Showing posts with label Tillie Cole. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tillie Cole. Show all posts

Tuesday, March 7, 2017

ARC Review:Riot (Scarred Souls #4) by Tillie Cole



RIOT
A Scarred Souls Novel
Tillie Cole

From USA Today bestselling author Tillie Cole comes RIOT (St. Martin’s Griffin; Trade Paperback; March 7, 2017; $15.99; 978-1-250-08628-0), the anticipated gritty and raw final installment of the Scarred Souls series.  

Cole proves that love can truly overcome everything in her latest compelling and dark romance.  Stolen by the Arziani Georgian crime mob as a child, 152 was raised and conditioned to be a Mona—the most subservient of the Arziani Blood Pit slaves.  152 has been living in a drug-induced fog for most of her life, but now she can finally think clearly when she is gifted to one of the death match fighters.  152 will have to fight for what she wants and ultimately make an impossible choice.

Brutal. Intense. Passionate. The World of the Scarred Souls.

They call me 901. I am a monster, a killer, a champion. In the blood pit I am a god. I have no name, no family, and no identity. When master says fight, I fight…until I am the only one left standing. I have one goal, to fight so well that I am freed. I don’t need friends, I don’t need women. They are weaknesses. I am strong.


Until I see her. She is gorgeous and kind and off-limits to me. She was stolen as a child to be the worst type of slave and now master wants her. What he wants, he gets. With a smile, she melts my brutal heart. I have never wanted anything more.

 

I need to make a choice. Freedom or Love. I cannot choose wrong.






 What I thought about Riot

In Riot, Tillie Cole shows how love can bloom in the darkests of worlds where people are possessions, known only by number and kept under the worst conditions.  Riot is truly a dark romance, so you should be prepared for some difficult scenes, but it does a great job of infusing light into 901 and 152's story.

While there is some "lightning bolt" love aka insta-love, it's so believable that after everything 901 and 152 go through, that they would find each other and feel something so strong. Some love just can never be forbidden. 

But love is a weakness in their environment, a liability, and it is certain that the master will use it against them. It's all about the light against the dark (and it can get dark) in this romance and it worked well for me.  I loved that even though they are both stripped down to having almost nothing, they still find a way with some help. It's what makes this story compelling. I loved how everything came full circle.  

This title works well as a standalone but you're probably going to want to go back and read the rest of the series once you are done. 

An ARC was provided for review.



  ABOUT THE AUTHOR: 




After graduating from Newcastle University, Tillie followed her Professional Rugby player husband around the world for a decade, becoming a teacher in between and thoroughly enjoyed teaching High School students Social Studies for seven years. 

Tillie has now settled in Calgary, Canada, where she is finally able to sit down and write, throwing herself into fantasy worlds and the fabulous minds of her characters. She writes Contemporary Romance, Dark Romance, Young Adult and New Adult novels and happily shares her love of alpha-male leading men and strong female characters with her readers.
  

Saturday, November 14, 2015

Review:REAP by Tillie Cole

Raised as a prototype for the Georgian Bratva's obedience drug, 221 fails to think, act, or live for himself; he's his master's perfectly-crafted killing puppet. Standing at six-foot-six, weighing two-hundred-and-fifty pounds, and unrivaled in to-the-death combat, 221 successfully secures business for the Georgian Mafiya Boss of NYC, who rules the dark world of the criminal underground. Until his enemies capture him.

Talia Tolstaia dreams to break from the heavy clutches of Bratva life. She dreams of another life--away from the stifling leash of her Russian Bratva Boss father and from the brutality of her work at The Dungeon, her criminal family's underground death-match enterprise. But when she stumbles upon her family's captive who is more monster than man, she starts to see the man underneath. A powerful, beautiful, damaged man whose heart calls to hers. But sacrifices must be made--blood for blood...life for life...souls for scarred souls...


Buy Links

Amazon US ~ http://amzn.com/B00ZON5LN4

Amazon UK ~ http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01063XPYI


Amazon AU ~ http://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01063XPYI


Amazon CA ~ http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00ZON5LN4


B&N ~ http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/reap-tillie-cole/1122137979…


iBooks ~ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/reap/id1006559615?mt=11


Kobo ~ https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/reap-2


What I thought about REAP

When I received an invitation to review this book, I wasn't sure how I was going to like it.  I don't read many mob-related stories, but I do like action with my romance, and the blurb was intriguing, so I thought I'd give it a try.  

So glad I did.  I finished this book late last night and it's still stuck in my head.  The book worked very well for me as a standalone, and it just made me want to go read the first book in this series, RAZE.

221 was kidnapped as a child, imprisoned, and tortured, medically and otherwise.  He's a human killing machine, obedient to his master and dangerous to anyone he comes in contact with.

Talia is the daughter of a crime boss and having grown up in this environment, she doesn't see the brutality of it.  Much of the violence is matter-of-fact to the men and women in this story because it's so ingrained in their lives.  When Talia decides she needs a break from it, she retreats to an isolated family home.  

Talia's brother Luka still struggles with the after-effects of  his incarceration and burning need to avenge those who cared for him.  I really liked this character and I'm itching to go and read Raze now to learn more about his story.  

These three lives collide and what follows is an intense and emotional romance between Talia and 221. Yes, there is some insta-love here, and there are some major reasons why Talia shouldn't fall for this guy, but I do believe in that spark that ignites when you meet "the one" so this worked for me.

 The interactions between these two kept me turning the pages.  221 has quite a bit to learn after he detoxes from the drugs, and Talia slips into the role of helping him like she was meant for it.  I loved these two together. The language between them was just lovely, and the line "You are..for me." had me choking up more than once.

Most of the action comes in the last part of this book, as everything crashes down on them, and 221 will have you crying and swooning when everything comes to a head. 


And the ending... oh my, there's a great setup for more of this story that had me smiling, even though I sort of saw that coming.

Overall, great story, good writing, with a few slow spots for me. A little glossary at the end for the Russian words would have been much appreciated. REAP left me wanting more, and that's a great reading experience. I will absolutely be keeping an eye on this author and will be reading RAZE before the next book in this series.  

ARC provided for review.


And grab the first book in this series...



RAZE (Scarred Souls #1)
Amazon US ~ http://amzn.com/B00ZON5LEI


Amazon UK ~ http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00ZKFLFJU


Amazon AU ~ http://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B00ZKFLFJU


Amazon CA ~ http://www.amazon.ca/dp/B00ZON5LEI


B&N ~ http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/raze-tillie-cole/1122137978…


iBooks ~ https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/raze/id1006566604?mt=11


Kobo ~ https://store.kobobooks.com/en-US/ebook/raze-3




About the Author

USA TODAY Bestselling Author of the 'Sweet Home Series', 'The Hades Hangmen Series,' and RAZE. Live, Laugh, Love.


https://www.facebook.com/tilliecoleauthor

https://twitter.com/tillie_cole

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7074846.Tillie_Cole

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