Book Review: Captivated by You by Sylvia Day

Captivated by You
Crossfire #4
Author: Sylvia Day
Reading Level: Adult Fiction
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Released: 18th November 2014
Review Source: Purchased (UK Edition)

Gideon calls me his angel, but he's the miracle in my life. My gorgeous, wounded warrior, so determined to slay my demons while refusing to face his own.

The vows we'd exchanged should have bound us tighter than blood and flesh. Instead they opened old wounds, exposed pain and insecurities, and lured bitter enemies out of the shadows. I felt him slipping from my grasp, my greatest fears becoming my reality, my love tested in ways I wasn't sure I was strong enough to bear.

At the brightest time in our lives, the darkness of his past encroached and threatened everything we'd worked so hard for. We faced a terrible choice: the familiar safety of the lives we'd had before each other or the fight for a future that suddenly seemed an impossible and hopeless dream...

I expected amazing, I got perfection.

Sylvia Day never fails to lure me in and captivate my attention. Captivated by You was one of, if not, the best book in the series so far.  It was obvious the first 3 instalments primarily focused on fixing Eva, but now it’s Gideon’s turn. He has his own demons to conquer and Captivated by You made my heart hurt for Gideon. His personal nightmare worsened, and Eva nearly hits breaking point as Gideon shuts her out at every turn. And guys, we got a lot of Gideon’s point of view!

Note: I read this book, whereas I’ve previously listened to the last 3, but I would definitely recommend the audiobooks. Personally I think they added to my enjoyment of the novels.

Reasons why I loved this book:

- The interactions. We got to see deeper into Gideon’s social life. We were introduced to some  friends of his and got to know others better. There was even a moment where Eva’s and Gideon’s friends collided and had a night out. I absolutely loved seeing their interactions together. Don’t get me wrong, I love Eva and Gideon private moments, but seeing everyone together was so nice.

- There’s still a million things needing tied up in this series (which we have 2 more books for) but we got some answers in Captivated by You, people! Obviously to avoid spoilers I won’t say what, but one was a “Well, damn, that was you” moment and the other was a complete “I’m so glad that happened, it needed to happen, and I could cry with joy” and a particular persons reaction made me cry. It was heartbreaking but relieving. 

- I could sit and point out everything, but I'll sum it up in one word: Gideon. The fact we got to know and understand him better, get to see into his life while Eva wasn't there, was amazing. I loved every second. 

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Here is what the US edition of Captivated by You:

Video: Sylvia Day Answered Fan Questions Live

If you missed the live Q&A that Sylvia Day had, then no worries you can watch it here. Sylvia answered questions from her fans for an hour about her books. Enjoy!

Sylvia Day discusses ‘Afterburn’ and Her ‘Crossfire’ TV series

Maryse from Maryse’s Book Blog recently got to interview the New York Times bestselling Author Sylvia Day about her latest release ‘Afterburn’ and her upcoming ‘Crossfire Series’ TV show via YouTube.

• Sylvia is asked what she has done to celebrate Crossfire being optioned for TV and she says she hasn’t done anything yet. But she is definitely happy and dancing in the inside.
• Sylvia states that the produces were fans of the Crossfire series before Lionsgate pick it up. She says they went to Lionsgate saying “We love this series, We want to produce it, Can you acquire this property for us”
• Sylvia says she is an executive consultant on the project, so that means all the scripts will come to her before they go into production.
• Maryse brings up Henry Cavill and Scarlett Johansson and Sylvia says they would make a fabulous couple. Sylvia says that both actors would get the physiological drama of the role.

Watch below the full interview:

Extra! Extra!: Cosmo Red Hot Reads from Harlequin Launch!

Today we are excited to help spread the word about a new partnership. Cosmo magazine and Harlequin Books have teamed up to create a new eBook imprint called:

 Cosmo Red Hot Reads from Harlequin

Cosmo Red Hot Reads from Harlequin will start off with two books by #1 New York Times and #1 international bestselling author Sylvia Day. Whoot Whoot! Who doesn't love reading Day's saucy novels. The first title will be Afterburn, publishing today August 15th. The second title will be Aftershock, which is set to release November 15th 2013. Both titles will be connected editorially and feature characters newly created for the Cosmo-Harlequin series. 

The new imprint will release an average of two books per month with exception of August and November. We all know Cosmopolitan as the world's largest women's magazine and biggest-selling monthly magazine on U.S. newsstands. I have been buying my copy of Cosmo for years and will continue to do so. Now with this partnership with Harlequin, you get 2 awesome teams for the price of one. 

Available on eBook right now

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Afterburn | Aftershock

Afterburn & Aftershock: Cosmo Red-Hot Reads from Harlequin

"I'm thrilled to be launching the Cosmo Red Hot Reads from Harlequin series of fresh and sexy contemporary romances. My stories are known for featuring fun, fearless Cosmopolitan-type heroines as well as delicious, dangerous heroes synonymous with Harlequin. Afterburn and Aftershock will be no exception. I'm excited to share these sizzling new romances with readers and to do so hand in hand with Harlequin and Cosmopolitan, beloved brands known for giving women exactly what they want." -Sylvia Day

Sylvia Day's brings readers a sizzling new miniseries about unexpected reunions, bittersweet revenge and the fight for redemption!

Future titles coming to Cosmo Red-Hot Reads are:

• Making it by Tawny Weber
• Cake by New York Times bestselling author Lauren Dane
• Everything You Need to Know by HelenKay Dimon
• Naked Sushi by Jina Bacarr

Cosmo Red-Hot Reads is for those ladies that LOVE sexy romances. Its geared toward Cosmopolitan magazine readers and sexy, contemporary romance fiction readers between the ages of 18 and older. You know who you are that loves to read both of these types. 

You can expect the Cosmo Red-Hot Reads to be primarily digital with the right combination of content, story length, format and price to make it worth the buy. 

Can't go wrong when you have Red-Hot in front of something new. Go on now and start off with Afterburn!

Book Review: Eve of Darkness by Sylvia Day

Eve of Darkness
A Marked Novel #1
Author: Sylvia Day (S. J. Day)
Reading Level: Adult
Genre: Urban Fantasy
Released: January 8th 2013 (reprint - Tor Books)
Review Source: Purchased
Available: Amazon

Summary: (from goodreads) From the #1 New York Times bestselling author of Bared to You

Years ago, Evangeline Hollis spent a blistering night with a darkly seductive man she can’t forget. But that evening of addictive pleasure has become a disaster of biblical proportions: She’s been branded with the Mark of Cain.

Thrust into a world where sinners are marked and drafted to kill demons, Eve’s former one-night stand, Cain, is now her mentor—and his equally sexy brother Abel is her new boss.

Now Eve has become the latest point of contention in the oldest case of sibling rivalry in history... 

Cursed by God, hunted by demons, desired by Cain and Abel... All in a day's work.

For those of you that are fans of Sylvia Day as much as I am, I want to mention that The Marked Series is being separated by her pseudonym S.J. Day because these books are unlike her other romance books. Although Eve of Darkness isn’t exactly romance it is very adult! So I don’t think fans will be disappointed at all – it’s just different than Bared To You.

Even though Eve of Darkness isn’t like her normal books, I enjoyed it very much. The book begins when Eve, who has become part of a group called Marked, fights a demon in a bathroom and almost gets herself killed. Then we go back six weeks and find out that she has been marked by Cain & Abel (yes that Cain & Abel) and goes though a sort of “change” and becomes strong and powerful – able to fight demons. Ultimately, they both have marked her, Abel then Cain.

If you remember the Cain & Abel story you know they are brothers and that they don’t like each other very much. Years before, Eve has an amazing night with Cain. She’s young and she loves him and he forces himself to leave her for her protection. Now that Cain is back and has forced himself into Eve’s life she is forced to sort out her feelings for him. Eve is quite literally put in the middle of them, forcing both of them to protect her and in their own way love her. Eve is funny and determined and she will not let the men in her life, however they feel about her, get in the way of what she is now supposed to do. They find themselves in a lot of action and fights - all before Eve’s training. She will depend on these men to keep her safe and learn from them.

With archangels, angels, heaven, hell, all sorts of demons; not to mention Cain & Abel – Eve has her work cut out for her. As Sylvia Day does so very well with her series books, Eve of Darkness ends leaving closure and much anticipation for the next book,Eve of Destruction. I can’t wait!

Book Review: Bared to You by Sylvia Day

Bared to You
A Crossfire Novel #1
Author: Sylvia Day
Reading Level: Adult 18+
Genre: Erotica/Romance
Released: April 3rd 2012
Review Source: Purchased
Available: Amazon

Summary: (from goodreads) Our journey began in fire... Gideon Cross came into my life like lightning in the darkness-beautiful and brilliant, jagged and white-hot. I was drawn to him as I'd never been to anything or anyone in my life. I craved his touch like a drug, even knowing it would weaken me. I was flawed and damaged, and he opened those cracks in me so easily... Gideon knew. He had demons of his own. And we would become the mirrors that reflected each other's most private wounds... and desires. The bonds of his love transformed me, even as I prayed that the torment of our pasts didn't tear us apart... "When it comes to brewing up scorchingly hot sexual chemistry, Day has few literary rivals." -- Booklist

So this book just happen for me. I was at the store and saw it on the shelf and something about it caught my attention, so I bought it. Why did I buy it when I knew I had a ton of reading books at home, who knows but I did. I am glad I did after I read it. To think I could have been missing out on this story and series. I have never read anything from Day before but you can bet that will be changing. Bared to You is being compared to Fifty Shades, you can take that as a good thing or bad. It all depends if you are fans of the type of story Fifty Shades is, then you will be a fan of Bared to You. Now as far as plot comparison, they are somewhat similar but they do have separate entities. I would assume what makes they comparable for the crowd is to label them both as erotica. Other than that they have minds of their owns. 

In Bared to You, you meet Gideon (holy smokes hot) Cross and Eva Tramell. What I loved about Bared to You both characters are messed up with issues. Its not just him and she is the submissive again, nope. Eva has her own demons to fight while Gideon does too. So when they end up together, sparks fly but you have to read to see if they fly in a positive way or end of the world way. The journey we follow between both these exciting, energetic and somewhat wacko characters is a page-turner. 

I am excited to read what next, when Reflected in You comes out in October. I recommend to mature adults, and definitely over the age of 18. I think if you enjoy reading romance, erotica and drama, then Bared to You will appeal to your taste.