From bestselling author L.J. Shen, comes a new, standalone, contemporary romance. On special sale for only 99 cents for a LIMITED TIME.“Best book of the year” – Angie’s Dreamy Reads.“Best book I HAVE EVER READ” – Bookalicious Blog Babe.They call him The Mute for a reason.Hard, cold and calculated, he rarely speaks.When he does, it’s with disdain.When he does, his words aren’t meant for me.When he … does, his words aren’t meant for me.
When he does, my stomach flips and my world tilts on its axis.
He is thirty-three.
I am eighteen.
He’s a single dad and my father’s business partner.
I’m just a kid to him and his enemy’s daughter.
He’s emotionally unavailable.
And I am…feeling. Feeling things I shouldn’t feel for him.
Trent Rexroth is going to break my heart. The writing isn’t just on the wall, it’s inked on my soul.
And yet, I can’t stay away.
A scandal is the last thing my family needs. But a scandal is what we’re going to give them.
And oh, what beautiful chaos it will be.
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SQUEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!! I finished reading last night and freaking hell I can’t stop thinking about it! I can’t stop smiling or fangirling and my cheeks hurt from all that but it was everything I had hoped Trent’s book would be and HOLY MOLY GUACAMOLE! Shen delivered. She freakin’ delivered! I am going, to be honest, the book started as a 4 Star, moved up to a 4.5 in the middle of the book but HOT DAMN! That last 20% turned the whole book around and that was how it turned into a 5 Star read! Literally, THE BEST 20 minutes of my life reading a book.
“You know what your problem is, Trent?”
“No, but I’m sure you’re about to tell me.”
“You fight the tide. You fling your arms, kicking your legs, trying to escape it, overpower it. The secret is to go with the flow. The secret is to ride the wave. Don’t be afraid to get wet.”
*sigh* Just when you think that this series can’t be better Shen throws another and makes you fall in love with the HotHoles all over again.
Scandalous is a guilty pleasure that once you start you can’t stop. You are pulled into complex, riveting, and so thought-provoking. This isn’t just a story between two individuals falling in love; it is about two individuals battling their own problems who come together in unfavourable circumstances and this chaos bred a beautiful relationship that broke all stereotypes and boundaries.
“Tide… You’re such a fucking tide.”
“Seahorse,” she retorted.
“I wish.”
“You are.”
“Maybe,” I said, sounding unsure for the first time in a long time.
“I’m not your tide, Trent.”
“No. You’re my Delilah, Edie, and I’m your Samson. You want to ruin me, destroy me, strip me of my power, and betray me. I should stay away from you, but I want you too fucking much. And when it’s all over, when all that’s left of us is sweaty flesh and shattered minds and torn hearts, you will remember me as the man who made you cry, and I’ll remember you as the girl I had to break to stay afloat.”
Trent Rexroth’s silent protectiveness, loyalty, and dedication towards his family and friends and business are admirable. But what isn’t known to many people is the disarray his family life has been and you can see he is trying his best to fix it and make it good for his daughter, Luna.
Edie Van Der Zee is the opposite of Trent. The daughter of Trent’s in-office rival, she is the forbidden fruit. Spontaneous, careless yet loving and loyal to the people that matter to her Edie turns Trent’s life upside down.
Secrets, lies, deceits, and manipulations are what Edie’s life is made of and when she unintentionally bumps into Trent, and what begins is a series of events that will leave you wanting more and more and more of this unconventional relationship.
“I love how fierce you are when it comes to the people you care about. I love that you’re so aware of your flaws. I love that you fight them. I even love it when you succumb to them. I love every single part of you. The good and the bad. And I will never love anyone else the way I do you, because it’s not about my age. It’s about my heart. It belongs to you. Trent Rexroth, you’re my ocean. You make me wet.”
Ugh! This series has just gotten better and better and makes you fall in love with their unconventional heroes all that much more. Since the day Vicious landed on Kindle till yesterday after I finished the last book of the original HotHole I have LOVED every single minute reading this series. And it is hands down, the best series I’ve read this year!
You know how the saying goes by GBatiste: “Love doesn’t discriminate, only people do.”
This book is exactly it! It breaks all stereotypes and barriers; you don’t get cookie-cutter individuals with just a fatal flaw, you get two individuals who are messed up because life made them so and they are trying to wade through those tides.
The age or the race do not matter because as someone once said “Love has no eyes, Love has no age, Love has no culture nor religion, Love has no disability, Love has no gender or race. It only takes two crazy individuals to make it happen.”
5 Stars!
The scandal is real!!!
This was a great book! Truth is that I’ve had a HUGE hangover from another book and was having a tough time getting into another one. Scandalous sucked me in! The very beginning had my heart pounding . Trent and Edie are absolutely not the couple you think you are going to be rooting for. I felt like with all the b.s. she had been dealt in her life, Trent was NOT what she needed….hence the reason I am not a writer! I changed my mind very quickly. I began to scream at him through my kindle to get his head out of his butt!
The tides are very strong in this book….and the ocean is constantly getting everything wet.
This book is amazing I love the relationship between Edie and Trent. I was very surprised with Trent though I guess because he was a mute I wasn’t expecting his attitude. It was very entertaining though to hear the mute get all the attitude he gave right back though!!
This book lived up to all the hype that I heard from the ARC readers! It consumes you from the first pages all the way through. Trent is smoking with all of his Hothole tendencies and Edie is fierce. The way LJ Shen writes always makes me feel so invested in the characters. It’s a long lasting attachment!
“If you want to be strong, be.”
I’m sure that as fans of this incredible series, we all have our favorite #HotHole, but I must say it’s the broken badasses that do it for me. Vicious and Trent are the dark ones, and for that reason, they are both at the top of my favorite BBF list. And L.J. Shen, she’s up there in my top author list. Just try and keep me away from one of her books, I dare you.
Trent is a self-made man. He knows what it’s like to have nothing. He also knows what it’s like to have your dreams crushed. He’s been through some dark times and he’s still there. He’s a single dad trying to do the best that he can, but he’s struggling. Not that you would know that by seeing him. He is full of confidence and attitude. He wears his sexy suit to the office and works tirelessly, keeping to himself. He’s close with his partners, his brothers. They have his back, but they also know to leave him alone unless he needs an intervention. He doesn’t talk much, not if he doesn’t have anything to say. And that’s often. He’s earned his nickname among gossips as being ‘the mute’.
Edie is doing her best too, but she’s also struggling. She has secrets and frustrations dragging her down, and surfing is the only thing that brings her peace in her chaotic world. Every day is hard, and she sees no light at the end of the tunnel. But she keeps trying, working to survive and take care of those she cares about. She might be young, and small, but her heart is huge. And don’t let her size fool you, her attitude is big enough to change your mind about her being helpless. She fights for what she wants, and she takes no prisoners. Other than herself. She keeps herself on lockdown. She sacrifices herself for others. She does what she has to do, because she sees no other way.
Let me tell you, this story is full of details that will blow your mind. You will be offended and irate at situations that will make you want to virtually kick some ass. But you’ll just have to do like I did, and bite your nails to nubs and hope that the author with have your back and take care of that for you. Trusting that you’ll get your satisfaction, eventually. Hoping that things will work out the way that you want them to. You might as well go in knowing that you’ll fall in love with another of her characters, maybe even more. I know that I did. Edie is my new girl crush. She’s a welcome addition to the scandalous hot holes. She gives as good as she gets and it’s a blast to watch her do it. I don’t know if this story is the end of the series or not, of course, I hope not. But there are only so many Sinners of Saint and that’s kinda what the series is about. Personally, another character I kinda fell for is Bane. I think he deserves his own book. Are you listening L.J. Shen? Whatever you decide, whatever you write next, just know that I’ll be there. The line forms here…
‘Scandalous’ is soul-touching deep and pantie-dropping hot!
This book is something else… It’s utter perfection! I literally couldn’t touch another book the whole weekend. I really tried. But I just couldn’t unwrap my mind from ‘Scandalous’.
I also needed time to gather my thoughts for writing a review. And even now, four days after finishing it, I’m not able to put down the words describing how this book made feel. Might be that I’m no native speaker and it makes it even harder for me to express my feelings. And what can I write that others haven’t already?
I’m a hugh fan of the HotHoles. They are by far my badboy favorite bookboyfriends. And L.J. Shen again demonstrates with ‘Scandalous’ her strong writing skills while creating such troubled and broken characters like Edie and Trent.
To be honest, at the beginning – well actually it was the hint at the end of ‘Ruckus’ – I was pretty skeptical about the age gap, and I was wondering if this can really work. But Leigh totally pulled it off! The chemistry between Edie and Trent, as well as between Edi and Luna and Trent’s selfless love for his daughter was just phenomenal. There was no insta love but insta attraction which first turned into hate, but hate is so close to love, that borders start blurring until suddenly you find yourself falling in love with this very one person you didn’t want nor expected to.
It was hard to put down this book, but I had to due to work. My mind kept wandering to the story through the whole day. I couldn’t wait finishing work just to start reading again. I was touched by the deep personal stories of Trend and Edie and how they slowly started accepting that they are good for and with each other. That their souls were entangled, that they were each others healing balm.
Before I started to read ‘Scandalous’ I’ve read in one review, that this person never marked as many things as she did with this one. And YES, totally agree with this. I didn’t count how many sentences or passages I marked. But it was too good to let this slip. Mostly I liked the seahorse and ocean references. They fitted this story so naturally.
Now I’m a little sad that the HotHoles are over. I enjoyed every moment with each of them and it was a pleasure riding their stories along with them. ‘Sinners of Saint’ is definitely one of the very best badboy series of it’s genre. Even though you can read each as standalone, I highly recommend reading them in order.
Starting the ‘Sinners of Saint’ series is like open a pack of chocolate: It’s sinful, it’s tasty, it’s addictive and with the first taste you can’t stop and eat the pack all in one. When finished, you feel satisfied, blissful and giddy but you also feel the loss of what’s gone wanting more.
This book will take you on a story of a 18 Year and a 33 year old that feel the electric current between them. They will show you how age isn’t important it is the heart and the person inside that give you everything you need.
5 SEA stars! Poetic and forbidden a singular mix for one of the best books I have read. Perfection wrapped in a sexy cover. Highly recommend!
Holy seahorses! This book is imperfectly perfect. I am left mute! Scandalous by LJ Shen was one of the most awaited books for me over the month. I was patently counting the days for its release and here is this masterpiece, breathing and living. I have many expectations about this baby because all the other books in the series covered the story of each HotHole (Jamie, Vicious and Ruckus) and I swear LJ Shen left Trent Rexroth’s book to the end for a big reason. And I wasn’t wrong. She could never disappoint her readers.
Her writing is my new kind of drug. She is a talented lady who has the power to turn a good story into gold like Midas King. Her books have something that makes them special. The other books in the Sinners of Saint Series are the best I have ever read. Each one better than the other.
This time LJ Shen mixes taboo, age difference and interracial issues. Topics that are sensitive and delicious forbidden. This is not a common book, it is perfection wrapped in a sexy cover.
Trent Rexroth is the last HotHole, the one who hide and says nothing when it is not needed. The one who didn’t have a golden spoon as the others. The one who lost and work harder to become a successful business man. A single dad who loves his little Luna. Words are not his strength. Relationships are not his thing after Luna’ s mother left them. His only priority in life is his daughter.
“Trent Rexroth was the silent hunter who would circle you for hours, striking when you least expected it.”
I shall say that Trent is my second favorite of the four HotHoles. Things never were easy for him. He is a hardworking man. He is not perfect. He always gets his way. All is done as he says.
“But only Trent Rexroth looked tortured and serious enough to cross all the bridges in the world and burn them shore to shore to get his way.”
With all of these you will think he has not a weakness but he does: Eddie Van Der Zee.
“Trent Rexroth was more than smart. He was devilishly brilliant. But that wasn’t going to help him in this battle because I made him weak.”
Eddie is a pretty and young girl. The heiress of one of the most power man in Todos Santos and business partner of the HotHoles. Her life never was easy, but as stronger as a girl her age can be, she fights for her beloved ones. She is a caring and kind girl, passionate and smart.
The tension and attraction between Trent and Eddie is gonna be intense as the fire of the hell. To Trent will not matter the age difference, not that she is his partner’s daughter. She is the light he and Luna needs.
“I wanted to get wet and let the tide wash over me without dipping a toe in the ocean. I wanted what was forbidden, and wrong, and fucking crazy. I wanted my partner’s daughter, who was nearly half my age.”
Trent is not gonna be the Prince, he is gonna be the villain (a sexy, cocky villain). And Eddie is gonna play as a beautiful broken doll.
“I gravitated toward him like he was the sun. A beautiful pleasure conceived by nature that could very well kill you if you got too close. He looked at me like I was the moon. Pale and lonely and so far away.”
You will love the poetic writing of LJ Shen in this book. Every page was bittersweet. I could not put it down. There was a character in this book who stole my heart: Luna. The pretty girl who loves seahorses because she loves his daddy. She just has him and rater than later she has Eddie too.
Scandalous is a book you do not want to miss because if you have read the other books of the Series, you will have more of the other HotHoles. Trent and Eddie’s story is the opposite of Jamie and Mel’s story. Both forbidden but pretty much intense. I highly recommend you this book. LJ Shen’s alpha men are gonna ruin you for the others.
I know I have been raving about the last three books in the Sinners of Saint series but I just finished book four Scandalous and OMG it tops them all, Trent Rexroth is my newest obsession LJ Shen really knows how to break your heart and then piece it back together again with these beautiful and broken characters that you can’t help but invest in. I devoured this book but really I have devoured all the books in this series. I don’t think you have to read these books in order but I highly recommend doing it that way. While each one centers around a different hothole you do get pieces of everyone throughout them all so you don’t want to spoil anything.
Audio Review from April 2019
You wouldn’t think that a man in his 30’s and an 18 year old girl would have that much in common other than chemistry.
Edie however is an old soul due to her parents being screwed up for her entire life.
This story shows healing and connection and how sometimes two broken souls can make a perfect connection.
This one is also narrated by Savannah Peachwood and Christian Rummel
My least favorite Sinners of Saint book. It was an ok read. The sex scenes are hot, the plot and backstory are okay. But it felt flat to me. There is nothing extraordinary about this book.
Talk about twisted! I know that’s a bold statement when it comes to this series. But it was different to have both main characters trying to play each other to an extent. I love how all the Hotholes are not just sexy, but also incredibly smart. The scheming in this book was ridiculous. But my favorite part has to be the big blended family that breaks all the stereotypes at once. It was so real and refreshing.
Ahhh Daddy Trent. He was so scandalous and I loved every moment of his and Edie’s story. It definitely surprised me with its plot twists. I don’t know what I was expecting but their story held so much. Lots of heartbreak but lots of love as well.
Trent is a single Dad to little Luna who doesn’t speak. Being he doesn’t speak much either they make quite the pair. Edie is old beyond her years after caring for her Mom and brother in ways no one her age should have to. Together they make the best kind of family.
I liked this book, which is the fourth one in the Sinners of Saint Series. This is the story of Edie Van Der Zee and Trent Rexroth.
The relationship between these two starts when Edie tries to steal something and Trent caught her. Edie is the daughter of Trent’s associate and enemy, Jordan, so when they meet again at the office, he tries to make her life hell. We get to know what the heck Jordan’s problem with Trent is, and let me tell you that I wanted to smack Jordan so bad, he really pissed me off.
I loved the hate-to-love relationship between Trent and Edie. They tried to fight their attraction, but at some point failed. Trent was really jealous, even when he fought his feelings, so it was quite funny in a way to read those scenes, but hot as well, alpha-male all the way.
Edie is a strong woman, which is not acting on her age at all; she has too many problems for an eighteen year old. I liked that she sacrificed herself to help her brother and her mother, and protect them. I loved Trent that Trent started to support Edie in taking care of her family.
The interaction between Edie and Luna, Trent’s daughter, was really sweet and I craved for more. I would have liked more interaction between Trent and Luna, but from the story I understood the problem, he didn’t know how to handle his daughter. Now I really want to reread Luna’s book.
I recommend this book, of course because its a continuation of the series, but also if you want to read about an alpha hero and feisty heroine.
I don’t know why but I just couldn’t wait to get to Trent’s story. Maybe because you don’t hear much about him in the previous stories, he is “The Mute” after all.
Although we had a bit of an age gap story w/ the prequel, DEFY, I would consider that the taboo Student/Teacher episode of the series and this is the true age gap episode.
Trent has some baggage in the form of his beautiful, non-verbal daughter, Luna. Edie, saves the day in this book. Edie not only gets “Mr. Pretty Woman” to kiss her, but she also gains Luna’s trust and love. I loved reading about Edie and Luna as much as I loved reading about Trent and Edie.
Trent has an enemy…Edie’s father. Don’t worry, Edie’s not too fond of him either. The story had a bit of a mystery as well, keeping us wondering why Edie’s father was keeping her away from Theo.
Was he an ex, her older brother, her own child? Read to find out. 🙂
The HEA ending in this book was very close to home for me, blended families are freaking awesome and interracial blended families, first time read for me. Here ya go Shen, take all the stars girl.
I have read all the Sinners of Saint books, although out of order. Trent and Edie’s story is creative, tragic and full of intrigue.
This is both an enemies to lovers and forbidden love romance and what I liked most was how Edie was so devoted and loyal to those she loved. She had her priorities straighter than most older adults.
Trent’s bad boy ways were in such contrast with the care he had for his daughter. His helplessness yet full on commitment to the best for his daughter is what adds to all his hot single dad qualities.
This is a great addition to the series.
If you love single dads, forbidden affairs, and enemies to lovers romances, this one’s for you! I was definitely intrigued as to what Trent’s story would be, after reading the previous books in the series and Broken Knight (yes, I read out of order), and his story made me so happy.
Trent Rexroth is patient, loyal, and brooding. He is a partial owner of a company with his three friends Vicious, Dean and Jaime. He’s a single father struggling with understanding and getting his daughter to talk to him. When he gets a new intern at work, he’s completely against it until he sees how she interacts with his daughter. He’s attracted to her but he knows that he shouldn’t be, considering her father and their age difference.
Edie Van Der Zee is loyal, snarky, and resilient. She loves to surf and has a lot of family struggles, but would do anything for them. Her father owns half of the company that Trent, Vicious, Dean and Jaime own. Her father has something against Trent so he blackmails his own daughter into finding out information on him. In that time, Edie becomes close to Trent and his daughter, so when she finally gets the information her father needs…
… does she go through with turning Trent over to her father, or does her love for him win?
Trent is the last of the four hotholes and his story was worth the wait. It was heartbreaking, touching, and everything I hoped for Trent’s story. Trent has the biggest love for his daughter and it was heartbreaking to see everything he went through not being able to hear his daughter speak to him, no matter how hard he tried. I loved Edie in Broken Knight, and it was fun to see how their relationship began in Scandalous. Edie is the perfect match for Trent. She has such a great connection to his daughter, Luna. I was not expecting the plot twist that was in this book at all!
This has to be my favorite book of the SoS series by LJ. I have read Trent and Edie’s story repeatedly, to the point I can almost quote some parts. I loved how this one played out, with a touch of taboo considering the age gap, the “enemies” to lovers, how these two characters flipping grew thru out the entire plot. Trent is the rags to riches member of the Hot Holes and Edie is the young woman just surviving and living for her little brother. Trent and Edie, in my own opinion, are the most multi-layered characters of the series and I will never tire of them. When these two get thrown together, the chemistry is hot enough that it could make the paint on your walls bubble. I loved how LJ intertwines the other Hot Holes and their women regularly in the plot as well as giving you a couple of glimpses of Bane. I know I will never cease to returning to this story to relive it and bask in all the angst, love, and steam of Trent and Edie.
A steamy enemies-to-lovers age-gap romance that is as well written as it is entertaining.
Holy. Scandalous.
Damn y’all, I need a float to keep me from becoming adrift or drowning in the ocean that is Trent Rexroth.
Okay, I’ve always liked his character, but he has always been the most solitary out of Hotholes….and that must have been because Leigh wanted us suffocating in his wake.
I like forbidden. Hell, I thrived on it in this book and the heat my my blood sizzle. I love the feels….Edie and Luna and Trent? Be still my broken bleeding heart.
Next up. Bane.