The Player by Kresley Cole
The Game Maker Series
(Book #3)
Kindle Edition: 334 pages
First Published: April 12th 2016 by Valkyrie Press
Genre: Adult, Contemporary Romance, Romance, Erotica, Erotic Romance, BDSM, New Adult
Kindle * B&N * Paperback * Kobo * Goodreads
Synopsis (From Goodreads)
In this searing stand-alone installment of the erotic Game Maker series, #1 New York Times bestselling author Kresley Cole brings readers a tale of a man wracked with dark desires and the beautiful young woman who could sate him at last.
A madman with a shadowed past . . .
In the City of Sin, Dmitri Sevastyan finds her, Victoria Valentine—sexy, vulnerable, and in need of a protector. Obsession takes root deep inside him. Despite a history tainted with violation and betrayal, he will stop at nothing to possess her.
A grifter with nothing to lose . . .
Descended from a long line of con artists, twenty-four-year-old Victoria, a.k.a Vice, needs the score of a lifetime to keep her loved ones safe. She sets her sights on gorgeous and rich Dmitri Sevastyan. Even as the irresistible Russian toys with her body and mind, he tempts her heart.
Love is the ultimate wildcard.
When Vice and her associates maneuver Dmitri into a hasty Vegas wedding, he refuses to protect himself with a pre-nup, trusting her with all that he has. But can she trust him? As secrets unfold, the newlyweds share days of doubts and nights of the wickedest pleasures. Yet once Vice discovers her husband’s past, will she stay to fight for her marriage or cut her losses and run?
My thoughts on The Player
Warning: This probably, most likely, has spoiler information. You’re been warned.
Dmitri, Dmitri, Dmitri *sigh for a long time thinking of Dmitri*
I’ve been wanting to read his story since the first book of the series. I’ve a soft spot for the characters with the biggest amount of scars or harsher background, and Dmitri won me from day one.
Victoria, was a good female character and great match to Dmitri. At first I didn’t notice it because I could only think that she was going to hurt him, because she needed his money. “How dare Kresley give Dmitri such a bad book girlfriend/weak book story?! He was the most hurt of the three brothers, he probably still have nightmares for fucks sakes!”
But I was wrong and I vow to the greatness of Kresley Cole in “The Player” plot twist world.
Vika, like Dmitri called her, was a good woman at heart. Loyalty was a trait that I much enjoy in her side of the story. Loyal to her family, they went by one motto: To the grave. Which was amazing considering they were a family of con-artists.
The story was awesome. I have no words to describe how much I like the way things developed between them. Dmitri was like an addict on Vika, and she was trying to not love him so fast, but she failed at that for sure in a good way.
Something that I truly loved was not only that the steamy scenes were the kind that I adore *cofcoforgasmcontrolcofcof* but also the fact that he was so into her that there was no freaking way that anything that he did, even the sex or various toys, was going to end up hurting her. Oh! And her kink was so fun to read about, more so because Vika didn’t knew about it until Dmitri pointed out to her.
What struck me in my sweet spot was the fact that she never judged him for what he went through in the past. She never hold it against him. She wasn’t disgusted with him. She didn’t pity him either, she was with him 100% and more. Vika was protective of her husband and she love him deeply, even when she didn’t acknowledge it.
Something else that I like was the support of Dmitri’s family. We didn’t knew it until later but they were happy for him in reality, and they were giving him advice on how to approach his fascination with Victoria. Even Aleks helped him and I was happy to know that he actually went to his family for help when it really mattered to him.
During the whole freaking book I was trying to guess what the hell was going on. “He can’t be a virgin with women. No, the author wouldn’t do that. But he talks like he doesn’t… like he is…” My thoughts were driving me crazy. And then I started to believe he knew about her family, about what they did, specially after he paid the money they needed with such an ease that just made me wonder.
What I didn’t think, not even cross my mind, was that fucking-fantastic plot twist at the very end, when all went to shit with them both. Vika’s family find out first and showed her what was going on and when it hit me, my jaw dropped “There is NO freaking way!” But it was and that right there made it my favourite book of the series. Add to it the fact that I’ve loved Dmitri for years. Yeap.
Lastly, she can’t just say what she said about Benji and Jess without a book about them in the future. Worst, that con with Karin and Walker, that Dmitri was talking with Vika about at the end… Kresley Cole has to add those two stories to this series or something! Please!!
Quotes
“I was out on the terrace. I remarked that you were like a beast from a fairy tale, alone in his lair.” Holding my gaze, he said, “I’ve found Beauty.”
Natalie raised her glass and winked at Lucía. “To the three types of orgasms. To the holy kind: Oh God, oh God, oh God. To the affirmative kind: Oh yes, Oh yes, oh yes. And to the fake kind: Oh Maks, oh Maks, oh Maks.”
“I’d rather have an honest madman than a sane liar.”
“Wealth is meaningless without loved ones to spend it on.”
“I believe when a man finds the one woman meant to be his, he associates her scent with happiness. In the deepest recesses of his brain, he thinks, This woman is where all happiness lies. She is my home. Every time he catches her scent, that link is reinforced.”
“Imagine a pitch-black room with a single candle lit in the center,” he said, his voice gone low. “The room is the world. You are the candle.”
“There’s a difference between being wed and being married. We were wedded today, but I want out lives entangled, until they are seamless. Until the line between us blurs to nothing.”
“How can you be so thoughtful and generous?” He seemed to stand taller. “I live by one law: what my wife wants, my wife gets. Even if she doesn’t yet know what she wants.”
“Ultimately, the blame for hurting you goes to your ex-fiancé. He didn’t appreciate what he had,” Dmitri grated. “So yes, I made him my mark, because you deserve a faithful husband. And unlike him, I can keep my eyes on the queen!”
Rating
Kresley Cole is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the electrifying Immortals After Dark paranormal series, the young adult Arcana Chronicles series, the erotic Gamemakers Series, and five award-winning historical romances.
A master’s grad and former athlete, she has traveled over much of the world and draws from those experiences to create her memorable characters and settings.
Her books have been translated into twenty foreign languages, garnered three RITA awards, and consistently appear on the bestseller lists, in the U.S. and abroad.