Review: Sugar and Sin by Stella and Audra Price

Posted May 29, 2007 by Rowena in Reviews | 17 Comments

Review: Sugar and Sin by Stella and Audra PriceReviewer: Rowena
Sugar and Sin (Eververse, #1) by Stella Price, Audra Price
Series: Eververse Series #1
Publisher: Self-Published
Publication Date: August 1st, 2007
Genres: Paranormal Romance
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two-stars
Series Rating: two-stars

Dark Urban Fantasy Romance. What would you give for a second chance? Astrid, a witch, has often wondered what would happen if her lover, Fallon, a teleport demon, came back to her. After a year apart it seems fate will bring them together once more, and their relationship is going to be tested with a new threat to their lives and the lives of their friends. A reckoning is coming, and its time to choose sides. When the exiled demon prince Cassiel gives Astrid an offer she can't refuse, will her relationship with Fallon pay the price?

I got this book a few weeks ago and was really stoked to start it because it seemed different from anything I’ve ever read and I thought I’d enjoy a sort of change of pace I guess you can say.

Sugar and Sin is the first book in the Eververse series by Stella and Audra Price. Now these books aren’t your normal good and honorable hero who has an upstanding job and code of honor that he lives by, these heroes are more dark and a tad bit eviler (yeah I made that up so what) …LOL. These are the guys that have that dark lifestyle that your normal hero in romance novels wouldn’t get involved in. The shady guys, you know the hired assassins, the thieves and thugs and all that good stuff. I was all about this because you know, everyone needs love in their lives? I thought it was an interesting twist on things. Then I started the story and was a bit confused in the beginning as to who the main characters were, what the storyline was and so forth but I kept on pressin’ on and I guess you can say that this book just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Holly had to keep reminding me that this story is an erotica and not strictly romance so it makes sense that there’s a lot of sex going on in these stories. Because, seriously…there’s a lot of sex going on in this book. Not that I don’t love me a good love scene, even if it’s on the raunchy side, I mean seriously the more the better, but I need deeper or more concise storylines to go along with the racy sex scenes and I didn’t feel that I really got that in this story.

So we’ve got Fallon, who is the hero of this book. And Fallon, Fallon, Fallon….he was a character alright, a hero that I just didn’t get. He found his way onto my hit list when Astrid (the heroine) tells him that in the year or so that they’ve been seperated she hasn’t slept with anyone and that she was in love with him, she tells Fallon that she loves him and that it’s always been about him for her, this of course makes Fallon feel bad because though she’s been faithful to him (even though she didn’t really have to) he hasn’t been faithful to her and he kind of feels bad because it’s been the same for him with her, you know the whole, there’s never been another woman like Astrid for him in the year or so he’s banging his way around the world. And when Astrid tells him that she loves him, he says the words back to her. And he really means it, now Astrid (like me) didn’t believe him and told him that he didn’t have to say the words to her just because she said them to him and he assures her that he really does love her.

So happy happy joy joy?

Not really, because after their conversation about how much they love each other and all that goodness, Feyd (Fallon’s best friend and partner in crime) and Fallon walk into the club and already Fallon’s looking for his next booty call. Yep, I guess Fallon doesn’t really feel the need to be faithful to the one that he loves.

If that’s what rocks your socks, I guess but I didn’t get it and I didn’t like it and Fallon stayed on my hit list because of it…I mean, after everything, I’m okay with Fallon now but I’m still not a big Fallon fan but it’s all good in the hood.

There were other things in the book that I didn’t quite care for, like I found the dialogue to be a bit cheesy mostly and I thought Fallon and Feyd were immature in the pranks that they pulled on George and yeah I hated him too but the constant things they did to make George mad didn’t make me laugh or make me think, oh gosh these guys are so cool, it made me think, oh goodness, let’s grow up guys…you know that kind of stuff.

Then there was the onslaught of character introductions, there were so many and it took me awhile to get each character and what they were, what their powers were all straight in my head and Stella and Audra sure did make me work to understand their world, for me it just wasn’t easy to follow but it seems like a cool little world they’ve got going on here….though the overall story didn’t really grab me like other books have, I’m not going to give up on this series or these authors, I’ve got other books by them that I’ll try out and see if I like them better.

So yeah, this one just wasn’t my cup of tea.

Grade: 2 out of 5

two-stars


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17 responses to “Review: Sugar and Sin by Stella and Audra Price

  1. Well at least you read it, and i gotta thank you for that, LOL. I told you it might not be your cup of Java, so I’m not upset one bit in the review. theres a lot that you didn’t touch on though, and thats cool, and if you read the second one, which I do think you have, you will understand and enjoy Sugar a bit more.

    If its any consolation, the dragon book, that you have as well, isn’t like this series at all, though you do get to see Alcyone’s life in that book. Maybe you’ll Like that one more.

    thanks for the review though, I’m glad you tried us out, though I’m really sorry it wasn’t what you were expecting.

  2. While Fallon was a man-whore, Astrid wasn’t exactly as faithful as you picture here. Granted she didn’t imbibe in the man-flesh during the year, but it was because she isolated herself.

    You forgot to mention the parts where she screwed Cash, the hottie demon overlord/prince guy.

    So she’s not the complacent victim of infidelity here. She and Fallon both knew what they were doing (and who) when they did it.

    It’s not exactly a subtle hint in the book either. They are both open to little dalliances but they both love each other.

    While most romance defines loves as one-man-one-woman, Stella and Audra Price have written a story for those with a more open-mind.

    The story is solid, the writing/editing is solid, and the characters are totally different than any you’ll ever read about.

    You like the raunchy stuff, you said, and this is about as ‘raunchy’ as you can get.

    I myself don’t per se enjoy non-monogamous couples in literature, but I took this book as the novelty it was– and Stella and AUdra have garnered another fan because of it.

    Everything about this book–and the following Eververse series– is new and unconventional. Savor it. You can only read so many vampires and werewolves and dragons (oh my!).

  3. The Eververse is definitely a world unto itself. Stella and Audra Price have made a world that most can get into and enjoy without the conventional labels of romance but it’s still there.

    I feel in love with this story because it wasn’t that conventional drivel that I usually read in ebooks. There was violence, danger, intrigue, and hot sex.

    Your views on Fallon are closeminded, at best. You seem to just focus on him and his “indiscretions”. You aren’t fully grasping the COMPLETE story.

    There’s a backstory to Fallon that you don’t even seem to realize. Fallon and Feyd’s “childish pranks” just throw a bit of humor into a story that’s dark.

    I’m not understanding your veiwpoints. I know that to each his own and all that. So I’m just gonna leave it be. I’ve had my say.

  4. Valerie Eisiminger

    I see that you’ve given the concept the credit that it was due but in my opinion all of the different characters and all of their different abilities are and should be included with the concepts credit. The fact that this wasn’t a mindless read was what originally drew me in. I mean I can still come back and find something new or something that I’d forgotten. That’s the kind of stuff that keeps me going back for more.It’s the same with SK books I can still pick up Dance With The Devil and find something new or forgotten. So far I’ve read anything by Stella and Audra that I could find and as the series progresses I am delighted that I know so much about so many of their characters. Even if it doesn’t include monogamous relationships (I’ve been married 20 monogamous years!). It’s fantasy and I for one have a great imagination.

  5. Anonymous

    I think the Eververse series is one that you read that way: as a series. Plot threads are introduced and woven throughout. We’ve been given glimpses of future stories, but we don’t yet know how they will play out. There is depth and a huge backstory sure, but that just makes me want to read the other books to see what happens.

    Jenn

  6. Stella and Audra have a tendency to write for those of us that like to think our way through a book. They also have a vivid story line that brings the characters to full fruitation in different ways everytime you see them. I dont think you were grasping the entire story that they percieved in the book. No one can make you like something you dont, but next time try to encompass more than a trivial matter especially where Feyd and Fallon are concerned pet.

  7. Well ya know, I can’t blame you for not hitting it off with Fallon. It’s no secret that Fallon and I don’t get along, but it doesn’t have so much to do with his inability to keep it in his pants.

    The Eververse itself is a large, detailed, intricate, and totally fascinating world. It must be explored. And the purpose of “Sugar and Sin” was to introduce all of us to it. So, while I disagree with your opinion, I am heartened by your willingness to read the next one. I personally want to read them all. But then, I’m greedy and I am one of Stella and Audra’s rabid fans.

    This series, and indeed these authors do not seem to have ambivalent fans. You either love them, or they aren’t your cup of tea. So here’s a fervent hope that the next piece you read by Stella and Audra Price will convert you into a fan!

  8. Rowena

    Hey Stella,

    Thanks for stopping by and thanks for the book, I’ve got the second book and so I’ll be checking it out to see if I can appreciate Sugar more. I guess, Sugar just took me by surprise and though I knew what it was about when I first started the book, I wasn’t prepared for the lifestyle and well, you know all that came with it.

    I’m not giving up though, so no worries sweetie!

  9. Rowena

    Adra Steia,

    My point in that whole paragraph about Astrid being faithful and what not wasn’t about Astrid at all, I just wanted to paint the picture that I saw…Astrid tells him that she loves him and that there was only him in that year and then he felt bad because she wasn’t the only one he slept and then tells her that he loves her and means it…and then the next thing you know, he’s picking the blonde in the club and doing her.

    I didn’t get why he felt bad at all for not being faithful to her when he turned around and was already on the prowl for the next booty call.

    By the time the Cash thing happened, I was already over their whole faithful thing because I mean, if Fallon can do it, why not Astrid?

    But by then, I already knew that this book still wasn’t my cup of tea.

    That’s all I meant by it.

  10. Rowena

    Anita,

    Yeah I know about his whole story and I know what made him the man that he is, but I still don’t really care for his character because instead of turning out into a better man, I just didn’t feel like he did.

    But that’s just my opinion, you’re more than welcome to love Fallon, it’s all good in the hood, I promise.

  11. Rowena

    Valerie,

    You’re not lying this book wasn’t mindless, it was just too busy for me and I couldn’t connect with the characters and for me, I just don’t want to fantasize about faithless couples, to each his own and all that, ya know?

  12. Rowena

    Anon #1,

    I know how series work and so I understood what Stella and Audra were trying to do but for me, it was just too much too soon …I get it, you guys liked the stories and are trying to stick up for it and that’s fine and dandy, but for me, it just didn’t really work. I read it and I found that this book wasn’t what I like to read.

  13. Anonymous

    I’m a reviewer. I run a very successful review site that posts up to 60 reviewsa month, and with 30 active, dedicated reviewers.

    what you posted here, that’s not a review. It’s a close-minded intepretation of a character that was done without any consideration to the actual story. And as is the consensus, you got that character way wrong. You painted him as a faithless asshole with no regards to his partner besides a short-lived guilt-trip. Which he is, but you didn’t paint him into the whole picture.

    I’ve read this book and it’s not one that can be taken apart and only one part ‘reviewed’. You’ve got to look at the whole dang thing as just that- a whole. The relationship between the characters was something that developed over the course of the book. You made your judgement before you’d finished half the book. It’s not a normal, HEA romance. You based your opinion of this book on all the other romance novels you’ve read. It didn’t fit that equation, so it’s a ‘d’ read.

    The Eververse books aren’t stories that are paranormal/dark urban fanatasies in disguise. These aren’t books for just the average reader. If this book wasn’t your cup of tea and you honestly couldn’t have given it an unbiased review, then maybe you should have considered letting another person take a stab at it?

    Snark isn’t fun when you are zeroing in on a certain character that you didn’t bother to even try to understand. You took Fallon at face value. By letting the prejudices get in the way, you missed out on enjoying a very unique book.

    BEFORE you read the rest of the Eververse books–which I highly recommende– make sure you tell yourself very firmly that these are not your usual romances. These aren’t fluffy little paranormal/fantasies. You’re in for some surprises if you think this is the usual fare.

  14. -Y-

    Well i am glad i don’t listen to the blogs i read…i may not have read this book, and i loved it. i guess its cool you read it and a bummer you didn’t see it as i did. after reading Sugar, i went and read all the other books that Stella and Audra have out, and i was impressed with the world they have created. i hope those that read this blog will take the time to read Sugar and like the others have said it isn’t your everyday fluffy romance but there is an amazing, fun…. dark and erotic adventure they will take you on if you are willing.
    -Y-

  15. I attempted to read this book and stopped after a few chapters. I couldn’t get into the story. From what I read in the first couple of chapters, Fallon and Feyed reminded me of immature highschool boys. Meh.

    Just wasn’t my cup of tea.

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