Title: Illicit Angels.
Author: Alicia Taylor.
Genre: Dark Romantic Suspense.
Release date: August 15th 2015.
Eternity Rivera had a fairy tale life until one fateful
night intruders stormed her home, destroying it and her parents in their
passing, leaving her and her baby sister behind. With the help of her uncle,
she soon learns that life moves on, until a monster comes lurking into her room
at night. When she finally makes the decision to change her life for the
better, Eternity is hit with another life-altering blow. Sometimes life is
cruel and unkind and kicks you up the arse, leading you down a dark path you want
nothing to do with. Sometimes we don't have a choice.
Ryke Justice has lived his life in purgatory for the last
ten years, but to him, it’s just another day in the office. They don't call him
Justice for no reason; you mess with the boss and you're messing with him.
Justice will come and you won't even be expecting it. That is until an Angel
finally turns his head and becomes the envy of every girl there. She ignites
his desires, stirring his black soul back to life, but is she strong enough to
withstand his monster?
Can Eternity save Justice from himself? Can Ryke finally
give into his deepest darkest desires? Has his monster finally met his mate?
Choices will be made, Justice will be served, and things are
about to get hot. It's time to go to the dark side.
Welcome to Illicit Angels.
Warning! This book isn’t your typical romance. It’s dark,
dirty, and dangerous. This series contains dark subject matter, including
sexual abuse, kidnapping, torture, rape and murder. 18+ only.
This story is part of a six part series, each approx. 50-60k words in length.
This story is part of a six part series, each approx. 50-60k words in length.
Purchase Links
Excerpt
“Welcome,
Eternity.” His voice has a deep baritone, and it seems to vibrate deep in my
bones. “Please come and take a seat.” His tone holds no room for argument and I
find my feet taking me to sit in the chair across from him before my brain
registers the motion. “I’m going to tell you how things work here. I don’t want
you to speak. You will hear me out, and I will answer any questions you have
after I’ve finished. Do you understand?” I nod my head, too afraid to speak.
This man is pure evil. It emanates from him in dark clouds, covering me in
shadows. He seems to loom over me but that’s impossible; he’s five feet away
from me.
“I’m going to
tell you a story. This is your story. When I’ve finished it, you will
understand what we expect of you. Okay?” At my nod, he begins my story. “A long
time ago, your father approached me. He made a deal with me, and you were the
promise. You became club property, but this deal had conditions. I accepted all
your father’s conditions and everything was running smoothly. That was, until
you fucking disappeared. Vanished into thin air,” he says. Black Eyes takes a
deep breath through his nose, and his jaw clenches tightly. “That deal was
broken the minute you went underground. When you resurfaced, I came for what
was mine.”
I try to
process his words. If what he’s saying is the truth, then Carlos was right. My
daddy did sell me. But he thinks I’ve been underground, whatever that means. If
it means what I think it does, then he is crazy. This isn’t some mob story.
This is my life.
“What was–” I
don’t get to finish my question. Black Eyes stands, knocking his leather seat
back against the wall. He slams his hands on his desk, and the noise bounces
around the room, echoing. I hold my breath and wait for him to speak.
“I said you
speak when I’ve fucking finished. You said you understood. If you don’t, little
girl, then I will make you understand. I’ll fucking gag you. Keep your mouth
shut, otherwise I’ll make you. We clear?” he growls. His voice rises, anger
lacing his words. My breath hitches, but I remain silent. “Good girl,” he says
in a calmer voice. “Illicit Angels is exactly what it implies in the title.
Rich men pay an exorbitant amount of money to fuck beautiful girls – beautiful
Angels, to be more precise. It’s indecent. It’s immoral. It’s illicit.”
“Rich men buy
their way in but, occasionally, we allow a promise. A promise is a sale. We get
the gift of a new girl. They gain entry. When a promise is broken, we end that
promise. A long time ago, you should have been taken out. Wiped out,” he
hisses. “You disappeared before that could happen. Now that you’re back in our
clutches and I can see your potential, there are a few choices to make,
Eternity. You see, I want that promise back, but a new deal had to be struck. I
can’t just take a promise back. It would be bad for business. In this life, you
should already be dead.”
My brain swirls
with questions, but I’m frozen. Stuck in his story. What choices are there? My
daddy wanted into this club? He wanted to cheat on my mum? Why would he want to
come here? Surely, if he wanted to cheat, then he could have picked up a
mistress. He didn’t need to sell me. He chose to. Hate and hurt
ripples through my veins, hot and swift.
“You get six
months before you’re claimed, Eternity,” Black Eyes says, drawing my attention
back to him. “Six months to make a good impression. You can’t be a promise, but
you can be a new Angel. For the first month, the bidders can only look
at you and touch bare skin. The next two months, they can taste you. Give you
untold pleasure,” he says nonchalantly. Black Eyes speaks as if we’re
discussing the bloody weather, and his cool demeanour makes me want to scream. I
don’t want goddamn pleasure. “The following three months they can give and
receive pleasure. They’ll teach you how they like it and you will learn
to submit to their every demand. Their every need. At the six-month mark, they
will bid. The winning bidder will own you. You will become theirs to control,
theirs to use, theirs to do with as they damn well please. I’m sure their first
order of business will be to strip you of your virginity. That little lining
inside will make you pussy gold. They’ll pay a pretty penny for you. There is
one slight problem. Your promise wants you, and it seems he’s willing to stake
his claim now. You have six months to make your decision, Eternity. You can
persuade a bidder to want you enough to go up against Justice, or you can face
the man himself and accept your fate. Justice won’t let you go. He’ll fight
until you’re his. You have to decide which route to follow. Both will result in
you being Justice’s, but you can fight for something better. I’m not sure
you’re strong enough to withstand Justice’s darkness.”
Once he’s finished talking, he just stares at
me, captivating me with his pitch black eyes. I want to speak, but I’m not sure
if he’s testing me so I stay quiet. Black Eye’s smirks and nods his head.
“Good girl,” he
praises. It was a test! “Do you understand what is to happen over the
next six months?” I nod my head but still don’t say a word. “Do you accept these
terms?” Black clouds swamp my mind. This is all too much. I don’t want any of
this. I didn’t choose any of this, and I won’t accept it. But I’m too scared to
answer him. A chill darts down my spine when anger twists his face at my
non-response, and a frisson of fear, cold and brewing, unfurls in my stomach.
“Do. You. Accept. These. Fucking. Terms?” he spits, each word separated and
angry. When I still don’t answer, he storms around his desk to stand beside me.
I flinch, expecting a blow, but none comes. I peek up at him and find him
panting in rage. “Speak,” he growls.
“What if…” I
pause, clearing my throat. My mouth is dry and terror is overwhelming me. “What
if I don’t accept?” I ask, hesitantly. Black Eyes laughs at me, a sparkle of
delight fills his soulless gaze.
“Well, here is
your problem. I was made a promise, and that promise wasn’t fulfilled. I want
the debt paid. I was promised a daughter, and I’m going to have one. I know
Rivera has two daughters,” he drawls, pausing to let his words sink in. My eyes
widen when I get where he’s going with this. I shake my head. This can’t be
happening. “Little Nevaeh is acceptable as payment, but I thought you would
want to accept the fate your father gave you rather than subject your baby
sister to it. I’m more than happy to have Nevaeh in your place if you don’t
accept.”
“No,” I gasp.
Emotion, swift and violent, rushes through me. I’ve spent the last four years
protecting my sister. I won’t let it all be for nothing. “I’ll do it,” I weep.
“I’ll stay.”
“I thought you
might,” he replies, smugly. “Now you just have to decide if you’re going to
fight for your place or be consumed by Justice.”
“Who is
Justice?” I whisper, brokenly.
“He’s someone
who will destroy you, little girl. You’re not strong enough to be with him.
Justice will swallow you whole.”
“Why?” I choke.
“Because you
made him feel,” he empathises. “But I can see you’re not strong enough.
If you break at this point, then you are too weak to go against him.”
Review by: Melanie
(4 stars)
The first solo book from Alicia Taylor has a dark edge to it. Starting from the night Eternity Rivera lost her parents in a brutal attack on her home, Illicit Angels shows us how a promise made long ago can have dire consequences when the recipient of said promise, comes to collect their "gift".
Although it started off with some disturbing moments, this book turned out to be different than what I was expecting. Yes it was dark. Yes it was a downright immoral situation. And yes, the male lead, Ryke Justice, was a badass killer you did not want to get on the wrong side of. (Under him maybe...lol)
But Holy Cow! It had intrigue, it had mystery, it had brutality and it had me turning page after page until it was done. There was a twist to this at the end, and it left me more than ready for part two of this series.
About the Author:
I was born and raised in the East. I live with my family and
mass of animals - I'm a huge family and animal lover. Writing powerful love
stories and creating Alpha males with a dash of darkness has become a passion
of mine, and I have many stories and characters swirling in my head that I
can't wait to share with you all. Is it weird to have so many voices in my
head? I'm not crazy, I promise... maybe a little bit.
Connect with me:
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