A two-fer...

In Wicked Pursuit by Katee Robert, its a modern day, steamy Little Red Riding Hood retelling.
No one does it quite like Katee Robert. Get it. Read it. Fan.

In Divine Intervention, its a modern day Goldilocks retelling. Steamy.
Recommend this two-fer.

I was hooked on the characters from the start—every interaction had me grinning. The plot twist blew my mind, and the chemistry between the couple was off the charts. One dynamic could’ve been a turn-off, but it worked because both characters were into it. Can’t wait to see where the rest of the series goes!

**Wicked Pursuit: 4.5 Stars**
A thrilling, suspenseful stalker romance with a twist. Despite the FMC cheating at the start, which was a bit of an ick, I enjoyed it. The Black Rose Auction added a great touch, and I’m excited for more.

**Divine Intervention: 2.5 Stars**
This one didn’t grab me. The plot was hard to follow, and the connection to the Black Rose Auction felt weak. The characters didn’t click for me, and the story felt disconnected from *Wicked Pursuit*. I gave it 2 stars.

A mob princess with a taste for doing things she shouldn’t acquires a stalker who will unalive anyone who touches what’s his.

Hot hot hot! Katee Robert’s books are always so entertaining and just what I need and want, even when I didn’t know it. I loved the interesting take on Little Red Riding Hood; truly well done! While I figured out the plot twist very early on, the predictability of it never took away from the story. I also liked how Red had history with Wolf; it made their romance and connection all more believable.

If you want a read that sends you to take a cold shower—or read one-handed—these spicy scenes will certainly do that for you. 🙂‍↕️

- stalker romance
- dark romance
- mafia romance
- hidden identity
- masked man

3 stars
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Wicked Pursuit brings us back to Carver City with a spice little novella featuring the next generation. A super spicy Red Riding Hood retelling, I found this entertaining.

Emphasis on spicy. This book was mostly spice, which is fine. The background plot took a backseat, but I found that the explanation of the auction was really well done and I really understood what was happening. I loved the twist and I really enjoyed the characters.

Despite reading so many Katee Robert books, there is still something about her writing style that just bothers me. It feels a little too simplistic and just doesn’t hook me.

2 stars
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Divine Intervention is the second book in the Black Rose Auction series, but you would hardly know it.

There is a LOT of world in this one to absorb and really quickly, given how short it is. This definitely would have benefitted from being a longer book to really establish itself. The auction is sort of an afterthought in the book, with only mentions in regards to the chalice. There is little explanation of what the auction is and how it works, so you would be lost without the first book. I appreciated the small nod to Ruby, though.

I liked the ex boyfriend’s dad trope, but the characters were pretty hard to follow because there were just so many of them. The spice was definitely good, and I appreciated the background plot, but nothing really stood out to me in this one.

——————

Overall, an interesting series that I will probably keep reading.

I am not sure what type of time I was expecting from this but WOW it blew every expectation and idea out of the water! There were times I audibly gasped and had to put my Kindle down because the plot twist absolutely TWISTED. These writings are paced very well, fast enough to keep you reading consistently, but slow enough to not feel rushed. I had not read works by these authors before and reading these an ARCs was such a treat and I have added more books from them to my TBR. READ THESE ASAP!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Sourcebooks, Ms. Robert and Mr. Virtues for the opportunity to read an ARC of this combined title. An honest review was requested but not required.

Frankly this cannot be reviewed as one title as it is two separate novellas wedged together, connected tenuously by the Black Rose Auction.

Starting, then, with Ms. Robert's, Wicked Pursuit. Ruby is the daughter of Belle, Gaston and Beast from her Wicked Villains series. Ruby is ALL grown up but her parents (and the rest of Carver City) seems to think she's still a good girl. And so like all spoiled mafia daughters, I mean, good girls, she's acting out. Ruby's version of acting out is, apparently, having sex with strangers in dive bars, but whatever. She breaks up with her vanilla boyfriend and indulges in dangerous fantasies with her homicidal stalker, Wolf. (This is a very VERY loosely inspired version of little Red Riding Hood.) There is a twist, and Ruby and Wolf end up at the Black Rose Auction.

Despite Ruby's alarmingly bad decision making process, the plot was good and the relationship between her and Wolf definitely held my attention. The Auction was a major plot point in the book which I liked, if this is going to be a series. It was a fun read overall and I'd give it 4 stars.

On to Mr. Virtues. The connection between Wicked Pursuit and Divine Intervention is tenuous at best. The Auction doesn't feature prominently in Divine Intervention, even though the entire story is supposedly set there, which made it harder to understand what was going on. To the best of my understanding, there were angels and demons/Puri attending the Auction and both groups hoped to recover a chalice with mystery powers, for mystery reasons. One of the divine beings, Tlalli, is disenchanted with her role and her "ex" and ready to jump ship.

The worldbuilding was very hard for me to follow, especially with such a cold start. It was difficult to keep interested initially. Things did warm up between the characters, but the plot never did - I felt like far more happened interpersonally than with the purported chalice, not to mention the Auction in general. The Concierge and the Reaper seemed to have actual roles in Wicked Pursuit, but in this story they barely appeared; would two rival factions really be allowed to steal (or attempt to steal) Auction items without their resultant involvement? I liked Tlalli's character but felt little for either Cahuani or Elias, and the repeated use of "Papa Bear" as a title used in all (ahem) situations was a bit off putting. Apparently this was a VERY VERY VERY loosely inspired version of Goldiloc(k)s, albeit with only two bears. Perhaps the author shines brighter in a full-length story setting but I didn't feel this novella was a good fit with the other one and frankly, I didn't really enjoy it as is. 2 stars.

This was a delicious read from start to finish. I loved "Wicked Pursuit" and absolutely devoured "Divine Intervention," which had such a fun twist on angels and demons. These are two great pick-ups for romance readers who want plenty of spice but love a good fairy retelling, too.

How did I miss the Kickstarter for this collection?!?! Anyway, I’m glad I was approved to read these two delightful stories! Massive fan of Katee Robert, I love her flair and cool spins and twists in her stories. RM Virtues is a new-to-me author, and I loved this spin on Goldilocks!

I will read anything Katee writes. Her stories are always so interesting and hook me right at the beginning. We all know Katee does great spice, probably the best around, but I keep going back for the story lines. I'm so excited for the gen2 wicked villains.

Wicked Pursuit
Yet another Amazing Katee Robert masterpiece! I was so excited for the next gen Wicked Villains cast, and this most certainly didn’t disappoint. Not only do we get a few quick moments with our favorite OG’s, we got a compelling story full of drama and intrigue! I absolutely was mesmerized from the start, and audibly gasped at least a few times throughout the story. I hope get get a bit more of our girl and her man in the next.. next gen.. stories!

Divine Intervention
This was a solid story. Virtues creates a complex world that might be intimidating but wasn't overly hard for me to get sucked into. There was intrigue and deception, and spice without a ton of drama!

Katee Roberts is an automatic read for me. To hear that she was contributing to a multi-author spicy series was incredibly exciting! This story, as does all of her work, surpassed my expectations. Roberts has a way of writing spice that, even if I don't particularly find myself liking a particular kink, I still LOVE reading it. Ruby and Wolf were fun and absolutely wild main characters. Their development over the course of a relatively short book was a rollercoaster to read about, and I would love to read more about them. I can't wait to read the other installments in the Black Rose Auction series! Divine Intervention here I come!

*Thank you so much to Netgalley and the publisher for this one!*

Wicked Pursuit:
I was so excited to jump back into Katee Robert’s stories! Based back in the world of Carver City (Wicked Villains series), this one is based on Little Red Riding Hood. And it does center around a child from the Belmonte family.
So if you wanted to know a bit more of the political/family references you could read The Beast (number four in the Wicked Villains series) beforehand.
However, it’s definitely not required, you can still read this separately I feel like.
I flew through this one. I do enjoy Katee’s writing style. So first off- the main build- up is the stalking. I did enjoy this part. However, I felt like the black auction part was missing something. I think I just wanted a bit more scenes from the black auction. And the cheating aspect did give me a bit of an ick. Otherwise - normally this would be a higher rating for me.

Overall- if you’re a fan of Katee Robert you’ll love this.
Tropes:
- touch her and die
- Stalking
- Masks
- political intrigue

Divine Intervention:
Loved this one! I have never read this author before. I felt the story-line was very unique. Loved how this world had angels, demons and witches. I felt like I wanted more relationship build up. But I'm a sucker for an enemies to lover relationship and overall this was fun. I did enjoy the heist aspect of the story.

Tropes:
Ex’s dad
supernatural polyamorous romance
Black romance
Witches, angels and demons
Enemies to lovers

I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley and am voluntarily posting a review. All opinions are my own.
Review is just for Wicked Pursuit:
I’ve loved Wicked Villains series, although I ended up lapsing on posting reviews of the series, especially as trade special edition deals were later announced. But the prospect of even a glimpse at the second generation with Wicked Pursuit was exciting. I have to say “Uncle Hook” is perhaps my favorite update, although the fact that this series follows the daughter of Isabelle, Beast, and Gaeton (of The Beast) was definitely an attraction. Ruby is a quintessential Robert heroine, rather badass with more than a tinge of morally gray. She’s very much a rebel against the gilded-cage she’s been raised in and reeling from the stable security of her previous stifling relationship, and I love how she faces danger head-on.
I knew going in that this was a stalker romance, which I didn’t know if I’d like, but I trust Katee Robert with almost anything, particularly in this mafia-meets-fairy tale/mythology world she’s created. And while I wasn’t sure about “Wolf” at first, I could understand why he appealed to Ruby, and their dynamic, for all its dangers, was appealing in a twisted way. And no matter how bonkers or out there, Robert always ensures there’s an underlying nature of consent, even if she’s playing with dubcon or noncon as a facet of the relationship dynamics.
The plot here isn’t super-complex, but it’s a lot of fun, with a few twists along the way. The “spice” is the primary draw here, but the emotional connection in such an intense situation is also pronounced, along with the wider political and atmospheric stakes within a larger context.

Those 2 stories, were totally amazing. Loved the spice on both, but Katee Robert has me on a pedestal each time.

Can't wait to dig in the rest of the series tomorrow.

Wicked Pursuit ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🌶🌶🌶🌶🔥🔥🔥🔥🥵💋👍🏻
Katee can turn any benign story into a deliciously steamy, hot masterpiece. I am never disappointed by how she builds her characters and their worlds. The Black Rose Auction is a collaboration of multiple authors and Wicked Pursuit contains characters from wicked villains. Ruby is a mafia heir who cheats on her vanilla boyfriend and gains a stalker. Dark mafia romance, masked man, stalker, kink exploration.

Divine Intervention
(I’m still in the process of reading and will finish this portion shortly)
This is a spin off standalone companion to Sing Me To Sleep (Series of Sacrilegious Events)

I absolutely sped through this book because it pulled me in hardcore! While it was in the Carver City world, it felt very different from other books set within Carver City. I thoroughly enjoyed the plot twists in this (and didn't see the big one coming!) and found the characters to be morally grey but completely loveable. The spice level was perfect and the Black Rose Auction itself was perfection.

I would recommend reading through the CWs and making sure there aren't topics in this book that are going to be triggering. I can definitely see how this plot/setting would not be enjoyable for all readers, even if you love Katee, this one is DARK.

4 stars here but I give it 4.5. The ending felt a bit rushed, although it was left on a great cliff hanger!

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for providing an ARC of "Wicked Pursuit & Divine Intervention" in exchange for this honest review!

Wicked Pursuit: 4 Stars
I was hooked, this had more spice then i was expecting.
The twist on who the wolf ends up being had me gasping but i wanted to know more.
Couldnt put this down.

Divine Intervention: 3 Stars
Spicy twist on sharing, what old is new again, trust goes in many different directions
Wasnt as hooked on this as i was First, but felt like there was more of a plot line with this one

Wicked Pursuit by Katee Robert

I don't generally like dark romance and I have never read a stalker romance, but I like a lot of Katee Robert's books. This was no exception, in fact, I thought it was fantastic! It is really sexy with only a little scary. The twist feed the story into her Wicked Villains series and the world she built. I loved both of the main characters. The spice was perfect as always! The nod to Little Red Riding Hood was subtle.

Divine Intervention by R.M. Virtues

I've never read R.M. Virtues before. I'm not sure if this story relates to any of their other work. This was more of a fantasy romance and I struggled with the world building and understanding the character relationships. I think that's a symptom of the novella length. The spice was fantastic! I like FMM relationships and the characters involved. I thought the writing was well done and would definitely check out Virtues other work. I didn't find the Goldilocks connection particularly strong.

Overall, two sexy and gripping stories from the Black Rose Auction. I can't wait to read the rest!

Thank you, NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for this eARC!

Thank You for my early copy of this spicy retelling of a fairy tale by Katee Roberts and R.M. Virtues. I enjoy these stories by both authors and love their character development and writing styles. Katee and R.M. know how to write spicy scenes, and I giggled and blushed while reading them.

WIcked Pursuit - Katee Robert

A dark, sultry, and tension-filled romance, ‘Wicked Pursuit’ delivers on the intrigue and steam that Katee Robert is known for. It’s a gripping blend of mystery, danger, and passion that keeps you on edge, unravelling secrets while immersing you in an intensely seductive world.

Plot: ★★★★☆
The plot is brimming with tension, romance, and mystery. The pacing had a slow build at first, but once it found its rhythm, it became impossible to put down. There were twists and turns that kept me invested, and the combination of suspense and steamy moments made for a thrilling read.

Character: ★★★★☆
The characters were well-written, though I would have loved a bit more depth. While they felt real and compelling, some of their motivations and backstories could have been explored further. That said, their chemistry was undeniable, and their dynamic was laced with just the right amount of tension, passion, and emotional depth to keep me hooked.

Setting: ★★★★☆
The dark and dangerous world was such an intriguing setting. It was rich with atmosphere, perfectly complementing the intensity of the story. The sense of secrecy, risk, and indulgence, particularly of the Black Rose Auction, added to the allure, making the setting just as engaging as the characters themselves.

Engagement: ★★★★☆
I’ll admit, it took a little time for me to get fully immersed, but once I did, I was hooked. The story gradually built up tension, and by the time things truly got going, I was completely invested in the characters and their journey.

Readability: ★★★★★
Katee Robert’s writing is smooth, engaging, and incredibly easy to get lost in. The dialogue is sharp, the pacing (after the initial moments) is well-balanced, and the transitions between romance, action, and mystery are seamless.

Enjoyment: ★★★★☆
I thoroughly enjoyed ‘Wicked Pursuit’. While I would have liked a bit more depth in certain areas, the overall experience was compelling. The blend of dark romance, mystery, and high-stakes tension made for an addictive read that left me eager for the next book in the series.

A captivating start to the ‘Black Rose Auction’ series, ‘Wicked Pursuit’ delivers everything you’d want in a dark romance - suspense, sizzling chemistry, and an immersive setting. If you enjoy high-stakes intrigue and irresistibly steamy moments, this book is definitely worth checking out.


Divine Intervention - KM Virtues

A dark, sensual, and intoxicating entry in the ‘Black Rose Auction’ series, ‘Divine Intervention’ pulls you into a world of secrets, power, and pleasure. RM Virtues crafts a tale that is both deeply seductive and emotionally charged, making for a gripping read that balances intrigue with steamy romance.

Plot: ★★★★☆
The plot is full of intensity, passion, and darkness. The slow-burn tension builds into something utterly magnetic, and the deeper themes add weight to the sensuality. It carves out its own distinct tone in the series, making the story feel fresh and compelling.

Character: ★★★★☆
The characters are well-crafted, though I would have liked to see a bit more depth in their emotional arcs. That said, their chemistry is electric, and they bring the story to life with their complex interactions and power dynamics. They feel real and raw, which keeps the stakes high and the tension thick.

Setting: ★★★★☆
The setting is gorgeously dark and indulgent, mirroring the sensual tone of the book. RM Virtues does a fantastic job of making the environment feel immersive, adding to the sense of danger and allure that defines the Black Rose Auction.

Engagement: ★★★★☆
Like ‘Wicked Pursuit’, it took a little while to fully pull me in, but once it did, I was completely hooked. The blend of erotic tension and underlying suspense made it impossible to put down.

Readability: ★★★★★
The writing flows effortlessly, making it easy to get lost in the story. RM Virtues’ prose is evocative, beautifully balancing the steamy moments with emotionally charged scenes.

Enjoyment: ★★★★☆
I really enjoyed ‘Divine Intervention’. While I craved a little more depth in some areas, the intoxicating mix of passion, tension, and mystery made it a satisfying read. The sensuality was masterfully written, and the darker elements only enhanced the story’s intensity.

A gripping addition to the ‘Black Rose Auction’ series, ‘Divine Intervention’ delivers dark romance at its finest - seductive, thrilling, and dangerously addictive. If you love books that explore power, pleasure, and secrets in equal measure, this one is definitely worth reading.