Gleam by Raven Kennedy

|Synopsis|

King Midas made me the woman I am today. Notorious. Unattainable. His.

The thing about being confined is that you believe it’s to keep the bad out… Until you realize it’s about keeping you in.

I’m now in a strange kingdom surrounded by liars, with no allies of my own, but I won’t sit idly by and let myself wither. No, there’s something that’s bloomed from the pit of my repression. Something dark. Something angry.

But the last thing I expected was for my anger to call out to him. King Ravinger.

He’s sinister and powerful and entirely too seductive. I’ve learned my lesson with trusting manipulative kings, so why does my chest constrict every time he’s near? I need to tread carefully, or I’m at risk of losing much more than just my freedom.

Regret and revenge war inside of me, and I need to figure out a plan fast before I get tangled up in the schemes of kings and queens.

Because I won’t be caught in a cage again. No, this time, It’ll be me setting the trap… I just hope my heart comes out of this unscathed.

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|Review|

Book 3 and this series has finally hit its stride. These books have just been missing a few key elements that were finally found in Gleam. If Gild and Glint were combined into one book, this series would have a chance of being a damn good trilogy.

Gleam is where everything comes together. We get a bada** Auren, sexy scenes and a plot. The pacing that I’ve been complaining about doesn’t seem to be an issue in this book either. The smut I’ve been craving helps to give us scenes to look forward to, some action if you will.

Slade was infuriatingly hot in this book. We love a man that lives to not just give his woman the bare minimum but lifts her up and helps her to discover her real power. Their relationship was a breathe of fresh air after all the crap misogynistic men we’ve encountered in these books. I looked forward to their scenes together, especially the steamy ones. Their extremely long game of slow burn finally goes up in flames and it was everything I wanted and more.

Auren finally gets the backbone I’ve been begging for. She’s got a plan and she’s going to save herself. She impressed me with her and love her big heart. We get to learn more of her past and I just can’t imagine being that kind after everything she endured. She has constantly been the highlight of these books. While her character development has been amazing to read, it felt a tad too drawn out.

Kennedy knows how to leave us wanting more at the end of every book. The cliffhanger is no less brutal than the others, but I’m definitely more invested in it. After that ending I have no idea what’s next in this series. If you need me I’ll just be pining for Glow and more Slade.