Some readers know they’re going to read a book based purely on the cover. If that cover grabs you and doesn’t let go you probably don’t even have to read the blurb to know you’re going to give that book a read. Lawless Kingdom was like that for me. The cover art is just so eye-catching that I instantly wanted to know more and I definitely wanted to jump right in. The blurb only solidified that fact. Now, Natalie Bennett is a new author to me so even though I loved the look and sound of the book I really didn’t know what to expect from its content. She definitely followed through from the beautiful cover art though because I polished off this dark beauty in one sitting.
It was wrong and unexpected, considering I’d hated her from the moment I found out she existed. I hated her with an intensity so strong I could envision her death by my hand. It was as clear as a movie reel, replaying repeatedly inside my head. But I wanted her even more. That was the fucked-up part.
On the face of it Rhiannon Clermont and Judas Barron couldn’t be more different but appearances can be deceiving and that definitely builds the foundation of the ominous presence in this book. Rhiannon is on the outside looking in. For all intents and purposes she seems relatively normal albeit beautiful considering the amount of fighting there is over her. She isn’t wealthy; she lives in a less than modest house with parents whose paternity she appears to question straight off the bat (I’m feeling so much foreshadowing). However, she seems to be fighting some inner darkness and it really doesn’t feel like she’s truly living aside from that night in the prologue which definitely kicked things off with a bang! No pun intended!
But everything happens for a reason, right? Even things that fuck with your head and your heart.
Judas, on the other hand, belongs to the most privileged of the kingdom Bennett has built since he’s the spawn of the “saintly, all-American golden family who can do no wrong.” Or so it appears. The reality is that Judas is something else entirely: dark, powerful and most definitely savage as the cover describes. The aristocratic families in this book start to scream organised crime (mafia vibes anyone?) the further you delve into the story. The cover definitely gives an accurate representation of the book in just three words: savage, privileged, youth.
I’m going to flip your whole goddamn world upside down and make you love me as I shatter it into pieces.
Bennett is planting seeds from the very beginning. She drops hints of secrets regularly and not just of the main characters but the characters around them too. The frequency with which some of these seeds are planted has you wondering just how twisted the world the characters live in truly is.
Lawless Kingdom is riddled with crime, darkness, intrigue and characters that I feel we may very well come to love to hate. It definitely leaves you wanting more and sets a solid stage for what’s to come. I will definitely be reading the rest of the series and can’t wait to get back to this seriously lawless kingdom.
I’d be his, and he’d be mine until the bitter fucking end, because if my world was going to go up in flames, then so was his.
Lawless Kingdom is a prelude to the series Reign & Ruin. Be warned though, Bennett noted at the beginning of the book that the series will take a definite turn to the dark side.
If you haven’t read LAWLESS KINGDOM get your copy below and if you have read it let me know your thoughts. Don’t forget to add SAVAGE GODS (REIGN & RUIN BOOK 2) to your TBR or better yet click that pre-order button.
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Check out the blurb for
LAWLESS KINGDOM (REIGN & RUIN #1)
When something is forbidden, it becomes maddeningly tempting.
Judas Barron, for example. Wicked blue blood and heir to a severely twisted cutthroat society.
Everyone knew who he was and what crew he ran with—a clandestine group of filthy rich kids surrounded by ominous secrets. Secrets that were rumored to be dark, dirty, and stained with blood.
It was never my intention to get tangled up with them, but Judas and I had a secret too, one he was determined to make sure I took with me to my grave, which meant keeping me by his side.
Now forced to be part of a savage coterie, I start to see his world through a new pair of eyes. It isn’t long before temptation becomes something dangerous and wild, breeding the sickest kind of infatuation.
And those secrets Judas keeps?
They’re about to tear my life apart.
Author Warning
Before beginning this series please be aware that while LK is mild in terms of darkness and contains bully elements, the following books in this series will be on a drastically different level, containing graphic violence, total power-control, explicit sexual content, and varying triggers. LK is a percursor that sets the stage for the rest of the series. 18+ only.
About Natalie Bennett
Natalie lives in Florida with her husband, their boys, and a pitbull named Lulu who thinks she’s a lapdog.
Natalie has a love for all things chocolate but is making up for it by drinking healthy smoothies. She is fluent in sarcasm and a Pinterest Pinner extraordinaire.
She loves to read, her face is often shoved in a book or staring at a kindle screen. Her favorite kind of books are Paranormal, Fantasy, and Dark Romance. In her own stories, she likes to create unique worlds with deeply flawed heroes and even stronger heroines. Natalie writes under her own name and the pseudonym B. Bennett.
Her writing inspiration came from Teresa Deny’s and Steven Pressfield. Aside from reading and writing, Natalie is a horror movie junkie who loves spending time with her family.
Don’t forget to join Natalie’s reader group on facebook!
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