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lifeinthebooklane's review
4.0
Oh hell is this book dark and so full of possible triggers. It's not an easy read, and I found myself having to put the book down for a short while on a couple of occasions. But I also really enjoyed the book.
Ashlyn tried so hard to be both free and also the person she thought she wanted to be. Some of her fear based reactions, where she reverted to her 'Jason' behaviour, were heartbreaking. And yet through out it all she had incredible strength.
Caesar is the monster who grows on you and finds a way to touch your heart. The book is written first person from both POV's and his last chapter was the wonderful twist this story needed.
The pace was amazing with lots of twists and turns. I found the author's style of writing easy to read and felt that the story flowed smoothly. The chemistry was intense, and even though this was in no way a romantic read, I did feel and believe in the connection between Ashlyn and Caesar.
If you like a dark read I do recommend this, although be warned that it does contain abuse, rape and graphic violence.
Ashlyn tried so hard to be both free and also the person she thought she wanted to be. Some of her fear based reactions, where she reverted to her 'Jason' behaviour, were heartbreaking. And yet through out it all she had incredible strength.
I wanted that Devil to strip me of ever believing in heaven and turn me into his Lileth.
I'd rather be beside the Devil, than beholden to a God who'd forgotten me.
Caesar is the monster who grows on you and finds a way to touch your heart. The book is written first person from both POV's and his last chapter was the wonderful twist this story needed.
The pace was amazing with lots of twists and turns. I found the author's style of writing easy to read and felt that the story flowed smoothly. The chemistry was intense, and even though this was in no way a romantic read, I did feel and believe in the connection between Ashlyn and Caesar.
If you like a dark read I do recommend this, although be warned that it does contain abuse, rape and graphic violence.
drez80's review
I'm not going to rate this. I knew it was very dark going into it, and I don't mind dark reads, but this one was too much for me. It came across as plain abuse to me, so I didn't enjoy it.
optimisticbooknerd's review
2.0
2 ⭐️
I lack the vocabulary for my feelings but I don't think I liked this one
I lack the vocabulary for my feelings but I don't think I liked this one
bibliophile90's review
4.0
**ARC provided in exchange for an honest review**
"Maybe we were both trapped in the makings of our prisons, ones that didn't have physical ties but kept us locked away."
I love dark romances, but two things that bother me a lot with these types of stories are that it's either incomplete (rushed) or the initial personalities of the characters are unrecognizable after a while. I was really happy that that was NOT the case with Vanquished. I am really picky with my dark romances, and it takes a lot to keep me interested from start until finish. LeTeisha did an incredible job in doing that. It was also unpredictable and I loved the unexpected things that happened, because it kept me on my toes. I was intrigued by both Ashlyn and Caesar. They were both so complicated and knew nothing but evil. I have a thing for villains and Caesar definitely fit the bill. He was ruthless, dark, twisted and broken.
"I didn't imagine a knight in brilliant golden armor riding in to save the day. No, not me. I saw a black knight, wrapped in blood and vengeance, not promising me life but the easy peace in the end."
He did some really messed up things to Ashlyn and others. Ashlyn herself had a much worse past than him, and my heart broke for her. I really wanted her to be okay in the end. After all she has been through, she goes through more horrific things in the present. She is completely broken and doesn't know how to live. What I loved most about this book is that the author stayed true to the characters. She was very consistent and everything fit perfectly together. I also loved seeing the fighter in Ash peeking through at times. Even though she was completely destroyed, there was still something in her holding on to life. Vanquished is a great dark romance and I hate saying goodbye to these characters. I am curious to see how the characters will grow further, so the only thing missing was an epilogue. I have this author on my radar and I am looking forward to seeing what she comes up with next.
PS: Ash and Caesar are a very unconventional couple and there are very dark and twisted scenes!
"Maybe we were both trapped in the makings of our prisons, ones that didn't have physical ties but kept us locked away."
I love dark romances, but two things that bother me a lot with these types of stories are that it's either incomplete (rushed) or the initial personalities of the characters are unrecognizable after a while. I was really happy that that was NOT the case with Vanquished. I am really picky with my dark romances, and it takes a lot to keep me interested from start until finish. LeTeisha did an incredible job in doing that. It was also unpredictable and I loved the unexpected things that happened, because it kept me on my toes. I was intrigued by both Ashlyn and Caesar. They were both so complicated and knew nothing but evil. I have a thing for villains and Caesar definitely fit the bill. He was ruthless, dark, twisted and broken.
"I didn't imagine a knight in brilliant golden armor riding in to save the day. No, not me. I saw a black knight, wrapped in blood and vengeance, not promising me life but the easy peace in the end."
He did some really messed up things to Ashlyn and others. Ashlyn herself had a much worse past than him, and my heart broke for her. I really wanted her to be okay in the end. After all she has been through, she goes through more horrific things in the present. She is completely broken and doesn't know how to live. What I loved most about this book is that the author stayed true to the characters. She was very consistent and everything fit perfectly together. I also loved seeing the fighter in Ash peeking through at times. Even though she was completely destroyed, there was still something in her holding on to life. Vanquished is a great dark romance and I hate saying goodbye to these characters. I am curious to see how the characters will grow further, so the only thing missing was an epilogue. I have this author on my radar and I am looking forward to seeing what she comes up with next.
PS: Ash and Caesar are a very unconventional couple and there are very dark and twisted scenes!
serialbookstarter's review
3.0
This was dark but the darker parts happened when the h was captured by the H’s enemy for retaliation— those pages were extremely brutal. The telling of the tale was a
convoluted and confusing at times. Like wait a minute— what? A bit ott. Sometimes less is more.
convoluted and confusing at times. Like wait a minute— what? A bit ott. Sometimes less is more.
lilabachere's review
Hated the writing and all the traumatic things happening to Ash feel gratuitous and for shock value
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Pedophilia, Drug abuse, Kidnapping, Rape, Death, Sexual violence, Blood, Confinement, and Suicide attempt
jennys_library's review
I unfortunately dnf'd this book at 70 pages. Main reason being that the MMC was absolutely unlikeable and had no redeeming qualities. I just couldn't see how this book would get any better.
It is an older (2017) book, but trigger warnings are not clear anywhere.
It is an older (2017) book, but trigger warnings are not clear anywhere.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Violence, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Gun violence, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Addiction, Alcohol, Bullying, and Cursing
morganreadsoccasionally's review
5.0
Caesar St Clair is a different type of monster. He's the type you don't want to make an enemy out of.
Thus is dark, just as the author warning suggests. I took a lot for me to claw myself out if it's grasp. But I loved everything about.
Our heroine, Ashlynn, is a broken little thing. In some ways, having the monster on her side is good for her. She's known monsters all her life but there's something comforting about having a bigger and badder monster on her side. Things between Ashlynn and Caesar are super toxic so definitely pay attention to trigger warnings.
Thus is dark, just as the author warning suggests. I took a lot for me to claw myself out if it's grasp. But I loved everything about.
Our heroine, Ashlynn, is a broken little thing. In some ways, having the monster on her side is good for her. She's known monsters all her life but there's something comforting about having a bigger and badder monster on her side. Things between Ashlynn and Caesar are super toxic so definitely pay attention to trigger warnings.
beereina's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
3.5
Whew this book was pitch black!
Ashlyn is molested and abused most of her life and then is sold to a wealthy drug dealer to cover a debt. She has a inheritance that is signed over to him and she is to belong to him. What ensues after that is darkity dark dark dark. I mean I loved Cesar because I love my villains pitch black but he’s not good for Ashlyn. Not in the traditional sense anyway. He’s abusive and pretty awful but he also slays her dragons. Unfortunately he fails a time or two and some pretty awful stuff happens to her. I honestly didn’t see how this couple was gonna make it.
They get their HEA but is unconventional and toxic. I just wish we got to see them together longer without so much strife. But then the book wouldn’t have been what it was.
If you have any triggers…,. I mean any…. This book isn’t for you. I usually hate broad TW like that but for this one it’s true. Gratuitous violence, gratuitous sexual violence, suicide attempt, CSA, depression, mental illness, etc. I think the only thing this book didn’t have was drug use and incest.
Ashlyn is molested and abused most of her life and then is sold to a wealthy drug dealer to cover a debt. She has a inheritance that is signed over to him and she is to belong to him. What ensues after that is darkity dark dark dark. I mean I loved Cesar because I love my villains pitch black but he’s not good for Ashlyn. Not in the traditional sense anyway. He’s abusive and pretty awful but he also slays her dragons. Unfortunately he fails a time or two and some pretty awful stuff happens to her. I honestly didn’t see how this couple was gonna make it.
They get their HEA but is unconventional and toxic. I just wish we got to see them together longer without so much strife. But then the book wouldn’t have been what it was.
If you have any triggers…,. I mean any…. This book isn’t for you. I usually hate broad TW like that but for this one it’s true. Gratuitous violence, gratuitous sexual violence, suicide attempt, CSA, depression, mental illness, etc. I think the only thing this book didn’t have was drug use and incest.