Madam X #1
By:
Jasinda Wilder
Release Date:
Oct. 6, 2015
Publisher:
Berkley Romance
Source:
Finished Copy from publisher in exchange for a honest review
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GR's Summary:
Madame X invites you to test the limits of control in this provocative new novel from New York Times bestselling author Jasinda Wilder.
My name is Madame X.
I’m the best at what I do.
And you’d do well to follow my rules...
Hired to transform the uncultured, inept sons of the wealthy and powerful into decisive, confident men, Madame X is a master of the art of control. With a single glance she can cut you down to nothing, or make you feel like a king.
But there is only one man who can claim her body—and her soul.
Undone time and again by his exquisite dominance, X craves and fears his desire in equal measure. And while she longs for a different path, X has never known anything or anyone else—until now...
My Thoughts:
Madame X by Jasinda Wilder, is unlike anything I've ever read before. This story is told primarily in second person and centers around a woman known as 'X.' This is the type of story that you cannot pull your eyes away from. It is shrouded in mystery, intrigue, suspense, and eroticism.
X is a beautiful, elegant, and sophisticated woman. She was trained, shaped, and molded over the last six years by a very powerful, wealthy, manipulative, and controlling man. X's job is to transform the sons of the elite from boys to men. This entails training in which X tears down the boy, in order to rebuild him into a man. She teaches confidence, etiquette, and the art of conversation, among many other things. However, for all intents and purposes, X, is a prisoner in a beautiful, and luxurious gilded cage. She doesn't remember her past, and only knows what her rescuer has told her. Along the way, we meet X's clientele, the man who controls her, and another man that she is drawn to like a moth to a flame.
I love a good mystery. I was eager to learn about X, and her past. She learned a little about herself, and I am looking forward to getting more answers in the sequel, Exposed. The man that controls X is also a large mystery, but we learn a lot about him as the story is told. I do not like his character. He is cold, cunning, and deceitful. Unfortunately, he has a very powerful hold over X. I am a huge fan of the love interest that is introduced further in to the story. The connection and chemistry between him and X had me at the edge of my seat.
If you are searching for a great story, that is fast-paced, addicting, mysterious, as well as unique and unconventional, Madame X will not disappoint! I would recommend that you begin reading this story when you have a large chunk of time available, because you will not be able to put this book down, unless somebody pries it out of your hands.
My Rating:
Book Excerpt:
A knock on the door, the silent swing of hinges, and then heat and hardness behind me, a faint but intoxicating hint of cologne, the creak of leather. Hands on my waist, lips at my neck. Breath on my skin.
I don’t dare tense, don’t dare suck in a sharp breath of fear. I don’t dare pull away.
Strong, hard, powerful hands twist me in place, and an index finger touches my chin, lifts my face, tilts my gaze. I cannot breathe, don’t dare, haven’t been given permission.
“You are lovelier than ever, X.” A deep, smooth, cultured voice, like the purr of a finely tuned engine.
“Thank you, Caleb.” My own voice is quiet, careful, my words chosen and precise.
“Scotch.” The command is a murmur, barely audible.
I know how to prepare it: a cut-crystal tumbler, a single ice cube, thick amber liquid an inch from the top. I offer the tumbler and wait, keep my eyes downcast, hands behind my back.
“You were too harsh on Jonathan.”
“I must respectfully disagree.”
“His father expects results.”
I bristle, and it does not go unnoticed. “Have I ever failed to produce results?”
“You sent him away after less than an hour.”
“He wasn’t ready. He needed to be shown his faults. He needs to understand how much he has to learn.”
“Perhaps you’re right.” Ice clinks, and I take the empty tumbler, set it aside, and force myself to remain in place, force myself to keep breathing and remind myself that I must obey. “I didn’t come here to discuss Jonathan Cartwright, however.”
“I suppose not.” I shouldn’t have said that. I regret it as soon as the words tumble free.
My wrist bones scrape together under a crushing grip. Hard dark eyes find mine, piercing and frightening. “You suppose not?”
I should beg forgiveness, but I know better. I lift my chin and meet those cold, cruel, intelligent dark eyes. “You know I will fulfill the contract. That’s all I meant.”
“No, that isn’t all you meant.” A hand passes through artfully messy black hair. “Tell me what you really meant, X.”
I swallow hard. “You’re here for what you always want when you visit me.”
“Which is?” A warm finger touches my breastbone, slides into the valley of my cleavage. “Tell me what I want.”
“Me.” I whisper it, so not even the walls can hear.
“All too true.” My skin burns where that strong finger with its manicured nail traces a cutting line up to my shoulder. “You test my patience, at times.”
I stand stock-still, not even breathing. Breath whispers across my neck, huffs hot on my nape, and fingers toy with the zipper of my dress.
“I know,” I say.
And then, just when I expect to feel the zipper slide down my spine, body heat recedes and that hot breath now laced with hints of scotch is gone, and a single word sears my soul:
“Strip.”
My tongue scrapes over dry lips, and my lungs constrict, protesting my inability to breathe. My hands tremble. I know this is expected of me, and I cannot, dare not resist, or protest. And . . . part of me doesn’t want to. But I wish . . . I wish for the freedom to choose what I want.
I have hesitated too long.
“X. I said . . . strip.” The zipper slides down to between my shoulder blades. “Show me your skin.”
Reaching behind my back, I lower the zipper to its nesting place at the base of my spine. Hard, insistent hands assist me in brushing the sleeves from my shoulders, down my arms, and then the dress is floating to the floor at my feet. That’s all the help I’ll get. I know from long experience that I must make a show of what comes next.
I turn my head, and see tanned skin and the perpetual two-day stubble on a refined, powerful jawline, sharp cheekbones, firm, thin lips, black eyes like voids, eyes that drip desire. My hair drapes over one shoulder. I lift one knee so my now-bare toes touch the gleaming teak, curl my shoulders in, let my gaze show my vulnerability. With a deep breath, I unhook my bra, let the garment fall away.
I reach for my underwear.
“No,” comes the purr, “leave them. Let me.”
I let my fingers graze my thighs, wait. My underwear slides down slowly, and where fingers touch, so too do lips, hot and damp, touching my skin, and I cannot flinch, cannot pull away or express how badly I want only to be alone, to even once have the right to want something else.
But I do not have that right.
Great review! Madame X sounds amazing! Thanks for the giveaway! :D
ReplyDeleteCan you imagine being controlled by someone else? Not knowing your past, and having no control of your future? Good review!
ReplyDelete