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More Than A Slave
Alexander Anderson has a reputation that would strike fear into the heart of the devil himself. And now, Aria Starbird is his property.
Aria has spent only a few months as a lowly slave, but already her happy childhood memories were starting to fade under the weight of her brutal existence.
When she is sold to Lord Anderson at an auction, she cannot help but be afraid. Lord Anderson is known for his cruelty. He is fiendish and handsome and as wicked as he is wealthy.
However, as she gets to know her new master, she realizes there is more to him than meets the eye. Over time, she is able to penetrate his tough exterior, and begins to understand the struggle of a man who believes love is a weakness, but whose heart is now yearning for something unknown.
As the two let down their walls and discover each other’s truths, will Aria be able to tame Alexander's inner-beast?
Aria has spent only a few months as a lowly slave, but already her happy childhood memories were starting to fade under the weight of her brutal existence.
When she is sold to Lord Anderson at an auction, she cannot help but be afraid. Lord Anderson is known for his cruelty. He is fiendish and handsome and as wicked as he is wealthy.
However, as she gets to know her new master, she realizes there is more to him than meets the eye. Over time, she is able to penetrate his tough exterior, and begins to understand the struggle of a man who believes love is a weakness, but whose heart is now yearning for something unknown.
As the two let down their walls and discover each other’s truths, will Aria be able to tame Alexander's inner-beast?
460 pages, Paperback
First published March 6, 2017
59 people are currently reading
393 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 54 reviews
February 10, 2017
No I haven't read but fuck this book. Stop romanticizing slavery. There is nothing romance about being someone's property and then magically falling in love. Stop the bullshit. Any interaction between a slave and master was rape. So yeah fuck the book, the author, the publisher. All y'all can go to hell.
Read
January 18, 2019Hi guys,
As More Than A Slave nears it's publication date I have been receiving some negative reviews from readers based on assumptions of my book. I am hoping I can clear the air by telling you all a bit more about the novel.
The story is not mixed race. Both slave and 'master' are caucasian and there is never an instance where the love between them is not consensual. The two have a very slow developing romance before they get physical in any way. Alexander acts as a protector to Aria who has been mistreated by her previous master.
I hope these facts help ease your mind about More Than A Slave. Please let me know if you have any other questions, it is not our intention to offend or be a bystander in these matters.
As More Than A Slave nears it's publication date I have been receiving some negative reviews from readers based on assumptions of my book. I am hoping I can clear the air by telling you all a bit more about the novel.
The story is not mixed race. Both slave and 'master' are caucasian and there is never an instance where the love between them is not consensual. The two have a very slow developing romance before they get physical in any way. Alexander acts as a protector to Aria who has been mistreated by her previous master.
I hope these facts help ease your mind about More Than A Slave. Please let me know if you have any other questions, it is not our intention to offend or be a bystander in these matters.
December 29, 2018
Anaelle Gadeyne’s MORE THAN A SLAVE is certainly a book to evoke an emotional response from readers. Aria Starbird is a young white girl sold into slavery by HER PARENTS into what they assumed was a safe environment. She was beaten, raped, dehumanized and fortunately for her, auctioned off to another slave owner. What she found was a man who stole her heart, as she stole his.
Sounds like a historical romance set in one of America’s ugliest eras, but Anaelle Gadeyne makes this era personal, not words on a page of our history books. She has given life to her characters and not asked us to like any of them. Their deeds run from despicable to deviant and it is NOT an easy read.
I cringed at the events that took place and Aria’s willingness to accept her fate. I repeat, HER PARENTS SOLD HER, she was treated like garbage so her parents could eat. And still I read on, and through it all, other than the revulsion I felt for the events and many of the characters my biggest complaint was that this could have been a much shorter book, avoiding the repetition, the over-descriptions. There really is a story to be told, one that makes us uncomfortable, sickens us, and makes us wonder about how inhuman humanity can be to each other. If you are looking for a romance, there is some, but it is tainted.
Sounds like a historical romance set in one of America’s ugliest eras, but Anaelle Gadeyne makes this era personal, not words on a page of our history books. She has given life to her characters and not asked us to like any of them. Their deeds run from despicable to deviant and it is NOT an easy read.
I cringed at the events that took place and Aria’s willingness to accept her fate. I repeat, HER PARENTS SOLD HER, she was treated like garbage so her parents could eat. And still I read on, and through it all, other than the revulsion I felt for the events and many of the characters my biggest complaint was that this could have been a much shorter book, avoiding the repetition, the over-descriptions. There really is a story to be told, one that makes us uncomfortable, sickens us, and makes us wonder about how inhuman humanity can be to each other. If you are looking for a romance, there is some, but it is tainted.
Read
February 23, 2017I think it's wrong to rate books before they're even out (unless you received an arc ).Even if the subject matter is insensitive,stupid or unethical,it's still not fair towards the author. Maybe this particular book is about a man raised to be a slave owner that realises,finally, that slaves are human like him and not beneath him and ends up fighting to help them.Or maybe not .Maybe he's an abhorrent human being that never changes and deserves to suffer eternal torture in hell.Or maybe it's just a book glorifying slavery and non-con .
Point is : no one can be sure unless they 've read the book . If the book's crappy ,full of "magic dick syndrome "etc. give all the 1stars you want .Don't rate books you haven't read .It's disrespectful and dishonest.
Oh ,and btw,that applies to books you're sure are going to rock too .For example ,I LOVE ACOTAR by Sarah J.Maas and I'm pretty sure the 3rd volume will be awesome .Having said that, I really hate seeing all those 5stars since the book hasn't been published yet.I agree that,in this case, the odds are in Sarah's favour ..she'a great writer that wrote several bestsellers.Still, no one is perfect .We can't predict the future .So please, give authors the benefit of the doubt.
P.s :My first language is not English.Sorry for any mistakes.
Point is : no one can be sure unless they 've read the book . If the book's crappy ,full of "magic dick syndrome "etc. give all the 1stars you want .Don't rate books you haven't read .It's disrespectful and dishonest.
Oh ,and btw,that applies to books you're sure are going to rock too .For example ,I LOVE ACOTAR by Sarah J.Maas and I'm pretty sure the 3rd volume will be awesome .Having said that, I really hate seeing all those 5stars since the book hasn't been published yet.I agree that,in this case, the odds are in Sarah's favour ..she'a great writer that wrote several bestsellers.Still, no one is perfect .We can't predict the future .So please, give authors the benefit of the doubt.
P.s :My first language is not English.Sorry for any mistakes.
February 10, 2017
???????? What? Who thought this book was a good idea? Will people ever stop trying to romanticize genocide?
March 14, 2017
This was truly not my cup of tea, although the romance was great.
October 21, 2017
Aria is a slave who was sold off by her impoverished family who are overflowing in debt. Despite her parents cruel decision, Aria doesn't despise her parents and often talks about her fond childhood memories. It's bewildering how, "loving parents" can sell their only daughter off like livestock.
They sell their daughter off with the promise that she will be treated well. Of course, she's not and her owner is very abusive and cruel. After being dragged by a rope to a slave auction, she catches the eye of Alexander.
Alexander is your typical British lord who enjoys murdering slaves like it's some sort of hobby and having casual conversations with his brother about killing and raping slaves...
There's just so much to say so I made a youtube video. Check it out!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5mUU...
They sell their daughter off with the promise that she will be treated well. Of course, she's not and her owner is very abusive and cruel. After being dragged by a rope to a slave auction, she catches the eye of Alexander.
Alexander is your typical British lord who enjoys murdering slaves like it's some sort of hobby and having casual conversations with his brother about killing and raping slaves...
There's just so much to say so I made a youtube video. Check it out!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5mUU...
March 4, 2017
I don't usually read romance, I don't like the genre very much, yet something pulled me to read this. And this was such a brilliant read! To describe this...Something made me think of a darker version of Beauty and the Beast.
More than a Slave is action-packed, fun, well-written, has very interesting cast of characters and has great dialogue between the characters. (I was wondering though if the author had some obsession naming all the main characters with letter A starting names: Aria, Alexander, Arnaud...) I adored the romance between the main characters, it was just so sweet and perfect. (And nothing non-consensual happens between them) Emotional roller coaster I had while reading this... loved it.
This was somewhat violent towards the ending of the book so I wouldn't recommend it to most sensitive readers.
I was so mad when I saw all the negative reviews on GR. As in for romanticizing slavery...this does definitely not do that. It's not in any way insensitive towards the topic. And if anything readers should understand that a lot of stuff happens in fiction and in life. People fall in love with their saviors, people fall in love with their enemies (I mean that's what the YA genre is doing and yet no one complains, people fall in love with their soul mates, people fall in love. Let authors write great books and read them before rating and reviewing them so badly. This had a great story.
Thank you Inkitt for this copy in exchange for an honest review.
More than a Slave is action-packed, fun, well-written, has very interesting cast of characters and has great dialogue between the characters. (I was wondering though if the author had some obsession naming all the main characters with letter A starting names: Aria, Alexander, Arnaud...) I adored the romance between the main characters, it was just so sweet and perfect. (And nothing non-consensual happens between them) Emotional roller coaster I had while reading this... loved it.
This was somewhat violent towards the ending of the book so I wouldn't recommend it to most sensitive readers.
I was so mad when I saw all the negative reviews on GR. As in for romanticizing slavery...this does definitely not do that. It's not in any way insensitive towards the topic. And if anything readers should understand that a lot of stuff happens in fiction and in life. People fall in love with their saviors, people fall in love with their enemies (I mean that's what the YA genre is doing and yet no one complains, people fall in love with their soul mates, people fall in love. Let authors write great books and read them before rating and reviewing them so badly. This had a great story.
Thank you Inkitt for this copy in exchange for an honest review.
March 8, 2017
While I am thankful for Inkitt for reaching out to me and sending me an ARC, unfortunately I didn’t enjoy the book. There were quite a few reasons why this didn’t work for me, I shall not write about them all…
I don’t know, it might just be me, but I can deal with 1 cliché max per novel. In this case I felt the clichés kept coming thick and fast, and it made me feel like some of them were there just for the sake of using them because they’re deemed romantic or for dramatic effect. These added to the length of the novel which could have been used instead for a more in-depth look at creating that historical feeling. I understand that not every novel is built on intricate descriptions which focus on the setting our characters mingle in. MTAS is a historical romance and yet the only feeling for a historical environment I got was the fact people travelled in horse carriages and women wore corsets. Slavery, unfortunately, is not a thing of the past. The problem with clichés is also that it’s not just a scene or episode of an event, it can also appear in overly dramatic dialogue or character behavior and I simply could not find enjoyment not in the dialogue, nor in erratic/unstable behaviors. I understand these… let’s call them tried and tested ‘vehicles’, provide a certain feeling or mood for a/any book, but personally, I felt snowed under by the high-octane execution of events.
I guess, you could say that, everything is possible in books and what I think matters sweet FA (meaning you need to read a book yourself to make an informed opinion about it), but a lot of the decisions made by (adult) characters in this novel flabbergasted me. For example Oliver’s plan towards the end of the book to prove the soulmate link (more on this soon), or Alexander’s reason to enforce a ‘no love’ policy on himself, his brothers and sister unless that love was of the sibling type towards a family member. Yes, he had a reason which caused him some clinical anger issues but in my mind, all I could think of was this: cruel towards everyone else other than his family members would classify him as a psychopath and sorry, but love does not fix that specific condition. The fact that Aria keeps willingly slaving away for the family even though the secret is out about her relationship with Alexander, due to my personal point of view, made zero sense to me.
So.. the soulmate link! As you’ve gathered by now, Alexander is a destructive force on the loose. And his special brand of ‘troubled’ was fixed and explained away by introducing the soulmate idea. This idea came only into action&mention about halfway through the book so unfortunately it felt like something was needed to fill a hole and hello, soulmates. Granted, this idea was also used to explain erratic behaviour of a third character so it did come in handy. Nothing wrong with soulmates, don’t get me wrong. The notion is, of course, one of the most romantic out there, but it simply came as a surprise and half way into the story it didn’t feel plausible.
Romance implies intimate relationships… the relationship in between A&A was developing and sizzling slowly, to the tune of quite a few misunderstandings and both of their big enough characters clashing causing some yelling fests in between them after which both were apologizing left-right-and-centre to each other. I find these kind of dynamics (in any book, I may add) too unstable, at times immature, for my personal preference. The cycle in between problems and solutions for our characters were alternating simply too quickly to allow for a reasonable, mentally healthy relationship. Then again… it’s fiction, not real world, but even in fiction, mental exhaustion is not something I enjoy. The sex part didn’t happen until towards the end. There’s a lot of (understandable) insecurities by Aria and the outburst of suicidal thoughts once which wasn’t furthermore addressed from Aria’s point of view. Instead the focus went mostly back to her insecurities over her scarred self-image. Hmm…
Overall… Even though the Beauty and the Beast-like retelling with a dark twist is probably a fitting term here, unfortunately, for the reasons I mentioned above, this particular book wasn’t for me… there’s probably (apparently) a willing, enjoying audience out there for this particular type of romance. However, a word of warning, the ending of the book is equal parts as depressing as it was conclusive for Aria and Alexander.
I don’t know, it might just be me, but I can deal with 1 cliché max per novel. In this case I felt the clichés kept coming thick and fast, and it made me feel like some of them were there just for the sake of using them because they’re deemed romantic or for dramatic effect. These added to the length of the novel which could have been used instead for a more in-depth look at creating that historical feeling. I understand that not every novel is built on intricate descriptions which focus on the setting our characters mingle in. MTAS is a historical romance and yet the only feeling for a historical environment I got was the fact people travelled in horse carriages and women wore corsets. Slavery, unfortunately, is not a thing of the past. The problem with clichés is also that it’s not just a scene or episode of an event, it can also appear in overly dramatic dialogue or character behavior and I simply could not find enjoyment not in the dialogue, nor in erratic/unstable behaviors. I understand these… let’s call them tried and tested ‘vehicles’, provide a certain feeling or mood for a/any book, but personally, I felt snowed under by the high-octane execution of events.
I guess, you could say that, everything is possible in books and what I think matters sweet FA (meaning you need to read a book yourself to make an informed opinion about it), but a lot of the decisions made by (adult) characters in this novel flabbergasted me. For example Oliver’s plan towards the end of the book to prove the soulmate link (more on this soon), or Alexander’s reason to enforce a ‘no love’ policy on himself, his brothers and sister unless that love was of the sibling type towards a family member. Yes, he had a reason which caused him some clinical anger issues but in my mind, all I could think of was this: cruel towards everyone else other than his family members would classify him as a psychopath and sorry, but love does not fix that specific condition. The fact that Aria keeps willingly slaving away for the family even though the secret is out about her relationship with Alexander, due to my personal point of view, made zero sense to me.
So.. the soulmate link! As you’ve gathered by now, Alexander is a destructive force on the loose. And his special brand of ‘troubled’ was fixed and explained away by introducing the soulmate idea. This idea came only into action&mention about halfway through the book so unfortunately it felt like something was needed to fill a hole and hello, soulmates. Granted, this idea was also used to explain erratic behaviour of a third character so it did come in handy. Nothing wrong with soulmates, don’t get me wrong. The notion is, of course, one of the most romantic out there, but it simply came as a surprise and half way into the story it didn’t feel plausible.
Romance implies intimate relationships… the relationship in between A&A was developing and sizzling slowly, to the tune of quite a few misunderstandings and both of their big enough characters clashing causing some yelling fests in between them after which both were apologizing left-right-and-centre to each other. I find these kind of dynamics (in any book, I may add) too unstable, at times immature, for my personal preference. The cycle in between problems and solutions for our characters were alternating simply too quickly to allow for a reasonable, mentally healthy relationship. Then again… it’s fiction, not real world, but even in fiction, mental exhaustion is not something I enjoy. The sex part didn’t happen until towards the end. There’s a lot of (understandable) insecurities by Aria and the outburst of suicidal thoughts once which wasn’t furthermore addressed from Aria’s point of view. Instead the focus went mostly back to her insecurities over her scarred self-image. Hmm…
Overall… Even though the Beauty and the Beast-like retelling with a dark twist is probably a fitting term here, unfortunately, for the reasons I mentioned above, this particular book wasn’t for me… there’s probably (apparently) a willing, enjoying audience out there for this particular type of romance. However, a word of warning, the ending of the book is equal parts as depressing as it was conclusive for Aria and Alexander.
June 29, 2018
This book comes from a very misguided place - I recognize that the author is a young (nineteen at the time of publishing) woman who is not from America, which means that there are a lot of cultural issues surrounding the subject matter that she cannot understand because she isn't from the United States. Slavery in America (the book is set in pre-civil war Georgia) is inherently a race-related issue, regardless of the race of the characters whom the story focuses on, making this book controversial from the jump, regardless of the author's intent.
Additionally, even though Ms. Gadeyne presents a scenario in which the female heroine does genuinely fall in love with the male hero and does consent to the relationship in a similar-to-Fifty-Shades-of-Grey kind of power-imbalance, in reality a slave, a student, or anyone who is in such a power deficit can in no way legally consent to any kind of relationship, sexual or otherwise, with their "superior" because they literally have no way to say no safely. Our male hero, on multiple occasions, casually threatens the life of the heroine, and could kill her if he wanted to because she is his property. How exactly do you refuse the sexual advances of someone who can kill you with no negative repercussions, should you in fact want to refuse them? (Hint: You can't).
What makes this book especially horrifying, and what is causing the majority of the backlash, is that this exact scenario did happen to thousands of black slave women in America, minus the genuine feelings for their slave master. Which means this book is romanticizing real, legitimate, horrific tragedy that many people are still living in the shadow of today - of course they're not pleased to see a book like this published, especially not one that refuses to recognize that the situation is in no way romantic.
I don't have an inherent problem with a book about love and slavery; it can be (and has been) well done. However, this book seems to be something that should have been edited much more critically before being released to an American market.
Imagine me writing a book about the terrorist bombings of Niche, with the central focus being a love story between a terrorist who set up the actual bombs and the woman who recruited him to ISIS; or, even better, imagine that I, an American, wrote a book about a Nazi officer based at Natzweiler-Struthof, who fell in love with and began a relationship with aJewish Romani prisoner, but opted not to free her or any other prisoners. Now imagine that I wrote this in French and released it in Europe, and try to imagine how that would go over critically. That's roughly the level of tone-deafness I get from this book. There are just some things that are very difficult to handle deftly when one is not from that culture, and slave-master romance in the Antebellum South, mixed race or not, is certainly one of those things.
*This rating and review is to balance out the fact that the author posted a five-star rating for her book while justifying the use of slavery as a plot device because the couple is not mixed-race: I respect that she wants to defend her creative work; I do not respect that she wants to skew her book ratings more favorably while she does so.
Additionally, even though Ms. Gadeyne presents a scenario in which the female heroine does genuinely fall in love with the male hero and does consent to the relationship in a similar-to-Fifty-Shades-of-Grey kind of power-imbalance, in reality a slave, a student, or anyone who is in such a power deficit can in no way legally consent to any kind of relationship, sexual or otherwise, with their "superior" because they literally have no way to say no safely. Our male hero, on multiple occasions, casually threatens the life of the heroine, and could kill her if he wanted to because she is his property. How exactly do you refuse the sexual advances of someone who can kill you with no negative repercussions, should you in fact want to refuse them? (Hint: You can't).
What makes this book especially horrifying, and what is causing the majority of the backlash, is that this exact scenario did happen to thousands of black slave women in America, minus the genuine feelings for their slave master. Which means this book is romanticizing real, legitimate, horrific tragedy that many people are still living in the shadow of today - of course they're not pleased to see a book like this published, especially not one that refuses to recognize that the situation is in no way romantic.
I don't have an inherent problem with a book about love and slavery; it can be (and has been) well done. However, this book seems to be something that should have been edited much more critically before being released to an American market.
Imagine me writing a book about the terrorist bombings of Niche, with the central focus being a love story between a terrorist who set up the actual bombs and the woman who recruited him to ISIS; or, even better, imagine that I, an American, wrote a book about a Nazi officer based at Natzweiler-Struthof, who fell in love with and began a relationship with a
*This rating and review is to balance out the fact that the author posted a five-star rating for her book while justifying the use of slavery as a plot device because the couple is not mixed-race: I respect that she wants to defend her creative work; I do not respect that she wants to skew her book ratings more favorably while she does so.
March 2, 2017
A view weeks ago I was asked to review ‘More Than A Slave’. To be honest I was a little unsure of this read. I love romance novel, and I also really love historical romance novels. This sounded like a nice Historical Romance story but the whole Slave bit confused me a little. But I decided to give this book a try.
In ‘More Than A Slave’ we meet Aria Starbird. Aria is a slave. Her parents sold her a view months ago after they tried everything else to get by. They thought they sold her to a nice gentleman who would take care of her. But nothing was less true. Aria’s life has been one horrific event after the other. But she still has her voice.
One afternoon Aria is auctioned and sold to Lord Anderson. Aria has heard of Alexander Anderson, he supposedly is a monster and very aggressive. But Aria soon finds out there is much more to this man than meets the eye.
I’m really torn writing this review. Why you ask? Well, because on the one hand I really disliked this book, but on the other hand I really enjoyed it. There were many moments while reading this book, that I just didn’t get it. It felt at times like there were two stories entwined into one. The whole slave bit was just terrible. I didn’t get it at all. The violence towards these slaves where just horrific. But then there was the romance between Aria and Alexander and I would love those two together.
What I especially didn’t get was why there had to be such violence in this book? The romance alone was enough to make this book very interesting and fun to read. I get the whole ‘bad-guy’ versus ‘cinderella’ kind of girl part, but this was too much. Alexander could have been only rude and slightly aggressive, that would have made the point too. But the whole love torturing bit was just too much. Which really is too bad because I loved the relationship between Aria and Alexander.
The romance between Aria and Alexander was the reason I kept reading this book. I loved those two together, and I loved reading how they seemed to make each other better. It was really fun to read how they slowly got to know each other. It was a little frustrating to read how easily they made these wrong conclusions about what the other one did and why. But I kind of understood those insecurities.
There were some great other characters in this book. Alexanders siblings and their love interests.. I really enjoyed reading about those characters. But with them there were also these violent bits I just didn’t get.
This book would have totally been a five star read for me without the slave bit, and the violence. I honestly think this book would have been much better if Aria was a maid. Maids are common in Historical Romance novels. Slavery and how violent everyone was around them, I don’t need to read about that in a romance book. Or any other book for that matter.
In ‘More Than A Slave’ we meet Aria Starbird. Aria is a slave. Her parents sold her a view months ago after they tried everything else to get by. They thought they sold her to a nice gentleman who would take care of her. But nothing was less true. Aria’s life has been one horrific event after the other. But she still has her voice.
One afternoon Aria is auctioned and sold to Lord Anderson. Aria has heard of Alexander Anderson, he supposedly is a monster and very aggressive. But Aria soon finds out there is much more to this man than meets the eye.
I’m really torn writing this review. Why you ask? Well, because on the one hand I really disliked this book, but on the other hand I really enjoyed it. There were many moments while reading this book, that I just didn’t get it. It felt at times like there were two stories entwined into one. The whole slave bit was just terrible. I didn’t get it at all. The violence towards these slaves where just horrific. But then there was the romance between Aria and Alexander and I would love those two together.
What I especially didn’t get was why there had to be such violence in this book? The romance alone was enough to make this book very interesting and fun to read. I get the whole ‘bad-guy’ versus ‘cinderella’ kind of girl part, but this was too much. Alexander could have been only rude and slightly aggressive, that would have made the point too. But the whole love torturing bit was just too much. Which really is too bad because I loved the relationship between Aria and Alexander.
The romance between Aria and Alexander was the reason I kept reading this book. I loved those two together, and I loved reading how they seemed to make each other better. It was really fun to read how they slowly got to know each other. It was a little frustrating to read how easily they made these wrong conclusions about what the other one did and why. But I kind of understood those insecurities.
There were some great other characters in this book. Alexanders siblings and their love interests.. I really enjoyed reading about those characters. But with them there were also these violent bits I just didn’t get.
This book would have totally been a five star read for me without the slave bit, and the violence. I honestly think this book would have been much better if Aria was a maid. Maids are common in Historical Romance novels. Slavery and how violent everyone was around them, I don’t need to read about that in a romance book. Or any other book for that matter.
March 17, 2017
Im sorry but no
I would not recommend to anyone.
Spoilers
He was a killer. He killed for fun. He let female slaves run in the woods while he shots them. He will kill men for no reason. But he doesn't kill the man who raped her, who tortured her, hanged her and killed her baby.
But loving a cold blooded murder is OK. I mean she is in his bed the night after seeing him screw another women. After he kills innocent people, she gets mad, he sorry and back in bed she goes.
Oliver sent her to get shot, she could of died but let's not be mad at him. He killed innocent people just to try to get brothers respect.
These men should be killed, something's are unforgivable.
This wasn't romance.
I would not recommend to anyone.
Spoilers
He was a killer. He killed for fun. He let female slaves run in the woods while he shots them. He will kill men for no reason. But he doesn't kill the man who raped her, who tortured her, hanged her and killed her baby.
But loving a cold blooded murder is OK. I mean she is in his bed the night after seeing him screw another women. After he kills innocent people, she gets mad, he sorry and back in bed she goes.
Oliver sent her to get shot, she could of died but let's not be mad at him. He killed innocent people just to try to get brothers respect.
These men should be killed, something's are unforgivable.
This wasn't romance.
avoid
August 5, 2022Self note avoid
Too gruesome!
Slow burn. MCs don’t have sex until the end.
The h (a white slave) sees H fuck another slave, h is his soulmate.🙄
H murders slaves for fun.
H murders slaves in anger.
H tortures and murders a slave for fighting with the h.
There’s detailed mutilation of a slave.
The author was only 19 when she wrote this. She might be a psychopath.😦
Too gruesome!
Slow burn. MCs don’t have sex until the end.
The h (a white slave) sees H fuck another slave, h is his soulmate.🙄
H murders slaves for fun.
H murders slaves in anger.
H tortures and murders a slave for fighting with the h.
There’s detailed mutilation of a slave.
The author was only 19 when she wrote this. She might be a psychopath.😦
May 29, 2017
Mixed Feelings
Quote 1: "Alexander Anderson was a much-feared lord. He was known as ruthless and didn't think twice before killing."
Quote 2: "I will remind you why I killed those slaves. Because you f----d them..."
Full Disclosure: I honestly did not read this book in its entirety. I skipped to the end to see if there might be some twist that would justify further time spent reading.
This is a well-written novel. It is decently edited. It flows well and is interesting.
Rating it is challenging for me because the quotes I shared at the beginning of this review automatically turn me against the so-called "hero." I don't care how much he may change due to what I presume will be infatuation turned into love for the heroine. The narrative claims he's known for killing his slaves and being cruel. I kept reading in case there were extenuating circumstances or that it was a false rumor. Not long after, however, that second quote popped up between the two brothers in their own words. I just *can't* get into it.
I wish the book would be revised in this regard. Make him cold. Make him difficult to please. Callous even. But not someone who randomly murders multiple women for something they couldn't even control! How in the world can I get into the story with such a heinous hero? I can't buy that love would change him or make him regrets sins THAT grave and that extreme.
I want to give this 1-2 stars based on my disappointment at being put off so early on in a book I can tell I would have loved otherwise. But, again, structurally, it's a great, well-written novel, so I do not wish to drag its ratings down ... especially when I didn't read most of it. Three stars are the best I can do, though.
If I happened to have missed some way where he wasn't the monster I quoted after all, I hope someone will comment and tell me. I will finish and revise my review if so. Otherwise, my best wishes to the readers and Ms. Gadeyne. No offense is intended.
Quote 1: "Alexander Anderson was a much-feared lord. He was known as ruthless and didn't think twice before killing."
Quote 2: "I will remind you why I killed those slaves. Because you f----d them..."
Full Disclosure: I honestly did not read this book in its entirety. I skipped to the end to see if there might be some twist that would justify further time spent reading.
This is a well-written novel. It is decently edited. It flows well and is interesting.
Rating it is challenging for me because the quotes I shared at the beginning of this review automatically turn me against the so-called "hero." I don't care how much he may change due to what I presume will be infatuation turned into love for the heroine. The narrative claims he's known for killing his slaves and being cruel. I kept reading in case there were extenuating circumstances or that it was a false rumor. Not long after, however, that second quote popped up between the two brothers in their own words. I just *can't* get into it.
I wish the book would be revised in this regard. Make him cold. Make him difficult to please. Callous even. But not someone who randomly murders multiple women for something they couldn't even control! How in the world can I get into the story with such a heinous hero? I can't buy that love would change him or make him regrets sins THAT grave and that extreme.
I want to give this 1-2 stars based on my disappointment at being put off so early on in a book I can tell I would have loved otherwise. But, again, structurally, it's a great, well-written novel, so I do not wish to drag its ratings down ... especially when I didn't read most of it. Three stars are the best I can do, though.
If I happened to have missed some way where he wasn't the monster I quoted after all, I hope someone will comment and tell me. I will finish and revise my review if so. Otherwise, my best wishes to the readers and Ms. Gadeyne. No offense is intended.
March 8, 2017
This is a story of a girl who is sold off to ease her very poor parent's burden. And while the story had elements that were good, the violence was a little over the top, and seemed wholly unnecessary at times. We are introduced to the heroine being sold off to two different men, and the hero nonchalantly talking about killing four slaves in a week.
It's hard to put your heart into reading a historical romance with really so much violence going on around the slaves. The issue here isn't actual slavery, but the attitude of sadistic violence that all the characters employ. (Spoiler: there is an actual torture dungeon in the house, and the occupants can hear the screams.) The main characters regard torturing someone as a non issue, so much so that it was hard to like anyone. The writing and the dialogue between the characters seemed disjointed in places making it hard to follow along, and the ending fell flat.
I try to find the good in most books, though, and I was truly amazed that Aria seemed to hold her own even though she was sold by her poor parents into lifetime servitude (although she never really much acted like an actual slave throughout the book) and she had endured so much torture and abuse. That by itself shows her strength.
It's hard to put your heart into reading a historical romance with really so much violence going on around the slaves. The issue here isn't actual slavery, but the attitude of sadistic violence that all the characters employ. (Spoiler: there is an actual torture dungeon in the house, and the occupants can hear the screams.) The main characters regard torturing someone as a non issue, so much so that it was hard to like anyone. The writing and the dialogue between the characters seemed disjointed in places making it hard to follow along, and the ending fell flat.
I try to find the good in most books, though, and I was truly amazed that Aria seemed to hold her own even though she was sold by her poor parents into lifetime servitude (although she never really much acted like an actual slave throughout the book) and she had endured so much torture and abuse. That by itself shows her strength.
March 8, 2017
Oh, yes. Another great book, at least to my taste in Romance. I loved it mostly because it has a lot of action and I did not feel the boredom set in at all. I do have some small things to complain about, but the positives far outweigh the negatives. Here goes my review:
Aria has been a slave for some time now. Her family decided to sell her so they all can lead a better life. They did not expect their daughter would be treated with violence and tortured, not only physically, but also mentally. Through it all, Aria has maintained her pride as a free woman and still kept her hopes of someday become respected again. When her first master decides to sell her, she hopes of a better life, at least one in which she will be shown some small amount of respect. She ends up in Alexander Anderson’s home, the most feared man out there. However, Alexander feels a connection with the young woman. Will his heart melt over time, with Aria’s help? Will she be the light missing from his life?
The action is well developed. It has many funny moments and is not dull at all. The relationship between the main characters evolves gradually, even if there is this instant attraction from Alexander’s side. The only observation I have is that there are too many coincidences, if I can call them like that. Someone is always at the right time, at the right moments to overhear a conversation. On one side, this is good, since it keeps thing simple, but on the other it tends to be rather exaggerated.
In regards to the characters, Aria is a very strong woman. She has been through a lot, she has her own demons and nightmares to battle with. But through it all, she has managed to keep her head up, be brave and stand up for her beliefs. I can say I admire her will to keep fighting. I was expecting more from Alexander. He is feared by many, even by members of his family. However, he quickly bends to the wishes of his new slave and to his desires to offer her comfort.
To sum up, I loved this book very much, is a good start for a series. And I am looking forward to read more about the other Adersons, especially the lost brother.
Aria has been a slave for some time now. Her family decided to sell her so they all can lead a better life. They did not expect their daughter would be treated with violence and tortured, not only physically, but also mentally. Through it all, Aria has maintained her pride as a free woman and still kept her hopes of someday become respected again. When her first master decides to sell her, she hopes of a better life, at least one in which she will be shown some small amount of respect. She ends up in Alexander Anderson’s home, the most feared man out there. However, Alexander feels a connection with the young woman. Will his heart melt over time, with Aria’s help? Will she be the light missing from his life?
The action is well developed. It has many funny moments and is not dull at all. The relationship between the main characters evolves gradually, even if there is this instant attraction from Alexander’s side. The only observation I have is that there are too many coincidences, if I can call them like that. Someone is always at the right time, at the right moments to overhear a conversation. On one side, this is good, since it keeps thing simple, but on the other it tends to be rather exaggerated.
In regards to the characters, Aria is a very strong woman. She has been through a lot, she has her own demons and nightmares to battle with. But through it all, she has managed to keep her head up, be brave and stand up for her beliefs. I can say I admire her will to keep fighting. I was expecting more from Alexander. He is feared by many, even by members of his family. However, he quickly bends to the wishes of his new slave and to his desires to offer her comfort.
To sum up, I loved this book very much, is a good start for a series. And I am looking forward to read more about the other Adersons, especially the lost brother.
Read
March 8, 2017*I received a free ARC from the publisher*
Okay first of all i decided not to write a review since i thought the book was okay if we detached it from reality and the book was based in a fantasy world. Maybe. I repeat Maybe. It was a little too daring in the sense that she mixed slavery (in reality) and romance which brings about the whole issue of stopping to romanticize slavery. BUT i am so frustrated that people are rating this book without reading it! That's just completely wrong! If you read it and don't like it then of course say whatever you want! But i don't think it's write to bash the author herself either!
Okay first of all i decided not to write a review since i thought the book was okay if we detached it from reality and the book was based in a fantasy world. Maybe. I repeat Maybe. It was a little too daring in the sense that she mixed slavery (in reality) and romance which brings about the whole issue of stopping to romanticize slavery. BUT i am so frustrated that people are rating this book without reading it! That's just completely wrong! If you read it and don't like it then of course say whatever you want! But i don't think it's write to bash the author herself either!
November 2, 2017
I received an Advanced Reader Copy of this book via Inkitt Publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I have mixed feelings on this book.
Let me start my review first by summarizing the story.
It centers on our main character Aria; slave at the castle of Lord Richard Huston, who was set to be publicly humiliated as a punishment for her failure to serve the little Lord Huston; Arnaud.
The punishment was followed by an auction of the slaves where she was sold to Lord Alexander Anderson.
Alexander was known to be heartless, ruthless and killed without thinking twice. He was feared around. The moment he layed his eyes on her, Alexander was attracted to Aria's fierce and strong personality. As she became his slave and lived in his castle, they both embarked on a journey of dark secrets discovery.
The synopsis of the story seemed quite interesting. The story flow started solid but as soon as Aria was sold to Alexander, the story became irritating and quite boring full of cliches and repetitions.
In other terms, I felt the story became a series of chopped scenes here and there about Aria's adventure in the castle. Unecessary scenes were obvious and personally the amount of cliche used made me cringe most of the time (which on a different note the book was too lengthy and personally I felt half the book could have been deleted).
Character wise: The whole story focused 90% on Alexander and Aria. Both characters were okay however I would have prefered getting to know more about Alexander's past and other characters out there. His father backstory could have been more developed. Also, the other characters were not properly executed to add a depth to the story.
On a different note, I didn't like the way the book ended. It was an abrupt happily ever after. The whole book stetched out with unecessary cliche scenes and as the end was close, it was rushed.
Last but not least, if you're a fan of cliche romance then more than a slave is the book for you. Personally the book was not my cup of tea unfortunately.
I have mixed feelings on this book.
Let me start my review first by summarizing the story.
It centers on our main character Aria; slave at the castle of Lord Richard Huston, who was set to be publicly humiliated as a punishment for her failure to serve the little Lord Huston; Arnaud.
The punishment was followed by an auction of the slaves where she was sold to Lord Alexander Anderson.
Alexander was known to be heartless, ruthless and killed without thinking twice. He was feared around. The moment he layed his eyes on her, Alexander was attracted to Aria's fierce and strong personality. As she became his slave and lived in his castle, they both embarked on a journey of dark secrets discovery.
The synopsis of the story seemed quite interesting. The story flow started solid but as soon as Aria was sold to Alexander, the story became irritating and quite boring full of cliches and repetitions.
In other terms, I felt the story became a series of chopped scenes here and there about Aria's adventure in the castle. Unecessary scenes were obvious and personally the amount of cliche used made me cringe most of the time (which on a different note the book was too lengthy and personally I felt half the book could have been deleted).
Character wise: The whole story focused 90% on Alexander and Aria. Both characters were okay however I would have prefered getting to know more about Alexander's past and other characters out there. His father backstory could have been more developed. Also, the other characters were not properly executed to add a depth to the story.
On a different note, I didn't like the way the book ended. It was an abrupt happily ever after. The whole book stetched out with unecessary cliche scenes and as the end was close, it was rushed.
Last but not least, if you're a fan of cliche romance then more than a slave is the book for you. Personally the book was not my cup of tea unfortunately.
March 8, 2017
I would like to say that I received the book in advanced to review.
The book is not exactly my type, not because of the violence but just the nature of the book itself. I love historical romance but I'm addicted to thrillers as well and many authors go to great lengths in researching facts for accuracy when writing the book. I believe this was not the case and that is why I'm giving out 3 stars instead of 5.
Adria is a white slave sold to Lord Huston on her 18th birthday, to help her family. She was not born a slave but made one, she was tortured, abused, and raped then sold at an auction.
She is purchased by Lord Anderson and the story takes twist after twist and gets a bit confusing to keep up with. She becomes the Lords 'favorite' and befriends other family members but it doesn't give her privileges.
The love story is very good, its believable why there had to be the violence there is I don't understand it overshadows the story and the main characters. I could not see Alexander as a human after he did the awful things he did. It kind of killed the character. I don't recall being told exactly in what century or what continent the story is taking place. Plenty of little details were not explained and we were given to many gruesome details of violence that didn't necessarily need to be in the story to make it good.
I hope the author writes a second book explaining many of the details left out and gives us closure as I also feel to have been left in a cliffhanger as we don't know what happened to the other main characters.
Overall I did enjoy the book in a weird way because I felt the love between the characters and as an avid reader I want to feel what I'm reading
The book is not exactly my type, not because of the violence but just the nature of the book itself. I love historical romance but I'm addicted to thrillers as well and many authors go to great lengths in researching facts for accuracy when writing the book. I believe this was not the case and that is why I'm giving out 3 stars instead of 5.
Adria is a white slave sold to Lord Huston on her 18th birthday, to help her family. She was not born a slave but made one, she was tortured, abused, and raped then sold at an auction.
She is purchased by Lord Anderson and the story takes twist after twist and gets a bit confusing to keep up with. She becomes the Lords 'favorite' and befriends other family members but it doesn't give her privileges.
The love story is very good, its believable why there had to be the violence there is I don't understand it overshadows the story and the main characters. I could not see Alexander as a human after he did the awful things he did. It kind of killed the character. I don't recall being told exactly in what century or what continent the story is taking place. Plenty of little details were not explained and we were given to many gruesome details of violence that didn't necessarily need to be in the story to make it good.
I hope the author writes a second book explaining many of the details left out and gives us closure as I also feel to have been left in a cliffhanger as we don't know what happened to the other main characters.
Overall I did enjoy the book in a weird way because I felt the love between the characters and as an avid reader I want to feel what I'm reading
March 1, 2017
I am a big fan of historical romance novels and this one definitely fits the bill. This was my first time reading Anaelle Gadeyne and her ability to draw the reader into the story is incredible.
Her visualization through description was amazing and at times I felt like I was actually there. I will say that there is a lot of violence and brutality in this novel, a lot of the times making me wince however I can understand that it was there to set the scene for the story. I loved the romance between Aria and Alexander how it grew from a lashing in the square into something beautiful. I loved the growth and change of each character through the strength of Aria Starbird and her sharp tongue. Her entire story broke my heart but it was her feminine pride and backbone of steel that I truly admired. I also really enjoyed the little snippets we got to see of the secondary characters and their romances as well, it really complimented the story line.
Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, I was pulled in from the very beginning. I was a little disappointed with how it ended simply because it was a little abrupt and I wanted to know more about Aria and Alexander's happily ever after.
I laughed and I certainly cried (a few times) the emotions in this novel are very real and Gadeyne had me feeling all of the feels.
Her visualization through description was amazing and at times I felt like I was actually there. I will say that there is a lot of violence and brutality in this novel, a lot of the times making me wince however I can understand that it was there to set the scene for the story. I loved the romance between Aria and Alexander how it grew from a lashing in the square into something beautiful. I loved the growth and change of each character through the strength of Aria Starbird and her sharp tongue. Her entire story broke my heart but it was her feminine pride and backbone of steel that I truly admired. I also really enjoyed the little snippets we got to see of the secondary characters and their romances as well, it really complimented the story line.
Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this novel, I was pulled in from the very beginning. I was a little disappointed with how it ended simply because it was a little abrupt and I wanted to know more about Aria and Alexander's happily ever after.
I laughed and I certainly cried (a few times) the emotions in this novel are very real and Gadeyne had me feeling all of the feels.
March 10, 2017
I received a free copy in exchange for an honest review.
Aria is a slave. Her parents sold her as a solution to their poverty. She is not the most obedient of the slaves, so she is set to be punished publicly by her owner and to be sold to another family.
Her new master is Alexander Anderson. Everyone seems to agree that he is a ruthless and heartless man but he doesn't treat her that bad. He feels an inexplicable attraction to Aria, but he tries to fight against it because she is a slave, they are not equal.
Soon Aria finds out that Alexander is so violent and feared because of his past. She must decide if she accepts all the parts that form his personality, even the darkests ones.
The book is ok.
Although the plot is kept alive by all the events that happen, it's all too repetitive. Too many problems, too many people trying to separate them... And they are obsessed with finding their soulmates. They are even willing to risk their own lives to prove if they have found their one and only. This makes the book a little bit tiring.
Aria is a slave. Her parents sold her as a solution to their poverty. She is not the most obedient of the slaves, so she is set to be punished publicly by her owner and to be sold to another family.
Her new master is Alexander Anderson. Everyone seems to agree that he is a ruthless and heartless man but he doesn't treat her that bad. He feels an inexplicable attraction to Aria, but he tries to fight against it because she is a slave, they are not equal.
Soon Aria finds out that Alexander is so violent and feared because of his past. She must decide if she accepts all the parts that form his personality, even the darkests ones.
The book is ok.
Although the plot is kept alive by all the events that happen, it's all too repetitive. Too many problems, too many people trying to separate them... And they are obsessed with finding their soulmates. They are even willing to risk their own lives to prove if they have found their one and only. This makes the book a little bit tiring.
March 7, 2017
I really don't know what to say about this book. The reviews on Amazon are ludicrous! Sweet and fluffy?? Are you fricking kidding me!
Reading the blurb I thought this would be another Fifty Shades spinoff, BOY was I wrong. The grammar was the first thing that turned me off and maybe that was because it just came to me from the editing hands of the author. I truly don't know. And than the brutality of the whole book; killing slaves just because they looked at you sideways?? And then the ending!!
Lord have mercy. I can't take it.
I admit, I couldn't read the whole way through, so I skipped chapters; like a whole bunch.
I would NOT recommend this book, but it is free on Amazon right now, so you can see if you like it.
Reading the blurb I thought this would be another Fifty Shades spinoff, BOY was I wrong. The grammar was the first thing that turned me off and maybe that was because it just came to me from the editing hands of the author. I truly don't know. And than the brutality of the whole book; killing slaves just because they looked at you sideways?? And then the ending!!
Lord have mercy. I can't take it.
I admit, I couldn't read the whole way through, so I skipped chapters; like a whole bunch.
I would NOT recommend this book, but it is free on Amazon right now, so you can see if you like it.
March 10, 2017
Less than a story
So the book was free a new writer gave it a shot... I only finished in hopes it would get better. Aria a white slave sold to a ruthless owner by a ruthless owner... The conversation amongst characters go no where. There's a lot of unnecessary or unfinished parts. Glad the villians git his
So the book was free a new writer gave it a shot... I only finished in hopes it would get better. Aria a white slave sold to a ruthless owner by a ruthless owner... The conversation amongst characters go no where. There's a lot of unnecessary or unfinished parts. Glad the villians git his
March 8, 2017
I was really surprised that people have gone out of their way to bash this book. Perhaps a disclaimer being added at the end of the synopsis would deter people who are more sensitive. This is a work of fiction… it is pretend. This is a story that this writer had in her head… it is for entertainment value only. It is wrong for reviewers and/or bloggers to rate/review books that they feel is ethically wrong. Who are you to censor books? There are several authors that write about this same subject matter… how about Pepper Winters who is a New York Times and USA Today International Bestseller? She has a whole series out starting with Pennies. I mean, get off your high horse! Anyways… sorry for the sidetrack but this is someone’s imagination that is meant to entertain… how dare people try to censor that. Don’t like it… don’t buy it! If you don't read it... DON'T review it!!
So onto the book… so I did like the book and I feel like it has the possibility to be great. I’m not sure if Anaelle Gadeyne has some BETA readers but I think that would have helped her tremendously. The wording in the book was a bit juvenile. Thesaurus is our friend!! And research into historical time periods. I don’t often read books that are historical but I thought the synopsis sounded interesting. I really think this book could be redone and fantastic!! Not saying it’s bad… it has room to grow!
I’m actually a huge fan of darker romances. The mushy, lovey stuff if just too much sometime! So I liked that this book was on the darker side. However, our dark night in this book was so conflicted over Aria. He wasn’t supposed to feel like he did. He wasn’t supposed to want her, to care for her. He’s been able to kill his slaves before without a moment’s thought on it. However, Aria makes him question things. She makes him say things he has never said… sweet things. Alexander has a pull to Aria. We also have a naughty slave trying to get in on the small bits of niceness that Alexander is giving to Aria. It’s just a fantastic plot.
I think if you read books for entertainment purposes and to go to other worlds than you should give this book a chance. It’s different and good. I read it very quickly, even with what I felt was some flaws. I was totally routing for Aria AND Alexander at the end… I wanted them to have a happily ever after. They were both tortured souls that deserved chances in life!
I received an ARC of this book with the hope that I will leave an Unbiased Opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that... my opinions.
So onto the book… so I did like the book and I feel like it has the possibility to be great. I’m not sure if Anaelle Gadeyne has some BETA readers but I think that would have helped her tremendously. The wording in the book was a bit juvenile. Thesaurus is our friend!! And research into historical time periods. I don’t often read books that are historical but I thought the synopsis sounded interesting. I really think this book could be redone and fantastic!! Not saying it’s bad… it has room to grow!
I’m actually a huge fan of darker romances. The mushy, lovey stuff if just too much sometime! So I liked that this book was on the darker side. However, our dark night in this book was so conflicted over Aria. He wasn’t supposed to feel like he did. He wasn’t supposed to want her, to care for her. He’s been able to kill his slaves before without a moment’s thought on it. However, Aria makes him question things. She makes him say things he has never said… sweet things. Alexander has a pull to Aria. We also have a naughty slave trying to get in on the small bits of niceness that Alexander is giving to Aria. It’s just a fantastic plot.
I think if you read books for entertainment purposes and to go to other worlds than you should give this book a chance. It’s different and good. I read it very quickly, even with what I felt was some flaws. I was totally routing for Aria AND Alexander at the end… I wanted them to have a happily ever after. They were both tortured souls that deserved chances in life!
I received an ARC of this book with the hope that I will leave an Unbiased Opinion. I was not required to leave a review, positive or otherwise, and my opinions are just that... my opinions.
March 9, 2017
I read romance novels every single day of the week but what I don’t read is period works, I don’t know why in particular, it is just a genre that I have had an issue connecting with in the past. So reading More than a Slave wasn’t something I took lightly, it was something that I made a concerted decision to undertake, I didn’t stumble upon this no, I picked it up three times to read and after only a few short chapters each time, I laid the book back down knowing that this was a work that I would need to give my undivided attention if I didn’t want to fall into the trap of missing the essence of the story and I think I was right because the point of the book is far more than the title and even the blurb suggests (on a side note though I thought the title attracted a negativity that the story didn’t warrant and that was a shame in my opinion).
So what did I think…well I would urge you to look past the title and in some respects to disregard the enforced connection between the main characters and look at this on the personal level because as unsavoury as the situation of slavery is to us in the 21st century, the existence of this form of relationship in the past is not something that can or should be ignored.
I admit now that, that aspect of the story is something that took me a while to reconcile with my own conscience, but reflecting on the events that the author portrayed, I can now say that no matter the situation, this was a story of a love that refused to pay heed to the circumstances that those involved found themselves in, I suppose in modern terms it was much like a Stockholm syndrome situation and I have lost count of how many of those I have read over the years.
Please read this with an open mind and if you do I think you will see that the story is about the tenacity of love, the resilience of those to fight for what they hearts refuse to allow to slip away and the author was able to load the book with an intensity that some might miss if they are not looking hard enough, please don’t allow yourself to miss the true meaning of the story because from what I read, this was a historical romance that played its hand well with everything that was pertinent at that period in time.
To my surprise this was emotionally a bit of a rollercoaster, I had it in my head (again I feel that the title contributed to this) that this was going to be a darker read than it actually was, don’t get me wrong there are some aspects of the story that didn’t sit well with me at all, the author didn’t sugar coat anything, there was violence and cruelty that by means of some very illuminating descriptions chilled me to the bone but at its core the story was very much a romance and a pretty solid one at that.
The connection between Aria and Alexander stemmed from a situation that was far too brutal for me to even comprehend but the author gave what was bubbling between the two of them the opportunity to find its feet and develop in a way that not only was befitting of the time but also of their situation.
The personalities that they both exuded were fascinating, I especially liked the fact that Aria, despite her situation, stood tall and had an honesty about her that spoke volumes about who she was on in inside, her wit and razor sharp tongue brought a smile to my face.
Alexander took a little more getting used to, I wasn’t entirely enamoured by him initially, I doubt anyone would have been but when I got a chance to see what was beneath his angry exterior I found him and his reasoning more agreeable. I would say stick with him, he comes good in the end!
There were of course more than just the two main characters and the author ensured that those who were secondary in the plot were afforded the same attention as both Aria and Alexander, some of the levity of the situation was greatly enhanced by the interaction between them all.
I commend the author for a body of work that was willing to bruise along the way, it, like history, showed the reality of evolution, the fact that life changes from day to day, from year to year, from century to century and that through those changes we get to review and repeal not only how we think but how we feel and how we act.
For a first novel by this author, I would be intrigued to find out what else she has up her sleeve.
So what did I think…well I would urge you to look past the title and in some respects to disregard the enforced connection between the main characters and look at this on the personal level because as unsavoury as the situation of slavery is to us in the 21st century, the existence of this form of relationship in the past is not something that can or should be ignored.
I admit now that, that aspect of the story is something that took me a while to reconcile with my own conscience, but reflecting on the events that the author portrayed, I can now say that no matter the situation, this was a story of a love that refused to pay heed to the circumstances that those involved found themselves in, I suppose in modern terms it was much like a Stockholm syndrome situation and I have lost count of how many of those I have read over the years.
Please read this with an open mind and if you do I think you will see that the story is about the tenacity of love, the resilience of those to fight for what they hearts refuse to allow to slip away and the author was able to load the book with an intensity that some might miss if they are not looking hard enough, please don’t allow yourself to miss the true meaning of the story because from what I read, this was a historical romance that played its hand well with everything that was pertinent at that period in time.
To my surprise this was emotionally a bit of a rollercoaster, I had it in my head (again I feel that the title contributed to this) that this was going to be a darker read than it actually was, don’t get me wrong there are some aspects of the story that didn’t sit well with me at all, the author didn’t sugar coat anything, there was violence and cruelty that by means of some very illuminating descriptions chilled me to the bone but at its core the story was very much a romance and a pretty solid one at that.
The connection between Aria and Alexander stemmed from a situation that was far too brutal for me to even comprehend but the author gave what was bubbling between the two of them the opportunity to find its feet and develop in a way that not only was befitting of the time but also of their situation.
The personalities that they both exuded were fascinating, I especially liked the fact that Aria, despite her situation, stood tall and had an honesty about her that spoke volumes about who she was on in inside, her wit and razor sharp tongue brought a smile to my face.
Alexander took a little more getting used to, I wasn’t entirely enamoured by him initially, I doubt anyone would have been but when I got a chance to see what was beneath his angry exterior I found him and his reasoning more agreeable. I would say stick with him, he comes good in the end!
There were of course more than just the two main characters and the author ensured that those who were secondary in the plot were afforded the same attention as both Aria and Alexander, some of the levity of the situation was greatly enhanced by the interaction between them all.
I commend the author for a body of work that was willing to bruise along the way, it, like history, showed the reality of evolution, the fact that life changes from day to day, from year to year, from century to century and that through those changes we get to review and repeal not only how we think but how we feel and how we act.
For a first novel by this author, I would be intrigued to find out what else she has up her sleeve.
March 17, 2017
More than a Slave by Anaelle Gadeyne is the darkest yet most intensifying read ever. The Hunger Games has nothing compared to this book. This was dark, horrifying, and emotional. So many issues brought up in a clever way. I was intrigued and chilled at the same time. Aria is a young woman who sacrificed herself as a slave to help her parents. They were barely living and no food, no money, and their home would be lost forever. But the moment Aria is a slave her life changes forever. Aria won't experience happiness for a long time. Seven months of torture by a cruel man. Then she suffers cruel punishment from in public. But her bravery and strength surprises a lord watching it all. Alexander has been know to be feared by all. He kills without mercy. However, seeing Aria...he admires and likes what he sees in her. Fiery, bold, and strong. Not to mention beautiful. Aria sees Alexander Anderson and likes him too. But knowing he's a monster has her slightly off...soon, fate will bring them both together and each one will change the other's life around completely. More than a Slave brings up the cruelty shown to human beings. How those who are rich treat those who are below them as well as how and what slaves endured. I was amazed by the emotional force that hit me while reading this novel. I felt sad, angry, and happy. Eventually good does win...Anaelle Gadeyne has a talent for showing readers the ugliness of what occurs in life as well as the beauty of it. Overall, I highly recommend More than a Slave to readers worldwide.
January 4, 2020
BE WARNED THERE ARE SOME SCENARIOS ON THE BOOK THAT I QUOTED
AND ITS UNSPEAKABLY FUCKED UP
I normally set my Kindle to "not on profile" every book as to avoid as to avoid amazon suggesting me crappy ones in my home screen if i read books that are crappy, but i need to say something about this.
This is HORROR,
Set in GA, pre-Civil war,
H has Black and white slave (White are indentured) h is really a slave not indentured even if she's white.
A white slave and a master Story.
H fucked a slave and the h witness it.
H here is like emperor Nero himself, he decides who live and die.
He killed a slave in front of many slave with h present.
BOOK SCENARIO
“Come on now Alex, I will help you. You killed four of your slaves this week and you are using mine now. I don't like to share—”
“Neither do I! So I will remind you why I killed those slaves.
(............................................)
Alexander was so angry. How dare they all say that Aria was a whore? And how dare this girl hurt Aria?
“That wasn't difficult now, was it?” He asked not removing his foot from her chest. “Aria is not a whore, do you hear me? She is not a whore. Say it!” He ordered, yelling.
“Ar...Aria is not a whore,” the girl said trembling and completely frightened.
“And she was right. You are a poor excuse of a woman,” Alexander continued.
“She was right. I'm a poor excuse of a woman.” She was now crying, begging him silently to let her live.
Alexander looked down disdainfully at the girl. He couldn't even remember her name. He put a little less weight on his foot, making her believe he was letting her go, and then when her face lit up, he growled. It came out sounding like an animal's growl. He crushed her ribcage with his foot. He looked in her eyes as she tried to breathe and was slowly dying an agonizing death. He watched as the life in her eyes slowly drained away. He put even more pressure on his foot and he heard the cracking of her ribs. HE WATCHED AS SHE TOOK HER LAST BREATH
(...................................)
“It's unfair. She didn't deserve to die. You should've killed the oth—” A man began but didn't finish because Alexander grabbed him by the throat taking everyone aback.
“It was ironic, mate. You do not get to say anything about my decisions,” Alexander said, angry before SNAPPING his neck with his bare hands as if he was breaking a small branch. “Anyone else?” He asked the slaves in front of him with a content smirk on his face.
Aria gasped and took a step back covering her mouth with her hands(...)He was a monster(...)Alexander looked around the room at all the slaves with a PROUD smile as he watched the fear on THEIR faces until his eyes caught Aria. His smile instantly dropped. She had tears falling onto her cheeks and her hands covering her mouth. He had completely forgotten that she was in the room.
...............................
I searched the word KILL in the book and all of it are shocking associated with H either planning to
commit murder, threatening to kill someones mother or doing the act.
A horrible scene with H and slave he fucked when witnessed by h, H intend to kill the slave for always irking the h that they (H and slave) are soulmates because he fucked her (even though only one time)
H lead slave to the dungeon with a knife and told her he wanted it naughty
---book scene-----
Harriet started to struggle to free herself as Alexander approached with the knife but there was no way she would manage to. Alexander brought the knife close to her arm and sliced it on her skin causing a deep cut to appear as blood drained from it. Harriet screamed out in pain and he did the same to the other arm. Oh yes, this was going to be fun, he thought.
“Why are you doing this to me?” Harriet asked with tears pouring down her face.
“Remind me one more time what Aria is?” Alexander asked, eyeing her menacingly.
“She’s a whore,” Harriet said weakly.
Alexander cut the skin under her collarbone and Harriet cried out once more. “She’s a pathetic little girl who wants to be noticed so she plays victim,” she spat.
Alexander still had the knife on her skin so he pushed the knife deeper in her wound before an idea came to his mind and his smile quickly came back to his lips. He was enjoying this so much it should be forbidden. Well, torturing people was forbidden, but Alexander didn't care.
(...) He just cut her skin deeply four times, at strategic places, knowing it wouldn't kill her, and she still believed deep inside of him he had feelings for her.
-------------------------------------------------------------
GOD!!!!! REALLY??? i hate the H and hated that this book has been published as romance... after killing the slave with h present i DNF the book,....its hard to romanticized emperor NERO like person.
AND ITS UNSPEAKABLY FUCKED UP
I normally set my Kindle to "not on profile" every book as to avoid as to avoid amazon suggesting me crappy ones in my home screen if i read books that are crappy, but i need to say something about this.
This is HORROR,
Set in GA, pre-Civil war,
H has Black and white slave (White are indentured) h is really a slave not indentured even if she's white.
A white slave and a master Story.
H fucked a slave and the h witness it.
H here is like emperor Nero himself, he decides who live and die.
He killed a slave in front of many slave with h present.
BOOK SCENARIO
“Come on now Alex, I will help you. You killed four of your slaves this week and you are using mine now. I don't like to share—”
“Neither do I! So I will remind you why I killed those slaves.
(............................................)
Alexander was so angry. How dare they all say that Aria was a whore? And how dare this girl hurt Aria?
“That wasn't difficult now, was it?” He asked not removing his foot from her chest. “Aria is not a whore, do you hear me? She is not a whore. Say it!” He ordered, yelling.
“Ar...Aria is not a whore,” the girl said trembling and completely frightened.
“And she was right. You are a poor excuse of a woman,” Alexander continued.
“She was right. I'm a poor excuse of a woman.” She was now crying, begging him silently to let her live.
Alexander looked down disdainfully at the girl. He couldn't even remember her name. He put a little less weight on his foot, making her believe he was letting her go, and then when her face lit up, he growled. It came out sounding like an animal's growl. He crushed her ribcage with his foot. He looked in her eyes as she tried to breathe and was slowly dying an agonizing death. He watched as the life in her eyes slowly drained away. He put even more pressure on his foot and he heard the cracking of her ribs. HE WATCHED AS SHE TOOK HER LAST BREATH
(...................................)
“It's unfair. She didn't deserve to die. You should've killed the oth—” A man began but didn't finish because Alexander grabbed him by the throat taking everyone aback.
“It was ironic, mate. You do not get to say anything about my decisions,” Alexander said, angry before SNAPPING his neck with his bare hands as if he was breaking a small branch. “Anyone else?” He asked the slaves in front of him with a content smirk on his face.
Aria gasped and took a step back covering her mouth with her hands(...)He was a monster(...)Alexander looked around the room at all the slaves with a PROUD smile as he watched the fear on THEIR faces until his eyes caught Aria. His smile instantly dropped. She had tears falling onto her cheeks and her hands covering her mouth. He had completely forgotten that she was in the room.
...............................
I searched the word KILL in the book and all of it are shocking associated with H either planning to
commit murder, threatening to kill someones mother or doing the act.
A horrible scene with H and slave he fucked when witnessed by h, H intend to kill the slave for always irking the h that they (H and slave) are soulmates because he fucked her (even though only one time)
H lead slave to the dungeon with a knife and told her he wanted it naughty
---book scene-----
Harriet started to struggle to free herself as Alexander approached with the knife but there was no way she would manage to. Alexander brought the knife close to her arm and sliced it on her skin causing a deep cut to appear as blood drained from it. Harriet screamed out in pain and he did the same to the other arm. Oh yes, this was going to be fun, he thought.
“Why are you doing this to me?” Harriet asked with tears pouring down her face.
“Remind me one more time what Aria is?” Alexander asked, eyeing her menacingly.
“She’s a whore,” Harriet said weakly.
Alexander cut the skin under her collarbone and Harriet cried out once more. “She’s a pathetic little girl who wants to be noticed so she plays victim,” she spat.
Alexander still had the knife on her skin so he pushed the knife deeper in her wound before an idea came to his mind and his smile quickly came back to his lips. He was enjoying this so much it should be forbidden. Well, torturing people was forbidden, but Alexander didn't care.
(...) He just cut her skin deeply four times, at strategic places, knowing it wouldn't kill her, and she still believed deep inside of him he had feelings for her.
-------------------------------------------------------------
GOD!!!!! REALLY??? i hate the H and hated that this book has been published as romance... after killing the slave with h present i DNF the book,....its hard to romanticized emperor NERO like person.
March 8, 2017
Reading some of the reviews on how this is degrading. Yes it was a little violent but it was a FICTIONAL world where this slavery does not exist in reality. I feel a lot of people are bring it down because they are comparing it to non-fiction world.
I received this ARC copy to give an honest review. I loved it. I was expecting romantic fluff thinking the book would be a story about a slave and her master. Boy was I wrong.
Yes it is a little gruesome and violent but it also included a woman (Aria, love the characters name) and her strong characterization of speaking up even if that resulted in punishment. And when she falls into the hands of Alexander Anderson and the rumors of how horrible his family, it goes from there. Aria thinking that she will probably will die soon.
The romance comes where Alexander and Aria have a game of "cat and mouse" where they drive each other mad but also includes sexual tension. Throughout the book it was suspenseful because you never knew if Alexander was going to go off his word and abuse her because of his anger issues. But Aria still pushes him back and forth throughout.
Aria is well written because of her sensitivity and her brashness against Alexander. Which the rest of the family believe if he hadn't killed her by now, she must mean something to him.
It was a very nice change of pace in the romantic genre. The only issue I had was when a character spoke in POV and the paragraph later the other character's POV. It got a little confusing.
And the fact that I couldn't put it down, even at work, I believe I found this novel a surprisingly good read.
I received this ARC copy to give an honest review. I loved it. I was expecting romantic fluff thinking the book would be a story about a slave and her master. Boy was I wrong.
Yes it is a little gruesome and violent but it also included a woman (Aria, love the characters name) and her strong characterization of speaking up even if that resulted in punishment. And when she falls into the hands of Alexander Anderson and the rumors of how horrible his family, it goes from there. Aria thinking that she will probably will die soon.
The romance comes where Alexander and Aria have a game of "cat and mouse" where they drive each other mad but also includes sexual tension. Throughout the book it was suspenseful because you never knew if Alexander was going to go off his word and abuse her because of his anger issues. But Aria still pushes him back and forth throughout.
Aria is well written because of her sensitivity and her brashness against Alexander. Which the rest of the family believe if he hadn't killed her by now, she must mean something to him.
It was a very nice change of pace in the romantic genre. The only issue I had was when a character spoke in POV and the paragraph later the other character's POV. It got a little confusing.
And the fact that I couldn't put it down, even at work, I believe I found this novel a surprisingly good read.
October 22, 2017
It's rare for me to stop at a book, and feel so drawn in. This book had my attention because its pace was interesting. The way each thing connects to the next and make you want to read it is excellent. I would definitely love to read the suite.
March 18, 2017
This story was amazing! My heart just broke for Aria. But loved her strength. Did not want to put it down. Just a heart wrenching story about true love and soul mates. I love books written from the era. When men were lords and women were ladies. This story reminds us of a time when things were so different but so amazing too.
Very well written page turner! Could not stop reading!
Very well written page turner! Could not stop reading!
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