It was the biggest day of my life. I know most people say that about something joyous; a graduation, a wedding ceremony, the birth of their first child. My situation was a little different. Sure, it was my eighteenth birthday, but it was also the day that I was sold. Sold to a man with hair like a crown of gold and eyes blacker than the darkest pits of Hell. He bought me to own me, to control me, … me, to control me, and to use me as a means to an end.
I was his tool and his weapon.
And through it all, somehow, I also became his salvation.
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I’ve been left hanging. I need the next book to continue the story. This poor girl. My heart bleeds for her. The physical pain she is enduring at the end along with her emotional pain only brings tears to my eyes.
Dark and Angsty!
I had insanely high hopes for Cosima’s story and I’m sort of in a limbo about how I feel.
Cosima was sold on her 18th birthday to pay of a debt she was never even a part of. What follows is a Master who is as cruel as the Devil and who wants to own her soul. But there are many dark secrets that are waiting to destroy everything Cosima has ever wanted.
So I kinda don’t think I was expecting this when I started reading Enthralled. I was ready for insane chemistry and longing but also a heavy dose of pain and delicious Dom/sub relationship. I didn’t quite get that from the story.
For a solid percent of the book I kept thinking Alexander is a mofo who is taking out some kind of revenge on Cosima. I didn’t feel any emotional connection from is side towards her and Cosima kept falling deeper and deeper for him. That part just didn’t set with me. I wanted them to have insane emotions and angst between them but it felt missing. Then I think some aspects of the book came out of nowhere like NOWHERE.
The story is written with flourish and rich language which is Giana’s specialty. I loved the dark and sinister feel that was there to this story. It really held my attention. I am actually very curious as to what happens next because this book ended at a very crucial and unbelievable moment. I feel like Alex and Cosi’s story has just started and there are a lot many things to discover.
This was my first introduction into Giana’s work. Enthralled was such a dark and dirty, twisted story. I was entranced by every word and left breathless at every mention of Alexander Thornton. This man does not woo but buys and seduces his way into the heart of Cosima Lombardi.
This story was impeccably written with so much suspense and allure. My interest was certainly captured as if by a spell!
WOW! This was my first Giana Darling read and I have been blown away! She has given us fabulous characters that both love and hate. I could not put the book down, as I was so drawn into the story to see what happened next.
This dark romance has left me wanting more if this story and I will impatiently wait for book 2! If you like a dark romance, and are not triggered easily you definitely want to dive in to this book!!
THIS BOOK WAS AMAZING! I was immediately sucked into this book. It started off intriguing and held my attention the entire book. I haven’t read a book like this before and I ATE. IT. UP! It was soo ADDICTING!
“I was going to transform like Cinderella from slave girl to aristocratic in only a number of hours. Pearl Hall would be my permanent home, and Alexander my forever Master.”
It has been a while since I have read a dom/sub book. Honestly, I don’t remember the last one I read. I don’t know that I’ve read one that held a dark element as well. As soon as I saw dark, I was immediately drawn. I LOVED Giana’s MC series – Fallen Men, so I had a strong feeling this was going to be amazing.
““All animals, deserving or not, die eventually, but some are powerful enough to warrant a hunt. And you just interfered in such a hunt, bella. Do you know what happens when a predator is under attack?” “He turns into a stronzo?” I asked, insulting him and struggling against his tight hold yet again to no avail. “He turns feral and will attack anyone in the vicinity, even an innocent.””
Alexander was something… Let me tell you that. I wouldn’t say I was a huge fan of him in the beginning. But as any dark story I’ve come across, there’s usually something that makes characters the way they are. They show a “sweeter” side once you’ve earned their trust. Not gonna lie… I kind of love Alexander. I was getting super giddy towards the end and wanted to start chanting Alexander and Cosima.
Cosima… Such a UNIQUE name and I LOVE it! I love coming across characters who have unique names. Cosima was AMAZING! She was born into this life and knew for a long time what was expected of her. But she didn’t let that completely destroy her – an Italian woman who would do just about anything for her family.
“If I am a monster, these are my creators.”
I give it 4.5*
This was a brutally dark twisted romance. Alexander is everything a dominant should be. There are moments when he is hated especially in the beginning when he is breaking and training Cosima. This was a captivating story with twists. This was my first book from this author and it was a bit intense but compelling. There are some triggers. This is a Dominant/slave story.It does end in a cliffhanger and I can’t wait to read more.
I won an ARC and volunteered to leave a review.
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Do you love books with dominant alpha male and submissive woman? Do you love dark romance?
Enthralled by Giana Darling is a very dark, twisted and erotic novel. It has a very strong content, violence and cruelty. If this are not triggers for you, you can dive into The Enslaved Duet for sure.
Our couple is Alexander Davenport, Earl of Thornton and Cosima Ruth Lombardi. A British Lord and his slave, a dominant and his submissive, a man and his property.
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The blurb of this story had me hook. An 18 years old young woman sold on her birthday to a monster. Sold as payment to a debt. I just had to read it.
The dark aspects on this book were really intriguing, super sexy but unfortunately after finishing this first part of the duet, I have to say I wasn’t in love with the main characters. I couldn’t connect with them. I saw the carnal attraction but I couldn’t see them actually becoming a real couple even in their twisted world. There was a LOT of turns. Some I decipher really quickly and others I never saw coming but they felt like too much. Maybe it wasn’t my favorite read but it can be yours. I think I’m on the minority with this one. We get a cliffhanger at the end and Part 2 will release May this year.
I have to be honest; I don’t even know where to go with this review. I finished this book last night, and I am still thinking about this story, and how screwed up and terrifying it really is. However, so damn good I had to buy it. Does that make me the masochist? Probably because this book is full of pain, suffering, twists, turns, and omg the lies. However, isn’t that what makes an excellent fucking book? I don’t want to tell you to much about this book so don’t look for spoils here. This book is to good for them. Please read the book to get what you are looking for and be as surprised as I was.
I am going first to tell you a little bit about Cosima. God, I loved this character. For being so young, she has a backbone of someone older and wiser. However, no matter how careful she is, nothing will get her out of the predicament she is in except herself. Nothing and nobody can save Cosima from her future.
Master Alexander is a cold and ruthless man. He is the product of the monster that raised him and the monsters around him. Master Alexander now relishes in the pain he brings others, but he does so as a dominant. Will Master Alexander do what his father wants? Will he destroy the one bright light he has found in his life? Will, he put the monsters that he has known all his life first as always or will he finally come to understand how strong love can be?
Cosima is a beautiful girl with a family life not as beautiful. So when her dad sells her to settle his debts, she gets thrust into a life of servitude and sexual deviancy that she could never have imagined. Her life is no longer her own and it doesn’t look like it will be changing any time soon.
Just when she thinks she has her position as Master Alexander’s slave understood, we meet “The Order” and learn that the beast isn’t the scariest creature in this story; there are scarier villains on the side than even Master is capable of.
However, when you think you have it figured out, a plot twist makes you stop and reread to make sure you are understanding it correctly. It is a very sexy and interesting read but it did take me some time to get interested in the story. The first couple chapters seemed to drag a bit before it got to “the good stuff”. But once you got there, there’s no putting it down after that. The cliffhanger you are left with is one of the most excruciating I’ve ever come across. Thankfully we don’t have to wait too long for the next release!
I enjoy dark romance and I thought Enthralled would be a story right up my alley. It started out pretty good, an 18 yr old Cosima is sold to the Earl of Thornton as his submissive and his property. It was a dark, twisted bdsm tale with unwarranted cruelty and violence. I was hooked as the charismatic Earl weaved his dark and very erotic talons into his innocent young new submissive, he planned on teaching her everything he wanted from her…and making her his for all time.
I have to admit I’m not a big bdsm fan, some aspects don’t bother me but I don’t see any sexual gratification from flogging and whipping…what ever rocks your boat I suppose…but to the point of needing medical attention, and then the story conveniently forgets the trauma…This is where I completely lost interest. There’s more to come though, may be the craziness will be straightened out, I’d be interested to find out.
Enthralling!!
This book had a lot going on, but for me, it all fit into Cosima’s story seamlessly!
This was not an easy read by any means. It was brutally raw and gritty with unsuspecting heartbreaking events behind every corner.
If hard core triggers, chased with heartbreaking family drama are not your thing, do not read this book.
If dark reads are your jam, then you’re in for a major treat!!!
Cosima’s journey begins on her 18 birthday. Instead of celebrating her birthday with her family and celebrating the positives in her life, she encounters the first of many betrayals and heartbreaking events.
Well written and well paced, Cosima is pushed down a rabbit hole full of nightmares and painful encounters that have her questioning everything she believed as fact in her life.
This book was immensely emotional and painful as Cosima’s life goes from one nightmare to another.
But I got so caught up in the story I felt consumed by it!!
When she meets Alexander, she learns certain things about her life that have her questioning if he’s part of her destruction of her salvation.
However, as the unconventional relationship develops between Cosima and Alexander, she begins to see how she strangely enjoys the dualities in her new life .
Destruction versus salvation, pain versus pleasure, dominance versus submission becomes the ultimate challenge for Cosima.
Cosima was such a strong and beautifully developed character!
This story provoked me, the reader to think about the complexities of dualities in her life and her connection with Alexander making me wonder what the outcome between them will be!
Their chemistry and banter was sensual, brutal and erotic despite all the upheaval they encountered.
Both characters were complex and well developed and they flawlessly complemented each other in a strangely sexy way.
In the midst of all this, something else is happening, so you get hints there was something bigger affecting Cosima.
Book 2 cannot arrive fast enough!!
Twisted
Disturbing
Anti Hero
Surprise plot twist
This has all the makings of a very dark romance
There is a lot going on in this story line – at times it almost felt like too much but it works itself out as you go,
Cosima is nothing but a piece of flesh to be bargained with, as a model she knows the value of beauty. One of the things I liked about Cosima is her deep seeded sense of right/wrong and her kindness (she has every reason to be bitter and spiteful yet she is far from it) Her character starts out very strong of mind and of will. As her new master begins her training and she slowly succumbed to his whims I had to keep in mind that she went into this willingly and despite how much I really really dislike her master – she has her end of the bargain to uphold.
As the story line unfolds there are some surprising reveals that change not only the direction of the story but how as a reader I viewed some of the characters. I have all kinds of questions (wait till you get to the hunt – why? is he lying? ) and am hoping the next book holds answers
If you are not a fan of dub/noncon – humiliation – graphic violence – anti heroes – or have never delved into the depraved end of the dark genre – I would suggest not starting here
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~~4.5 BEAUTIFULLY BEASTLY STARS! ~~
Giana Darling proves to be a brilliantly wicked sorceress of the HIGHEST ORDER in ENHRALLED, book one in her darkly spellbinding ENSLAVED duet. From the first sumptuous word to the last, this gloriously talented romance scribe serves up a hot, potent brew bubbling over with danger, subterfuge, spine-tingling twists and turns, shocking debauchery…and a SOUL-BURNING PASSION that seduces the senses!
Holy Moly! ENTHRALLED transfixed me. Owned me. Rocked me to the core. And pushed me waaaaay out of my comfort zone. So fair warning: this bewitching tale is NOT for the faint of heart. It’s dark. It’s disturbing. It’s brutal. Guttural and raw and unequivocally perverse . Yet wrapped in all the barbed wire is a RAPTUROUS love story that left me ALL AQUIVER! And the more I fell down the rabbit hole, the less inclined I was to ever crawl out!
The chemistry between Cosima and Lord Alexander Davenport is BEYOND EXPLOSIVE! I relished the fierce battle of wills between this cruel, rakishly handsome master and his stunningly beautiful and unflinchingly brave slave, and the visceral connection between them is PALPABLE. Their wickedly wanton erotic encounters and titillating power exchanges are rough and primal, downright CARNAL at times, yet these highly arousing, hedonistic mating sessions are also tempered with aching tenderness and breathtaking emotion too.
As with all gripping dark romantic suspense tales there’s carnage and bloodshed and a dynamic cast of supporting characters that are brilliantly woven into the fabric of the storyline. Yet NOTHING is quite as what it seems, and when all the dark, twisted passion and adrenaline pumping peril reach a pulse pounding crescendo, you better brace yourself for a HECK of a cliffy. May 31 cannot come soon enough for the release of ENAMOURED!
My jaw is absolutely on the floor right now. There’s not much to say about this book-besides I absolutely adored it! Everything about it was complete perfection and done with such finesse that I already know a HUGE book hangover is coming-in fact I know it will last until May, when the conclusion comes.
This is a story about a girl being sold to settle her fathers gambling debts within the Italian mafia. What we see from her purchase is not only that hardened alpha male-but also someone that is seeking much deeper than what she can provide. It wasn’t cliche like any other plot I’ve read before when the heroine is sold-it has the most unique spin you could ever think of.
If I could make one recommendation for the year it would be this book! – By Victoria
Seriously I’m absolutely heartbroken and furiously mad. The ending of this book ripped my heart out and blew my traumatised soul to smithereens!!!!
Giana you are a serious force of dark talent. I absolutely devoured this book and am so furious with you that I need book two immediately. I mean I know we got a glimpse of Master Alexander in the evolution of sin series but nothing prepared my heart for this enigmatic, tumultuous read.
Alexander and Cosima are a force to be reckoned with. Their chemistry in this tale will singe your skin red raw and leave you panting for your next breath. Their story of manipulation, power, survival and love is something no Cinderella could handle.
I so want more and need this story to show me a reprieve. I bow to you, I salute your talented mind Giana. Your stories are just brilliant.
Okay so where I should start? I am still book struck with this one. With first book in her Enslaved duology Giana Darling did amazing job. Believe me when I say you will remember this book for a long time and you dark hearts will squeal in happiness. I don’t want to spoil anything from this story so my review will be on the shorter side. But believe me when I say that you may read many books with the BDSM theme but you never read book like this cause this one is like no other.
Main characters of this story is Alexander and Cosima who have really complicated relationship. From the beginning of it through the middle phase of it until the ending (but was it the end?? 😉 )nothing, just nothing has been easy for them with an emphasis on Cosima’s part of it. But it’s not about them but also they must deal with forces around them both that are huge influence, and they both will have to make a choice or even huge sacrifice. But question is will they be able to do that and be ready to do such thing when the time will come? And I suspect it may happen sooner than they both suspect that.
What make this book even more interesting is whole exploration of the Master/ Slave dynamic of BDSM but it’s so much more than that. Giana truly did incredibly job with bringing these characters to life, main ones as well as secondary, with all their desires, wants, aspirations, sufferings and dreams. Both Alexander and Cosima may be two very flawed people that in some way make them fit perfectly in all their imperfections.
And with all that I must say that this book is not for everyone. But if you’re willing to give it a chance, which I really hope it will, it will take over both your mind and heart and you will take a journey with the characters through all the pain, love, obstacles, secrets and perfectly written poetic erotism.
Trust me you will definitely not be disappointed.
I have never been a huge fan of the Anti-Hero… until now.
I have a huge lady boner for the gritty storytelling of Giana Darling.
The torturous lives of Cosima and Alexander come together in a well woven tapestry that will have you questioning your own beliefs of nature vs. nurture. This book is not for the light of heart. Not only is the subject matter deeply compelling, the absolute heartbreak of both characters will have you yearning for that “happily ever after” that may never come and craving more.
When the Author is writing two series and you are anxiously anticipate the next in either, both, whatever she wants to share, you know you are experiencing brilliance – all wrapped up in a spunky, smiling little package. Well done!
Wooo lord, this book is hot! Cosima and Lord Alexander Davenport have chemistry like no other and they sure do explore it in a sinfully delicious slave/master relationship. It was fun to watch their relationship grow and evolve into something real and beyond the sexual. Cosima was fire and explosive personality and Alexander was cold and calculated and their dynamic was something to behold. They seemed to bring out something twisted and yummy in one another and they also brought out what seemed to be the best (in a sometimes not necessarily purely ‘good’ way) in each other. I enjoyed them immensely! There was one mighty cliffhanger and I can’t wait for the rest!
Wow! I’m left reeling from this brutally captivating story that has elements of romance but it’s harsh to say the least. I love this author’s exquisite writing, wonderful detail and magnificent characters. You just knew from the first encounter between Cosima and Alexander that their story was going to be heart stopping and vicious. Sparks galore! The mix of English aristocracy and Italian Camorra was brilliant and fascinating. Let me start by saying dark romance is one of my favorite genres. This had all the qualities of a great one but I wasn’t enamored which left me frustrated. This story had me gasping more than swooning. What did set it apart from others is the complex, layered writing with a realism that made me feel like I was so much a part of it that I hurt right along with the heroine. Which says a lot because I don’t usually respond to the gut-wrenching sadistic BDSM part of a story like I did to this one. Could be the fantastic development of Cosima before she is transformed into a slave. My heart ached for her which is a testament to the superb writing. I loved Cosima’s strength that went beyond her years. Her youth and inexperience probably keep her alive. Endurance should be her middle name. I also understood her ultimate surrender to the conditioning and inhuman treatment from the secretive, sadistic Alexander. I can’t say I loved him but he was a marvel of masculinity and power. It oozed off him in equal parts of astonishment and dread. His shoes were a character of their own, bringing either pain and/or pleasure along with chills and goosebumps! We don’t get his point of view because this is Cosima’s story but I did get most of where he was coming from. His horrible beginning formed him into something so hard and focused that left little room for anything but revenge. The scene in the stables left me hating him but then like Cosima I melted for him in the next minute. I don’t think I’ve read a Dominant/ Sadist quite like him and I think his taking of what he bought was so in character and I loved that scene even with the brutality. You know who I did love? Dante! I was swooning hard over him. I can only hope he gets his own story. He was sexy and mysterious and hot. The hero came off more cruel than anything but I firmly believe he’s redeemable. I did see him softening toward the end so I’m keeping my fingers cross for the next story. Just not too soft because I do love his alpha hardness and command. The Cosima/Sebastian twist was fairly obvious but the “spare” was a WTF moment. The ending seemed rushed to me and left a lots of questions for the next story. I couldn’t believe Cosima didn’t trust her man to be strong enough to deal with the fallout and her ultimate betrayal of their relationship. Boy is she gonna get it when Alexander gets his hands on her again. I can’t wait! I love, love, love the cover! So glad it featured a woman. It made up for H. R.’s cover 😉 I voluntarily reviewed an ARC. 4.5 stars