Review: Temperance (Damned Connections Book 3) by Lark Taylor

Rating: 4.75🌈

Damned Connections is the sequel series to the original Reckless Damn Series about the rebelling four sons of Lucifer, finding their mates ,and the war with their father. It’s an excellent series.

But I’m finding that Damned Connections is even better, imo. It’s still got the original characters but now we’re focusing on the aftermath and the characters on the edge of their group. And the ones affected by the war. It’s an extraordinary journey.

Now it’s Toby and Blaise’s time for their stories to be told and Taylor has outdone herself with a narrative of incredible emotional depth and intelligence .

Taylor has incorporated the elements of BDSM and D/s in such a way that readers who don’t read this type of thing or think that they don’t understand it will find themselves absolutely absorbed into this relationship. It’s a Dom/ sub relationship that works through each other’s needs and desires as well as those aspects of play that they don’t want to include. It’s clearly discussed as adults and spanking is the top discipline here.

But Blaise is fighting for his life in that his guilt is literally driven him down. The emotional tension and despair attached to him is real and extremely intense.

Toby isn’t the bartender vampire he’s seemed in the previous books and the revelations of his true nature are astonishing.

The exploration of Blaise’s past and the journey between them drew me in like no other. It was 3 am before I realized I was still reading. And often sobbing.

The only reason this didn’t get a 5 star rating is because there was so much ā€œas told toā€ sections as the author had to fill in the reader with different details about certain aspects of a couple’s story from a book and timeline pertinent to this story.

Temperance (Damned Connections Book 3) runs in the same time period as some of the other books so it’s necessary for Taylor to pinpoint exactly where in the timeline this is happening . Especially if you haven’t read the other books.

But it drags the narrative down in a way and changes the perspective in some cases.

So yes, a fantastic story and incredibly compelling plot that’s one of my favorites. Probably be a reread.

I’m absolutely loving this series and recommend reading it in the original as well as this.

Reckless Damn Series – first series

āœ“ Devil’s Mark #1

āœ“ Devil May Care #2

āœ“ Deal with the Devil #3

āœ“ Luck of the Devil #4

Damned Connections – sequel

āœ“ Patience #1

āœ“ Justice #2

āœ“ Temperance #3

ā—¦ Humility #4 – Oct 31,2024

Hopeless Blessed – Seraphim sequel series

ā—¦ Conflicted #1 -Sept 5,2024

Buy link

Temperance (Damned Connections Book 3)

Blurb

A fire mage who believes he’s broken. A vampire who believes he can fix him. A contract that’s going to change everything.

Blaise

I’ve never been good at doing the right thing.

A series of bad choices have left my life in tatters. Everyone is telling me to move on, but how can I? What I did was unforgivable, even if some believe otherwise. My whole world imploded the night I left a human dying on a classroom floor.

I don’t deserve anything good in my life, I know that. But I’m desperate for peace. Just a few moments where I can escape from everything I’ve done.

When Toby offers me a solution that promises just that, I jump at it. I never imagined having a Dom, but with Toby in that role?

Nothing has ever felt so right.

Problem is, this isn’t a relationship, it’s a contract. A temporary one.

Which means I need to guard my heart and stop myself from falling for this enigmatic vampire.

Like I said, I’ve never been good at doing the right thing.

Toby

I never learn.

Every time I see a needy sub, I can’t stop myself from offering my help. Every time, I forget that it’s a contract and fall too hard and too fast.

I’m the one who fixes them, never the one they choose to spend eternity with. That’s the way it always goes.

When Blaise bursts into my life, I already know how it’s going to end. I can’t stop myself from wanting to help him, but this man has the capacity to break me in entirely new ways. Maybe if I keep the boundaries strict between us, I can walk away at the end without another scar on my heart.

Like I said, I never learn.

Temperance is the third book in the Damned Connections series. Featuring a needy sub and a Dom who’s trying to avoid heartbreak, this spicy MM PNR romance will pull at your heartstrings. Although this series can be read as a standalone, it’s better enjoyed in order. Each book follows a different couple and has a guaranteed HEA.

• Publisher: Lark Taylor (May 16, 2024)

• Publication date: May 16, 2024

• Language: English

• Print length: 422 pages

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Rabi and Matthew by L.A. Witt

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

A long-term family rivalry between the Hashmis and the Swains forms the crux of this story.Ā  They are Democrat vs Republican, Muslim vs Christian, and when Rabi Hashmi falls head-over-heels for Matthew Swain, and vice-versa, readers know there’s going to be heartache and strife. They meet at a frat party and have to hide every moment together—from their first kiss to their eventual trip to a hotel.

What makes their love dangerous is that the strong family rivalry started years ago and erupted into violence in the past. Now that their fathers are running for a single Senate seat, it’s so much worse. Though Matthew’s father is likely to pull the votes from their small, predominately white, homophobic town, Rabi’s father stands a good chance of winning the rest of the state.

The early part of the story features the slow buildup of their relationship with both boys expressing a desire to remain virgins. Later, their feelings deepened and they made love amidst the chaos of trying to keep their relationship secret, even after the election.Ā  Actually, it’s more important then because emotions were running hot and heavy between the two families and their supporters. It’s a recipe for disaster, and when Matthew’s brothers head out to hunt for Rabi after Matthew’s father finds out and disowns him, readers will find it hard to put the book down.

I enjoyed the early part of the story when the boys were meeting in cornfields and deserted locations, but I was, nevertheless, anxious, and I kept expecting they’d be interrupted and one of them lynched during the romance scenes. That didn’t happen, thankfully, but what did happen carried the second half of the story and that was truly hair-raising and painful to witness. Exciting, frightening, interesting, scary, and emotional are just a few of the words I’d use. The author wrapped me up in the insanity and didn’t let go.Ā  The ending is not the traditional Romeo and Juliet tragic ending, and an author’s note explains why.Ā  In this instance, there’s a positive outcome—in more ways than one.Ā 

If you love a story with star-crossed lovers, family feuds, homophobia, tension, and ulcer-inducing drama, then you should definitely like this one.Ā  One word of caution in case these things are triggers: there is violence, death of a secondary character, and suicidal ideation in this story.

The cover by Christine Coffee is creative and fun. It features half of Rabi’s face and half of Matthew’s. Definitely attention-getting.Ā 

Sales Links:Ā  Riptide Publishing | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 264 pages
Published November 5th 2018 by Riptide Publishing (first published November 3rd 2018)
Original Title Rabi and Matthew
ISBN 139781626498341
Edition Language English