I received this book for free from Berkley Publishing Group in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Annihilation Road by Christine FeehanAlso in this series: Judgment Road, Vengeance Road, Vendetta Road, Desolation Road, Reckless Road , Savage Road , Recovery Road
Series: Torpedo Ink #6
Published by Berkley on December 28, 2021
Genres: Contemporary Romance, Paranormal Romance, Motorcycle Clubs
Pages: 400
Format: eARC
Source: Berkley Publishing Group
All paths lead to destruction in the new Torpedo Ink novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Christine Feehan.
Savin “Savage” Pajari is convinced he’s not worth a damn thing. He’s not like his brothers. He’s a sadistic monster, a killer—a man no woman could truly love. So it completely throws him when a stranger risks her life for his, pushing him out of the way and taking the hit that would have sent him six feet under. If he had any kind of sense, he’d leave her alone, but Savage can’t get the woman with a smart mouth and no sense of self-preservation out of his head. With one kiss, he’s lost.
Seychelle Dubois has spent her entire life not feeling much of anything, until Savage comes along and sets her whole body on fire. Kissing him was a mistake. Letting him get close would be a catastrophe. He’s the most beautiful—and damaged—man she’s ever met. He has a way of getting under her skin, and what he’s offering is too tempting to resist.
Seychelle knows so little about Savage or the dangerous world of Torpedo Ink, but his darkness draws her like a moth to a flame. Loving him could mean losing herself completely to his needs—needs she doesn’t understand but is eager to learn. But what Savage teaches her could destroy her.
This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.
Annihilation Road is the six installment in the Torpedo Ink series and I can’t believe that we are already on book 6 already! Time has really flown by with these books. Of course, with how fast this author writes, it should come as no surprise to any of us right? This is a book that is unique to Feehan, this is the first time I have ever read her do a duet featuring one pairing. But Savage is the most intense character I believe she has ever written. She has written plenty of alpha males over the years, however, Savage is a whole another element that some of you might not quite be ready for. Now, this is the first book, so I imagine that the second book will be even rougher so I will really have to prepare myself for that one. Feehan really has explored certain kinky elements more especially in this series. But in this one Savage is a sadist. So to say that this is a different level is saying something, and it won’t be for everyone. But I will say that I thoroughly enjoyed this book, and Feehan led me down a road that I trusted her completely with and I am so grateful for that. So let us begin….keep in mind this review HAS SPOILERS!!
Annihilation Road is a fiery hot edgy romance that features:
- Savin “Savage” Pajari-alpha male, sergeant at arms for the Torpedo Ink Mc, Sadist, likes control, is scarred but protective and has a sweet underbelly
- Seychelle Dubois-orphan, singer/songwriter, generous, loving, lighthearted nature
Annihilation Road starts off with the kick-off to the story when Savage is in town and when he sees a young child about to be run over, he runs over to save the child and as he is about to be hit by the car thinking he would die, someone happens to push him out of the way and takes the hit for him…..a young woman whose beauty takes his breath away. He tells himself he should walk away right then, but he is captivated by her and only wants her more than ever. He gives into temptation and visits her at the hospital to make sure she is faring well, and posing as her fiancee, he meets this woman who saved him, a vicious man not worth saving, and is stunned by Seychelle. She is beautiful, but sees beneath his tough exterior and to the deep soul of the man. She sees past his gruff dialogue and finds him entertaining and not offensive. There is a connection that they build in those sweet tender moments in the hospital but he walks away even though it’s the hardest thing he has ever done. What he doesn’t expect is to be drawn to her once again and fight for her and seeks to win her heart. But he knows it isn’t easy, and life with him will be extremely difficult but as they explore this newfound relationship, there is a threat to Seychelle, and only with her beloved protector will she find an exquisite love worth fighting for no matter the risk or pain involved…
When he was particularly bad, he went to the underground clubs for satisfaction. No woman would want him or ever stay with him. She sure as hell would never love him
Annihilation Road is a story that I was extremely nervous about. Now if you want a background on how this story came to be, Christine Feehan does have an explanation on her website HERE, and I really respected that Christine Feehan was willing to go here because it is highly rare to see this in a romance and that is for good reason. But that doesn’t mean that I wasn’t nervous to read this one, because if this counts, other than Fifty Shades of Grey, I have never read a character that is a sadist. So this was definitely a new experience for me, and I was curious to see how she would handle this book, especially since we get a continuation of this one in “Savage Road” which will be released in January 2022. I will say that this book will sweep you quickly away into the story, and it really kicks off so fast. The connection that begins with Savage and Seychelle, is powerful and it has a magnetism that only this author can craft in her delectable ways. The interactions between these two is so delicious. Savage is such a tough teddy bear at times, he is heavily scarred and intimidates many people, but he doesn’t Seychelle. She sees through that tough exterior he has as a shield very quickly, and her reaction to him really baffles Savage so much. He honestly doesn’t know how to handle her and it’s Magnifique. I absolutely adored seeing their dialogue and how they banter with each other.
He needed violence. He craved it in the way others might a drug. His world revolved around it. Worse, he had a darkness in himthat she couldn’t even fathom, but she knew it was real and he was capable of things she couldn’t conceive of. She was drawn to that darkness like a moth to a flame, and she would burn up in his fire. She would. She had no protection against a man llike Savage. She felt his loathing of himself and the demons that plagued him and she wanted to be the woman to bring him peace.
Seychelle sees humor in so many aspects, and that is not what Savage is accustomed to. Even though Seychelle is apprehensive about Savage, she senses the darkness in him, she also sees the good man that is hidden deep inside him. I did love seeing that aspect and seeing what she was willing to sacrifice. It is not an easy road for these two. Savage has certain needs and it’s not something he can just push away or he could explode and hurt someone he truly loves. Ever since he was a child, it has been trained in him to be a sadist. He has very dark needs and only a special woman makes him want to try for more. He wants more with Seychelle than he has ever had with anyone else. He is willing to fight for her, but he also knows he needs to be patient because he won’t be a gentle lover most of the time. Seychelle upon learning of his true nature is apprehensive because she is sure she will fail him in giving him what he needs in her. She doesn’t know if she can even handle it or to be tolerant of the pain he wants to give her. But as she explores this deeper side to Savage, she sees so many sides to him, and as she begins to fall in love with him, she wonders if she can take him in his full beast mode.
She would lose Savage. The difference was, with Savage, she would lose her heart. Her soul. Everything she was.
Now I had one major issue with the book and it wasn’t even that the hero was a sadist. I actually really respect the author for writing his story, because it needed to be told. But there is something that Savage chooses to do earlier on in the book. Now they aren’t 100% committed to each other yet, however, they are very close to it. Savage feels the beast coming really strong and he is worried he will lash out at Seychelle, so he goes to another woman to fulfill those darker needs that he knows Seychelle isn’t even close ready for. Now, this isn’t the first time we have seen this (something similar happens in book one, the only difference here that some readers may really STRUGGLE with, is that this is full-on cheating) I do consider this scene cheating, because even though they aren’t quite 100% together, its pretty close to it and even though I understand in some respects, he really hurts her here and also I feel like he didn’t grovel nearly enough in the way that she deserved. But while I did have issues with this scene, it wasn’t enough to take away too much of the overall rating of the book. This would have been a 5 if it hadn’t been for this moment in the book.
I know that’s not much in the face of what I’m asking of you, but it’s all I can give you. My promise that you have me one hundred percent. Everything I am is yours.
A side note on the cover: I am not sure if its just me or does it seem like the covers for Savage’s books are as polished as the other titles in the series. They just seem to not have the same depth and quality as the others do. So I am curious why that is for these books.
Overall I found Annihilation Road to be a journey of self-reflection, newfound love that is packed with heights and its lows, it’s a story that will battle within and discover the essence of selfless love and its powerful healing capability. Its a story that will enhance its readers to another level and reach a stunning yet intense love.
Great review! I wondered how Feehan would handle Savage’s story. I think she was smart to do two books, so those who want the journey of the romance can see it in Annihilation Road and those who can handle the sadism can read Savage Road. The only other books I’ve read that deal with it in a lot of depth is The Original Sinners series by Tiffany Reisz. Talk about intense! But so good. It’s definitely not for everyone, between the S&M plus the sadist is actually a Jesuit priest sooooo…that adds another layer to the story. But she’s a very good writer and makes it work.
Such a perfect review! ?
I haven’t read anything from this series yet because I was trying to make my way through her backlist (which is loooong). I’ve been doing this a lot with all of my new favorite authors, but this review… yeah, I might have to make some time to read this series! I will say that I’m not looking forward to that ‘cheating’ scene in this book. Why oh why oh why did it have to be there???
I really enjoyed this book too. I’ve read the 2nd book now and while it was much rougher, it was really good too. I hope you get a chance to read it as well.