4.5 / 5 stars This book is dark. It is twisted. It is gritty. It is also a remarkable, heart stopping read. If you have read this author’s other works, then you are well aware that she has this amazing ability to make you fall for her serial killer characters. If this is your first book by this author, be prepared to walk on the shocking dark side in this standalone romance.
Told from a dual POV, we discover Arson’s past and just how fire became his favorite weapon of torture. Arson is intimidating, deranged, and cruel and he makes no apologies for it. Surprisingly, as I had been really looking forward to his book, I had trouble warming up to him in the beginning as he so unfeeling, but as the story progressed, he grew on me. I knew that whoever stole his heart had to be amazing.
“I am your greatest nightmare. And you are the captive I’ve decided to keep.”
Vengeance is his end game, but he is thrown for a loop when he meets Callista. I liked her immediately off the bat. Being held captive by Arson, she becomes this serial killer’s obsession and possession.
“Your mind, your body, and your soul will be possessed by the devil who craves nothing but your surrender and passion.”
Callista is a survivor who has found herself thrown into impossible situations not of her making. She is resilient and a fighter which is what endeared me to her. I love a strong heroine.
Arson is perhaps this author’s darkest anti-hero yet and at times, I wasn’t sure how the author was going to develop a romance between him and Callista. I wasn’t sure if the guy was capable of love nor was I positive that Callista could truly and honestly fall for her hard-hearted captor.
“She is the light in my darkness, the only thing brightening up my world with her smile alone. She is the gasoline to my fire, the angel to my demon.”
True to this author’s other works, there is a heavy dose of violence and tragic backstories for these characters. Arson’s and Callista’s pasts are revealed through flashbacks interspersed throughout the book and will make your heart hurt for all that they have each endured. The descriptions are graphic in some places so be aware.
Arson’s Captive is sure to keep you on your toes with all of the action, surprising twists, and intricate storyline. The secondary characters, especially the four horsemen, are rather featured prominently in the book which I loved as I now can’t wait to learn more about each of them. If you like your romances on the dark and twisted side with complex characters, a unique plot, and some scorching hot scenes, then you will enjoy Arson’s Captive.
I read an early complimentary version of this book.