REVIEW⇢ PRISONER (CRIMINALS & CAPTIVES #1)

BY ANNIKA MARTIN & SKYE WARREN

SYNOPSIS FROM AUTHORS WEBSITE⇣
HE SEETHES with raw power the first time I see him—pure menace and rippling muscles in shackles. He’s dangerous. He’s wild. He’s the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.
So I hide behind my prim glasses and my book like I always do, because I have secrets, too. Then he shows up in the prison writing class I have to teach and he blows me away with his honesty. He tells me secrets in his stories, and it’s getting harder to hide mine. I shiver when he gets too close, with only the cuffs and the bars and the guards holding him back. At night, I can’t stop thinking about him there in his cell.
But that’s the thing about an animal in a cage—you never know when he’ll bite. He might use you to escape. He might even pull you into a forest and hold a hand over your mouth, so you can’t call for the cops. He might make you come so hard, you can’t think.
And you might crave him more than your next breath.

BOOK TAGS⇣

⤏ DARK-ISH CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
⤏ SUSPENSE WITH SOME THRILLING MOMENTS
⤏ TWO BROKEN PEOPLE 
⤏ A RIVETING BACKSTORY

BOOK DETAILS⇣

AUDIO PERFORMED BY⇢ JACOB MORGAN & LAUREN SWEET
NARRATION RATING⇢  5/5
BOOK COVER⇢ IT WORKS...

SETTING⇢ AT ONE POINT THEY ARE IN MICHIGAN, BUT I DON'T THINK THAT'S WHERE MOST OF THE BOOK TAKES PLACE...???

SOURCE⇢ AUDIBLE AUDIOBOOK

AUDIOBOOK LENGTH⇢ 9 HOURS, 15 MINUTES

MY THOUGHTS⇣

I was in the mood for some dark romance...this ended up fitting the bill even though it wasn't quite as dark as I thought it was going to be.   I found the backstory of the Hero to be rather compelling...and the narration by both Jacob Morgan & Lauren Sweet was phenomenal.

While I liked the story on this one, the feels were a little lacking for me.  Since I listen/read romance mainly for the feels...because let's face it, most romances are rather predictable as far as the ending goes...the feels really make the story when it's all said and done.  I was worried this would be one of those stories with more sex scenes than an actual story...but it actually had a perfect balance of each.  Overall, I liked it and I think I will definitely give the second book (HOSTAGE) in the series a listen.

MY RATING⇢ 4✰STARS✰

BREAKDOWN⇣

Plot⇢ 4.2/5

Characters⇢ 4/5

The Feels⇢ 3.5/5

Pacing⇢ 4.5/5

Addictiveness⇢ 4.5/5

Theme or Tone⇢ 4/5

Flow (Writing Style)⇢ 4/5

Steaminess/Story Ratio⇢ 25/75

Originality⇢ 4/5

Ending⇢ 4/5

BOOKS WITH A SIMILAR VIBE...

OR FOR SOMETHING TRULY DARK, THIS SERIES SHOULD DO...