Bane (Sinners of Saint, 4)

Um, wow. Just wow. As in the Holy Grail of Wowza. This book has ruined me for everything: favorite sinner from Todos Santos, favorite angst read, favorite book boyfriend & girlfriend, favorite LJ Shen read...I just, WOW. I keep on saying how ready I am for this, how I have prepared myself already, how I can't wait for this book to hit me but NOTHING will really brace me for this read's impact and aftermath. Bane and Jesse and LJ Shen's power...their power practically leaks out off my e-reader. JFC!!! (And gdi amazon is making it hard for me to lay my review down eloquently!!! I need all the !!!s and curses to comfortably express my thoughts and feelings!!!) Bane (Not just Bane-Roman but also Bane-the whole read) is everything I have ever wanted in a romantic literary. The savageness, the raw sensuality, the complex feelings...my thirst has been quenched. I just...I'm a mess right now. I still don't know what to say; I often find myself just staring off at space because thoughts are running amok inside my mind. But I'm going to die trying to give this review justice in turn for the soul-wrenching, breath-stopping and heart-breaking read that is Bane. The writing has been flawless. I have said this one before countless times and I'm saying it again: I FREAKING LOVE L.J. SHEN'S BRAND OF ANGST AND ROMANCE. She has a way of writing these stories about not-so-gentlemen men and the strong women behind them. And I think her heroes were one of the only few prickly and rakish and kind of contemptible men I am freaking in love with; the rest of those so-called bad guys I just barely tolerate. The plot is dynamic and vivid. The ride started out as if in a trance, a beautiful prologue. It feels like the calm before the storm-and it really is. The whole ride after that has just gone adventurous in a turbulent way. Every chapter is escalating into something badder and bigger. And it all leads to serving justice; a silver platter full of mf rightful punishment to those who wronged them (mostly, Jesse. Only God knows how much she deserves those things and more). The characters, mainly Roman, Jesse, Gail, Roman's mom, Mrs. Belfort and Hannah have been compelling, complex and beautiful in every freaking sense. Gail is the badass best girl friend Jesse has been needing of all her life. I'm so glad she has been there for Jesse esp when the latter doesn't have anyone else during her toughest times. Mrs. Belfort and Hannah have been Jesse's guardian all this time. I'm so glad they have been there, too, when Jesse's mother is too much of a selfish B to ever be a mother. Sonya aka Mamul is the epitome of tough single mom and as Jesse has said, also responsible for Bane's huge af personality. I'm glad I'm able to get to know her better during this read. I'm even happier that Jesse has found a mother in her, too. Such great women in one frame. Roman 'Bane' Protsenko. Oh, Bane. He's just my ideal depiction and embodiment of a bad boy. Savage af to everyone except for his mom and Jesse; he's such a marshmallow to them instead...but don't tell him I've said that. But back to Bane. I can say, looking at the mirror and meeting my eyes without flinching type, that I never truly have a favorite sinner. I mean, I may rank Dean and Trent a bit higher than Vic and Jaime. But Bane, jfc Bane-he can easily dethrone the HotHoles anytime, anywhere. He's like all four HotHoles in one man. Of course, that's not to say this hero is faultless. In fact, I have never seen a hero more mindful of his sins than Bane. And he embraces all his faults-he's down-to-earth actually (one just has to peel his layers off of him). He has no qualms using his charms and advantages full-on. But at the same time this man knows where he has come from and where he belongs. He has no desire to associate himself with useless things and shallow people. And the most man he has ever done is to break away from his sidelines, cutting off his connections to his clienteles in respect to what he has with Jesse. And in the end? The timing isn't right but the thought that he's decided once and for all to come clean? I personally think that's the closest one to being a real man. /cries in the corner because Bane may have ruined me for any man irl And Jesse. Beautiful in all that matters. I am disgusted and angry and freaking frustrated on her behalf. There's no doubt in me whatsoever that this woman (yes, she's a full grown woman despite her physical age) has decided to just break it off with everybody and has sworn off men forever. No man really deserved her, no one but Bane. And I just want to hug and give love and support all women who has been wronged just like her. A real queen fixes another queen's crown and all that jazz. And though she's become a shell, I have seen through the chapters her progress and development when Bane coaxed her out of it. And she's even more beautiful. Vibrant. Sassy. And when she is able to stand for herself, to right all the wrong things done to her? I personally feel empowered, too. I can't sit still. I have been shaking in excitement for her to deliver lawful vengeance to those despicable people. And it has been more than satisfactory!!! (I do have a vindictive streak, sue me!) I can't, you guys. I can't. How can one book devastate and inspire me simultaneously? I can't! And now I don't know what to read after this. Just so unfair if nothing else can come to this level. And it's just the 5th month of 2018. Send help???

Takeaway: what some of the other books lacked, was a thorough story, with full context and built-out psychology of the characters — that also made sense and was engaging — i.e. all the character development, humor and love story that made sense for the narrative. Then weaving all of that together to land it. As much as I was entertained on some level by the other three books, which had some fun and intriguing components— there were points where those needed balls got dropped. This book, painted Roman and Jesse’s story and chemistry, with such tangibility that you really did feel like you knew them better than the other couples. And trust me when I say that I love Dean. But that story got cut short and didn’t follow through with itself. But this not only followed through with it, it also wove together pieces that were outside of the main two characters. Like Sonya and Jesse. Which was not short changed! Sonya and Hale. (Need a novella!) one of the biggest compliments I can say, is that most writers tend to castrate the male character and make them too sweet. We fall in love with the as$hole and then all of a sudden he’s too sugary and a golden retriever that is just overwhelming suffocating. She managed to keep Roman as still Bane, and that was one of the strongest angles that I’ve seen done with a male character in quite a bit of books that I read. ! I would have liked to have seen more Edie and would’ve enjoyed seeing vicious come back around since we started the story with him in this book and the series. And there are some other threads that could have been cleaned up, but I think the message is to say that this is her strongest story that I’ve read. And there are definitely a number of quotes that I’ve highlighted and written down. Also, the spice was the strongest of the four books. You could just feel the chemistry— it was high!!!. It was just enough and absolutely .🙌🏼🔥 I will be reading the children’s stories eventually.

Holy cow! L.J. Shen nailed perfection with Bane. This book was everything and more. I am overwhelmed and still on cloud nine in heaven. M*erde! My soul was consumed by each chapter. I rephrase it: My soul was consumed by Roman ‘Bane’ Protsenko. I am speechless. L.J. Shen never disappoints me! Her talent is supernatural. She is a LITERARY goddess and I am grateful she shares with us each of her SINFUL and wonderful masterpieces. There is not greater pleasure then reading L.J. Shen’s books! Her sassy and strong heroines plus sinful and possessive alpha males plus a brilliant story is equal to: PERFECTION with capital letters. This book is part of the Sinners of Saint Series but can be read as a standalone. My advice for you is to read all the books in the series for a better ENJOYMENT. Between the pages of this book you will find a raw romance and strong and complex characters. This is not a fairy tale where the princess needs to be saved by the prince. This book is something more deep. Yes, there is a happy ending but the princess is going to save herself alone. Oh did I forget to tell that there is not Prince instead there is a con, a liar and a thief: a sinful bad boy, a fallen angel ready to defy everyone and everything. Bane is an explosive, stunning, mind-blowing book that literally will leave you craving more and more. Once you start this book you won’t be able to stop until you devour it whole. The pacing is fast and each chapter will have you at the edge of your sit. The plot is extraordinary well developed, unique and 100% original. It is hands down one of my ALL TIME favourite reads and one that I will never forget. The storyline is tempting, forbidden and deliciously intense. It’s a compelling story that makes the characters real. Their messed past cannot dictate their present although there is a lot in. Jesse is at the top of my favourite heroines. She has impressed me like no other. Her past is a shadow that is haunting her. Her brightness was replaced with darkness and fear but as a Warrior Princess she defeated her demons. She didn’t feel whole. The ones who should have protected failed her. No one fought her demons BEFORE until Bane: The bad boy, the thief, a con. He will fight them and will fix Jesse to any cost. Bane is sin personified and maximized. He is a hunter, a fallen angel who hides his real colours. He is dangerous and toxic. He is the kind of boy you won’t introduce to your parents. He is trouble. He also has his demons but he controls them. His soul was lonely until Jesse. He accepted her as she is, broken and damaged. To know her past made him want to protect and fix her. She is forbidden but the chemistry is there, burning his blood. She tempts him like no other woman and he will give up in his desires. How could someone too toxic save a broken soul? How could a lonely soul fix a damaged angel? Secrets, money, power and ambition can tarnish the purest soul. Jesse will learn that she doesn't need a prince. She needs a sword and Bane is it. He is the knight that will kill the dragons. I loved the interaction between Bane and Jesse. They are lonely souls trying to survive. Each one in a different way but both are survivors and fighters. I adored the way Bane gave Jesse the weapons to tame her demons. They belong together. They are imperfectly perfect for each other. The were destinated to be more; to be eachother saviour. An awesome book! L.J. Shen penned a strong story, hard, sometimes brutal and savage, but the magic of the narrative is such that it ends up becoming the most subtle of the experiences and a love story like few, one of those that you do not forget. Bane and Jesse’s story completely bewitched me! I honestly think everyone should read this book. It can’t be compared with any other because perfection can’t be compared.

I knew this would make me cry. I knew it would most definitely ruin me. I’m always right about these things. Call it a reader’s intuition. Or maybe binge reading all of L.J. Shen’s Sinners of Saints and All Saints High books has given me some sort of sixth sense. I don’t know, but all I know is that I’m a wreck. This has got to be my favorite book in the series. It’s so raw, so real, so...emotional. *This book does deal quite heavily with the topic of rape, so that may be hard for some readers to read. The way that this story is told is nothing short of bold and absolutely inspirational. Bane is the perfect hero because even though he saves Jesse, he lets her save herself, too. He doesn’t take all the glory. He doesn’t force her to do anything. He gives her love, time, space, and understanding. He treats her as an equal, not as some delicate flower. He listens to her and never pushes her to move further than she’s ready to. Well, maybe that’s not accurate. He pushes her, in a way. He shows Jesse the old version of herself, the one before the rape, the one that she yearns to get back. He teases her, jokes around with her, plays with her. But it’s never at the expense of her emotions. Everything he does is to show her that the girl who was stolen is actually still there. The feistiness hasn’t gone away—the flame has just died. It’s still there, slowly flickering and ready to burn again. I really like Bane a lot. I mean, all of the characters in this series are screwed up in some way and I keep telling myself that I’ve found my favorite characters every time I pick up one of these books. But honestly? I. Found. My. Favorite. Characters. Bane and Jesse. Jesse and Bane. His Snowflake. Her Knight. He’s a liar, a thief, a stoner. He’s the guy everyone knows not to mess with. But he’s also incredibly thoughtful, caring, and attentive. He’s a big softie at heart. My favorite kind of male character. Jesse is a total badass. I really admire her resilience throughout the book. She goes from a broken, scared girl to a powerful, confident woman. I think the best part about this book is that even though Bane helps her find her strength, she’s determined to get it back for herself, not for anyone else. Despite being wronged by so many people, she’s still capable of love and emotion. She deserves to have sex the way she wants to, not the way anyone else makes her. So she does. I felt so bad for her, but I was also tremendously inspired by her, too. While reading the book, I kept thinking to myself, “This. This is what it looks like to be strong, to persevere despite tragedy. Remember this.” I have a quote board in my room filled with book quotes that I love. I think I marked like fifteen quotes in this book that I want to add to it. I know a book is spectacular when I go running straight to my quote board, busting out the colorful Sharpies to etch words onto the board. When people look at this cover, they’ll probably assume it’s just smut. Don’t get me wrong. This book is hot. All of L. J. Shen’s books are. But it is so much more than that. It’s intensely emotional and gripping. It’s a story of survival, of love, and of a princess who actually saves herself and still gets the prince.

"hey, roman, what's the antonym of hate?" "jesse." BANE has several trigger warnings so please check them before you read!! this book is so incredible. everything about this book was perfect, and i don't see why jesse and bane are underrated. this book was pretty different from all the other books in the series. it has a very different and serious tone compared to defy, vicious, ruckus, and scandalous. not to say that the other books were a walk in the park, but BANE was on a whole other level. BANE, unlike most of lj shen's books, is not an enemies to lovers story, and i'm glad for it. even though i am a sucker for that trope, the way the author wrote strangers to friends to lovers and employee/boss worked so well. it was so very important to jesse's journey of healing. this book is told in alternating povs, with some flashbacks. with this, we see the trauma jesse suffered through and how it affects her present day. BANE starts with bane protsenko seeing jesse carter on a beach one day, and then jesse on the night her body was violated by three guys she thought she could trust. this part was so gritty and raw that it had me emotional from the beginning. then there is a cut to about a year or two later, where we see where jesse and bane are after that night. jesse became isolated and depressed, withdrawing from society and feeling like she lost all purpose in life. when you read this, you can't help but feel for her. after that night, she is broken and lost, but her character is very, very strong. and after all she went through, she really just deserves the world. bane, on the other hand, is struggling to make it into the business world and build a name for himself. so he ends up striking up a deal with jesse's stepfather- he gets millions of dollars and in exchange bane helps coach jesse back into the real world outside of her bedroom walls, where she has been hiding for a long time. when i first read that, i was a little skeptical because i thought that bane would use jesse and see her only as an obstacle into securing a business empire. but lj shen did not take that route, and instead focused on healing and falling for each other. it was the most beautiful and real story i've ever experienced, and i would do anything to read it again. bane was not the typical "alpha hole" or dominant male characters we usually read about in new adult romance. he is patient, respectful, and loving, always looking out for jesse and never pushing her beyond what she could take. he did encourage her, but he knew her boundaries. jesse was absolutely his soulmate. bane helped her, but she was the one who faced her demons head on. who punished everyone who did her wrong. who held her head high and started to heal. and while doing this, she also saved bane. she taught him that he was more than just an escort or a reminder of what happened to his mother. she gave him a purpose beyond surfing and making money. i think they’re my favorite book people. BANE will be one of the books i will never forget; it shows that even after all you've been through, there is always be a little bit of hope left.

4 1/2 Stars L.J. Shen went out with a bang in the final book in the Sinners of Saint Series! Bane deals with so many different issues, and the characters are beautifully written that you can't help but fall in love with them! Bane is the towns bad boy, the escort, the pothead, and everything in between. When he finds himself in a deal that he can't refuse for a business that he wants, he doesn't think that he'll be tempted by Jesse in more ways than one. All he needs to do is be her friend, help her find herself again, but the one man that can't fall in love, seems to keep breaking for her, and all she wants is to be left alone. Jesse used to be a free spirit, full of life and laughter, until "The Incident" that left her broken and a shell of herself. When Bane shows up at her doorstep offering friendship and nothing more, a spark ignites in her, and she feels the old Jesse coming back and she's scared, but around Bane she isn't as scared as she thought she'd be. Her mom and her step-dad don't care about her, the only other friend she has is her delusional 80 year old neighbor who isn't lucid most of the time, and her dog, so having Bane around really pushes her to get out and find herself again. I loved the back and forth between these two and watching them deal with their pasts, and their present as well as their feelings towards one another. The way they handled some things was interesting, immature at times, and definitely not the right way, but in the end, it definitely worked out. I hated the things both of these characters had to go through in life, it broke my heart, but together they were so broken and beautiful. This story dealt with some major things, and isn't for the light at heart, but it is a beautiful story at the same time. Bane may come off as the "bad guy" but he really is probably the sweetest "sinner" in the them all even though he came off as the "baddest" of them all. If you're looking for a deeper read that will have you falling in love with both characters, hating most of the secondary characters, and leave you with a full heart, I highly suggest picking up Bane by L.J. Shen today!

“My Whole Life Has Been Pledged to This Meeting with You” Ladies and gentlemen prepare yourselves for the best book of 2018!!! Oh my God, I do not know how to explain it, now I'm sitting, looking at the screen, thinking what to write to describe all the mixed feelings I have and can not think of anything, I have no words to do justice to the story of Bane and Jesse, my heart is full with their emotions and their scenes, with their dialogues, with everything that they made me feel. L.J. Shen surpassing herself again and creates an epic, poetic, unique, and completely unbeatable story that left me with an epic book hangover. Bane is a captivating journey, sexy, raw, that catches your heart, squeezes it and does not let go, that will leave you breathless and that takes the anguish to a new level. A heartbreaking and emotional story, but at the same time so beautiful, absolutely unforgettable. The characters are so complex, different, and intriguing but I could not get enough of them. Jesse, my dear Jesse, is a heroine not very typical, so unique, broken, shattered, but at the same time so brave, strong and so real, a girl who suffered a hell and returned completely transformed. I fell completely in love with her. She's my new favorite heroine of Mrs. Shen. Bane, my problem boy, lives under his own rules and questionable moral, is a real bad boy, sexy as hell, rude, but despite everything I was completely and absolutely in love with him. He won my heart and replaced Dean in him. Both characters are so unique, they wrapped me in their story and made me feel so much, my heart suffered, wept, laughed and loved with them. All their scenes together were so perfect, sexy with a dark edge, it gave me chills, accelerated my heart, made me sweat my hands, provoked butterflies in my stomach, drained me emotionally. This is not the typical love story, it is about evolve, but above all it is about how the protagonists as they relate and knowing each other, help to find themselves, to transform themselves and to heal. As usual the author exceeded all my expectations and gives us her best work so far, which is not a surprise because every time I read a new story of her, the only predictable thing is the unexpected. I have followed her work from the beginning and I have to say that in each new story she achieves the unthinkable, create a better than the previous one. Their words are magical, hypnotic, it enchant you, it wrap you and it do not let you go, it contain so much emotion that it transport you to the story and make you live with the characters all their history. I completely loved the plot from the first page, it had me hooked from the beginning and I could not stop until I finished, I practically inhaled the pages, a plot full of surprises, elaborated and shocking, with so much anguish and drama that left me drained emotionally. Infinite stars!!!! “Snowflakes teach us the lesson that if you live long enough, you will eventually get soiled. But even your stains won’t tarnish your beauty.”

Meh