Keri LakeReseñas

1.5
This started off well (brutal and violent but interesting) and then it went downhill and just kept going.
After the 8 year time jump it was awful - pushed through all the rape scenes for nothing. Just watch I AM LEGEND or any other zombie movie.

These are yummie snack books. The first book took me a while to get into, but it was worth it.
Filled with demons, lycans and other supes, with a nice twist to the stereotypes. A lot of handsome men and women with all kinds of trouble and a steamy storyline. Fun to read in these dark times.

Nice read, I like this series. Nice characters, decent world, story is nice but a bit too much of the "that is a fortunate coincidence" kind of things. Which is why it isn't 4 stars.

Merged review:

Nice read, I like this series. Nice characters, decent world, story is nice but a bit too much of the "that is a fortunate coincidence" kind of things. Which is why it isn't 4 stars.

This was the perfect conclusion to this duology! The world building and development was just right and I just love the undying loyalty between Jericho and Farryn. Anything Keri Lake is an automatic read for me.

This was interesting, frequently problematic (expected for a gothic), and constantly filled with overwrought dramatics, some of which were all too believable and others of which were completely implausible (although again, that's fairly standard for a gothic). Isadora is so very 19, and whether that's a good or bad thing will depend on the reader. It was fine for what it was intended to be, just be aware going in that no amount of "but we're soulmates!" will make this couple less creepy/doomed to be an eventual trainwreck.

4.4 stars

I always love it when a book surprises me. That is where the magic of books come alive. This book was an example of that. Filled with suspense, interesting characters, mystery, and elements of voodoo this book took me on a journey.

I did struggle a bit with recovering some of the words because of the southern dialect but it wasn't enough to stop me from devouring this story. The author did a great job at depicting a scene. I could picture almost everything as if it is was right before me. The reason this didn't rank higher was because of how fast the ending came to be. Up to that point, it was very detailed and mysterious filled with suspense and tension. I wanted it slower and not as rushed.

That being said, this was a great palette changer and very different than other books that are out there. It was refreshing to see and experience. I highly recommend this book.

This book (mostly) didn’t disappoint!

Lucian and Isa are both cursed. Shitty parents, horrible circumstances, and plagued by rumors, these two have both had their fair share of pain. When Isa takes a job at Blackthorne Manor, everyone tries to convince her not to. Lucian Blackthorne is the devil, he killed his wife and kids, it’s bad luck to so much as pass by a Blackthorne. Rumors are abound in the small Massachusetts island where our story is set. Delightfully dreary, and reminiscent of Bronte moors and foggy clifftops, the castle in which Isa must go to work in is perfectly spooky.

Of course - zany adventures ensue. We get glimpses of Lucian’s past in between the present chapters. Lucian has lots of issues to say the least. It took me a long time to become interested in these past chapters. I’m not sure why because there’s no doubt that some utterly insane things were happening, but I found myself more interested in Isa’s perspective. I didn’t mind Lucian’s present-tense chapters, but really what carried me through this story was Lucian and Isa’s relationship, not anything to do with the sadism-fuck-club, or Isa’s mama drama.

That isn’t to say that I wasn’t intrigued by these things, I was especially on board when Laura dropped some MASSIVE knowledge bombs right at the end. And I did really want to know what actually went down with Amelia and Rourke. BUT, again, what I really wanted most was the romance, a very dark one at that, but still a romance nonetheless. Which, unfortunately, was certainly the most disappointing part of the whole affair - there just wasn’t enough. Around 100 pages to the end I realized how many loose ends there were in the plot still, and how Lucian and Isa weren’t really together in a satisfying way, and I just couldn’t help but not feeling confident there was any way everything could be wrapped up 100%. This turned out to be justified because their relationship was toooootally rushed. We had action, plot, action, plot, and smushed right in the last moment: a little bit of book store lovin’ and “oh right I’m in love with you’s”. NOT to mention the very weird excerpt of Lucian potentially killing and DEFINITELY torturing a very injured Patrick Boyd. I found the scene just... odd?? And I’m just not certain I really needed to have the closure of what happened to him, because it just left me rather confused on what exactly Lucian learned after everything. Same goes for the scene with Friedrich right beforehand, maybe I just didn’t follow what was happening, but it just didn’t make sense to me.

Anyways, all of this said, I enjoyed this!! I loved the chemistry between Lucian and Isa. I have such a thing for sassy, kinda bratty, mc’s being matched with powerful, controlling dudes and Lucian/Isa hit all those marks. The sex was always great, though I wasn’t much for the breath play stuff, and the romance that was there, was enjoyable and sweet.

Not for me

Holy hell

This book...what is it about serial killer mindscrew books that draws me in? This is a cat and mouse game between a woman, a serial killer, and a man that the serial killer knows personally. Who is the target? Why this particular woman, and why did the killer out her in the man's sight? So many questions...

Sweet holy hell

This book just took me an a rollercoaster ride without being properly secured. So much suspense. This is one sick serial killer. The story balancing between a connection between Visa and Not and the crazy sandman.

Excellent job with all the answers. I was worried if they all be addressed. They were and even others I didn't know I had.

Bloody hell this book!!
I don't even know where to start with this review all I know is this was just so magnificent from start to finish and words can't do justice to how much this actually managed to impress me.
Everything about this worked for me and I was transfixed from the second I picked this up.
A totally new author for me but one I will definitely be reading again.
So this was set against a dystopian postapocalyptic backdrop and for humans, life has essentially evolved into a battle of daily survival against the Ragers.
Ragers are essentially people infected with a virus called "Dredge" that in stages regresses them back to the basic functions of feeding and breeding.
So in some ways like zombies but unlike the undead, these infected individuals are still very much alive and as the disease progresses they eventually develop a taste for human flesh, there is at this time no cure.
So this is a story of two parts and though this does contain a romance at its centre this is not really all this is.
The romance itself is really just a piece of the bigger picture and there is so much more going on here than what I originally expected.
So as I said two parts or essentially two POV's Wren a girl who lives with her Papa within a community of the Pure safely living behind a wall that separates them all from the Deadlands and the contagion and Dani an infected girl taken from her home by soldiers and thrown into a living nightmare of daily survival.
There's one other major contributor here Six, a mysterious and mute boy from the other side of the wall that Wren encounters and feels an almost bonded sense of solidarity towards.
The atrocities being committing here were both heartbreaking and at times so hard to comprehend.
This is a compelling and hard-hitting rendition of what could happen if you strip back the layers of supposed humanity and expose the underbelly of corruption all in the name of the greater good.
This is also a coming of age story between two young individuals set amid some horrific circumstances.
A story of love and surviving against all the odds.
Loved Wren and my heart hurt for both Dani and Six that fragile organ broke many times over at what these individuals were forced to endure living in a nightmare.
An incredibly brutal but also a beautiful love story set against a post-apocalyptic landscape.
This story will most certainly wring you out emotionally so don't go expecting to walk away from this unscathed, This will and did leave deep battle scars.
This was hands down one of my favourite books this year but please do be aware that it is also a dark and at times bleak portrayal of human corruption and cruelty and as such contains major triggers throughout.
Highly recommend this one.
I voluntary reviewed a copy of Juniper Unraveling (Juniper Unraveling, #1)



Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
www.beckiebookworm.com

Wow!!! mind blown completely if the first book managed to completely bowl me over this one blew me away with its sheer brilliance.
Calico Descending is book two in the series and it can technically be read as a stand-alone read as though it is set in the same world as its predecessor it involves a completely different set of characters, Saying that this series is just so good you most definitely want to read them all.
This is book one in a two-parter, I believe this concludes in December and I for one can't wait for the conclusion here it was that good.
Genre-wise this is dark dystopian romance set in a post-apocalyptic future and it doesn't pull its punches one little bit.
This was every bit as horrific as its predecessor with wicked and cruel intent throughout.
The cruelty and total depravity visited on these young adults and children completely shocking to experience, where humanity has evolved to the point it is devoid of all ethical morality and the lack of conscience observed here simply unimaginable.
This story is told in two separate time-frames the then and the now of four years later.
After the raid on her hive by Ragers and the death of her mother Fourteen-year-old Calithea along with her ten-year-old sister Bryani are left to fend for themselves until they are both tricked and captured and taken to the medical facility at Calico for processing.
This is the beginning of Cali's story, placed in the Alpha program Cali is assigned to a champion (Valdys).
Her only function now a potential tool to control a powerful weapon, one who will do what he must to protect her from danger.
This wasn't always easy reading with its dark themes but I was so emotionally invested in these tragically complex characters.
Imaginative and so original this story dug in its claws and infected me, it was one hell of an emotional rollercoaster and it deserves every one of its five-stars, I highly recommend this it was just so bloody amazing.
I voluntary reviewed a copy of Calico Descending (Juniper Unraveling, #2).



Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
www.beckiebookworm.com

Bloody hell this book!!
I don't even know where to start with this review all I know is this was just so magnificent from start to finish and words can't do justice to how much this actually managed to impress me.
Everything about this worked for me and I was transfixed from the second I picked this up.
A totally new author for me but one I will definitely be reading again.
So this was set against a dystopian postapocalyptic backdrop and for humans, life has essentially evolved into a battle of daily survival against the Ragers.
Ragers are essentially people infected with a virus called "Dredge" that in stages regresses them back to the basic functions of feeding and breeding.
So in some ways like zombies but unlike the undead, these infected individuals are still very much alive and as the disease progresses they eventually develop a taste for human flesh, there is at this time no cure.
So this is a story of two parts and though this does contain a romance at its centre this is not really all this is.
The romance itself is really just a piece of the bigger picture and there is so much more going on here than what I originally expected.
So as I said two parts or essentially two POV's Wren a girl who lives with her Papa within a community of the Pure safely living behind a wall that separates them all from the Deadlands and the contagion and Dani an infected girl taken from her home by soldiers and thrown into a living nightmare of daily survival.
There's one other major contributor here Six, a mysterious and mute boy from the other side of the wall that Wren encounters and feels an almost bonded sense of solidarity towards.
The atrocities being committing here were both heartbreaking and at times so hard to comprehend.
This is a compelling and hard-hitting rendition of what could happen if you strip back the layers of supposed humanity and expose the underbelly of corruption all in the name of the greater good.
This is also a coming of age story between two young individuals set amid some horrific circumstances.
A story of love and surviving against all the odds.
Loved Wren and my heart hurt for both Dani and Six that fragile organ broke many times over at what these individuals were forced to endure living in a nightmare.
An incredibly brutal but also a beautiful love story set against a post-apocalyptic landscape.
This story will most certainly wring you out emotionally so don't go expecting to walk away from this unscathed, This will and did leave deep battle scars.
This was hands down one of my favourite books this year but please do be aware that it is also a dark and at times bleak portrayal of human corruption and cruelty and as such contains major triggers throughout.
Highly recommend this one.
I voluntary reviewed a copy of Juniper Unraveling (Juniper Unraveling, #1)



Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
www.beckiebookworm.com

Wow!!! mind blown completely if the first book managed to completely bowl me over this one blew me away with its sheer brilliance.
Calico Descending is book two in the series and it can technically be read as a stand-alone read as though it is set in the same world as its predecessor it involves a completely different set of characters, Saying that this series is just so good you most definitely want to read them all.
This is book one in a two-parter, I believe this concludes in December and I for one can't wait for the conclusion here it was that good.
Genre-wise this is dark dystopian romance set in a post-apocalyptic future and it doesn't pull its punches one little bit.
This was every bit as horrific as its predecessor with wicked and cruel intent throughout.
The cruelty and total depravity visited on these young adults and children completely shocking to experience, where humanity has evolved to the point it is devoid of all ethical morality and the lack of conscience observed here simply unimaginable.
This story is told in two separate time-frames the then and the now of four years later.
After the raid on her hive by Ragers and the death of her mother Fourteen-year-old Calithea along with her ten-year-old sister Bryani are left to fend for themselves until they are both tricked and captured and taken to the medical facility at Calico for processing.
This is the beginning of Cali's story, placed in the Alpha program Cali is assigned to a champion (Valdys).
Her only function now a potential tool to control a powerful weapon, one who will do what he must to protect her from danger.
This wasn't always easy reading with its dark themes but I was so emotionally invested in these tragically complex characters.
Imaginative and so original this story dug in its claws and infected me, it was one hell of an emotional rollercoaster and it deserves every one of its five-stars, I highly recommend this it was just so bloody amazing.
I voluntary reviewed a copy of Calico Descending (Juniper Unraveling, #2).



Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
www.beckiebookworm.com

4.5 stars

I wasn't expecting this book when the blurb caught my attention. It was so much more than I envisioned. It was dark and twisty. It was filled we so many WTH moments as secrets were exposed. Definitely would recommend this book.

This is just the book for you if you like dark reads, it will take me a while to get over this book.

I don't hide that I flove dark books, dark thrillers, psychological mind f**ks, etc. Well, thank you Keri, because this is another one that I fell for!

I expected so much from this book, even though this is my first Keri Lake book, just from the book's blurb. I read it, and I knew that this was a book I NEEDED to read. I didn't just want to read it, need is the right word! I needed the darkness the blurb promised. I needed that excitement of the thriller side of the book. I needed the characters to mess with my head. Well, I got everything I was hoping for, and then some.

I will warn those who might be teetering on this one or plan to read it... There are some really gruesome parts in this book. Although I embraced them, those with weak tummies might not. So if you don't like gruesome, just be warned, there are a few parts where you may want to cover your eyes and shut your imagination off.

I honestly, wasn't sure where Keri was going to take me with this book. I have read kidnapping books before (and was pleased with them), but as I read this one, I prayed that it would stand out. I didn't want it to fall into the lake of all of the others. It sure didn't. Like a butterfly, it flew out the window with it's own beautiful uniqueness. It stood on its own feet. It took my breath away.

Retribution is always a good theme for a good story. Everyone loves to see the wronged make their own rights. In this case, more people have been wronged than you think. As this story unfolds, so does the taste for blood. As the taste for blood gets stronger and stronger, so does the need to see torture and killing. This has it all... all in gory detail in some cases. An ear here, a finger there, a life over here... It's all the same. A means to an end... An end you may or may not want until you get it!

So since I have nothing but great things to say, you are probably wondering why I didn't give this a five-star rating. You may think I am an a-hole for this reasoning, but it is just something I can't seem to look past. Sorry. This story also is part love story. No biggie. I can dig it. However, there were a couple of sex scenes that went on way too long for me. I felt they were overkill, which is a buzz kill for me. One of them literally lasted for two whole chapters. I just can't look past this. I lost the "groove" I was on while reading these scenes. Aside from these, this would have been a five-star for me. Many will love it no matter what. Many will and already are giving this book rave reviews... This is definitely a book I am recommending you read.

I kinda loved it and can't wait to read the next one.

FGMAMTC Blog Review
This is a story of revenge and survival. It's told in first person, alternating between Nick and Aubree. Flashbacks are also prominent. Basically Detroit is a cesspool ran by an alliance of the worst of the worst in criminals and city officials. Human trafficking, rape and murder happen as freely as crossing the street. The storyline gets quite brutal at times.

Michael Culling is the head of this evil undertaking. What he took from Nick is just unimaginable. It can never make up for what he's been through, but Nick is on a mission to take Culling and his crew down as painfully as possible. Part of his plan includes Culling's wife Aubree. What Nick comes to know is that he and Aubree have more in common than anyone realized.

I recommend this book for someone who likes the whole Dark Knight idea with added very mature content. Nick is reminiscent of the DC character, but he also comes with plenty of extra twists.






***Copy given in exchange for an honest review***





toni





FangirlMoments and My Two Cents

This is one of those books that stays with you long after you’ve finished reading it. One man’s need for revenge against those that killed his family takes him down and dark and violent path (and I mean violent) and has him kidnap the wife of his enemy. What he never expected was that she too had been living a life a hell and that together they may be each other’s salvation.

This book has some major twists in it that to me make it impossible to talk too much about as it would give away some major spoilers. Nick Ryder was a man set on vengeance and he executed those who had wrong him in the most brutal ways – his code was an eye for an eye. This book is full of every form of graphic violence you can imagine but it’s also about a man who doesn’t think he has a reason to live anymore and once he has exacted revenge on those who played a part is his families brutal deaths he himself wants to end his own life.

Aubree Culling is the wife of the man who has orchestrated the killings in Detroit of innocents to “clean up” his town. To the outside world it looks like she has the perfect marriage to the Mayor but behind closed doors the man is not only a killer but does the most sick and vile things to his wife. She has been waiting for years to find a way to escape him. When Nick kidnaps her part of her is grateful to be away from Michael but there is something about Nick that calls to her even when all he shows her at first is his rough side.

Even though this is a violent book its also the story of two people so broken that they instantly recognize the other as a soul mate of their grief. They are able to fill in the other that void that was left from years of living in pain.

If you like a dark and twisted story with a few shocking revelations along the way I recommend this book.

This is a very dark read, about a man that has suffered tremendous loss. I couldn't imagine dealing with what he has dealt with.

Nick is a man that is deeply troubled and not really living but existing in a world that really has gone mad. A city full of corruption, gangs and kingpins. Hell bent on revenge after the attack on his family, this is what drives Nick to do what he does, after revenge is sought life is not worth living. Nick is fractured, and after years of planning and watching he kidnaps the Mayors wife. The man who is responsible for ordering the attack on his family, Michael Culling. Nick wants to make him feel the loss that he has felt himself, in kidnapping Aubree Culling.

Everyone see's Aubree and thinks she has it all, but appearances can be deceiving. Her life is not what it seems and she is a prisoner in her own home, subjected to the most horrific events.

Being kidnapped is Aubree's redemption and she see's Nick as not an enemy but a hero. Nick realises that all is not what it seems with Aubree.

This is a story of loss, heartache, revenge and redemption. A read with extremely hot sex, but the sex doesn't take over the book. You become engrossed in this book, there are twists and turns. You will be surprised by the ending as it isn't how you would think it goes.

A warning though this is a very dark read, with extreme violence and scenes that could cause triggers.

A read where you can feel every emotion that is written on the pages.

***A copy received via Netgalley **

First of all... this is a totally hot cover!
This book had a lot going for it. I think it had a pretty interesting plot, and the hero/heroine had pretty complex stories. It was definitely a dark book... Some parts were difficult to read. And, I'm not a fan of reading about animals being hurt or killed. Sometimes the writing was phenomenal and sometimes it was just okay. Overall, I give it 3 stars. And, I think this would make a great movie.

First of all... this is a totally hot cover!
This book had a lot going for it. I think it had a pretty interesting plot, and the hero/heroine had pretty complex stories. It was definitely a dark book... Some parts were difficult to read. And, I'm not a fan of reading about animals being hurt or killed. Sometimes the writing was phenomenal and sometimes it was just okay. Overall, I give it 3 stars. And, I think this would make a great movie.

I don't hide that I flove dark books, dark thrillers, psychological mind f**ks, etc. Well, thank you Keri, because this is another one that I fell for!

I expected so much from this book, even though this is my first Keri Lake book, just from the book's blurb. I read it, and I knew that this was a book I NEEDED to read. I didn't just want to read it, need is the right word! I needed the darkness the blurb promised. I needed that excitement of the thriller side of the book. I needed the characters to mess with my head. Well, I got everything I was hoping for, and then some.

I will warn those who might be teetering on this one or plan to read it... There are some really gruesome parts in this book. Although I embraced them, those with weak tummies might not. So if you don't like gruesome, just be warned, there are a few parts where you may want to cover your eyes and shut your imagination off.

I honestly, wasn't sure where Keri was going to take me with this book. I have read kidnapping books before (and was pleased with them), but as I read this one, I prayed that it would stand out. I didn't want it to fall into the lake of all of the others. It sure didn't. Like a butterfly, it flew out the window with it's own beautiful uniqueness. It stood on its own feet. It took my breath away.

Retribution is always a good theme for a good story. Everyone loves to see the wronged make their own rights. In this case, more people have been wronged than you think. As this story unfolds, so does the taste for blood. As the taste for blood gets stronger and stronger, so does the need to see torture and killing. This has it all... all in gory detail in some cases. An ear here, a finger there, a life over here... It's all the same. A means to an end... An end you may or may not want until you get it!

So since I have nothing but great things to say, you are probably wondering why I didn't give this a five-star rating. You may think I am an a-hole for this reasoning, but it is just something I can't seem to look past. Sorry. This story also is part love story. No biggie. I can dig it. However, there were a couple of sex scenes that went on way too long for me. I felt they were overkill, which is a buzz kill for me. One of them literally lasted for two whole chapters. I just can't look past this. I lost the "groove" I was on while reading these scenes. Aside from these, this would have been a five-star for me. Many will love it no matter what. Many will and already are giving this book rave reviews... This is definitely a book I am recommending you read.

Reviewed by: Rabid Reads.

SOUL ENSLAVED was a very different animal than the previous two installments; the first half had more of a Paranormal Romance vibe to it with Gavin & Sabelle lighting up the pages with their personal conflicts, relationship tango, and fervid sexcapades. Then, the darker Urban Fantasy side of Keri Lake’s SONS OF WRATH series went all black hole on the happy couple’s sunshine by stealing their HEA out from under them in a big way. Several of this book’s aspects were reminiscent of Larissa Ione’s DEMONICA world, except with more gloom, so if you’re a fan of the latter, and could do with a bit more muscle, you’ve come to the right place.

I enjoyed this author’s take on succubi because she went well beyond the usual soul sucking nymphomaniac into uncharted territory by exploring their power structure, what it means to owe a debt, Priming, and something called Renoshza which is the equivalent of a demonic activation button (g-spot). There’s a convenient glossary to assist readers with figuring out what’s what, and although I did refer to it initially as a sort of series refresher, Lake incorporated detailed explanations throughout the story that makes remembering the various terms a breeze. Sabelle’s also a great MC which helped make her world even more accessible.

The preferred starting point in any PNR that features a group of grade-A males is customarily the leader, but instead Lake delayed Gavin’s tale until book 3, I liked that. It lead to a more three dimensional character with a well-shaped past, and the continuation of a secondary plot thread from a previous installment. I was thrilled with the author’s ‘show’ approach to this novel’s hero; she let his actions speak for themselves which gave readers a good idea of the man behind the demon prince. I really felt for Sabelle too, she’s been backed into a corner by her conniving pimp, wants to give her children a better life, and is prepared to risk it all.

A lot of the sex scenes found in romance can become redundant when you’re an avid smut consumer, so the ones in this novel are worth a mention because they are anything but vanilla. They come in a variety of flavours and levels of intensity that are sure to please. That being said, this writer is an expert in all things light AND dark, therefore be prepared to also experience immense loss, despair, and suffering. At least Zayne, Logan, Calix, Zeke, Maddox and Ferno, the other Wrath brothers, were there to pick-up the pieces of my shattered heart. Only to not be outdone by an ending that left me in complete wonderment.

SOUL ENSLAVED was as finger lickin’ good as it was earth-shatteringly sad. There’s nothing quite like Keri Lake’s story telling!