From the Stacks: Tangled Web

This week I find myself completely entangled by a book I was lucky enough to win through Goodreads First Reads Giveaways. So far all of my new free books have been absolute delights to read and this is one I really did not want to put down. It mixed my love of Ancient Rome with my love of intriguing plot lines and romantic relationships I really want to see succeed.

Tangled Web by Crista McHugh
ISBN: 978-1-62061-031-2

Summary:

"The deadliest assassin in the empire just got too close to her target...

Azurha, a beautiful former slave turned deadliest assassin in the empire, has just been offered the ultimate challenge-seduce, then murder the new emperor. But Titus is not the tyrant his forefathers were, and his radical ideas might be the glimmer of hope the empire needs.

Titus Sergius Flavus has yet to master the powerful magic of his ancestors-magic he must wield if he's to protect his people-but his father's death has left him no choice. Rule the Deizian Empire and attempt to right his ancestors' wrongs, or watch her fall to his greedy kin.

More than just Titus's ideas hold Azurha captive. Night after night, he awakens desires she thought lost and uncovers the magic of her hidden lineage. As her deadline approaches, Azurha is forced to make an impossible decision-complete her job and kill the man she loves, or fail and forfeit both their lives."

My Thoughts:

Okay, so I sort of devoured this book. When I got it in the mail as a free read, I not only received an autographed copy, but there were also two bookmarks that were also signed, and that is something I love since I have a small collection of author signed books and I like to expand on that whenever I can. Anyway, I loved how this book had all sorts of elements of Ancient Rome but also sort of magically powered air ships. It was almost like using the Force to fly. 

Anyway, I loved the relationship that formed between Azurha and Titus as she tried to find a way to separate herself from her feelings so she could do her job, and he tried to find out what secrets she was keeping. Their encounters were quite steamy and I completely admit to rooting for a happy ending, even when things seemed impossible.

I'm eager for the second book to be released, even though the female protagonist was a minor character in this book who I didn't really care for. I can say that I'm hopeful the next book will change my opinion about her. Overall, this book gets a 5/5 and as soon as I can pull together some spare change, I will be buying more books by Crista McHugh.

Other Readings:

I'm trying to get more work done on Souls Abandoned for NaNoWriMo, but that doesn't mean that I'm going to stop reading. In fact I haven't been able to put down Harbinger by Peta Crake. I may end up having to do a bonus post for From the Stacks for it because I really wouldn't want to push any of my reviews back and I don't want to wait until January to talk about this book. Also on my plate are a couple more books to finish up my review posts for 2012. November is a very busy month but I really would not want it to be any other way. I'll be back again on Tuesday for my next writing update.