Larissa Ione

A Demonica Novel (The Demonica Series)

Pleasure Unbound

Lover of Romance 

This review was originally posted on Addicted To Romance

Pleasure Unbound is the first book in Larissa Ione's Demonica's series. It has been way too long that this book has been on my TBR list...so I figured it was about time that I grabbed this book up and I AM so grateful that I finally took a chance on this book. Now I have read this author before, her "Moonbound Clan Vampires" and love those books. But when I was browsing Audible, I saw this book and I was thinking "LETS DO THIS" and not knowing exactly what I was expecting, I was blown away by this book and the world building and yeah I want to slam my head against the wall for waiting so long to get started on working on this series which is ever growing.

Our key players of "Pleasure Unbound" : 

Tayla Mancuso-Demon Slayer, always on the hunt for a orgasm, driven by vengeance


Eidolon-Head Doctor at a underground demon hospital, responsible and treats others fairly


  
    
      She had a feeling he was messing with her, but it didn’t matter. She couldn’t take the bite. Not until she asked the vital questions that had been bugging her since she woke up.

“So, uh, where am I exactly? And what do you plan on doing with me?”

“You’re at Underground General Hospital. As you can probably guess, we specialize in nonhuman medical care. Our location is secret, so don’t ask.”

“UGH? Your hospital is called ‘ugh?’ Oh, that’s precious.”
    
  

Tayla and Eidolon are pretty opposite from each other in certain ways but end up finding the commond ground that they both need to find their way to their happy ever after.  Tayla is a demon slayer, and she is part of a organized group of slayers "
  Aegis"who goes out hunting demons. Tayla has her own reasons for wanting demons dead. She kills any that she sees or finds. She watched a demon murder her own mother, so she has a vow of revenge against any demons because she views them all as evil and believes that they must be all destroyed. 


  
    
      The head doctor makes her body burn with unshakable desire. But to prove her ultimate loyalty to her peers, the only family she has, she must betray the man who saved her life.
      

    
  


  Eidolon is the head doctor of the hospital that he set up. He will treat anyone that comes into his hospital, no matter what breed of demon they may be. But when Tayla is brought into his hospital, he treats her, but he knows he has a responsibility to question her but ends up having sex with Tayla instead. But then he returns her to her home not expecting anything from her except he has a secret that he knows about her blood, a secret that will be her greatest downfall and will change her in ways she can't imagine. Tayla will have to face up to her past and the horrible things she has done in the name of "saving the human race from the evil demons" and that not all demons are evil just like not all human are good....and her heart and mind will battle because she will have to decide her life with the Aegis or a life with a demon she is falling in love with....


I will admit, that the first half of the story I really struggled with the heroine. You don't really understand at first why she hates demons so much, but she is very violent against them and very self righteous in her "mission" I feel like in the beginning especially she is blinded by hatred and not really thinking clearly on what she is actually doing. She is obsessed almost...she kicks ass which I liked but you do get the sense that she is making rash decisions at times and some of these actions she will later regret. There were times I was like "oh NO you didn't!!" hehe yeah I struggled with quite a few of the choices that she makes especially before she knows the truth about herself (view spoiler)[Tayla finds out that her birth father is a demon and one of the worst ones out there and that she is half demon....she is now part of a group of beings that she once hunted and killed.  (hide spoiler)] I ended up learning to enjoy her character and seeing her face up to some bad parts of herself and see how wrong she is and how she does try to do the right thing no matter how hard it is for her.

Now the hero *sigh* he was simply so swoony and wonderful. I just admired him from the beginning and he really is a good guy even if he is a demon that will turn into a scary one if the chance happens. His breed is pretty scary, he is reaching the time where he must either find a mate or if not he will become a full succubus and will rape women against their wills and even kill them. He fears what he will become because one he is a doctor and he is all about saving lives. I love his relationship with his brothers, he is so protective of them and what he is willing to sacrifice for them is heart wrenching in some ways. You also see how mixed up he gets when meeting Tayla. Even though she is the enemy, he couldn't ever hurt her and I love how fair and just he treats everyone around him.

The world building was simply fascinating and I had so much fun with it. It was very different from what I normally see in the typical paranormal romances you encounter. It was more edgier and grittier but seriously I think I needed something different for a PNR. I was in the mood for a unique read, and Pleasure Unbound delivered one hundred percent. I think what I found most intriguing is all the various levels of species of demons, the demon slayers and even the faith that demons believe in, it had so many dynamics that bring some intricate levels woven in the least expected ways.

Now....the ROMANCE!! Ladies and gents...this book was so woven in all the romantic elements that you look for and left me fully satisfied. The relationship that builds between Tayla and Eidolon was angsty of course...I mean they are literally ENEMIES. You can't get more angstier than that and boy the angry sex that was written was HOT. Seeing these two build a fragile trust and learn to rely on each other was very interesting to see unravel through the story. I definitely was on Eidolon's side more though, because Tayla and her friend are seeking out demons to kill, and most demons just stay out of their way or hide from them. I did like seeing Eidolon being pretty forceful in making Tayla face the truth about herself and not let her hide herself away in anger over what happened to her mother and friends that she has lost over the years. But I will say that once Tayla faces up to the truths about herself and her actions, she changes gradually into a heroine you want to cheer on. You grow to respect her and admire her strengths and what she will do to fight alongside her demon against their enemies.

  
    
      "Shh." He made a sound, a near-purr, and his hands came up to hold her palm against him in a gesture so tender and loving she felt it in her soul.
"The future is what matters now. Because of you, I have one."
"Because of you, I feel like I finally belong somewhere."
    
  

Overall I found Pleasure Unbound to be a thrilling, on the edge, unique paranormal romance that will keep you on your toes and send tingles down the spine! GRATIFYING IN EVERY WAY!

Annabella

I liked the mythology, but it wasn't the best PNR I've ever read. Great uni distraction though

A Demonica Novel

Sarah Escorsa

DNF at 9% - Because life is too short to read infuriating crap.

✉ Friendly message to my dear, ever-stalking PNR review trolls:
✔ YES I DNFed this at 9%
✔ YES I had the audacity to rate it anyway.
✔ YES I had the nerve to write a so-called review about it.
✘ NO I have no credibility as a reviewer.
► Be offended all you want, I don't give a damn.



Worry not people, for this is not going to be one of my never-ending, rambling reviews. I've wasted enough time on this awe-inspiring masterpiece as it is.

Why did I DNF this so early? Here's why (spoilers ahead, deal with it and stuff):

So this girl called Buffy Tayla is a demon slayer (ooooooh, original!). As the story begins she lays half-dead on a demon hospital bed (because yes, demons have hospitals, too). The doc in charge is (obviously) a super good-looking, HAWT AS HELL demon called Eidolon ←  I love it when MCs have Greek names. Kinda makes me feel like I'm reading Socrates. Or something. Definitely makes me feel much more intelligent and stuff.  So dear Buffy Tayla here is all dosed up because of her multiple wounds. In comes one of HAWT AS HELL Eidolon's brothers. What does he do? He gets into Buffy Tayla's little head (because cool demons can do that) and makes her have sex hallucinations. And that's not screwed up at all. Nope. It's not like he's taking advantage of the fact that she's just laying there unconscious or anything. Damn, I love PNR.



I-Have-a-Greek-Name-I'm-So-Bloody-Fishing-Cool-and-HAWT-AS-HELL Eidolon comes in just as dear Buffy Tayla is thrashing in her bed, consumed by demon-manufactured lust. You'd expect Eidolon (who just spent 3 pages blabbering on and on about his doctor's oath (view spoiler)[
  eat your heart out, Hippocrates!
 (hide spoiler)], his utter dedication to all patients and his all-encompassing respect for them) to kick his brother's sorry ass out of the room to protect Buffy Tayla, right? Right. To his credit, he does get rid of his two-grey-celled asshole of a brother. Yes he does. And then proceeds with Tayla's treatment. What treatment might that be, you ask? Why fucking his patient senseless, of course. But hey, it's not like it's his fault or anything. He might be a caring/concerned/dedicated doctor but he's also a sex demon. He has urges, you know. He can't fight them, you know. Besides, Buffy Tayla is asking for it, isn't she? And it's not like she's high on meds. Or like she doesn't know where she is and who the hell Eidolon might be. She's hallucinating, half-asleep and thinks she's dreaming but, hey, NO BLOODY SHRIMPING BIGGIE.



➽ And this, ladies and gentlemen, is why I DNFed this piece of crap at 9%.



PS: want to read about demons? Forget about PNR trash. Read SM Reine or Pippa DaCosta. You're welcome.

b.andherbooks

I was hoping to find my next binge-worthy series but alas this took me an actual eon to finish, and I'm blaming mostly 2020 brain for this not holding my attention. Demon doctors and contract killers is absolutely my jam, as is hate sex, and there was A LOT of that here. Also some interesting discussions about a heroine who cannot orgasm with a partner (but can with herself) but the reasoning behind it turned out to be not magical but simply from an assault, which was super disappointing (and it was magically gone after one short discussion).

I might try others in this series at some point but I don't feel pressed to do so.

Janet Doré

I made it to page 62. On page 56, I read this line and only continued because I was stuck on a ferry with nothing else to do...(Describing Underworld General Hospital...a hospital run by demons to treat demons) "If Castle Dracula screwed a hospital, this would be the bastard offspring." I've never read a Harlequin Romance, but I imagine it had lines like this. I guess it's official...I'm a book snob.

Pleasure Unbound A Demonica Novel (The Demonica Series)

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