Review: Sapphire Scars by Pepper Winters

Title: Sapphire Scars
Author: Pepper Winters
Series: The Jewelry Box #3
Publication: June 26, 2024
Genre: Dark Romance
Find it on: Amazon
Rating: 3/5★

“I thought I was strong enough to survive this awful nightmare. I did my best to take back my power and refused to let my heart fall. Only problem is…my heart is an idiot.”

It only took one droplet of blood to forever change me.
Her blood.
The taste of it. The heat of it.
I swallowed her down and devoured her.
For a while, it was enough.
My monster was content. I believed I’d found where I belonged.
But now…that droplet is no longer enough.
I want rivers of it. Oceans of it.
I want the world dripping in red and I honestly don’t know who I’m hunting anymore.
Her?
Me?
Them?
One thing’s for certain, someone is going to die today.
I just hope it won’t be me.

Triggers on every warning possible.
This is dark, explicit, and will push every boundary that exists.
Be warned….
And to all those dark souls out there…welcome to The Jewelry Box

I didn’t enjoy Sapphire Scars as much as the first two books in the series. That doesn’t mean that this third installment was bad, it just wasn’t as strong as the previous ones in my opinion. The start of the book was strong but for me it dwindled down once it reached the middle part and through the ending. I’m still very much looking forward to the next and final book, Diamond Kisses, but I hope I’ll be more into it than I was with this one.

My main issue with this book was that it felt a bit the same as the first two books. The same things being rehashed over again. Not to say that there wasn’t some developement in the story but not enough for me to say that I liked it more. Ily and Henri both did admit that their feelings are more than just lust but other than that I just didn’t feel a lot of change in any characters or the plot.

I do have some positive things I want to say about Sapphire Scars. My favorite from the book was the author’s writing. As always it was beautifully lyrical and almost liked poetry. Pepper Winters has a stunning way of writing and she also has a knack for writing very steamy scenes, which was no different in this installment of the Jewelry Box series.

So Sapphire Scars might’ve not been my favorite of the series so far but I found things that I did enjoy about it. My guess for the next book is that Henri’s brother Q is going to show up at some point and I’m already looking forward to that on its own. And of course I hope the series bad guy Victor will be killed in the most violent way. And I hope my girl Ily is going to do it. Those are my theories and guesses for the final book. I’m hoping for a more kickass ending and Henri finding having a family that loves him because he deserves it after everything he had to go through with his father.

About the author:

On a career level, Pepper currently has close to 40 books released in nine languages. She’s hit best-seller lists (USA Today, New York Times, and Wall Street Journal) almost 40 times. She dabbles in multiple genres, ranging from Dark Romance to Coming of Age.

On a personal level, Pepper lives on a farm with two minis, four horses, countless birds and wildlife, and a precious little ball of fluff called Mo. Her little house-rabbit sits at her feet while writing all the words, and always seems to know when she’s writing a naughty scene. He’s her muse and the main reason why a rabbit is on her author logo.

Now back to the writing stuff…

After chasing her dreams to become a full-time writer, Pepper has earned recognition with awards for best Dark Romance, best BDSM Series, and best Hero. She’s an #1 iBooks bestseller, along with #1 in Erotic Romance, Romantic Suspense, Contemporary, and Erotica Thriller. She’s also honoured to wear the IndieReader Badge for being a Top 10 Indie Bestseller.

After releasing two books with Grand Central, Hachette (Ruin & Rule and Sin & Suffer) Pepper is a Hybrid Author of both Traditional and Self-published work.

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