Review: Amazing! Dark! Erotic! Brilliant Characters!  LOVED IT!!!!
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 03 15, 2014
"Mary was the darkness to my monster. The blood to my blade."It seems like all I have been reading lately is Dark Romance so when I was asked to review this book I was excited because I love them, but I also worried I wouldn’t be able to stay interested because of how many I’ve read in a row.Well I was wrong to worry.“Don’t you see what’s so apparent to me? We’re perfect for each other. Without you, I’m not me.”This was the first book I’ve read by Alaska Angelini and it did not disappoint. Slade (Captive To The Dark) got me right from the beginning. Mary is a damaged soul who has been suffering for years from a rape that occurred when she was just thirteen years old. A man whom she trusted, a man who’s purpose was to look out for her and protect her violated her so horribly that it left her with tastes and cravings that one wouldn’t consider “normal”.Raised in a very privileged home where “daddy” can’t risk such a scandalous lifestyle being outed he works hard to cover up Mary’s past. Mary has always felt like the outsider of the family. Wealth and privileges are just not something she is comfortable around. It’s more for her perfect model-like older sister. But that doesn’t stop Mary from trying. After years of rebellion she feels it’s time to make things right. She wants to please her family and will do almost anything to make them happy and to erase the disappointment in their eyes when they look at her.Slade is a man of means. He is determined and goes after what he wants and never loses. So when his sister, Lily, a girl who has been under his watch since childhood is kidnapped sold as a sex slave, all he has in mind is to get her back at whatever means necessary.An eye for an eye, right?Well, to Slade that means taking from the man who took from him and he has his sights set on Mary. He will use her for his pleasure and if he doesn’t get his sister back soon, he will do what they have done to Lily. He will sell her.“You have thirty days to locate her and bring her back to me. If you don’t, Mary will be sold to the buyer of my choice. In the meantime, your daughter will partake in what I assume my sister is experiencing. She’s mine in every way.”But when Slade discovers that the girl he thought as spoiled, weak and innocent is actually a fighter and has similar tastes as him, he can’t help but be captivated by her. She is unlike any slave he has had before and he will not let her go. He will do anything for her. He will sacrifice anything to make her happy and make her whole again.But that’s not the deal. If he gets his sister back he has to let Mary go.But what if Mary doesn’t want to leave? Slade may have kidnapped her but he fulfills a part of herself that she knows will never be able to be sated by anyone else. She sees the good in Slade, the man who only wants his sister back and she will do whatever she can to make that happen.“I want you to mark me. Carve your name into my chest, like you said.Let my father see what he’s done.”Her dad is not only horrified by what he sees his daughter is going through but also by what secrets Slade can uncover about him and his perfect life. He agrees that he will do everything to get Lily back to him as long as Slade gives Mary back to him. He has promised her to another man. A man who will look pasts all the “damage” that has been done to her.“You’ll get no pleasure from Jordan. Not anymore. You want to know why?”Embers of fear began to glow from deep within and I couldn’t speak.“I’ll tell you.” Slade’s fingertips traced down my spine, making me shiver.“It’s because I've poisoned you, just as much as you have me.”Mary is torn. Does she stay with the man who she knows she will crave every day for the rest of her life, the only man who will ever truly be able to give her what she so desperately needs. Or does she return to her life and follow through with her dad’s plans to please him, to try to find the acceptance from him that she has wanted for so long. Will she even be allowed to choose, or will the decision be made for her?Slade owns her. He refuses to let her go. He knows Mary feels for him like he does her but he can’t hold her against her will forever, can he?This is a very gruesome story. Not only is it a Dom/sub book but it also has a lot to with revenge, which in turn, means there are several graphic bloody parts. I was literally covering my eyes in parts and then peeking through my fingers so I could continue to read. I know, that doesn't make sense but that’s what I did.Even through all the abuse and blood, there was a great love story. I loved Slade, a lot. I loved his dominating side and his desire to mark Mary has his. But Slade also had a softer side. It was nice to see his passion for Mary; he was in awe of her strength and feistiness. I also really liked and admired Mary for the first  of the book but then I was so annoyed by her. It’s like she switched from a strong fighter to a weak pet. I just couldn't understand some of the choices she made and her reasoning’s for them.Overall it was a great book of two kindred spirits coming together and finding the peace they both so desperately long for at a time neither of them expected to find it.I can’t wait to read more by Alaska Angelini.P.S. I LOVE the Cover!