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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Once again Giana brings characters alive with her words. Cosima’s story is everything I hoped for and more. Her strong will is felt throughout the story and definitely leaves you wanting more. Master Alexander’s dark and devious deeds will leave you breathless. Another great read! Can’t wait for what’s next.
Enthralled has lived up to its name in this book… I am obsessed, and need more of Master Alexander and Cosima’s story now!! G Darling’s writing is absolutely brilliant – her words are like prose and I felt like I was reading the likes of Bronte or Austen in classic literature rather than a contemporary romance.
Everything about this book pushed my boundaries and comfort zone – but that is why I loved it. I was pulled in and taken to a completely different world…it’s like 50 SOG on crack cocaine, and I am an addict! It’s possessive. It’s passionate. It’s bold.
Master Alexander is exactly that. A Master. A Dominant. But no roles are exactly what you think they are. Lines are blurred and betrayals take place. When Alexander acquires Cosima you will want to hate him for his cruelty and cold demeanor, but over time his role of possessive dominant becomes more tender and protective – even so far as him sacrificing himself to protect Cosima, his “slave.”
Cosima is a sassy and beautiful Italian. She has lived selflessly and used her beauty for not herself, but her family. She goes willingly to Alexander in order to protect those she loves; and as scared as she is to serve him, her feelings and emotions evolve over time and the more she learns about her Master – the more she comes to need and want him.
“You, my little mouse, are playing this game of ours so well, I’m not quite sure who is winning any longer.”
Yes this is about BDSM and all that involves. It will shock you. It will make you uncomfortable at times, you may shed a tear or two for Cosima, and you’ll want to protect this strong, yet still young and naive woman. But you will also cheer for her and her determination – her fierce spirit, and her own realization of self-worth and what loving another truly means.
Although this story mainly surrounds the relationship of Alexander and Cosima, it is also intricately woven around their families, loyalty, and bigger, more powerful groups of people who want to control every facet in their lives. It is all-consuming. Grab your glass of wine and prepare yourself for this brilliant story! Well done G Darling!! I can’t wait for Enamoured (Part 2)!!
If you’ve read The Evolution Series you will have briefly met Cosima and now we finally get her story. I had no clue what the book was going to bring I knew it was going to be dark and it is. This is a dark master and slave story which was a delight to read. The suspense element takes the reader in a direction I never would have guessed. It’s dark, twisted and kinky with main characters so tortured they really are perfect for each other. This is book one so of course we end on a cliffhanger. Book two can’t come quick enough for me.
When I first heard about this story I was intrigued. When I got to know Cosima’s character I was enamoured. When I met her Master I became obsessed.
This one is certainly not for the faint of heart. This story touches on very real, very dark subjects but does it in a way that feels genuine and respectful. It’s definitely a dark romance and the ever changing dynamics between Cosima and her Master had me hooked from page one.
Nothing in this book is what meets the eye. Nobody is who you think they are. Nothing is out of bounds. Have your wine handy!
I cried in this one. I gasped out loud. I got super squirmy. Their chemistry was explosive (necessitating a 1am wake up for hubs ) and I also might have yelled with friends via voice messenger. More than once #notevensorry
This one is a roller coaster of emotions. It’s jam packed with decadent imagery, villainous characters and the dialogue in this one is Giana’s strongest writing to date. I absolutely cannot wait for book two.
THIS BOOK WAS ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!
It was everything I could have expected and so much more.
It was dark, twisted, dirty, intense and so fucking hot. I loved and devoured every single word in there.
That was my most anticipated read of this year and it was so worth the wait.
Giana never disappoint. She is one of the best authors that I have ever read and I love all of her books. She always leave you craving for more. And that is exactly what she did with Enthralled coz once I finished it I wanted more and more. Like a drug… the moment it leaves your body you want more of it. I love dark romances, they are my drug. Darker the better. And this one was pure perfection. I loved the dark world of Domination and Slavery in this story and
Lord Alexander Davenport was one hell of a Dominant. I loved everything he did to her. I loved every word that came out of his mouth.
I loved their sessions and the way he broke her and made her his slave. I loved how he made her crave for him and his touch. There is just anything I didn’t love about him. And Cosima…omg she was so strong. I loved her for all she was and I admire her for what she did at the end. Although I hated the way it happened.
This book left me shocked so many times. It was full of secrets and betrayals. I so can’t wait for the next book.
It’s without a doubt one of my best reads for this year. Well done Giana. You prove to me once again that you are one of the best out there. Hands down and keep doing what you do and give us those amazing stories. Love you so much.
My god! Holy crap. She’s done it again. This was such a fantastic read. Master Alexander and Cosima were such a interesting but good master/slave relationship. I cant wait for book 2 !!
Entralled is book #1 in Giana Darling’s Enslaved Duet. Giana Darling continues to blow me away with her incredible talent!! Cosima’s story completely shredded me. Emotional and heartfelt scenes that drove me to read more. Sold off to pay her father’s debt, Cosima is emotionally trapped to keep her family safe. She has to abide by her “Master’s” wishes or risk harm to the one’s she loves. This is a dark story covering every type of emotion. Their chemistry is alarmingly intense, leaving very little to the imagination! Giana nailed it! Grab this delicious book today and be prepared to be carried away. I can’t wait for book #2 to come out!!!
Enthralled is dark, twisted and dirty. It is epic tale of Cosima and Lord Alexander (Master). She becomes his slave in order to provide a better life for her family. She is strong and handles her fate with class. Lord Alexander is not quite the devil we believe him to be. Giana Darling is a gifted story teller and I cannot wait for the next book in this duet.
Yes, I’m Enthralled
The name of this dark romance is aptly titled. It was hard not to be captivated, intrigued and engaged by the story of Cosima and Alexander. Their meeting, their relationship is 100% unconventional on every single level. Cosima was so young and beautiful, but this turned out to be the very thing that puts her in this arrangement with Alexander. My heart ached for her! She is such a strong, selfless young woman and deserves the sun, moon and the stars. Will she ever get that?!?!
Alexander is such a mystery. I really disliked him at times, but on the other hand I saw glimpses of a tender side. Oh, how I wanted that side of him to prevail. But growing up under his father’s thumb, there were expectations of him that he couldn’t deny. He was a strong and powerful man with a family legacy to uphold. Bringing Cosima into his world was nothing out of the ordinary, but what he doesn’t realize is that she is nothing short of extraordinary.
The entire journey of Cosima and Alexander is a game of cat and mouse. The people and circumstances may not be as they seem. Everyone in this gritty game is wearing a mask of some sort. The question is, who can you trust? One minute you think you have it all figured out and in the next Giana throws you a curve ball you don’t see coming. Their journey kept me on the edge of my seat every step of the way. That ending though…WOW! I need answers and I can’t wait to get them.
Holy Smokes!! What a book! In the spirit of full disclosure I want to address some things first. 1. This is book one of two. So try to prepare yourself to be left wanting answers and craving more.. 2. This book is very, VERY DARK. There is just so much content in this book that will be upsetting for some, total turnoffs for some and EXTREME TRIGGERS for others. I do not want to go into details do to spoilers, but I will say that if you have even one single fear about your mental health and this book, please do not read it. As much as I enjoyed it; I do know others that would find it devastating. So be aware and take care of you.
Now, as for myself, I was totally captivated by this raw and brutal romance. Cosima and Alexander’s story is quite possibly the most intense that I have ever read. Complex, complicated, often ugly and yet with a strange beauty to it. The characters alone are mind boggling. Cosima is incredibly strong, pragmatic, beautiful and the devoted champion of her family. Her character is a unique combination of innocent and world weary. Alexander is an English Lord burdened by history and heritage. On the outside he presents as an apathetic man with the face and body of a God. Yet, deep inside lies the soul and heart of a chained beast. The graphic and potent BDSM relationship that these two enter into sizzles with electricity and has the impact of a nuclear bomb. Nothing will ever be the same.
The story line is powerful and engaging. It is jam-packed with drama, pain, surprises, shocking twists, betrayals, violence, secrets and extreme emotions. This book will very quickly and firmly, establish itself as your Master. As it skillfully controls your pain and your pleasure while you read it. The author does not only brilliantly craft a book that you will enjoy, I feel that she is a true artist that uses words as paint to create a lush, detailed, immersive experience for the reader. From the gritty, sepia drenched streets of Naples, to the stark, cold, extravegance of a lavish ballroom, to the frigid, terrifying darkness of the Scottish countryside, this author makes sure that you feel like you are there, experiencing it all right along with the characters. And yeah, as a reader that is a double edged sword. It can be wonderful or it can be horrifying and that totally depends on what is going on in the book at the time.
I had been waiting for Cosima and Alexander’s story ever since I had finished The Evolution Of Sin trilogy. In it you get Elle (Cosima’s sister) and Sin’s romance, meet Cosima and the rest of the Lombardi family and get a small look at Cosima and Alexander’s relationship. You do not need to read this series first or really at all. ThIs duet can be read as a standalone. I do think though that if you haven’t read it, you will want to once you meet the characters in this book. So that is where you can find more stories about the Lombardi’s. I myself was completely stunned and wrecked by this book and I can not wait for book two!
Oh my goodness!!! This book is so intriguing and it sucked me in. Just when I thought Giana couldn’t top her latest books she goes and writes Lord Master Alexander. This story blew my mind. That ending!!!! I can’t wait for book 2
I love when authors stretch and break my boundaries in a story. And Giana Darling did just that in Enthralled. A raw, dark and edgy tale of passion, dominance, submission and mind games.
Cosima is an enticing, captivating and awe inspiring woman. I adore her beauty. I respect her sacrifices, strength and struggle for survival. I have a thousand adjectives for her bravery, stubbornness and compassionate heart yet they won’t be enough. And Alexander is the man you would love to hate and hate to love. Sometimes I wanted to worship at the alter of the powerful handsome dominant and sometimes I wanted to slap his face for his crudeness and brutality. He is an enigma, a mass of contradictions and a perfectly imperfect creation. He is a devil in an angel’s body and vice versa. And their connection is a living breathing thing that gave me heartbreaks and dreams.
The first part of Enslaved duet, Enthralled is about the journey of Alexander and Cosima after he buys her as a slave from Camorra in Italy and brings her to his English Estate. The story has sharp turns frequently. A secret order. The secret of Cosima’s life and Alexander’s mother. And you won’t have all answers. The most intoxicating part of the book was the slow sensual and sexy dance of emotions between Alexander and Cosima. It ebbs, it flows, it sinks, it rises. I was helpless under the spell of Giana Darling. The execution is brilliant. She brings out the darkness, the cruelty, the craving and the power plays beautifully.
Giana Darling has woven mystery, desire and love in an intricate and delicious tale in Enthralled. This was enticing, intriguing and captivating till the last words. I couldn’t have enough of Alexander and Cosima.
Received ARC for Honest Review
I loved this book! I loved Giana’s captivating writing style and her unique ability to hook my immediate attention right from the start! I haven’t read this particular trope in romance for a while and it caught me by surprise just how I loved it! Don’t get me wrong, it’s pretty ugly sometimes and it made it so realistic for me, I believed it! I think it’s a common problem with similar books, readers just read it and deep inside thinking “Ohhh come on, it could not be like that”. Giana described in a very vivid way each and every emotions and feelings! I can’t say more without revealing something important for you. I dived in it pretty blindly and it created that special experience for me.
Highly recommended!
Giana Darling’s poetic prose is my absolute favourite thing to consume—a seamless flow of enchanting sentences and enthralling moments weaved together to create an evocative narrative that will captivate your attention, entice your senses and summon an array of diverse emotions to surface. I’ve been charmed by every facet of this author’s writing since devouring the emotionally raw and passionate affair between Giselle and Sinclair.
But the true interest that truthfully attracted me lied with Alexander Davenport, the enigmatic and detached man who appeared beside Cosima Lombardi, screaming hushed tones of wicked deviance and unsolicited desire without needing to utter many words. Beautifully wretched, devilishly enticing and sinfully haunting, Enthralled will lure you into its darkened depths of servitude and dubious consent, unveiling the severe complex threads that bind, together in irrevocable ways, a slave and Master.
“Five years might pass, the contract between us might dissolve into dust with time, but I would always be, elementally and crucially, Master Alexander’s woman.”
I’ve been enamoured with Cosima, a delightfully aspiring woman with endearing vibrance, wise self-preservation and intense fierceness, its earnestness unrivalled by anyone else, since she was introduced in Giselle’s equally intense story. Cosima’s harboured secrets created an aura of mystery beyond her beloved daughter, loving sister and flourishing model persona, leaving me desperate to discover more of what lies beneath this fascinating woman’s carefully crafted facade. Reading Enthralled magnified my unsatiated curiosity, meanwhile satisfied my burning interest to understand this secretive woman better. Her poignant romanticist view on life is an endearing albeit heartrending quality that stands against the darkening atmosphere creeping and lingering throughout this narrative and contrasts beautifully with Alexander’s domineering character.
“Some monsters are made and some are born. You could say that I’m the worst of both worlds.”
Without doubt, Alexander is an enigma—comprised of an unfathomable series of hidden facets and untold secrets threaded together to manifest itself into a hardened and unreadable seeming gentleman. Promises of lascivious domination, debauched servitude and the bindings of an inescapable relationship demanding give and take without remorse burns bright within his shrewd irises, obvious in rare smiles he grants. I can’t stop myself from gravitating towards this commanding man’s intimidating yet alluring persona, despite his rough touches and all-consuming kisses that aren’t gentle or loving.
“His controlling nature shouldn’t have been so intoxicating, but I knew myself well enough to admit, I was in his thrall.”
Realistically, I shouldn’t be drawn towards the darkness of forced servitude or the exacting attitude of dominance, but there’s something powerfully seductive and fascinating about submission. Witnessing Cosima’s inevitable subservience, the way her body and mind, in its own unique method, commands Alexander is an act of reverent strength and dominance in itself. I adored her transformation from sheltered and sexually uncertain to blossoming into this liberated, wanton woman without hesitation.
Enthralled is sexually wicked and morally corrupt, however the darkness so blinding and compelling in deliverance, the juxtaposition between dominance and submissiveness written beautifully, it is hard to resist being drawn towards this narrative. I didn’t want to disclose much information regarding this duet because walking into this unaware with an open mind amplifies the sensations you experience, the emotions you undergo, the conundrum your thoughts will have to overcome.
First of all the cover to this book is absolutely perfect! At 18 Cosima is sold for debt of her fathers to Alexander Thornton. Alexander is dark, intense man. I felt bad for Cosima but her strength is amazing. Slave to her Master light and darkness both need each other. But things might not be what they seem. Wow I truly enjoyed this book very intense! I couldn’t stop reading it and that ending just makes me can’t wait till May! 5/5 stars
Stories like Enthralled by Giana Darling are my kryptonite. I love dark stories that consume me and takes readers on a wild and twisted ride. Cosima was sold on her eighteenth birthday to a man determined to own her, bend her, control her. Her Master, Alexander, was a hard man who was cold and cruel, but when it came to being a master, he was, well masterful.
This story will grip you from the start, but I must warn you, it is dark and raw and will push your imagination. Sold to pay off her father’s death, Cosima’s life changed in a way no young woman could ever imagine. This book tugged at my heart, left me breathless and shocked me all at once. I cannot wait for the next book!
Read and reviewed for Sultry Sirens Book Blog.
Happy reading!
My brain is just . You go in know that it will end on a cliffhanger because it is a duet…. so that was no surprise to me. But I was left with SO MANY QUESTIONS!!!! I am not going to lie… this book takes you to some dark places. At the beginning I was not even sure how I was going to like it. Mostly because I just was not sure how it was going to go. But I decided to have faith in Giana that the story would be worth the pissed off feelings I had at the beginning. I am so glad that I did not doubt her. There were so many ups and downs…. I was all over the place. There were times when she was describing how she was feeling…. and I was having physical reactions. (like talking about her being cold…. I got cold while sitting in my home with a nice big blanket is just ONE example) Alexander was such a dominating force, and Cosmina is a very head strong woman that has always had to take care of herself. Now she has to learn to be with this man…. and while she is his “slave” she does it on her own terms. THAT takes a tremendous amount of strength in spirit. There were so many plot twists and while I felt like I had one figured out there were still so many more that I did not see coming at all! So I can not even imagine what she has in store for us with the next book!
If you love dominating men…. and strong women being with those men, and you don’t like a bit of darkness then I think that you NEED to get this book! It is a fantastic book with a really great story to be told! I know that Cosmina has a lot more to say and I shall wait on pins and needles waiting for the rest of her story! (but I am not very patient so I may go a little crazy) This book is so deserving of more than 5 stars but that is all they will let me give.
One of the most anticipated release, Enthralled give me what I want and more in Cosima and Alexander story.
Disturbingly dark, even in scale I couldn’t imagine and I read lots of dark read, Enthralled also gives angst, secrets, passion, lust and finally love.
I need more of Master Alexander and Cosima.
*“So much is not what it seems.”*
This story was mind blowing. An incredible exploration of the Master/slave relationship but more than that it is a journey of discovering a person’s true self. Understanding that a person is more than just their looks or their title. Our protagonists are vastly different and yet fit together in a way that surprises them. Cosima is a young woman with incredible strength and bravery despite the heavy burden she carries on her shoulders. Then there is Lord Alexander Davenport. He is a disciplined man with immense control. Beautiful but deadly and yet, I feel there is more to him than even he realises. He can be a harsh master and yet he is sinfully seductive.
*“I fight the same way I f***. Think of it as foreplay.”*
While Alexander’s dominance over Cosima is intense at times, she finds something she didn’t realise she wanted: freedom in submission. Often Alexander is cold in his interactions with Cosima, even to the point of being cruel. He is determined to ensure Cosima knows her place. And yet, her fire sparks his desire because it poses a challenge for him. But there are forces surrounding them that are even harsher than Alexander’s blows. Not everyone is who they seem to be and appearances can be deceptive. Even deadly. Not to mention each one of these individuals have their own motives and I fear that blood will be spilled. If the story wasn’t intense enough, Giana Darling was dropping bombshells left, right and centre. Boom! There’s one secret blowing up. Bam! There’s another one. Pow! In case that last one wasn’t enough.
My mind was left reeling and yet I was craving more. There are so many questions left unanswered and the fate of many left in the wind. The writing in this story was fascinating. It was seductive and decadent. There were so many memorable and thought provoking lines littered throughout the story. The last line in the story was a particular favourite because it highlighted Cosima’s strength. I am eagerly awaiting the last book in the duet and keep my fingers crossed that the characters get what they deserve.
WOW! Giana Darling never ceases to amaze me with her brilliant writing. Enthralled is the perfect name for this book in more ways than one. She will have you enthralled with this story of a young Italian beauty, Cosima Lombardi. This book is dark, deep, disturbing, dynamic and very intense, to say the least. It may not be for everyone, especially if you are prone to triggers when you read, so be forewarned. If you choose to jump in and give it a go, pull up your big-girl panties and hang on for the ride. There’s much to love and despise here. It’s like a roller-coaster ride of emotions jumping off the pages. The author will bring you into the characters’ world making you feel like a fly on the wall, watching and waiting. These characters were vividly alive in my mind’s eye by the time I finished Book 1. My emotions were all over the place, my mind racing and heart pounding with the possibilities of what was to come. I’m going to be anxiously awaiting Enamoured, Book #2. It can’t get here soon enough for me!