Nikolai Alexei Young was born with a special gift…one he’d do anything to lose. The heart and soul of every person he comes into contact with is an open book to his heightened senses. Colorful emotions, whispers of thoughts, the sour tastes of old memories…He feels them all. The sci-fi books would call him an empath. For Nikolai, his ability has made him an exile. He roams the U.S. alone, … avoiding the glut of life in big cities, and using his innate talents to win money in underground poker games. Just enough to keep going, one town to the next. He has no hope that his life can be anything else, until he meets her…
At nineteen, Fiona Starling was trapped in an ugly, desperate situation until she freed herself the only way she knew how. Now three years later, living outside Savannah, Georgia, she is rebuilding her life on her own terms; seizing every moment and saving every penny so that she might fulfill her dream of moving to the raw wilderness of Costa Rica. But behind her carefree smile beats the heart of a lonely young woman haunted by her past, until a chance encounter with a tattooed stranger changes everything…
Fiona takes Nikolai under her roof for three sultry nights, waiting out the rain of a summer storm. She grows more and more fascinated by this brooding stranger with whom she shares an intense physical connection—a connection so strong, she wonders if there is something between them beyond lust and passion. Nikolai is shocked to discover that Fiona calms the raging turmoil in his heart. She alone silences the din of other people’s lives, and envelops him in the sweet beauty of her inner self. Every moment he’s with her—every touch of her skin—brings him closer to the peace that’s been eluding him his entire life.
But Fiona harbors secrets that she is too terrified to reveal. After Nikolai confesses his unique ability, she is caught between wanting to believe him and fearing he’ll eventually unearth her own dark past. When the unthinkable happens, Fiona’s plans come crashing down, and Nikolai discovers his hated ability might be the only thing that can save the woman he loves.
Sugar & Gold is a STANDALONE new adult romance with shades of the paranormal. Intended for readers 18 and up.
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5 STARS!!!!
Reading this beautiful and complex story was such a different experience to what I have been reading lately. Sugar and Gold was intense from the first page onwards. Emma Scott has a beautiful way with words. I could feel every emotion Nickolai and Fiona were feeling!
Nickolai has the ken that’s what he calls his ability to sense other peoples emotions and thoughts! He travels from place to place playing in illegal poker games. He wins when he wants to always know what the other players have my sensing there emotions using ken.
Fiona is saving money to move to Perto Rico. Then she will be finally free from all the hurt and pain Steve caused. No more looking behind her shoulder to see if he has found her. In just a few more months she will have enough money to by her small house and the beach and live the rest of her days in peace.
After her friends convince her to live a little Fiona goes out to a club to enjoy herself. Sitting at the bar Nickolai notices a beautiful woman with light pink hair. He is drawn to her beauty and the peacefulness he feels inside her. Later that night they both go home together intending to have a one night stand increasing have a strong bond they have already.
I wouldn’t say this was insta love, it was more of an insta lust but because it was so intense you could tell straight away! All of it came perfect together. Nickolai and Fiona matched one another so well they both had they same type of personality.
The end has to be my favourite part of there was a huge turn in events that I really was not expecting. Nickolai saved the day with help from a mysterious friend. Emma Scott gave us the perfect HEA and left me totally satisfied.
Emma Scott pens another gorgeous tale of love, honesty, and hope. Told in the alternating pov’s of the male and female leads, I read this story as a standalone and didn’t struggle at all. With eloquent story telling gift Scott brings to live her engaging characters in an imaginatively and creatively orchestrated plot that makes you BELIEVE. Believe in the power of love and urges you to find faith in that power. Love heals all and it’s message running rampant throughout Sugar & Gold that really struck a powerful chord with me. I like being reminded of that, it’s why I read romance. And it’s something that elevates a good book to great.
5 well deserved “Love and Hope”-stars!
I received this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
“My life has been on hold for years. It began when I met you.”
Sugar & Gold stands out like no other book. The intensity of this story goes directly under your skin like an injection that spreads through your whole body and mind.
The first chapter started slowly but soon it was very clear that this story is really something else.
Suddenly I felt sucked right into the pages between the written words like Alice was sucked into Wonderland. I totally forgot everything around me. Not sure if I’ve ever read such an intense sex scene before. And from that moment on I literally lived between the pages. If I could, I would have read it in one sitting.
I can’t and won’t say more than: This book is all a romance fan ever wishes for!
Thank you Emma for this extraordinary reading experience!
“Even in a deluge of rain, kissing Fiona was like tasting candy under a sun at midday.”
“Him and me. I was his shield, guarding his peace, and he was my foundation, unwavering beneath me.”
BLOWN AWAY!
WOW. First, why did it take me so long to read this book!?
Emma Scott has created one of her most gripping story lines with Sugar and Gold. Her writing is emotional, impactful and unique. I have NEVER read anything quite like this and it was phenomenal.
Nikolai has the ability to feel other emotions, thoughts and feelings with a simple touch. He is tortured by this gift as he has never understood it. He is constantly on the move from city to city until he meets
Fiona and everything changes for him.
I adored Fiona and her connection to Nik immediately. She has this wonderful ability to quiet the chaos in Nik’s head and it is a beautiful thing.
Fiona is running from an emotionally abuse ex husband and doesn’t trust easily.
Together and individually they are battling emotional scars but the beauty in this story is how they heal each other with their love.
This is one incredible story that will stick with me for a long time to come and 5 stars could never be enough!
Totally in love with this authors words; I love these slightly ‘psychic’ characters she’s created. How torn they are with their gift and how their one true love is out there waiting to be found; equally as tortured and running from a past life of pain and sorrow.
Their journey was never going to be straight forward but right from the start I felt the connection to these characters, felt empathy and was routing for them early on. But once again, Emma tortured her charcters and made them work extremely hard for their HEA.
Great to see Evan who popped in for a cameo appearance. These two powerful characters sat round a table having a pint… brilliant! So normal. Loved the dual epilogue as well; its always great to catch up with previous characters and get a glimpse into their life. Especially after the road Evan and Jo had. To see them all set up in their new life was heart melting
Two broken people meet. That is how most beautiful stories start. Finding the person that can see beneath the broken to the beauty inside. This story is just a bit different and unexpectedly more beautiful for it’s difference. Nik and Fiona seem to bring out the best in each other from the minute they meet but secrets, lies and haunted pasts will bring everything to a head in the most unexpected of ways. While having an otherworldly feeling, I believe that there are people out there who have the abilities that Nik has and I found this to be just a beautiful story of love and strength.
More than 5 stars….was hesitant to read this because of the mystical theme but I am so glad I did…..Emma Scott is one of my all time favorite authors and this book was beyond wonderful..Nic and Fiona are beautiful together ….it is such a powerful story of love and belonging that will stay with me for a long time
A beautiful story of love and hope, Nik and Fiona are unique characters. Both different but with similar backgrounds, I loved their journey as individuals and as a couple.
I absolutely loved this story. The chemistry between Fiona and Nikolai was so delicious, so powerful, so perfect.
I never wanted to put this book down. So beautifully written, I could feel and see everything as the story was told.
So descriptive.
So intoxicating.
So amazing.
I wanted to be a part of the story.
This packed a punch full of emotions. It grabbed my heart from the very beginning and didn’t let go.
This is my second book by this author. I’ve loved them both. A lot.
I want to read all the Emma Scott books.
This is my first book by Emma Scott. As I understand it this is book 2 in the Dreamcatcher series, but can be read as a standalone, which is good as I haven’t read the first one, but this did not detract from the story at all.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book, the blurb intrigued me enough to try a new author, and it didn’t disappoint, I was thoroughly hooked from page 1. I loved the concept of the story, a typical boy meets girl but with a touch of paranormal, and it was beautifully done!!
Nikolai (Nik) has been born with a gift, or a curse as far as he’s concerned. From a very early age he’s had the ability to see / taste / smell other peoples emotions – he sees them as colours around the person, which change depending on their mood and past. He can also sometimes read thoughts. But this is not something he can control, he can’t block it out, and he gets it from everyone around him. He was treated as a psychiatric patient as a child and suffered at the hands of doctors who did not understand how special he was. Now he lives his life travelling across the country playing poker, using his ‘ken’ as he calls it, to see how players at the table are reacting and so can’t help but win. But this means suffering by being around people, which he can only do for a limited amount of time, as the influx of his ken is just too much to take. His only escape is the pain of tattoos and piercings, which give him a reprieve from the onslaught of people and their emotions.
Until he meets Fiona at a dance club, he is drawn inexplicably to her. She herself is a tormented soul, having suffered for years and been mentally abused, to the point where her abusers thoughts and comments invade her everyday life, belittling her, defeating her, breaking her. Her only plan is to make enough money to move to Costa Rica, to escape her demons. But she is allowing herself to have a one night stand before she goes, and Nik seems to fit the bill.
A great story, very emotional at times, full of passion and about learning to live with yourself, love yourself and believe in yourself. The PNR twist brought a unique side to the story which was just fabulous. I loved Nik and truly felt for him and how he had to cope with what life threw at him. Fiona has had a hard time also, but she is a fighter and determined to make it through. As a couple they compliment each other perfectly. They have some hot and steamy sexy scenes also in here, phew!
A great book, 4 / 4.5 stars!! I thoroughly recommended everyone to give this a try. I will definitely read the first book in this series and will keep an eye out for further books from Emma.
How do you do it Emma Scott. You’ve rendered me speechless once again. My heart and soul is filled with light, love and vibrant colors. Sugar & Gold was such a beautiful and profound reading experience that left me wanting for more once I turned the final page. Bravo.
Sugar & Gold is part of the Dreamcatcher series. It can easily be read as a standalone but I strongly recommend that you read How To Save a Life because it’s just as fabulous and because a couple of characters make an appearance in S&G which I was freaking excited about. Ecstatic was more like it. How Emma Scott incorporated these characters into S&G was done flawlessly and with a purpose. It strengthened the premise of the story and the characters connection. Both HTSAL and S&G have shades of the paranormal and I love that it’s within the characters cause that only makes them more unique and intriguing.
S&G moved me numerous times to tears especially because of Nik and Fiona. They were both flawed and tormented but for different reasons. Nik, because of his affliction, the ken which made him see, taste other people emotions. At times even hearing other people’s thoughts. Fiona was fighting her past which had left her weak and doubting her own self worth. In a way she was rediscovering herself and becoming stronger.
When Nik and Fiona stumbled across one another they both found solace and peace in the midst of their own struggles. Their union was intense and intoxicating. I almost felt I had the ken like Nik because I could see and feel everything they were experiencing. It was powerful and emotional at times. Suddenly tears appeared and I couldn’t hold them back. That’s a testament of a skillful author when words can evoke such strong emotions from a reader.
Emma Scott is a master storyteller. Her elegant and poignant prose enveloped me from the first page and kept me safely tucked in a cocoon filled with warm, joy and love until I reached the final page. There’s an artistry to storytelling and Sugar & Gold encompasses all of that thanks to Emma Scott.
5 BadAssDirtyLoveAndHopeStars
Nikolai has been punished, isolated and damaged because of his abilities in his youth, he now suffers with his inability to turn off the skill of seeing, tasting and experiencing other peoples feelings and memories, using his ‘ken’ to earn money playing poker and fund his rootless lifestyle. This sustains him for years until he meets Fiona, with her ability to quiet the chaos inside, he can tell she has her own demons that she struggles with, but when they are together the rest of the world and all its complications just slip away. Their relationship is a perfect blend of sweet and steamy!
I loved the feel of this story, and did not see the moment coming where their bubble would burst, that scene took my breath away! I was really happy to see Evan and Jo make an appearance (characters from Dreamcatcher #1 How to Save a Life), and how they influenced Nik and Fiona’s story. For me this book was all about acceptance, of yourself and others, and finding your inner strength.
Some of this book hit a bit close to home for me, some of the conversations from Fiona’s memories could have been taken straight from my life which caught me unawares but it was very realistic, showing you how insidious some of these acts can be!
I thoroughly recommend this beautifully written story!
I think this was a first for me, with an Emma Scott book…the tears didn’t start until about 3/4 of the way in! Up until that point I really was fooling myself thinking I’d be able to get through this book without any tears. But if I told you what caused the first wave you’d probably just laugh, so that’s going to stay between me and my kindle. And my Twitter, since I tweeted Emma when it happened!
Once again Ms. Scott held me completely captivated by her storytelling. I really wish I could live inside one of her books, even just there on the periphery- not necessarily interacting, just watching and waiting for the story to play out. But available for a hug or a hand to hold, or a shoulder to lean on if needed. Or you know, a kiss if one of her guys needs a little more personalized attention. Ahem, moving on…
I absolutely adored this book and its story of love and perseverance and hope. I loved Fiona- such a strong, determined, vulnerable young woman. She’s been through a lot but she’s no longer letting anything or anyone hold her back- she’s living her life, taking charge and making the best of every situation. And then there’s Nik, what can I say about Nik? He’s beautiful, broken, and tortured. And I loved him oh so very much. I can’t imagine the pain he’s suffered in his life, not only the physical pain he deals with from his “gift” but the heartache he’s had to endure when it came to his family. There’s only so much a person can handle before reaching the end of their rope, and that’s just what’s beginning to happen with Nik, when he and Fiona meet.
Nik and Fiona together? Pure wonder and joy and magic. She’s the calm to the storm raging within him. With her he’s never felt such peace. Neither one had any expectations beyond their weekend together. But sometimes two people will have such a soul deep connection that there’s really no letting go and you just have to throw caution to the wind and go with what feels right. And that couldn’t be more true for Nik and Fiona. Once they found each other there was no turning back, even as life conspired to bring them down. There wasn’t anything these two couldn’t face, together.
Their story is so passionate and all-consuming, I literally could not put this book down- just look at my FitBit stats for Sunday, if you don’t believe me. Nik and Fiona, like every other character Emma Scott has written, own a piece of my heart. Sugar & God is another brilliant masterpiece.
*Although this is book 2 in the Dreamcatcher series it can be read as a standalone, without a doubt. But I cannot recommend reading How to Save a Life enough! It’s a wonder on its own.
Sugar and Gold was a good read. The story started off slow then the pace slowly picked up. This is not a fast action read, but don’t let that deter you from reading this book because you will enjoy this story. I absolutely loved the main and the secondary characters and the story had a bit of paranormal feel to it. There was a lot of inner monologue but it honestly goes with the story; its a huge part of the story or shall I say the characters. The ending was so loving and sweet that it made the story worthwhile. The ending alone makes you want to recommend this story to all romance reads because there is no doubt that they will enjoy it. I know I did.