“Dark, perverse, and unbearably erotic, Pretty When
You Cry is Skye Warren at her gritty best.”
~ Anna Zaires, USA Today bestselling author of
Twist Me
A new dark romance novel from the New York Times
bestselling author of Wanderlust and Prisoner…
I came from a place of dirt floors and holy
scriptures. They told me the world outside was full of sin, and the first night
I escape, I find out it’s true. Ivan saves me, but he does more than that. He
takes me. He makes me his own girl.
My conditioning runs too deep. Ivan sees what I am.
That’s the thing about showing a mouse to a cat. He
wants to play. And it’s terrifying, even for me. Because the only thing darker
than my past is his.
He’s beautiful in a strange and sinful
way, one that makes me more afraid. Not colorful exactly. His eyes are a gray
color I’ve never seen before, both deep and opaque at the same time. The
building itself is beautiful too with its wrought iron gate around a large
courtyard. The fountain in the center is broken, but that only adds to the
mystique.
The marquee sign reads Grand, a
flash of neon pink against the black night.
He steps closer, the light from the
sign illuminating his face, making him look even more sinister. “What’s your
name?”
I couldn’t answer those other men, but
I find something inside for him. I find truth. “I’m not allowed to say my name
to someone else.”
He studies me for a long moment, taking
in my tangled hair and my white dress. “Why not?”
Because God will punish me. “Because I’m running away.”
He nods like this is what he expected.
“Do you have money?”
I have twenty dollars left after bus
fare. “Enough.”
His lips twist, and I wonder if that’s
what a smile looks like on him. It’s terrifying. “No, you don’t,” he says. “The
question is, what would you do to earn some?”
Anything.
My voice is just a whisper. “I’m a good
girl.”
He laughs, and I see that I was wrong
before. That wasn’t a smile. It was a taunt. A challenge. This is a real smile,
one with teeth. The sound rolls through me like a coming storm, deep and
foreboding.
“I know,” he says gently. “What’s your
name?”
“Candace.”
He studies me. “Pretty name.”
His voice is deep with promise and
something else I can’t decipher. All I know is he isn’t really talking about my
name. And I know it isn’t really a compliment. “Thank you.”
“Now come inside, Candace.”
He turns and walks away before I can
answer. I can feel the night closing in on me, the sharks in the water waiting
to strike. It’s not really a choice. I think the man knows that. He’s counting
on it. Whatever is going to happen inside will be bad, and the only thing worse
is what would have happened outside.
I hurry to catch up with him, almost
running across the crumbled driveway, under the marquee sign for the Grand, past
the broken fountain, desperate for the dubious safety of the man who could hold
the darkness at bay. It’s the same thing that kept me in Harmony Hills for so
long—fear and twisted gratitude.
REVIEW
Rating: 4.5 Stars!
I have only read one other book by Skye Warren so when the opportunity to read Pretty When You Cry came up, I grabbed it. With that being said I dove right into this story & thought "Wow, can I really read this & can I get through it?"
The story about a young woman, Candace living in a religious cult who escapes into the world of sinners according to cult Leader Allen. Ivan "rescues' Candace and we get the story of where they are three years later. Strippers, "Daddy/Daughter" issues, domination, pain for pleasure, it's all in this one.
Their story is dark and mysterious but most of all twisted. I never thought I would pick up a book of this nature and read through it. But, I did and I loved it! Give it a chance and just hold on for the ride. Skye Warren does not disappoint with Pretty When You Cry. I will definitely read this one again! I am giving Pretty When You Cry 4.5 Dark & Erotic Stars!!!
I was given a copy for an honest review.
~ Tessa
Other books in the series
Tough Love (Stripped #0.5)
Love the way you Lie (Stripped #1)
Better when it Hurts (Stripped #2)
Skye Warren is the New York Times bestselling
author of dark romance such as Wanderlust and Prisoner. Praised as a “true
mistress of dark erotica”, her books have been featured in Jezebel, Buzzfeed,
USA Today Happily Ever After, Glamour, and Elle Magazine. She makes her home in
Houston, Texas, with her loving family, three dogs, and one evil cat.
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