This is one of the best books that I've read by Tiffany Reisz. The blend of modern and mythology had me laughing and tearing it up (just a little). I've loved mythology since grade school and it's hard to re-imagine it and stay true to the original story. However, T. Reisz did just that. A unique love story that spans the test of time, it includes intrigue, mystery, comedy, and heartbreak.

Even thought this is part of the Red series, this works as a standalone with the protagonists fully standing in their own story allowing readers of the original novel, to continue their fantasies. Tiffany Reisz does erotica well. It's not smut but a well imagined sexy story for her old and new readers alike.

This was my first book by this author, It was pretty enjoyable. I would give this book a 3.5 star rating! It was a pretty Quick and easy read!

The Rose is the sequel to The Red and as with all books from Tiffany Reisz, is another sizzling story that takes the reader on many sensual adventures along with Lia and August. While it is the second book in The Red series, I have to say it has a much different feel and I found myself completely pulled in from the first page.

Lia just might be one of my favorite characters ever from Ms. Reisz. Seriously, she comes from major family money yet still starts an escort service with her best friends while at university. She is smart, sexy, protective, and so full of humor. She is the absolute pride and joy of her parents and it is evident when her father gives her the priceless Rose kylix as a graduation gift. Lia would never think of getting rid of any gift from her parents until she is blackmailed by a former lover. Enter August, who had made her offers from the moment the gift was given to her.

I'll just say I loved August from the moment he appeared on the page. He is so self-assured without being an ass. I felt the attraction and connection between August and Lia from the moment they met and have to say I adored them together. I loved that Lia felt comfortable enough with August to share her past and even open up about her fantasies. Each one was hotter and sexier than the last. Each fantasy interlude occurs in a story from Greek myths and I have to say I felt like Lia and August feeling for one another only increased.

There are always twists and turns in a Tiffany Reisz book. I have to say Ms. Reisz totally threw me for a loop with a couple of the reveals in The Rose in only the best possible way. The Rose is the perfect book for anyone who enjoys reading a super sexy story with lots of Greek mythology thrown in. I really loved The Rose and highly recommend it to other romance fans.

Rating: 4 Stars (B+)

Tiffany Reisz did it again -- beautiful writing, fun banter and dialogue, and deliciously hot sex. I've yet to read a Reisz erotica/romance that I didn't love, and that continues to hold true here. While The Red (book 1) was kinky and a bit out there, The Rose definitely stays a bit more . . . mainstream, if you will? While still delivering all the hot scenes and kink. It's also more of a romance novel, whereas The Red was definitely more erotic story. Nothing wrong with that, of course, and I still enjoyed The Red, but of the two, The Rose is definitely the one I'd recommend to more people, as it has a broader appeal.

Plus, that cover!

I didn't like this book very much. It felt strange to add such a sexual aspect to well known mythological stories.

I had high hopes with that one, mostly from the blurb and that beautiful cover.
I wanted to be transported to this sensual and erotic world with this strong hint of mystery.
It could have been a winner to me for sure. But there was so many things going on and it was kinda difficult to get into the story without being distracted by all the things.
But still, I didn’t feel the chemistry between the main characters until a while and even it felt a bit superficial to me.
It was okay but I wanted more.

This novel just hit all the marks. Multidimensional characters, mystery, erotica, and a great plot that involves fantasy/mythology? Definitely worth the read. Even having not read the first in the series, this novel was still interesting and powerful in its own right and everything I didn’t know I was looking for. I highly recommend this novel to anyone looking for a well-written read with that’s story is as great as its erotica.

She does it again! This book has been hiding in the stacks of Mt. TBR for months and I'd honestly forgotten about it. *Ducks head in shame* I know, I know, a pitiful excuse. I should be punished. Oh, I have an idea how to best punish me...it involves a hot AF man and a kylix... 💁

Sorry, I'll behave now...or not...LOL.

Anyway, I am kicking myself for not reading this one sooner. I know that I always enjoy the vivid and carefully crafted tales that Ms. Reisz spins for her readers and <I>The Rose</I> was no different. A standalone, it does give a little shout-out to <I>The Red</I>; however, this is an entirely different type of story and if you haven't read Ms. Reisz's work before, no worries, you can still pick this book up and follow along with absolutely no difficulty.

Thank you to Ms. Reisz and to NetGalley for the ARC that I received in exchange for an honest review. 4 'Get Your Greek On' Stars!

I did enjoy what I managed to read of this book.
However there was something wrong with my copy. The letters were practicaly unreadable. This has happened before.

I loved the first book in this series and book two was no exception! I love the blend of mythology-inspired elements with contemporary and Reisz writes scintillating and erotic scenes to boot. We recommended it to our audience at SYFY FANGRRLS back in April and it was a pleasure to sit down and read!

Wow! Tiffany Reisz is back baby!!!! This is jump up on the couch fantastic story. The back and forward, a bit of history lesson and No I did not get who the hero was because I'm not up with the play on Greek mythology but far out was the concept great or was it great? I was completely spell bound and wanting to flick the pages quicker than I could read them. Interesting, fascinating and throughly entertaining, I would highly recommend this story to everyone!!!

The Rose by Tiffany Reisz is a stirring and beautiful example of why she is my favorite author of modern day erotica. She is this century's Anais Nin. Reisz has the wonderful ability to share the belief that erotica is not just about sex, but something innately spiritual as well.

"...This, Lia, is not an ordinary kylix.'
'It's 2,500 years old. Is there such a thing as an ordinary kylix?'
'Yes,' he said. 'I have dozens of them in my flat. You can buy them at auctions for a few hundred. But this is different. This...is something special.'
'Why so?' she asked, studying the kylix as he turned it in his large hands.
'It's the Rose Kylix.' August pointed at the three-petal rose motif painted on the lip of the kylix.
'It has a name?'
"A name, a legend and a secret..."

On the day of Lia's graduation party, she is gifted a beautiful wine cup, decorated with roses, by her her parents. A cup that one of the guests at her party, August Bowman covets. He tells her that this is no ordinary wine cup, but that it was used in the ancient temples of Eros, the Greek God of Love. This cup, August says, can bring your most intimate sexual fantasies to life. But Lia doesn't trust August and believes he only wants to get the cup for himself. So August dares her to give it a try. To drink from the cup and sleep. What happens next is the most vivid dream Lia has ever had. A sexual fantasy that seemed to be very, very real.

But Lia has been hurt and lied to by a man before.

"...Women always-always, August-they always pay the price when men act like bastards..."

"...He told me I was ugly and stupid, shite in bed, and he wanted my mother more than me.'
August stroked her hair. 'When a girl doesn't worship a man the way he feels entitled to be worshiped, it unleashes the beast inside him. Beasts are at their most dangerous when wounded and cornered. You'd wounded him, and you had him cornered..."

Lia's first lover, David, has learned her secret. That she runs a high class call girl service. He has threatened to tell everyone about it if she doesn't pay him a ridiculous amount of money. Lia decides to sell the Rose Kylix to payoff David but August has other ideas. Together they must come up with a plan to keep David from telling the world about Lia's secret and at the same time keep the Rose Kylix. But August must also convince Lia of it's power and the only way to do that is to share the fantasies together.

Tiffany Reisz creates characters that are fanciful and she makes them real. The emotions they feel are as deep and intimate as the sex they share. The Rose is a tour of Greek Gods and Goddesses and the myths we have all been told but have for the most part forgotten. Reisz goes as far as to make them real as well. Their love and the consequences of their love.

But more than the Greek legends and the magic of the cup, this is the story of a young girl, betrayed and hurt. This is Lia's story and it is here where Reisz and her storytelling excels the most. Lia goes from the pampered and privileged daughter of rich, art collecting swingers to a woman who must face her own demons. The damage done to her by an older man who she loved. A man who betrayed her and belittled her and made her feel she had nothing to give. A man who made her feel like she was worth nothing and that no one would love her. This is why she became a madam and in this capacity, she could allow herself intimacy. But only of the body and never again with any true feelings.

August Bowman is a terrific character, but don't get this wrong. He does not ride in on a white horse and save Lia. No, with August at her side, Lia learns how to save herself and grow and trust again. But Bowman has secrets of his own. Great secrets that lay at the core of this story.

To go any further would be to give too much of this tale away and I won't do that.

The Rose is a terrific novel and one of Reisz's best to date.

I thought it was a bit slow to start. It wasn’t as interesting as the first book. I liked it, but wasn’t my favorite. I wish the characters were a bit more likable or that I cared more about them.

This book just wasn't for me. I didn't feel the characters had enough of a connection in the present time and I lost interest in the fantasy element.
Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

When mythology and reality gets tangled up, you end up with some of the steamiest reading material that you can read. At least that's what we get with Tiffany Reisz latest masterpiece. When a cup is given to a birthday girl and it's revealed by her father's rival to be not just a pretty piece but a relic to the past and one that will draw her into a life beyond what she is living now, she doubts until a taste from the cup changes her perception.

When her double life comes to haunt her, she has to decide if giving the cup up is worth it, but not before getting Augustine to show her more.

A fantastic piece of writing and of course a lot of eroticism included.

If you are not fond of Greek mythology, this book may disappoint you. Personally, I knew all the mentioned characters, gods, half gods, nymphs, and others, and to what "function" they were associated (eg Eros = passionate love and sex, Agape = selfless love), but nothing more.

I can't understand that a woman (Lia, the MC), who is supposed to know it all about Greek mythology and to love it, didn't understand as fast as I did that the sacred prostituted of Eros called August Bowman whom she met was [ Eros himself (hide spoiler)].

I found clever how the author used the kylix, a kind of old magic cup. But that's all I could find really good in this novel in which we go from one mythological character to another with snippets, always dramatic (most of the time about [kidnappings and rapes (hide spoiler)]), of their history.

The erotic scenes are quite banal, or at least the way they're told. I don't see what can be so exciting to read a scene in which Eros in person [gave a cunnilingus to Ophelia (or Lia) with his hands tied behind his back (hide spoiler)]. And the scene with liquid but non-burning gold didn't work at all for me (maybe the author thought to turn Eros into an octopus for that scene, but she decided that a god could do something more amazing than that).

It's not a bad novel. Several readers seemed to like it. If you like Greek mythology or [kidnapping and rape scenes (hide spoiler)], maybe you'll love it. But it falls flat for me. So I can't give it more than 2½ stars rounded up to three.

I loved this erotic and magical tale of adventure! It was unlike any other story I've read.

I'm new to the delights of the author, Tiffany Reisz and her charming romance gave plenty of food for thought.

Mind-blowingly good and very highly recommended. Rating: 5 stars

I received a complimentary digital copy of this novel at my own request from the publisher via NetGalley. This review is my own unbiased opinion.

Another excellent story from Tiffany. The mythological element allows the author to expand the ideas in the story into very diverse but believable directions.. It kept me page turning and, as usual, there was plenty of hot action. Should be another winner!

THE ROSE is book two in the Red series. Previously, I had no idea that Tiffany Reisz had intentions to create a series with this book, so I was pleasantly surprised to see that there were more books set in this world.

The thing about THE RED is that I felt it had a VERY different feel to this book. I almost had to do a double take to make sure that these two were from the same series because although there are obvious similarities, the tone of each story feels very different.

THE RED seemed more erotic right from the get go and I was very excited about this because I truly believe that Reisz excels the best when she writes BDSM. However, THE ROSE has a more refined feel to it. It doesn’t go straight into the sex scenes and spends a lot of time smoozing with all the different characters.

It looks like Reisz intends to write more in this series so I’m looking forward to that. It just took me a minute to find my footing with this book because of the change in tone, so keep that in mind especially if you’re going in blindly to read this book.

The Rose
by Tiffany Reisz
HARLEQUIN MIRA

I read The Red by Tiffany Reisz and enjoyed it very much..
This book The Rose was hard for me to get through just not a book I enjoyed very much, it took me a week to get through the whole book...I so wanted to enjoy this book as much as the 1st.

Thank You to netgalley and HARLQUIN MIRA for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.