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The Concierge delivers anything…for a price.
A provider in the underworld of human trafficking, the Concierge fills deviant orders of an exclusive clientele with inventory collected from people who live on the streets. As client requests are delivered, a personal obsession with New Orleans artist Andi Hutchenson festers…until the predator’s quest is possession.
Andi Hutchenson lives in a world of fear-fueled shadows.
Two and a half years ago, Andi was kidnapped, tortured, and left for dead. Since then, crippling fear has ruled her life. Round the clock security enables her to leave her French Quarter home to paint the world around her, but Andi’s past is about to collide with her lonely present.
Gabe Hernandez believes his client is safe…but she isn’t.
Protecting Andi is a given, but Black Raven Agent Gabe Hernandez is captivated by her and wants to entice her back to the land of the living. Yet with each tug on the lifeline he offers, Gabe is pulled deeper into Andi’s world, where the dividing line between imagined horrors and real-life demons is whisper thin.
5 out of 5 (exceptional)
Independent Reviewer for Archaeolibrarian - I Dig Good Books!
This is book three in the Black Raven series, but you don't need to have read books one, Shadows, which was a 5 star read from me, or book two, Jigsaw, which I have NOT read but really REALLY want to! The characters pop up and take part in this story, but you don't need their stories to follow this one.
OH
MY
FREAKING
GOD!!!!
Oh!! Deep breath, Debbie, its just a review. Words, thats all!!
But!! Oh my god!! I loved this book!!
It's a slow burn, it's multi layer story, its a multi plot story, its a total and utter plot twist that I really did not see coming at me and I was like, say WHAAAAAAAAAAAAT did Ms Barcelona just throw at me!?!?!?
I mean, there I was merrily reading away, I might well have read this book in one sitting but for that darn dayjob, and its nearly 500 pages long, I was that engrossed! And then, THAT happened, and it was revealed WHO the Concierge was, and I was WHAT?? WHO??? NO???? I missed the clues, I must have!! But I went back, and there WERE clues, I just put them together totally wrong!! I launched the poor cat, sitting bolt upright when I got to that bit!!
I felt for Andi, in ways she probably didn't want me to feel for her, but what she went through, what she has fought though to get where is?? Woman is STRONG!!! I loved that Gabe, coming into her space, was still Gabe, but within Andi's boundaries, mostly. Loosely. Roughly! He respected the boundaries she set, so long as it did not compromise her safety, and she let him in. Into her life, her home, her heart. I LOVED the build up to their main event, had to wait a bloody long time for it, I tell ya! But the built up was amazingly well written. I dread to think the amount of research that went into recovery times and reactions to Andi's torture and kidnapping.
But you know what totally made this book for me?? The bad guy. That bad guy gets their say, in the FIRST PERSON, while Gabe and Andi are in the third. But I LOVED it!! I must really have a warped mind to enjoy it when the bad guy gets their say, mustn't I?? But I mean! Come on!! This bad guy has been after Andi for years, and was thwarted when she was kidnapped before. This bad guy has waited for a long time to get their hands on Andi. This bad guy is seriously BAD in every single cell in their body! Bad guy has a very lucrative business that runs into BILLIONS of dollars, but the bad guy just WANTS Andi! And since I was totally off base with WHO the bad guy was, it was. . . . .like. . . . . freaking awesome!!
Zeus, from Jigsaw, plays a part here, and I want to go back and read his story, but only because I WANT to, not because I NEED to.
It does carry some difficult topics, kidnapping, people trafficking, forced drug taking, and other things that really would be spoilers so not saying, but it is extremely well written! Graphic in some places, quite graphic. *shudders thinking about it*
Because I can give it no other rating.....
5 stars
**same worded review will appear elsewhere**
* A copy of this book was provided to me with no requirements for a review. I voluntarily read this book, and the comments here are my honest opinion. *
Stella Barcelona, author of romantic suspense novels, has always had an active imagination, a tendency to daydream, and a passion for reading romance, mysteries, and thrillers. From her early days of reading, when she first escaped reality through the pages of a well-written novel, she knew that her daydreams needed an outlet, and she knew that her outlet would be writing. In day to day life, Stella is a lawyer and works for a court in New Orleans, Louisiana. Currently, Stella lives minutes from the French Quarter, with her husband of sixteen years and two adorable papillons who believe that they are princesses. Stella loves to hear from readers on her Facebook page and can also be contacted through her website, www.stellabarcelona.com, where there's information on appearances, her next release, and exciting contests that you won't want to miss! While she doesn't have a lot of free time with her legal and writing careers battling for her every minute, she does enjoy any chance she and her husband get to go out on their boat. In addition, she attends conferences, workshops, and retreats for writers. She is a member of Romance Writers of America and the Southern Louisiana Chapter of the Romance Writers of America.