Title: Ivan (Gideon's Riders #3)

Author: Kit Rocha

Genre/Themes: Dystopia, Princess-bodyguard romance

Release Date: 28 March 2018

Author's links: Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads

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My rating: 5 Stars

Blurb

As the sheltered princess of Sector One, Maricela’s life is defined by duty: to her people and to her family. Her wealth and influence have allowed her to build a better world, but they come with a price---the responsibility to secure political stability with a practical marriage. Maricela cherishes the idea of marrying for love, but there’s not much romance in the endless line of suitors interested only in prestige and power.

And her handsome, brooding new bodyguard isn’t helping the situation. 

Ivan is the perfect, deadly warrior, a man trained from childhood to be the ultimate protector to the Rios family. His focus on keeping her safe is intense--and a little intoxicating. When the threat of danger cracks his icy control, Maricela realizes she’s not the only one fighting against temptation.

Ivan knows that the blood on his hands makes him unworthy of the pure-hearted princess. But from the first kiss, their forbidden affair feels inevitable. He can give her a glimpse of life outside her gilded cage and a lover who wants the woman instead of the crown. The only thing he can never do is promise her forever.

Because spurning her noble suitors to marry her bodyguard wouldn’t just be a scandal. It could set off a political firestorm that would tear Sector One apart.

I loved this book so much, it's my favourite in the series so far. 

This is very much a typical bodyguard-princess romance and it's beautifully and very engagingly done. I loved the complexity of the main characters and all the pining and their long and stubborn resistance to giving in into their feelings.

Unlike the previous book where I felt there was strong emphasis on the cult/religious apsect of the secovite in Sector One, here the focus was more of the court intrigues and the world of the noble families in the Sector. There was still a lot of talk of (living) saints and martyrs and self-sacrifice but it didn't bother me as much. Either I am getting more used to the world of Sector 1 or it was indeed less present as a theme than in Deacon and Ana's book. The important thing is that it all worked so much better for me.

I loved both Ivan and Maricela and found them to be wonderfully complex characters, both hiding a lot from the world, only showing a deceptively simple facade. Theirs was a slow burn with lots of hidden touches and looks and it all exploded in hot passion. They completed each other perfectly despite the seeming impossibility of a relationship between them.

It's a very character focused story but we also see a lot of the rest of the Riders and noble families which creates a very rich, vibrant world. I loved the sense of camaraderie among the riders and Maricela's female friendships were really precious to me. Ivan and Maricela became the world for each other they could never forget their obligations and responsibilities to those they loved and cared about.

There is tense suspense plot going on which too a surprising turn at the end and I can't wait for the next books to see how it will all play out. The humour and easy interactions among the Riders were a delight to read and much needed comfort from the very intense and emotionally charged relationship of Ivan and Maricela.

I absolutely love how the authors take a familiar trope (in this book and in the previous ones in the series) and explore it from all angles, presenting it as a real, easy to relate to life experience.

In short, Ivan is a bodyguard-princess romance which I loved and can recommend to everyone. It works well enough as a standalone, so if you haven't read the series yet, you can start here.

Title: Deacon (Gideon's Riders #2)

Author: Kit Rocha

Genre/Themes: Dystopia, Romance

Release Date: 29 Aug 2017

Author's links: Website / Twitter / Facebook / Goodreads

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My rating: 3.5 Stars

This is the second book in the spinoff of the Beyond series which I haven't read but I did read Ashwin (Gideon's Riders #1) and quite enjoyed it.

Deacon continues where Ashwin left off timewise and gives the reader more details about the life and people in Sector. This is the story of two Riders, Ana and Deacon, coming together and it's passionate, intense, with strong action/suspense elements which made for an exciting and quick read.

While I overall enjoyed it, the story brought into focus some things that I had missed in the first book but which I had hard time with here. 

I admit I loved Ana and thought she is a great heroine - strong, dedicated, a great soldier, committed to the Riders and their mission. Being the only female in the team she is working twice as hard as the the men to prove herself but also putting herself under enormous stress to be perfect, to live as an example for the young girls looking up to her. Following her journey in the story we see her coming to realize that's not possible, she is only human, with human flaws and desires.

Deacon was harder for me to like. He was ready to sacrifice himself for the Riders and the Rios family and he did read as hell-bend on dying at times. I was uncomfortable with this whole living saint/martyr vibe going on through the his arc. I did like the realization that having everyone looking up to you is a double-edged sword and you need room to make mistakes, to be weak, to need comfort and support. 

The story delves deep in the life of the Riders and learn a lot about everyone of them and of their life as team. I liked the sense of camaraderie among all the Riders, their interactions were brilliant, both fun and serious giving the story a rich background and setting up the scene for future books.

What I found troubling was the sense of religious cult/community I got from Sector 1. It's a place where they worship love (and the Rios family) above all and we see multi-partner relationships between people of all genders as the norm. It appears to be all about peace and love and happiness but giving Gideon and his family a God-like status and treating the Riders as martyrs for the safety of their community didn't sit well with me. We do see Gideon trying to bring change and make it all less cult-like, but the blind loyalty to one person/family was still at the core of Sector 1 and it bothered me.

Overall, it's a fast-paced, enjoyable read and I believe fans of the Beyond series will like it, probably more than I did.

Lieutenant Ashwin Malhotra is a Makhai soldier--genetically engineered to be cold, ruthless. Unfeeling. His commanding officers consider him the perfect operative, and they're right. Now, he has a simple mission: to infiltrate Gideon's Riders, the infamous sect of holy warriors that protects the people of Sector One.

He's never failed to execute an objective, but there's one thing he didn't anticipate--running into Dr. Kora Bellamy, the only woman to ever break through his icy exterior.

When Kora fled her life as a military doctor for the Makhai Project, all she wanted was peace--a quiet life where she could heal the sick and injured. The royal Rios family welcomed her like a sister, but she could never forget Ashwin. His sudden reappearance is a second chance--if she can manage to touch his heart.

When the simmering tension between them finally ignites, Kora doesn't realize she's playing with fire. Because she's not just falling in love with a man who may not be able to love her back. Ashwin has too many secrets--and one of them could destroy her.

This is my first book by this author duo, though I have some idea about the Beyond series, since I have read some of the free chapters available on their site. This is a spin-off series which I'm happy to say works rather well on its own. 

The authors build an intriguing dystopian world mixed with religious beliefs and a strong sense of community. We see it mostly through the eyes of Ashwin, a genetically modified soldier, and Kora, a highly skilled doctor/healer. And it's fascinating how they both discovered this unfamiliar world and become part of it.

Ashwin is is the type of hero I love reading about the most - socially awkward, a killing machine which the system tried to dehumanize completely. His awakening to a life of feelings, was a long, painful journey of trial and error. 

And Kora, I have so much love (and deep sympathy) for Kora. She was Ashwin's opposite but as it turns out they are more alike that anyone can suspect. In a way she is also on a journey of discovering her place in Sector One, of discovering and embracing the joy of belonging to a community of people who care about and love each other. I loved how the story explores the complexity of forming and maintaining relationships, especially in times of war, when people are often driven to desperate actions.

The community in Sector One was truly outstanding. There is a strong sense of joy and living your life to the fullest but also providing care and support to those who needed. 

The story presents us with an intriguing set of supporting characters, both the Riders (hello, Zeke!) and the rest of the people in Sector One and I'm excited to read more about them. 

It's a fast-paced story, both introspective at times and full of action at other times. There are quite a few plot twists that kept me turning pages almost feverishly. And the love story at the center of it all was beautiful - very sensual but also emotional and intimate.