| Title | : | Tangled Web (Deizian Empire, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1620610310 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781620610312 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Mass Market Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 352 |
| Publication | : | First published October 9, 2012 |
| Awards | : | HOLT Medallion by Virginia Romance Writers Extra Spicy/Erotic (2013) |
Azurha, a former slave turned deadliest assassin in the empire, has just been offered the ultimate challenge—seduce, then murder the new Emperor. But Titus is not the tyrant his forefathers were, and his radical ideas might be the glimmer of hope the empire needs.
Titus Sergius Flavus has yet to master the powerful magic of his ancestors—magic he must wield if he’s to protect his people—but his father’s death has left him no choice. Rule the Deizian Empire and attempt to right his ancestors’ wrongs, or watch her fall to his greedy kin.
More than just Titus’ ideas hold Azurha captive. Night after night, he awakens desires she thought lost, and uncovers the magic of her hidden lineage. As her deadline approaches, Azurha is forced to make an impossible decision—complete her job and kill the man she loves, or fail and forfeit both their lives.
Tangled Web (Deizian Empire, #1) Reviews
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Check out this review and others at
badassbookreviews.com
Tangled Web was a very pleasant surprise. I don’t know what I expected when I decided to read it but I was fascinated by the interesting mix of a Roman-like Empire set in a fantasy world plus the unusual role reversal where the hero is the bookish one that needs protection while the heroine is the muscle.
Please don’t get the impression that Titus is a wimp or anything of the sort. He’s just a bookish man who was elevated to the position of Emperor sooner than he was expecting. He’s an idealist who has great plans for the Empire but is not sure how to implement them. He lacks confidence because he knows he can’t compare to his warrior father and as an unknown entity, he’s seen as weak. His apparent weakness is the reason why other nobles feel he can be easily dispatched.
Azurha for her part, is a former slave so I don’t have to tell you what her life has been like. After escaping a life of slavery, she becomes the best assassin in the realm and takes the assignment to kill the Emperor as a way to fund her retirement. But then she meets Titus who is kind and treats her like a human being. Before you know it, she’s wrestling with her feelings for the Emperor and her need to have an obscure life.
The characterization was really good. You can really believe both in their roles and how they were great for each other. Azurha gave Titus the confidence in himself he lacked, while Titus gave Azurha the love she’s never had. I specially liked how the author portrayed Titus’ growth. At the beginning, he seemed so lost and insecure but as the book ends, he’s a force to be reckoned with. He’s not a warrior in the physical sense – he can defend himself but he’s not a fighter – but you can feel the strength of his Will and you know he’ll do everything in his power to change the future of the Empire.
"When my father died, I felt like I was adrift in a sea of chaos. I didn’t know how someone like me could ever replace him. He was a natural leader…I was a man of books and dreams, not a warrior. Then I decided I didn’t have to be him. I could shape the empire into something new. Something better. Something far greater than my ancestors could ever imagine."
The conflict between Azurha and Titus is difficult to overcome so I couldn’t fault her indecision. As you can imagine there’s no easy way to tell him: “Lots of people want to kill you and they sent me to do it! But don’t worry about me now. I love you and I’ll protect you.” (As this is a romance and there’s every expectation that they will end up together, it’s not a spoiler if I tell you she didn’t kill him. :) I applaud the author for making her assassin’s skills really believable. There are examples of her kills (in one of them, she opened a hole in a roof and dropped poison in the target’s open mouth while he was sleeping! Yikes!) and once she’s in “protecting Titus” mode, she’s constantly looking for threats and evaluating the people they meet. I didn’t buy the reason why she didn’t kill him right away (she seemed pretty confident she could get away easily) but understood why she didn’t go through with it after she got to know him.
When I started reading I thought this was going to be a really steamy read but it wasn’t as much. Yes, there are lots of love scenes but most of them are nothing out of the ordinary. There are some allusions to future kink but those never materialize.
The world building was interesting and clever, specially the mix of a Roman-like Empire in a world full of magic. Like the Romans, the Deizians are a powerful people who conquered other races but unlike the Romans, they did it with their powerful magic. There is a conflict between different races and there are interesting political ramifications. There is a connection between Azurha’s and Titus’ magic but this was not clearly explained. This is an important link between them but I didn’t understand how it came about.
Not everything is solved at the end of this book so I’m really, really looking forward to see how Titus puts together his plans for the Empire. I really can’t wait for the next book!
Thanks to Entangled Publishing for providing a review copy of this book. -
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TANGLED WEB is a collection of tropes I can't stand, and yet I devoured this book, reading huge chunks of it at once. Yes, I may have rolled my eyes a little or sneered, but did that mean I put the book down? NOPE. Not once. I read this sucker to the very end.
Azurha was raped and abused until she decided to herself "no more!" and slit her master's throat while he was sleeping. Then she ran away from his household, only to meet up with an assassin who was planning to off her odious rapist himself. He decided to train Azurha to become an assassin as well, and become The Rabbit, one of the most feared assassins in the land. This made me snort, because deadly rabbits?
One can only think of this.
Since the Deizian emperor has just died, that leaves his son, Titus, as heir. Titus is a bookish scholar-cum-philosopher, and has a lot of really grand and revolutionary ideas for changing the empire. Ideas that a lot of important people are really offended about. That's how Azurha ends up in his acquaintance - one of the men who wants Titus out of the way gives her to Titus as a concubine for his harem, assuming that her pretty face will blind him to her deadly ways.
Unfortunately, it's lust at first sight, and Azurha decides that she can't kill him because reasons. Lots of sex ensues. I was honestly surprised - I knew this was supposed to be erotic, but I didn't expect the hero and the heroine to go at it like, err, rabbits (:D) for, like, 70% of the book. But they did. And I wasn't mad at this. Even though some of the passages are worthy of a Bertrice Small novel, I found myself enjoying the interactions between them. They had good chemistry, and McHugh does her best to make each encounter unique, so that nothing gets stale. I appreciated that effort on her part.
As usual, though, the court intrigue was my favorite part of this book. I love it when story lines play a game of thrones, and the environment McHugh created for Titus, where everyone is either out to get him, out to use him, or else just waiting for him to fail, was really quite well done. You see, the Deizians were actually aliens(!) who took over this planet because it worked for them. They oppressed the natives on the planets - the Elymanians and the Alpirions, and the "Barbarians" - turning them into slaves, because they could; they have magic, and nobody else does, neener-neener. There's a lot of classism and general snobbery, and while the world and the names borrow heavily from Ancient Rome, it's got a magic steam-punk vibe too, with magic-access panels & doors, and flying air ships, and a coliseum where soldiers fight to the death.
Even though this book has more cheese in it than the state of Wisconsin, this was a guilty pleasure read for me and it was a ton of fun, exactly what my brain needed after hours of writing essays and studying. I think fans of THRONE OF GLASS or POISON STUDY will like this book a lot, because the premise is very similar. The writing is not as polished as it could be, but that adds to the book's charm in a way. It really did feel like a fantasy bodice ripper.
2.5 stars. -
4.7 stars
Oh my goodness, what a book! It has been on my TBR list for a long time, not because I did not want to read it, but because I felt it would be a so good read that I held myself back from anticipation. Like not wanting to taste a dessert because it looked so good and you wanted to keep it for the end. And even when I started it, I took such a long time to savour it (albeit I was also impeded by RL issues). And the verdict is that the book held all its promises. Really, what was there not to like in this little jewel? There was:
👑 A well written, well crafted and addictive plot with some very good prose and excellent characterisations.
👑 Hot as coals sensuality, very tastefully written, between Titus and Azurha 🌶🔥🥵.
👑 A bordering epic romance, with the Fate trope, between the leads that I actually believed in and got all the feels.
👑 Great drama, action, thriller elements, and angst you could feel coming as an inevitability.
👑 Peplum inspired world building with its aura of the deliciously forbidden, sensual and dangerous (but not on Earth and with space technology). It sounds cheesy but it is not.
👑 Magic (or rather powers). Usually I am not a fan of magic in my romances, but here, it worked well, as there was nothing much fantasy like and it all felt very real.
👑 A beautiful cover 🥰!
Azurha's character felt very true and real. I was impressed how CMH wrote her assassin character. It seemed well researched. She was definitely not the lambda type of heroine. I also loved her Titus. Not the alpha type who roars and quits at the first hurdle. He was considerate, patient but also determined and courageous. I loved that he listened to his instincts even when he had doubts and held his faith in Azurha. I admired that he did not take long to figure out that she was his one, and was prepared to fight the whole Empire, and Azurha, to make her his Empress. Their romance although possibly of the insta type given the book timeline, did not in reality feel as such because the story telling was so good that I actually felt the romance developed between them, granted in a fated way.
The only thing I would have wanted more, is the lack of epilogue to get a taste of their HEA. Also, we did not get the explanation about the 'wild magic' that exist only when Titus is with Azurha. But I do know that they appear in the other books in the series. So, I will be definitely digging into these during this year!
💯 recommended. Read it because it deserves to be read and be more widely known.
=======
My review for Book 2:
here, 4.5 stars
My review for Book 3: TBA
My review for Book 4: TBA -
I got a copy for review in exchange for an honest review.
The blurb caught my attention, an assassin that falls in love with the person she is paid to kill. Sounds like an awesome book, right? Well it totally is, I didn't expect so much romance. I hoped there would be enough focus on the story and there is. Hot romance and a good story, what more could you want?
The story starts of good, I was immediately sucked into the story and I liked seeing a bit of the main characters past so soon in the story already. Very quickly you get a good idea of who she is. I think the romance started a bit too quikcly and developed a bit too fast at first, but after that the pacing was good I think. I liked that the author still managed to write a solid and interesting story even though the focus seemed to be on the romance. I do think that sometimes there was a little bit too much focus on the romance, but most of the time the balance was quite good. The story is fast paced and I just wanted to keep reading to see what would happen next! this book certainly had that keep-reading-feel.
This story most certainly focusses on the two main characters, but the side character still get some attention and I managed to get an idea of who some of them were too. Still I think there could've been some more focus on the side characters. On the other I did get a good idea of who the two main characters were, I understood the descisions they mades, their motivaes and what kind of persons they were and even why they felt in love with each other. Even though it may seem like mostly a romance story, there is still some room for character development and story.
And even though it may seem strange there even was some world building in this book. Ofcourse I wished that there was more world building, because I think the author created a very interesting world here. I didn't get a good feel of what the world looked like and how the magic worked. These things are mentioned, but there is just too less. I hope there will be more world building in the next book. I do think that the glimpses we get of the world were very interesting, there were some references to history, traditions and we get a sense of how this world work even though not everything is explained.
To conclude: a fast paced book, with the focus on romance, but also room for a solid story and world building. I really enjoyed it and am looking forward to reading more books from this author! -
The world that the Deizian’s inhabit is a magical mix of sci fi and ancient Rome. Crista McHugh makes it work and it works well. She has painted this world with people from varying races and those various races depict what echelon is yours. For Deizian’s this is a good thing. They are the rulers of the majority of the planet. The Alpirion’s are the slaves that fell to the Deizan’s many years ago. The Alpirion’s are now the slaves to the Deizian’s.
On rare occasions slaves are freed. It does not happen often but those who are free are proud to be free of their caged servitude. Azurha is one of these few. As luck would have it upon her freedom she was immediately taken into the care and training of Cassius. He mentored her to do what he does. He taught her to be the best. He trained her to be an assassin. Azurha’s mark is the new emperor. The task is simple. She is to use her beauty to get close to him, kill him, and retire with her notoriety and anonymity intact. She breaks everything she has ever known by going against one of the first rules she was ever taught.
There are far more people that do not want Titus as their emperor than supporters. He is seen as too scholarly, too philosophical, just all around poor emperor material. Many of his royal family governors see themselves as far better ruler material. Titus being a very intelligent new emperor knows he has a long road ahead of him. He knows that even though his ideas are seen as radical they have the interest of all of the people. The changes he needs to make to his empire worry many. Titus has not even become comfortable in the throne when his cousin gifts him with the first concubine for his harem. It does not take Titus long to discover that Azurha is so much more than she admits.
It is impossible not to like Titus and Azurha as a couple. They complement each other extraordinarily well. They both force each other to see things they have always been blind to. Azurha has seen the ugliness of the empire first hand. She was born into slavery. Titus who was born into royalty has only seen what has been shown to him. His honest nature opens Azurha up to him about many things. She is not just his lover, in so many ways she becomes his advisor, she all too quickly becomes his protector as the assassination attempts keep coming.
I loved how the the title Tangled Web plays into a constant throughout the book. It is also how the author autographed the book. “You’ll never find a know you can’t unravel.” Azurha and Titus lives are surrounded by this in so many ways. This political coup quickly turns into one hot romance as two unlikely people find that they are exactly what the other never knew they were missing. I’m looking forward to reading the next book in the Deizian Empire, Poisoned Web that is scheduled to come out in September of this year.
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This review can also be found on my blog:
A Match Made in Heaven
I would give this between 4-4.5/5. It was a very interesting world that reminded me of a cross between ancient Rome and
Barsoom. Azurha's planet was conquered by the Deizians, who now rule using their technology which only they can control with magic. It was a combination of fantasy and sci-fi that you dont see often, especially not in romance.
I have read a lot of court intrigues and books about female assassins lately, and this was better than all of them. It wasn't too slow or talkie and didn't focus on politics. The romance was smoldering and the action and suspense was so intense that it literally left me breathless with anticipation. At one point, I had to put the book down and watch some TV for awhile, to let my heart-rate get back to normal.
Azurha and Titus had great chemistry that you could see and feel, even outside the bedroom, although thats where they spent most of their time. The sex scenes are not particularly graphic and are sometimes as short as one paragraph, but they are ridiculously frequent so I would still categorize this as erotica. Azurha is a perfect example of the saying, "Behind every great man is a great woman." With her help, Titus has the potential to be a great emperor who can save their planet. They complement each other and make each other want to be better people. And they love each other desperately.
There is always a conflict part-way through a romance, and Titus was inevitably going to find out Azurha's secret, but I love how it was handled. Titus acted rationally and considered what he knew about her before jumping to any conclusions. He loved her enough to consider her side before letting his hurt feelings get in the way. It was a major event, but hardly even a stumbling block in their relationship.
The first part of the book focused on developing Azurha and Titus' relationship and establishing her place in the story. But after Azurha changed her mind about her place, things started to get tense. There was always something else around the corner. But now Azurha and Titus can face it together, and I cannot wait to read the next book!
I would like to thank the authors for sending me this book in exchange for an honest review. -
Okay, this might be a little shallow of me, but when I saw the word "assassin" I knew I just have to read this book. :P The synopsis immediately got me. The civilization described seemed to reflect that of the Ancient Greeks and Romans. Can I get a happy sigh? Ancient history? Me gusta!
Most of you probably imagine from the synopsis, that his book would follow the assassin-falls-in-love-with-the-man-she-has-to-kill plot, well it did. It was quite predictable in that sense but it was still entertaining. The chaos within a civilization like the one in the book would always keep you on your toes. You never know what might happen. It kind of was mind boggling with the complexity of the empire. Just thinking back to the Roman Empire, there were tons of backstabbing and espionage. I really like that.
The world building was quite good. I like when authors don't overdescribe the environments. I like when I have some room to imagine and build up the worlds myself, and I think Crista did a great job of that. I mean the first paragraph really just captured me into the novel. I thought I was there with Azurha. I felt pain, frustration and fear. If I was in her shoes, being a slave, I think I would have given up but Azurha didn't. And from the first chapter Azurha demonstrated to me how strong she was. I was picturing a mature Arya from Game of Thrones, awesome!
Azurha and Titus were both loveable characters. Oh Sarah, if you are reading this, please don't laugh at what I am about to say, okay? Their passions for each other could definitely be felt. It was HOT, HOT, HOT! This was definitely a great romance and a good break between doing my chemistry homework. Oh, with the mention of chemistry, Azurha and Titus had a lot of chemistry. It really did tangled you in a web of love, danger, and mystic.
Overall, this was a fabulous read. If you are looking for a fabulous romance novel, I suggest you try this out. -
I admit that sometimes I'm shallow. I was originally attracted to this book by the cover. I rather like a combination of fantasy and SF and while this turned out to be more fantasy in the end, it retained the futuristic romance feeling that I rather like.
It is a romance, although not as explicit and sex heavy as I had thought it might be. There's still a bit more instant hardening and dampening than I really need, but it all fits it well with a solid story with a solid plot. The story and the sex are both well written and that's a credit to the writer.
Yes, there's a lot of angsting and I was left muttering "just, talk!" every so often, but the characters actually had decent reasons for why they didn't tell each other all their secrets. If I had been Azhura, I would probably have chickened out and made the same decision as well.
I would have liked to see more investigation into Azhura's magic, especially how it passed to Titus, but I'm willing to wait and see if it's in the sequel. Right now, I wouldn't mind reading the sequel at all. We'll see how I feel when it actually comes out in a year.
I haven't really read any romance at all lately; I just haven't been in the mood. So this was a pleasant return to the genre, even if it's not a particularly mainstream example. I think Crista McHugh is an author to watch. -
5 stars
I enjoyed reading Tangled Web and reading assassins. Especially assassin who is fallen in love with his/her target. It makes me sighing a lot. I loved both hero and heroine. The side characters were nice to read too. The plot was interesting and I had great experience with thrilling actions in this book. For sure, I crave for more. Looking forward to read next book. It may not be about assassin but this series hooked me!
Recommended. -
Originally Reviewed For:
Tea and Book
This book was absofreakinlutely fabulous! Mock me if you must, my creative use of the English language but sometimes, when you get your socks blown off (says the California girl that rarely actually wears socks) there are no words to describe what you are feeling and right now, in this moment about this book...is one if those times for me!
Tangled Web is book one in Crista McHugh's Deizain Empire Series, one I hope that goes on for a very long time. Set in a world of racial divide, of haves and have nots, of the very rich and the very poor. Of ruling classes with power and magic and conquered people serving as slaves. Corruption, greed, avarice and jealousy abound. This world is full of stories and Ms. McHugh starts at the very top.
"The king is dead long live the king" When the reigning King dies of a wasting disease, his son and heir takes over. Everything should go as planned. Except there are those who want his job and the only way to get it is through treachery and deceit... Oh yeah and assassination. Only a select few can be trusted and no one enters the palace unless thoroughly investigated...
Being a Deizian puts you at the top of the food chain and being an Solution leaves you in the gutter, at best. So when an Alpirion slave girl manages to escape from chains and kill her abusive master her best hope is a life on the run and in the shadows. Instead she literally runs into a master assassin who is willing to take on an apprentice. And so the legend that is The Rabbit is born.
Azurha is at the top of her game. She has never failed to complete a kill. So when a cousin to the new king hires her for a job, she may be uncomfortable with the subject but secure enough in her talent to get the job done. Entering the palace as a concubine on the other hand... But still she accepts the job having no clue just how special the man who is king really is. At first she wants just one moment for herself but every moment they spend together leads her to dream of more.
Titus Sergius Flavus the philosopher Emperor, has taken the throne upon the death of his father. He knows that there are those who covet the throne but is sure all precautions are being taken. Even though he has been alone since the death of his wife two years previously, Titus is loathe to open the royal harem. When his cousin presents him with a gorgeous Alpirion for his harem, Titus was lost. Instantly captivated by her beauty. In one single beguiling moment.
Interwoven amongst the malice in the palace is a love story that overcomes, race, prejudice, culture, social class and personal insecurities. Together these two literally change their world. While Titus has the security of a loving family background he is sometimes too trusting. But in a way that is what sways Azurha to his side. He is a man committed to what's best for his people, ALL of his people. If only he can stay alive ling enough.
There is so much going on in this book! Crista builds her world beautifully. Helping us embrace each character and believe in the magic. Sorry to repeat myself, but ABSOFREAKINLUTELY amazing!
Shauni
Be sure and check back next week for my review of book two, Poisoned Web.
This review is based on the ARC of Tangled Web provided by the author. -
Tangled Web has an intriguing world. It's like a touch of arabian slavery plus magic plus intrigue. I mean they have slavery...and...airships? Anyway that's beside the point. Tangled Web is a pretty hot read. I mean I think Azurah and Titus are having sex probably every three pages.
I do enjoy the world though, it's interesting. I think emperor's, concubines, magic all wound together is well done. It has a lot of potential to be more than just an erotic novel and there isn't nearly as much plot as I would have liked but what WAS there I did enjoy. I know there is a sequel so maybe they will expound upon that world. I definitely want to read what comes next in the series.
The characters are interesting. Azurah is relatively complex due to her life experiences. (I also can't help but love her name) Though it's the basis of the plot, I'm not sure why she really DID hesitate in killing him in the beginning when she's killed so many people before. Ah well, it was probably for the sake of the plot. Her monologues about how sure she was that Titus was going to have her head chopped off for being an assassin got really old. I mean come on, the captain of her guard knows she killed somebody and thanks her and she expects her lover to kill her? I mean come on. On the other hand, Titus had to be a total idiot to not have known that she killed that guy because he clearly didn't snap his neck. Plus he knows she has killed before. I was glad we got to see a bit of both Azurah and Titus' lives. Titus was a good man and would be a strong emperor. I definitely liked his attitude towards the end of the novel and his imperial authority. Oho my. Though I can't help but be more interested in his friend Marcus. I would definitely like a follow up on his character.
I did definitely feel it begin to drag a bit. Once I hit about 60% of the way through I had that feeling like it should have been closer to the end than it was. They kept dragging out the secret of Azurah being the assassin that I almost got to the point where I didn't care how they reacted to it. I couldn't help but think she was stupid by this point which I know she wasn't. She had so many good opportunities to tell him and didn't (I assume to make the book longer than necessary) and it's not like he really would have killed her, they were both ridiculously in love with each other. As stated above.
There were a few plot holes but nothing too huge.
The ending was pretty action packed and a quick read even if there was a bit of slow down in the middle. I definitely enjoyed the ending a lot and thought it was wrapped up pretty nicely but with enough going on to definitely warrant a sequel. I will say that the whole magic bit at the end seemed pretty out of place though. It's strange to me to go from swords and brutal action to magic mist fighting. Anyway, I will most definitely be reading it. -
"May you never find a knot you can't unravel." These words greeted me as I opened the gorgeous cover of Tangled Web by Crista McHugh. I immediately smiled as these words griped my heart and gave me the feeling that they were a good omen for my life. I gently turned to the first page of the exquisite novel and began reading.
The novel opens with the reader learning that the teal eyed Alpirion, Azurha, is a slave and has been tied to wooden posts for three days after being repeatedly raped by her master and her master's friends. Another slave, Ramina, comes in the room and takes pity on her. Ramina gives Azurha a drink of water and then helps her to release herself. Ramina picks up a broken piece of pottery and slices through one of the ropes binding Azurha's wrists. She hands Azurha the shard so she is able to finish freeing herself. As Azurha is almost finished cutting through the ropes that bind her, her master begins to wake up. She quickly finishes slicing through her bonds and slits her master's throat. With that act Azurha has committed a great crime and must flee for her life. After escaping her former master's home, she runs into Cassius. Cassius takes her under his wing and trains her to become an assassin.
Seven years after gaining her freedom, Azurha, who has become known as the Rabbit, has been hired by Governor Pontus to assassinate the new Emperor of the Deizian empire. She enters the Emperor's palace disguised as a concubine. She has two weeks to complete her mission, but things get complicated. Azurha becomes too close to Emperor Sergius, known to Azurha as Titus. She sees potential in him and his ideas to change the empire. She sees a man who can change his empire for the better, but for the empire to become a better place Azurha must fail her mission and protect Titus form any other assassination attempts.
As Azurha's tale unfolds the reader is pulled into her gripping story and you can't help but feel for her. She falls in love with Titus just as much as he falls in love with her. Yet because of her past, and because of what she was originally sent to the palace to do, she feels like she is unworthy of his love. I believe that almost everyone has felt like they are unworthy of someone's love at least once in their life, so the reader can't help but feel compassion for her.
I quickly fell in love with this novel and could hardly put it down. Crista McHugh has a way of pulling her readers in and not letting them go. I was left wanting to know more at the end of Tangled Web and desperately wishing that a second novel was already available.
Crista McHugh if you happen to read this please, please, please hurry with a release of a second novel in the Deizian Empire series because I honestly can't wait to read what happens next. -
Review:
This review can also be found
here
I love all kinds of fantasy books so the blurb of the book caught my eye.I went in not expecting much and much to my delight I was pleasantly surprised.It does kind of use the old formula of assassin-falls-in-love with-target but the descriptions,world building and characterizations in the book made up for it.
Titus is the new emperor of the Deizian Empire after his father's death and he is under a lot of pressure.It also doesn't help that he is kind of an idealist who wants to bring about changes in an empire which was expanded by war and slavery.There are many parallels between the world building and the Roman Empire.Azurha is the assassin who has been hired by one of his relatives to kill him.Since she used to be one of the slaves and was horribly abused she doesn't have much love for the nobles.
She is gifted as a concubine to him and she is surprised by his kindness and progressive ideas.He in turn is enamored by her intelligence,strength and sensuality.So as they spend more and more time together the greater she falls for him and finally decides not to kill him.But they still have politics,treachery and a failing magical barrier to deal with.
The world building with the combination of magic was wonderful to read.The architecture student in me loved all the scenes with the calidarium,tepidarium and other Roman elements.I loved how Titus and Azurha supported each other.He gave her the kindness and sense of belonging that she was always denied while she had the confidence in his abilities when he doubted himself.The division of society by the races and the fact that she was an Alpirion created much needed tension.It was nice to see them overcome it.
I was thankful that we didnt have that long drawn out you-kept-a-secret-from-me fight.Though Titus loved her he wasn't dumb enough to not suspect her.The only shortcoming is that we didn't get to see Azurha in action till the end.I would have loved to see more of her skills.I am happy that this is just the starting of the series and not all issues are immediately resolved.I am excited to read more of these books and would love to know whether the Alpirions too have magic! -
After his father’s passing Titus Sergius Flavus becomes the new ruler of the Deizian Empire. There are many in the empire against him and they will do anything to remove him from his new position. Titus wants the best for his Kingdom but he has his doubts since he hasn’t reached his full magic potential. His focus is on his Kingdom until a distraction walks through the palace doors.
Azurha is the empires deadliest assassin and her latest assignment puts her in a role she is not at all comfortable with. She is sent to kill the new ruler but to do so she must enter his Harem. Unfortunately, for this hardened assassin she has a problem completing her mission after spending time with Titus.
Titus and Azurha cannot fight the fire between them. But how will Titus react when he learns Azurha was brought there to kill him? And will Azurha be able to protect him if he kicks her out of his life?
Crista McHugh’s Tangled Web is sinfully delicious! This erotic feast features one fascinating couple and a killer plotline. It’s impossible to turn away from this story after reading the first few pages! They grasp the reader’s attention and the story keeps it throughout this fantastic tale.
Azurha and Titus have phenomenal chemistry! They turn the heat way up in Tangled Web. I love the inner workings of Azurha her character has such depth and I wanted a happy ending for her so badly. Titus is complex as well. He’s a ruler who is not sure he should be ruling but wants the best for his people. His struggle to command his people and understand his feelings for Azurha is compelling. Azurha’s struggle to deal with her opposing feelings is enthralling. Watching her fall in love with Titus is pure story magic!
I find myself intrigued by the inner workings of this world. I have fallen for several of the secondary characters and I cannot wait to see them again in future books. This is the second book of Ms. McHugh’s that I have read and I’m definitely impressed! She weaves her stories together beautifully and Tangled Web is no exception! Tangled Web is a keeper!
Reviewed by Miranda for Joyfully Reviewed -
"Tangled Web" is the first book in Crista McHugh's new Diezian Empire series. While I believe this book is classified as sci-fi, it has more of a historical romance feel to it with a fantasy twist.
Titus' struggle to take over the role as emperor while trying to improve things for his people makes him such a likable character right from the start. He's got that alpha, take charge attitude and is tough when he needs to be but manages to stay humble. Azurha just might be even tougher though. Working as one of the most feared assassins for the past few years, she never expects to have any problems taking out the new emperor. Her horrible past and her years of killing have made her very cold but not completely heartless.
Titus and Azurha have instant chemistry. She has the opportunity to kill him almost immediately but doesn't take it. Instead, they spend a lot of time together over the days leading up to her bosses deadline. I love that it wasn't all just about the steamy nights between them. She comes to care about Titus and his kingdom that he's working so hard to protect. Both characters grow so much throughout the book. I loved the chemistry between these two. I wish Azurha could have found it in herself to be honest with Titus a little sooner, but it ended up making for a great story. I hope we get a little more of these two in the next book.
Tangled Web was very appropriately named. There are so many obstacles that the protagonists must overcome if they have any chance of being together. It was very fast paced with tons of suspense, especially in the second half. The sequel is due out next year and I will definitely be anxiously anticipating it's release. We will be getting Galerius and Claudia's story in this next one which should be interesting.
http://underworldloveaddiction.blogsp... -
One of the best books I've read this year!
I haven't found many books this year that caused me to have a headache for reading too much. I found that this book was so good, I just couldn't put it down, despite my eyes being so tired.
Azurha and Titus were such a gem together. Titus was so gentle, so respectful, and so noble towards Azurha that I fell in love with him from the beginning of the book. He was very naive, though. If Azurha didn't fall for him, he would have been dead within their first time alone.
One frustrating thing about the book was the time it took for Azurha to tell her secret. I was so frustrated waiting for her to just spit it out already. Of course she'd wait until she was almost dying to reveal it. Women. They are usually unsuspected of crimes, but when it comes down to it, they're still women, talking in riddles and driving men to madness :)
This book was quite long but every page was worth reading. I love the well-developed characters of Varro, Galerius, and Marcus. I also enjoyed the names of Titus's bath pools. Quite entertaining how they were named based on their temperature: TEPIDarium, FRIGIDarium, CALDarium :)
Overall, I think Crista McHugh just earned her spot in my favorite authors list. I most definitely recommend adding this book in your MUST-READ list. -
4 stars!!!
I was impressed with how easily the author of this book managed to capture my attention within the first few pages. I honestly expected to not like this book at all. So you can imagine by surprise when I found myself devouring it.
Even my boyfriend, who avoids books like the plague, picked it up and was considerably intrigued. So much so that I had to fight him off with my mad kung fu skills just to get it back.
While this book was very straightforward and simple for the most part, I found myself enjoying the characters and steamy romance more than I expected. And more than anything, those two factors are what really made this book.
But steamy romances and awesome characters aside, the writing was also well done and left me with a strong urge to read more by this author.
In a way, this book was your typical erotica, but with and extra punch of action, mystery, and of course, sexy time. I look forward to reading the next installment. -
TANGLED WEB is a great story. I've read other books by McHugh and always enjoyed them but this was my favorite, so far. I love the world she creates - a merger of magic, Romanesque time frames, paranormal other-worldliness with a hint of steampunk-like technology. Her characters are wonderfully likable and yet edgy. Azurha is strong and even she is a bit surprised to find she can love after growing up a slave and spending her free years as an assassin. She begins almost immediately to care for Titus. Titus surprises everyone with great strength as a ruler, beyond what his bookish childhood would imply. They find each other through the worst possible situation but love is fated for them. The book is full of hot sex which, for me, enhanced an already rich story. I finished the book anxious for book two!
Rating: 4.5
Heat Rating: Hot: Detailed sex scenes, profanity or graphic violence.
Reviewed By: ReadWarrior,My Book Addiction Reviews -
This is a book I read as a judge for a contest.
This is Book One of the Eizian Empire Series. The story has an ancient Roman feel to it, though it takes place on a fantasy planet. The plot of treachery and deceit surrounding the ascent of the new king reached many levels. Along the way, and impressive love story builds between the former slave assassin and the prince.
Azurha is a character readers will like. She overcomes an oppressive beginning as a slave and trains to be a deadly assassin. Hired to keep the prince from taking the throne, she is insinuated into the palace as a gifted concubine. Titus is immediately drawn to her beauty, employing erotic tactics in his nightly trysts with her. Slowly, her defenses from her tragic past crumble and she faces the decision of completing her mission or risking losing Titus’ love when he discovers the truth.
This enjoyable book has highly erotic scenes and a strong plot. It is an excellent beginning to this new series. -
I received this book through Goodreads First Reads.
An easy, fast read, good for a lazy Sunday morning or a rainy day (and today was both!)
It's not great literature by any means - the plot is fairly standard for a romance, the characterization is average, and the writing style as well. But as far as sexy fluff reading goes, it hits all the right notes! It's steamy without being vulgar, and the protagonists can't keep their hands off one another...
I will say that the hints the author dropped towards the overarching plot of the whole series piqued my interest; while this book was fairly ordinary, the world of the Deizian Empire looks like it might get much more interesting in future volumes! -
I absolutely loved this book. Have you ever had the feeling of not wanting a book to end? Or wishing that you could experience the thrill of reading it the 1st time all over again? Well this book was all of that for me. The chemistry btwn the H/H was wonderful. Totally fell in love with them both. An assassin (who never fails) for the heroine but who falls for the hero who is her next mark. The hero Sergius is the type I adore. Honorable to the core. A few minor things weren't explained in the book (the wild magic & how Sergius' magic seemed to get stronger after knowing Azurha) but it didn't mar my enjoyment. I'm dying for the next book!!!!
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Review to be posted here:
wefancybooks.blogspot.com -
Originally published at
Reading Reality
I was lured into Crista McHugh’s Deizian Empire by a story that sounded an awful lot like Amy Raby’s absolutely fabulous
Assassin's Gambit. It’s a pretty good gambit, I adored that book. But Tangled Web isn’t quite it.
However, it’s still an absorbing story. Let’s say I got quite tangled up in it.
There are a lot of fantasies that use some variation of the Roman Empire as their basis. In addition to the aforementioned Amy Raby series, there’s also Jim Butcher’s Codex Alera, and Lindsay Buroker’s The Emperor’s Edge. What can I say? The Romans did good empire. Long sweep of history, leaving lots of templates for pretty much everything. Sometimes they served as a good example, sometimes as a horrible warning.
In the case of Tangled Web, we have what should be the standard case of a young emperor coming to the throne early, and one who has spent most of his life with his nose buried in a book. He’s a bit naive, or a bit unrealistic. He thinks that he can make the empire work the way it should work, instead of the way it does work.
A lot of influential people will get kicked in the moneybags if he gets his way. Especially the ones who own slaves. So they decide a timely assassination is in order.
Enter the Rabbit. Not the animal, a person. An assassin, in this case, a former slave who freed herself by murdering her master. He and his friends had been raping her for three days by this point, so she considered herself not just more than justified, but beyond caring.
She escaped her fate and became an assassin. Not that easily, but not quite part of our story.
One of Emperor Titus’ cousins hired her to infiltrate his household and assassinate him. The method of infiltration chosen by her contract was for her to become a member of his harem. Azhura turned out to be the only member of Titus’ harem.
And when he refused to force himself on her, like every other man she had every dealt with, she couldn’t bring herself to kill him the first night. That was her fatal mistake. She let her intended victim get too close.
Once she started actually talking with the man she should have killed, she found herself enjoying his company. Even more insane, she discovered that the Emperor was listening to her and taking her advice!
Titus believed that Azurha was the only person around him who did not have some kind of hidden agenda. It was only after he fell in love with her that he discovered exactly how big a fool he was.
And that she was the only person keeping him alive.
Escape Rating A-: Tangled Web is just wildly good fun. The love story is just so classic; the assassin falls in love with her target, but in this case it was very well done.
Azurha was such a mass of contradictions, but understandably so. She was part of a conquered race; her people were slaves. She freed herself through extreme violence and pain, and so she has very little trust. Titus patiently wears down her resistance, because he needs someone to be there just for him, he doesn’t have anyone else.
Their relationship builds up over a few days, instead of him storming her barricades instantly. He could, but he doesn’t. He’s different from what she’s used to, both as a man and as a member of the Deizian race.
And they’re magical together. Not just the sex, although that too. But the better they are together, the stronger his magic becomes, which is an important plot point that isn’t explained quite as clearly as I would have liked. I hope there is more explanation coming in the rest of the series (
Poisoned Web and
Deception's Web).
Also, this is labeled as both science fiction romance and fantasy romance. It reads/feels like fantasy, but there are spaceships. There is tech, but it seems to be powered by magic. Or maybe not. Hopefully we'll see later in the series.
When Azurha started talked with Titus instead of killing him, I kept wanting to shout “she named the puppy!” because that’s what it felt like. Once she let Titus become a real person in her mind instead of the just the faceless Emperor, she was doomed. She named the puppy, and he turned out to be a very handsome puppy, with big strong muscles. Also extremely affectionate! -
Azurha knows she is an assassin and she knows what has brought her to her profession. A life of slavery at the hands of the Deizian Empire. When she is given the assignment to kill the next Emperor of the Empire before his coronation it seems a job well suited to her not only because she is the best but because the Empire symbolizes every evil which has brought her to this point in her life. Imagine her surprise when she meets Titus and instead of reminding her of the cruelty of the Empire he reminds her that she is a woman. Again and again. But far beyond a talented lover Titus is what the Empire needs to change. Now Azurha is put in the position of protecting the man she was paid to kill. She thought her last job would bring her enough coin to retire her days as an assassin. She never imagined she would fall in love with her target.
Tangled Web deftly pulls you in with the intense emotion and passion between Azurha and Titus. You are caught in their web and McHugh does an excellent job of unravelling the knots that keep these two apart and weaving a tantalizing tale of romance within the walls of the exotic Deizian Empire. -
I received this book as part of the Goodreads First Reads Giveaways. That being said, I would gladly buy this book. It was amazing and I found myself being completely absorbed in the story. Crista McHugh is now on my author watch list and I will definitely be checking out her other books, as well as impatiently waiting for the next book in the Dezian Empire series.
I loved the relationship between Azurha and Titus. The world in this story is fascinating too. It's a blend of ancient Greco-Roman society and sort of futuristic or steampunk-esque attributes. I would love to travel more in the world to learn more about it since Tangled Web is mostly restricted to two different palaces of Titus'.
I plan on letting my friends read this (though I will insist on them being very very careful with it since the copy I won is an autographed copy). -
Great book! This was an interesting read about a young, attractive slave named Azurha, turned assassin who is sent on a job to kill the emperor Titus, ordered by his own cousin. This book had some very sexy, erotic scenes that progressed throughout the relationship between Azurha and Titus which were so steamy that if Azurha hadn't shown signs of intelligence, you would think the relationship was purly physical. I liked how Titus, even though filled with lust, was able to be both rational and gentlemanly. Azurha's character was very likeable. It was enjoyable to read how a woman used for sex was able to find a man who truly cared for her.
This book has a somewhat ancient Roman or Greek empire feel to it so the vulgar language used by the characters was a little off putting but overall a great book. -
I presume you know what the book is about. I'm letting you know what I liked or disliked about it.
I've said it before, and I'll say it again ;)
I love me some Crista McHugh! I've wondered before about what exactly it is in her work that I enjoy so much. Is it the words; the way they're written, the cadence of them, the tone, the imagery created in her descriptions? What?
I really am no closer to knowing the answer to that question. I'll keep reading though and if any ephiphanies strike (ha!) I'll include it in a review.
I recommend the book. It really is a great read!
