Review: Sweet Temptation by Wendy Higgins

 

Goodreads Overview:

Bad boy Kaidan Rowe has never wanted for anything—money, popularity, musical talent…hot girls—but seducing them is part of his duty as a Nephilim, slave to the demon Dukes. As the son of the Duke of Lust, Kaidan has learned his father’s ways, becoming a master of passion, a manipulator of chemistry. Disobeying his father would mean certain death. Thankfully for Kaidan, he’s good at his job. And he enjoys it.

Until he meets Anna Whitt—smart, feisty, and inexplicably good—the one girl seemingly immune to his charms. The daughter of a guardian angel and a fallen one, she makes him wish for more than he could ever deserve.

Determined to save all the Neph from their dark lives, Anna joins forces with Kaidan to overcome the Dukes’ oppressive ways. In the light of her affections, Kaidan must undergo his toughest test of all, a battle of the heart.

Review:

The original series is told from Anna's perspective, which is drastically different from Kaidan's. She is very innocent and naive having grown up without any knowledge of who or what her parents are. She does not understand the danger she is in as a Nephilim who hasn't been working. As the daughter of the Duke of Substance Abuse, she is expected to corrupt society on behalf of her father. Kaidan, on the other hand, has grown up in this world and has been his dad's right-hand man his entire life. He knows the danger he is in if he doesn't continue to work and do what his father asks. 

This one book retells the entire trilogy from Kaidan's POV. It is much harsher than the original series with increased adult language and content. I would probably classify it as New Adult vs. Young Adult in terms of the target audience. The original three books I would have been comfortable recommending to younger readers.

Readers can see the struggles Kaidan went through once he started to fall in love with Anna. He knew what he was doing for his father was wrong, but his life depended upon it. In addition, Anna's life depended upon him corrupting her. He ultimately decided the best way to protect her was to distance himself from her. She didn't understand his motivation for moving clear across the country to get away from her, but this book allows us to see the struggles that led him to that decision. It was the only way he felt he could keep them both alive. It wasn't what he wanted, but it was what he thought was necessary.

Overall, this companion novel is an excellent addition to the series. I loved Kaidan's character in the original three books and never could have imagined the struggles he went through. He always seemed so confident and hardened after a life as a Nephilim. He never believed he had a chance of being happy and freeing himself from the control of the Dukes. Anna allowed him to hope for a better life. The ending did provide more detail on the lives of the characters after the end of the original trilogy, which was nice. I would highly recommend this series to anyone who enjoys YA romance.