Review: Bella Jewel as always does not disappoint and after this first installment, I can say, “it’s a pirates life for me!”
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 21, 2013
Bella Jewel first got my undivided attention from the moment I got to know Addy and Cade in her first MC Sinners series, Hell’s Knights. She had the ability to draw out the most carnal and raw desires out of me. I was utterly insatiable throughout all 3 books and I knew that I would become a loyal follower of her work.So when I got hold of a teaser for Enslaved By The Ocean, it took me a couple of seconds to adjust to the words on my phone screen– *blinking eyes* “Pirates you say?!” When I think of pirates it’s either Disney’s Jake & the never land pirates version or the overly cheesy “Fabio- front ruffled white blouse” version. Then an “aha, ooooh yeeeaaah” moment took its place.. This is Bella Jewel we’re talking about here!!! She can make anything sexy and of course she would think of a series so different from the incessant subjects currently being written all over the book world. I was enamored with the idea of a dominant, rugged, & muscled pirate and couldn’t wait to get my hands on him. Well, Hendrix aka pirate is all of that and more!Indigo Waters is this book’s heroine. She is in one word a survivor. Her character took me on a bit of twist and turn throughout the entire book. Far from being sheltered from the evils of life yet naive, strong and at the same time susceptible to indecision. It was an adventure getting to know her. At times I felt like she was the biggest fool around and I felt so much frustration after certain dialogues and many times over, I found her extremely lovable. I admired Indi’s fight to live and her unyielding belief in love. Even though love’s not been fair to her she somehow escapes being a skeptic.Hendrix “the Pirate” is severe. I don’t think I have ever used that to describe any character in a book but for Hendrix, it is the only way he could be described.  He is the captain of his ship and of his life. There are several events through out this entire book where my mouth remained agape. His blatant disregard to the “politically correct” ideas got my blood pumping. I praise Bella Jewel for having the guts create a hero like him- there have been many (MCs, assassins, etc) who have been written about but never have I ran into a book where a hero as blatantly crude as Hendrix is. He provides no apologies for what he does. He does it for a purpose and does not hide behind reasons or explanations. I wish that we had more insight to his character. I think this would have really been the icing on the cake for me. It’s hard to connect with a character without much of their history to understand how they have become the person that I am now reading about.The secondary characters in this book have a ridiculous amount of potential that I am very excited for their stories to come out. Bella delivered Jess’ and Drake’s characters so well. I felt I knew them more than I did Hendrix even though their parts/dialogues were far fewer.Enslaved By The Ocean is both a captivating love story & self awakening. There is an in-explainable pull between Hendrix and Indi from the very beginning of this book. They learn to face their individual demons and fears through each other. There are many sensual moments in true Bella Jewel form where you may find yourself panting. As a reader I truly found myself aboard this mystical ship traveling through the vast waters with these intriguing bunch of characters. I look forward to the next books in this series and at the same time hope to get to know the Hendrix I so longed to fall in love with in this book.Bella Jewel as always does not disappoint and after this first installment, I can say, “it’s a pirates life for me!”