❤~🌟~❤ 4.5 RESOUNDING STARS! ❤~🌟~❤
“This is my fairy tale come true. And I’m fighting for my happy ending.”
Yay! The wait is FINALLY over. Lisa Renee Jones’ Brilliance Trilogy reaches an electrifying crescendo in A SINFUL ENCORE, and this romance maestro wraps things up in a WONDEROUS way!
PREMISE:
Passion and peril, secrets and subterfuge collide as Aria Stradivari and Kace August unravel the final clues to the cryptic mysteries that have been hovering over them since they first laid eyes on each other. Picking right up where book two left off, the search for Aria’s brother, Gio, comes to a screeching halt when she walks into her collectibles shop and comes face to face with her missing sib! But it’s hardly a joyous family reunion, for Gio is out for blood and none too pleased to find his baby sis cozying up to Kace! But where’s Gio been all this time? How does his disappearance tie into the mystifying notes he’s been receiving from “Sofia?” And what’s his true association to the nefarious Blue Owls?
As we embark on the pulse pounding final act of Aria and Kace’s sizzling hot romance, we get answers to all that and more, including whether Gio switched alliances and if the puzzle surrounding the coveted Stradivarius violin formula will EVER be solved. But despite the danger and duplicity dogging them at every turn, they vow nothing will ever tear them asunder. However, the stakes have never been higher for this desperately in love duo, and as dirty skeletons are unearthed and treacherous secrets exposed, Aria and Kace’s tantalizingly tumultuous relationship will continue to be tested in unfathomable ways. When all is said and done, will they be the last ones standing?
MY MUSINGS:
A SINFUL ENCORE was
très magnifique!
The final act in this rousing romantic symphony, which is bursting with all-consuming love, nail biting drama and spine-tingling suspense, took my breath away, had me blinking back tears and made my heart SING WITH JOY! As this superbly crafted last book races to the finish, I couldn’t turn the pages fast enough. Yet at the same time, I wanted to savor each and every resplendent moment.
There is an art to Ms. Jones’s writing, and each and every scene she pens is splashed with gorgeous brush strokes of vibrant color, stylish subtext and pure majesty. At the core of this trilogy, of course, is the star-crossed romance between the Stradivari heiress and world famous violin rocker, and with their lingering trust issues FINALLY resolved, they can revel in their love as they focus on facing down their enemies and piecing together the final clues in the Stradivari mystery that’s been haunting them both. As it turns out, the answers they seek about her family secrets “lies in Kace,” in his songs, and in Aria as well. But will they solve the puzzle before it’s too late?
These two beautifully infallible soulmates have come so far since the beginning of this series and the everlasting love and total acceptance and unwavering trust that’s forged between Aria and Kace is SPELLBINDING! And as the emotional intimacy between them deepens so does their electrifying passion. The physical expression of love between these MCs has always been charged with high octane emotion and hot, burning intensity, but LRJ took things up a notch in this last book as the erotic encounters escalated to a new level of hotness! And I am talking about the four-alarm variety because their kinky power exchanges—an intoxicating concoction of love, desire, pain and pleasure— are guaranteed to SET YOUR KINDLE ON FIRE!
And gah what can I say about these characters that haven’t been said before? Kace in all his DELICIOUSLY BROODY, MYSTERIOUSLY SEXY, MOUTHWATERINGLY MASCULINE PERFECTION made me melt!! And while this leather and denim adorned violin rocker could have his pick of adoring females, his heart only beats for one woman. Aria. And this beautifully beleaguered, smart and sophisticated, utterly luminous heroine is fully deserving of his complete devotion. Since she was a young girl, her life has been shrouded in secrets and tainted by tragedy. The arduous journey that she’s been traversing has been filled with pain and uncertainty, hope and heartbreak, deception and danger, yet through it all, her strength, courage and innate kindness always shone through. And as she steps out of the shadows and fully embraces her family legacy, she evolves into the extraordinary woman she’s always been destined to be!
Yet as her quest for answers to her family mystery finally reaches a head, she has a secret weapon that no one saw coming. For Kane August is so much more than a celebrated violinist who rocks Aria’s world. Or the powerfully dominant/tender-hearted lover who lays claim to her body and soul. But in him she also has a LOYAL ALLY and DIE-HARD PROTECTOR who will stop at nothing to keep her happy and safe and help her find the answers she so desperately seeks. Sigh! I love how his hero “is a perfect contradiction. A man who is both sensitive and seductive, "demanding and fierce, damaged but never broken, and most of all," Aria's "warrior" in her “time of need.”
However, Kace also wrestles with his own dark demons, and Aria is his rock of Gibraltar throughout it all! There is a dangerous, razor-sharp edge to his famous persona that he hides from the public eye but in her presence he allows her ALL EXCLUSIVE ACCESS to his tormented psyche. But Kace’s grittier, more ruthless nature does not repel her. Not by a longshot.
“I don’t love only a piece of you, Kace. I love all of you.”
Speaking of this enigmatic hero, I really wish we had gotten Kace’s POV throughout this series, but due to the author’s deeply nuanced storytelling, I felt like I knew him intimately, nonetheless. And, as per her MO, there are plenty of thrilling, unexpected plot twists to keep us on our toes, highly entertaining cameos from the good guys
(Mmmm Salvage!!)
who ALWAYS protect their own, and dastardly machinations from some unsavory foes! And ultimately, the manner in which this wildly addictive series concludes is Exhilarating. Heartfelt. And UTTERLY RAPTUROUS!! And while it’s sad to bid adieu to this trilogy, the beauty of this author’s books is how past characters often cross over into each other’s stories. So, I have every confidence that we have not seen the last of Aria and Kane!
BOTTOM LINE:
A SINFUL ENCORE was everything I could have dreamed of in a blockbuster finale! Teeming with heart pounding mystique and musical artistry, love and agony, passion and pathos, it struck every chord and ended on a BRILLIANT high note!
HIGHLY RECOMMEND!