Another book that I have had on my wish list for a while and I’m glad to get around to it now.
The Kiss Thief
L.J. Shen
They say your first kiss should be earned.
Mine was stolen by a devil in a masquerade mask under the black Chicago sky.
They say the vows you take on your wedding day are sacred.
Mine were broken before we left church.
They say your heart only beats for one man.
Mine split and bled for two rivals who fought for it until the bitter end.
I was promised to Angelo Bandini, the heir to one of the most powerful families in the Chicago Outfit.
Then taken by Senator Wolfe Keaton, who held my father’s sins over his head to force me into marriage.
They say that all great love stories have a happy ending.
I, Francesca Rossi, found myself erasing and rewriting mine until the very last chapter.
One kiss.
Two men.
Three lives.
Entwined together.
And somewhere between these two men, I had to find my forever.
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I definitely have a soft spot for the darker side of romance in books, so it should come as no shock that I thought this book was fantastic, just the perfect amount of escapism with a lot of chemistry and drama thrown in. I first found this book because it was part of the Goodread’s choice awards one year and I thought the cover was really pretty, at first I thought it was going to be a light-hearted type of romance but I was glad to be proven wrong when I read the blurb because I do enjoy a bit of angst and tension.
As much as I know I shouldn’t, I enjoy how despicable most of the men are in this type of book, there is just something about an arrogant alpha that floats my boat and Wolfe Keaton is a prime example. He is ruthless with charisma to spare and a steely determination when it comes to getting what he wants, and what he wants is Francesca. She is a girl from a very protective family who has been sheltered and is essentially being dictated to about what her life will look like and then Senator Keaton comes along and takes her out of her comfort zone but also gives her different options.
Enemies to lovers is usually a winner for me and in this case, it worked very well, Wolfe was able to manipulate his way into Francesca’s life and then continues to wind her up throughout the beginning of their relationship. Francesca though does give as good as she gets, she didn’t always make wise choices but she wasn’t a total doormat and could be fiery at times. These two definitely take things to extremes, and there is never a dull moment, some new drama crops up at every turn and managed to keep me wrapped up in this story, it was one that I did not want to have to put down.
There were quite a few unexpected layers to this story, whilst there are some parts that are fairly typical of the genre there was also a lot that added a bit more depth which was something I wouldn’t have anticipated. I don’t want to go into it too much but I liked how the traditions in Francesca’s family really played into the story and helped to confuse Francesca’s emotions.
This is the first L.J. Shen book that I have read and I will absolutely be checking out some of the other books in her collection, if you like a romance full of tension and drama, and characters that have some sizzling chemistry then I think this is a book that you should check out.
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