Whore

Well this book was a ride. I'm not sure what I was expecting but it wasn't the female MC being held captive and raped by an ex-lover/mob boss for the majority of the book.

This was my first book by Willow Aster and I enjoyed her writing but I wish there was more to this story. Lili and Soti seemed to fall in love in a matter of days. While we know that Lili was a high-end prostitute, we don't know much about Soti. How does he have connections with the New Orleans police department? Why is there so much security at the community center where he lives and volunteers? How did he manage to keep track of Lili after their first encounter six years prior to when they meet again? There was definitely more to his story and I wish we would have been let in on it.

 
 
The first 50% of this book was solid 5-Star material. Then halfway through a character pulled the biggest shit for brains move that overshadowed the entire second half. I was left going...seriously? You believe that of her knowing all you know about her life up until that point?? The threats made against her?? I also felt the second half of the book was rushed with too many jumps in time and a lot of over the top events.

That said, I still found myself pulled into the story. This is the first book I have read from this author but it won't be my last. She has a very captivating way of writing. I loved the setting of New Orleans. The pace was good for the first 50%. Like I mentioned above I found the second half to be rushed and I am not particularly a fan of time jumps in my books and the second half used this technique a lot. The plot was engaging and kept me turning the pages. It was full of feels and heartbreak but also hope and redemption. There were a few sex scenes but I wouldn't say it was overly spicey. There was a nice selection of secondary characters as well.


 

Both of the main characters were likable (mostly). For the first half of the book I ADORED Soti. He was sweet. He treated Lilith like gold. He wore his heart on his sleeve. Then the halfway point came and I have to say Soti lost some of his luster for me. He was too quick to think the worst of Lilith considering he knew about her previous life. The threats made against her, etc. I mean for heavens' sake did he forget the damn car chase?? How do you claim to love someone from the ends of earth and back, but a SINGLE letter convinces you that it was all a lie??!! He seemed to be a somewhat intelligent man, so how could he not put two and two together? He gave up on her SO easily...sigh. Lilith I loved from beginning to the end. She was a strong heroine. She had to be with all the shit that kept getting thrown at her. Last, it was all wrapped up in a sweet ending that again was rushed for me. I would have liked more page space given to Soti and Lilith learning to be a couple again. All in all though I enjoyed it quite a lot, so yours truly is giving this one two thumbs up.