Vicious (Sinners of Saint Book 1)

This book was PERFECTION. No matter how much I praise the book, it won't be enough. Baron Vicious Spencer was a top grade bully but I simply loved him with all his faults. He is definitely one of my favourite book boyfriends."I thought I’d escaped him. I was even stupid enough to think he’d forgotten I ever existed. But when he came back, he hit harder than I ever thought possible. And just like a domino—I fell."Vicious and Emilia meet in highschool because Emilia's parents moved her and her sister Rosie (who had cystic fibrosis) from Virginia to Todos Santos for a job at Vicious's house. Her parents were the hired help who worked for his father and he literally called Emilia"Help.""Emilia wore her weird personality like a billboard, proud and loud. From the way she dressed to how she was always covered in paint and doodled cherry blossoms everywhere."The above quote itself describes Emilia perfectly. She was an artist who had an obsession with cherry blossoms, with a wierd sense of dressing and a lot of sass and strength. The way she handled Vicious and his taunts was so amusing. She literally gave it back to him and never backed down. That's what made their banters funny and entertaining."She was mine again the minute I saw her in her next-to-nothing outfit. She just didn’t know it yet."Vicious was such an arrogant and rude rich boy but then we see that there's more to his entitled and difficult persona than we had imagined. He was literally so lonely and sad, that made me ache for him. He deserved to get his fair share of happiness and a family that he was depraved of and I'm glad he found that person in Emilia."She was a fantasy, and like all fantasies, she was meant to be savored, cherished, and treated with caution and respect."I hated him at first but after rereading this story so many times, I just couldn't help but love him because no matter how many mistakes he made with Emilia, in the end he grovelled hard for it. So far, he has the best redemption arc compared to the books that I have come across."I now absolutely hated myself for doing this to him. But still, I did it. Because protecting my heart over his had become my priority. No matter what Vicious felt for me, I knew exactly how I felt about him. And I didn’t hate him. Not by a long shot."So, Vicious does something really vile to break up Emilia and one of his best friends, Dean when they started dating in highschool and he just couldn't handle it. Fast forward some years later, Vicious has started a company with his three friends- Trent, Jamie & Dean and together they were called the "Four Hot Holes". Vicious became a lawyer and stumbles upon Emilia working as a waitress in a restaurant in New York. He somewhat feels bad about her situation (which she got herself into because of him.) But he also had a revenge plan against his step mother in which he needed Emilia's help. So, he offers her to work as his PA, from there the story picks up pace and we also get to know what happened in the past that caused Vicious to be the way he is. Once I got to know about his story, I was a goner for this man lol! Vicious in hate was amusing but Vicious in love was a sight to behold. He was in love with Emilia all along and somewhere along the way, I'm glad that he opened his eyes and saw what he really needed was right there in front of his eyes.The Dean & Rosie storyline has intruged me a lot and I would love to see them together despite their circumstances tbh. Overall, I loved the book. The writing was as usual fabulous and captivating and the characters were flawed yet raw and real. The chemistry, angst, tension and character depth were portrayed perfectly! I would definitely recommend giving this one a try.

They say Hate is the other face of Love. There is a thin line between love and hate. The deeper you hate, the harder you love.Baron, nicknamed Vicious for his aggressive and vile nature, meets Emilia, who is the hired help's daughter, and shares a hateful/angry relationship with her in high school. A broken man, he's had an indifferent and an abusive relationship with his father and step-mom. He abuses her, demeans her, bullies her, and is obsessed with her. Emilia on the other hand is attracted to him and hates him for it. It's when she starts dating his best friend when things go topsy turvy for them. Insanely jealous, he breaks up their relationship and alienates her from her family by sending her away.They meet again ten years later and his obsession is dangerously the same. He wants only one thing and that is Emilia and uses his power and wealth to get her to work for him and help him to avenge his mother's death. Hereon, their push and pull relationship takes on a sweet note, they get to know and understand each other and their feelings start to soften.Emilia is a sweet, strong and a kind girl, an antithesis to the hard, hateful, vengeful and vicious Baron, a Pink to his Black. Their chemistry, their passion, their vulnerability is narrated beautifully and you feel for the characters. A hateful Vicious is very attractive, but a sweet and in love Vicious is absolute swoon worthy. The way his character progresses, evolves, matures and loves is the best part of this read. By the end of the book you are head over heels in love with him, just like Emilia is. A gem of a book, an intense and vehement tale of how two people are meant to be together, this has to be on your read list. Highly recommended guys.

O.. FREAKING. MG... This book is really one of those books that consume you oh so completely making you forget your own existence coz you exist to read only. From the get go I just knew I wouldn't be able to function until I was done with this one and I was right...OMG....I had so many moments while reading... I WANTED TO YELL AT VICIOUS for being the idiot that he was.. but I HATED ALSO FOR FALLING FOR HIM.. Just like Emilia LeBlanc couldn't help herself.. SHOULD NOT MISS READING THIS ONE.. This book is EPIC... OH SO EPIC... OK now that I have finished my ranting about how much I loved this book. I can finally breath now...LOVED IT 💖 😍 😘

So, a definite must read...but please know that it's twisty and not a cookie cutter romance ...I liked how the story unfolded between 'now' and 'then'...and through both POV...the writing was almost poetic...so happy to get this via KU...I will look for more books from this author...when I started reading this book I didn't stop till I reached the end...i.e non stop reading, that's how engaged I was in the storyline...

It's beautiful that books like these tend to exist. The author has made quite an effort in portraying such wonderful characters.

Good story pace. Initially it felt little offensive but she turned it around. Narration was very good. Explaining the love between two people, this author never fails to impress. She did it again. Another great one!!!

I have enjoyed reading it. And must say story keeps reader on hook.My first book from the writer.Must read...

I love this book it has kept me hooked all day , I loved their chemistry and the story is very well written

This was an okay read. Vicious is indeed vicious, down right nasty but it took far too long for him to redeem himself, although the character for that part is well written. Without giving away the plot there is a root cause to his nastiness which is painful but its revealed too late, and as he confided in a responsible adult it is unbelievable that he wasn't helped as a child. His behaviour toward Emillia is in no way endearing until the very end by which time it's ridiculous that she wants anything to do with him. The Black and Pink thing could have been so much more, it would have made their connection so much better if it had been brought in earlier and expanded. The fact that he is so strongly reminded of his hated, evil stepmother when he looks at Emillia yet he is so captivated by her is really perverse and the middle section could have been tightened up to give the story more drive. All that being said I still read on and wanted a decent ending which was delivered even though it was done with a bit of a fairytale flourish. I can't make up my mind about this author, some of the writing and characterisation is really good and then there are juvenile weaknesses that let the book down.

This book consumed me whole and I could not put it down! Highly addictive and irresistible, loving the bad boy never felt so good. Vicious is one mean bully intent on making life miserable for Emilia who he refers to as "Help" at his father’s estate. His fellow crew members consisting of Jaime, Trent, and Dean aptly named as the Four Hotholes rule their school and every girl wants in their pants. The vibe and energy coming off this book was just electric and I was so hooked.Vicious is a troubled guy and Emilia happens to be his target so a hate relationship follows from teens and continues as adults, with Vicious tormenting, pushing and teasing Emilia but she is one girl who can stand her ground unafraid to go against Vicious and butt heads as he tries to bring her down, and constantly tries to put her in her place as only being the hired help, adamant in denying his feelings for her whilst still trying to own her. The spark and banter between Vicious and Emilia as they riled each other up was so entertaining and hot as hell just craving that first kiss, that first moment where everything explodes and there’s no turning back. I loved and appreciated that the story was told in dual pov of Emilia and Vicious.This book has a love to hate you vibe, with cruel intentions, the bad boy v the good girl, mixed with suspense, betrayal, sacrifices, heartache, redemption, bad boys, friendship, facing consequences, ego, sexy scenes, sweet moments all delivered by one sexy possessive badass, Baron Spencer aka Vicious.Vicious was my first read by L.J Shen, I loved her writing style and her alpha men, its one of my favourite reads of 2017 and left me in a worse case of book hangovers! Fans of Bully by Penelope Douglas and Fear me by B.B Reid will love this!

Enemies to more books are some of my favourites , because the hero and heroine are so set against each other, watching them fall in love is so much sweeter. They say there is a very thin line between love and hate, and this could not be truer for Emilia Le Blanc and Vicious Spencer.Vicious and Emilia have known each other since they were 18, when Millie’s parents started working on the Spencer estate. Vicious takes an instant disliking to Millie, who has no idea why, and from there, bullying and other awful events take place, leading to Millie being driven out of their town, Todos Santos, after graduation. When they meet again ten years later, Vicious is the same merciless man, and the minute Emilia Le Blanc reappears in his life, he knows he can use her to his advantage to get the revenge he so desperately wants.Vicious Spencer is the world’s biggest a$$hole. He is ruthless and cruel, he lives up to his nickname time and time again, and he is the most outwardly awful member of the Four HotHoles. Vic is everything men want to be, gorgeous, rich, powerful and a player. But he has deep rooted issues, which mean he treats everyone except his three closes friends as temporary and never makes meaningful connections, even though it’s clear he is capable of love through his friendship with the boys, he’s just picky over who’s worthy of it. He has secrets and a past and has spent years planning revenge on those who did him wrong. He is vindictive and callous, hiding his pain behind an angry façade so when Emilia turns up at his door, she immediately has a target on her back, because she is so good.Emilia is sweet and light, both at 18 and ten years later, when she is living in New York caring for her younger sister Rosie, who has cystic fibrosis. She is the only person in the world who is immune to Vicious and his cruel ways, she stands up to him and gives it back. ‘Her indifference to my power somewhat disarmed me’ is the perfect quote to describe how Emilia is around Vic. She is also the good that he most desperately wants but doesn’t think he is deserving of. Her refusal to compromise is outstanding and she challenges Vicious every step of the way. Sometimes it’s hard to see the love between them, but the more you read, you see that their relationship is blurred, just like the line between love and hate. His awful actions as a teenager and also ten years later are barely forgivable, but when he reveals his truth to Millie, you can begin to understand the man behind the monster and fall in love with him too.Vicious’ character evolves rapidly throughout this book as he lets down the wall to Millie and I loved him. He shouldn’t be likable, but he is, especially as he spends more time with Millie, not just for his need for revenge. He feels so guilty about what he did to her in the past, he knows he was wrong, and that’s why he was so different to other bully’s in romance novels, he feels remorse. He always loved her, he just didn’t want anyone else to have her until he was ready. Their attraction is strong, and their coupling is inevitable.The other FHH, Trent, Jamie, and Dean, are very similar to Vicious in terms of how they live their lives, but I know that they too have reasons for behaving the way they do. These men don’t act like a$$holes for the sake of it, they have reasons which they keep buried, not even revealing them to each other. I loved revisiting Jaime and Mel and seeing the start Trent and Dean’s story’s play out has me hooked again. None of these men are finding their HEAs through the conventional way and that’s what makes their stories even more memorable and intriguing.Vicious is told in dual-pov which is needed for this type of book to truly understand how the mind of Vicious Spencer works, it’s the perfect dark enemies to more read. An alpha possessive hero who you want to hate but can’t help but love (I don’t know how LJ does that, so many books with similar H I just dislike them). A heroine who will fight for herself and stand up to others but is so open and accepting with the man she loves. Scenes which will make you swoon, but also make you blush and light the pages of the book on fire. A plot which grips you from start to finish and twists you can’t see coming, the ending was perfect and showed how much he had changed, because you will learn the Vicious never does something he doesn’t want to do. I am re-reading this series for a second time and I actually forgot how much I loved Vicious Spencer.

I have been really struggling to find a book lately that really grips me. This was the book that made me realise how much i really enjoy and missed a good story.It was sad and emotional in parts and i did actually have a little cry when she said " What do you want?" to Vicious nearly at the end and he said"You just you". It was slow in at times but it was great to get to know all the hot holes and build up there characters. i did find Rosie a bit weak but a book on her and Hal could be an interesting one.Vicious was so horrible nearly the whole way through the book. It seemed like he was never gonna come out of the dark side. He had alot of bitterness and anger and he seemed to love taking out on Help.Emiliea was a fantastic character and one i will not forget. She was strong and sassy and determinded.This was an easy 5 stars for me.Defy is L J Shen next one i may read but it will be hard to beat Vicious.

Vicious (Baron) Spencer chased Emilia LeBlanc from California, from her friends, from her family and from her home. Ten years later, he needs help. And she is the only one that can help him. They strike up a deal, one that will benefit them both. But with so much history and buried feelings between them, it was only a matter of time before they finally gave in. The cold and vicious man finds himself becoming soft and falling in love with the one person he has loved since he was a teenager.----I love this story. Vicious is the alpha hero like we are used to in all LJ Shen's books. He is not a nice guy, he was a spoiled teenager who threw a tantrum and banished Emilia from her home. Emilia is the complete opposite. She is kind, warm and loving. But she has always had feelings for Vicious she couldn't understand. She should hate him for what he did to her, but she doesn't. Their love story was emotional, raw, dramatic. But I loved every minute of it. LJ Shen wrote a very interesting match with these two. And I recommend this anyone who loves a enemies to lovers story with high angst and perfectly written love scenes. 4 stars.