Sin & Chocolate (Demigods of San Francisco, #1) in SOS: Serious Overload of Series

Sep 03, 2019 Katyana rated it liked it

Shelves: douchebag-hero, uf, alpha-hole, fantasy, kindle-unlimited

***2.5***

There are parts of this book that I really liked, and parts that I really didn't.

Primarily, I don't think the "hero" is redeemable. Look, here's a guy who began by nearly mowing down a pedestrian (the heroine) with his car while she was walking down the sidewalk and crossing a driveway, and then - in his POV narrative - seriously considers hitting her anyway, to "teach her a lesson" about not getting in the way of powerful people like him.

He then stalks her, terrorizes her, and later ac ...more

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Apr 19, 2019 Thenia rated it really liked it

Shelves: r-ab, reviewed, 2019, paranormal, series, shifters, magic

The first book of the series that introduces a world structured around magic, where demigods, shifters and non-magical humans exist, among other races. There are areas solely for magicals and areas solely for humans, as well as areas where both coexist.

Alexis is a magical human living in one of those mixed areas with her two wards, Mordecai, a teenager suffering from a serious shifter illness, and Daisy, a non magical girl with a lot of street smarts.

Alexis is doing her very best to care for her ...more

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Jan 08, 2020 Steph rated it really liked it

Shelves: author-웃, series-ongoing, efreebie-amazon-kindle, year-read-2020, series-book1, favorites-all-years, favorites-2020

It's always a wonderful surprise to read a freebie in a series I actually want to follow. Isn't that the reason for a freebie -- get ya hooked and coming back for more? This intro into Breene's Demigods of San Francisco did just that.

I really enjoyed the author's originality in this world including a mix of humans with abilities, demigods and humans. "Magical people have only been in the open for the last hundred years, but [they've] existed since humans have." Some living in magical communitie ...more

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Nov 01, 2018 Monadh rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: magic, werewolf, pnr, uf, ghost-medium

Deliciously sinful start to an exiting new UF series set in San Francisco

This is actually one of the instances where I gave an author another chance. I had read Born in Fire by Breene before and although I couldn’t quite put my finger on the reason, it somehow didn’t grab me. I did like her writing, though, and when I saw that she started another series, I decided to give her another go, especially since I found the synopsis quite intrigueing, despite the fact that I am not a big fan of mediums Deliciously sinful start to an exiting new UF series set in San Francisco

This is actually one of the instances where I gave an author another chance. I had read Born in Fire by Breene before and although I couldn’t quite put my finger on the reason, it somehow didn’t grab me. I did like her writing, though, and when I saw that she started another series, I decided to give her another go, especially since I found the synopsis quite intrigueing, despite the fact that I am not a big fan of mediums seeing ghosts, the souls of the departed, which is the heroine’s magical power, though she finds it quite useless most of the time. She is etching out a scant living in the shadowed borders between the magical and non-magical communities, taking care of two teenaged wards, one of whom is critically ill (magic related illness), that requires costly medicine. So far she has managed to hide the extent of her (useless) power and escape the notice of the relevant authorities.
A chance meeting brings her to the notice of the hero, who is instantly fascinated by her and starts to pursue her, somewhat to her dismay, because he thinks that she is just the right person to help him with his magic related problem, or at least with one them.

A medium able to see ghosts and a heroine who is not really aware of her powers are not really new tropes in PNR, but despite this Breene managed to infuse the story with a unique and distinct feel. Although billed as a paranormal/shifter romance it actually reads more like UF. Because although the hero and heroine have intense chemistry (helped along by his magic), she is able to withstand him and although there is a budding romance between them, the plot is driven my the mystery surrounding the ghost status of his mother and the conflict he has with his father. I really liked the mystery aspect of the story, as well as the supporting characters, the two wards of the heroine. I do think the location – San Francisco – could have been made more of than just the fog.

This first installment of the series defined the relationship between the hero (Kieran) and the heroine (Alexis) and set up interesting possibilities for further plot developments. I am very much looking forward to see where the next book will lead. So 4 ½ stars for this exciting series start of Demigods of San Francisco. ...more

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Jan 29, 2020 R. added it · review of another edition

I would give it a 4.5 stars if I didn't have to pretend that the scene where he alternates torturing her (makes her feel the pain of being tortured without touching her) and forcing sexual feelings on her without her consent didn't exist . It seems as though the author didn't mean to go that far, she is actually very good at having the secondary characters acknowledge problematic behavior and the heroines tendency to overlook it because the guy is hot. ...more

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