This book was definitely better than the first in the series. The story progressed in a good manner, and I felt the book was one whole book. Still the book do not require much though, it is more a book you read for entertainment.

The story it self has a better ground and understanding than the first book. I was happy that it kept to the original story all the way to the end. The end was a little rushed, but not too much that it was a problem. When it comes to the characters, only Blake seem to develop, and his development happens fast when he realizes his mistakes. The other characters are in this book, as the first, only in the book to serve a purpose. When their purpose is done they disappear out of the story, or just take up space.

You can read this book without having read the first one, but you will miss a few hints to the story in the first book. All in all, it is a quick read for a beach day or a boring rainy evening.

A revenge plot—of enemies to lovers—turns one of my reading screws, always.

But after the somewhat abrupt ending of the previous book—with a pairing that was difficult to buy into—I was rather hesitant about this one when the opening of ‘Deceiver’ was just as awkward and abrupt and seemingly without context: Blake Vandershall hosts a party to lure Daisy Novell in through seduction as part of his scheme to bring her father down. Like the first book, there’s a close stalker element to this as well, as Blake mows down the Lovells’ carefully-constructed lives and exults in it.

What I couldn’t really understand was how Daisy couldn’t quite see through his scheme or remain stubbornly oblivious to it, as Blake wasn’t at all subtle about it—that much she needed to cut herself free of the stifling lifestyle she lived that any ol’ distraction would do? In fact, I wondered why she wasn’t too suspicious, and was astounded even, when she dallied, played the game and flirted without quite having any 6th sense that something was off with Blake when he’d pretty much revealed he knew all about her and her family. Yet all it takes is an orgasm very early on to have Blake remorseful about his own behaviour while the simmering anger that he seems to carry around is enough to turn Daisy on.

Daisy in essence, is attracted to an arse of a man (which might be a trigger for some) but as the blurb unapologetically goes, don’t expect any ‘normal’ romance character traits here. As with a story like this, the turn from enemies to lovers can’t simply be an uneasy truce with sex thrown in for me; it’s made all the more difficult because I need more than the usual convincing that such a pairing—while not all sunshine and roses—is a viable one and it’s what I’ll be looking out for. To some extent they are the perfect pair in a twisted manner of speaking, as one uses the other for their own selfish motives consciously: Daisy as a means to break out of her caged life and Blake who uses her as an outlet.

Seen in this light, ‘Deceiver’ probably succeeds and for that reason, I’m not sure how to rate this read. But take a chance on this if you like hate (and taunting-type) sex, ambiguous and deviant relationships that defy every trope you like in romance.

This story picks up where Stranger: A Dark Stalker Romance left off, giving Blake Vandershall and Daisy Nowell the spotlight. While Daisy's sarcasm and great humor made me giggle a lot, Blake's character was almost a mirror image of Logan Kane from Stranger: A Dark Stalker Romance. Both male lead characters seemed to be cut from the same cloth and their thoughts were almost interchangeable. The only difference between the two was wealth. Otherwise, they both had that self-loathing mindset from former hurts and misdirected their anger unto innocent targets.

Was this book dark? Not for me. Blake had a difficult upbringing that involved abuse but the fine details were minimal and not overly descriptive. This book is perfect for a reader who wants a hint of dark content with a lot of push-and-pull between the main characters.

► Overall, this was an okay read and I loved the heroine's overall attitude. She was direct, determined, and not one to be undermined. She was also the perfect match for Blake.

This is a new author for me. This story was about a man seeking revenge on a woman's father but essentially kidnapping her. I found the ploy to be predictable and the relationship between the characters to progress at warp speed. I had a difficult time finishing this one.