Review: King of Hearts

Posted July 18, 2015 in #giveaway, Blog Tour, review, romance Tags:

King of Hearts (Hearts, #3) by L.H. Cosway
three-flames

Series: Hearts #3
Also in this series: Hearts of Blue, Thief of Hearts, Hearts on Air
Also by this author: Six of Hearts, Hearts of Blue, The Player and the Pixie, Showmance, Thief of Hearts, Hearts on Air
Goodreads

Welcome to the City, London’s most prestigious square mile, where finance reigns and Oliver King is a rising prince.
I used to rule the world.There might be wolves on Wall Street, but there were crocodiles in Canary Wharf. Some of us craved money. Some of us craved power.I liked money, and power had its advantages, but what I really wanted was to excel, to surpass the men who came before me. I never cared much for love and romance until I met Alexis.I could feel it the very moment she walked into the interview, with her outspoken charm and vivacious personality. She cast all the others in shadow, made me laugh when life held no humour. Our friendship should have remained professional, but it wasn’t long before the lines started to blur.You know what they say about the best laid plans of mice and men? Well, I never foresaw where my plans would lead, and only in my darkest hour did I finally see the light…You can have all the money and prestige in the world and still be the poorest man alive. And love, well, I hate to use a tired old cliché, but love can be the thing that truly sets you free.L.H. Cosway’s next standalone romance, King of Hearts will be released in the summer of 2015.

I fell in love with Jay Fields in Six of Hearts and thats when I discovered how amazing L.H. Cosway is! This book only added to my obsession with her writing! (Seriously, if you haven’t read one of her books, you are in for a treat! And she teamed up with another fav of mine, Penny Reid, to write a book! AWESOME!). So, what did I love about this book? First, Alexis is great. She is sassy and has the mouth of a sailor which is different for a book heroine. She grew up poor and you see her struggle to fit in to a world that she is unfamiliar with. It was refreshing! Next, I loved King. I have a thing for a tortured hero. Its easy for an author to write a tortured heroine and have the reader still feel sorry for that person. But, to write a good tortured hero, you have to have a man who isn’t going to save anyone because he needs saved and that is a tough sell in a romance novel. L.H. Cosway does it so well though! What Alexis and King go through is funny, heartbreaking, and redeeming; its so beautiful that you won’t be able to put the book down until its over. Then I spent my time wishing it wasn’t over. Thats what L.H. Cosway’s books do to me and I love it!

“I’m…” I began and then paused, feeling ridiculous. “This is stupid. I never make apologies for who I am or where I come from, but I just feel a bit embarrassed about my flat.”

“Your flat is lovely, Alexis.”

I pulled my lips through my teeth. “Thank you, but I mean the outside, not the inside. It’s probably because I’ve been to your place and seen how fancy it is. I bet you’ve never even stepped foot in a building like mine before in your life.”

He studied me, face drawn into a serious expression. I felt his shoulder brush mine when he said, “I haven’t, but what does that matter? You don’t always have to be stuck where you are. You can improve your life endlessly so long as you have the capability of doing it, and you, Alexis, have the capability. Don’t ever let anyone else tell you otherwise. But back to the matter at hand. You’re my friend, therefore, I don’t care where you live.”

I stared at him, dumbfounded and kind of flattered by all that stuff he said about my capabilities. I didn’t want him to know I was flattered though, so I ignored his compliment and blundered on. “And that’s another thing. Isn’t it a bit weird that I’m your friend and I also work for you? Do you normally make friends with your PAs? Isn’t this, whatever we’re doing, against the rules?”

“That’s a lot of questions.”

“I need a lot of answers.”

He was close enough that I could feel his breath on my ear. “Okay, I’ll endeavour to give you some. First, I wouldn’t say it’s weird that we’re friends. It’s more out of the ordinary.”

“Same difference.”

“Let me finish.”

“Fine,” I huffed.

“Second, no I don’t normally make friends with my PAs. In fact, I’d never planned to make friends with you. It just sort of happened. I like you. You make me laugh. And you’re different from other people I know. Having you around makes the day that little bit more interesting. I enjoy the spontaneity of never quite knowing what you’re going to come out with next,” he paused to laugh gently. “And third, no, it’s not against the rules. I’m free to be friends with whomever I choose, employee or not.” He went quiet then and I turned to see why he’d stopped talking.

His eyes looked…heated.

Now he whispered, his breath kissing my ear, “If I were to fuck you, it would be frowned upon, but it still wouldn’t be breaking the rules. I’m not your teacher or your college professor, Alexis.”

L.H. Cosway has a BA in English Literature and Greek and Roman Civilisation, and an MA in Postcolonial Literature. She lives in Dublin city. Her inspiration to write comes from music. Her favourite things in life include writing stories, vintage clothing, dark cabaret music, food, musical comedy, and of course, books.

She thinks that imperfect people are the most interesting kind. They tell the best stories.

How do you come up with your characters? Based on someone, dreams, famous people?

It’s an amalgamation of all three really. Usually it goes a little something like this: the appearance is based on a celebrity, the personality is based on real people with some tweaking (artistic licence) and what happens to them comes to me through daydreams (as opposed to actual dreams).

What books do you have coming up that we should be on the lookout for?

My next project is another romance in my Hearts series and is based on two characters who you’ll get to meet in King of Hearts. It’s called Hearts of Blue.

How was your experience teaming up with Penny Reid to write a book (because you are both AMAZING!)?

Why thanks! Writing with Penny is great. I think we work so well together because we’re both very laid back and don’t get upset easily. I also love the excitement of seeing what she’ll come up with next for the story. I love her mind.

Do you map out a story or just go with it?

I always map it out, but there are usually areas that I leave blank and let come to me as I’m writing. It’s more fun that way. If I knew everything that was going to happen I’d lose interest in the story.

What are your writing rituals (listening to music, sitting in a special chair, etc)

I listen to music a lot. Most of the time I’ll pop on a playlist as I’m preparing to start writing. Other times, I’ll go lie down, close my eyes and just listen. Lots of new ideas come to me that way. I also like to watch interviews with people who my characters are based on. It allows me to get a feel for their personalities and how I can portray them on the page.

I noticed you put your playlist for a book up on FB. Do you have the playlist before you write, or does it develop as you write (book playlists are like my favorite thing!!)

It develops as I go along. I’ll be thinking of a scene and a song will come into my head. Then it goes in the playlist.

Do you ever think about who you would like to play one of your characters if it was made into a movie? If so, who would you cast?

Yes, I do! It’s probably the reason why I spend so much procrastinating on Pinterest. If I were to cast the leads for King of Hearts, I’d choose Ryan Gosling for King, and Marina Diamandis for Alexis.