The Villain: Boston Belles, Book 2

ARC Review:Cillian Fitzpatrick is known by his enemies as well as his friends and family as a man without feelings, who even takes pride in that. Persephone Penrose is often mistaken for a wilting rose instead of a sturdy wildflower. The combination of the two has interesting results. I know a lot of people wanted Belle/Cillian, but to start I want to say two things: 1) that would've been a terrible combination and 2) it's not your intellectual property, respect and love your authors, and trust their process. Because believe me, this WORKS.Trope-wise, this falls between arranged marriage and fake relationship, with both sides going in knowing there are intense feelings, positive and negative. The dynamic between Kill and Persy is fun because he's persistent and she's resilient. They both are so firm in their belief that they're right that they don't knock each other down, at least not easily. You need to be excited about the banter, amused by the cruel words, and totally sucked in by the way their physical interactions undermine the verbal tension. They are definitely actions speak louder than words types for awhile.I love Persy. There are so many other books where the heroine acknowledges her emotional weakness and gives in to behaviors or forgiveness; Persy has a spine of steel. She feels fear, uncertainty, hurt, and attraction she knows to be problematic - we know she feels these things - and yet she never did what I expected. Persy's respect for herself and expectations for people around her always took priority in her interactions. The start of the story is with Persy experiencing pain and degradation in a situation she knew she never should've gotten into if she'd followed her heart in the first place. Therefore, she's in a place where her scars and pain make her prioritize her own expectations, and trying to shape the life that she wants. It's fun to watch her be soft and beautiful but also assertive and challenging all at the same time.Cillian needs to remain a mystery, because even scratching the surface of his journey beyond the love story is a near spoiler. Most LJ heroes have experienced trauma and it's what shaped them into the alphaholes we love - but there's more to Cillian. There's more of an explanation to why he became the person he is, and by the end there's definitely change but we know there's more work to be done. A lot of Kill's story is based around pressure, and some really deeply internalized shame. I think it's the emotion he expresses the most, even when unaware: shame. It's heartbreaking and makes you as a reader a lot more forgiving when he's the villain he thinks he needs to be, personally and professionally.There's also some interesting subplots about parenting, even beyond the shittiness of the Fitzpatrick parents. A lot about accepting your children, the pressure you put on them, and the power that love, faith, and support play in their development. I'm kind of annoyed that there are moments trying to redeem or explain the Fitzpatricks, but I think so far it's pretty clear that all three of their children feel harmed by them and don't want to be them - that's a good over-arching theme of the Boston Belles series. Undo your parents' mistakes, be better than they are. The Villain fits right into that narrative. I think I can confidently say that Persy is the best of them, in terms of not just her moral compass, but her follow through. It's one thing to believe, it's another thing to do something about it.LJ Shen never fails to surprise me with deep, complicated characters, love stories and subplots that are compelling, and enough spice to keep you up late reading. (I was up until 1am finishing. I am tired AF but no regrets.) The spicy scenes in this one were...very hot. A little kinky, a little loving, and one with a surprising laugh afterwards. I'm still thinking about it and laughing to myself. I'm just going to say...roses.There are some interesting representation issues at play in this story, and I will be curious what people who share those identities think of this book. I may be back to update this review based on conversations I'll be having. My instinct is that it's positive, but you never know how people feel about something close to their hearts.

“But what are villains, my dear wife, if not misunderstood heroes?”I don’t even know what to say right now. This was one of my most anticipated books of the year, and it did not let me down! This book was amazing! Leigh knocked it out of the park with this retelling of Hades and Persephone. It was literally impossible to put it down. Everything was so unexpected, kept me on my toes, questioning, feeling everything, and swooning up a storm! Cillian Frances Fitzpatrick... Dare I say he is my new book boyfriend and quite possibly my new favorite Shen hero? He’s broody, unattached, unemotional, and he hides behind this façade, showing the world and others that he simply doesn’t care, is uninterested, and the only thing that matters is Royal Pipelines. But there is SO much more to him than what meets the eye. His walls are built up high and reinforced, but a certain heroine came in and knocked them to the ground. Persephone Penrose is absolutely amazing. She wants to marry for love, have a family, and a happily ever after. She’s had feelings for Cillian from the first moment she laid eyes on him, but he never gave her the time of day. She is the perfect final piece to the intricate puzzle that is Cillian Fitzpartick. She showed and taught him so much; patience, compassion, understanding, love. She proved to be an incredibly strong heroine with a side of sass, learning to stand up for herself, even if she’s left heartbroken in the end."There's a world beyond your ice walls, Cillian Fitzpatrick, and it is full of laughter and joy and warmth."This marriage of convenience, slow burn romance did so many things to my heart. Finding out the reason behind Cillian’s reinforced walls and everything he endured to become the man he is, absolutely broke my heart. Persy knew the right negotiation tactics for him to make exceptions to the rules he has in place, and seeing how she kept getting knocked down by him with every bomb to his wall, made me root for her even more."Because you are so convinced you're Hades, doomed, dark and unredeemable, you haven't even bothered to read the myth all the way."Leigh’s writing, like always, hooked me in from the start. It was poetic, and filled with the kind of humor you normally find in her books. Which brings me to the supporting characters: Absolutely loved them! Hunter was so flipping funny, which we already knew, but I loved all the things that came out of his mouth. We see more of Sam Brennan, which I am SO excited to see what he is all about. The three other Boston Belles were as supportive and understanding as ever, always having Persy’s side. I cannot wait for the final two Belle’s stories… I am SO excited.And who, who, who, will be Belle’s Alpha? 🤔

I had been waiting for this book for months! My expectations was so high and to be honest LJ Shen exceeded them. When the author mentioned it will be re-telling of the Persephone myth, it had already won me over.I devoured this book! Literal, as much as I wanted to stretch the reading, I couldn't and had to reread. Cillian Fitzpatrick is a complex man, truly a villain who does not show his emotions. He's always in perfect control and he's too sarcastic. I could say that it is a combination between Vicious and Wolfe, but remastered and the truth is that Kill won me. Absolutely, he has my heart.Regarding to Persy, I have loved her before I read her book. She was described as a wallflower, super sweet. And she is! but she is also fierce. She doesn’t allow to be intimidated by anything or anyone. She is a woman who cares for those she loves and gives everything for them. She is cheeky and I also loved that because she shows different colors: she can be sweet, shy, but also sassy and sensual.The dynamic between them is quite interesting. There was a team battle between Persy and Belle, and everything is very clear here. At first, Kill seems like a robot because he doesn't really show any emotion, but there is a whole background. I can only say that I love all the times that Cillian saved Persy, all their arguments in which those sparks were felt because the tension runs through the pages. I enjoyed every scene, every moment and you truly must read The Villain. It is a completely worthwhile book and I rank it as my favorite LJ Shen book.

LJ Shen is the queen of the alpha male romance novel and her writing just gets stronger and stronger.I usually enjoy her lighter books as opposed to the darker material but the Villain amazingly walked that fine line and successfully writes the alpha male in such a way that you totally love to hate and then love him. I loved the Hunter, and this is the follow up but can be read on its own.Cillian Fitzpatrick is complex, tortured, but so right in his own way and I loved how his relationship with Persephone developed.Persephone herself is one of Shen's stronger female leads, rather than other writers who just writer the perfect female lead. She has nuance and sass along with being that perfect nice girl.The supporting characters are equally fun and we'll written. My favourite part of connected books is seeing what happens after the HEA and all the banter does not disappoint.The Villain is one of my top 5 LJ Shen books that I've read and I'm really looking forward to the next in this series.

Needless to say that all books from LJ Shen are amazing, but this book....WOWSince the hunter was released I couldn’t wait to read aboutCillian (What can I say- good boys go to heaven, but bad boys bring heaven to you), and was not disappointed, he was everything and more.And Persephone...wow, she was nothing like I anticipated and everything I needed. I can honestly say, with all my heart, that she is one of my favorite female character of all times, for she was sassy, fun, loyal, sweet and headstrong, she didn’t lost herself like so many woman do when in a relationship, she remember to put herself first.Persephone taught us how to Kill them with kindness. (Yes I made a stupid joke with the male character’s name- Sue me)Also, can’t wait for the Monster, I just know I’m gonna love to hate Sam Brennan, because gotta tell ya something whenever he came up in the book I felt like I could slap and kiss him, not necessarily in that order. (using kiss because the review is public, there fore no F word is allowed 🤷🏻‍♀️, but you got my meaning right)Five stars are not enough to define this art in form of a book! To LJ. Shen all I can say is well done 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

Or to be more specific , never saw Cillian coming , to be this kind of a character! I loved Kill from the moment i started to read the book , which was quiet late considering i had it since it came out. He is the best as...le Leigh wrote , omg i want to describe hime more but i am afraid of spoilers. And Persi, those who read the Hunter you will not expect her to be this heroine. She and Kill are so perfect together. Now i am waiting for the monster , because Kill and Wolfe are for me my favorite book boyfriends there are in the book world. Well done Leigh

I read all the books written by this author and can safely say this is one of her best book. I wasn't fond on the main characters, as they were first introduced in The Hunter, but I found myself more and more attracted to them. And...the best part of all this is the way the author approached and talked about the "secret" Cillian kept from the world. The fairness and not judgemental way Ms Shen succeeded to use in this book is new and refreshing. A very good job!