ARC Review - Wicked Ties by Shanora Williams

 Thank you so much Shanora Williams for sending me this ARC!

Title: Wicked Ties

Author: Shanora Williams

Genre: Fantasy Romance

Series: Tether Trilogy (book #2)

Pages: 496

Synopsis:

In Vakeeli, trust will get you killed…

After being betrayed by one of the few people he trusts, Caz has become a prisoner in his own mind. For once, he can’t work his way out of a deadly situation…but with a mate like Willow, there’s always a way.

With an ancient, powerful being like Decius, Willow has her work cut out for her, and after working with an old friend to cast a powerful portal spell, she winds up on Earth…with Caz at her side. But just because they’re on Earth doesn’t mean they’re safe. Though weaker, Decius still has the power to haunt them, and he will not stop until he has Caz in his clutches again…even if that means killing every single member of Caz’s Blackwater clan.

With lives on the line and the clock ticking, the tethered couple must use earthly resources to find a way back to Vakeeli—without encountering Decius—so they can wake the Regal Selah and have her kill him for good. As they take this new journey, they’ll soon discover that not all Vakeeli history is true. Just as there are evil beings out to tarnish their Cold Tether, there are noble forces willing to aid them, and they go by the names Korah and Hassha, two Regal goddesses with more power in their pinkies than Decius will ever have.

Caz and Willow only have one shot at a peaceful life. With Decius out of their way, they’ll be able to live freely as soulmates and without their Cold Tether in jeopardy. But as with any bold decision to work with powerful people, there are buried secrets and grueling consequences to face…and they’ll soon find out that Decius was only the start of their problems.

Review & thoughts:

Wicked Ties is the second book in an Adult Fantasy Romance series and while I loved the first book, I think this one might be even better!

Wicked Ties starts right where Vicious Bonds ended on that brutal cliffhanger and we get thrown right in the middle of the action. The plot was perfectly paced and really interesting, it kept me on the edge of my seat and I read this book in one sitting because I literally couldn’t put it down. One of the things I really liked in the first book was the world building and the idea of Willow and Caz coming from two entirely different worlds and I loved that it was explored even more in this sequel, I had so much fun discovering it all and the characters’s reactions to being in an unfamiliar world were so funny sometimes. 

I already said it in my review of Vicious Bonds but I absolutely love Caz and Willow. We get more of Caz’s backstory here and my heart was breaking for him at times, but it helped us understand him better now. There is also a lot of character development here and it was amazing to see how far both Caz and Willow have come from who they were at the beginning of the first book. And of course, the romance… I love Caz and Willow’s relationship and romance, they are so supportive of each other and I loved how much more open they were about their feelings for each other here. They are polar opposites but so perfect for each other and I already can’t wait to read more about them.

Wicked Ties is a perfect sequel to Vicious Bonds that I really loved and definitely recommend this series to everyone who enjoys this genre! And while there isn’t as big cliffhanger as in the first book, I’m already dying to have book 3 in my hands, I love these characters and their story.

Rating:

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5