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A review by elegantfantasy_blogs
The Villain by L.J. Shen
5.0
"In the end, I wasted the Cloud Wish in one, reckless moment. On a doomed desire, a stupid crush, an unrequited lover. On the man every media outlet in America referred to as The Villain. On Cillian Fitzpatrick."
The moment this book was announced as the next in the Boston belles series, we had so many theories about which Penrose sister would be paired opposite Cillian. I always wanted Persephone as the mc and I was so excited when I read the blurb! As Persephone was mentioned a very few times in The Hunter, I was curious to know more about her rather than Belle and she turned out to be such a beautiful surprise ;-p
"Cillian was a dirty lullaby, inviting me to sink into his claws and nestle in his darkness. And I, aptly named after the goddess of spring, longed for the ground to crack open and suck me in. To fall into his underworld and never emerge."
Persephone and Cillian knew each other since 4 years since they ran in the same circles with their common friends and during that course Persephone developed a small crush on Cillian, but never once, he paid any attention to her, made her feel as if she was invisible and pushed her away. But, something happens in due course of time that puts Persephone in a tight situation and she has no choice but to seek help from Cillian.
“I don’t care if I die,” I croaked. “Ditto, sweetheart. Unfortunately, you’ll have to do it on someone else’s watch.”
During the first few chapters, even though Cillian came off as a rude, arrogant and a "full of himself" billionaire, I couldn't help but like him because of his sarcasm and the "know it all attitude" lol. He might have been an a**hole to Persephone and drove a hard bargain but he was the only one who could truly make her problems go away.
“You drive a hard bargain. Welcome to the dark side, Persephone. Leave your heart at the door.”
Persephone was the best match Cillian could ever get and she just had such a kind, sassy, sweet, pure, carefree, compassionate and strong personality with a heart of gold that made me love her wholeheartedly. She was not fragile or docile instead and she wasn't a pushover. She fought with Cillian and called him out on his s*it. She had a mind of her own and a spine of steel.
"I’m not your blowup doll. If you want me to fulfill my marital duties, you better believe you are going to fulfill yours."
“I’m going to ruin every good thing about you.” “I’d like to see you try.”
The way she was protective over her sister and her friends was adorable and she was loyal to a fault. If there was someone who could evoke emotions in Cillian's heart, it was Persephone.
"I had to admit Persephone was an aphrodisiac the carnal side of me couldn’t refuse."
Cillian was truly a god. He was such an engima, the more I read about him, the more eager I was to know what made him the way he is. After knowing about his past, I realised how truly alone and broken he was even though he was surrounded by his friends and family. I thought no one would beat Vicious for me but Cillain proved me wrong.
“It’s never too late to change the name of the prince in your story. Just as long as you don’t end up with the villain.”
“But what are villains, my dear wife, if not misunderstood heroes?”
Persephone and Cillian were fire together. Their connection and chemistry was sizzling hot. I loved the way they interact, fought and bickered. Their banters never failed to crack me up!
“And they say chivalry is dead,” “Chivalry might be dead, but you’re not, so shut up and be grateful.”
“Show me your true colors,” “They’re ugly,” “Not to me. You’ll never be ugly to me.”
"I wasn’t a quitter, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to quit on a man who I was pretty sure had been let down by everyone else in his life."
Persephone understood Cillian in a way his family members never did. His sorry excuse of parents were so busy in their own lives that they left their children alone all the time. It made me hate them even more. Cillian was flawed but he was perfect in his own way. I never expected that his past would be so deep but L.J. Shen proved me wrong.
"My soul is yours. No terms attached. Let me know if you have any conditions for keeping it. I will meet them all."
The way love transformed both Cillian & Persephone was incredible. I loved their story and the plot had such a charming feel because of the modern Hades & Persephone touch to it.
"I set my sight on Cillian, I knew. I knew one day he would take my soul, set it on fire, and walk all over my ashes when it was all done and dealt with."
Every book I read which is written by L.J. Shen keeps getting better and better. These characters remain in my heart for a very long time and even though they are fictional they feel real to me. Everything in the story right from the plot, the chemistry, angst and tension was perfectly woven up. I am obsessed with the series and I can't wait for Sam's book. Highly recommended!
The moment this book was announced as the next in the Boston belles series, we had so many theories about which Penrose sister would be paired opposite Cillian. I always wanted Persephone as the mc and I was so excited when I read the blurb! As Persephone was mentioned a very few times in The Hunter, I was curious to know more about her rather than Belle and she turned out to be such a beautiful surprise ;-p
"Cillian was a dirty lullaby, inviting me to sink into his claws and nestle in his darkness. And I, aptly named after the goddess of spring, longed for the ground to crack open and suck me in. To fall into his underworld and never emerge."
Persephone and Cillian knew each other since 4 years since they ran in the same circles with their common friends and during that course Persephone developed a small crush on Cillian, but never once, he paid any attention to her, made her feel as if she was invisible and pushed her away. But, something happens in due course of time that puts Persephone in a tight situation and she has no choice but to seek help from Cillian.
“I don’t care if I die,” I croaked. “Ditto, sweetheart. Unfortunately, you’ll have to do it on someone else’s watch.”
During the first few chapters, even though Cillian came off as a rude, arrogant and a "full of himself" billionaire, I couldn't help but like him because of his sarcasm and the "know it all attitude" lol. He might have been an a**hole to Persephone and drove a hard bargain but he was the only one who could truly make her problems go away.
“You drive a hard bargain. Welcome to the dark side, Persephone. Leave your heart at the door.”
Persephone was the best match Cillian could ever get and she just had such a kind, sassy, sweet, pure, carefree, compassionate and strong personality with a heart of gold that made me love her wholeheartedly. She was not fragile or docile instead and she wasn't a pushover. She fought with Cillian and called him out on his s*it. She had a mind of her own and a spine of steel.
"I’m not your blowup doll. If you want me to fulfill my marital duties, you better believe you are going to fulfill yours."
“I’m going to ruin every good thing about you.” “I’d like to see you try.”
The way she was protective over her sister and her friends was adorable and she was loyal to a fault. If there was someone who could evoke emotions in Cillian's heart, it was Persephone.
"I had to admit Persephone was an aphrodisiac the carnal side of me couldn’t refuse."
Cillian was truly a god. He was such an engima, the more I read about him, the more eager I was to know what made him the way he is. After knowing about his past, I realised how truly alone and broken he was even though he was surrounded by his friends and family. I thought no one would beat Vicious for me but Cillain proved me wrong.
“It’s never too late to change the name of the prince in your story. Just as long as you don’t end up with the villain.”
“But what are villains, my dear wife, if not misunderstood heroes?”
Persephone and Cillian were fire together. Their connection and chemistry was sizzling hot. I loved the way they interact, fought and bickered. Their banters never failed to crack me up!
“And they say chivalry is dead,” “Chivalry might be dead, but you’re not, so shut up and be grateful.”
“Show me your true colors,” “They’re ugly,” “Not to me. You’ll never be ugly to me.”
"I wasn’t a quitter, and I sure as hell wasn’t going to quit on a man who I was pretty sure had been let down by everyone else in his life."
Persephone understood Cillian in a way his family members never did. His sorry excuse of parents were so busy in their own lives that they left their children alone all the time. It made me hate them even more. Cillian was flawed but he was perfect in his own way. I never expected that his past would be so deep but L.J. Shen proved me wrong.
"My soul is yours. No terms attached. Let me know if you have any conditions for keeping it. I will meet them all."
The way love transformed both Cillian & Persephone was incredible. I loved their story and the plot had such a charming feel because of the modern Hades & Persephone touch to it.
"I set my sight on Cillian, I knew. I knew one day he would take my soul, set it on fire, and walk all over my ashes when it was all done and dealt with."
Every book I read which is written by L.J. Shen keeps getting better and better. These characters remain in my heart for a very long time and even though they are fictional they feel real to me. Everything in the story right from the plot, the chemistry, angst and tension was perfectly woven up. I am obsessed with the series and I can't wait for Sam's book. Highly recommended!