The Romance Cover: Review ~ Defiance of the Heart (Sins of the Heart #2) by Monica James

Book Description:

For never was there a story of more woe than that of Holland Brooks and her Romeo...

For as long as I can remember, London Sinclair was the boy who was forbidden. It didn’t matter that he made my heart skip a beat. Our surnames fated us to be sworn enemies. But when the truth was finally revealed, my life changed forever.

Lies have shaped our past, leaving London and me to pick up the pieces. But through the chaos, one thing is certain—I love London, and he loves me, and we won’t allow anyone to tear us apart again.

However, life has a funny way of proving us wrong.

As we attempt to make amends for the past ten years, we soon discover that the ghosts of our past will do anything to drive us apart. We are once again surrounded by deceit and betrayal, testing us in ways we never imagined.

When I’m faced with a proposition to end this heartache once and for all, I blindly agree. That decision changes everything, and I soon learn that those who act in haste create their own destruction.

Does love really triumph all? Or will London and I succumb to what was always written in the stars?

Buy Links:

Amazon UK: https://amzn.to/2Cl3R5v

Amazon US: https://amzn.to/2NIuPpH

Our Review:

Reviewed by Donna ~ 5 stars

“‘Some shall be pardon’d, and some punished. For never was a story more woe. Than this of Juliet and her Romeo.’”

Damn Monica James to hell. This book has been on my eagerly anticipating list for five months, five long, torturous months where every update, every teaser I have had to ignore because I didn’t want to know a thing. Absinthe of the Heart, the first book in this duet was one of my favourite reads of the year, and I wanted to go into this one blind, I wanted to get wrapped up in London and Holland’s story yet again, and Monica James didn’t disappoint.

“Why did it have to be this way for us? Why were we born to be each other’s enemy?”

A modern day Romeo and Juliet, London and Holland had the world and their families against them, but you don’t choose love, love chooses you, and these two chose each other when they were five years old. Hate and love are two very close emotions, and London always hid his true emotions when it came to Holland. London always put Holland first, even if it didn’t seem like it at the time and now that the stars have aligned for these two to finally be together it seems the world has other ideas. Will there ever be a right time?

“I’m sorry I’m not who you would choose for her, but when it comes to love, there isn’t a choice to make—it chooses you.”

These two characters have embedded themselves into my heart and soul, and if ever two characters deserved each other then London and Holland were it. With an ex that seriously needed to die and London’s mother who I desperately wished the same fate upon, Monica James tore me apart before she expertly pieced me back together. Damn, this book could have been such a tragedy, but this was where Monica James excelled and went against the grain. These characters TALKED!! Yes, that funny thing that partners do, they COMMUNICATED, and that is what made this book so much better, more believable. Monica James could have taken the cliché way out, but she didn’t, and that made this book much more interesting, even more, angsty and so much more emotional.

“We can’t change the past, but we can make our own future. Don’t let the sins of the past win.”

Both these characters wore their hearts on their sleeve, especially London. London loved Holland with every fibre of his being, and you only had to look at his eyes to see. His actions spoke louder than words, and this man would have walked into the depths of hell for Holland, and he very nearly did. This book was fast paced, action packed and unputdownable. My plan of action for the day totally thrown out of the window because I couldn’t leave these characters alone. My heart was in my mouth too many times to count and a PM the portal to my frustrations and emotions as I gave the person a blow by blow account.

“When you left me, you didn’t just tear out my heart. You took me with you. I am nothing, nothing without you.”

This duet has been an epic journey, one fraught with obstacles, and yet at the end of the day true love shone through and brightened every page. The connection that these two had was enviable, as individuals, both characters were formidable, but together they were impenetrable. A love like that comes once a lifetime, and these two grasped that with both hands.

“Staying away from him is like defying nature, akin to defying my heart.”

This duet is Monica James’s best work yet. Spanning decades, she brings her A-Game, and I envy the people that can read these two books back to back. Love, hate, secrets, lies, deception, betrayals, revelations but most important, connection, chemistry and a relationship that is destined to stand the test of the time. Definitely one of my favourite duets to date. This has been quite the ride, Monica James.

“I only care about you because it was always…it was always you. I love you without apology, and that’ll never change.”

Book One: Absinthe of the Heart