Nicole's Reviews > Sinful Blaze

Sinful Blaze is the first book in the Chekhov Bratva duet. It's a full-length standalone novel with no cheating and ends on a mind-blowing cliffhanger, Pasha and Daphne’s story continues in the second and final book, Sinful Bride. A brilliantly crafted story with complex individuals and a twisty storyline that grabs your attention from the start and keeps you hooked and on the edge of your seat and turning the pages with it's pulse-pounding twists and adventure. A fast, twisted, thrilling, and tantalizing. An unputdownable and addicting read. This story is told from a dual point of view.
A contemporary romance, organize crime story, billionaires and millionaires romance, mob romance, dark mafia romance, general romance, romantic suspense story, women's crime fiction story, lust-at-first-sight romance, action and adventure story, instalove story, fake marriage story, protective hero story, forced proximity romance, touch-her-and-die romance, OTT alpha hero romance, polar opposite attracts story, protector hero story, Bratva romance, secret baby romance, damsel in distress story with family drama, fear, nasty parents, hidden secrets, passion, pain, action packed, anger, revelations, tension, emotions, angst, trauma, revenge, retaliation, betrayal, enemies, rivalry, spice, family, hatred, surprises, heartbreak, mystery, obsession, power and control, deception, lies, possessiveness, humiliation, suspense, love, jealously, possessiveness and so much more.
Daphne Hamish is a twenty-something year old art curator at Bloomington Brothers, an up-and-coming gallery on the Upper West Side of Manhattan, and tonight is one of the biggest events of her life. The money that she gets from this big show was supposed to pay her bills and set her up for the next year. Daphne’s silver spoon socialite mom his parents had arranged the relationship between her and Conrad, one in which they should be married eventually. Conrad Ewing her now ex-boyfriend, is the star artist of the art show. Eight hours prior Conrad decided to throw her out into the streets so that his mistress Brittany's could move in and enjoy what use to be her home. It is the most shittiest day of her life and she wishes that she could've taken a Xanax or have a drink but her unfortunately her job doesn't allow her to drink on the job. Her boyfriend cheated on her, kicked her out of their home, then to add insult to injury he forced her to curate his art show. His central piece of tonight's showing is his piece de resistance, his magnum opus, which prominently features a nude painting of his mistress he left her for. He's even parading her on his arm while she blushes and wave off her new admirers. Conrad is rubbing it in her face and has been pretending to not notice her since the event began.
As she stares at him Daphne is flabbergasted and wonders how in the hell did she ever found his sleazy ass remotely attractive. Now here he is pretending as if she's not only two feet away from him. As the two are left alone he started degrading her, she wanted to pick up for herself but nothing came out. Conrad and her childhood nemesis since prep school had been cheating on her and know one told her about it. Daphne and Conrad had been dating for five years and she thought that he was going to propose to her after he had her pick out an engagement ring. But when he got up on stage and drop to his knees and pop the question to Brittany with the same ring that she had picked out thinking that it was for her, it was too much for her. She went to the bar and asked for Absinthe and when he asks how much shot she needed she snagged the entire bottle searching for the rear alley exit to get away from the whole scene in front of her with a heavy heart. The bartender was trying to get her attention trying to tell that she couldn't take it, but she turned around telling him that she was having the worst day of her life.
As the ran away she run straight into a hard chest splashing the Asbinthe on the front of his very expensive shirt, that person was Pasha Chekhov, Pakhan of the Chekhov Russian Bratva. She dropped the bottle and grabbed some napkins to dry the stranger up. And as she looks up at him she realized that he was flirting and trying to suppress a smirk at her as she attempts to dry his shirt. However, as they encounter persist her enemy comes running to mock her about being Conrad's new fiancée. As she approaches instantly the sparks in his eyes leaves and he buttons his jacket to conceal the stain. She stiffen as Brittany called her and her noticed. Daphne mouth the words, "help me." He looks over her shoulder at the oncoming nightmare, and in the blink of an eyes she realized that he understood everything. And he did something completely, unexpected and unscripted. He scoops down and kissed her like it's the last thing he'll ever do. Pasha is definitely not the type of man that people runs to for help, and he almost did. He almost walked leaving the beautiful creature who barreled into him standing and not getting involved. But it was something in the way that Conrad Ewing, looked at her then at him.
He saw an instant flash of jealously and possessiveness overcome him. The look on his face was as if he owned her. He was looking at Pasha as if he could immediate him away from her and that was the thing that sealed the deal. He knew then that he wasn't about to walk away. In that moment as he was kissing her he had forgotten his reason for being there. It was to buy art to bribe a United State senator. For a moment while kissing her he stopped thinking about scheming and conquering. Conrad walked over to belittle her yet again. Pasha instantly hated Conrad and his mistress Brittany. His touch assures Daphne that he got it and he would take care of Conrad and his mistress. Pasha can't understand what Conrad saw in his mistress as looked at the two women side by side. He came there to bid at the auction and planned on spending a good chunk of money on a S.C. Ewing original. He wants Daphne and he's going to take what's he's craving the moment the opens for the opportunity.
Because Conrad hurt Daphne and Pasha was feeling protective of her, he bid five million dollars on his painting; his life work which took him years to complete and pour vodka on it then had Daphne burn it for her to feel better and smile. Conrad was having a heart attack when he saw what happened by Pasha and Daphne while the two of them felt good and couldn't stop laughing. They ran out of the room running and drinking her stolen Absinthe down the hall until they found the storage closet where he mad passion love to her. Pasha was so drawn to her that he was thinking about taking her with him and starting a relationship because he didn't want their night to end. Fast forward four months later Daphne found out that she was pregnant with Pasha baby. She knows that she should call him and let him know but she hadn't heard from him since their one night stand four months ago either of them call even though they have each other's number. She was at this high society restaurant with her mother a silver spoon socialite who was berating her for her breakup with Conrad and was trying to force her to get back together with the man who threw her on the street, when all of a sudden her mother froze when she looked over her shoulder.
Daphne turned around only to see the man who has been star of her dreams since their encounter. But instead of talking to him she took off running and Pasha took off after her. He couldn't understand why she would be afraid of him. He found out that she was pregnant and he took her to a clinic to see if the baby was his. Pasha didn't want to be a father and for years he had made up his mind that his brother Makari with get married and have children so that they could be his heir and could leave his empire to in order to carry on the Chekhov legacy. But now that he was a going to be a father everything that he had carefully planned is up in smoke. He became obsessed and possessive towards Daphne and has gone overboard with everything from scheming behind her back to provide a better living situation and a monthly stipend for her, to buying a painting where she got an enormous bonus for. He wants to be there for her for every step of the process but she keeps pushing him away to do it buy herself. She doesn't truly trust that he won't let her down.
The two is still very much attracted to each other but neither of them won't make the first move. They are so much entity that is trying to keep them apart. Her ex who's trying to get back with her and his mistress who's threatening her to stay away from her property, horrible parents who doesn't give a damn about her and wants to take Pasha down for being the cause of them falling from grace then there's is many enemies who will stop at anything to bring him down. It's very hard for Daphne because she's not use to being in the mafia world and she doesn't understand that she can't carry the heir to the Pakhan and there's not a threat against her life. There were so many twists and turns and non-stop action as these two navigate through one landmine after the other all the way up to the cliffhanger.

I received an advanced copy of this book via Booksprout and I am voluntarily leaving a review.