Waking up in a desolate cell, Gaia realizes that she has been kidnapped by a human trafficking organization, doomed to be sold to the highest bidder and unable to remember anything before her capture. An opportune rescue by Raoul, the Prince of Kayamato, saves Gaia from a gruesome future, and she is thrown into a world of luxury and privilege. As she struggles to regain her memory, Gaia learns … Gaia learns that her rescue was no accident and finds herself in even more danger, hunted by a powerful drug lord, targeted by a thrill seeking pirate, and betrayed by those she thought closest to her.
Fighting for sanity and survival, she works to unravel the truth behind her capture, each revelation more shocking than the last. The intricate web of deceptions spun around her family will shatter her world, leaving her unsure if she will ever trust again.
Through it all, she must survive to save a friend before it’s too late…
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Deceptions indeed. There was many twist and turns from this fast paced story. It had pirates, drugs and human trafficking. Kings and Queens and a Princess lost amounst them all. With many hidden secrets. I personally found at times there was too many characters stretched in too many different directions to follow a specific timeline. I however did enjoy reading about Gaia and how she found her inner strength to do what needed to be done. I want to read more to discover what lies ahead.
Gaia was kidnapped by a prostitution ring and was sold, but was saved by Raoul. With no memories of who she was before the kidnapping, she has to trust Raoul on who he says she is: someone a lot of people want their hands on. So when there are attempts to take her, it becomes evident he is right. But not for the reasons they believe.
The story was perfectly weaved to blend in mystery, adventure and a tinge of romance. Throughout the story, you think you know what will happen, but you’ll find a twist that throws you off. And in the end, we are left with more questions and are dying to find answers.
Gaia is kidnapped into a human trafficking ring and has no memory of her life before. A rescue that throws her into the world of Prince Raoul just causes her more confusion.
Jennifer Rayes is a new author to me so wasn’t sure what exactly to expect. Intricate Deceptions has adventure, suspense and mystery. There is a lot going on throughout the story and that kept me turning the pages way past bedtime. Gaia has been through so much and handles it with an amazing inner strength for her age. Raoul is sweet and seems like an all around good guy and then we have the mysterious pirate Dominique. I must say I am secretly in love with both Raoul and Dominique. Book 1 leaves you with a major cliffhanger and if you are like me you will jump right into book 2.
“I want you to have this.” Emily fastened a copper charm bracelet onto Gaia’s wrist. “That way you can remember me if we get separated.” “Ok.” Gaia twisted the bracelet around her wrist. “I won’t take it off unless I’m giving it back to you.”
Intricate Deceptions is the perfect title for this book, as the storyline was woven around so many hidden secrets. I’m still not sure who can be trusted as the twists kept coming. This was a great introduction to Ms Rayes work and I look forward to diving into the next book of the series straight away. I felt it was a bit slow at the beginning but well worth reading until the very end. Although the storyline was engaging, I found the dialogue between the characters to be a bit forced. It didn’t flow effortlessly and I feel the connection with characters was lacking. This could of been a five star read with a few tweaks.
Gaia was abducted, she suffered from amnesia and was desperate to find Emily, the young girl who was locked up with her. There was an underground drug and human trafficking ring to bring down to their knees. Gaia felt it was her responsibility to save the young girls and women from these despicable men.
Raoul had to rescue her from their grasp, they had no idea who they had in their grasp. Gaia wasn’t safe and he could use her to his advantage. With his uncle missing she’s an asset to him. However he develops feelings for her and then she is whisked away from him. Will she ever want him as much as he wants her or will her responsibilities get in the way?
This book kind of reads like a historical romance at times but they also talk about modern day items so I’m so confused the time period.
Other than that the story was great. Gaia wakes up with no memory of who she is or what happened to her. She is saved by Raoul before she can be sold by human traffickers.
Betrayal,kidnapping, murder and human trafficking are all packed into this compelling story.
Beware there is a cliffhanger ending. Luckily the second and third book are already out.
I was asked by the author to give this book a honest review.
I’m always looking for new authors to read and when Jennifer reaches out I didn’t hesitate to yes to reading and reviewing this series. There are some strong characters in this series who definitely have my attention. Dominique and Raoul have an interesting past that I can’t wait to find more about, and the underlying story of John and Mella has my interest.
Intricate Deceptions starts off rather slowly and honestly I didn’t like Gaia’s character much at the beginning. I found it odd that she was so trusting after what she had just went through. But, her character comes to life at the end and is a kickass female lead in this series. Her fight for Emily is just the beginning!
The ending is one that has me reaching for book two instantly! I can’t wait to find out how this story plays out.
Intriguing and thrilling story!
WOW! This is a new author to me, and she had me hooked with this first book. It is an intense, thrilling, and highly captivating story that had my head spinning with all of the different things happening right from the very start. What a rollercoaster ride of emotions this story took me on. There were so many ups and downs with times that I just wanted to scream!
Gaia is a very interesting character. She is strong, resilient and fierce at times. Her story starts out with her being kidnapped by human traffickers and continues on a heart-pounding tale of who took her and why. Her rescuer Raoul is intriguing and has some things he is hiding. He seems like he genuinely wants to help Gaia but he is not telling her the whole truth. I can’t wait till we learn more in the next book.
This story has so many layers to it. It’s like a very intricate spiderweb, where we think we know what is going to happen, or who the bad guys are and then – BAM – we are caught in another part of the web that the author has thrown us into. I can say that I have no idea how things are going to turn out yet and I can’t wait for book two to shed some light on this plot.
This story is fast paced, suspenseful and a thrill to read. There are so many things going on and so many twists and turns that you won’t want to look away or you might miss something. It will keep you on the edge of your seat with anticipation of what will happen next. And hang on because the massive cliffhanger ending will have you shocked and begging for more.
This is a new to me author, but the blurb caught my interest and I was all in. The first thing of note is that this isn’t a dark read. I feel like that needs to be mentioned because of how the story starts. Child sex trafficking, drugs, kidnappings, all of those things scream dark when placed in a romance novel, but this isn’t dark. In fact, it read more like a YA romance to me.
The story revolves around Gaia, a princess who is in danger, and has no memory of her life before waking up in a cell. From here things get interesting. There are a lot of unknowns, twists and turns, and interesting characters that get thrown at you. Since this is book 1 of a series I expect that, and I like all the questions it leads me to. The fast pace kept me interested and I love the mystery of it.
The writing and story telling are a little cliche in some places, but not enough to kick me out of the story. If you read enough of a certain genre you’re going to see things pop up almost all the time, so they don’t bother me. As for the world building, this is usually something that does have a huge affect on whether or not I like a book. I had a little bit of a struggle in the beginning of this one because I wasn’t sure what type of world we were in. The story starts off very current day/our world, and them switched to a slightly fantasy type feel. Eventually, I decided to think of it as an alternative reality and it became a non-issue.
There is a lot going on in this story. There is danger, secrets, lies, romance, criminal activities, and a large cast of characters who weave in and out. The story flows rather quickly and did a great job of keeping my interest. It also ends in a cliffhanger. I’m happy to see that the next book is out, and I won’t have to wait before diving in. I’m dying to find out what happens next.
This was super interesting. It started off a little slow but then it picked up. It was even more interesting after she finally got her memory back. I liked who she ends up being. And when you finally figure out more and more of the deep secrets and what had been going on before she lost her memory. I do wonder if anything is going to happen with either Raoul or Dominique. She seems attracted to both. And this is just the first book in the series.
This is a very intense involved story. There is so much going on you have to keep reading, or you will miss part of the plot. So many players have hidden agendas and will do anything to get their way. I can’t wait to find out what happens next.
I read and reviewed a copy of this book.
I was drawn into this story from the first chapter.
The beginning was interesting and the story with all the twists and turns was new. I loved Gaia’s strenght in knowing what is right and wrong and try to act accordingly.
This is a fiction, but I wish that more people were like that.
I’m looking forward to the next part of the story. The first book ended with a bang.
I voluntarily reviewed an ARC of this book.
This is my first time having the pleasure to read anything by this author and it was a great pleasurable read! The blurb drew me in and from page one I was mesmerized with this brilliant plot that is so well written. It’s a dark story and does end in a cliffhanger so reading book two is a necessity. The author has brought her world to life and filled it with such exciting characters. Regardless of the characters being the good or the evil ones they are all well developed and fit perfectly into this story. It’s a book that you have to read in one sitting as it’s just impossible to put down and I’m already planning when I can read book two. There are so many twists and turns in this story that just when you think you know what is going on and why you suddenly realize that your don’t have a clue and what you thought you knew is wrong. If you love an enthralling dark romance, then grab this book and hang on for a great ride!
Intricate Deceptions is book one in the Intricate Series and ends with a cliffhanger so they must be read in order. It’s an entertaining, action-packed, page-turner that will keep you constantly guessing while begging for more.
One decision starts the rollercoaster ride that changes Gaia’s entire world. This princes is bought, wiped of her memories, and sold but saved before her buyer can receive her. When she’s stolen from the man who saved her and taken back home she finally gets her memories back but it’s not at all what she had hoped for. Now secrets are being revealed and nothing is as it seemed before… it’s much worse. When things go from bad to worse she becomes Iva’s new Queen and must decide what to do to survive the choices and battles she is soon to face. She never expected what happens next.
Highly recommend!
This is the first book I read from Jennifer Rayes. To me this is a dark fantasy.
It has twists and turns and the characters are wonderful. I was quickly in to this story and it held me captive until the end. I don’t want to spoil so I only say there was 1 thing that takes too long but this first book in this trilogy is great.
Thank you for reaching out and giving me an ARC Jennifer!!!
4 solid stars!
This is my first read by this author and as you can see I am all ready on to the second book. This book has a lot of twist and turns. This would have been a five star for me if it wasn’t for Gaia being so trusting when she had no idea who or what she was. One minute she is wanting to kill anyone standing in her way from getting Emily to just trusting the word of someone she just met. She does however make up for it!! I don’t know what to make of Raoul just yet, on one hand I like his protective bossy way but on the other I think he is hiding something. I love Dominique and can’t wait to read more on him. He seems to really be on Gaia side. I love the other side characters like John and Mella 🙂 This does end in a huge OMG cliffhanger!! Great job Jennifer!!! On to the next book!
This story just blew me away! It so twisty and full of crazy turns. My notes on this story are super long! I flipping loved this story! I listened to it on audio and could not get enough. I enjoy how these characters all have multiple level to then. While I was WOWed by the intricate story(and I cant understand why everyone isn’t reading this!) I do have a few issues with it. First of its a cliffhanger which are not my favorite reads. Second the narration has some blips where it seems like they were correcting an area but it doesn’t blend with the rest. Otherwise…why aren’t you getting this one?
Intricate Deceptions was just okay for me and took me a bit to read. I felt confused at times but towards the middle the story got clearer and kind of had my interest. I just feel like this story line fell short and the characters didn’t stand out to me. I’m still thinking about reading the next one in hopes more will be explained and so I can find out what happens next.
*I received a free copy of this book direct from the author in exchange for an honest review.*
Intricate Deceptions follows a young a girl, Gaia, who finds herself being held against her will and with no memory of who she is or how she got there. She learns that she was sold to human traffickers but gets rescued and is told that she is someone very important. From there, Gaia’s story continues to unfold as she learns who she is and begins to regain her memory.
This book is easy to read and follow the storyline. It is a story of intrigue and romance, including a potential love triangle. It also contains repeated messages about the horrors of human sex trafficking. There was perhaps a bit more romance than I like, particularly early on until the plot really got rolling. And things got rolling when Gaia fully regains her memory. The story comes at you from many different angles and contains plenty of storytelling elements to keep the reader interested.
My chief complaints against the book are that some things just transpire way too quickly, making the story feel too rushed at certain poi ts. For instance, it felt as if Gaia regained her memory all at once and in a sudden manner. Later, a raid was planned and carried out in the blink of an eye. Also, some of the dialogue between characters didn’t flow naturally.
In all, I ended up enjoying Intricate Deceptions and wish to thank Jennifer Raynes for giving me the opportunity to read her work