Unlikely Love Series

Author Sam Crescent has one more book in the works for this series. Here, for now, are the reviews for book one and book two in the series. It's worth it to take a look at this series filled with Alpha males and sweet, innocent women.


Blackmailed By the Beast

Wayne Brown is ruthless when it comes to business, and with a nickname of "The Beast", no one dares to challenge him. What he wants he gets.Lily Jones is sweet innocence and despises men like Wayne. But the Jones family is desperate, and he offers them a solution to their problems. Only he wants something in return...Lily. She either marries him or her family answers to the debt collectors. With no choice left, she agrees and begins life as his wife.Through his seduction and touch, Lily's body betrays her, and as time passes, so does her heart. But how can she fall in love with a man who blackmails to get what he wants?

REVIEW
This first book is my favorite of the Unlikely Love series. Done within the framework of a well-written story, Wayne and Lily’s story is beautiful – of course I don’t think there’s anything more delicious than the possessive alpha male. Wayne is appropriately nicknamed “the beast” for his aggression in the boardroom but his aggressive tactics extended further. Combine that with Lily’s innocence and awkwardness, the couple is charming as Lily allows herself to begin trusting. Her response to happiness – since she has seen to little – is both realistic and endearing. Then once their physical chemistry takes off, it was off the charts explosive. Lily brings down the beast as Wayne’s wall come down and he opens himself fully to her.

This is a good read with both heartbreaking scenes and steamy encounters. Readers will be swept away with the fast-paced love story, caught in the sexual tension between Wayne and Lily.

RATING: 5 Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries

Contract of Shame

Richard Shaw doesn’t believe in love. He does believe in getting what he wants, and Scarlet Hughes is next on his list. In his world, there is nothing he can’t have. All he needs to do is find her weakness.Scarlet is a single mother trying to make ends meet. A nightmare from her past keeps her cut off from men and relationships, but a steaming kiss one afternoon in the office leads to her shame. For one week, Scarlet will give Richard her body and in return he’ll give her the means of giving her son a good future. But when her past comes back to haunt her, Scarlet can’t hide from her fear any longer, and Richard must risk everything to claim what is rightfully his.Will Scarlet find it in her heart to forgive him?

REVIEW
This story is the follow up to 'Blackmailed By the Beast’ where readers got a sampling of Tony and Richard. The epilogue gave us a taste of Richard but the book was not as sweet as that little sample led me to believe. Now that I have read Scarlet and Richard’s story, it was just ok. The story overall was touch and go with some good scenes and then some unnecessary scenes. Richard was another alpha hero but (I guess there’s a first for everything) I didn’t like him. He was demanding and evasive – I never felt I had the opportunity to understand him. Now, I admit his obsession for Scarlet did seem to turn into love in his own unique way of doing it. Like Lily, Scarlet was rather innocent but her age and naiveté did not endear her to me. Some of her decisions were sketchy - she seemed not to be fully developed which did not allow for a connection between character and reader.

COVER ALERT! The cover did not match the characters – a very challenging obstacle to any visual reader who now must overcome the picture in their head with the words in the book. If I have to ignore a cover to enjoy the book, there is a disconnect.

RATING: 3 Chocolate-Dipped Strawberries

These books were given to us by Evernight Publishing. Many thanks.