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nina_readsbooks's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
lianareadsblog's review
5.0
Beautiful Sinner is the fifth book in the Devil’s Rock series. This is the first book that I read in this series but not the first by Sophie Jordan.
Even a bad boy needs love and hopefully they will find it when they least expect it.
Cruz has spend several years in prison for a murder that he haven’t committed. He is smart, sexy, loyal and honourable. For him, the time spent away from his family and friends made him realise that there’s nothing more important in life than live the moment and won’t loose any opportunity to get what he wants and he wants Gabriella.
Gabriella is back in the town and as she meets Cruz again, all her dreams about her high school crush are coming back and make her rethinking if she can have now what she could not have then. Her family is very unsupportive although she is very strong and passionate about her work.
It is a slow burn that caught up very quick towards the end as sometimes in real life happens and no matter how hard they will try to resist each other there is a way to just give up at everything and embrace the new beginning.
Even a bad boy needs love and hopefully they will find it when they least expect it.
Cruz has spend several years in prison for a murder that he haven’t committed. He is smart, sexy, loyal and honourable. For him, the time spent away from his family and friends made him realise that there’s nothing more important in life than live the moment and won’t loose any opportunity to get what he wants and he wants Gabriella.
Gabriella is back in the town and as she meets Cruz again, all her dreams about her high school crush are coming back and make her rethinking if she can have now what she could not have then. Her family is very unsupportive although she is very strong and passionate about her work.
It is a slow burn that caught up very quick towards the end as sometimes in real life happens and no matter how hard they will try to resist each other there is a way to just give up at everything and embrace the new beginning.
julaliciousbookparadise's review
5.0
Original review on Julalicious Book Paradise
Rating: 4.5/5
The fifth installment in the Devil's Rock series gives us the story of Crew Walsh and Gabriella Rossi.
This new story happens after the events of the previous book, Beautiful Lawman, and I advise that even though this book is a standalone, if you don’t want to be spoiled, please go read the previous book (or books since there are 4 books before this one and they are ALL amazing).
So Crew is a free man, but he doesn’t feel like it. Even if the real murdered confessed and it is a known fact that he is in fact an innocent man, it doesn’t seem to matter to a lot of people who still judge him as if he was. But Crew has a tick skin and he has learned to turn off most of the people.
Gabriella is the opposite. She left her hometown to get away from all the people who made her life hell, but she’s back now to help her grandma and she finds herself in the same position as she was before she left; still unable to face the people who made her miserable.
When Cruz and Gabriella meet again, the sexual energy between them is undeniable. Surrender to her desires would be easy for Gabriella, but she can’t let it happen with Cruz, not with everything that it would imply.
There are so many obstacles for them in this story that you can only root for them throughout the book. There’s always something that makes them take a step back whenever they are moving forward.
I had a lot of difficulties to read this book nonstop, not because I didn’t love it, but because so many people were pissing me off in this book hahaha I understand the need to add them, but I was seriously thinking of throwing my ereader a few times (I didn’t or else, how can I continue to read this awesome book?).
Overall? I just loved this book. I think it will speak to a lot of person because Gabriella’s struggle to self-realization is something we can all relate to. If this book isn’t on your TBR list, please add it now.
I was given an advanced copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
Rating: 4.5/5
The fifth installment in the Devil's Rock series gives us the story of Crew Walsh and Gabriella Rossi.
This new story happens after the events of the previous book, Beautiful Lawman, and I advise that even though this book is a standalone, if you don’t want to be spoiled, please go read the previous book (or books since there are 4 books before this one and they are ALL amazing).
So Crew is a free man, but he doesn’t feel like it. Even if the real murdered confessed and it is a known fact that he is in fact an innocent man, it doesn’t seem to matter to a lot of people who still judge him as if he was. But Crew has a tick skin and he has learned to turn off most of the people.
Gabriella is the opposite. She left her hometown to get away from all the people who made her life hell, but she’s back now to help her grandma and she finds herself in the same position as she was before she left; still unable to face the people who made her miserable.
When Cruz and Gabriella meet again, the sexual energy between them is undeniable. Surrender to her desires would be easy for Gabriella, but she can’t let it happen with Cruz, not with everything that it would imply.
There are so many obstacles for them in this story that you can only root for them throughout the book. There’s always something that makes them take a step back whenever they are moving forward.
I had a lot of difficulties to read this book nonstop, not because I didn’t love it, but because so many people were pissing me off in this book hahaha I understand the need to add them, but I was seriously thinking of throwing my ereader a few times (I didn’t or else, how can I continue to read this awesome book?).
Overall? I just loved this book. I think it will speak to a lot of person because Gabriella’s struggle to self-realization is something we can all relate to. If this book isn’t on your TBR list, please add it now.
I was given an advanced copy of this book in exchange of an honest review.
anabelsbrother's review against another edition
3.0
3-3.5 stars
I liked this more than I thought I would. Super stoked that Cruz finally got his HEA.
I liked this more than I thought I would. Super stoked that Cruz finally got his HEA.
loverofromance's review
3.0
This review was originally posted on Addicted To RomanceI received this book for free from Avon in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Beautiful Sinner is the fifth in the Devil's Rock series and boy I have gotten a kick out of these books here. I have such a weakness for those bad boys that need love too...that underneath the tough exteriors have hearts of gold. And with each hero of this series, I fall in love all over again and it was like that with Beautiful Sinner. The Devil's Rock series centers around characters that are ex-cons and Sophie Jordan has handled these books very well so I was pretty excited to get an ARC copy of Beautiful Sinner, especially since it features the brother of the heroine from Beautiful Lawman ---Book four.
The story begins with a small town event, Gabriella is there to congratulate her niece, but then she finds herself locked in a closet with the man rumored to have been falsely accused of murdering her cousin...Cruz Walsh. Its rumored that the Walsh family is no good, but with the recent marriage of his sister to the local sheriff, Gabriella knows that there is more to the family than meets the eye. Even though she is nervous around Cruz, she has also had a crush on him for years. She knew him well in high school, and in the dark, they had the most sensual encounter, a kiss she has never forgotten nor the explosive chemistry. But she is torn between her feelings for Cruz and her job as a journalist to find out everything she can about him. But Cruz and Gabriella have always had a connection and now that they are in close proximity, nothing will stop them from embracing what they have both wanted for years.
I have to say that I truly had so much fun with these characters. I normally don't care too much for journalist/reporter characters, they just seem to be so selfish and not caring about who they hurt just for a story. But this was NOT the case with Gabriella and I found it so refreshing. Sophie Jordan had me breathing a sigh of relief with this book. Of course, we have a second chance romance here, and some secret identity. Cruz at first doesn't realize that its Gabriella that he shared that passionate encounter with in High School. But the moment they kiss again in present, he realizes who she is and that she is the one that got him through the worst of it in prison. Cruz is such a strong and honorable hero. I love how devoted he is to his family, and how horrid people can be. The town really treats him horribly and after spending years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, he definitely didn't deserve such harsh treatment. But Gabriella really surprises you in this book because she stands up for Cruz even though her family will probably cast her out for it.
Now even though I enjoyed the romance and the slow growth of intimacy between the characters, the reason my rating is so much lower is the pacing of the book. Being engaged in a story is one of the most fundamental elements in a story for me to enjoy it. Now I did read this pretty quickly, but honestly, I was hoping it would be more engaging. I didn't fully connect with the story like I really wanted to. I felt like I only got the "surface" outlook on the story instead of the full depth of it like I have come to expect from Sophie Jordan.
Overall I found Beautiful Sinner to be emotional, leave you with tears and smiles love story with endearing characters and a second chance romance that is deserved....A FUN TALE OF STRENGTH AND LOVE!
[foogallery id="24074"]
Beautiful Sinner is the fifth in the Devil's Rock series and boy I have gotten a kick out of these books here. I have such a weakness for those bad boys that need love too...that underneath the tough exteriors have hearts of gold. And with each hero of this series, I fall in love all over again and it was like that with Beautiful Sinner. The Devil's Rock series centers around characters that are ex-cons and Sophie Jordan has handled these books very well so I was pretty excited to get an ARC copy of Beautiful Sinner, especially since it features the brother of the heroine from Beautiful Lawman ---Book four.
The story begins with a small town event, Gabriella is there to congratulate her niece, but then she finds herself locked in a closet with the man rumored to have been falsely accused of murdering her cousin...Cruz Walsh. Its rumored that the Walsh family is no good, but with the recent marriage of his sister to the local sheriff, Gabriella knows that there is more to the family than meets the eye. Even though she is nervous around Cruz, she has also had a crush on him for years. She knew him well in high school, and in the dark, they had the most sensual encounter, a kiss she has never forgotten nor the explosive chemistry. But she is torn between her feelings for Cruz and her job as a journalist to find out everything she can about him. But Cruz and Gabriella have always had a connection and now that they are in close proximity, nothing will stop them from embracing what they have both wanted for years.
I have to say that I truly had so much fun with these characters. I normally don't care too much for journalist/reporter characters, they just seem to be so selfish and not caring about who they hurt just for a story. But this was NOT the case with Gabriella and I found it so refreshing. Sophie Jordan had me breathing a sigh of relief with this book. Of course, we have a second chance romance here, and some secret identity. Cruz at first doesn't realize that its Gabriella that he shared that passionate encounter with in High School. But the moment they kiss again in present, he realizes who she is and that she is the one that got him through the worst of it in prison. Cruz is such a strong and honorable hero. I love how devoted he is to his family, and how horrid people can be. The town really treats him horribly and after spending years in prison for a crime he didn't commit, he definitely didn't deserve such harsh treatment. But Gabriella really surprises you in this book because she stands up for Cruz even though her family will probably cast her out for it.
I've always wanted you, Gabriella Rossi. In the boathouse...I didn't know it was you, but I wanted it to be. In prison, in the dark of night, when I dreamed of the girl I kissed in the boathouse she didn't have a face...so I gave her yours.
Now even though I enjoyed the romance and the slow growth of intimacy between the characters, the reason my rating is so much lower is the pacing of the book. Being engaged in a story is one of the most fundamental elements in a story for me to enjoy it. Now I did read this pretty quickly, but honestly, I was hoping it would be more engaging. I didn't fully connect with the story like I really wanted to. I felt like I only got the "surface" outlook on the story instead of the full depth of it like I have come to expect from Sophie Jordan.
Overall I found Beautiful Sinner to be emotional, leave you with tears and smiles love story with endearing characters and a second chance romance that is deserved....A FUN TALE OF STRENGTH AND LOVE!
[foogallery id="24074"]
tracyzim's review
3.0
The pacing, the pining, the flashback, the close proximity: all good. But the prison thing was not for me.
booktothepointe's review
4.0
Beautiful wrap up of the series. My fav of the 5… finally a hero who isn’t a super alpha… he treats everyone around him with kindness and respect and he doesn’t just declare the heroine “Mine” but instead shows her how he feels about her and gives her some space (even when she doesn’t really want it)
Boy from the wrong side of the tracks, awkward girl: crush on each other for most od high school; he’s convicted of a crime he didn’t commit, spends years in prison, finally gets out then they reconnect as she’s in town to help her grandmother recover from surgery.
Bri finds herself again in the book and as her own confidence builds, she gets the courage to go after Cruz for real this time…
A bit of forced proximity at the beginning and slow burn through the whole thing… Sophie Jordan writes dirty talk like none other…
Boy from the wrong side of the tracks, awkward girl: crush on each other for most od high school; he’s convicted of a crime he didn’t commit, spends years in prison, finally gets out then they reconnect as she’s in town to help her grandmother recover from surgery.
Bri finds herself again in the book and as her own confidence builds, she gets the courage to go after Cruz for real this time…
A bit of forced proximity at the beginning and slow burn through the whole thing… Sophie Jordan writes dirty talk like none other…
7sofia7's review against another edition
This story was decent but nothing special.
It focused much more on the heroine rather that on the hero (fair but her seemed a bit paper thin)
It focused much more on the heroine rather that on the hero (fair but her seemed a bit paper thin)
lvndrgms3's review against another edition
4.0
I had no idea how badly I needed a hot romance, and more importantly a happily ever after to uplift me because I finished this fifth book in the Devil’s Rock series in one day! I took to Gabriella and Cruz immediately and I even empathized with Gabriella on a number of things. If you’re a Sophie Jordan fan you’ve got to pick this up!