Alpha (noun): 1) Having the highest rank in a dominance hierarchy 2) The most powerful man in a group3) Liam BlackHe was a stranger to me, a dark and dangerous presence who materialized from the shadows one rainy night to save me from a vicious attack. I didn’t know his name or where he was from. All I knew was that the only place I’d ever felt safe was in his arms. But safety is an illusion. And …
But safety is an illusion.
And not every savior is a hero.
And—as I’d soon find out—having an alpha save your life comes with a price.
Liam Black wanted something from me in return.
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Beautifully cruel has everything I like about alpha male romances. It’s mystery suspense with a dark but fun element.
Tru is a waitress with a very interesting admirer. He’s big, brooding and dangerous. He’s also absolutely gorgeous. When she pucks up the courage to talk to his she realises they have a lot in common. Did I mention the dangerous side that she should stay away from? Well, Tru can’t resist finding out more. The wolf who has his eyes on her might be her saviour, her enemy and her happily ever after.
Liam isn’t used to being spoken back to. He’s the boss. With Tru, he’s about to become crazy with lust. Can the man who shouldn’t love find someone worth fighting for.
I loved how this book unravelled. This is my second book by J. T. Geissinger and I’m addicted.
* I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review. This is an unhealthy addiction like a moth to a flame, but the pay off might just be worth it.
Yumlicius! Liam Black even his name is dark and dangerous.
Beautifully Cruel will have you looking over your shoulder, jumping at sudden sounds because you will be so engrossed in this story with all the action and twist. This story was definitely better then I expected, J.T. Gissinger just keeps surprising me with her writing with every book.
If you love good romantic suspense with a mafia twist you need to read this book!
I received a copy of this book from the publisher/author to review for Stephanie’s Book Reports.
He was a stranger to me, a dark and dangerous presence who materialized from the shadows one rainy night to save me from a vicious attack. I didn’t know his name or where he was from. All I knew was that the only place I’d ever felt safe was in his arms. But safely is an illusion. And not every savior is a hero. And-as I’d soon find out-having an alpha save your life comes with a price. Liam Black wanted something from me in return.
If you are just looking for a romance filled with suspense then you are going to be so surprised with this book. You’re going to get so much more. Truvy and Liam are complete opposites. She is super funny and had me cracking up while he had this dark side to him. You could feel the danger coming off of him. However he can’t be all bad though because he saves and lives Truvy. These two have some amazing chemistry too. However you can not forget that Liam has a dark past and a lot of that is what makes him who he is. I don’t want to give this story away but I will tell you that it all mixed together to make one amazing read that I loved reading and couldn’t get enough of.
Where do I begin on this stunning story. This is the first book by this author that I have ever read… and now I am cursing myself for waiting so long. From the concept of this story, the flow of the writing and the way it all played out, my mind is blown completely for this epic tale! You have Tru who is out and out a fighter. She has grit and sass and does not back down. She is the kind of girl you want to be friends with and have in your corner. I could relate with her with her social awkwardness and so much more. Then you have Liam. The man in black. The one that has her all gooey inside. There is such an air of mystery around him and the way that the author played into that was utter brilliance. The push and pull. The complete alpha level of him. I am in LOVE with Liam Black.
Overall, this was an amazing story. I devoured it in one sitting. I wanted more. I laughed, swooned, and wanted to rage with Tru during moments. I felt everything that Liam was trying to fight his pull to Tru. The little twists gave an amazing edge to the book making it a complete show stopper! I highly recommend this book!
This book CONSUMED me. You know when you pick up a book and the very first paragraph just grabs you and takes over your life until you finish the book? That’s THIS book. Beautifully Cruel is my new favorite of 2020.
Why did I love it so much? First, like I said it pulled me in immediately and I didn’t want to stop reading. I didn’t even want to stop reading when I got to the end. I want more of this couple. I loved both of them so much.
Liam was so intense. I just love those big, tatted, broody men who everyone is afraid of except for the heroine. This is Liam. His name created fear in everyone around him. The heroine wasn’t afraid only because she was newish to town and didn’t know his name. I don’t want to give too much away with Liam but he is like a wolf in sheep’s clothing. If you can fall in love with a fictional character, it’d be him.
Truvy was everything I want to see in a heroine. As much as I love and care more about how a hero is in a book, when I get a heroine like her, it makes a book special for me. Tru makes this book MORE. Don’t you want to read about a woman who, even though she’s drooling all over the guy, she still has enough self respect that she won’t settle. That’s Tru. Man I loved her!
I hope I have expressed how much I love this book because it is one that I feel like I couldn’t convey enough how much I loved it.
Killer sexual tension! The deliciously sinister “bad man” and the shy waitress/law student take sexual intensity to the next level. He’s enamored to the point of obsession and she’s just wondering why the smoking hot Irishman has been sitting in her section for almost a year without talking. Tru is a special heroine with her queen bee attitude. Such fierce strength and sass underneath her introvert outer shell. I loved her hilarious backwoods background and crazy family. Yes, you can be a redneck and smart too. One night she finally decides to take things into her own hands and talk to the mysterious hottie. That leads to the possibility of an interesting relationship with an end date. This story captured me from the beginning with the hot sparks between Tru and Liam and the intrigue around Liam and his life. Dark, beautiful man in black suit with a huge alpha attitude paints a such a thrilling picture and when his sizzling chemistry with Tru explodes it is exquisitely swoon-worthy. So hot! We get a fairly clear physical picture of the hunky mobster but other than eye color Tru is largely nondescript. I love that the author doesn’t depend on physical descriptions to define the characters. It’s all feelings and desires and personalities and characteristics. I couldn’t put this down and read it almost nonstop. I had to see how this turned out with Liam’s dangerous life, Tru’s law career and their panty-melting relationship. A couple of twists at the end were just fabulous. This is an exciting, sexy romance with a couple full of smoldering sensuality, a surprise ending and terrific secondary characters. I hope we get more stories from this wonderful cast. Besides the enigmatic Killian, I loved Declan and Diego. Absolutely fantastic! I voluntarily reviewed an ARC.
No one writes plot twists like J.T. Geissinger. She keeps you in the edge of your seat and turning the pages to see what happens next.
I love Truvy & Liam.
There’s a new alpha in town! Who says you shouldn’t be afraid of the big bad wolf? Oh Liam…you are so yummy! Complex, intense, scarred both emotionally and physically, the scariest man in Boston. Or are you? Only one person isn’t afraid and that’s our heroine, Truvy. I loved her southern feistiness. She was not putting up with any crap from Liam or anyone else. The foundation for their relationship is a fierce immediate physical attraction. Liam struggles with acting upon it due to his dangerous and complicated life. He thinks Truvy can’t handle any aspect of it. He is so wrong. Our girl doesn’t back down from anything and a shy shrinking southern belle she is not. She is intent on unraveling all of Liam’s secrets. As their relationship progresses it becomes clear that although in some ways these two could not be more different, they actually have a lot in common and are each other’s perfect match. I couldn’t help wondering as I read just how all of this could shake out to an HEA but I shouldn’t have worried. What a great twist! The epilogue put a huge smile on my face. There are few authors who never disappoint and she is one of them. Liam and Truvy burn up the pages! 5 “wolfie” stars for this!
~Jamie
Hold on to your seats ladies and gentlemen! Liam is dark, dangerous and oh-so-sexy! And Tru is drawn to the mysterious wolf, just like he is to her. The chemistry between them was palpable and I enjoyed how the reader is in the dark about him as much as Tru is. I wanted to know all Liam’s secrets and what made him tick. I enjoyed the way things unfolded and how Liam was there for her. His identity is given away bit-by-bit and things slowly unveiled themselves. This book was a nice burn with LOTS OF HEAT! I was completely lost in this story and couldn’t read it fast enough! I can’t recommend this book enough! Enjoy the ride J.T. Geissinger will take you on!
This was a great read! Once again Ms. Geissinger does not disappoint. This is Liam and Truvy’ story. Liam is a mysterious character to Tru but those of us who have read the Dangerous Beauty series know of Liam and a certain relationship he has with another character, Lol. I enjoyed seeing the true man behind Liam and fell in love with Tru’s real self. Filled with witty remarks, sarcasm, laugh out loud moments, action and a passion so strong that the flames burned bright and hot, made for a captivating story. I truly enjoyed it and cannot wait to see what Ms. Geissinger has in store for us next. Maybe Killian or even Declan? Who knows, but whosoever it may be, it will be just as awesome as this read!!! 5 stars Loved it!!!!
********I voluntarily reviewed a complimentary copy of this book provided by the author*****
Anti-hero – the man you’d love to have in your bed, but hate to run into in the streets. Liam is just that, or is he more than he appears. Silent, stoic, a Wolf. Tru has been watching her silent customer for almost a year before he decides to officially claim her. But is she more than meets the eye? Is she really a sheep, or a wolf in her own right?
“She’s my match. The yang to my yin. The light to my darkness. She’s what I didn’t know I’d been missing all these years, a soft place to fall.”
A stand alone novel with an appearance by an old “friend”, Beautifully Cruel kept me up until 3 am because I needed to read “just one more chapter”. Captivating, page turning, with each chapter the plot sucks you in and holds you. Great for an afternoon floating on your favorite raft in the pool.
I adored this story! It was a very entertaining, very fast read. At one point in the story, Liam says Tru has him feeling like an addict. Same, Liam. Same. This book had me forgoing sleep, and work, and conversations with my husband… and it was totally worth it!
As per usual with a JT work, characters suck you in with their personality from their introduction. As per usual, the characters have chemistry that is off the charts. As per usual, there are genuine laugh out loud moments. There was even a plot twist I didn’t at all see coming, which I just loved!
This was a much needed break from reality, and I wholeheartedly recommend reading.
I received an advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.
Geissinger proves yet again why each and every one of her books is a must read! Liam is the perfect alpha hero and he can kidnap me anytime!
Beautifully Cruel is a standalone romance that weaves a smoldering tale of love, trust, surprise and suspense between two characters that are unlike any other I’ve ever read.
Truvy is a law student who’s almost finished with her degree. When not in school she’s working at a run-down diner to make ends meet. For the past eleven months she’s served a quiet, powerful patron who only sits in her section and who only has eyes for her.
Everything about Liam screams alpha man in a suit even though no words are exchanged with Truvy – only his stares – until the night he comes to her aid.
What I love about Geissinger’s writing is that you’re not spoon fed what to think or feel. Instead, her storytelling just leads you to unearth more and more details about her characters and their connection and all you have to do is settle in and enjoy the ride.
When you start reading this book, you have no idea who Liam Black is. But you learn quick that he is a man that deserves your attention. Even his silence serves a purpose – to make you want to sit up and listen, to find out more and to soak up any word that he does happen to bestow on you. Gah! I can see how Truvy was completely entranced despite sensing that he was not a safe, gentle man.
Liam was a man of power and control but despite all of that – it was no match to his attraction to her. He couldn’t leave her, couldn’t turn away from her, no matter how much he believed he should for himself and for her safety.
I don’t want to give too much away about the story for risk of including spoilers but what I can say is that the tension between these two and the need both had for control made this book simmer with heat.
Liam and Truvy were a perfect match for one another despite their apparent differences.
Truvy may have looked like the shy, quiet type, but she had a mouth on her. She could lay on some sweet Southern sass but she could also pack a punch underneath that sweetness. And she didn’t beat around the bush either. She said what she meant and was forthright – to the point that she never said or reacted in a way that Liam anticipated and it drove him crazy (in a good way) because he couldn’t read her like he could everyone else in his life. As he said himself, she made him feel human.
I also loved seeing her struggle with the need to assert her free will while still wanting him so desperately despite his means for getting her in his bed.
Liam however emerges as a man of contradictions. He’s all power and control and violence but he’s also tender and caring and with an unending drive to make Truvy happy and make her feel safe. Despite his power, assertiveness and dominance – he makes HER feel powerful too when they are together and I LOVED that.
One of the best things about this book are the little details we get throughout – the reason behind Truvy’s name, for example, and the the wolf/lioness references to Liam and Truvy which totally fit the imagery her words portrayed.
Yet I also liked how the details are given only where it matters. I loved how we weren’t privy to seeing Liam in action at work. It would have totally changed the vibe of the story. Instead we got snippets to see how he is revered and feared in his role and that was just enough.
Geissinger is truly a gifted storyteller and I love how her stories are so unique from one release to the next. Regardless of how the storylines change, she always delivers on amazing characters and smoldering heat. Fans of her work will not be disappointed in Beautifully Cruel. And those readers new to her books will want to grab this one when they have an entire day open as you will not be able to put it down!
*Thank you to J.T. Geissinger for the advanced reader copy. All opinions are my own.
Check out this review and all my romance book reviews and romance book lists on my book blog, She Reads Romance Books: http://www.shereadsromancebooks.com
Holy shit, this book is HOT! I freaking loved it! Tru is just bad ass and Liam is smokin’. Loved the plot! Another 5 star winner from J. T. Geissinger!
This book had me hooked till the very first chapter. I could not resist myself from falling in love with both Liam and Tru. Their chemistry, the dark and steamy romance and their beautiful relationship.
The gorgeous, non-talkative hottie, the one she calls Wolf in her mind, has been coming into Tru’s diner for almost a year now. They rarely have a conversation but the tension between them is high. She wants him. He wants her. But he gives off this vibe. This dangerous vibe. And as she comes to find out, he is dangerous, and mired in a dangerous world.
“His eyes transmit a warning I received loud and clear: I’m dangerous. Stay away.”
But does Tru actually stay away? Of course not, because being saved by him means she will never be free from him, even if she wants to.
Liam’s been obsessed with Tru for months now. If he could just have once with her, perhaps he’d get her out of his mind. Or perhaps not. Perhaps they’re meant to be together. If he can keep the boundary between his world and her intact, perhaps he can keep her, the one he’s fallen for.
“When my knees give out, Liam’s there to catch me before I fall.
As he always has been.
As I know he always will be.
Forever.”
I absolutely love Beautifully Cruel! It’s sizzling hot and filled with tension, there’s suspense and action, and Liam, hot af alpha Liam, is the perfect man for strong, sweet Tru. There’s a twist, an unexpected twist, that I loved, and it made the whole story for me. And one of my favorite ever of J.T.’s characters has a large part, which made my freakin day.
Oh My Word …holy hotness and epic chemistry. This is a romantic, mysterious, suspenseful ride filled with so many twists and turns your head will spin….but in a fabulous way!!
Tru is a dedicated driven Law student by day and a struggling waitress at a diner by night that is barely covering her expenses. Her life as she says is uneventful. It is school, work and home. No real excitement and very limited socializing . Although she does have a bit if intrigue in her world and in coms is the form of a tall dark mysterious man that comes in late at night, sits in Tru’s section and just orders coffee. This has been going on for almost a year and they have yet to have a conversation. Even though their are no words exchanged the heat of his stare is what is captivating Tru. She is drawn to this him and knows that without a doubt it is fated that they will be somehow intertwined. She calls him the Wolf and yes that name is truly fitting .
Liam a.k.a. Wolf is a man of power, mystery, and intrigue. He is fighting his own demons but his biggest struggle right now is staying away from the captivating waitress at the Diner . Her green eyes, personality and energy have him under a spell but he knows that he doesn’t belong in her world and she could never survive in his.
Contact is made, the sexual chemistry is so powerful and a proposition is laid on the table . Just when Liam thinks he cannot be surprised by this woman she rises up with her and wows him with her intelligence, words, sassiness and ability to knock him down a few pegs . She appears to be fearless and wise beyond her years and he may have underestimated her . He may be falling but his world will be the demise of them both.
I absolutely loved their story!
~~Michele McMullen ~~
10 + Stars for Beautifully Cruel by J.T. Geissinger
ARC received from author in exchange for an honest review. Opinions expressed are my own & have not been influenced in any way …
For me this is hands down a top read of 2020 – absolutely LOVED everything about it & was so sad to have it end that I did an immediate re-read the following day. That is for me a true testiment of an amazing read !!!
This is a new genre for this author and she hit everything pertaining to this book out of the park. Who knew I would like “mafia ” storylines …
This book has :
Amazing characters in Liam Black & Truvy ( Tru ) Sullivan
Age difference – 15 yrs – does that “bother you ” asks Liam ? – “No , I like it” … answers Tru !!
Somewhat darker theme
Lots of unexpected plot twists that you certainly will not see coming …
Angst & more angst
Smart, sexy & sassy dialog – filled with some great ( & often very funny ) one liners
Explosive chemistry – make sure to douse the flames that will explode from your e-reader
THE MOST AMAZING HEA
Liam is the head of the Irish mob living in Boston ( or is he really – hmmm ) & very unexectedly he sees Tru (all of 24 yrs of age) helping an old lady cross a busy street. Fascinated by her he follows her to her waitressing job & from then on proceeds to “stalk” her as one of her “just comes in for coffee – sits there smoldering hot & drop dead gorgeous never saying a word ” customer(s).
Tru is a struggling law student just trying to make ends meet – her goal is finishing school and passing the bar exam so she can practice as a public defender. Her sole motivation coming from the unjust verdict & eventual murder (in prison) of her late brother Michael.
These two have so much in common – but it’s over a year of these chance meetings at the diner that actual words are ever spoken. When Tru is attacked after work one might – Liam comes to her rescue – from there you see what an amazing guy he really is & be taken on one amazing ride !!
If you want a read that is one you cannot put down – this is it !!
Highly recommend this book & author !!
This was another great read from J T Geissinger. This is Liam’s and Truvy’s story, Liam is a very strong powerful alpha male lead who is use to getting exactly want he wants with everybody afraid to say a bad word to him and falling at his feet. He meets his match in Truvy, who is a strong willed female lead working as a waitress and studying to become a lawyer who won’t be told what to do. At first he tries to stay away from her as doesn’t want her put in danger by being in his world, but the attraction is too strong and he can stay away no longer. This is their story. Very well written with a decent size plot, two strong main characters and lots of chemistry. This book has everything you need for a great read. This is a stand alone book but has a wonderful cameo at the end, from a much loved character, and like many I am hoping that character gets their own book soon.
LOVED!!!! Every page! I’m so sad it’s over. But I’m thinking there will be another book in that world. Maybe 2? Can’t wait.