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readwithmesashamarie 's review for:
The Ritual
by Shantel Tessier
This review is intended for audiences over the age of 18. Please check the trigger warnings for this novel before continuing. I will try not to include major spoilers.
You already know what’s about to happen if you’ve been on TikTok lately. This series has been all over my for you page, especially with the announcement of another book set in this world set to release on Halloween. I’ve been dying to read these books but thought I’d wait until I could get my hands on physical copies. Well. The new release changed my mind, and boy oh boy has this collection had me by the throat ever since.
This book was my first full length novel that I would consider a dark romance. I’ve tried a few of Katee Robert’s villain’s books in the past, and unfortunately those didn’t work out for me. I was worried these books would have the same effect but that couldn’t be further from the outcome.
In this world there is a not so secret society called the LORDs. These are the most powerful men in the country, and they are bred to take whatever they want by any means necessary. The women born into this society might appear powerful as the Lord’s Lady, but in reality their Lord’s can treat them like slaves. If that turns you off, like it would have turned me off a few years ago, this series won’t be for you. However, the one caveat is that Tessier makes it abundantly clear through the character POV’s that both parties are willing and into it.
In this first book we meet Ryat and Blakely. Blakely is dating another Lord, but she becomes a mission for Ryat who must claim her as his chosen. The sexual chemistry between the two is undeniable, especially as Ryat ingrains himself into her life, her routine, and makes every dark fantasy she’s ever had come to life.
Because this was my first novel by Tessier I didn’t know what to expect when it came to her writing style, the plot to spice ratio, or just how deep betrayals could run. I felt like I was keeping a mental map of all the characters, trying to decipher truth from lies and ultimately being surprised time and time again when some new information was revealed. This book was written in dual POV which gave us just enough access through both characters to think we truly understood what was going on before landing head first on a minefield.
There is so much smut in this book to the point where I’m constantly wondering how these women don’t walk around every day with a UTI. That’s probably the only major plot hole I can come up with which had me chuckling in disbelief as I’d turn the page and Ryat would find yet another reason to choke Blakely into bliss.
I loved that this was the first book in this world that I decided to pick up. While each book can be read as a standalone, peripheral characters will pop up in other books in the series. This book did not hold back from extremely graphic depictions of sexual acts, torture, and murder. And for some dark and twisted reason I couldn’t get enough.
You already know what’s about to happen if you’ve been on TikTok lately. This series has been all over my for you page, especially with the announcement of another book set in this world set to release on Halloween. I’ve been dying to read these books but thought I’d wait until I could get my hands on physical copies. Well. The new release changed my mind, and boy oh boy has this collection had me by the throat ever since.
This book was my first full length novel that I would consider a dark romance. I’ve tried a few of Katee Robert’s villain’s books in the past, and unfortunately those didn’t work out for me. I was worried these books would have the same effect but that couldn’t be further from the outcome.
In this world there is a not so secret society called the LORDs. These are the most powerful men in the country, and they are bred to take whatever they want by any means necessary. The women born into this society might appear powerful as the Lord’s Lady, but in reality their Lord’s can treat them like slaves. If that turns you off, like it would have turned me off a few years ago, this series won’t be for you. However, the one caveat is that Tessier makes it abundantly clear through the character POV’s that both parties are willing and into it.
In this first book we meet Ryat and Blakely. Blakely is dating another Lord, but she becomes a mission for Ryat who must claim her as his chosen. The sexual chemistry between the two is undeniable, especially as Ryat ingrains himself into her life, her routine, and makes every dark fantasy she’s ever had come to life.
Because this was my first novel by Tessier I didn’t know what to expect when it came to her writing style, the plot to spice ratio, or just how deep betrayals could run. I felt like I was keeping a mental map of all the characters, trying to decipher truth from lies and ultimately being surprised time and time again when some new information was revealed. This book was written in dual POV which gave us just enough access through both characters to think we truly understood what was going on before landing head first on a minefield.
There is so much smut in this book to the point where I’m constantly wondering how these women don’t walk around every day with a UTI. That’s probably the only major plot hole I can come up with which had me chuckling in disbelief as I’d turn the page and Ryat would find yet another reason to choke Blakely into bliss.
I loved that this was the first book in this world that I decided to pick up. While each book can be read as a standalone, peripheral characters will pop up in other books in the series. This book did not hold back from extremely graphic depictions of sexual acts, torture, and murder. And for some dark and twisted reason I couldn’t get enough.