Savage Chains: Shattered by Caris Roane (Shattered #3)
Paranormal BDSM (I know right?)
Released: June 24, 2014
St. Martins Press

Reviewed by Sheena

Blurb: Faced with the scars of his brutal past, Reyes must find a way to complete his mission and defeat an old enemy while keeping Angelica safe. Bringing down the slavery ring is a personal quest for him–even if it requires intense brutality and bloodshed–something he hopes Angelica will understand and accept. But will his search for vengeance cost him the one woman he’s ever truly loved?

So, um. yeah.  This absolutely does not stand alone.  If paranormal BDSM is your bag, it is imperative that you read the first book, second book heck anything at all that will remotely clue you in on what exactly is happening.  I love my paranormal worlds and I am even partial to a little BDSM kink these days and mixing the two was interesting…until it wasn’t.  Until it got majorly weird and not in a wow this is strange but good kind of way.  Nope, I’m talking full on strangeness and reading frowning and squinty-eyed.

The book opens with a torture scene.  The hero vampire, Reyes, is there, along with his human slave, Angelica (but it’s okay because he loves her) and some ancient ancestral super powered evil Vampire master slave goddess being, who is hell-bent on kicking both their asses.

They are all gathered here today to perform some kind of BDSM where a crotch-less leather clad Angelica is owning her capacity to siphon sexy Reyes’ s “power”, and dominate her vampire lover sexually, all the while thwarting ancient,  evil Vamp, Sweet Dove’s attempts to kill them both.  We also learn that Reyes is a former vamp slave himself.

This book really slaps you in the face.  You are thrust right into the plot- no Vaseline- and boy does it chafe!  Before you can get your bearings you are assaulted with action and no explanation.  I mean, I do not like to be bored to tears with a lot of rehashing and world building by book three of any series, but there is a way to welcome one back to a story with even a little throwback  story of “how we got here.”

This might be a very interesting series.  But things kind of came together and fell apart for me nearly simultaneously.  After a few pages in, I damn near stopped in my tracks to download the previous books in the series…but I decided to keep reading and check them out later.  I really should have stopped then.  But I didn’t.  And then things went south.   What I thought was cutting edge and intriguing became off putting.  I wonder if the author just started writing scenes for shock value.  Sweet Dove was a sadist.  And I love a character that I can love to hate, but I didn’t love to hate her. I just hated her and thought she needed to be beheaded sooner than later if for no other reason than to stop the insanity that became every scene she appeared in.

I did not like the mutual slaving between Reyes and Angelica.  Too many slave dynamics.  He was Sweet Doves slave once upon a time, then he survives his 100 years as a slave only to join a slaving vampire “house” and  take on human slaves who sexually dominate him.  There was a bedroom three-way scene that…wasn’t?? And Reyes has some long lost mother and every built up action scene is so anticlimactic that I had to re-read parts to convince myself that yep that’s really all of it. And, like seriously vampires of this world…you take the beautiful human slaves to BDSM your immortal asses??  Hunh….ummkay.

Too soon, I was shaking my head and doing the frowny face, squinty-eyed read and I was all too glad when it was over.  It is a bummer because there is a voice in there somewhere that I think could be amazing without all the convoluted goings on.  I was like WHOA!! Then “NOOOO” like whiplash.  Very visceral reaction…

If this review confuses you, makes you interested and then uninterested, then join the friggen club.  *throws hands in the air*

 Grade:  C-

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