A new dark romance from New York Times bestseller Anna ZairesHe came to me in the night, a cruel, darkly handsome stranger from the most dangerous corners of Russia. He tormented me and destroyed me, ripping apart my world in his quest for vengeance.Now he’s back, but he’s no longer after my secrets.The man who stars in my nightmares wants me.
Tormentor Mine
By annazaires
Hot Russian shows up at your house and tortures you for information? Umm… yes? Don’t judge me. Peter scorches the pages (or your ears, if you’re listening on Audible) in the first book in this completed 4 book series by my good author friend, Anna Zaires. This title is free in ebook. This series is definitely worth your time!
This. This is the type of dark romance I look for. It’s not a quick read -thank goodness!- and this allows for a full, detailed and developed story. From start to finish, this story develops, unfolds and builds while the reader is absolutely enthralled and dragged along for a hell of a ride.
Peter was the kind of amazingly complex character that I’ll be looking for, for years to come. But I know I’ll end up just rereading this series (this author) gleefully. Totally focused on whatever he’s decided to do, to take care of, to address. Tragically flawed, and unapologetic. The kind of character that stays with you.
Sara was wonderfully believable. Her push and against and resistance to Peter simply made sense. Written in a way that didn’t make me start to feel sorry for Peter. She was smart, wants TSTL, reasonable and caught up in something she never could have prepared for.
And then the story. Fantastic, somehow absolutely believable and so. Very. Hawt. This was amazing read. This series is well worth the time for fans of this romantic genre. And frankly, I can see as a possible introduction to new readers of the dark. However, that’s at your own risk and any dislike of the genre -not the writing or story- definitely shouldn’t reflect on the author or in the review.
I stumbled across this intriguing book through an Amazon ad on my Kindle. I almost swiped it off my screen, but something made me hesitate. This was my first time reading this author so I downloaded a sample — and I was hooked!
Let me say this book does have a cliffhanger. I despise cliffhangers when I don’t know they’re coming (which is a large part of why I deducted 1 star). But the writing was very well done, and the story just sucked me right now. When I got to the end, I was disappointed their tale was unresolved. Normally, I’d refuse to move forward if I hadn’t been warned about the cliffhanger, but this book… this one is different. I had to know! Needed to find out what happened next. So I one-clicked book 2.
This is a darker romance with violence, bloodshed, and stalking. If any of those are triggers for you, pass this one by. But if you love an anti-hero, a book with twists and turns, heartbreak and love, then you definitely need to this one a try.
I sped through this story. Peter not only kidnapped her; he kidnapped me, too. This story was my introduction into dark novels. It grabbed me, hooked me and pulled me under into the dark and murky reeds of criminal love. I haven’t read anything else like it, equal or better to it yet. This book is on my profile page as one of my 3 all time favorite books!
This book was all kinds of screwed up and I loved it. Not a traditional love story by any means this book goes to dark places. I found that I couldn’t look away, couldn’t stop reading. Great writing although this story will absolutely not be for everyone. I loved it. Twisted romance for sure.
cliff hanger…though, I have to admit, was really enjoying the storyline.
Loved this book! After reading the Twist Me series and the Capture Me series I’ve been obsessed with Peter! This book was a really great start to this new spin-off series! I was hooked right from the beginning. Peter has a list of men/women who took part in the massacre of a small village. In that small village were his wife and son and they were tragically killed. Sara is a doctor and is the wife of one of the men on that list and when he first meets her, it’s not pretty. But he becomes obsessed with her and stalks her and makes himself at home with her without her compliance.
This book had everything I loved about the Twist Me and Capture Me series but with its own twist. I couldn’t put it down! Anna Zaires is one of my favorite authors. She’s a phenomenal writer!
It was interesting
Good read
This was a good series! What started out as a free book on Bookbub I bought the whole series. Not only was it action pact but the main male characters -hero if you will Julian and Peter were so alpha male in 2 different perspectives. Now I will say with Peter and Sara she did get on my nerves a lot with her wishy washy attitude. Julian & Nora I thought her character was far more stronger and certain. I have not read Lukas & Yulia yet bit they do look like they would be a power house couple.
Well written. After reading it the story stays with you and can’t get enough. It’s not dragging and can’t put my ipad down. If only there are no chores for the day I will binge read until I can finish the whole mine series back to back. That’s how entertaining it is.
Anna Zaires is Anna Zaires.
As you know I *wasn’t* interested, but holy f•ck did I like this.
She is such an amazing writer.
I’m glad she’s writing something “softer” now (the ‘Wall Street Titan’ series). Dark is not for everyone and she deserves to be on everyone’s shelves.
***SPOILERS***
Two reasons why this worked for me:
1. Heroine’s marriage was done *before* her husband’s first death. It didn’t end with his death, THANK YOU.
2. Hero was trapped with a pregnancy. And how it happened was definitely rape imo.
Twisted and unrealistic but I enjoyed it just the same.
The was my first book by Anna and I had no idea what I was in for. Peter is seeking revenge on any and all who killed his wife and son while he was away on a mission along the way, he meets Sara. This book was filled with suspense, romance, intrigue.
I first caught sight of Peter in the ‘Twist Me’ trilogy and was instantly enamored by this man! Let’s just face the facts…Anna will bewitch you with her overblown alphas.
Peter is a grudge-bearing widower on the hunt for the men responsible for the death of his wife and son. With the help of Nora Esguerra, he has retrieved a list of names that will send him on a vengeful and murderous journey.
Kidnapping the wife of his enemy leads Peter and his team into mishap and complete pandemonium. Survival and vengeance are key elements in this plot of releasing Peter from his absolution.
Sarah is an unexpected gem bringing Peter to a fault in his plan, all the while delving into a steamy case of Stockholm Syndrome!
As always, I am going to be honest here and say, I have tried a lot of dark romances over the years and this book is the best so far. Most of my road blocks with dark romances is either in the extreme lack of actual romance in the story, or the situation that the heroine finds herself in is easy to escape from. This book has neither of those problems.
Both the hero and heroine of this book were very well written with emotional pasts that really pulled me in. Peter is a tortured soul with an upbringing that could make the Boogie Man cringe. Through his actions to survive as well as his strong need for vengeance, he finds himself in a high ranking position within the Russian Special Forces and with a family he did not expect to have. Heart break and tragedy strikes again when his family is killed in a raid to find a terrorist cell that turned out to never have been in the area. This pushes his desire for vengeance to a whole new level and he starts his mission to hunt down and kill everyone responsible.
Sara is a woman who feels a little like a cat backed into a corner. She is a successful caring doctor who married a journalist named George. To the outside world their life is perfect but the truth is their relationship is in such ruin it makes the Colosseum look shiny and new. When George is involved in a car accident that leaves him in a vegetated state, Sara finds herself in the midst of dealing with FBI protection and unable to go through with the divorce she wanted out of guilt.
The relationship between these two characters is so emotionally complicated from the start. Sara meets Peter for the first time when he breaks into her home and attacks her for information on George’s whereabouts. Sara proves to be loyal and a fighter as she refuses to tell Peter what she knows. This seems to draw Peter in, however she is scared out of her mind and both Sara and Peter are surprised when she winds up in his arms seeking comfort from her attacker.
Chemistry between these two is off the charts. Despite every reason for them to hate each other, they also can’t seem to get enough. Let me just say, things get hot in these sheets. Sara feeds off the ability to just let go of the controlled perfect lifestyle that was thrust on her as Peters all-consuming violent power sweeps her away on a tied of passion. Peter find his need for vengeance cooled by her presence and the numb emotions are replaced with something he can’t quite name. When he possess her for the first time he find a strange solace in his desire to cause Sara both pain and intense pleasure.
As I mentioned, this book doesn’t over look all the ways Sara could escape Peter. I love the way Anna Zaires molds Peters past and current mission in a way that really made me feel as confused and panicked as Sara was.
Emotions wage war in each character’s mind and between each other. Honestly the way the inner turmoil of Peter and Sara’s relationship is taken into consideration in this story made me feel sorry for both of them. I have never experienced anything even in the same state as what Sara goes through and yet I found myself relating to her on a level that made my feelings about Peter flip back and forth.
Darkness isn’t the only thing happening in this book; it’s pierced often by the light of love that is slowly growing between the two characters. Personally, I really loved the way their romance is shown in this book. Peter knows the gravity of how they first met and his mission places a relationship between them next to impossible to achieve, but he will make Sara his no matter what it takes. While he could force everything he wants on her, he tries to make things right and get her to choose to love him back. All the little domestic things he does for Sara really makes me a little envious of the pampered way she is living.
On the other side of the coin, Sara is understandably resisting everything that Peter does, however she finds herself warming up to him. However, the full weight of her situation is not lost on her as Peter’s reactions to her waning resistance change from biting his tongue to displaying his power through describing how far he’ll go to make her his. My reaction to this dynamic surprised me. I actually really enjoyed this tug of war between both of the characters and the emotions that’s described during these moments. The tension runs high in these scenes but so does the love and desire.
The growth of these two characters in this introduction book is unbelievable good. Both Sara and Peter find out things about themselves they either never knew before or never wanted to examine. Love is a real emotion between them but the obstacle of their past keeps their relationship from really taking root. Will their love survive or will Peter need to resort to extreme measures to make and keep Sara his?
Overall:
This book was a real page turner. The way things were presented to the reader made everything not only realistic, but allowed them to become the characters they were reading about.
Would I Recommend It:
Short answer, absolutely. This was a great story that really pulled me in and I think anyone who is looking for a good dark romance would enjoy it. However, Please keep in mind that this is a dark romance, it has a lot of hard subject matter. While Peter never actually rapes Sara, there is a lot of forced submission both sexual and non-sexual in this book which includes both violence, rough sex, and threats. If you are not into that kind of thing do not read this book. If you are looking for a very romantic love filled story this is not the book for you.
Happy reading.
Peter is a man obsessed with revenge and nothing will stop him! Sara is the wife of one of the men who are responsible for the death of Peter’s family. Peter is determined to find all men responsible and kill them so he tortures Sara in order to reveal where her husband is. But nothing can prepare them for what follows! Peter becomes obsessed with Sara and wants her to belong to him, she will pay for her husband’s sins with her freedom! Sara can’t believe her husband caused that much devastation and feels guilty because she is attracted to Peter and feels his pain. As obsession turns into attraction and love, will they accept their feelings or will the past separate them forever? Peter and Sara’s story is breathtaking, they are two people who have felt loss and are so lonely! Peter has his revenge and Sara has her work as a doctor, but they have nothing else, no hope for the future! Then their paths meet and their lives find new meaning even though they can’t forget the past. An unforgettable story of two people who need each other more than they realise!
Amazing. Peter and Sarah were mind-blowing. Anna, I wish Peter existed in real life so I could meet him and keep him. I absolutely loved them. Thank you for bringing them to us.
This is part 1 of a multi-part book. The end of the book is definitely NOT the end. Good writing and good story though.
This is my third series from Anna Zaires, and based off of this first book I suspect it will be my favorite. Twist Me, while good, was a touch too dark for me. I never came around to liking Julian. But Peter Sokolov? Yes, please. Ok, he tortured her at the beginning. But, even then, he softened to her and stopped. When presented with the choice of forcing her versus waiting he decided to wait (are you taking notes, Julian?). He wants her. All of her- not just her body. And he is willing to be patient to get it.
And so, a bright start to this series! Suspense, romance, angst, heat… all of my favorite elements.
I love this author’s writing, and am so excited to have found a series with a hero that seems to be right at my comfort level as opposed to well past it.
Can’t wait to read the next one!