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A review by meggie82461
Double Down by Alessandra Torre
4.0
4 stars for this duet!! ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
“I can’t love you and not protect you. I can’t love you and not fight for you.”
This was a sexy, suspenseful, and romantic read. I'd read a couple AT books, so when I saw this duet was on KU, I jumped right in. I'm glad I did; the plot was suspenseful and all the characters-even the secondary ones- were likable and unique. The story seemed to be told mostly from Bell’s POV, with Dario contributing at times as well as a few other people. Was this a case of insta-love? Yeah, probably, but I feel like it is possible that sometimes, you just know. However, it was Dario that stole the show for me.
I hadn’t lived much. Done much. I didn’t know much, but I knew that our connection wasn’t normal. It was two planets colliding. Explosions. A black hole that pulled you in, regardless of the danger. It felt like a once-in-a-lifetime connection, but everything around us was once-in-a-lifetime levels of fucked up.
Dario and Bell meet when she's waitressing at an independent casino in Las Vegas. As a lot of reviewers have noted, Dario is married when him and Bell meet. If you want to know those dynamics, here ya go, but they're integral to the plot so I'm tagging them as a spoiler.. They embark on a whirlwind of both an emotional and a sexual relationship, but their bonds are tested at every corner. They always prevail, though, and Dario gets dreamier with each page. He's possessive and a bit spoiled, but underneath it all, he's actually a very good person. He's also a beast in the sack, which totally helps. I loved how he worshipped Bell at every turn. I also loved how he allowed himself to be vulnerable, how he'd lay all his cards on the table. The man knows what he wants, and I found it both sexy and sweet.
Ten thousand cocktail waitresses in this town and he had to meet the one that might break him.
He was too everything—a black hole that could suck me in without even feeling the crush of my soul.
Yes, Bell can be a bit annoying and stubborn, but she's young. She also has trauma in her past that made her life an endless string of temporary relationships. Dario bulldozes through and decimates her walls, and I commend the effort she put into navigating her feelings for him in a healthy way. She handles all the roadblocks fairly well, all things considered. She has a strong sense of self, which I liked. She also wasn't easily taken with all his glamour. She wasn't perfect, but she stood by her man, and at the end of the day, that was enough for me.
The stronger the fear grew, the stronger the love became. His only option was to remove all risks. Keep her safe, treat her like a queen, win her heart. Go all in, and hope that luck, for just this one time, was in his favor.
Now, the plot. I personally thought that while the overall storyline was somewhat predictable, the twists themselves weren't. There was a character in the first book that I found quite interesting, but I assumed they would become a "villain." That didn't happen, which relieved me. It wasn't so much that I was surprised about things that happened, but I was shocked by the timing of certain events. It kept me on my toes and I liked that. I also really liked certain secondary characters, especially Bell's roommates and bosses. They provided badly needed comic relief, and I'm glad certain scenes didn't end up discarded! That being said, sometimes the swiftly moving timeline and all the action overshadowed Bell and Dario's relationship. I would've liked more time to just experience them together without all the bullshit. That's often a complaint of mine, so clearly, that's easier said than done. Readers want action, after all. Still, I wanted more of "peacetime" Belario :-) Also, some of the plot had holes, and the resolution regarding a certain character definitely wasn't enough for me.
He’d never had a woman so responsive, so engaged. When she was touched, she bloomed. When he fucked her, she was a rabid animal. When he made love to her, she melted.
Yes, there are triggers. Yes, the overall plot isn't hard to predict. Yes, it is love at first sight. Yes, he's a married man. None of those things bothered me, though, and I had a lot of fun reading a book with intense danger interwoven with romance and the glitz and glamour of Vegas!
“I can’t love you and not protect you. I can’t love you and not fight for you.”
This was a sexy, suspenseful, and romantic read. I'd read a couple AT books, so when I saw this duet was on KU, I jumped right in. I'm glad I did; the plot was suspenseful and all the characters-even the secondary ones- were likable and unique. The story seemed to be told mostly from Bell’s POV, with Dario contributing at times as well as a few other people. Was this a case of insta-love? Yeah, probably, but I feel like it is possible that sometimes, you just know. However, it was Dario that stole the show for me.
I hadn’t lived much. Done much. I didn’t know much, but I knew that our connection wasn’t normal. It was two planets colliding. Explosions. A black hole that pulled you in, regardless of the danger. It felt like a once-in-a-lifetime connection, but everything around us was once-in-a-lifetime levels of fucked up.
Dario and Bell meet when she's waitressing at an independent casino in Las Vegas. As a lot of reviewers have noted, Dario is married when him and Bell meet. If you want to know those dynamics, here ya go, but they're integral to the plot so I'm tagging them as a spoiler.
Spoiler
His wife is his business partner and best friend. They had only a brief sexual relationship a decade earlier, and also, she has a lover of her own. Dario's reasons for marrying Gwen are twofold: materialistic and noble, as he inherits an empire while also keeping her safe from her psychopathic fatherTen thousand cocktail waitresses in this town and he had to meet the one that might break him.
He was too everything—a black hole that could suck me in without even feeling the crush of my soul.
Yes, Bell can be a bit annoying and stubborn, but she's young. She also has trauma in her past that made her life an endless string of temporary relationships. Dario bulldozes through and decimates her walls, and I commend the effort she put into navigating her feelings for him in a healthy way. She handles all the roadblocks fairly well, all things considered. She has a strong sense of self, which I liked. She also wasn't easily taken with all his glamour. She wasn't perfect, but she stood by her man, and at the end of the day, that was enough for me.
The stronger the fear grew, the stronger the love became. His only option was to remove all risks. Keep her safe, treat her like a queen, win her heart. Go all in, and hope that luck, for just this one time, was in his favor.
Now, the plot. I personally thought that while the overall storyline was somewhat predictable, the twists themselves weren't. There was a character in the first book that I found quite interesting, but I assumed they would become a "villain." That didn't happen, which relieved me. It wasn't so much that I was surprised about things that happened, but I was shocked by the timing of certain events. It kept me on my toes and I liked that. I also really liked certain secondary characters, especially Bell's roommates and bosses. They provided badly needed comic relief, and I'm glad certain scenes didn't end up discarded! That being said, sometimes the swiftly moving timeline and all the action overshadowed Bell and Dario's relationship. I would've liked more time to just experience them together without all the bullshit. That's often a complaint of mine, so clearly, that's easier said than done. Readers want action, after all. Still, I wanted more of "peacetime" Belario :-) Also, some of the plot had holes, and the resolution regarding a certain character definitely wasn't enough for me.
He’d never had a woman so responsive, so engaged. When she was touched, she bloomed. When he fucked her, she was a rabid animal. When he made love to her, she melted.
Yes, there are triggers. Yes, the overall plot isn't hard to predict. Yes, it is love at first sight. Yes, he's a married man. None of those things bothered me, though, and I had a lot of fun reading a book with intense danger interwoven with romance and the glitz and glamour of Vegas!