Book Review
Title: The Beast by Denise Daye (Fixer-Uppers Book 3)
Genre: Dark, Erotic, Romance
Rating: 4.25 Stars
Before I get into my review I need to disclose a few things, first this review isn’t going to be long because the book itself is pretty short and I don’t want to spoil anything about the book. Second, me and dark romance especially smut have a complicated history, when it comes smut, the contemporary kind, I can read just about anything but dark smut needs to be done really well and within certain boundaries for me to enjoy it. Finally, while I was expecting more smut and less plot as is the case with a lot of the books I was pleasantly surprised by how well Daye crafted a intense thriller with a ton of exceptionally well written smut.
We are following Elise and Andrei, Elise is saved by Andrei early on and we learn she is on the run from one of the evillest crime bosses around and crossing paths with Andrei doesn’t seem like something good in the beginning. However, Andrei is also on the run and he has a reputation as an assassin and sniper that is following him and they figure there’s safety in numbers and they stick together on this epic adventure around the globe.
These two have to navigate not only the logistics of being hunted and surviving without being caught but they also have to decide more than once do they stick together or take their chances going their separate ways. In between the high octane action there is so much spice I had to take a break every now and again and unlike many books I’ve picked it these scenes are cringey and are written exceptionally well and it is a real page turner. Despite being the third book in a series I understand that these can be read as standalones and I like that since I didn’t have to read the first two books and potentially have them impact my enjoyment of this book.
One thing is these types of books that I usually don’t like is a lot of angst but here it felt natural. There were tense and even heart-breaking moments as they go through these life changing events and that leads to a lot of angst but it never felt like too much or too heavy. While in my heart I wanted to give this book five stars in my head I knew there were a few issues. First it felt like there were chunks of backstory missing or overlooked that I could have done with especially surrounding Elise’s circumstances at the beginning of the book but that might be explained in another book, I don’t know. I also felt the relationship dynamic of a broody hero and caged heroine has been overdone I would have preferred more grumpy x sunshine vibes as it would have fitted the characters and also added in a few more light-hearted moments especially during the smut scenes. Overall, it was a great book not quite on the level of Harley Laroux for me but damn near close.
Buy it here:
Paperback/Hardcover: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
Kindle Edition: amazon.co.uk amazon.com
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