I have been anticipating Felicity Goode and Gabriel Sauvageau story from the very first moment they meet in book two of the series. Did it live up to my expectation? No really. Did I still like the book? Absolutely!

Kerrigan Byrne never fails to write amazing tug-at-your-heartstrings stories with a fantastic lead heroine. Felicity Goode is literally the kindest of the Goode sisters, and Gabriel has loved her from the very first moment he lays eyes on her. His past and disfigurement have always been his main reasons for avoiding Felicity.

He watches her from afar and protects her, but he can't bring himself to be with her. He fakes his death and a year goes by. He goes through "plastic surgery" to fix his facial disfigurement. He becomes a new man with a new identity. When he finally sees Felicity again, she doesn't recognize him, but hires him on the spot to be her personal bodyguard (after a series of attacks on her life). From there the mystery begins, as they try to figure out who would want her dead.

Overall, a great book with amazing angsty characters that sizzle with off the chart chemistry and sexual tension!

Thank You NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

5 stars

This is book four of the Goode Girls series and it did not disappoint. Gabriel Sauvageau has lived his entire life without the touch of a woman, disfigured in fighting pits as a child he wears a mask, has no nose and a drooping eye. In the third book, we can see he becomes enchanted by the youngest Goode sister, Felicity.

This is a slow to burn, angsty read. Gabriel is the perfect Beast to Felicity's Beauty. You can feel the emotion right from the first scene with Felicity talking to Titus about Gabriel. They don't even kiss until over 60% of the way into the story. BUT...this book is the epitome of Beauty and the Beast. The light and the darkness. Angel and Devil. Heaven and hell. It is everything romance novels should be. There is a mystery plot ofcourse, but the romance takes centerstage. The characters are both loveable and you find yourself rooting for them. .Felicity is gentle, kind and has social anxiety. Gabriel believes himself unworthy of love and happiness but has cast himself in the role her protector

This was my favorite of the Goode Girl books, with Nora's story being my second favorite (Book #1). Kerrigan Byrne has a gift of writing complex, strong and beautiful characters full of faults who you can't help but identify with on some level. It's also always nice to revisit the Goode Girl and the men that love them to see what they are currently up to after their HEAs.

I gave this book 5 stars. It hit every single note for me and I was sad when the book ended, as with it the series also ends. I loved the characters and the storyline that much. The heartbreaking story of Gabriel that makes him the man he is today, to the sisters' relationships and Felicity's issues with anxiety. Gabriel is the ultimate protector and you can see it in all the details of the story with how he treats Felicity and speaks to her. There is not one critique on this novel and for me, that is a five star read.

I remember first meeting Felicity and Gabriel in Courting Trouble (Titus and Nora's story), and how a single scene between them, Raphael, and Mercy set up the next two books in this series with marvelous anticipation. We see Felicity and Gabriel again in Dancing With Danger (Raphael and Mercy's story), where Gabriel's single-minded devotion to Felicity is once again apparent.

You have to have read those earlier books to follow this one, because Gabriel's position is fixed from the start: he loves her before the first page of this book, and that doesn't change. It was insta-love for him two books back, and if you want to experience the headiness of that, you need to read Courting Trouble. This book is about comfort--specifically, the comfort of an unshakeable love that would defend a sensitive and tender-hearted woman against a cruel world. If any love needs to develop here, it's Felicity's for Gabriel.

It does, in its own lightning-bolt kind of way, albeit for Gareth, Gabriel's pseudonym as he hides from the criminal syndicate he used to run. Felicity literally runs into him outside her home one day as he lurks in the shadows watching over her as he does most days. Despite having met him before as Gabriel, Felicity does not recognize Gareth: he has a new face thanks to Dr. Titus Conleith, and she's blind as a bat without her glasses. Thinking he's the personal protection she's ordered to combat threats and a recent assault, she hires him. She feels safe with him, not just physically (he's a hulking mountain of a person) but emotionally. From there, like and attraction grow pretty quickly on her side.

In Dancing with Danger, there was so much plot that the book could have been 100 pages longer to better pace the romance and the story. Here, in Tempting Fate, the plot is a bit slap-dash and driven by background characters readers are expected to care about in order for the conclusion to work. Like Courting Trouble, that action is meant to set up the next 3 books. Yet unlike that previous book, I didn't leave Tempting Fate wondering how quickly I could get my mitts on the next chapters for this family. A plot in service to the characters we already enjoy rather than one equally devoted to characters we don't know would have made for a stronger story.

There are quiet moments between Felicity and Gabriel that show the potential for greatness this book had to slowly build the romance and allow the characters to evolve. These quiet conversations and emotional connections make this a book Goode Girls readers should pick up.

I just love this series! I have been rooting for Felicity and Gabriel for a few books now and am just so excited that they got their HEA. I love the thread of intrigue in these books. I love how she leaves the door open for more. I just love this group of sisters and am so glad that I got to read them!