The Literary Puff

It was just him and me. A girl and a monster. And an empty room full of possibilities. With the third instalment of Goddess Isles , Pepper takes us deeper and deeper in the confusing world of Eleanor and Sully. The book doesn’t leave you much chance to breathe. From the first pages you’re ricocheting from emotion to emotion. You feel so many different things while reading it felt impossible to keep up at times. I think it’s clear from the blurb that this couple finally admit their feelings—it takes a lot but they do—and everything begins to slowly, painfully slowly, settle a little. So of course that’s when everything goes to sh*t isn’t it? The difference with this story is … I felt it coming. I knew it wasn’t going to be simple. From the beginning I worked out some of the secrets and I sensed that something massive was about to happen and it wasn’t going to be what you’re first lead to believe it is. There were so many moments that made me smile in this story and lots that made me squ...

Patience was a virtue. Patience was a gift. Patience will grant my freedom. This one was a surprise. I went in without knowing anything about it, I one-clicked because Pepper writes the kind of books I can get lost in. By going in blind, I felt like Eleanor—knowing nothing, seeking answers and confused as to what was going on. It’s not an easy story to review because it’s a complicated, twisted, confusing story. You start our appalled, then you’re angry, then confused, ending up curious about what exactly is going on and what the famous elixir does. Eleanor is wild. There’s no other way to describe her. She’s feisty and opinionated and from what we see in this book, will not go down without a fight and I adore her for that. Sully is, as all Pepper’s men are, complex and dark. He’s tortured and living a lie that he orchestrates himself to keep himself safe … or so he tells himself. There is undeniable chemistry, their connection sizzles from the page and dare I say I found the elixir ki...

It was just him and me. A girl and a monster. And an empty room full of possibilities. Firstly, I have to mention that this book has one of, if not the best dedication I have ever read ... Oh, Eleanor. Oh, Sully. The second book in the Goddess Isles series gave no let up. Page after page or revelations and of feeling pushed and pulled in all directions. There were a lot of moments I just wanted to scream and shout and tell Sully to bloody well explain himself so this whole thing could just be done with and they could both be happy! Of course, this is Pepper, Pepper makes you work for your happy ending, and I do love her for it. We learn a lot more about Sully in this book which helps piece him together a little more. We learn of his compassion and his brutal childhood and yet we’re still left wondering what he’s done in this past to cause him to push Eleanor away … what is he afraid of? I feel like I lived Eleanor’s confusion in this book too. I was so conflicted at times during read...

“Fly away, esclave, if that is what you want. I won’t stop you.” If you thought Tears of Tess was dark … you haven’t seen anything yet. In the second book of the Monsters in the Dark series, Pepper Winters takes everything you thought you knew, everything you thought you could handle and obliterates it. There’s no question that Q and Tess aren’t a conventional couple. Their story is dark, twisted and rippling with forbidden. Yet it is also one of bone-deep connection and soul-searing love. Their connection is insane and it’s weaved into every fibre of their being. Tess is a force to be reckoned with, she’s incredibly strong and courageous. I loved her from the first book and that’s only grown with this book. While I read I just kept thinking, I would love to be her friend. Q is … well … Q . He lets himself be free from restraint and that doesn’t look cute in any way, shape or form. He gives in to the beast and does everything in his ability to save Tess even at the cost of himself....

“You may not be mine but I'm fast becoming yours” I’ve been on a Pepper Winters dark reads reread lately and I am absolutely loving it. Tears of Tess was the first book of Pepper Winters I ever read. I first heard all about Q from my best friend who happens to share my love of reading. We were having a girls book weekend away and she told me about the book she was reading and how the male lead character was, even for her, crossing lines. I cannot stress enough how much this shocked me, because my best friend does not shock easily—she doesn’t need a trigger warning and I’ve not known her to even wince at the contents of a book before. She has impeccable taste and I’ve got many, many recommendations from here and loved every single one of them so I trust her judgement. Naturally I had to read this book. Before I read Tears of Tess that first time, I hadn’t read true, soul battering dark romance before. Sure there had been some dark elements to previous stories, but it wasn’t dark....

“You're the sunbeam in my black diamond.” I’ll happily admit that when I fall in love with a story, I always want more. When I’ve spent hours in a world and it’s claimed my heart, of course I want more. Thankfully Pepper gave me more—and I adored every second of it! It was beautiful to see Jethro and Nila settled, happy and living a full life. It was wonderful to see Jaz and Vaughn, too. There’s never enough when you love a series, but this added extra was perfection and cemented Indebted in my top three book series of all time. • Needless to say, if you’re unsure if dark is for you, then please do your research and read the trigger warnings for this book.  It’s not light. It’s not fluffy. Please read responsibly. You can find trigger warnings on Pepper's website.

“She was my punishment and penance all in one.” What. A. Book. I’ve read a lot of books in my time and I’ve enjoyed most of them. Some of them, if I’ve been really lucky, have crept into my soul and lived within me to this day. But very few have affected me as much as this book (and series) has. As I said in my reviews of the other books, this series started out as a slow burner for me. I didn't warm to the characters at all to begin with. How naive I was to think I wouldn't continue with it .. that perhaps it wasn't for me. There are so many things I want to say about Final Debt , about Nila and Jethro, about Cut and Bonnie and about Kes. About the Indebted world that although is very firmly fiction, feels like I’ve lived it right along with them. There’s no let up in this story. There isn’t a moment where you think, right now I can breathe. It keeps twisting you, keeps pushing you further and further into the world and there are times I didn’t think I would survive it … ...