Review: Tears of Tess by Pepper Winters

Cover Source: GoodReads.com

Title: Tears of Tess
Author: Pepper Winters
Series: Monsters In The Dark #1
Version Reviewed: Finished, eBook.
Website: www.pepperwinters.com

I purchased this book myself.

GoodReads Synopsis:

“My life was complete. Happy, content, everything neat and perfect.
Then it all changed.
I was sold.”
Tess Snow has everything she ever wanted: one more semester before a career in property development, a loving boyfriend, and a future dazzling bright with possibility.

For their two year anniversary, Brax surprises Tess with a romantic trip to Mexico. Sandy beaches, delicious cocktails, and soul-connecting sex set the mood for a wonderful holiday. With a full heart, and looking forward to a passion filled week, Tess is on top of the world.
But lusty paradise is shattered.
Kidnapped. Drugged. Stolen. Tess is forced into a world full of darkness and terror.

Captive and alone with no savior, no lover, no faith, no future, Tess evolves from terrified girl to fierce fighter. But no matter her strength, it can’t save her from the horror of being sold.
Can Brax find Tess before she’s broken and ruined, or will Tess’s new owner change her life forever?
A New Adult Dark Contemporary Romance, not suitable for people sensitive to grief, slavery, and nonconsensual sex. A story about finding love in the strangest of places, a will of iron that grows from necessity, and forgiveness that may not be enough.

Review:
If you want a dark book... look no further. Tears of Tess is full of darkness and pain and pleasure. I had seen the cover for this book floating around for quite a while and I had always been curious about it.  It looked dark and mysterious and I loved the name of the series: Monsters In The Dark. I'm a fan of dark romance and that title just drew me in like crazy.

I felt for Tess right away. As a woman that has always loved pain and adventure in the bedroom, my heart broke for her.  She was obviously miserable in her relationship and I honestly could never imagine being with someone like Brax. I'm a lucky one because my husband is into all the things I'm into and indulgences me in the bedroom any chance he gets. To be in a relationship like Tess's... it would never last.

As the events leading up to her being in Q's possession began to unfold, I found myself glued to the book.   Nothing in me wanted to put the book down and I knew that I had to continue reading. Horrible things were thrown at Tess left and right and damn, that girl is strong. She never broke and it became the one of the most important parts of the story.

When we did finally get to meet Q, I was so insanely torn. I knew that this was a dark erotic romance but it was honestly hard for me to like Q. As with Tess, everything in me was screaming to hate it, to dislike him, to not like the things that he did. And I can honestly say that I didn't really care for him until the end of the book. I understood that Tess was beginning to care for him and I recognized that he had the potential to be a better man, to treat her better and be the things she ended up needing him to be.

As her stay with him continued, I found myself constantly wondering what was happening, who Q was and what secrets he and his staff were holding on to. I grew to like him more and more but I wasn't sure why. Maybe because he was exactly what Tess needed? That he gave her (not necessarily in the best way) exactly what she needed. He gave her the Master she craved and she gave him a beast to match his own desires.

I really enjoyed this book and I enjoyed the uncertainty of it. It wasn't exactly easy to figure out and there were times that I felt confused, emotionally and sexually. It's not often that a book does that. Definitely a dark, sexy story with strong characters.

Rating: 4 Stars.
Characters: Q and Tess.