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Pride and Pleadings : Game of Hearts Book Two
The most dangerous obsession is a mutually assured one
Emma Lane is an accomplished attorney who has spent nine years building a fortress of "grace" to distance herself from a predatory past. She has the career, the stability, and a plan for the perfect, safe marriage. But her soul is still anchored to the one man who refuses to let her go.
Alexander Grey is an apex predator in a bespoke suit. He doesn't believe in "goodness"--he believes in possession. To keep Emma, he has betrayed his brother, manipulated the law, and curated a version of the truth that keeps her worshiping at his feet. As much as he wants to save her, he wants to corrupt her, until she’s the only thing left in his dark world.
As the two collide, the masks of "Alexander Grey" and "The Accomplished Attorney" finally shatter, and Emma must face the ultimate Is she falling in love with a monster, or is she finally becoming the woman her mother was?
In the Grey family mansion, the wine is poured, the silver is polished, and the betrayal is a familial tradition. But when the truth about a decade-old suicide attempt surfaces, Emma must decide if she’s his partner in crime... or his next casualty.
ABOUT THE GAME OF HEARTS SERIES:
The Game of Hearts is an interconnected standalone romance series that revolves around three career-oriented young women as they pursue their ambitions while exploring love, passion, and romance.
Pride and Pleadings is a steamy millionaire/ forbidden romance about a morally grey protagonist with a history of falling for his brother's women, fighting his feelings this time for yet another woman from his brother's past.
It is the second book in the Game of Hearts series, but can be read as a standalone.
Content This book contains mature themes, explicit intimacy, and references to past emotional trauma.
Reader discretion advised
micro tropes
stalker romance
dark kink awakening
corrupted fmc
forbidden age gap
kidnapping
Emma Lane is an accomplished attorney who has spent nine years building a fortress of "grace" to distance herself from a predatory past. She has the career, the stability, and a plan for the perfect, safe marriage. But her soul is still anchored to the one man who refuses to let her go.
Alexander Grey is an apex predator in a bespoke suit. He doesn't believe in "goodness"--he believes in possession. To keep Emma, he has betrayed his brother, manipulated the law, and curated a version of the truth that keeps her worshiping at his feet. As much as he wants to save her, he wants to corrupt her, until she’s the only thing left in his dark world.
As the two collide, the masks of "Alexander Grey" and "The Accomplished Attorney" finally shatter, and Emma must face the ultimate Is she falling in love with a monster, or is she finally becoming the woman her mother was?
In the Grey family mansion, the wine is poured, the silver is polished, and the betrayal is a familial tradition. But when the truth about a decade-old suicide attempt surfaces, Emma must decide if she’s his partner in crime... or his next casualty.
ABOUT THE GAME OF HEARTS SERIES:
The Game of Hearts is an interconnected standalone romance series that revolves around three career-oriented young women as they pursue their ambitions while exploring love, passion, and romance.
Pride and Pleadings is a steamy millionaire/ forbidden romance about a morally grey protagonist with a history of falling for his brother's women, fighting his feelings this time for yet another woman from his brother's past.
It is the second book in the Game of Hearts series, but can be read as a standalone.
Content This book contains mature themes, explicit intimacy, and references to past emotional trauma.
Reader discretion advised
micro tropes
stalker romance
dark kink awakening
corrupted fmc
forbidden age gap
kidnapping
569 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 14, 2026
4 people are currently reading
10 people want to read
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Displaying 1 of 1 review
March 1, 2026
CW: Child sexual abuse. Attempted suicide.
Once a month Alexander Greg sends Emma Lane a card. The woman he can’t forget. But can’t have. It’s been nine years and Emma has decided it’s her time to taunt him, as he’s taunted her for nine years.
The characters were interesting, they had backstory that affected how they behaved. The book itself started off well enough but then went round in circles for far too long. Whilst I liked the idea of it I found the story overall frustrating. Suddenly one of the secondary characters (Emma’s best friend) has narcolepsy and it’s important to the plot. It seemed somehow both rushed but overlong.
I think the sensitive topics were handled in quite a throwaway manner.
Whilst I understand this was an uncorrected ARC it was absolutely riddled with grammar and spelling errors. The wrong tense or wrong word was used, so frequently l that it made it a real slog to read. At times it seemed like it was written by someone who wasn’t a native English speaker.
Once a month Alexander Greg sends Emma Lane a card. The woman he can’t forget. But can’t have. It’s been nine years and Emma has decided it’s her time to taunt him, as he’s taunted her for nine years.
The characters were interesting, they had backstory that affected how they behaved. The book itself started off well enough but then went round in circles for far too long. Whilst I liked the idea of it I found the story overall frustrating. Suddenly one of the secondary characters (Emma’s best friend) has narcolepsy and it’s important to the plot. It seemed somehow both rushed but overlong.
I think the sensitive topics were handled in quite a throwaway manner.
Whilst I understand this was an uncorrected ARC it was absolutely riddled with grammar and spelling errors. The wrong tense or wrong word was used, so frequently l that it made it a real slog to read. At times it seemed like it was written by someone who wasn’t a native English speaker.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 of 1 review