Though I enjoyed parts of The Professional: Part 2, it didn't live up to my expectations. I had a lot of fun reading Part 1 - Sevastyan is possessive and dominant, with a sexy Russian accent to boot and Natalie, while a little annoying at times, was, for the most part, a heroine that I could root for.

While they continue to explore their sexual relationship in Part 2 (hot!), there was little emotional or personal development in the characters. Sevastyan was especially frustrating and ran from one extreme to the next. One minute he wanted nothing to do with Natalie and the next he couldn't live without her. And while I found his intensity slightly unsettling but still sexy in Part 1, it bordered on creepy in Part 2. I hated how he distanced himself emotionally from Natalie and thought that it really bordered on cruel. He asked her to commit to him completely, while he held himself back from her at every opportunity. I also hated how his dark past was hinted at all the time but never revealed. This has happened to me before in books and the actual reveal almost never lives up to the buildup.

Natalie got on my nerves as well and I found her to be really whiny and annoying. She and Sevastyan definitely had physical chemistry but not much else. Overall I just felt like the characters and relationship lacked depth and I wanted more than hot sex.

Though this installment left me feeling frustrated, I am not giving up on this book. Natalie and Sevastyan seemed to be making some headway in their relationship near the end of this segment and, well, there's still the smoking hot sex. This installment also has a bit of action in it which added some excitement.

The bad thing about serialized novels is that authors often like to end things on a cliffhanger, which Cole does here, to great effect. I am dying to know what happens in Part 3 and how things will resolve. Will Natalie and Sevastyan be able to work through their issues and have a relationship that's more than just sex? Who is after Natalie and can Sevastyan keep her safe? I guess I'm going to have to read Part 3 to find out! ( )

My Rating: 4 stars!
Release Date: January 6, 2014
Genre: Erotic Romance

ABOUT THE BOOK:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole comes The Professional—the second scorching installment in her Game Maker series, an erotica collection that has readers asking: How hot is too hot?

He makes the rules...
Mafiya enforcer Aleksandr "The Siberian" Sevastyan’s loyalty to his boss is unwavering, until he meets the boss’s long-lost daughter, a curvy, tantalizing redhead who haunts his mind and heats his blood like no other. Ordered to protect her, Sevastyan will do anything to possess her as well—on his own wicked terms.

Rules are made to be broken...
PhD student Natalie Porter had barely recovered from her first sight of the breathtakingly gorgeous Sevastyan before the professional hit man whisks her away to Russia, thrusting her into a world of extreme wealth and wanton pleasures. With every day she spends under his protection, she falls deeper under his masterful spell.

Are you ready to play?
Yet all is not as it seems. To remove Natalie from an enemy’s reach, Sevastyan spirits her into hiding. From an opulent palace in Russia to the decadent playgrounds of the mega-wealthy in Paris, the two lovers will discover that even their darkest—and most forbidden—fantasies can come true...

MY REVIEW:

Okay, so what a twist this second part did! I admit, I’m not a fan of serials, but I’ve been thrust into this one, and I refuse to, or am unable to due to Ms. Cole’s writing, to let go.

Now, we all know and love Ms. Cole through our adoration of her paranormal romance series, but she’s really stepped into the world of erotic and suspenseful romance with ease. This series is stemming to be something that is unlike anything else on the market—and more so, it’s proving to be something that you can’t soon forget.

Like the first part though, there were some pieces that were a teeny bit unrealistic, and that’s just the criminal investigator in me, but overall, she’s set the stage and continues to deliver a raw and erotic edge packed story. These two are characters that you want to reach inside the pages to strangle, but they are also two characters that you adore. (Which probably explains my love/hate relationship with them.)

If Part one didn’t shock you enough, part two is bound to having you falling out of your chair. It’s a great build up and one that leaves me anxiously awaiting part three. *grins* ( )