Tempted by Darkness

Bound to Hades #1

by Lillian Sable

Just because I asked Hades to take me away, doesn’t mean I thought he’d actually do it.
One minute I’m having a beer with my friends at a bar and in the next, we’ve been transported across time and space to the Underworld.
Hades has offered me a deal. If I can escape his realm in time then my friends and I get to home.
If not, I’m his….for eternity.
The Underworld might not exactly be hell, but Hades is as seductive as the devil. It’s not just a matter of whether I’ll succeed in his challenge, but if I’ll have the strength to resist him when he asks me to be his queen.
But the harder I fight to resist him, the more I seem to caught under his spell.
Hades is handsome, wicked, and he’ll use every trick he has to keep what he has stolen.
Me.
I won’t let him take my freedom, but I might just give it to him when asks for it.


The myth of Hades and Persephone meets the Labyrinth in this seductive tale, perfect for fans of Amelia Hutchins, Jennifer L. Armentrout and Sarah J. Mass. This is book 1 in the Bound by Hades trilogy.

Genres: Fantasy

200 pages, Kindle Edition

Published January 17, 2021

About the author

Lillian Sable writes erotic romances and is the author of The Dollhouse series. She is a former office-worker who spent more time fantasizing and daydreaming than doing her actual job. She started writing her fantasies down and turned her dreams into reality.

Lillian lives in Indiana with her husband.

Follow me on Facebook: @authorlilliansable
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Reviews

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing and editing of the ARC version of the manuscript was mostly clean, with only occasional typos that will hopefully corrected in the retail version. The world building was a vivid character in itself, with the deteriorating Underworld coming to life. The characterization of the heroine was well done, with her being a very sympathetic character. The characterization of Hades was well done considering that the reader never gets his Point of View. That usually leaves me feeling detached from the character in question. Where this novel really failed for me was in the development of the romantic relationship. Hades and Persephone spend almost the entirety of this installment of the story apart, only interacting occasionally. As a romance novel reader, that left me largely bored with the story, and uninterested in following a romance between these two characters. The heat level of this first installment was one chili pepper, which was also disappointing for me. The plot and pacing were tight and exciting, but the lack of romance or sexytimes meant I had to force myself to finish it. There was high angst and high stakes in this story, which I typically enjoy in a romance, but did not in this case because of the above reasons. This novel used the Enemies to Lovers trope. The world building, plot and pacing were all four stars. The characterization was three to four stars. The development of the romantic relationship and the cliffhanger ending were both one star. I therefore gave this installment of the story a combined rating of three stars. The cliffhanger ending was a big disappointment to this reader. I recommend this novel to readers who are willing to invest in reading a novel where the romance does not really start happening until Part 2 of this novel. I am uninterested in reading the rest of this series. I will not buy myself a keeper copy of this installment.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Ramona · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the first of a serial about Hades and Persephone. Persephone left Hades and became human and because of her leaving The Underworld it is being wiped out of existence. Hades is determined to reclaim Persephone who ripped out his heart and to bring his kingdom back to glory. Steph is the reincarnation of Persephone but doesn't know it. Since she was little girl, she had dreams about the Underworld which she spent time with a psychologist who told her to write and paint about it. Years later Steph a theater major is in college directing a play about her dreams with her friends. Later that day they go to the Taphouse to practice their lines when Cleo recites a line for Hades to take them away. Hades appears and her friends disappeared. Hades tells her, she must navigate and complete the challenges to save her friends and takes her to the Underworld before time runs out which is marked by the stones on a lariat necklace. This begins Steph's journey in The Underworld which is laid out in a labyrinth. This story has many similarities to the movie Labyrinth but this story was a very enjoyable fantasy with a touch of darkness along with the romance and interesting characters to keep me reading. I volunteer to read and review this story via Booksprout that ends in a cliffhanger. Will Steph save her Friends? ARC

[BookSLoth · Rating 4 out of 5]

So this is a definite change from the author's other works. While it still has the darker themes, it explores different reasons of the imagination which is a nice change. There isn't a lot of romance in this book but there is a lot of chemistry and tense there to be explored in further books.

I'm not going to rehash a synapses of it, but I'm hoping that the author will focus more on motivations of Hades in the next book as this book really focused on Persephone and desires or fight of them. I'm interested to see where the story will go once this mashup is done

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Abra Pressler · Rating 2 out of 5]

An interesting take on the myth that was a bit too cliche/wattpad for me. Persephone, reincarnated as a human woman with mental illness, has had a life of meds, foster homes and abuse. Now a theatre major, her and her friends accidentally summon the devil.

An interesting attempt from a new author, the book was clean of errors and well formatted, but the dialogue between characters felt silted, and Persephone's voice felt immature.

Also, by the end, I realised this is just part one of a wider book? I wish the author had made it a serial / episodic, rather than splitting one larger book into acts.

[Raina · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars. Book one of a duet. A retelling of Hades and Persephone. I really liked the beginning of the story and the way the main character of Seph was built. Hades is not a good male or god. The story has quite a few unique twists. The ending is somewhat of a cliffhanger.

[Easy Obsession · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5

[Mildred · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book could either be upsetting or validating for those of us living with mental health issues. I DNF partly because of that but also the plot looked like it would take a long time to happen.