 real stars, 5 romance stars.
After a few hilarious misunderstandings, Julia manages to figure out that Tristan is a pleasure slave who belongs whichever woman owns the box. (Did I mention he's an alien from another dimension?)
Julia, however, has no desire to own a slave. Actually, the whole notion of slavery disgusts her. Tristan is happy and relieved that Julia treats him like a man and not an object, and they start to become friends.
Of course, this is a romance novel, and they start to fall in love. The evil sorceress who cursed him is trying to track him down, Julia's determined to seduce her next-door neighbor, there's some convoluted plot about Tristan giving her seduction lessons, etc. etc. etc.
...
Gena Showalter is legitimately funny. I laughed frequently for about 60% of this book. And not laughing at Showalter, but with her. She cracks one joke after another, and freely and easily puts her characters in ridiculous situations and then makes you double over in laughter as you watch them deal with those situations. I haven't laughed so much in a long time. It's always super-funny to me when people from different time periods or worlds or dimensions have to learn earth customs. For some reason this kind of humor makes me laugh like nothing else.
Things I Liked:
The characters
The dialogue
The preposterous situational comedy
The humor
The sex (there's not much sex, they don't go to bed together until 75%. If you were wondering.)
Things I Didn't Like:
- Gena Showalter insists on starting off each chapter with a 'slave rule.' Ugh, I found these so distasteful and repulsive. I understand that a lot of people who practice BDSM would probably find these fun, and even cute, but since I associate sexual slavery with actual sexual slavery instead of a fun game, I couldn't appreciate where she was going with this. Again, this is because of who I am, and I'm not blaming Showalter or trying to slap her wrist for this.
- The whole subplot of Tristan giving Julia "seduction lessons" so that she can get her neighbor Peter to fall in love with her. For one thing, I find the whole notion ludicrous. Julia should just be herself, and if Peter doesn't like her - screw him (not literally). I completely understood why Showalter did this - she needed a way to put Tristan and Julia on more equal footing (Tristan playing teacher to Julia's student to counteract Julia's master to Tristan's slave). But I didn't enjoy it and thought it was weird.
- Gena Showalter implying that a size 8 is fat.
- The part at the end where
- Virgin heroine again. Sigh.
Tl;dr - This book is a sweet piece of fluff with no deeper meaning. However, it's a well-written romance novel, the sex is appealing, and it's very funny. It's not going to give you anything of substance, but it might provide you with that belly laugh you have been missing lately. 3 real stars, 5 romance stars.
July 1, 2022
her şeyden önce bişi demek istiyorum izin verirseniz...
ROMULİS SEN NE BASİRETSİZ NE EZİK NE GURURSUZ Bİ ADAMSIN ADAM DEDİM PARDON SÜMSÜK HERİF!
Romulis, Tristan'ı kutuya hapsedip kendi zevk kölesi yapan, gördüğüm en hisretik çirkef orospu Zirra'ya aşık, yani life-mate'i olarak görüyor. O yüzden de Zirra'ya yardım ediyor Tristan konusunda.
"I am here for your pleasure. Not his. Besides, your husband's strength is no match for mine." His tone held no hint of pride. Only truth. "Unless that is your hope," he added, his pale violet eyes accusing, yet acceptant. "Do you wish me to kill your mate?"
ay ben öldüm.
prologue, giriş, gelişme, düğüm, çözüm, epilogue bölümlerinin hepsinde ne olacağını adımdan daha iyi bildiğim bir kitaba daha hoşgeldiniz. yani çünkü hem Gena'yı kaç defa okudum, hem de bu türde kitap.
şimdi ben tutup Fantasy Lover'la karşılaştırmayacağım, çünkü bence "yazarın üslubu" olayında Kenyon da Gena da rüştünü ispatlamış kadınlar. o yüzenden aşırı benzer kurguya sahip olmalarına rağmen farklı kitaplar. Tristan'ın da Julian'dan aşağı kalır yanı yok.
Tristan'ım benim, deri taytlı belinde kılıçlı zevk kölem adfasdfadf
Gena'nın LOTU serisi ilk kitaptan sonra son derece aksiyonu bol, ve aşırı da romantik-erotiktir hani. Bu muhtemelen biraz daha çerez olduğu için, belki de seri olarak devam etmeyeceğinden son derece basit yazılmış. yani LOTU gibi değil. o yüzden 5 vermedim, aslına bakarsanız muhtemelen başka yazar olsa klişe ilerlediği için 3 bile verebilirim ama daha eskiden okusam 4 vereceğim için aldı bu yıldızları.
Aynı şey, merak edenlere, Kenyon'ın da daha yüksek almasının nedeni bu, Fantasy Lover basit yazılmış değildi. Gena cinsel gerilimli erotik yazıyor, %70-80'e kadar iflahım kurudu allahsız karı. ama çoq güzeldi.
Ayrıca bölüm tagleri aşırı cooldu :D kitabın bdsm ile uzakta yakından alakası yok ama (tristan zevk kölesi ya, haliyle Zirra ve onu çağıran kadınlar herifin Master'ı, ama bu sefer kimin Master olduğunu biliyosunuz ) sonuç olarak beni benden aldı.
safe read, bol bol LOL, HEA, panty melting ve sweet tension'ın had safhada olduğu; aşırı possessive, dirty talker, yaralı geçmişli bir statue-like herif okumak istiyorum diyosanız yardırın. en kötü herifin kadının yanına yaklaşan her erkek de öküz öküz gürleyip milleti bozuşu ya da Julia'yla ilgilendiği caring sahneleri için okuyun.
ROMULİS SEN NE BASİRETSİZ NE EZİK NE GURURSUZ Bİ ADAMSIN ADAM DEDİM PARDON SÜMSÜK HERİF!
Romulis, Tristan'ı kutuya hapsedip kendi zevk kölesi yapan, gördüğüm en hisretik çirkef orospu Zirra'ya aşık, yani life-mate'i olarak görüyor. O yüzden de Zirra'ya yardım ediyor Tristan konusunda.
"I am here for your pleasure. Not his. Besides, your husband's strength is no match for mine." His tone held no hint of pride. Only truth. "Unless that is your hope," he added, his pale violet eyes accusing, yet acceptant. "Do you wish me to kill your mate?"
ay ben öldüm.
prologue, giriş, gelişme, düğüm, çözüm, epilogue bölümlerinin hepsinde ne olacağını adımdan daha iyi bildiğim bir kitaba daha hoşgeldiniz. yani çünkü hem Gena'yı kaç defa okudum, hem de bu türde kitap.
şimdi ben tutup Fantasy Lover'la karşılaştırmayacağım, çünkü bence "yazarın üslubu" olayında Kenyon da Gena da rüştünü ispatlamış kadınlar. o yüzenden aşırı benzer kurguya sahip olmalarına rağmen farklı kitaplar. Tristan'ın da Julian'dan aşağı kalır yanı yok.
Tristan'ım benim, deri taytlı belinde kılıçlı zevk kölem adfasdfadf
Gena'nın LOTU serisi ilk kitaptan sonra son derece aksiyonu bol, ve aşırı da romantik-erotiktir hani. Bu muhtemelen biraz daha çerez olduğu için, belki de seri olarak devam etmeyeceğinden son derece basit yazılmış. yani LOTU gibi değil. o yüzden 5 vermedim, aslına bakarsanız muhtemelen başka yazar olsa klişe ilerlediği için 3 bile verebilirim ama daha eskiden okusam 4 vereceğim için aldı bu yıldızları.
Aynı şey, merak edenlere, Kenyon'ın da daha yüksek almasının nedeni bu, Fantasy Lover basit yazılmış değildi. Gena cinsel gerilimli erotik yazıyor, %70-80'e kadar iflahım kurudu allahsız karı. ama çoq güzeldi.
Ayrıca bölüm tagleri aşırı cooldu :D kitabın bdsm ile uzakta yakından alakası yok ama (tristan zevk kölesi ya, haliyle Zirra ve onu çağıran kadınlar herifin Master'ı, ama bu sefer kimin Master olduğunu biliyosunuz ) sonuç olarak beni benden aldı.
safe read, bol bol LOL, HEA, panty melting ve sweet tension'ın had safhada olduğu; aşırı possessive, dirty talker, yaralı geçmişli bir statue-like herif okumak istiyorum diyosanız yardırın. en kötü herifin kadının yanına yaklaşan her erkek de öküz öküz gürleyip milleti bozuşu ya da Julia'yla ilgilendiği caring sahneleri için okuyun.
o değil de bi gün biri çıkıp bu tanrı ya da kralların yok kaderin değişmemesi için karışmayan ya da işte güya zamanının gelmesini bekleyen ya da işte anca savaş çıkmaması için müdahale eden kurgunun tersini yazsın lan. hemen karışsanız ya olaya ölür müsünüz aq bi yaralı parmağa işeyin pezevenkler!
xoxoxo
iko
February 24, 2010
This book was such a fun read! If you ever need a good light romantic read...this is the book to pick up!
Tristan - Dwayne Johnson
Julia - Myself? lol
Tristan - Dwayne Johnson
Julia - Myself? lol
October 31, 2012
Me esperaba más de Gena Showalter, sinceramente, sobre todo después de haber leído algunos de los libros de Los Señores del Inframundo. No una casi copia de “Un amante de ensueño”, perteneciente a la serie de los “Darkhunter”, de Sherrilyn Kenyon. Porque esto es lo que es esta segunda entrega de la serie “Imperia”, una copia descarada.
Sí, los nombres de los personajes y las circunstancias que les rodean son distintas, pero ahí acaba la diferencia, mínima, entre las dos novelas. Porque en ambas nos encontramos con un guerrero orgulloso que durante siglos ha sido obligado a servir como esclavo sexual de las poseedoras de cierto objeto; ambos han sido humillados y maltratados por las perversas amas que los han tratado como a objetos (buh, bienvenidos al club, las mujeres llevamos milenios sintiéndonos así); ambos se encuentran con una mujer inadaptada socialmente incapaz de establecer relaciones y cargadas de traumas; y ambos son sorprendentemente tratados como seres humanos por estas mujeres gracias a las que recobran la fe en la humanidad y encuentran el amor verdadero.
Me ha defraudado, y mucho, porque alguien con la imaginación de Gena Showalter podría haber encontrado otro camino por recorrer con sus personajes, distinto al que ya había explorado Sherrilyn Kenyon, en lugar de limitarse a cambiar lo circunstancial (una historia bastante sosa, la verdad) y mantener el recorrido psicológico de los personajes de “Un amante de ensueño”.
Sólo apto para fans de la autora y para aquellas personas que no hayan leído la precuela de los Darkhunter.
Sí, los nombres de los personajes y las circunstancias que les rodean son distintas, pero ahí acaba la diferencia, mínima, entre las dos novelas. Porque en ambas nos encontramos con un guerrero orgulloso que durante siglos ha sido obligado a servir como esclavo sexual de las poseedoras de cierto objeto; ambos han sido humillados y maltratados por las perversas amas que los han tratado como a objetos (buh, bienvenidos al club, las mujeres llevamos milenios sintiéndonos así); ambos se encuentran con una mujer inadaptada socialmente incapaz de establecer relaciones y cargadas de traumas; y ambos son sorprendentemente tratados como seres humanos por estas mujeres gracias a las que recobran la fe en la humanidad y encuentran el amor verdadero.
Me ha defraudado, y mucho, porque alguien con la imaginación de Gena Showalter podría haber encontrado otro camino por recorrer con sus personajes, distinto al que ya había explorado Sherrilyn Kenyon, en lugar de limitarse a cambiar lo circunstancial (una historia bastante sosa, la verdad) y mantener el recorrido psicológico de los personajes de “Un amante de ensueño”.
Sólo apto para fans de la autora y para aquellas personas que no hayan leído la precuela de los Darkhunter.
August 29, 2018
Yine bana saç baş yolduran bir kitap buldum!
Yazan kişi Gena olduğunda sonuca pek de şaşmıyorum artık ama bu kadar da olmaz ki be! Vallahi yazık bana, şu yaşımda kitaplar yüzünden girmediğim depresyon kalmadı resmen.
ÖSYM beni, ben kitabı süründürmüş olsam dâhi kitap çok tatlıydı be *.*
Bilenler Sherrilyn Kenyon’cımın Julian’ına (Fantasy Lover) nasıl aşkla bağlı olduğumu bilir. Kitaba olan sevdam beni aşmış zaten kdfgfg
Bu kitap da başta kurgu olarak ona benziyordu. Ve ben bundan zırnık şikayetçi değildim çünkü baya baya özendiğim bir kurgudur malumunuz. Gena’dan şekillenmiş haline de aşık oldum.
Lafı uzatmaya mecalim yok, Aşüftelerim bunu okusun.
Yazan kişi Gena olduğunda sonuca pek de şaşmıyorum artık ama bu kadar da olmaz ki be! Vallahi yazık bana, şu yaşımda kitaplar yüzünden girmediğim depresyon kalmadı resmen.
ÖSYM beni, ben kitabı süründürmüş olsam dâhi kitap çok tatlıydı be *.*
Bilenler Sherrilyn Kenyon’cımın Julian’ına (Fantasy Lover) nasıl aşkla bağlı olduğumu bilir. Kitaba olan sevdam beni aşmış zaten kdfgfg
Bu kitap da başta kurgu olarak ona benziyordu. Ve ben bundan zırnık şikayetçi değildim çünkü baya baya özendiğim bir kurgudur malumunuz. Gena’dan şekillenmiş haline de aşık oldum.
Lafı uzatmaya mecalim yok, Aşüftelerim bunu okusun.
December 26, 2020
Really enjoyed reading this updated version of the story! Loved seeing these characters again, it's been so long since I last read this book that I forgot what happened! Really great read!
September 1, 2010
This was such a fun and romantic read. Julia is an antique dealer. While making a trip to a flea market in search of more wares she comes across a decorative jewelry box. When she gets home she begins cleaning it and out pops an gorgeous, intimidating man with a sword. He's clad only in tight fitting black pants promising to fulfill her every fantasy. Instead of taking Tristan up on his offer she proposes he teach her how to seduce other men. That's when things get interesting. I found The Pleasure Slave most enjoyable. [blush:] You gotta love a book that makes you blush when you use the title in sentence.
February 13, 2014
Como siempre que comienzo leyendo algún libro de un esclavo sexual encerrado en algún objeto, mi mente en seguida invoca a Julian de Macedonia (lo sé, no puedo hacer nada para evitarlo), bueno el punto es que a medida que avanzaba por las hojas definitivamente Tristan hizo que olvidará todo rastro de Julian, es un libro entretenido y rápido de leer, recuerdo hace tiempo haber comenzado a leer el primer libro de "Imperia" pero no sé por qué extraño motivo no lo seguí leyendo, seguramente dentro de poco retomare su lectura. Me gusto y engancho.
April 6, 2009
This one actually surprised me. I wasn’t prepared to like it as much as I did. It’s light and amusing and unusual. Glad I picked it up.
February 11, 2010
2.5/5 stars. This book felt like a bad late-night movie on Cinemax.
June 15, 2016
Super-hot warrior Tristan has been shacking up with sexy sorceress Zirra. He’s not that into her and its driving her evil-crazy. He yawned while she was being sensuous, so rude!
‘Yeah, look,’ Tristan says. ‘Gotta bounce, warrior stuff to do. It’s been fun … what’s your name again?’
Zirra’s not going to stand for this. She isn’t an immortal with undefined but fairly limitless magic powers for nothing. Tristan’s going into a box until he a) tells some lady (i.e. Zirra) he loves her and b) learns some respect.
Zirra, as her high priest king reminds her, is not supposed to put humans into boxes. They have a treaty. This could mean war. Bad Zirra! As punishment, Tristan in a box is sent far away, and Zirra is stripped of her power.
Tristan is a slave for between 375 and 1500 years. It gets a bit confusing, because Tristan references seasons and Julia assumes he means years. While I can cope with his planet not having 4 seasons, I can’t quite get that it would have one. Or that there’d only be one for the whole planet, because that makes no sense. I’m willing to accept that a year can have around the same length on his planet as on Earth, but all this time stuff starts getting confusing because is he keeping to his planet’s time, or Earth’s? And it all becomes even more confusing when it becomes clear that only a few days have actually passed on his home planet. I would like each book that does confusing things with time to have an explanation in an appendix. Maybe as a graphic, with a series of blocks to show how X years means Y years means Z days. And something pretty, like curling vines on the blocks. Please note, romance authors, that I want this MUCH MORE than I want a baby epilogue.
Anyway, for a long time, various ladies poke at Tristan’s box and out he comes; ready to fulfil all their sexual desires. He’s really unhappy with how all of this has turned out, but he still has his pride and no one’s going to make him beg.
Then, 25 year old antiques dealer Julia buys his box. Julia is sweet and shy and has devastatingly low confidence in her own attractions. She’s managed to become a successful small business owner which I thought was pretty impressive. She has a house full of interesting stuff, and I bet her shop is awesome. Especially since someone can randomly walk in and ask for a glass donkey and she has two.
Although Julia was drawn to Tristan’s now tattered and work box, she’s not at all drawn to the idea of having a handsome, mostly naked man with a sword show up in her kitchen. Particularly, she doesn’t like how he offers to perform various sex acts on her. Or, she does, but must suppress all temptation because it is lies. When she does finally work out that he’s under a magic spell and bound to the box, she decides he’ll be most useful helping out with the plumbing problems at her shop, and teaching her how to be attractive to non-threatening men who might be persuaded to date her.
There’s nothing particularly new about this story, and it’s more on the sweet than smutty side of the ledger. If you are looking for something similar, but with cursed powerful djinn rather than a cursed human, and want a little more smut, I liked Elisabeth Naughton’s ‘Bound to Seduction.’
‘Pleasure Slave’ is lovely, but as with any slave romance it’s a guilty pleasure. Julia’s low self-esteem is gently handled and a nicely done source of conflict in the romance. It’s also always lovely to see someone (Julia) behave better than the many hundreds of women before her who have treated Tristan like a sex toy. I choose to think that the whole point of slave romance is to demonstrate that the heroine who won’t treat the hero as a slave deserves her happy ever after for being so morally good. I also like how this story, and those fairy tales where the heroine helps out the ugly old lady who gives her many gifts, makes it look as though kindness is mostly simple to achieve and always rewarded.
It always seems to me that when the heroine is the slave she has a much tougher job demonstrating that slavery is wrong to the hero, who may eventually get that it is wrong when applied to her, but not actually wrong in general.
Zirra is a satisfying villain in that she is so easy to hate, but an unsatisfying one in that she’s so out of proportion evil. It’s a little baffling, given that she’s immortal, that no one slapped her down sooner.
‘Yeah, look,’ Tristan says. ‘Gotta bounce, warrior stuff to do. It’s been fun … what’s your name again?’
Zirra’s not going to stand for this. She isn’t an immortal with undefined but fairly limitless magic powers for nothing. Tristan’s going into a box until he a) tells some lady (i.e. Zirra) he loves her and b) learns some respect.
Zirra, as her high priest king reminds her, is not supposed to put humans into boxes. They have a treaty. This could mean war. Bad Zirra! As punishment, Tristan in a box is sent far away, and Zirra is stripped of her power.
Tristan is a slave for between 375 and 1500 years. It gets a bit confusing, because Tristan references seasons and Julia assumes he means years. While I can cope with his planet not having 4 seasons, I can’t quite get that it would have one. Or that there’d only be one for the whole planet, because that makes no sense. I’m willing to accept that a year can have around the same length on his planet as on Earth, but all this time stuff starts getting confusing because is he keeping to his planet’s time, or Earth’s? And it all becomes even more confusing when it becomes clear that only a few days have actually passed on his home planet. I would like each book that does confusing things with time to have an explanation in an appendix. Maybe as a graphic, with a series of blocks to show how X years means Y years means Z days. And something pretty, like curling vines on the blocks. Please note, romance authors, that I want this MUCH MORE than I want a baby epilogue.
Anyway, for a long time, various ladies poke at Tristan’s box and out he comes; ready to fulfil all their sexual desires. He’s really unhappy with how all of this has turned out, but he still has his pride and no one’s going to make him beg.
Then, 25 year old antiques dealer Julia buys his box. Julia is sweet and shy and has devastatingly low confidence in her own attractions. She’s managed to become a successful small business owner which I thought was pretty impressive. She has a house full of interesting stuff, and I bet her shop is awesome. Especially since someone can randomly walk in and ask for a glass donkey and she has two.
Although Julia was drawn to Tristan’s now tattered and work box, she’s not at all drawn to the idea of having a handsome, mostly naked man with a sword show up in her kitchen. Particularly, she doesn’t like how he offers to perform various sex acts on her. Or, she does, but must suppress all temptation because it is lies. When she does finally work out that he’s under a magic spell and bound to the box, she decides he’ll be most useful helping out with the plumbing problems at her shop, and teaching her how to be attractive to non-threatening men who might be persuaded to date her.
There’s nothing particularly new about this story, and it’s more on the sweet than smutty side of the ledger. If you are looking for something similar, but with cursed powerful djinn rather than a cursed human, and want a little more smut, I liked Elisabeth Naughton’s ‘Bound to Seduction.’
‘Pleasure Slave’ is lovely, but as with any slave romance it’s a guilty pleasure. Julia’s low self-esteem is gently handled and a nicely done source of conflict in the romance. It’s also always lovely to see someone (Julia) behave better than the many hundreds of women before her who have treated Tristan like a sex toy. I choose to think that the whole point of slave romance is to demonstrate that the heroine who won’t treat the hero as a slave deserves her happy ever after for being so morally good. I also like how this story, and those fairy tales where the heroine helps out the ugly old lady who gives her many gifts, makes it look as though kindness is mostly simple to achieve and always rewarded.
It always seems to me that when the heroine is the slave she has a much tougher job demonstrating that slavery is wrong to the hero, who may eventually get that it is wrong when applied to her, but not actually wrong in general.
Zirra is a satisfying villain in that she is so easy to hate, but an unsatisfying one in that she’s so out of proportion evil. It’s a little baffling, given that she’s immortal, that no one slapped her down sooner.
January 29, 2017
This book reminded me so much of Fantasy Lover by Sherilynn Kenyon. They both had a similar plot of a hot, sexy man trapped in an object and whenever the heroine opened said object the hero was meant to be her love slave with an emphasis on the sensual arts. Then the books varied from there a little bit but still was similar in nature. I loved Fantasy Lover and when I heard this had a similar plot I knew I had to read it. Even though I loved Fantasy Lover more, this one was very good and highly enjoyable.
What I enjoyed about this book was the build up between Tristian and Julia. It was very well written with clever little quips here and there. I loved all that sexual tension between them, and there was a lot of it. It was so good and yummy. It surprised me how long it took them until they finally went between the sheets or more accurately the chair where their first time scene took place. There was so much longing and angst and build up that I could feel it oozing off the pages. The advantage to such a long build up was the development of their relationship. They built a friendship. Okay they were friends that really, really wanted each other, but still they got to know each other and cared about each other as people before giving into their passions. By doing that it just made their passions that much stronger and deeper than if they gave on in earlier in the book. They were falling in love, and I loved seeing that. It just made them that much stronger.
The only disadvantage to the long build up were they were less sexy time scenes, and I wanted a few more thrown in there especially after waiting all that time. I am not saying there weren't multiple love making scenes but there were kind of rushed and more summarized. I wanted a little more detail and just see more of that intense chemistry and connection that they had during those scenes. I could feel their love and connection throughout though, making it worth it in in the end. My enjoyment wasn't diminished because of f the lack of those scenes, but I just wanted at least two more longer love making scenes because the scenes they had were hot. Those two kissing scenes that happened before the first time scene made me sweat a little bit. Not gonna lie. There were some of the hottest kissing scenes I have read in awhile.
The one thing that I found a little bit distracting was the side characters especially Peter. He just had two random point of views in the story that I found totally unnecessary. I don't understand why it was in their. It took away from the action. I think what may have been doing was setting up Peter's story down the road or something, but this was the last book in the Imperia series that Gena Showalter wrote so it felt even more unnecessary to have it there. Plus I didn't like Peter's character way so that didn't help.
I understood why Zirra's point of view even though she was a total witch and I could see her story being set up here, but again not written about. This perspective needed to be in there just so it was an obstacle that Tristian and Julia's story.
I know why Romulis's perspective was in there, but at the same time it was a little weird too. There was just a lot unfinished business with his storyline. I think it could have been taken out, and the book would have been fine. If there was a story him then it would have added value, and I would have seen why it was needed, but as it was I didn't need. It wasn't as distracting as Peter's point of view but again it took away from the action between Tristian and Julia.
Overall I really did enjoy this book. I pretty much hooked from the beginning and compelled to read about the lives of Tristian and Julia coming together. I really liked them together. They fit really well. They had this intense passion and love for one another that made it really easy to keep my eyes glued to the pages and root for their happily ever after. And it hurt that the story was hot and sexy with the smoking hot Tristian, who was drool worthy. It was just a good story and good book.
What I enjoyed about this book was the build up between Tristian and Julia. It was very well written with clever little quips here and there. I loved all that sexual tension between them, and there was a lot of it. It was so good and yummy. It surprised me how long it took them until they finally went between the sheets or more accurately the chair where their first time scene took place. There was so much longing and angst and build up that I could feel it oozing off the pages. The advantage to such a long build up was the development of their relationship. They built a friendship. Okay they were friends that really, really wanted each other, but still they got to know each other and cared about each other as people before giving into their passions. By doing that it just made their passions that much stronger and deeper than if they gave on in earlier in the book. They were falling in love, and I loved seeing that. It just made them that much stronger.
The only disadvantage to the long build up were they were less sexy time scenes, and I wanted a few more thrown in there especially after waiting all that time. I am not saying there weren't multiple love making scenes but there were kind of rushed and more summarized. I wanted a little more detail and just see more of that intense chemistry and connection that they had during those scenes. I could feel their love and connection throughout though, making it worth it in in the end. My enjoyment wasn't diminished because of f the lack of those scenes, but I just wanted at least two more longer love making scenes because the scenes they had were hot. Those two kissing scenes that happened before the first time scene made me sweat a little bit. Not gonna lie. There were some of the hottest kissing scenes I have read in awhile.
The one thing that I found a little bit distracting was the side characters especially Peter. He just had two random point of views in the story that I found totally unnecessary. I don't understand why it was in their. It took away from the action. I think what may have been doing was setting up Peter's story down the road or something, but this was the last book in the Imperia series that Gena Showalter wrote so it felt even more unnecessary to have it there. Plus I didn't like Peter's character way so that didn't help.
I understood why Zirra's point of view even though she was a total witch and I could see her story being set up here, but again not written about. This perspective needed to be in there just so it was an obstacle that Tristian and Julia's story.
I know why Romulis's perspective was in there, but at the same time it was a little weird too. There was just a lot unfinished business with his storyline. I think it could have been taken out, and the book would have been fine. If there was a story him then it would have added value, and I would have seen why it was needed, but as it was I didn't need. It wasn't as distracting as Peter's point of view but again it took away from the action between Tristian and Julia.
Overall I really did enjoy this book. I pretty much hooked from the beginning and compelled to read about the lives of Tristian and Julia coming together. I really liked them together. They fit really well. They had this intense passion and love for one another that made it really easy to keep my eyes glued to the pages and root for their happily ever after. And it hurt that the story was hot and sexy with the smoking hot Tristian, who was drool worthy. It was just a good story and good book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 5, 2015
In keeping with the paranormal theme, I decided to look way back in my TBR pile and found this little gem. Tristan is a warrior who has been cursed by a wicked Druinn woman named Zirra, for daring not to love her. As punishment, he’s trapped in a treasure box and forced to be a pleasure slave, used by women he calls his guan ren for over a thousand years. Julia comes across his box at a market, and when Tristan comes out she cannot believe this huge warrior is insisting that he is there for her. Julia refuses to use Tristan, but she also cannot believe that he would be attracted to her.
The Good
Julia and Tristan have combustible chemistry and their relationship builds slowly and believably. Both suffer misunderstandings as to the other’s intentions but they fall in love. The story is interspersed with chapters of Zirra’s quest to get him back, since she is completely obsessed with him. There are some funny moments, especially Tristan adjusting to present day contraptions like phones, that lightened the mood considerably. His crazy, protective feelings for Julia was great and I’ll admit, when I have a alpha hero who does everything he can to protect the heroine, I can forgive alot. Tristan’s sacrifice at the end broke my heart a little but had me rooting hard for them to get their HEA.
Similar to Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunter book Fantasy Lover, but with enough differences,
especially pertaining to the otherworldly origins of the hero, to bring its own flavor to it.
The Not So Good
Some of the overall themes bothered me a bit - alot of which is tied to the general “it all means nothing without a man.” The obsessive, one dimensional Zirra was about as stereotypical scorned woman as you could get and she was so crazed with her desire to possess Tristan that she gave up everything to have him. Julia, an accomplished woman who didn’t really see her own worth - to be self-employed and running a successful antique business at such a young age - without the love of a man and wasn’t complete without that man and just gave up everything for that love. I mean, everything. Two women, completely insane for Tristan’s peen. I would have preferred some stronger, less dependent characterizations. Then again, it’s a romance about a genie in a treasure box *shrugs* I pick my battles and a romance novel isn’t one of them.
The Bottom Line
I really enjoyed it and I would recommend it to fans of PNR.
The Good
Julia and Tristan have combustible chemistry and their relationship builds slowly and believably. Both suffer misunderstandings as to the other’s intentions but they fall in love. The story is interspersed with chapters of Zirra’s quest to get him back, since she is completely obsessed with him. There are some funny moments, especially Tristan adjusting to present day contraptions like phones, that lightened the mood considerably. His crazy, protective feelings for Julia was great and I’ll admit, when I have a alpha hero who does everything he can to protect the heroine, I can forgive alot. Tristan’s sacrifice at the end broke my heart a little but had me rooting hard for them to get their HEA.
Similar to Sherrilyn Kenyon’s Dark Hunter book Fantasy Lover, but with enough differences,
especially pertaining to the otherworldly origins of the hero, to bring its own flavor to it.
The Not So Good
Some of the overall themes bothered me a bit - alot of which is tied to the general “it all means nothing without a man.” The obsessive, one dimensional Zirra was about as stereotypical scorned woman as you could get and she was so crazed with her desire to possess Tristan that she gave up everything to have him. Julia, an accomplished woman who didn’t really see her own worth - to be self-employed and running a successful antique business at such a young age - without the love of a man and wasn’t complete without that man and just gave up everything for that love. I mean, everything. Two women, completely insane for Tristan’s peen. I would have preferred some stronger, less dependent characterizations. Then again, it’s a romance about a genie in a treasure box *shrugs* I pick my battles and a romance novel isn’t one of them.
The Bottom Line
I really enjoyed it and I would recommend it to fans of PNR.
October 31, 2014
This book made me want to run out and become an antiques dealer.
Julia Anderson just got the deal of a lifetime when she acquires a battered jewelry box and discovers that it houses her own personal pleasure slave.
Tristan is the tall, dark, and handsome man all women dream of, and Julia can't help but want to run her hands over him. Tristan has no objections because making love to Julia is the best he's ever known (and he's known a lot), but giving her his heart would break the spell and separate them forever, and he would do anything to keep loving Julia, even if that mean remaining a slave.
I have to say that I loved this story because it drew me in and I just couldn't stop reading. Julia was sweet and honest and did her best to resist Tristan, and he is just so gorgeous that I don't know how she did it.
I could feel the emotion come off the page. It was just such a great read. I enjoyed The Stone Prince, the first book I read by this author, and now I have enjoyed this. Give me more like this and I can guarantee I will keep reading.
Julia Anderson just got the deal of a lifetime when she acquires a battered jewelry box and discovers that it houses her own personal pleasure slave.
Tristan is the tall, dark, and handsome man all women dream of, and Julia can't help but want to run her hands over him. Tristan has no objections because making love to Julia is the best he's ever known (and he's known a lot), but giving her his heart would break the spell and separate them forever, and he would do anything to keep loving Julia, even if that mean remaining a slave.
I have to say that I loved this story because it drew me in and I just couldn't stop reading. Julia was sweet and honest and did her best to resist Tristan, and he is just so gorgeous that I don't know how she did it.
I could feel the emotion come off the page. It was just such a great read. I enjoyed The Stone Prince, the first book I read by this author, and now I have enjoyed this. Give me more like this and I can guarantee I will keep reading.
May 9, 2012
OK so this book is basically a trashy romance novel, and trust there's no hiding that fact. That being said its actually enjoyable, i think, for those of us that don't race to the bookstore the next book featuring Fabio on the cover. The story was cute and not too over done. I could find myself believing it (that's how wrapped up in it I actually got!) That is, until the end. While I enjoyed the bulk of the story the ending really didn't "do it" for me. I cant fathom another way for it to end but I personally would have liked something better and I suppose less alien like. (Not big on the alien theory) Any-who, I think if you're just looking for some fun and sexy to read this is definitely the book to read. Its quick and easy and the steamy scenes are actually quite good. No complaints from me on that subject! ;-)
March 26, 2018
Secondo libro sui guerrieri di Imperia, pianeta lontano in cui la popolazione femminile vive in funzione di quella maschile. Devo dire che la storia di Tristan non è proprio originale, l’originalità, anche qui, sta nel cambiamento progressivo del protagonista che cerca in tutti i modi di rimanere indifferente all’amore per paura che questo lo indebolisca. Le sue certezze crollano di fronte a Julia, bassa e formosetta, con l’autostima sotto i tacchi, la cui insicurezza rischia costantemente di far naufragare qualsiasi cosa stia nascendo tra lei e Tristan.
Dunque aveva paura della sua lama possente. Il doppio senso gli strappò un sorriso. Le donne di ogni mondo avevano adorato la sua arma, aggrappandosi al senso di pericolo e di eccitazione che essa aggiungeva alla seduzione. A beneficio di Julia si esibì in un sospiro rassegnato, afferrò l’elsa della spada e la sganciò dalla cintura.
Ho trovato questo secondo libro molto più introspettivo rispetto al primo, con continui monologhi interiori dei protagonisti che dovrebbero accrescere la tensione tra i due e aumentare l’aspettativa e invece rallentano terribilmente il ritmo del racconto rendendolo noioso. In poche parole, del piacere del titolo c’è solo l’illusione perché la capitolazione dei due arriva troppo tardi.
Ancora una volta abbiamo un lui magnifico, possente, ardito affiancato da una lei poco credibile nei panni di “racchia della scuola”; Julia infatti è una taglia 44, bionda con gli occhi verdi e già questo stona con la sua convinzione di essere brutta e indesiderabile, e la contrapposizione dei loro punti di vista riguardo la sua figura è uno dei pochi punti di forza del racconto.
Altro elemento notevole è la cattiva di turno, Zirra, davvero cattiva e odiosa in ogni suo gesto e pensiero in contrasto col magnifico aspetto esteriore.
…sapeva che la sacerdotessa non lo avrebbe ascoltato. Era malvagia fino al midollo. Se poteva condannarlo a una sofferenza eterna pur sostenendo di amarlo, cosa avrebbe fatto a Julia, una donna che ostacolava i suoi piani, la sua smania di possesso?
Anche il finale è molto scontato, l’amore trionfa sempre (e come potrebbe essere altrimenti?) ma un po’ di trambusto non avrebbe guastato anzi, avrebbe di certo movimentato una storia che, a causa anche degli scarsi dialoghi, manca di quel dinamismo che contraddistingue il primo libro. Mi dispiace molto di dover dire che questo libro non mi ha conquistata, ma penso che una storia di amore e passione dovrebbe essere incentrata su questi elementi, invece qui ci sono continue (troppe!!!) allusioni sessuali che lasciano ben sperare, ma non vengono mai soddisfatte.
Dunque aveva paura della sua lama possente. Il doppio senso gli strappò un sorriso. Le donne di ogni mondo avevano adorato la sua arma, aggrappandosi al senso di pericolo e di eccitazione che essa aggiungeva alla seduzione. A beneficio di Julia si esibì in un sospiro rassegnato, afferrò l’elsa della spada e la sganciò dalla cintura.
Ho trovato questo secondo libro molto più introspettivo rispetto al primo, con continui monologhi interiori dei protagonisti che dovrebbero accrescere la tensione tra i due e aumentare l’aspettativa e invece rallentano terribilmente il ritmo del racconto rendendolo noioso. In poche parole, del piacere del titolo c’è solo l’illusione perché la capitolazione dei due arriva troppo tardi.
Ancora una volta abbiamo un lui magnifico, possente, ardito affiancato da una lei poco credibile nei panni di “racchia della scuola”; Julia infatti è una taglia 44, bionda con gli occhi verdi e già questo stona con la sua convinzione di essere brutta e indesiderabile, e la contrapposizione dei loro punti di vista riguardo la sua figura è uno dei pochi punti di forza del racconto.
Altro elemento notevole è la cattiva di turno, Zirra, davvero cattiva e odiosa in ogni suo gesto e pensiero in contrasto col magnifico aspetto esteriore.
…sapeva che la sacerdotessa non lo avrebbe ascoltato. Era malvagia fino al midollo. Se poteva condannarlo a una sofferenza eterna pur sostenendo di amarlo, cosa avrebbe fatto a Julia, una donna che ostacolava i suoi piani, la sua smania di possesso?
Anche il finale è molto scontato, l’amore trionfa sempre (e come potrebbe essere altrimenti?) ma un po’ di trambusto non avrebbe guastato anzi, avrebbe di certo movimentato una storia che, a causa anche degli scarsi dialoghi, manca di quel dinamismo che contraddistingue il primo libro. Mi dispiace molto di dover dire che questo libro non mi ha conquistata, ma penso che una storia di amore e passione dovrebbe essere incentrata su questi elementi, invece qui ci sono continue (troppe!!!) allusioni sessuali che lasciano ben sperare, ma non vengono mai soddisfatte.
January 19, 2018
I picked this up because it is supposedly very similar to Fantasy Lover and I want to someday be able to compare them both
March 30, 2019
I honestly just really enjoy romance books, and this is what it is!
July 11, 2020
Tristan and Julia
Tristan is cursed to spend life pleasing others. When Julia stumbles upon his box she gives him what no other ever has, respect. This is a slow burn with all the right feels. An excellent read.
Tristan is cursed to spend life pleasing others. When Julia stumbles upon his box she gives him what no other ever has, respect. This is a slow burn with all the right feels. An excellent read.
January 14, 2011
"The Pleasure Slave" is book 2 in Gena Showalter's Imperia series, but it's in no way a sequel to The Stone Prince. In this novel, our hero Tristan was imprisoned in a jewelry box by a sorceress scorned. He is cursed to be something like a genie in a bottle... when released he is the slave to the woman who owns the box.
Julia is an antique dealer with low self-esteem and no love life. She acquires the box and is shocked when Tristan appears. He, in turn, is shocked when she is not ready and willing to use his services. He quickly becomes enamoured of her and wants her for his own. She thinks he is way out of her league and instead focuses her attention on her more-mousy neighbor. She enlists Tristan's help to attract the neighbor and he begins to "tutor" her in seduction. Of course, Tristan and Julia only end up seducing each other.
Meanwhile, that sorceress is still after Tristan. Even though she is on another planet and in a different time, she continues trying to get him back.
It's a nice story, but unfortunately it's one I've read before. I couldn't stop thinking of Sherrilyn Kenyon's Fantasy Lover at any point during the book. I liked it better than "Stone Prince," but they were similar in tone. Sweet, but light reading. 3 1/2 stars.
Julia is an antique dealer with low self-esteem and no love life. She acquires the box and is shocked when Tristan appears. He, in turn, is shocked when she is not ready and willing to use his services. He quickly becomes enamoured of her and wants her for his own. She thinks he is way out of her league and instead focuses her attention on her more-mousy neighbor. She enlists Tristan's help to attract the neighbor and he begins to "tutor" her in seduction. Of course, Tristan and Julia only end up seducing each other.
Meanwhile, that sorceress is still after Tristan. Even though she is on another planet and in a different time, she continues trying to get him back.
It's a nice story, but unfortunately it's one I've read before. I couldn't stop thinking of Sherrilyn Kenyon's Fantasy Lover at any point during the book. I liked it better than "Stone Prince," but they were similar in tone. Sweet, but light reading. 3 1/2 stars.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 5, 2013
Honestamente esta serie me decepcionó un poco, esperaba algo más, porque vamos, estamos hablando de Gena y yo soy una gran fan de ella, que escriba, lo que escriba YO seguiré leyendo todo lo que saque y lo que pueda conseguir de ella, pues es una autora muy buena e ingeniosa.
Pero tengo que comentar, que aunque me gustó esta historia, no puedo evitar compararla muchísimo con Amante de Ensueño de la Kenyon. Las historias no son 100% iguales, pero si muy, muy parecidas, a parte de que sentí que la serie ha quedado inconclusa (otra serie que Gena deja colgada), me dejó con ganas de saber de otros personajes que en el libro aparecieron y que para mi opinión muy personal fueron notorios, como lo fue en el caso de Romulis, el hijo de Percen y Heather, el amigo de Tristan, Roake que aunque no tuvo participación me llamó la atención su personaje cada vez que Tristan lo mencionaba, también la hermana de Julia, Faith y hasta de Peter.
También me hubiera gustado que pudiéramos saber un poco más de los personajes del primer libro, de Jorlan, Katie, de sus locos hermanos y su padre.
Por estas cosas no he podido calificar el libro con más estrellas, esta es la segunda serie que leo de Gena, que siento, debió continuar sacando más libros.
Pero en fin a pesar de mi opinión, este segundo libro, es igual de entretenido que el primero y si no se ha leído Amante de Ensueño de Sherrilyn Kenyon, estoy segura que se podría considerar una historia genial.
Pero tengo que comentar, que aunque me gustó esta historia, no puedo evitar compararla muchísimo con Amante de Ensueño de la Kenyon. Las historias no son 100% iguales, pero si muy, muy parecidas, a parte de que sentí que la serie ha quedado inconclusa (otra serie que Gena deja colgada), me dejó con ganas de saber de otros personajes que en el libro aparecieron y que para mi opinión muy personal fueron notorios, como lo fue en el caso de Romulis, el hijo de Percen y Heather, el amigo de Tristan, Roake que aunque no tuvo participación me llamó la atención su personaje cada vez que Tristan lo mencionaba, también la hermana de Julia, Faith y hasta de Peter.
También me hubiera gustado que pudiéramos saber un poco más de los personajes del primer libro, de Jorlan, Katie, de sus locos hermanos y su padre.
Por estas cosas no he podido calificar el libro con más estrellas, esta es la segunda serie que leo de Gena, que siento, debió continuar sacando más libros.
Pero en fin a pesar de mi opinión, este segundo libro, es igual de entretenido que el primero y si no se ha leído Amante de Ensueño de Sherrilyn Kenyon, estoy segura que se podría considerar una historia genial.
December 17, 2016
Ha sido un libro genial, me ha encantado descubrir a esta autora este año, aunque he de decir que la primera parte me gustó un pelín más, esta segunda entrega no me ha decepcionado.
El personaje de Julia me ha resultado muy adorable e incluso Tristan en algunas ocasiones también me lo ha parecido.
Aquí podemos ver antiguos personajes como Percen y su compañera de vida (que no recuerdo el nombre) y puedo decir que he llegado a apreciar un poquito más a Percen.
Y como villana en este libro tenemos a Zirra, que sin duda, la he despreciado por todo lo que le hacía sufrir a Tristan.
El final me ha parecido muy rápido pero no menos intenso.
Sin duda, seguiré leyendo libros de esta autora, que me ha sorprendido muchísimo.
El personaje de Julia me ha resultado muy adorable e incluso Tristan en algunas ocasiones también me lo ha parecido.
Aquí podemos ver antiguos personajes como Percen y su compañera de vida (que no recuerdo el nombre) y puedo decir que he llegado a apreciar un poquito más a Percen.
Y como villana en este libro tenemos a Zirra, que sin duda, la he despreciado por todo lo que le hacía sufrir a Tristan.
El final me ha parecido muy rápido pero no menos intenso.
Sin duda, seguiré leyendo libros de esta autora, que me ha sorprendido muchísimo.
March 14, 2017
Can't help comparing this book to Kenyon's Fantasy Lover. And after reading that book this one falls short. The whole alien aspect threw me off big time. Probably because I wasn't expecting it to go that route at all. I also found the ending a little unsatisfying especially the way Julia went all "but how can I live without him!" on us. I'm all for letting the heroine mope, but not when she decides she can't function as a human being without her man. So, I enjoyed the premise of this book but a quite a few plot twists left me dry.
January 21, 2015
A beautiful man who will make all your sexuals wishes came true seems an excellent thing but what if you fall in love with him and love is the thing that keep you apart? It was a terrible dilemma for Julia & Tristan: their love or his freedom. Magically their problem is resolved by a powerfull magician and their destiny is full filled by a beautiful daughter who might be a queen.
The wicked witch became a slave of Peter's pleasure but I feel sorry for Romulus, the prince. I wish he had his own story with a happy ending.
I read that this book is really very similar to Fantasy Lover but it is not the most original plot, so it could be a coincidence...
The wicked witch became a slave of Peter's pleasure but I feel sorry for Romulus, the prince. I wish he had his own story with a happy ending.
I read that this book is really very similar to Fantasy Lover but it is not the most original plot, so it could be a coincidence...
February 10, 2017
There was a few declarations that came across unrealistic because of wording (which ALWAYS gets me), but other than that it was a really great read. I love the humour in Showalter's books, well the ones I've read anyway, so I always enjoy them to some degree, and I also find the passion and the lead up to their passionate moments really well done. This was similar to book one, and as someone in my friends list pointed out, Fantasy Lover by Sherrilyn Kenyon, however I personally think it was still individual enough and I really had a fun time reading it!
April 19, 2016
Prior to my kinky reading days, Ms. Showalter was as racy as it got! Oh before the Kindle and epublishing... Seriously, with a title like The Pleasure Slave, what more could a horny 30 year old want to read? This is pretty tame as far as the sex goes. The plot is fun with a little twist. The characters are easy to like. It is a Ms. Showalter book so the writing is smooth and enjoyable.
Read
December 24, 2011It was a delightful read - with a tad rushed end I think. But the tension was present and delicious all the time - without getting boring. The male heroin was cliché, but he was supposed to be like that - with all the kinks (muscles, leather legins...sword). I was ok - it was a fairytale read with lots of sexual sexy tension. Id recommend this.
July 25, 2011
I really enjoyed this book. Gena Showalter has quite a way with other-wordly-storytelling that captures one's interest from page 1. I love all of her works, so it wasn't surprising that I loved this one. I recommend it to those who love a great love-story, and a good amount of hanky-panky!
May 6, 2008
This book make me blushed from the chapter one. Huhuhu
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