#BookReview #DarkRomance #AJAdams

The Degas Girl

by A.J. Adams

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This book drew me in from the very start and easily held my attention until the very end. It deals with some very dark themes but in such a way as to empower and strengthen the heroine. The pacing throughout was good, despite being longer than many other books of its ilk the story never dragged or felt slow.


Serenity is an unusual, but believable, mixture of both street-tough and naïve. She was very trusting of others, particularly her family, and because we have more information than her some choices can seem foolish. In reality, not many of us are distrustful of everyone we meet, and will usually give our family the benefit of the doubt. I adored Serenity, she had grit, determination and a backbone of steel.


For a good chunk of the story, Zachary was a complete arse. OK, the alternatives were potentially worse but his unassailable belief that his plans for Serenity [a gang-bang to rub Angelo’s face in it and then passing Serenity on to another owner) were in any way acceptable or “nice” was very misguided. His very messed-up younger years and his obvious sociopathic tendencies, along with knowing he was in for a very big fall, meant I was able to make allowances for him. That and the fact that he was utterly protective of Serenity.


The writing, as always, is excellent whilst the story is fast-paced, twisty and full of tension. AJ Adams’s books are bloody good. Believable characters who respond to events in believable ways are sometimes thin on the ground in dark mafia reads but AJ Adams writes heroines who react to situations exactly how the rest of us would. There wasn’t anything I wanted to change about the book – and that doesn’t happen too often. 

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Overall Rating

👍🏻

Plot

Characters

World Building

Writing

Heat Level 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥 🔥

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Dark Romance/ Mafia Romance

Goodreads –

Synopsis
Beautiful, loving Serenity Bishop is stuck in a living nightmare. Having bankrolled her scheming, false-hearted boyfriend, she expected their romantic holiday to end in a marriage proposal. Instead, he gifted her to Angelo Schiavelli, a twisted Mafiosi with a bent for torture.
But Serenity’s fierce intelligence and iron will are more than her captor bargained for. Despite Angelo having the whip hand, she humiliates him publicly. And her tormentor is about to lose control.
Cold, calculating Zachary Schiavelli is an art thief, forger and remorseless killing machine who removes anyone who gets in his way. When his cousin Angelo insults him, Zachary is bent on revenge. As Angelo is protected by the family, Zachary devises a Machiavellian scheme that starts with claiming Serenity.
Brought together in an unlikely alliance, Serenity and Zachary play a deadly game of cat and mouse – and everyone around them is caught up in the crossfire.

This is a standalone. No cliffhangers. HEA guaranteed.
An action-packed hard-boiled romance, populated with three dimensional, flawed and utterly compelling characters. The Degas Girl shocks and delights in equal measure. You won’t be able to put this down!

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