Guest Review: The Darkest Link by Scarlett Cole

Posted September 9, 2016 by Tracy in Reviews | 2 Comments

Guest Review: The Darkest Link by Scarlett ColeReviewer: Tracy
The Darkest Link by Scarlett Cole
Series: Second Circle Tattoos #4
Also in this series: The Strongest Steel (Second Circle Tattoos #1), The Fractured Heart, The Purest Hook
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
Publication Date: August 30th 2016
Genres: Contemporary Romance
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four-stars
Series Rating: four-stars

When her car breaks down off the side of a lonely highway far from her sunny Miami home, tattoo artist Lia never expected her very own white knight to ride up on the back of a barely street-legal motorcycle...and she never expected to fall for her dark savior. After a string of failed relationships and a bruised heart, Lia is not looking for forever, and the hot mechanic, with his sexy scruff and shaggy hair, is simply impossible to resist and the perfect candidate for mind-blowingly-perfect, no-strings-attached one night stand.

Reid left his life in Chicago far behind him and hasn't been back, but he's never been able to escape the guilt he feels about his own painful role in inviting a monster into his baby sister's life. A monster who almost destroyed her. Being with Lia is an unexpected gift, one he doesn't feel he deserves, and their one night together has him wanting more than he should. Especially since she doesn't know the truth about his past. However, when he finds Lia’s bracelet in his bed, he has the perfect excuse to drive down and surprise her at her tattoo studio, Second Circle Tattoos, in Miami. He's in for an even bigger shock - and a fist to the face - when his past and present collide in the humid Miami weather when he runs into the last person he’d ever expect to see in a tattoo studio: Harper, the sister he betrayed, and the last link to his former life.

Tattoo artist Lia Carlisle is on her way from Miami to an expo in Orlando when her car breaks down at the side of the road.  She gets out to wait and then along comes Kenny – a hot guy on a motorcycle.  He happens to own a garage and contacts his guys to bring a tow truck.  While Kenny and Lia wait for the truck they get to know each other a bit and like what they see.

Little by little the pair get to know each other better and soon Kenny is riding to see Lia in Miami.  A shocking revelation throws them off but not enough to quench the fire that’s burning between the two of them. Unfortunately they have to deal with Lia’s family.

Lia’s father has decided to run for governor – in three years – but insists that Lia “comes to heel” as she’s just too wild and opinionated.  At the age of 27 Lia is her own woman.  Lia dresses like she wants to and she certainly won’t cover up her tattoos to make him happy.  While Lia is trying to deal with her father and her mentally fragile mother someone is trying to kill Lia and Kenny (whose real name is Reid) and they can only hope they survive.

Book four in the Second Circle Tattoos series brought us some answers that were asked in book one.  I was happy to see that Harper got those answers and that she could lay to rest some of the concerns she had about her family.

Lia was amazing.  She’s strong and confident and sexy as hell.  She’s the embodiment of the buxom pin up girl with 2 sleeves of tattoos and a full leg piece.  She dresses and does her hair like she lives in the 50’s and I loved that she could be her own woman – especially after finding out how her father had put her down and degraded her for years while she was growing up.  While she tends to fall in love easily (by her own admission) she realizes that there’s something different with Reid as she’s never felt that way before.

Reid was a great guy as well and while he’d been hurt by his family he had carried guilt for so long he wasn’t sure how to handle it all.  He didn’t want to fall in love with Lia but he found himself unable to stay away from her and I loved that he didn’t question himself – just went with the flow.

The story had a bit of a twist at the end that I saw coming. I would have also liked to have seen a bit more during the final scenes with Lia’s father but I still enjoyed it.

Second Circle Tattoos has been a great series and this was a good addition to it. I’m looking forward to her spin off series of Preload (Dred’s band from book 3).

Rating: 4 out of 5

four-stars


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