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3.7 AVERAGE
3.7 AVERAGE
This was my first book by Pepper Winters and all I can say is WOW. This was an intense read but I loved it!
Tess and I had a love/hate relationship. I was really struggling with her back and forth inner monologue at the beginning when she was with her boyfriend Brax. It bothered me so much I contemplated just not finishing the book. She seemed timid and weak. It's not until she's kidnapped that she gets her fight and we find the strong Tess. The Tess who is going to fight for herself. Tess goes through a lot until she finally arrives at Q's. She is drawn to Q just as he is drawn to her.
Q intrigued me from the beginning. I wanted to know more. I still have lots of questions when it comes to him, but that's what made me love him even more. I'm a sucker for these alpha males that don't feel they are worthy of love. He is constantly trying to fight his draw to Tess.
“Tu ne peux pas être á moi, mais je deviens á toi.” My stomach twisted, filling with frothy bubbles. Our eyes locked and I couldn’t look away. Q brushed his lips against mine ever so sweetly, repeating in English, forcing me to swallow the words. “You may not be mine, but I’m fast becoming yours.”
Tess and I had a love/hate relationship. I was really struggling with her back and forth inner monologue at the beginning when she was with her boyfriend Brax. It bothered me so much I contemplated just not finishing the book. She seemed timid and weak. It's not until she's kidnapped that she gets her fight and we find the strong Tess. The Tess who is going to fight for herself. Tess goes through a lot until she finally arrives at Q's. She is drawn to Q just as he is drawn to her.
Q intrigued me from the beginning. I wanted to know more. I still have lots of questions when it comes to him, but that's what made me love him even more. I'm a sucker for these alpha males that don't feel they are worthy of love. He is constantly trying to fight his draw to Tess.
“Tu ne peux pas être á moi, mais je deviens á toi.” My stomach twisted, filling with frothy bubbles. Our eyes locked and I couldn’t look away. Q brushed his lips against mine ever so sweetly, repeating in English, forcing me to swallow the words. “You may not be mine, but I’m fast becoming yours.”
Tess and Q really are perfect for one another. This book really was a dark romance at it's finest. I can't wait to read the rest!
Tess is kidnapped while on a trip in Mexico... (with that, check the TW)
Tess is a fighter, not even the kidnappers can contain her. Then steps in Q, she assumes he's like the rest... until she notices there is something different. Then she has to decide, what life does she want.
Tess is a fighter, not even the kidnappers can contain her. Then steps in Q, she assumes he's like the rest... until she notices there is something different. Then she has to decide, what life does she want.
THANK YOU PEPPER WINTERS FOR THIS ARC !!! I AM YOUR SLAVE FOREVER AND YOU RULE ME! THANK YOU SO MUCH :))
oh my god!! Have you ever read a book which you have liked so much that you don't have right word to describe it ?? I don't think that even five stars are enough for this book. I won't spoil anything for you all. you need to read it. Its dark , twisted and lots of steamy scenes , characters so compelling that you would feel every emotion they feel. you will cry , laugh, curse . it will screw you mind.
First 35 % was kind of little slow for me but as soon as the main action. started I was hooked.
Tess is a character you would want to be. I understood her, and her need. Her need for being submissive , for being claimed , to be needed .
Q was hot...hot ...and hot. He was something you never would believe he was till the end. He was plain awesome . He was a perfect man for Tess. I am his enslave forever now.
so this is a book about need, about being wanted , for accepting true nature. This book is perfect for people who like to read about about broken people, about a slave and her master, about finding love in strangest place. :)
oh my god!! Have you ever read a book which you have liked so much that you don't have right word to describe it ?? I don't think that even five stars are enough for this book. I won't spoil anything for you all. you need to read it. Its dark , twisted and lots of steamy scenes , characters so compelling that you would feel every emotion they feel. you will cry , laugh, curse . it will screw you mind.
First 35 % was kind of little slow for me but as soon as the main action. started I was hooked.
Tess is a character you would want to be. I understood her, and her need. Her need for being submissive , for being claimed , to be needed .
Q was hot...hot ...and hot. He was something you never would believe he was till the end. He was plain awesome . He was a perfect man for Tess. I am his enslave forever now.
so this is a book about need, about being wanted , for accepting true nature. This book is perfect for people who like to read about about broken people, about a slave and her master, about finding love in strangest place. :)
I didn't like Tess, nor really understand Q, or even feel sorry for Brax or Suzette, so as far as characters go I was not feeling it. And I think this book took (not always) the things about rape and trafficking way too lightly, and moments when that happened irritated the shit out of me. Tess was dizzingly back and forth with her emotions. And the only things that raised this from one to two stars were the fact that it was compelling, and the final explanation about Q and what he does—although it made all his time with Tess highly confusing...
I don’t understand how this book has reviews above 1 star. The story is a huge no for me.
medium-paced
2.5 stars
I'm incredibly conflicted when it comes to this book.
On one hand, a countless number of things irked me. On the other, there were a few, albeit brief, moments of glory.
As of now, I will be continuing this series. When? I have absolutely no clue. I'm hoping in the near future, but it's no where near at the top of my list of novels I'd like to read this year.
Did I enjoy the love story between these characters? Momentarily, yes. The overall direction of their romance did not satisfy me, however. I'm a bit sad, considering a great number of people enjoyed this book.
Welp.
I'm incredibly conflicted when it comes to this book.
On one hand, a countless number of things irked me. On the other, there were a few, albeit brief, moments of glory.
As of now, I will be continuing this series. When? I have absolutely no clue. I'm hoping in the near future, but it's no where near at the top of my list of novels I'd like to read this year.
Did I enjoy the love story between these characters? Momentarily, yes. The overall direction of their romance did not satisfy me, however. I'm a bit sad, considering a great number of people enjoyed this book.
Welp.
This book was a solid read for me. I loved the plot and the storyline kept my attention. This book is full of morally gray (maybe dark gray) characters, so do not proceed with reading if you are not willing to be frustrated with the FMC or MMC during multiple points in the story.
Let’s get the critiques out of the way first. There were a few inconsistencies that brought my rating from a 5 star down to a 4:
- I noticed a few spelling errors that should have been caught by the editor. I realize that Pepper writes in British English and I speak and write American English, so I gave her a pass for some things where I wasn’t sure if what I was noticing was just a difference in UK terminology and spelling vs the US. That aside, I did notice a time or two when she used the plural form of a word when it should have been singular, and also when a popular landmark was misspelled.
- In order for me to love a romance, I have to feel balance between the characters. I can be pretty forgiving of a character if I feel like they redeem themselves, apologize, recognize and correct wrongs, etc. However, there was one incident where Tess was victim blamed and I don’t think that the real responsible party ever took accountability. It might be resolved in a later book, but I feel like Tess always carried the weight of the responsibility for that and Q never corrected her or helped her justify her actions (which were completely justifiable, IMO). I wish we would have seen that before certain events transpired.
- After reading the book, I feel like there are inconsistencies between Q’s motives (once revealed) and his actions in his home with Tess. If his motives truly are as they are laid out, I would have expected certain events to play out differently.
Now, all that aside, I truly enjoyed the book. I had a few theories and they didn’t all come to light, so I applaud Pepper for keeping me guessing on a couple of things. Tess and Q are still complicated characters to me, and I’m anxious to dive into them deeper in the next book in the series. I’m hearing great things about Quintessentially Q and I’m excited to read it!
Let’s get the critiques out of the way first. There were a few inconsistencies that brought my rating from a 5 star down to a 4:
- I noticed a few spelling errors that should have been caught by the editor. I realize that Pepper writes in British English and I speak and write American English, so I gave her a pass for some things where I wasn’t sure if what I was noticing was just a difference in UK terminology and spelling vs the US. That aside, I did notice a time or two when she used the plural form of a word when it should have been singular, and also when a popular landmark was misspelled.
- In order for me to love a romance, I have to feel balance between the characters. I can be pretty forgiving of a character if I feel like they redeem themselves, apologize, recognize and correct wrongs, etc. However, there was one incident where Tess was victim blamed and I don’t think that the real responsible party ever took accountability. It might be resolved in a later book, but I feel like Tess always carried the weight of the responsibility for that and Q never corrected her or helped her justify her actions (which were completely justifiable, IMO). I wish we would have seen that before certain events transpired.
- After reading the book, I feel like there are inconsistencies between Q’s motives (once revealed) and his actions in his home with Tess. If his motives truly are as they are laid out, I would have expected certain events to play out differently.
Now, all that aside, I truly enjoyed the book. I had a few theories and they didn’t all come to light, so I applaud Pepper for keeping me guessing on a couple of things. Tess and Q are still complicated characters to me, and I’m anxious to dive into them deeper in the next book in the series. I’m hearing great things about Quintessentially Q and I’m excited to read it!
“I’m offering you my pain. My blood. My pleasure. I’m offering you the right to whip and fuck. To debase and harm. I’m offering to fight your needs with my own. I’m willing to join you in the darkness and find pleasure in excruciating pain. I’m willing to be your monster, Q.”
Wow. Wow. I can't even. I forgot how to even. What the fuck. Call me sick but they still make sense.
Wow. Wow. I can't even. I forgot how to even. What the fuck. Call me sick but they still make sense.
This review/rant might be a little spoiler-y to some. But it doesn't give away any more than you can get from reading the book's Goodreads page so I haven't marked it as a spoiler. Read at your own risk ;)
Disclaimer: I am fully aware that there are lots of people who are into the kinky sadistic stuff and I’m not too much of a prude to take issue with it. That is not my issue with this book. My issue with this book is the fact that it’s dumb. The plot is riddled with inconsistencies and the whole ‘bad guy is really a good guy’ angle is a reach, at least for this story. If you want me to have a change of heart about a character you have to sell that shit. But that didn’t happen and I feel like my intelligence has been insulted.
For starters, I hate every character
Tess is a complete nincompoop.
Q needs therapy
Brax needs a father figure
Suzette needs so much. Jesus Christ, that girl needs help
Group therapy session anyone?!
Tess is in an unhappy relationship with the love of her life Brax who is most comparable to an abused shelter dog that pisses on your rug and then cries about it. She’s a closet masochist who secretly fanaticizes about whips and chains while Brax damn near has a panic attack if she suggests anything more than missionary once a month. So yeah, not the most compatible but whatevs.. They take a vacation to Mexico blah blah Tess is kidnapped by a human trafficking ring blah blah. No surprise to anyone except her, Brax is no kind of protection and the abductors knock him out (or kill him, she doesn’t know) and take Tess with ease. And because she’s obviously in denial about how pitiful Brax is, she annoys readers like me by repeatedly telling herself he’s going to come and save her. Spoiler: He doesn’t. She’s sold to a man named Q Mercer and delivered to him in France. She’s from Australia and speaks English but she knows a little French and comes to speak and understand it more the longer she stays with Q (he didn’t like her speaking English so he made her learn French). She’s instantly attracted to Q but still fights him, trying to break free every chance she gets. Just as you would expect from a man who BUYS women, he gets off on her pain (shocker). BUT we’re supposed to think that’s okay because she’s secretly into that kind of shit.
After a while in slavery the bird brain runs away from Q’s house. She’s in the middle of France, lost. And despite the fact that SHE HAS BEEN SPEAKING AND COMPREHENDING FRENCH ALL THIS TIME in Q’s house she suddenly doesn’t know enough French say “Can I use your phone?” So everyone is looking at her like a crazy person. Finally she grabs a phone and instead of calling the police (because that’s what you do when you’ve been kidnapped) she places an international call to her boyfriend. Yes, the eunuch puppy boy, Brax who might be dead. When he doesn’t answer SHE LEAVES HIM A VOICEMAIL!! She’s on the run from a man who bought her to be his slave, she has A GPS TRACKER ON HER LEG and she spends the small window of time she has leaving a voicemail with her boyfriend in another country who btw might be dead. And get this, when she finally cuts the GPS tracker off her leg she keeps it with her. Riding off to freedom with the damn GPS tracker in the car with her. Genius much? Another thing that pissed me off, When she finds a man to give her a ride to safety, he asks her what happened and she responds “Q Mercer happened”! Really dumb dumb? Granted, telling him something else may not have changed her fate but it’s just the principle. Q is rich and could have connections and she has no idea where she is. Why would she risk the possibility that the man knows Q. UGH Regardless the whole escape blew up in her face and of course Q found her and “rescued her” blah blah. He punishes her for leaving blah blah The story progresses until BAM it turns out Q isn’t really a bad guy, he’s a hero. Let’s all love Q!! Ummmmm ???
In a nutshell: She’s called a slave, treated like a slave, punished like a slave, forced to wear a GPS tracker like property, tied from a ceiling on display like a piece of effing furniture, for men (including Q) to PLAY WITH like a toy (one man rapes her with a knife) but OH NO, DEAR READER don’t get the wrong idea. This is a LOVE STORY, he’s the GOOD GUY!!! WTF?! Nooooo!! I don’t care how honorable Q was in the past; you will not trick me into seeing his actions towards Tess as anything more than wtf they were. Nope Nope Nope idc idc
You tried it, Pepper Winters.
Disclaimer: I am fully aware that there are lots of people who are into the kinky sadistic stuff and I’m not too much of a prude to take issue with it. That is not my issue with this book. My issue with this book is the fact that it’s dumb. The plot is riddled with inconsistencies and the whole ‘bad guy is really a good guy’ angle is a reach, at least for this story. If you want me to have a change of heart about a character you have to sell that shit. But that didn’t happen and I feel like my intelligence has been insulted.
For starters, I hate every character
Tess is a complete nincompoop.
Q needs therapy
Brax needs a father figure
Suzette needs so much. Jesus Christ, that girl needs help
Group therapy session anyone?!
Tess is in an unhappy relationship with the love of her life Brax who is most comparable to an abused shelter dog that pisses on your rug and then cries about it. She’s a closet masochist who secretly fanaticizes about whips and chains while Brax damn near has a panic attack if she suggests anything more than missionary once a month. So yeah, not the most compatible but whatevs.. They take a vacation to Mexico blah blah Tess is kidnapped by a human trafficking ring blah blah. No surprise to anyone except her, Brax is no kind of protection and the abductors knock him out (or kill him, she doesn’t know) and take Tess with ease. And because she’s obviously in denial about how pitiful Brax is, she annoys readers like me by repeatedly telling herself he’s going to come and save her. Spoiler: He doesn’t. She’s sold to a man named Q Mercer and delivered to him in France. She’s from Australia and speaks English but she knows a little French and comes to speak and understand it more the longer she stays with Q (he didn’t like her speaking English so he made her learn French). She’s instantly attracted to Q but still fights him, trying to break free every chance she gets. Just as you would expect from a man who BUYS women, he gets off on her pain (shocker). BUT we’re supposed to think that’s okay because she’s secretly into that kind of shit.
After a while in slavery the bird brain runs away from Q’s house. She’s in the middle of France, lost. And despite the fact that SHE HAS BEEN SPEAKING AND COMPREHENDING FRENCH ALL THIS TIME in Q’s house she suddenly doesn’t know enough French say “Can I use your phone?” So everyone is looking at her like a crazy person. Finally she grabs a phone and instead of calling the police (because that’s what you do when you’ve been kidnapped) she places an international call to her boyfriend. Yes, the eunuch puppy boy, Brax who might be dead. When he doesn’t answer SHE LEAVES HIM A VOICEMAIL!! She’s on the run from a man who bought her to be his slave, she has A GPS TRACKER ON HER LEG and she spends the small window of time she has leaving a voicemail with her boyfriend in another country who btw might be dead. And get this, when she finally cuts the GPS tracker off her leg she keeps it with her. Riding off to freedom with the damn GPS tracker in the car with her. Genius much? Another thing that pissed me off, When she finds a man to give her a ride to safety, he asks her what happened and she responds “Q Mercer happened”! Really dumb dumb? Granted, telling him something else may not have changed her fate but it’s just the principle. Q is rich and could have connections and she has no idea where she is. Why would she risk the possibility that the man knows Q. UGH Regardless the whole escape blew up in her face and of course Q found her and “rescued her” blah blah. He punishes her for leaving blah blah The story progresses until BAM it turns out Q isn’t really a bad guy, he’s a hero. Let’s all love Q!! Ummmmm ???
In a nutshell: She’s called a slave, treated like a slave, punished like a slave, forced to wear a GPS tracker like property, tied from a ceiling on display like a piece of effing furniture, for men (including Q) to PLAY WITH like a toy (one man rapes her with a knife) but OH NO, DEAR READER don’t get the wrong idea. This is a LOVE STORY, he’s the GOOD GUY!!! WTF?! Nooooo!! I don’t care how honorable Q was in the past; you will not trick me into seeing his actions towards Tess as anything more than wtf they were. Nope Nope Nope idc idc
You tried it, Pepper Winters.