EmiliaThey say love and hate are the same feelings experienced under different circumstances, and it’s true.The man who comes to me in my dreams also haunts me in my nightmares.He is a brilliant lawyer.A skilled criminal.A beautiful liar.A bully and a savior, a monster and a lover.Ten years ago, he made me run away from the small town where we lived. Now, he came for me in New York, and he isn’t … lived. Now, he came for me in New York, and he isn’t leaving until he takes me with him.
Vicious
She is a starving artist.
Pretty and evasive like cherry blossom.
Ten years ago, she barged into my life unannounced and turned everything upside down.
She paid the price.
Emilia LeBlanc is completely off-limits, my best friend’s ex-girlfriend. The woman who knows my darkest secret, and the daughter of the cheap Help we hired to take care of our estate.
That should deter me from chasing her, but it doesn’t.
So she hates me. Big fucking deal.
She better get used to me.
Vicious a complete standalone and a part of the Sinners of Saint series
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Seriously, I went from wanting to stab the hell out of Vicious, to junk punching him, to sporking his eye out, to cuddling with the epic asshole. Gah!! I stayed up until 3:30am because I was consumed with this story and my feelings for Vicious. I was all, one more chapter. Just one more because this shit is soooooo good. Can’t. Put. It. Down. Emilia girl, you’re a badass mofo for putting up with all of his shenanigans. Gold star for you! Ah love. The crazy that one goes through for it. But in the end, it was totally worth it.
To me, going from being super pissed at fake people to loving them the next, screams not only fantastic writing, but a truly awesome story. Holy guacamole I can’t wait for the next book!!
I’ll be honest, I read the book and listened to it on audible. It wasn’t till I listened to it on audible that I realized how much I didn’t like the main female character Millie. I think it’s that Vicious was written so well. His comments and thoughts coupled with eventual growing up are what hold this book together for me. Millie just kinda happens as if she’s there to hold the story together. I found her whiny and dull. But, this is okay for the story that it is. I love Shen’s work and continued growth as a writer. This is a good read.
I devoured this story from beginning to end. Give me a story with angst and I’ll give it my full attention and this book did not disappoint. Vicious is one of those characters you love to hate and hate to love. He’s definitely something. There were more than a few times that I wanted to throat punch him. He was a complete asshole with a capital A. I absolutely loved Emilia. There’s no denying the chemistry between these two characters and the author did one heck of a job with this story. I definitely look forward to reading more of her books. This is one story that either readers will love or hate when it comes to Vic.
Ummm yes I’m not sure to describe how friggin awesome this book was.
I mean I couldn’t get enough of the Hot Holes and the asshole that is Vicious. This book is straight up crazy and downright sexy. I never would have thought I would fall in love with Vicious, but LJ Shen expertly peeled back the layers that made up this closed off jerk, and I guarantee you will fall in love with him as much as Emilia.
Seriously read this book because it will completely blow your mind.
#IcallDIBS
#Killedbythecock
#IwantViciousBabies
Holy mother of Hotness.
Baron Vicious Spencer.. say Barrrrron. Its a clit-throbber of a name. And is he steaming hot…
And an Asshole . Like not the redeemable kinds. No sirreee.. he’s a Bona-fide,” take your heart and crush it under his foot ” “Ruin your life” badass. He puts all the other Bad Boys to shame. His gang of Hot Holes jesse, Trent and Dean are cohorts too. .and their target — sweet , peacock eyed Wispy blonde girl , Emilia LeBlanc. She’s the daughter of a couple who work as housekeeper and Groundsman, so technically she’s the Help. And that’s how Vicious treats her. He demeans her, bullies her and tortures her in every way possible, making her life miserable. The ultimate wound- he tears her away from her family and throws her into the Big Bad world to survive with no tether or anchor.
“I’m just not sure how you can be both nice and compassionate and a terrible asshole all at the same time,” I muttered. He smiled. “It’s a hard job, but someone’s gotta do it.”
What a remarkable story.
What a vengeful character Vicious is. Poisoned to his toenails, spreading Hate, venom and misery .
The hunter was always more calculated and in charge. And then there was me, flailing around like the helpless prey.
Is he justified…..I’ll let you decide.
But I loved the fact that he didn’t change overnight or spout long ass essays of love.
No ma’am. He’s the kinds who can’t muzzle his filthy, cruel mouth or stop choking the life out of people who’ve wronged him.
Loved the book to its last word and full stop !!
Very very smart writing, I hated going to sleep last night and stop reading. I thought about it the moment I stepped away from it
Unputdownable read and
5 gigantic stars !!
This is my first read from L.J. Shen and while I admit that the beginning started a little slow for me, the ending was beautiful. The story of Vicious and Emilia is one that is a little heartbreaking, but still wonderful.
Emilia’s ability to persevere, always see the positives in life, and never let anyone get her down makes her a heroine that anyone would aspire to be. Vicious is the hero that you hate to love in the beginning and makes you actually question what Emilia is thinking. However, to me, this is the definition of a Beauty and the Beast story: unconditional love even when everyone else believes that the object of that love doesn’t deserve it.
I’m really excited to see what else L.J. Shen has to offer and find out what the other HotHoles have to offer.
You know everyone loves a bad boy. But some bad boys are almost malevolent evil, Vicious is one of those bad boys. The kind you hate and swear to do unspeakable acts to the voodoo doll you have named for him because you can’t actually cause him pain. Was that graphic enough? No probably not. Because I have met Vicious, you clearly are in denial.
Vicious, Vic, or Baron Spencer Jr – as very few call him- is a man with a serious chip on his shoulder. It’s warranted but wow what a chip!
Enter the daughter of the housekeeper, known from here on in as Help. Vic’s life is a whirlwind of hate, hostility, and just plain nasty behavior. He is her bully. He judges her. He is her executioner.
Ten years and a chance meeting will lead to the demise of all they know. But when the rubble clears, who will be the victor?
The unbelievable rollercoaster of hate, lust, and the internal voice demanding self respect is a hard pill to swallow. Hating, lusting, and fighting both make for a very intense story. It’s the readers own investment that makes them question their own senses. I had to shake my head at mine and Emilia’s reactions because I, too, was stupid for Vicious.
Guarded hearts, chastity belts, and hateful reminders are not enough to keep you from falling for the world’s biggest a-hole. No, instead you will be singing praises about how dreamy Vicious Spencer is. You will fall for him, but will Emilia? Will she fall again for the one person who tortured her repeatedly?
You already know the answer. Now find out why…
reviewed for the Sweet Spot Sisterhood
My god! What an absolute pr••k he is! But my god! How delectable he is!
I have never read anything written by L.J. Shen before but read this on good recommendation from a couple of my favourite authors…. feeling pretty grateful right now. I had no clue what to expect, but it wasn’t what I read.
Baron Spencer Jr (Vicious) is a complete and utter a*hole…but….the way in which Leigh has written him, you got the feeling very early on that you were going to end up completely in love with him.
Emilia LeBlanc is your typical good girl. Does great at school, has an amazing family dynamic and has a crush on the bad boy.
What she doesn’t realise though, is that Vicious is equally smitten with her – despite his actions!
When Vicious is in desperate need of some help, he happens to cross paths again with the girl who hates and loves him in equal measures. The girl he knows he can bribe in to helping. The girl who he hopes he can get out of his system…. Emilia.
What neither of them bank on though, is falling in love. Their worlds colliding and the boy who treated her so badly in high school ends up being the boy who saves her.
The only reason this didn’t get 5 stars from me is because I actually wanted to read a whole lot more of Vicious & Emilia – so I’m desperately hoping these characters are featured still in book #2!
So for now, I am off to read Ruckus!
Full of feelings
And now I know why everyone loves the #HotHoles so much. The story of Vicious and Emilia was everything I didn’t know it could be…and by that, I mean because I read Defy first and knew what kind of horrible guy Baron “Vicious/Vic” Spencer could be, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to comprehend him being redeemable or worthy of love. But if I know anything about L.J. Shen’s writing, it’s that she knows how to turn even the most unlikeable characters into someone you can’t help but feel for.
I really enjoyed the flashbacks between their shared high school past and the coincidental present day meeting between Emilia LeBlanc and her high school nemesis/crush Vicious. Finding out more about their past have their present interactions so much more meaning and despite really hating Vicious for the horrid way he treated Emilia in high school, knowing why he did it helped me to understand the guy (even if I still wanted to punch him ).
These two were destined to be together but L.J. doesn’t make their relationship an easy one at all. It’s full of snark and banter, flirting and fury, hot and steamy sex and then massive fights that tear them apart. And while this book is all kinds of heavy – so much so I had to put it down for a little while – it was a fabulous read and I can’t wait to read the remaining HotHoles books!! Because despite their outwardly horrible demeanours, deep down I know each of these guys deserves a HEA!
nicandbooks
Amazon/Goodreads
So I’ve known about the AMAZING LJ Shen for a few years now and I’ve wanted to read this series FOREVER, but time just didn’t allow for it. However, with her upcoming release in the Sinners of Saint series I just knew that it was the PERFECT time and now I can’t stop kicking myself for waiting so long.
When I was reading Defy (Melody and Jamie’s story) I had no doubt in my mind that Baron “Vicious” Spencer was going to dominate my heart when I finally got my hands on his story and let me just say that is EXACTLY what happened! He is one of those characters that readers LOVE to HATE and oh man did I love and hate him all at the same time. This man knows what he wants and he isn’t one to back down…EVER. There were times I found myself wanting to reach through my kindle and give him a good slap in the face because he could be a real d*ckhead sometimes, but come on you have to expect it when he’s know by the name Vicious to those who dare to cross his path. He is the ultimate definition of a HOTHOLE. Although if you hold out long enough, you will soon discover that he has a soft spot (even if you refuses to admit it) for those who he strongly cares about.
Now let us take a moment to discuss the beautiful Emilia or HELP, the nickname Vicious has so kindly place upon her. I FREAKING loved this girl right from the very beginning because she is someone who has had to fight to care for those she loves. She is not only a good daughter, but she is an amazing older sister who will do anything to keep her sister healthy…even if it means selling her soul to a vicious man…the very man that sent her running from Todos Santos 10 years ago.
These two are an explosion just waiting to happen, but when you find your other half it might just be worth the pain and heartache that could easily fall upon them at any moment. Pick up a copy of Vicious right now to discover the pain and emotion that this sinfully addictive love story will surely bring you. BUT…trust me when I say that it is TOTALLY worth it!
Vicious was another addictive, brilliant novel by LJ Shen. This story was given in dual POV and while it was told in the present, we got continuous glimpses of the past in which we learned so much more. Family secrets were revealed and we learned what made the characters tick.
Vicious was mean, cruel and an asshole most of the times yet I couldn’t help but love him. Emilia was loving and kind with some sass, the exact opposite of Vicious yet LJ Shen did an amazing job of showing us why these two belonged together. My gosh the chemistry between them was insanely hot and I loved the push and pull they had going on.
We got glimpses of all four HotHoles in the novel and I can’t wait for the next story in this series. Vicious was a well-written novel which had me hooked from start to finish. It was an amazing, EXCELLENT read and I loved it.
Um….wow. This was the first book I’ve read from this author, and I was blown away. From the first moment Emilia & Vicious meet, you can tell there is an attraction; but for some reason he won’t act on it due to her being the “help.” As soon as Emilia starts dating his friend, you know things are going to get crazy. And then seeing that he forced her out of town, away from her family and boyfriend……you think of Vicious as this prick. But, when it gets to present time; finding out what happened to him as a child – I was immediately sympathetic to why he had become that way. Even though he hurt Emilia, you knew that she would never lose those feelings for him……especially once she agreed to work with him. The ending definitely threw me for a loop though – love when books surprise me that way! Such an amazing, complex story – loved every minute of it!
Lord knows I love me a lovable and redeemable jerk but I honestly couldn’t stand Vicious for majority of this story! After his mother dies while he was young, his life is forever changed. What he went through was horrible but taking his anger out on Emilia when he got older wasn’t cool. He was treated her like trash and called her “help” because her parents were live in staff at his parents mansion.
Ten years go by and he is still the same a-hole and Emilia is struggling to take care of her and her sick sister, Rosie. I was annoyed because after all these years he still referred to her as “help” which showed he had no respect for her still!! Emilia had no backbone when it came to him and let him do whatever he wanted!! Girl. You aren’t a teenager anymore! Stand up and tell him to go blank himself but does she do this? Nope, because after all these years he makes her shake and quiver blah,blah,blah….I prefer my women characters to be sassy and strong so it was hard for me to connect with her at first.
As the story progresses we get to see another side of Vicious and he’s still an ass but he does have some redeemable qualities. He really struggled with the guilt of his mother’s death and his feelings with Emilia. At times he could be so sweet and caring then he would do a jerk move and I was like here we go again….
“This time, you don’t get to make the rules. This time, Vicious, you lose.”
Yes!!! Emilia finally gets the backbone I knew she had and let’s Vicious know enough is enough!! Some stuff went down and I honestly don’t blame her for her reaction. It was nice that she finally fought him and stopped being a doormat!! You go girl!!
Side note: The tattoo shop scene was hella sexy and hot!!
This was my first time reading anything by this author and I was thoroughly impressed. I loved the dual point of views and the flashback from past to present. This story was full of so many emotions. Love, hate, deceit, revenge, lust and you can’t help but get sucked in! You have found a new fan in me L.J. Shen.
I’m not ashamed to say I’ve shamelessly stalked the author waiting for this book for months. I’ve avoided any and all teasers so I could go in completely blind. I’ve spent weeks building it up in my head, to the point even I started to get worried that LJ Shen wouldn’t be able to live up to my expectations. I needn’t have worried. I was hooked on the first page and didn’t want it to ever end.
Vicious Spencer is an asshole. There’s no other way to say it. He’s not one of those men that pretend to be anything else. He’s selfish, cruel and determined to always come out on top no matter who he hurts along the way. He’s arrogant, cold and emotionally immature. He comes across as a spoilt little rich boy, but it soon becomes clear Vic is a much more complex character and there’s another side to him that he keeps hidden. Losing his mum at a young age, and then having to watch as his dad remarries all have an effect on Vic, but there’s something else that he’s keeping quiet about and that explains so much about the way he is.
Left to his own devices from a young age, he’s practically bringing himself up, getting into trouble and partying hard with his three best friends. Known as the Hot Holes, the four of them have always been close, but then strange, new girl, Emilia happens and Vic knows for the Hot Holes to survive, Emilia has to go.
Emilia is a sweet, kind, nice girl… the complete opposite of Vicious.
When Vic’s step mum Jo employs Emilia’s parents, it throws Emilia into Vicious’ world. She’s out of her element but she takes zero shits from anyone and Vicious is no exception. Going head to head with her only makes Vic want/hate her more but when Vic doesn’t get his own way, he uses the one thing Emilia is devoted to, to get her out of his and his friends lives.
Ten years later and the last person Emilia is expecting to see is old crush/enemy Vicious. The banter and chemistry between them hasn’t dimmed over the years and once again Vic’s asshole attitude comes out in full force. I loved the way these two characters interact. The constant love/hate chemistry between them, the confusion they cause in each other, the push and pull between them, is all written perfectly. I loved Emilia. There is literally nothing that I dislike about her. She’s sweet, caring but she has a backbone and isn’t afraid to speak her mind.
Vicious made me love him. I didn’t want to, I tried so hard to hate him but there’s just something about an arrogant, troubled man that just makes me love them. There’s nothing I like reading about more than an asshole man. I love the ones who genuinely live up to the name. I don’t want them to change, I don’t want it to have been an act, i don’t want him to turn into a love sick pansy. I want him to be that character I hate to love and I want him to be the same when the book ends as he was when it started and this is where Vic excelled for me. He’s a jerk but he’s a consistent jerk, even when he’s trying to be nice he’s still a prick. And I for one don’t ever want him to change.
‘He was perfectly imperfect. Flawlessly flawed. Most importantly- he was Vicious.’
This book! Oh my! The author had me at the title! It’s hard to believe that a book entitled “Vicious” could ever be considered a romance. But what a story! The tortured boy in love with the good girl. A true opposites attract story. I’ve always been attracted to bad boys and Vicious is certainly that. I’d love to read a sequel to see how they’re doing years down the road.
I am going to rate this book at 3.5 stars. It had many great qualities, but as a whole I was not impressed. I have been hearing about this story for a year, how amazing it is, what an a#$ Vicious is, how the book is dark and full of angst. To me is was good, but it was not dark, or book of the year. Yes, Vicious was awful, but the reasons were not kept secret, there was no mystery as to why. He barely redeemed himself by the end of the book for me. I did not really care for Millie either. She was just too soft and indifferent for me. I liked the individual parts, just not the whole.
I have read a few of this authors works now and I have to say they feel extremely formulaic. Disagreeable man, mean for what ever reason and rich, a shy and calm woman, putting up with said man for whatever reason; push, pull, more push, more pull, then forgiveness and redemption. I seem to push myself to get through the stories, (and at times putting them down because I can’t take it anymore), and then making myself read them, because at 75% the story always picks up. For me the last third is always the best and if I could get a shorter version of these stories or a cliffs note until this point I would. I do love how they end, however.
I will be reading the others in thus series, but I will not rush out and buy them to read. I don’t feel that pull, but I am interested.
Hot. Sexy. Omg!! Loved this.
LOVED! LOVED! LOVED!
VICIOUS is everything I expected him to be and so much more!
I didn’t think It would be possible to love anyone more than Jamie and trust me when i say, I loved the hell out of Jamie in Defy. But it is possible.
Vicious is at the top of the book boyfriend asshole list!
I loved Emilia and Vicious’s weird and dysfunctional relationship. I loved watching them evolve into the people they were meant to be as a couple. They were stronger together and weaker apart.
They thrived off each other’s energy and frustrations!
I also really loved the scenes where Vicious let his guard down and shared his deepest darkest secrets with Emilia. I loved the vulnerability and fearfulness this brought to his character. He wasn’t an asshole in these moments he was just a boy who was lost and confused and looking for someone to help shoulder some of his pain.
I am so excited to continue on with the series! I still can’t believe it’s taken me this long to start this series. I am kicking myself right about now.
I am completely addicted!
wow!!! what an amazing book.. i came across this book by accident and it was really worth it!! a lot of people will complain that the character was very rude and ego centric .. but you have to give the guy a chance .. he suffer in silence for years and didn’t know how to love because the only person he loved was murdered by someone who supposedly cared for him .. this is an amazing book i love the way L.J. Shen writes .. even if is my first book of her.. the sex scenes are amazing, super hot the heroine is also amazing she is strong, funny, careless and kind .. you will love her because even if she suffered a lot in Vicious hand she still see in everybody the good in them.. she never judge and she always had a good heart but still she was strong and smart .. thats why i like millie so much .. not only she fought for what she wanted she also give people a chance … she was destiny to be his always since the beginning of the book .. and she was .. all i can say to all the people who complains is … read the book and put yourself in vicious shoes then you will understand everything … to L.J Shen you have gain a new fan .. than you for writing this amazing book and such a beautiful characters with so much depth and emotions .. there is love so much love you just have to feel it …
Vicious is cold and calculated, Emilia is warm and friendly.
These two could not be any farther from opposite, but the chemistry you see building between them is primal and so real.
This story will make you love and hate these characters for so many reason. Reading this is like being on a roller coaster that you’re not sure you ever want to get off.
Vicious is by far my favorite character ever!