Arséne Corbin grew up knowing how much his father hated him after he was forced to marry the wrong woman. When his mother died, Douglas Corbin married his love, but she comes with baggage in the form of a spoiled stepsister named Gracelynn. His new stepmom thinks he's an emotionless psychopath and is quick to send him away to boarding school after an awful accusation from Gracelynn. After the lie, Arséne becomes obsessed with her to the point of marrying her to control her. But when she dies in an accident under questionable circumstances, he's left reeling. The only one with answers is Winnifred, a newly widowed actress in his theater. These two clash from the start, working together to find answers but bickering the whole time. Can Arséne ever find his emotions to realize how he really feels?
I loved the first book in this series, but I struggled with this one. I absolutely hated Gracelynn and couldn't understand Arséne's obsession with such a toxic relationship. And Winifred is just too sweet and clueless, still in denial through about 80% of the book about the truth of her late husband's betrayal. Arsene was so accurately dubbed emotionless and never really redeemed himself even at the end. This story was just so cold and emotionless I struggled to finish.
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

How often did any of you read books that you could segregate as part 1 and part 2, that are completely different in your opinion and rating? If never - then I think Fallen Foe will be the one to do so. The second book in the Cruel Castaways series will test also some boundaries (in the beginning mostly - for me).
Arsene is a strange character that I did not exactly like, but I was in his corner due to his charisma, and magnetism. He's in a really strange relationship, that I could not imagine staying in for any amount of time... yet after the twist we get something else - and this is the moment where Arsene started blooming slowly and I got to understand him step by step when the story was following with each chapter.
Winnie, my sweet Winnie - a little naive but yet so kind character that got to be a really good counterpart for Arsene. At first, I thought she would be no match for him (you know like a snack) but after some time she got a backbone and grew stronger. When her life was crushed by one event and secret, she needed time to think and to arise stronger and better than she was. A truly likable FMC.
I really enjoyed this story, I'm always in when it comes to a good enemies-to-lovers story where it's on a slow-burn romance side. Ms. Shen puts characters through a lot of turmoil, but it makes them realize quite some stuff about themselves and brings their feelings closer to the surface. I recommend this read!

LJ Shen is an author well aware of her strengths and she plays them all in Fallen Foe. Searing angst, fantastic banter, great supporting characters, steamy scenes, enemies to lovers conflict. This book was classic LJS and I enjoyed every page.

Arsene has always been called emotionless and cold, not someone you want to be around. Obsession for his stepsister consumes his life. His need to one up her is ever present. And then he meets a woman who gets under his skin, who drives him to emotion he has no idea what to do with. Life has taken some drastic turns, and they seem to be thrown into the chaos left behind together, even if they say they hate each other. It's a complicated mess, Arsene and Winnies' story, and you will be taken on a crazy roller-coaster ride that will be totally worth it! Winnie is kicking ass and taking names, and it is everything I would wish myself to be.

This book leaves me with mixed feelings. While I very much loved the unique story plot of the step sibling relationship and the following tragedy with another HEA, the execution with the main couple was a bit shallow though.

Approximately the first 25% show us the very toxic step sibling relationship between Grace and Arsène. I loved it so much. I do like the step sibling trope, so I was very intrigued. Well then Grace dies (which is already stated in the blurb). I was a bit bummed because their relationship was very interesting and I kinda liked it. I actually believed that this book would rather be a falling out of love and finding the right person story. Arsene definitely found the right girl but somehow the relationship with Grace had a bit more bite in my opinion.

Winnifred is the typical southern Belle who meats the awful rich Beast Arsène. Their relationship reminded me a bit of Cilian x Persy, who I love!! She really carried the book for me, because I instantly liked her.

Arsène is the cold hearted villain who has a heart for astronomy. I really liked this little nugget. His family is horrible and he only found a real family in Christian and Riggs. His step sister was a piece of work. Their relationship was super toxic but somehow very intriguing. Grace is the complete opposite to Winnie. Arsène fascination with Winnie was nicely done, their chemistry is off the charts. There isn’t much spice in this book but I wasn’t bothered by that. I really enjoy less spice and more Plot instead of too much smut and no real plot. So this book was really good in this department.

My main issue was the underdeveloped relationship between our main characters. For the majority of the book it seemed both are hung up on their exes. I really love that it was a different romance, the betrayal, grief and emotional turmoil was really intriguing but I wished the main relationship would have gotten more pages to really show the deep connection between Winnie and Arsène. Their connection felt a bit underdeveloped. There was a lot of attraction but the deeper feelings should have been portrayed better to make their epic love more believable. It just felt rushed that they went from this undeniable attraction to actual genuine love.

Totally loved to see Arya and Christian in this book as well. And of course I am very excited for Riggs book. The boys scenes together are always a highlight for me.

I really loved the overall idea of this book. It felt different from the usual romance stories. I enjoyed Winnifred’s journey and character development throughout the book. She was very lovely and admirable. Arsène was the typical Shen hero. Loved his cold hearted demeanor. However, I think we should have gotten more pages with the actual main characters and their relationship instead of so much storytelling about their exes.

A country girl turned off-Broadway actress and an antisocial billionaire financier are inextricably linked to each other when their significant others are in a tragic accident. The truths that are revealed after the accident slowly bring them closer while simultaneously breaking their hearts. Can their new bond help them heal from the scars of the past and find a brighter future together?

Both heart-wrenching and humorous, this novel was an intense read from start to finish. The FMC, Winnie, is the perfect underdog to MMC Arsène’s alpha male and it’s impossible not to want her to succeed in the cutthroat world of the NYC upper class. While they are both deeply flawed, Winnie and Arsène seem made for each other with their witty comebacks and cunning personalities. A well written story with relatable characters and some steamy bedroom scenes, this was a delightful and engaging enemies-to-lovers romance. I’m looking forward to Shen’s third book of the series due next year!

Thanks NetGalley, Montlake Publishing, and L.J. Shen for the ARC in exchange for my honest opinion.

I have to say, it has been a minute since I have gotten into an L.J Shen book, and I have no clue why. Her writing is captivating as always and reminded me why I have read so many of her books. I may have to go back and either reread or pick up one I haven't read yet. Loved it!

Twisted, heartbreaking and intense, Fallen Foe completely blew me away.

Full of hurt, sorrow and torment and completely different from everything I expected, this beautifully aching tale pierced my heart and soul. With flawed, broken and wholly human characters and a gut wrenching plot, Ars and Winnie shatter, grow and reawaken each through his own path eventually coming together through the pain and grief of loss, and it's spectacular to behold.

5 stars and a seagull

I have loved LJ Shen since her Sinner's of Saint days, and I get so excited for every new series she writes. She is my Queen of Alpha-hole heroes and Arsene Corbin is one of my favourites to date. Fallen Foe is book 2 in the Cruel Castaways series and I am so obsessed with these characters. Arsene and Winnie insane chemistry but I think I loved the banter between them even more.
I adored Winnie and she was definitely the sunshine to Arsene's 'grumpy' but they say opposites attract and that couldn't be more true for this pair.

boy did i regret requesting an arc for this. few pages in i got to know that it had some sort of incestuous-ish relationship. i know its step siblings so it doesn't really count as a incest but did arsene really have to call her sis all the time? like we get it they're siblings of some sort but why do you have to shove it down our throats all the fuckin time? look i loved josh and cher from clueless so you really know i have no problem with this not really. but it felt like they were trying really hard to show it as kinky but it came out as disgusting. atleast for me it was. i am fine with asshole main character with money but i'd like to see them redeem by the end but with this i didn't really see any redeeming qualities except when he was with winnie. it was cool reading their story i was really invested but its just too cliched you know? but overall it was fine i liked it so its okay ig but i would never read this again, ever, even if you hold me at gunpoint i won't. the one good thing that happened in this book is that the step sister i died. oh she was such an cheating annoying bitch. i was so happy when she died lol.

I love a dark romance or even one with characters who aren't the best people but become them by the end, and this was that book.

Arsène and Winifred are attracted to one another from the first time they see each other, but for different reasons both refuse to admit or act on this attraction until life happens and results in them not having a real choice but to spend time with one another.

I loved watching him realize he can be a human and he's got great things about him (his friends already knew this) and also realizing exactly what he wants in life and the things that really are important.

A lot of their journey is about a major plot point you discover during the story so I am not going to get into details...but it's perfect.

I enjoyed and recommend this title.

Shen is Masterful at writing Villian Hero’s, and she does it again with Fallen Foe.

This romance is on the darker side, but definitely worth the read. It was giving me all the cruel intentions vibes, and I couldn’t put it down.

The first 30% of the book is Part One, this part is going to make some people uncomfortable, but it’s important to both Arsène and Winnie’s stories. But especially Arsène ans it is dual timelined and give a clearer picture into his past.

After that Part Two Starts, this is the aftermath of the end of Part One (you’ll have to read if you want to know what happened 😁). Arsène and Winnie definitely have a pull towards each other from the beginning, but they are in the hate/hate relationship. Something that Shen excels in writing. There is a little bit of mystery that pulls these two MCs together and it had my own heart racing trying to peace the puzzle together.

Overall I enjoyed how the storyline played out, it was definitely a page turner for me. I think current fans of Shen’s writing and style are going to gobble this one up.

Who would've thought dark romance would be that fun to read? Definitely not me!
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I absolutely love how the book held my attention from the very beginning, it was such a page turner and un-put-down-able.
I liked how the author eased us into the actual romance. Reading the first few chapters from Arsène's pov was amazing, since it was clear that he was the complex character in the couple. I loved how his personality and struggles were written, he was a multi layered character, which was nice to read.
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The storyline was engaging, I felt enthralled with every revelation, and how each secret brought them closer to each other.
The romance was a top notch, I liked all parts of it and how each of them came to know about his feelings.
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Overall, I loved it!
*I received an ARC of this book through netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review*

LJ Shen writes some of the best morally gray MMCs! I always love seeing them fall in love even though they try very hard to fight it..

At the start of Fallen Foe, Arsène is in a very toxic relationship with Grace. They were such a messed up couple and during the flashbacks, I felt so bad for Arsène. They were both horrible to each other and should have split years ago. We also get a glimpse of Winnie but I wasn't sure about her at first either.

I will admit I did struggle to get through the first part of the book. It started slow and I really didn't like any of the characters during that part. I thought they were all horrible and I wasn't sure where the story was going.. However, it started picking up and then I couldn't put it down. I ended up loving Winnie. She was so pure and kindhearted. She went out of her way to help people and was just what Arsène needed. I loved their banter and seeing Winnie stand up to him. He thought he knew her type from the beginning but he soon realized she was completely different from anyone he knew. It was cute seeing them become more comfortable being around each other.

Overall, I ended up enjoying this book and would recommend if you're looking for enemies to lovers with an alphahole!

Unfortunately I had to DNF this at 40%

I tried really hard to give this book a chance but I just couldn’t get into the storyline and I found the characters quite unlikeable.

I understood that it was meant to be an ‘enemies to lovers’ situation but Arsène was downright horrible to everyone. Even his “fiancé” who might I add was also his step sister, he hated her, not one sign of any compassion of emotion!
A good 1/3rd of the book was about his relationship with Grace, who he doesn’t even end up with, I understand that we needed to see the toxic relationship dynamic between them, but it did seem to drag on a little.

I didn’t stay much longer to see how how relationship with Winnie developed, I found her to be a little frustrating and dull at times.
Arsène was just another emotionless male mc who’s only personality trait seemed to be that he was extremely rich.

It’s sad as I was really looking forward to reading this as I’ve heard amazing things about LJ Shen’s writing!


Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this in exchange for my honest review

I tried so hard to get into this and the whole book was a struggle for me. I felt detached from the characters and felt I was watching this story from inside of a fish bowl and it moved too fast paced and the characters had little to no development.

I’m just going to be real honest here… the beginning of this book had me a little nervous 😅🫣 like… “that had better not be the tropes or where I think this is headed...”

…but I should always trust the Queen. LJ Shen never does me wrong. This book surprised me. (I’m a teaser avoider so maybe some of it was hinted at in the teasers but I didn’t read them) It is VERY rare for a book to surprise me. But anything that does impresses the hell outta me.

🩵 Billionaire Romance
🩵 Grumpy/Sunshine
🩵 Toxic Relationships
🩵 Infertility
🩵 Enemies to Lovers
🩵 Some Bully Vibes

You guys… Arsène is such an asshole. But as you dig into his background and what made him the way that he is… I just wanted to hug him. His trauma is horrific. And his behavior is unreasonable… but yet… there is something special underneath that cold, angry exterior.

I didn’t know who the FMC was. Until there was a chapter from her perspective I wasn’t sure. This book has such a unique setup but I don’t want to give anything else away.

I was a little confused at the beginning but still so invested. I couldn’t put this book down and fell in love with them. And of course I laughed. Some of the lines I highlighted just because they made me chuckle. I can’t wait to read the final book in this trilogy.

Thank you x a million @lj for sending me an arc to read!!

Buckle up friends. This one is a wild ride and Arsène is truly the alpha-hole of your dreams.

You may want to check triggers. There are quite a few of them.

First off, I loved this book. If I'd known that the first 30% centers on the relationship between the hero and a woman who is not the heroine, I probably wouldn't have read it. And I would have missed out. Though it's definitely an odd choice, it worked to build the story to come and to really flesh out Arsène as a character. However, I do wish we had spent slightly less time in the past and more in the grumpy/sunshine dynamic between the main characters. I wanted more of them.
Arsène and Winnie are brought together by secrets and loss, but they find something wonderful together. I don't want to give any of the details away because, for me, the blind journey through this story was part of what made it so great. It's sad and romantic and mysterious all at once. It reminded me of the contemporary romances that were so popular a decade or so ago, before the recent trend for more of a romcom vibe. Winnie is strong and hopeful even through tragedy, an excellent heroine. And Arsène is the kind of dark, tortured hero I adore.
I'd never read LJ Shen before, but if this book is any indication of what her backlist is like, I obviously should have.
I absolutely recommend this one if you like grumpy/sunshine, billionaire heroes, widowed heroines, the theater, damaged heroes, even bully romances. I loved it enough to buy a physical copy even though I have the eARC.

I need to stop trying to read this author. I used to love her, but I just can’t with her books anymore.

This isn’t even a particularly terrible book. It was okay, but nothing about it really spoke to me. I didn’t connect with the characters and I was not wowed by the storyline, even though I was initially drawn to the synopsis.

This romance was just lacking and left me feeling nothing. Also, the nickname Bumpkin? Gag…

arsène corbin😮‍💨😮‍💨 i loved his sarcastic and quite dry witty banter!! he is FINEEEE, i have a weak spot for a—hole men with a sprinkle of nerd of i LOVED him. confused about him and grace and felt a bit icky about it because of how they introduced each other to other people🤣 hooked on all the secrets and plot twists, lj shen’s writing never fails to keep me interested! absolutely loved the bromance between arsène and his friends. wish we got introduced to winnie sooner so i would have more time to connect and fall in love with her, felt like we didn’t get much time to warm to her. the ending was cute but a little rushed. the verbal sparring between winnie and arsène was GREAT, loveddddd it🥰

tropes: enemies to lovers, angsty, shared tragedy / pain, forbidden love.