Review: 3 Hearts:I would recommend this book to those who like real `bad boys' and their romance to be on the harsh and gritty side.
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 09 15, 2012
Allison Cassatta - Sin & Seduction  {Reviewed by Lucy @ Hearts On Fire Reviews}Jansen is a stripper at nightclub struggling just to survive. He is a broken boy, putting himself back together after a brutal beating and rape a year before. The rape was so savage that he needed surgery to repair the damage and extensive hospitalization for recovery and has not had sex since. He has been dancing in the back rooms of Sin & Seduction for a while and is still scraping to get by. He is excited because he finally gets to dance in one of the main rooms where he has the opportunity to earn more money. On his first night dancing in the main room of the club he catches the eye of Dorian Grant and this is where their relationship begins.Dorian is not a nice guy, not even close. He is a violent criminal who rules the city with intimidation and a Louisville Slugger and if that fails, he just has his go-to man `get rid of the problem'. He is cold, calculating and will kill without remorse. He deals with any feelings he may have with booze, cocaine and Extasy and prefers to pay for sex. To say that he doesn't do relationships is a gross understatement. The closest thing he has to a friend is his hired muscle Angelo and his scary house keeper.Dorian pays for sex from Jansen and brushes him off and, despite that, Jansen cannot help but want Dorian with every fiber of his being. He is afraid of Dorian but is completely drawn to him. Dorian treats Jansen like a whore and yet can't stand the thought of anyone else having him. The men develop a hot and cold relationship hampered by the fact that neither of them are capable of rationally dealing with their emotions let alone navigating their way through a `normal' relationship.  The progression of their relationship is too fast and feels forced at times.  Why they are drawn to each other isn't readily apparent to me either. Jansen is weak and waivers between being afraid of Dorian and utterly devoted. Dorian pulls Jansen close and then pushes him away, ostensibly for his protection. Despite this, Dorian still manages to both hurt Jansen physically and is the cause of others hurting him. There was one sexual encounter between the men that was undoubtedly of dubious consent and Dorian did physically injure Jansen causing him to bleed rectally. Normally, I have no problem reading dub con but I don't like to be surprised by it and I was very upset that there was not a warning about this in the summary of this book.There is some action in the book in the form of some of Dorian's business peers but this is mainly a character driven story. It is interesting to see the struggle that Dorian goes through trying to fit Jansen into his tumultuous life. Dorian is not tamed by love, he remains true to his violent nature and doesn't hesistate to get his hands bloody, yet, he does try the best that he can to gain Jansen's trust and to build on the foundation of their relationship. Both men do experience some changes and manage to have their HEA.I would recommend this book to those who like real `bad boys' and their romance to be on the harsh and gritty side.