Sybil Bartel

Original review can be found at Tina,The Bookworm

I received a copy in exchange for an honest review, this does not affect my review in any shape or form.

Imagine, you are sixteen on the phone with your parents probably rolling your eyes at whatever they just said and then you hear it. A voice, a chilling voice some arguing, some gunshots and you scream. The voice comes back on the phone threatening you, say a word and you’re dead too. He owns you now and you don’t even know his real name. show more

You can run, but he’ll always find you. You can change your name, you can move, you can work dead end jobs all you want but he will find you. You’ll always have to look over your shoulder. You think you can have friends, a relationship? Ha! Not gonna happen! His flunkies will make sure of that, and they’ll ALWAYS be around. Everywhere you go they go. You’re on your own, this is a war you are fighting by yourself. But how long must the war go on? That my friends is the story of Layna Blair.

The Warrior
Layna is a strong character. She's been under the watchful eye of Miami for over three years she's never once received help she's dealt with everything by herself. But there was times throughout the story that she gave me whiplash. She was timid one moment then the next she was rude. I understood why her character was portrayed this way because she was use to handling everything by herself and didn't want to drag another person with her into this whole mess. She was a bit naive but when you look at her life from the age of sixteen to the age of nineteen you understand. That didn't stop me from rolling my eyes, or wanting to smack some good sense into her sometimes. Overall, I have read books where the character's behavior and the circumstances don't flow right but in Impossible Promise that was not the case. I felt that Sybil Cartel did an excellent job of writing Layna.

They say if you want to meet a good man go to church.
We meet Blaze while Layna's in church. Everything about him screams MARINE not that the tattoo gave it away or anything. Blaze can tell that Layna's in trouble and can't help but involve himself [think Titanic...you jump I jump remember?]. He has the sudden urge to protect her from whatever it is that has her running, he just doesn't know how bad it is. I really liked Blaze's character and it wasn't just because he's a marine,I swear. He's caring [he's on leave awaiting for his mother's passing], he's loyal, he's also very protective and can cut off his emotions in seconds like Marines are suppose to. There wasn't much Blaze throughout the book, he was often leaving to care for his mother it wasn't until the end that you really got to see what type of man he was. I did want to slap him though but you have to read it to find out why.He's also a man of his word which is extremely rare now at days and he promises Layna he will help her find a way out of the situation she's in and he promises he won't touch her because then he won't be able to concentrate at the task at hand.

Or you could just fall for his best friend...
Blaze takes Layna to Talon's house and warns her DO NOT FALL FOR HIM. Needless to say I was pretty interested in this guy, I had sense that maybe a girl of Blaze's had once fallen for Talon but my theory was never proven. Talon survived along side Blaze in the Marines but he's out of the Marines already. But he's what I like to call your friend in low places for life meaning he's the one that you call when you need death threats to be made and instant bail money, you know the one friend who'd do ANYTHING for you.I mean ANYTHING. He agrees to help Layna and Blaze and begins digging for dirt on exactly why Miami is keeping Layna alive. His character is so hard not to like. I mean he's flirtatious, he's good looking, he owns a business pretty much the opposite of Blaze. And this is where the damn love triangle happens.

He loves me, he loves me not...
The love triangle, I hate them. I find it so unfair to the third person like either way somebody loses. In this case, I kinda understood the love triangle. Let me explain, Blaze is gone a lot because his mother is dying from cancer, leaving Talon and Layna by themselves. They get to know each other and one thing leads to another and a kiss happens. Not to mention Talon flirts with just about all the female species. Anyway, Layna has been by herself all this time so develops feelings for both men however her feelings for Blaze are stronger...but the feelings for Talon are different. And in the end she's not sure what to do. Talon tries to explain to her that she shouldn't mistake gratitude with love. Is she really feeling just gratitude with attraction and love? You can't really blame the girl for having feelings for both men. They are total eye candy of course, and not to mention it's the first time she's ever had male attention so of course the girl is a bit overwhelmed with two hunks helping her out of a very sticky situation.

At the end of the book, I still couldn't tell you if I agreed with her choice. Because Sybil made it extremely difficult to not love both men and to make them so different. It was so not fair. I even stayed up all night trying to decide who I would pick but yeah I came up empty.

The Truth Will Set You Free
I really liked how Sybil was able to not focus the story so much on the love aspect but really on the truth behind why Miami had Layna under such a watchful eye. I loved how she was able to bring out the truth behind why her life had turned out the way it did. I thought it was well played out, some parts were a bit cliche but overall I thought the story worked out well. There were definitely twists I did not see coming. Towards the end, I was at the end of my seat wondering what was going to happen and how was it all going to play out.

The story was a page turner for sure, I spent all Sunday reading it. I was so captivated by the story I loved seeing where this was headed. I just could not get enough. What I would have like was maybe Blaze's point of view or Talon's point of view. I think that part of the story would have been interesting to see. Anyway, Impossible Promise is action packed, page turning, gripping the edge of your seat kinda story. I for one, cannot wait to see where this series is headed. August cannot come quick enough. show less

Thrust by Sybil Bartel

Hot, Wild, Wicked and Wonderful…did I mention HOT? This was a book that I could not put down once I started reading it.

As I read a few of the characters sounded familiar so I checked and found that I had read about them in the Uncompromising Series and wondered if this was another in the series or just a sidebar novel that needed to be told…whatever it is…it enthralled me. And, I can hardly wait to read whatever Sybil Bartel writes next.

Many romance novels that show more I have recently read have dealt with men who come home from war and their ability or inability to deal with what they have experienced. In this book the main character, Alex Vega, came up with his own way of taking control – he became a male escort – providing services for money. He had a five year plan and was doing well for himself until he met Olivia Toussaint. Yes, she turned his world upside down and made him rethink his life, his plans and a whole lot more. And Alex managed to shake Olivia’s life up, too.

Alex may seem cold and clinical in some ways but underneath it all he does seem to care about some of his clients and look out for them so when Olivia appears on the scene it is not totally surprising that he acts, reacts to, shares with and cares for her as he does. Olivia is a strong woman who thinks she knows who and what she needs but Alex makes her reassess and then make decisions that will have a huge impact on her and her plans.

There is a lot that happens in this book – in and out of the bedroom. This is a love story that was deeper than I expected it to be and one that I gladly recommend to others – unless they don’t like mature reading of an erotic nature. It made me think and feel and care and then want in more ways than one. Great characters, great story – just great!

Thank you to the author who through NetGalley gave me a copy of this splendid book to read. This is my honest review.

5 Stars show less

ARC provided by Xpresso Book Tours in exchange for an honest review.

Neil is an action movie in book form, complete with bloodshed, smut, foul language, and a whole lot of suspense. Told from the POV of the heroine, Ariel, we are introduced to her struggling life as a single mother surrounded by controlling men in her workplace and the lack of help from her son's father. Her life has been a series of let downs, with the only bright spot being her son. She struggles to make ends meet, strips show more occasionally, and has no semblance of a life outside of motherhood. A man from her past reminds her of her womanhood and desires, but she'd never act on it even though he seems to force himself on her at every turn. His imposing ways are both annoying and helpful, but necessary when Ariel's ex takes their lives and turns it all upside down. When guns are drawn and threats are issued, Ariel has nothing to do but rely on the man who's emotions she can't read and leaves her desiring his touch despite his gruffness.

Ariel is the kind of heroine I usually hate actually, she easily gives in with no real prompting, but she had spunk and her perspective is an entertaining one. She's young, fighting for a good life for her son, and dealing with a life far more complicated than one needs at 21. I really liked how she was as a single parent, dealing with feelings she has for her ex, and really trying to do the best she can without taking hand outs. The way she felt about Neil, or Viking, is pretty apparent, even if the reader cannot grasp the feelings they seem to share. It's a push and pull situation that's hard to follow. They have an instant lust for one another that makes for some hot scenes, but otherwise it is very much a story of an older man alpha with a younger, disadvantaged woman.

I was really thrown off by Neil being told from only Ariel's perspective, having read Talon previously I expected to read from Neil's perspective or from both main character's POV. While it allows the reader to fully be immersed into Ariel's brain, to really get into the fear of the situation and see why she was so frustrated with his constant inability to be attached or show emotion, it also makes the story very one sided. I was unable to really connect with him or write off his volatile personality as Ariel was able to. He's an alpha to the core kind of character, the kind that takes without asking (because he just knows?) and is overly abrasive. Ariel's ability to get over his glaringly obvious controlling ways is quick after she learns of his past, but as a reader I never truly connected to them as better halves. Overall I really enjoyed the story, but Neil is a hard character to like and I think readers will find themselves either loving or hating him and his story.

It's not traditional romance by any means, but it is an entertaining story that I couldn't stop reading and a complete series that I'll be seeing through to the end. If you love your male characters alpha and your female characters snarky and independent, this is a series for you. I was never bored with the character dialogue, I loved the secondary character involvement, and the action notches it up another level as well. show less

When Neil and Ariel meet the first time they are aware of one another but neither has a clue the impact that meeting a second time would eventually have on their lives.

Neil…definitely a man unwilling to compromise…ever! He is capable of anything at any time but also a man with a heart of gold that can charm or kill in the blink of an eye. Not a man of many words he is a man whose actions speak for themselves.

Ariel, born Ariella, is uncompromising in her love for her son, Conner, and in show more her relationships with men. She has fought hard to get where she is and works hard to maintain the status quo even if that means working in a strip club to make ends meet from time to time. Her baby-daddy screws up, again, and puts her and Connor in harm’s way so Neil, André (her boss), Tyler, Talon (from the first book in the series) and others are there for her when she needs them. What a team of alpha males André has working for him or that he can call in to assist from time to time…hopefully they will get books of their own in the future!

I have to say that this book sizzles. The chemistry is off the charts between gruff dominant Neil and sassy un-submissive Ariel but there are plenty of twists and turns that kept me wondering then hoping and finally happy and relieved that they both were able to finally achieve a happily ever after at the end.

Great story! I highly recommend it and want to thank the author who bequeathed me a copy through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. I can’t wait to read André’s story in book three! show less