Blackmail is the first book in a new trilogy by Amelia Wilde featuring Bristol Anderson and Will LeBlanc—Emerson LeBlanc's youngest brother from Dark Reign. What began as a simple attraction between two characters from vastly different circumstances has turned into a complicated and heartbreaking affair. Will is a contradiction because his refusal to accept kindness, understanding, and love has made them the things he covets the most. He is prone to anger and believes himself to be a monster who is undeserving of everything. What makes Will's story so fascinating is that we're given a much clearer picture of what happened to the LeBlanc siblings when they were younger. Will's guilt and pain over what happened has a direct correlation to Emerson's internal struggles and panic attacks."You deserve somebody better, sweetheart. I'm not that guy. I'm a monster. You don't want me. I promise."Bristol is the type of heroine I love the most—she is kind, innocent, understanding, and determined. In order to save her family, she was willing to do whatever was necessary for them even at the cost of her own body and heart. I hated the fact that she still cared for pathetic excuse of a father when he manipulated and lied to her. Her decision to embezzle from Will would give him the excuse he needed to finally engage and claim her as his for a brief moment in time. I actually loved their relationship, as twisted as it may be. These two burned up the pages and their love scenes were incredibly hot and dirty. I love the fact that Will fell for Bristol first because he was completely obsessed and could not stop thinking about her. Amelia Wilde simply excels at amping up the sexual tension and chemistry between her characters.
"This debt is getting more expensive. I made a mistake that's going to cost me a very high price… my body, my dignity, and maybe even my heart."In the end, I absolutely can't recommend this book enough because it had just the right amount of angst, dirty sex, and a heart-wrenching romance coming from an Amelia Wilde book. I am highly anticipating the sequel, Extortion. Although Will believes himself to be a monster, he is anything but that. There was so much more to him and I can't wait to learn more about this man with such a fragile and broken heart. It was heartbreaking to learn that Will expected people to walk away from him at such a young age. Why would they stay for him? Bristol's kindness and understanding for him has threatened his world and is destroying the person he thought he was. I highly recommend this book to those who loves reading about the tortured and prickly hero who blackmails his sweet and selfless heroine but ends up falling for her even though he doesn't believe he deserves her.
*This ARC was generously provided by the author and publisher for an honest review*
Rating: ★★★★★
