Series: Jokers Wild, Book 2
Publisher: Entangled: Brazen
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Release Date: February 10, 2020
Source: Publisher
Buy it here: Amazon | B&N | Kobo | Entangled
Master illusionist Nicholas Pine has learned the hard way that nothing—and nobody—is what they seem. So when he runs into sexy antique shop owner, Zelda Quincy, he knows there’s more to her than meets the eye. Still, what he sees is very, very intriguing…and he can’t get her out of his head.
Zelda has spent her whole adult life running away from her family’s reputation. She’s changed her name and tried to move on. The last thing she wants is to return to the world she left behind, even with someone as hot as Nicholas by her side.
But after one hot night––she’s addicted––and so is he.
Too bad the skeletons in Zelda’s closet won’t stay hidden for long…
Magic and Sin City are simply made for each other, just like Nicholas and Zelda. The bright lights of Vegas and the spectacle of Nicholas’s illusions are a dazzling backdrop for a sleek and sexy romance in Wild Nights.
Nicholas and Zelda are both likeable characters with old wounds that their burgeoning romance brings to the surface. Zelda comes from a famous magic family, but after a trick went horribly wrong in her teens, she’s put the world of magic behind her. Mostly. Having changed her name and moved across the country, Zelda can’t quite resist the allure of magic and runs an antique shop that specializes in magic props. Zelda doesn’t want to get sucked back into the world she grew up in, mostly because of the painful memories it brings up. So when sexy magician Nicolas Pine comes to her shop looking for his stolen Houdini water cabinet, Zelda tries to resist her attraction to him. But the pull between them can’t be denied and the longer he and Zelda are together the harder it is for her to tell him the truth about her family.
Love and lies have gone hand-in-hand for Nicholas for so long that he’s always on the lookout for Zelda to betray his trust in some way. With this kind of setup, it’s easy to see the drama coming from a mile away. That being said, the way things played out actually worked pretty well. Both Nicholas and Zelda are self-aware enough to recognize their issues and what triggers them and though there is some expected drama, it still feels fairly organic. The romance between them takes a while to build, then goes full-speed halfway through. I do wish the pacing had been a bit faster in the first part of the book and that the emotional component had been slowed down and allowed to develop more naturally in the second.
Magic and illusions are like catnip for me, so I was very eager to dive into Wild Nights. Once the pacing picked up I enjoyed the story immensely. I haven’t read the first Jokers Wild book, One Night Gamble, but this book easily stands on its own. That being said, I liked Katherine Garbera’s writing enough that I’ll definitely be reading the rest of this series.
FTC Disclosure: I received this book for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
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