BOOKWORM REVIEW: Salt Kiss by Sierra Simone

September 24, 2023

BOOKWORM REVIEW: Salt Kiss by Sierra Simone

RATING: ⭐⭐⭐

SPICE: 🔥🔥🔥🔥

I am always skeptical about trilogies because I wonder if the story could be told more precisely in one or two. This might just be one of them.

Tristan Thomas shouldn't have taken this job. As the new bodyguard to Mark Trevena, the owner of Lyonesse -- a members' only club of the sexy variety -- and dealer of secrets, he should not be having these feelings for his boss. Yet, the virgin veteran feels an undeniable pull toward his boss. Things become more complicated when he learns that the man of his forbidden dreams is spoken for and he has been tasked to bring her home.

This is supposed to be a MMF series, but if you are looking for that in this read, Sierra Simone is going to make you wait. She builds the relationship between Tristan and Mark in the first installment of this trilogy, which is done in Tristan's POV, and I find that Tristan is the most boring of the trio (having also read the prequel Salt in the Wound). I certainly hope he becomes more exciting when the trio officially comes into play in the subsequent book, because from my POV, this could have been easily five chapters in a read.

The spicy -- and yes, they were spicy -- moments between him and Mark and when Isolde enters the chat are the redeeming qualities of this read. That ending was the absolute reward I needed after suffering through Tristan's thoughts, and I cannot wait for Book 2.

** I am voluntarily reviewing an advance copy of this book. Thank you to Sierra Simone and Candi Kane PR for providing an ARC. **

ABOUT THE BOOK

Tristan Thomas is lost.

After leaving the Army, the young former soldier is in limbo. Until, that is, he’s hired by Mark Trevena, the owner of Lyonesse—DC’s ultra-secret club—to be Mark’s new bodyguard. He’s drawn into Mark’s dark, seductive world of power and desire, and slowly drawn to Mark himself, even though Mark is everything Tristan knows he shouldn’t want: cruel and wicked and shamelessly amoral.

But protecting Mark isn’t Tristan’s only duty: soon, Mark asks him to guard his soon-to-be bride as she travels home from Ireland on Mark’s yacht. Tristan is jealous—and hurt to learn that the object of his obsession is engaged—but the soldier in him is made to obey orders, and he goes to fetch Mark’s bride for him.

Isolde Laurence is nothing like Tristan expected, however. Young, quiet, and sharp, she’s being pushed into this marriage by her family, and as the two travel back to America, Tristan finds himself fascinated with Isolde and the glimpses he gets of the lonely but determined woman behind her reserve. And the fascination is mutual: one night, while sailing under the cold stars, they share a searing kiss.

From there, it’s a fast fall into the forbidden.

But in Mark Trevena’s world, the fall is only the beginning…

The Lyonesse trilogy is a queer, kinky contemporary retelling of the legend of Tristan and Isolde, set in the same world as the New Camelot series. Readers will not have to read New Camelot to enjoy Lyonesse, although readers who enjoyed New Camelot will find all the things they loved about the trilogy here: MMF ménage, plenty of the angsty forbidden, and a sweeping retelling of a familiar story.

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