Emily McIntire

He is righteousness. She is sin. Father Cade Frédéric is a holy man. Brought up in the streets of Paris, he has dedicated his life to the church. But there's a monster that lingers just beneath the surface. A sickness. One that bleeds darkness and feeds on the damned. When he's tasked to become the priest in Festivalé, Vermont--a town both beautiful in architecture and riddled with despair--his sickness sings, demanding he rid the place of evil. Amaya Paquette is Festivalé's beautiful mystery. She spends her days caring for her younger brother and her nights transforming into Esmeralda, dancing for greedy eyes and shameless lips. Although she longs for love, she shies away from companionship, afraid of being abandoned again. When Father Cade lays eyes on Amaya, he finds himself ensnared, convinced she's using witchcraft to lure him to her. He can't eat. Can't breathe. Can't think unless it's of her. And temptation is a devastating mistress. She's his weakness, so he decides he'll be her demise...even if it means killing the only woman he might ever love.

Never After Series, Book #5

Crossed

OH MY GOD!!! TO HAVE CONTROL ON A MAN LIKE THAT

Ivory Flores

“You see, I worship Her now…so it’s Amaya that you should pray. May She have mercy on your soul.”

Linsey Mombert

 "She may be your wife, but she is my soul," I whisper against his ear. "And I will cut you up piece by piece and burn your empire until it's soot, just so I can watch her be queen of the ashes.”

“Si seulement tu savais quel est mon amour pour toi. You consume me Amaya. Break apart my faith with the fire of a thousand suns and dominate every nightmare until all I dream is you."

Christina Farkona

The truth is that we both got lost in the world, and the world didn’t care to find us, so we found each other instead.

Like I’ve always said, our experience shapes us whether we want it to or not.

Over the years, my beliefs have turned from strict religion into a spiritual faith. God loves me for who I am, just as I am. And I don’t need to embroil myself in the politics and corruption that is the church.

She lifts her gaze back to mine, and I see the world in her eyes.

You can’t get hurt if you don’t let anyone in.

It’s so weird that no matter how much time passes, a simple scent can bring emotions you’ve buried for years roaring back as though they never left in the first place.

Her eyes lock on mine, and time slows until there’s nothing except for us.

I’m not one. A witch, I mean. Although, I 

 believe in a lot of their practices. Nature is all about balance, and I believe energy can absolutely be wielded and manipulated. Maybe if any of these people took time to actually learn about what they’re afraid of, what they’re 

 against, they’d realise there’s nothing to fear at all.

It’s a cruel place here on earth, filled with people who don’t get it. Who choose not to understand that just because someone is different, it doesn’t mean they’re less than.

Kymora Wang

Slowly, her body slackens, and it's only when I see the life leave her doped-up eyes that the violent need within me fizzles out until it's nothing but burnt ash, my sickness dissipating like it was never there at all

Not much plot, and MMC is a bit of a creeper.  A lot of the drama could have been solved if the two MC's just talked to each other.  Saying that, it was an easy fast read that I couldn't put down.

Jenny Engel

this book was very fun to read!! i LOVED the anticipation and the mega slow burn. 

i don’t like how at the end she trashed the catholic church and said amaya is her god, bible etc. but other than that i great read

this would probably be my second favorite book in this series.

jules hill

this book was very fun to read!! i LOVED the anticipation and the mega slow burn. 

i don’t like how at the end she trashed the catholic church and said amaya is her god, bible etc. but other than that i great read

this would probably be my second favorite book in this series.

i’ll start by saying that before you read this book, you might need to check the triggers, especially if you’re religious and even more if you’re Catholic. 

this book wasn’t what i expected it to be. and my opinion varies. at first, with the interaction in the grocery store, i liked Farher Cade’s flirtatious self and i thought “hmm, he wasn’t how i thought he’d be” and i liked it. but as the story progressed, i quickly lost that feeling and i continued to think that he was creepy and weird. not that i didn’t like him as a character, but the way they interacted with each other was weird. it had a lot more world-building than i’d like to read compared to the interactions between the two MCs. maybe if we had more of that i could see less weirdness between them. 

now, when it comes to Amaya, again i can’t say i didn’t like her, but even her past and how she was being treated couldn’t justify how stupid her choices were and how she also kept pushing her luck with those choices. we were told how everything was for her brother but come on, after what happened to you at the age of 19, go get a less risky job!

as for Parker, i kept waiting for him to make his big move, but everything about him was … meh. yeah, he pretended to be sweet and kind until he acted toxic and abusive to get his ways but i expected him to be much worse after so much that had been said about him. of course he was a part of the plot twist but again, it was very easy to get rid of him. in other words, so much fuss for nothing.

and oh Emily, i always predict your plot twists before i even need to blink 😅

so, my overall feeling throughout this book was that i kept reading and i kept waiting for something to happen, but everything that happened didn’t meet my expectations of how big it would be. also, the change between their moments was sudden and unrealistic. from how he was flirtatious, safe, dangerous and suddenly oh let’s be friends. the tension between them was good and i was definitely feeling it but i don’t know, we were jumping around and around for no reason. 

the epilogues (2 of them in the book plus the extended one) were okay and i’m happy with how things ended for them. we got to see them living their happy ending and i always like it. BUT why don’t we see them try to be better people in the end? that irked me. i’d love them to leave all their bad actions behind and start anew with new perspectives and not become worse morally. like ok, it wasn’t healthy between them in the first place, and they made it work, but don’t be the super psycho couple who kill for fun! that’s too sick.

Cade was an extremely damaged person mentally and i’m okay with it, i’m also religious (not Catholic, but Greek Orthodox Christian) and i’m still okay with reading something like that, but a few things seemed forced in order for him to appear and remain religious and especially during the epilogues. they understood the extremes of their beliefs and they found balance but why don’t you invest in therapy to heal from the past instead of being out late at night doing… something? this is too weird for a happy ending.

i think i’m just annoyed because i waited something more. it wasn’t bad but it wasn’t too good either. it was definitely spicy and dark though!

i’ll start by saying that before you read this book, you might need to check the triggers, especially if you’re religious and even more if you’re Catholic. 

this book wasn’t what i expected it to be. and my opinion varies. at first, with the interaction in the grocery store, i liked Farher Cade’s flirtatious self and i thought “hmm, he wasn’t how i thought he’d be” and i liked it. but as the story progressed, i quickly lost that feeling and i continued to think that he was creepy and weird. not that i didn’t like him as a character, but the way they interacted with each other was weird. it had a lot more world-building than i’d like to read compared to the interactions between the two MCs. maybe if we had more of that i could see less weirdness between them. 

now, when it comes to Amaya, again i can’t say i didn’t like her, but even her past and how she was being treated couldn’t justify how stupid her choices were and how she also kept pushing her luck with those choices. we were told how everything was for her brother but come on, after what happened to you at the age of 19, go get a less risky job!

as for Parker, i kept waiting for him to make his big move, but everything about him was … meh. yeah, he pretended to be sweet and kind until he acted toxic and abusive to get his ways but i expected him to be much worse after so much that had been said about him. of course he was a part of the plot twist but again, it was very easy to get rid of him. in other words, so much fuss for nothing.

and oh Emily, i always predict your plot twists before i even need to blink 😅

so, my overall feeling throughout this book was that i kept reading and i kept waiting for something to happen, but everything that happened didn’t meet my expectations of how big it would be. also, the change between their moments was sudden and unrealistic. from how he was flirtatious, safe, dangerous and suddenly oh let’s be friends. the tension between them was good and i was definitely feeling it but i don’t know, we were jumping around and around for no reason. 

the epilogues (2 of them in the book plus the extended one) were okay and i’m happy with how things ended for them. we got to see them living their happy ending and i always like it. BUT why don’t we see them try to be better people in the end? that irked me. i’d love them to leave all their bad actions behind and start anew with new perspectives and not become worse morally. like ok, it wasn’t healthy between them in the first place, and they made it work, but don’t be the super psycho couple who kill for fun! that’s too sick.

Cade was an extremely damaged person mentally and i’m okay with it, i’m also religious (not Catholic, but Greek Orthodox Christian) and i’m still okay with reading something like that, but a few things seemed forced in order for him to appear and remain religious and especially during the epilogues. they understood the extremes of their beliefs and they found balance but why don’t you invest in therapy to heal from the past instead of being out late at night doing… something? this is too weird for a happy ending.

i think i’m just annoyed because i waited something more. it wasn’t bad but it wasn’t too good either. it was definitely spicy and dark though!

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️

Crossed is the fifth installment in the "Never After" series and I absolutely had a blast with this one here. This is a story that features two characters that are so different and you would never think that they would be a good match, but this author somehow makes it work. There is plenty of taboo's in this book, so please check the trigger/content warnings before moving forward with this one. It has some aspects to the story that just won't be for everyone. Move forward at your own risk. I however, adore how this author writes romance, she has blended dark with fractured fairy tale retellings so very well. I was very curious how she would do a "Frollo and Esmeralda" retelling and I definitely got a kick out of this one, but it was far different than I actually expected it to be.

Festivale, Vermont, Looks different in the dead of night.

Cade is self abusive, a priest and a holy man. He was raised in Paris and abused as a child by a servant in the church. There is a mental illness he suffers from.

Amaya, is guardian over her younger brother who has his own share of struggles. She is forced to pay money to her mothers pimp of sorts when she abandoned them. And to keep the lights on and pay the medical bills, she is a stripper. But is longing for more in her life.

When Father Cade comes to town, he is determined to rid any evil in the town. He has a darkness that spreads in him to get rid of evil. But there is a temptation he finds in a stripper club where he finds Esmeralda, who is a exotic dancer and tempts him for things he must deny himself. But when he finds out she is the same woman as Amaya, he is determined to do more than destroy her....he wants her for himself. But there is a unknown factor dealing with the villain of the story.. But when Amaya ends up in trouble for something she didn't do, she is forced to go to the devil for help, but the only one that can be her savior is Father Cade and his form of justice...

This book totally swept me away immediately. I am not sure why I put it off for so long. I knew I would need to be in the right mood for this and I knew that this would be religiously taboo (not that I am Catholic, so I personally don't understand many of the taboo elements but I am a Christian) and I have to say that this author really pushed my boundaries on this one. I wasn't sure how this retelling would actually happen, but man the retelling aspects were just perfect. But don't expect it to be a strict retelling, but the connections that we see to the original tale was so delightful! There are definitely darker themes in this one, some themes that even pushed my boundaries and its rare to come against a dark romance that really makes me struggle. But some of the actions of the hero was even a bit much even for me.

There is also so many forbidden themes to this story. Some aspects totally worked for me and other aspects really pushed my buttons and not necessarily in a good way. This author really wrote this story in such complexity that just clicked in the good and sensually bad ways we all love to see in this author. I really felt for the heroine though. She is just trying to survive and her poor brother. Man my heart went out to this kid. Who had some type of mental illness, not sure what exactly it was, but he seemed to be on the spectrum a bit and what she is willing to sacrifice for her 7 year old brother just broke my heart. I loved what a great mother she is to this child who needs so much love and support. The third act of the story was the most conflicting and yet the way it ends here was so satisfying.

There were some factors I really struggled with. The hero is a bit too anti hero even for me. The scene in the beginning was one I battled with the most. How the hero pushes the heroine away when she really needs help and doesn't see that. He sees all the little details, so I wasn't a fan on how that scene played out. I know why the author did it that way though, so that she would go to her mother's pimp and the one who has control over the town but still it was hard to see how that scene played out. The hero is one that hurts himself (like you know the scene in the Da Vinci Code where the holy man whips himself? Yeah he does that and it wasn't really fleshed out) I am not sure even if the heroine finds out or if she does we don't get that scene and I would have loved to see her helping him heal from that type of self abuse or help him understand himself more where that is concerned.

Crossed is a dark and edgy romance that will push boundaries, have you feeling all the taboo vibes but delivering a satisfying romance that you will want to cheer these two on despite your reservations!

It’s a cruel place here on earth, filled with people who don’t get it. Who choose not to understand that just because someone is different, it doesn’t mean they’re less than. Quinten deserves the whole world, and I’d do anything to shield him from the harsh reality of one that refuses to offer him even a small piece.

You consume me, Amaya. Break apart my faith with the fire of a thousand suns and dominate every nightmare until all I dream is you.”

“Tell me…who do you belong to?” “To myself.” My hand tightens on her face. She grins. “And to you, Cade Frédéric. My heart belongs to you. In all our lifetimes.”

“She may be your wife, but she is my soul,” I whisper against his ear. “And I will cut you up piece by piece and burn your empire until it’s soot, just so I can watch her be queen of the ashes.”

Sub Genre: Contemporary Romance, Dark Romance

Character Types: Priest, Exotic Dancer, Anti Hero

Themes: Kids/Teens, Small Town, Taboo, Stalking, Dirty Talkin', Bullying

Tropes: Forbidden Love, Sex Worker with a Heart of Gold

Lover of Romance 

This review may contain spoilers, so fair warning, upon reading the review.

Book Evaluation:
Plot: 🎞️🎞️🎞️🎞️
World Building:🌎🌎🌎🌎
Cover:📔📔📔📔📔
Hero: 🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻🦸🏻
Heroine:🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️🦸🏻‍♀️
Intimacy Level: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Relationship Building: 💒💒💒💒
Heart & Feels:💞💞💞💞
Witty/Banter/Reaction of Laughter: 😂
Page Turner Level:📖📖📖📖📖
Ending:🧧🧧🧧🧧
Overall View: ✨✨✨✨


First Impressions
Crossed is the fifth installment in the "Never After" series and I absolutely had a blast with this one here. This is a story that features two characters that are so different and you would never think that they would be a good match, but this author somehow makes it work. There is plenty of taboo's in this book, so please check the trigger/content warnings before moving forward with this one. It has some aspects to the story that just won't be for everyone. Move forward at your own risk. I however, adore how this author writes romance, she has blended dark with fractured fairy tale retellings so very well. I was very curious how she would do a "Frollo and Esmeralda" retelling and I definitely got a kick out of this one, but it was far different than I actually expected it to be.

First Line
Festivale, Vermont, Looks different in the dead of night.

The Main Protagonists
The Hero: Cade
Cade is self abusive, a priest and a holy man. He was raised in Paris and abused as a child by a servant in the church. There is a mental illness he suffers from.

The Heroine: Amaya
Amaya, is guardian over her younger brother who has his own share of struggles. She is forced to pay money to her mothers pimp of sorts when she abandoned them. And to keep the lights on and pay the medical bills, she is a stripper. But is longing for more in her life.

Summary
When Father Cade comes to town, he is determined to rid any evil in the town. He has a darkness that spreads in him to get rid of evil. But there is a temptation he finds in a stripper club where he finds Esmeralda, who is a exotic dancer and tempts him for things he must deny himself. But when he finds out she is the same woman as Amaya, he is determined to do more than destroy her....he wants her for himself. But there is a unknown factor dealing with the villain of the story.. But when Amaya ends up in trouble for something she didn't do, she is forced to go to the devil for help, but the only one that can be her savior is Father Cade and his form of justice...

What I Loved
This book totally swept me away immediately. I am not sure why I put it off for so long. I knew I would need to be in the right mood for this and I knew that this would be religiously taboo (not that I am Catholic, so I personally don't understand many of the taboo elements but I am a Christian) and I have to say that this author really pushed my boundaries on this one. I wasn't sure how this retelling would actually happen, but man the retelling aspects were just perfect. But don't expect it to be a strict retelling, but the connections that we see to the original tale was so delightful! There are definitely darker themes in this one, some themes that even pushed my boundaries and its rare to come against a dark romance that really makes me struggle. But some of the actions of the hero was even a bit much even for me.

There is also so many forbidden themes to this story. Some aspects totally worked for me and other aspects really pushed my buttons and not necessarily in a good way. This author really wrote this story in such complexity that just clicked in the good and sensually bad ways we all love to see in this author. I really felt for the heroine though. She is just trying to survive and her poor brother. Man my heart went out to this kid. Who had some type of mental illness, not sure what exactly it was, but he seemed to be on the spectrum a bit and what she is willing to sacrifice for her 7 year old brother just broke my heart. I loved what a great mother she is to this child who needs so much love and support. The third act of the story was the most conflicting and yet the way it ends here was so satisfying.

What I Struggled With
There were some factors I really struggled with. The hero is a bit too anti hero even for me. The scene in the beginning was one I battled with the most. How the hero pushes the heroine away when she really needs help and doesn't see that. He sees all the little details, so I wasn't a fan on how that scene played out. I know why the author did it that way though, so that she would go to her mother's pimp and the one who has control over the town but still it was hard to see how that scene played out. The hero is one that hurts himself (like you know the scene in the Da Vinci Code where the holy man whips himself? Yeah he does that and it wasn't really fleshed out) I am not sure even if the heroine finds out or if she does we don't get that scene and I would have loved to see her helping him heal from that type of self abuse or help him understand himself more where that is concerned.

Overall View
Crossed is a dark and edgy romance that will push boundaries, have you feeling all the taboo vibes but delivering a satisfying romance that you will want to cheer these two on despite your reservations!

Favorite Quote(s)
It’s a cruel place here on earth, filled with people who don’t get it. Who choose not to understand that just because someone is different, it doesn’t mean they’re less than. Quinten deserves the whole world, and I’d do anything to shield him from the harsh reality of one that refuses to offer him even a small piece.

You consume me, Amaya. Break apart my faith with the fire of a thousand suns and dominate every nightmare until all I dream is you.”

“Tell me…who do you belong to?” “To myself.” My hand tightens on her face. She grins. “And to you, Cade Frédéric. My heart belongs to you. In all our lifetimes.”

“She may be your wife, but she is my soul,” I whisper against his ear. “And I will cut you up piece by piece and burn your empire until it’s soot, just so I can watch her be queen of the ashes.”


Book Details (also in my shelves)
Sub Genre: Contemporary Romance, Dark Romance
Character Types: Priest, Exotic Dancer, Anti Hero
Themes: Kids/Teens, Small Town, Taboo, Stalking, Dirty Talkin', Bullying
Tropes: Forbidden Love, Sex Worker with a Heart of Gold

Book Perspective
DUO Pov

Relationship Conflict vs Plot Conflict
A blend of both

Song This Book Inspires
Seven Devils by Florence + The Machine

Recommendation For Reading Order
You can read as a standalone

Steam/Spice Explanations


Steamin' up the room -the sexual content is more explicit in the language and tone, heavier amount of sexual scenes.

Crossed Never After Series, Book #5

Reviews

Highlights