Blog Tour & Review | The Kiss Thief by L.J. Shen

THE KISS THIEF BY L.J. SHEN

Release Date: January 9th

Cover Designer: Letitia Hasser at RBA Designs.

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Blurb
They say your first kiss should be earned.

Mine was stolen by a devil in a masquerade mask under the black Chicago sky.

They say the vows you take on your wedding day are sacred.

Mine were broken before we left church.

They say your heart only beats for one man.

Mine split and bled for two rivals who fought for it until the bitter end.

I was promised to Angelo Bandini, the heir to one of the most powerful families in the Chicago Outfit.

Then taken by Senator Wolfe Keaton, who held my father’s sins over his head to force me into marriage.

They say that all great love stories have a happy ending.

I, Francesca Rossi, found myself erasing and rewriting mine until the very last chapter.

One kiss.

Two men.

Three lives.

Entwined together.

And somewhere between these two men, I had to find my forever.

Excerpt
“Are you sure you’re on my card?” I turned to the man with a polite yet distant smile. I was still disoriented from the exchange with Angelo when the stranger pulled me against his hard body and pressed a possessive hand lower than socially acceptable on my back, a second from groping my butt.

“Answer me,” I hissed.

“My bid on your card was the highest,” he replied dryly.

“The bids are undisclosed. You don’t know how much other people have paid,” I kept my lips pursed to keep myself from yelling.

“I know it’s nowhere near the realm of what this dance is worth.”

Un-freaking-believable.

We began to waltz around the room as other couples were not only spinning and mingling but also stealing envious glances at us. Naked, raw ogles that told me that whomever the blonde he’d come to the masquerade with was, she wasn’t his wife. And that I might have been all the rage in The Outfit, but the rude man was in high demand, too.

I was stiff and cold in his arms, but he didn’t seem to notice—or mind. He knew how to waltz better than most men, but he was technical, and lacked warmth and Angelo’s playfulness.

“Nemesis.” He took me by surprise, his rapacious gaze stripping me bare. “Distributing glee and dealing misery. Seems at odds with the submissive girl who entertained Bishop and his horsey wife at the table.”

I choked on my own saliva. Did he just call the governor’s wife horsey? And me submissive? I looked away, ignoring the addictive scent of his cologne, and the way his marble body felt against mine.

“Nemesis is my spirit animal. She was the one to lure Narcissus to a pool where he saw his own reflection and died of vanity. Pride is a terrible illness.” I flashed him a taunting smirk.

“Some of us could use catching it.” He bared his straight white teeth.

“Arrogance is a disease. Compassion is the cure. Most gods didn’t like Nemesis, but that’s because she had a backbone.”

“Do you?” He arched a dark eyebrow.

“Do I…?” I blinked, the courteous grin on my face crumpling. He was even ruder when we were alone.

“Have a backbone,” he provided. He stared at me so boldly and intimately, it felt like he breathed fire into my soul. I wanted to step out of his touch and jump into a pool full of ice.

“Of course, I do,” I responded, my spine stiffening. “What’s with the manners? Were you raised by wild coyotes?”

“Give me an example,” he said, ignoring my quip. I was beginning to draw away from him, but he jerked me back into his arms. The glitzy ballroom distorted into a backdrop, and even though I was starting to notice that the man behind the demi-mask was unusually beautiful, the ugliness of his behavior was the only thing that stood out.

I am a warrior and a lady…and a sane person who can deal with this horrid man.

“I really like Angelo Bandini.” I dropped my voice, slicing my gaze from his eyes and toward the table where Angelo’s family had been seated. My father was sitting a few seats away, staring at us coldly, surrounded by Made Men who chatted away.

“And see, in my family, we have a tradition dating back ten generations. Prior to her wedding, a Rossi bride is to open a wooden chest—carved and made by a witch who lived in my ancestors’ Italian village—and read three notes written to her by the last Rossi girl to marry. It’s kind of a good luck charm mixed with a talisman and a bit of fortunetelling. I stole the chest tonight and opened one of the notes, all so I could rush fate. It said that tonight I was going to be kissed by the love of my life, and well…” I drew my lower lip into my mouth and sucked it, peering under my eyelashes at Angelo’s empty seat. The man stared at me stoically, as though I was a foreign film he couldn’t understand. “I’m going to kiss him tonight.”

“That’s your backbone?”

“When I have an ambition, I go for it.”

A conceited frown crinkled his mask, as if to say I was a complete and utter moron. I looked him straight in the eye. My father taught me that the best way to deal with men like him was to confront, not run. Because, this man? He’d chase.

About the Author
L.J. Shen is an International #1 best-selling author of Contemporary Romance and New Adult novels. She lives in Northern California with her husband, young son and chubby cat.

Before she’d settled down, L.J. (who thinks referring to herself in the third person is really silly, by the way) traveled the world, and collected friends from all across the globe. Friends who’d be happy to report that she is a rubbish companion, always forgets peoples’ birthdays and never sends Christmas cards.

She enjoys the simple things in life, like spending time with her family and friends, reading, HBO, Netflix and internet-stalking Stephen James. She reads between three to five books a week and firmly believes Crocs shoes and mullets should be outlawed.

Connect with L.J. Shen
Website: http://www.authorljshen.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/authorljshen/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lj_shen
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/authorljshen/
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/authorljshen/
Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/l-j-shen
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/13531492.L_J_Shen
Amazon: https://amzn.to/2KSFkad

“A Story of a Nemesis and a Villain with no chance at a happy ending. Where the prince doesn’t save the princess. He tortures her. And the beauty doesn’t sleep. She’s stuck. In a nightmare”

What a way to kick off the new year!
L.J. Shen hit this one right out of the ballpark.
The Kiss Thief is a freaking grand slam and my first 2019 favorite!

I can’t even contain my excitement nor do I want to when it comes to The Kiss Thief by L.J. Shen. I started this one around six p.m. and stayed up all night to finish it. Wolfe and Francesca are two individuals that aren’t about to be forgotten. I never thought it would be possible for a character to shine brighter than Vicious but after reading The Kiss Thief, the inevitable has finally happened. Senator Wolfe Keaton is my new number one Alpha-Hole! I couldn’t get enough of him!

About The Kiss Thief:

This Kiss Thief is a novel strictly based around one man’s need for revenge, and this alpha-hole get’s exactly what he wants!

Francesca had her future mapped out for her. She would marry her childhood sweetheart, the man her father had arranged for her to marry at a young age, have babies, and be the perfect poster wife and mother. But plans sometimes falls through the cracks, especially when a tall, tanned, and powerful man steps into the picture and makes Francesca’s father an offer he can’t refuse.

Senator Wolfe Keaton is out for revenge, and the only way to seek that vengeance is to make the man who took everything away from him pay in the worst possible way. By stripping him of all his businesses and everything precious to him. His daughter Francesca is the only pawn he sees to use, and is it going to be fun using her to his benefit.

My Thoughts:

Holy Hell! Every damn time I read a novel written by the wonderful L.J. Shen, I make damn sure my calendar is cleared and I have a day to binge because her characters aren’t ones to be ignored or set aside until I can get back to it.

The Kiss Thief is a soul consuming story about fate at its finest and how it works in miraculous ways. There were moments I wanted to cry, moments I wanted to laugh, and moments I honestly wanted to throw my kindle at a wall until it smashed in little tiny pieces.

“Maybe I am the monster. After all, I come out to play at night. But so do you, little one. You’re out in the darkness, too.”

Wolfe Keaton is a piece of work and is a great addition to L.J. Shen’s alpha-hole collection! After finishing this one I can’t really blame him for the way he is and the strong urge to destroy the very man who destroyed his entire world. This man has been through hell and back and it shows.

This storyline captivated my attention from beginning to end. I was intrigued by Francesca and all the shit she was forced to go through. I loved how her backbone slowly grew throughout the pages in The Kiss Thief. She started as this little recluse who was destined to do anything and everything to make her dad and mom proud. She put her dreams and wishes to the side until she started to realize the truths of her father and the manipulations he demonstrated throughout her life. After these small yet influential moments she started to shed the recluse skin and she then became a more confident and fierce woman. I freaking loved this new side to Francesca!

“Your love story was no fairy tale. More like a witch tale. Wicked and real and painful.”

Growing pains is a stage that every relationship must go through and to say Wolfe and Francesca had their share of growing pains would be putting it mildly. My heart broke over and over for these two. I was legit wrapped up in this couples love story!

Overall, The Kiss Thief by L.J. Shen is the first book of 2019 that has made my top favorites list! Ah, I cannot wait until I get the chance to re-read this beauty!!!