How do you protect the girl, when the most dangerous threat in her life is you? Kane Bishop is a professional enforcer, smuggler, all-around law breaker, and the latest resident of a tiny town hidden by mountains and forest. His job is to keep his kingpin boss safe and off the local law enforcement’s radar. But when Jessica Lenaghan steps into Kane’s world, his protective instincts take a wild … protective instincts take a wild one-eighty and his focus shifts to someone other than the man he works for.
Jess is months away from sitting the bar exam, but she has a point to prove: she doesn’t always have to be the good, dependable girl in the family.
But dipping her toes into Kane’s world turns into something she never anticipated.
When drugs, guns, and wh*res are involved, all bets are off.
Pawns In The Bishop’s Game is book 1 in The Checkmate Series, and can be read as a complete Standalone.
This book is intended for an 18+ audience and contains graphic scenes that may be disturbing to readers. Includes drug use, sexual assault, and violent scenes.
more
Gosh darn dirty words captivated me. I can’t give out any spoilers other than to say in a two week time frame Jessica and Kane experience an epic love story. We get to sit in the best seats in the house to watch it up close and personal.
The 1st book in the 3rd series by Emilia Finn. One of my favorites!
DNF. I couldn’t get into it. The girl was the idiot that the guy kept saying she was. I just didn’t get it. And I asked myself, do I want to get it? Do I want to learn the secrets of these people and this story? The answer was a hard no.
I think I fell for Kane Bishop as much as Jess did he was the right amount of bad boy that broke my heart and put it back together again . This series is better that I thought it would be and I don’t want to say it’s my favourite yet as there’s another series and probably lots of bad boys to come. An amazing must read series that I love cant wait to read Laines story to find out more about all the characters that I feel I know them.
It starts off pretty freaking intense and scary; hot damn I really liked it! I’ve never been a fan of bad boys but if Kane were real, I’d climb his pole.
I finished Pawns more than a week ago and I still don’t think I can string the right words together to express how I feel. Jess, as a soon to be lawyer has a job to do and that is figure out Kane Bishop, not fall in love with him. Kane is a bad guy, he keeps telling Jess that and then choosing to be a good guy. These characters clawed their way into my heart, their needs and desires becoming vitally important to this reader. By the time I got near the end, I was in tears, sobbing. There were surprises around every corner and the attraction between Kane and Jess is magnetic. They attempt to fight their feelings but it is a token fight at best when they are obviously meant to be. Absolutely and totally consuming, I fell in love with Emilia Finn’s work. Her talent is amazing and now I have a huge backlist to catch up on as I apparently started in the middle. I cannot recommend this author enough, all the stars for Pawns in the Bishop’s Game!
Emilia’s introduction of the Checkmate series is AMAZING! Love how Blondie and Al are thrown together and continue to save each other! Jess and Kane are perfect together and their antics make me laugh! Their worlds are so far apart but together the chemistry is undeniable! Love them so much!
Romance Rehab: book recs, author services, general badassery: https://www.romancerehab.com/
Rarely do I hate romance novel heroines as much as I hated the heroine in this book.
Plot overview: Almost lawyer Jess puts herself in danger and requires rescuing multiple times by Kane Bishop, a guy who is working for the city’s worst-of-the-worst criminal element.
First of all, let me just say that I kind of liked Bishop. He was a snarky, dirty-talking, bad boy, and I probably would’ve enjoyed reading about him with ANY heroine other than Jess.
I also enjoy the author’s writing voice and style. She’s talented. Truly. I don’t want what I’m about to say to be a reflection on her ability to…author. She’s good. No question.
But here are the ways in which I loathe Jess with an almost violent passion:
1. She’s researching bad guys for her job. Never in a million years did her boss expect her to GO to the dangerous club where the bad guys hang out. In fact, her boss cautioned her AGAINST getting too close to the bad guys. But, in all her wisdom, our intrepid heroine thought it best to put on her Louboutins with a micro-mini, grab her $500 handbag, and go “fit in with” the bad guys so that she could get the skinny on them. Sure, Jess. I just don’t see anything wrong with that plan at all.
2. Jess is assaulted before she can even get inside the club. Shocking, right? I mean, she was doing such a great job of blending in with the criminal element! Bishop saves her, of course. I could’ve gotten over that if THE SAME EXACT THING didn’t happen once more when Jess refused to listen to Bishop and once again waltzed into the club like she owned the place and got attacked. Again, I say. Because once wasn’t awful enough. Damsel in distress, party of one…your table is ready…
3. Jess passes out after not eating for a few days and not bothering to care for her wounds. Why didn’t she go to the hospital after being wounded, you ask? Great question. Jess didn’t want her family full of cops and EMTs to find out she’d been injured and worry about her. Good plan, hon.
4. As Jess is contemplating her time with Bishop, which pretty much only included him saving her, stitching her wound, a little kissing, and a bit of finger banging, she wonders if he had AIDS, and if he could’ve given her AIDS. Then, our little MENSA candidate wonders if there’s a vaccine for AIDS, because she really enjoyed the finger banging.
5. For all her “you’re a bad guy and I can never be with you” bluster early on, Jess sure flips the switch on her morals pretty quickly and does everything she can to help Bishop and keep him out of trouble. Way to stick to your guns, Princess!
6. And for all her worry about AIDS, Jess didn’t hestitate to have unprotected sex with Bishop, even while thinking that he was drug-using killer who may or may not have raped a girl (long story).
And the twist ending? I saw it coming a mile away. But I wouldn’t have taken a star away if Jess had been a halfway decent heroine. The one star I let this book kept belongs solely to Bishop.
So, long-story-short, the hero is a pretty decent dude, the author is a talented lady, and the heroine is a dumpster fire of epic proportions. May she never darken my Kindle ever again.
A Heart Pounding, Gut Wrenching Must Read… “Pawns”, by Emilia Finn is a monster rollercoaster of a book designed to sucker punch you in your soul. At first, it is this slow, almost sluggish flume winding through layer upon layer of emotional water. It is a ride full of high stakes danger, personal discovery, exploration, and torment. And you are kept helpless, on the razor’s edge of patience as the plot methodically builds and builds.
Finn carefully pushes you along bit by maddening bit with Jess and Kane, raising you to emotional heights that drive you insane with frustration because of the ratcheting pace at which the unfolding story causes your heart to pound within your chest. Yet with every addictingly suspenseful word, with every glimpse of Jessie’s spitfire sass and Kane’s explosive, brooding yet tender determination, you continue to propel forward page, after page, after spine tingling page, despite said frustration.
But, oh boy, does Emila Finn reward you for that patience, because holy hell what a ride it becomes once it crests! During every one of the first thirty chapters you will ask, “what’s really going on here?”. With every exchange between Jess and Kane, Kane and Abel, etc., you will wonder about what you’re not seeing. You will be greeted by secondary characters that make you pause and arch an eyebrow in curiosity. You may, like me, even go back and re-read pages to see if you missed something along the way. Because during the entire ride up this literary rollercoaster you are left grasping at what it all means. That is until you crest the very top of the chaos and sit breathless and crying, staring at the page at the unfolding events that seem to mean the end of it all. A tentative ledge of understanding from which you are violently dropped.
And once tipped from the crest you plummet, gasping, into the realization that you knew nothing at all! You will be left hiccuping back anguished cries at the outcome once full understanding of all that takes place is reached. You will be stunned. Holy hell what a ride!
Finn here is masterful at laying down a painstakingly intricate web of foreshadowing that creates a worried buzzing in your brain you simply cannot escape from. This book is written like a chinese puzzle box, every chapter provides a piece, but not in a straightforward order affording you an ability to see true reality until well beyond the point all is lost. It’s a heart-pounding, gut wrenching, must read.
This was well written and I was always interested to find out what was next. I really enjoyed this book.
This is the first book by this author that I have ever read and I have to say I am glad my friend pushed me to read it! It is raw and gritty with some interesting twists. It keeps you on your toes that makes you want to turn the pages to find out what will happen.
I absolutely adored the drive of Jess regardless of the situations she puts herself into. I giggled at Kane because he just could not keep away from Jess regardless of the backlash that he gets. These two together have amazing chemistry that sizzles and their banter is hilarious at times.
Overall, this is a story that keeps you on your toes with its unique concept and raw storyline. It is a darker read which I LOVE and I am really looking forward to the next!
This book had me sitting on the edge of my seat from the first word. The author has created a world of excitement, darkness, and total obsession for the reader. I loved how she connected the worlds together flawlessly and made you beg for more by the end. I am completely captivated by this world, these characters and overall theme. I was so excited to read this book and can’t wait for book 2.
The world of Kane and Jess will captivate you, and make you love these characters. The chemistry between these 2 is explosive and off the charts hot!! The things they have endured, will endure and what is to come will leave you begging for more from this author. The characters, the setting and situations will make you obsess over what is to come. Love love love this book!
Super hot anti-hero & good girl finding her sassy side on a wild, dark & gritty ride. Love Emilia Finn….. Must read!!!
Oh, my goodness! KANE! This book was different from Emilia Finn’s previous novels. It was more edgy and suspenseful in a dark and gritty kind of way but still had her ever-present humor. We also get to revisit with our favorites from past books, especially Alex and Jules. I have read all of Ms. Finn’s books and loved them all. But Pawns in the Bishop’s Game is on another level. Kane is the definition of an anti-hero. You don’t want to like him, but he’s so protective and in-love with Jess that you just can’t help but fall in love with him, too. I don’t know what else to say without spoilers, except just go read this book!
Ok so this is the first time I’ve read a book by Emilia Finn and wow! An absolute rush!
If I could of read this book in one go I would have but due to my iPad glitching, attempting to read on my phone was killing my Kane buzz!
But seriously this book was amazing! The chemistry, the suspense, the twists and turns! It definitely kept me on my toes and my interest intrigued.
Kane and Jess were smoking hot on the pages…their chemistry from the start sizzled until they both cracked. I’m also totally jealous of Jess and want to be her dammit!
The story line was brilliant, this book was definitely a rush of emotions, I may have even had a little cry at one point which I haven’t done with a book in a long time! Thanks for that lol
Now I’m really excited for the next one!