Violent Ends (White Monarch #2)
by Jessica Hawkins
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Published: June 18, 2019
I had a life, love, and future to give.
Until my enemy took a wife.
The devil has a name, and it’s Cristiano de la Rosa. On my wedding day, he was the last man I expected to see standing at the altar. He wants to make me his queen. His brother wants to rescue his princess.
Getting Cristiano to lose control becomes the name of the game, and the stakes are life and death. But as truth and lies blur, loyalty is tested, and our chemistry threatens to reach the melting point, the prize grows less clear. Either freedom no longer means what I think it does, or Cristiano is as devious as everyone says, and he’s mastered the art of playing my mind.
All I know for certain is that nothing is certain. And all you need to know? This is a love story.
But even love stories have to end.
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Review
4 Stars
Taking place immediately after Violent Delights, Violent Ends follows Natalia as she enters Cristiano's world as his bride. With terrible rumors about the Badlands in her head and a hurting heart from Diego's betrayal, Natalia is unprepared for the men, women, and children who make up Cristiano's followers. Are they there by choice or by force? Natalia does't know, but she must accept she's there for now. Whether she'll use it against him or embrace the desire she has for the devil himself is yet to be determined."Like a crown, black lace turned me from eager bride to cartel ruler."
I am well aware that I am the worst with reading the middle books in a trilogy or longer length series. I get way too excited to know more and then I always find myself shocked that I don't have all the answers at the end. I either need to stop reading them or wait till they all release. The good news is, Violent Ends doesn't suffer what many middle books suffer from. It is, essentially, an entire novel with a true beginning, middle, and end. Yes, it ends on a cliffhanger, but it also progressed the story along quite well, taking us from a more meek Natalia to a heroine with a bit more bite. I still didn't love her always, she can be dense, but I did appreciate that Jessica Hawkins put her into a situation to make her open her eyes a little. Cristiano continues to be the bad boy we all love, only he's not so bad, he just looks it, tastes of it, and talks like it.
The push and pull between Natalia and Cristiano continues in Violent Ends. The chemistry between them is the hottest flame, but years of hate and sorrow continue to be barriers between then. These two play the longest game of cat and mouse as they attempt to push one another to their breaking point, or in Natalia's case, Cristiano wants to see her give in to her true desires. Violent Ends takes us into the Badlands, into the devil's bed, and out into the streets where human traffickers hold the power. I really appreciated Cristiano's backstory finally being revealed to us, while it was obvious he wasn't quite as nefarious as Natalia thought, it was still a big blank spot for the character development. Jessica Hawkins gives us many of the answers we were left asking after Violent Delights, specifically why the path they must travel down is this one. Of course, it wouldn't be a novel about Mexican cartels if there wasn't more suspense, drama, and action, so yes, more questions arise by the last page.
While Violent Ends isn't your typical middle read, it still leaves you with that desperate feeling for more. Readers only have to wait until November to read the final installment of White Monarch and by then we'll all know which side is the right side. Are you Team Diego or Team Cristiano? I'd say right now, I'm 100% with Cristiano and his band of merry men.
AUTHOR BIO
Jessica Hawkins is a USA Today bestselling author known for her "emotionally gripping" and "off-the-charts hot" romance. Dubbed "queen of angst" by both peers and readers for her smart and provocative work, she's garnered a cult-like following of fans who love to be torn apart...and put back together.
She writes romance both at home in New York City and around the world, a coffee shop traveler who bounces from café to café with just a laptop, headphones, and a coffee cup. She loves to keep in close touch with her readers, mostly via Facebook, Instagram, and her mailing list.
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