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Blurb
From New York Times and #1 internationally bestselling author Mercedes Ron comes her adult debut—an addictive romantic thriller about a young woman’s protected life and the bodyguard she can’t resist.
*Soon to be a Major Motion Picture*
He was my protection…and my greatest weakness.
Twenty-year-old Marfil Cortés lives the kind of life people imagine from afar. The daughter of a powerful businessman, she spends her days juggling Columbia classes, stolen hours at her ballet studio, and glittering nights in New York City. Her world feels untouchable—polished, predictable, safe.
Until the afternoon she’s abducted in Central Park.
Days later, Marfil opens her eyes in a hospital in New Orleans with no memory of what happened. There are no demands, no suspects, no explanation, only fear and the unsettling certainty that she is no longer safe. In the wake of the attack, her father tightens security and assigns her a bodyguard: Sebastian Moore.
Sebastian is controlled, distant, unreadable—a man whose discipline borders on dangerous. His quiet intensity unsettles and infuriates Marfil in equal measure, stirring resentment toward his presence, his rules, his unyielding watchfulness. Yet as the threat surrounding her refuses to fade, Sebastian becomes the one person she cannot escape…and the one she cannot stop wanting.
What begins as tension slowly ignites into something far more dangerous. Because the closer Marfil gets to Sebastian, the more she realizes the greatest risk may not be the one lurking in the shadows…but the feelings she never meant to have for the man sworn to protect her.
Lush, addictive, and charged with suspense, Drawn Together is a darkly romantic story about love and survival, temptation and control, and the cost of uncovering what others would rather keep buried.
Review
2 stars
An angsty and slow-burning romantic suspense, this bodyguard romance didn’t really hit the mark on romance for me and sadly, was a frustrating read.
The privileged daughter of a wealthy businessman, Marfil is living a happy life in NYC when she is kidnapped and dumped pretty much on her father’s doorstep on the other side of the country. Her father is absent and mostly dismissive, but he cares enough to assign her a bodyguard, and grumpy-but-gorgeous ex-military man Sebastian moves into her apartment and is tasked with protecting her 24/7.
Marfil is wildly unimpressed by the situation, and she has no intention of making Sebastian’s job easy for him. They do not get on, and the fighting and fireworks are almost constant. But beneath it all, Marfil is attracted to her bodyguard, and though he seems to share that attraction, he knows he can’t act on it. It’s a difficult situation made more complicated by the ever-increasing threat of danger, unknown plotting, and devastating secrets which will change everything.
I do love a forbidden romance, and the bodyguard trope is always enjoyable, but I just didn’t feel this one. The romance feels more like lusty obsession. There’s no real emotion from either of them, and even though the ‘love story’ is a slow burn which doesn’t really get started and is set-up to be explored further in the next book, there doesn’t seem to be much of a connection between them. Marfil is childish, needy and flirtatious, and loves to test boundaries, but Sebastian rarely engages. They never really have meaningful conversations, and despite living together, they don’t spend enough quality time together for their relationship to feel believable. There is bickering, Marfil propositioning Sebastian and him (usually) pushing her away, childish attempts to make him jealous, a few stolen kisses, some foreplay, and then sudden and last-minute declarations made under duress, and I didn’t feel any of it.
And as much as I wanted to, I could not warm to Marfil. She’s immature and spoiled, and even after being kidnapped, she is completely oblivious to potential danger. So many of her actions had me rolling my eyes, and I just found her annoying. Sebastian isn’t much better. He’s the broody, growly type who communicates in vague non-answers, and scowls all the time. He gives a lot of mixed messages, which contributes to the back-and-forth between them, but other than being physically attracted, I didn’t really see the appeal for either of them.
There are some interesting elements in the story. I liked Marfil’s friends and enjoyed the small hints about their relationship. The suspense is there, though it’s light until near the end of the book, and though I did consider DNFing, I was invested enough to keep reading to see where the story was going.
The twist at the end of the story is not entirely unexpected, but I liked the shift in direction. There is a nasty cliffhanger, but I don’t think I’ll be continuing on with this duet. It’s an interesting premise, but a few intriguing twists couldn’t make up for a romance that never felt convincing.
2 stars. It was just ok.
An Advanced Reader Copy was generously provided by the publisher for an honest review.
A Marfil Saga
Drawn Together
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Drawn Apart
To be released 2 March
Pre-order: Amazon