I'm sorry to say this but this is the worst book I ever forced my self to read and I cant believe I eagerly waited for 2 years to get it.... I would like to explain why I felt this way, so that all the readers interested in this story can make a fair judgement weather to get it or not. Please if you find this too long, just scroll to the last paragraph (7) that holds my biggest problem with this book.
Since I found no redeeming qualities in this book, let me go straight to the negatives:
1) my first problem with this book was that it contained too many main characters/stories. To be exact 5 heroines and 5 warriors (husbands to be) Each having her/his story EXPLAINED and their point of view shared at every turn of events.
2) Of the supporting characters, there is the girls father and the 2 super villains. The rest is a blur of forgettable people added/removed as needed to support the main story.
3) The only characters with any sort of personalities was the eldest daughter Charlotte, with whom I had serious moral issues, her brother in law who abused his wife in every way imaginable (short of physical violence) and yet no one was too upset about it, and the super villain who proved to be the only one with a dust-mite of reasoning ability. And the 5th sister who was a harlot, and cold hearted monster
4) It it not easy to write a story where the hero/ine has visions of future, without reveling the future to the reader but I have seen it successfully done in other books. I must say that here it could not have been more badly done. I knew from start what the end will be (unless there is a twist when the confrontation - a.e. last battle happens).
5) A story where we are constantly TOLD OF THINGS rather then being showed them makes for dull reading. Also 80% of the actions, did not make any sense and were not explained, or the explanations given Q: "destiny and fate demands it" did nothing to help me understand the reasoning behind the actions.
6) I absolutely can't stand a book that gives you 280pg of thick mud through which you have to pull through in hopes of satisfying ending redeeming your efforts and then get Zero resolution and Zero end. The story offered no final battle, no twists. Just a skirmish 2 pages before the end. Actually I didn't know it was possible to ........
(ALERT SHORT SPOILER B*E*G*I*N*S here .............. kill every one of the of the heroines and all but one of the heroes and let the villain walk away without a scratch................ SPOILER E*N*D*S here)
7) And I had left THE MOST DISGUSTING SECTIONS of the book for the end. (CAUTION - NOT FOR THE FAINT HEARTED)
Two of the sisters were GANG RAPED, in very graphically detailed way imaginable, followed by equally detailed description of Charlotte being butchered LITERALY.... have her insides turned to mush, while bleeding rivers through her belly button....
While her sister was recalling in very graphic detail (nighty) how barely at 16teen, she was raped by her evil (villain) GRANDFATHER and then whipped till the skin came off her back in strips....
And let us not forget the third sister, who witnessed her mother's very painful death. Whose mother died the 'Charlotte's way: Gang raped by her father (the villain) and his evil assistant and then butchered.
The fourth sister was by comparison "ONLY" almost eaten by vipers at 5 (a sacrifice to viper Goddess of death). And whose room one day she discovered covered wall to wall in blood with vicious snakesious covering the floor.
CONCLUSION:
I do not know about you guys but this is not my idea of whoopee.
I like some HOPE and LIGHT in my stories, especially in mush romances with ****content which I read to relax and shake off the stress of the day. There is a reason I do not choose horror stories to top my day. I have read by&by about 10 books from this author and got this one because I thought her name guaranteed certain type of story. I know L.Leigh can write a good story, and I will keep looking at her books, but I will do so with extreme caution!
Since I found no redeeming qualities in this book, let me go straight to the negatives:
1) my first problem with this book was that it contained too many main characters/stories. To be exact 5 heroines and 5 warriors (husbands to be) Each having her/his story EXPLAINED and their point of view shared at every turn of events.
2) Of the supporting characters, there is the girls father and the 2 super villains. The rest is a blur of forgettable people added/removed as needed to support the main story.
3) The only characters with any sort of personalities was the eldest daughter Charlotte, with whom I had serious moral issues, her brother in law who abused his wife in every way imaginable (short of physical violence) and yet no one was too upset about it, and the super villain who proved to be the only one with a dust-mite of reasoning ability. And the 5th sister who was a harlot, and cold hearted monster
4) It it not easy to write a story where the hero/ine has visions of future, without reveling the future to the reader but I have seen it successfully done in other books. I must say that here it could not have been more badly done. I knew from start what the end will be (unless there is a twist when the confrontation - a.e. last battle happens).
5) A story where we are constantly TOLD OF THINGS rather then being showed them makes for dull reading. Also 80% of the actions, did not make any sense and were not explained, or the explanations given Q: "destiny and fate demands it" did nothing to help me understand the reasoning behind the actions.
6) I absolutely can't stand a book that gives you 280pg of thick mud through which you have to pull through in hopes of satisfying ending redeeming your efforts and then get Zero resolution and Zero end. The story offered no final battle, no twists. Just a skirmish 2 pages before the end. Actually I didn't know it was possible to ........
(ALERT SHORT SPOILER B*E*G*I*N*S here .............. kill every one of the of the heroines and all but one of the heroes and let the villain walk away without a scratch................ SPOILER E*N*D*S here)
7) And I had left THE MOST DISGUSTING SECTIONS of the book for the end. (CAUTION - NOT FOR THE FAINT HEARTED)
Two of the sisters were GANG RAPED, in very graphically detailed way imaginable, followed by equally detailed description of Charlotte being butchered LITERALY.... have her insides turned to mush, while bleeding rivers through her belly button....
While her sister was recalling in very graphic detail (nighty) how barely at 16teen, she was raped by her evil (villain) GRANDFATHER and then whipped till the skin came off her back in strips....
And let us not forget the third sister, who witnessed her mother's very painful death. Whose mother died the 'Charlotte's way: Gang raped by her father (the villain) and his evil assistant and then butchered.
The fourth sister was by comparison "ONLY" almost eaten by vipers at 5 (a sacrifice to viper Goddess of death). And whose room one day she discovered covered wall to wall in blood with vicious snakesious covering the floor.
CONCLUSION:
I do not know about you guys but this is not my idea of whoopee.
I like some HOPE and LIGHT in my stories, especially in mush romances with ****content which I read to relax and shake off the stress of the day. There is a reason I do not choose horror stories to top my day. I have read by&by about 10 books from this author and got this one because I thought her name guaranteed certain type of story. I know L.Leigh can write a good story, and I will keep looking at her books, but I will do so with extreme caution!
I really enjoyed reading this book. I thought it was well written and had a good storyline for an Ellora's Cave series. It was equally steamy without overpowering the entire book.
