Review: Twisted Games
By Ana Huang
Book Two of the ‘Twisted Love’ Series
Caution: This blog may contain spoilers!
This blog is for adults, 18+ only. Please be aware of the trigger warnings listed at the bottom of the article.
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TWISTED games. BY ANA HUANG
Good Reads Score: 4.1
Genre: Contemporary, Romance, Adult, Dark, College
Spice Level: 5/5
Jill’s Overall Rating: 3.75/5
‘Dark’ spectrum: 2/10
Tropes: Bodyguard, Forced Proximity, Secret Romance
Synopsis:
“She can never be his...but he's taking her anyway.
Stoic, broody, and arrogant, elite bodyguard Rhys Larsen has two rules:
1) Protect his clients at all costs 2) Do not become emotionally involved. Ever.
He has never once been tempted to break those rules…until her.
Bridget von Ascheberg. A princess with a stubborn streak that matches his own and a hidden fire that reduces his rules to ash. She’s nothing he expected and everything he never knew he needed.
Day by day, inch by inch, she breaks down his defenses until he’s faced with a truth he can no longer deny: he swore an oath to protect her, but all he wants is to ruin her. Take her.
Because she’s his.
His princess.
His forbidden fruit.
His every depraved fantasy.
***
Regal, strong-willed, and bound by the chains of duty, Princess Bridget dreams of the freedom to live and love as she chooses.
But when her brother abdicates, she’s suddenly faced with the prospect of a loveless, politically expedient marriage and a throne she never wanted.
And as she navigates the intricacies—and treacheries—of her new role, she must also hide her desire for a man she can’t have.
Her bodyguard.
Her protector.
Her ultimate ruin.
Unexpected and forbidden, theirs is a love that could destroy a kingdom…and doom them both.
Twisted Games is a slow to medium burn contemporary royal bodyguard romance. It’s book two of the Twisted series but can be read as a standalone.”
Review:
Hi y’all! I’m so glad y’all are here to join me on book two of Ana Huang’s “Twisted Series” journey. I was ready to jump into this book after the second one. The first book, Twisted Love, was a fun, spicy romance (and really the first grumpy/sunshine novel I’ve read, with the exception of some Dramione fanfics). But, my real excitement came from all the hype that the booktok/bookstagram world has for Rhys Larsen.
<< He’s a hottie right??!?!?>>
The Plot
Bridget is a princess from a country that doesn’t exist- think somewhere in the UK- and is living in America. She goes to school and is best friends with Ava, our first book’s protagonist, Stella and Jules. Her bodyguard is retiring to start a family and so she needs a new one- enter… RHYS!
*****applause*****
Rhys Larsen, NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH OUR FATHER IN HEAVEN RHYSAND FROM ACOTAR, is a surly, grumpy, navy seal turned body guard who is like really tall and dark and handsome. He is immediately unimpressed by the current bodyguard’s standards and begins immediately restricting Bridget’s behaviors. She’s like, “stop being so controlling, it will be fine” and, it was immediately not fine. Cue: kidnapping scene from the first book.
After this incident, Rhys really buckles down giving Bridget a lot of rules she must follow and surveliance she has to agree to. Rhys is literally with her EVERYWHERE she goes- including a girls night in the book that was honestly kinda cringe.
So, like two years go by with them sort of hating each other- Rhys acts extremely annoyed by Bridget and then one night, after graduation, he takes her to dinner (because she isn’t allowed to do commoner things, r.e. the high risk) and on the walk home they get caught in the gunfire of this stalker who is not coming after Brigette by someone else and it’s a coincidence. Rhys is hard on himself for letting his guard down and this begins the stoic, “I shouldn’t want her” inner dialogue with Rhys.
My thoughts this far:
To be honest, at this point in the book, other than their sexual attraction for each other, I’m not really understanding the draw he has to her. Bridget doesn’t seem into him, other than thinking he’s kinda hot but mostly controlling, and Rhys has been going on and on about how annoying she is until that sort of just changes? and I could not tell you why. They have zero in common other than wanting her to be alive.
Plot Cont…
Bridget finds out her grandfather, the king of this fictional European country, becomes really ill and it looks like he may die which means that Brigette’s brother will have to step in as the new king. Grandfather recovers, after Bridget has moved back home to be near him (bringing Rhys with her obvs), and her brother decides that he is going to surrender his claim to the throne because he wants to marry a commoner which is against the law for the Monarch to do. (i.e. the Marriage Law of 1789 or something like that).
So, now Bridget is freaking out because this means she is next in line and has complicated feelings- she never wanted to be queen! The next major part of the book is about the major struggles Bridget and Rhys, by proxy, have to overcome now that she is to be the next Queen and the biggest question is… WHO WILL SHE MARRY? Basically, parliament is like “we don’t take you seriously so you need to get married before becoming queen” and she’s like “ok”. She has suitors, Rhys gets mad and somewhere along this point in the book they start having sex!!!!
She’s so cute
The sex…
Reading these sex scenes was super fun, y’all. Raunchy, playful and had me giggling and kicking my feet several times. A few times I even screamed out loud and my husband had to ask me if I was okay. Let me tell you… Rhys has a DIRTY mouth. If anyone is looking for dirty talking tips… LOOK NO FURTHER. Just read this book and you will be an expert. Something that is kinda confusing though is that Rhys gets this reputation for being the “crawl to me” daddy and I think there is like one scene when he makes Bridget crawl to him? Maybe I am misremembering that or maybe I am reading way too many spicy novels right now and everything is blurring together. However, I would re-read this book in the future for the sex scenes alone.
To finish:
Bridget eventually finds a way to overturn the marriage law - if I was her brother I would be SO pissed- and also says ‘fuck the man’ to parliament and decides that she doesn’t need to get married before being coronated after all- it was just that easy! I won’t spoil how the plot ends for Rhys and Bridget because I really think you should read the book. I would recommend it if you’ve just read something heavy and need a palette cleanse. Although both of our characters are older, Bridget is in her early 20s and Rhys 30s, this novel really feels like a coming of age story. Two people are trying to come to grips with their new realities and feelings that they have never had before. There are a lot of heartwarming moments and, again, the spice is- *chef’s kiss*.
I think for now I am going to take a break from the Twisted Series. My TBR is really stacking up and TBH I am ready for something a bit more gritty. What’s up next for me? I’m hopping into ‘The Ritual" by Shantel Tessier. Wish me luck!
xoxoxox
Jilly
Interested in reading “Twisted Games”?
Warning: This book contains a possessive alpha hero, explicit sexual content, and profanity.
“She wasn’t mine to take, but I was taking her anyway. Her laughs, her fears, her joy and her pain. Every inch of her body and beat of her heart. All mine.”
