I knew I was gonna love this just from the cover - and I did. It's sexy and just a little bit dark and kinky. this is my kind of beach read and I just happened to be at the beach.

It's a quick little novella though, and while the overall message is great, I would have loved to see this fleshed out into a lush, full novel. Because of its short length the characters didn't have a chance for depth.

But, it's a tale of overcoming trauma both in the self and in one's bloodline, and especially trauma around men. Which is fine and all, but I do hope there is more to come - I'd love to see Rosie get the sexy, kinky, gay happy ending she deserves.

(This book's ISBN doesn't appear to be on Goodreads yet so I can't post my review there right now.)

My first official sampling of Antonia Rachel Ward's work is the erotic gothic horror novel Marionette and I'm pleased to say it's a solid one.

Cecily "Cece" Dulac is a dancer in Paris, a former small-town prostitute following in her aunt's footsteps in high society. Alone, Cece finds herself lured to a seance by one Monsieur Rossignol that ends up changing her life in the worst ways, with a spirit named Selena inhabiting her body. George Dashwood is an aspiring artist who falls for Cece and finds himself wrapped up in the haunting.

Ward's writing is very good. Lyrical, haunting and perfectly suited for the gothic tradition, as well as the blending of the erotic. Some of the happenings are truly and genuinely disturbing, such as Cece waking up after a seance with her body abused and her having no idea how the bruises got there. Cece begins to lose herself, subsumed into Selena as Selena seizes more control. The downside of the novel is that while the characters are intriguing, the length doesn't allow them the time to shine that they deserve. Cece and George's romance has little time to develop, and George himself ends up somewhat flat in comparison to Cece and others around him, particularly Cece and Selena.

The horror of being trapped in one's own body is detailed explicitly, however. The sequences of Cece forced to experience what Selena does, to be bound by her, and in no control are genuinely frightening. Ward lays out a conspiracy along with a surprisingly sympathetic villain when all is revealed, and the pieces of the plot end up connecting rather masterfully to her credit by the end.

Overall, despite being rough about the edges, it's a very well done book and I look forward to what Ward does next.

Thank you to NetGalley, Brigids Gate Press, LLC. and Independent Book Publishers Association for this eArc!

I have mixed feelings about this book. While I loved the setting in Paris and the paranormal/horror/mystical vibes, I felt a bit disappointed by underdeveloped characters (which I admit can be difficult given the books length as a novella), an in my opinion seemingly one-sided romance and a jarring ending. I also think the classification as erotica does not quite fit this story.
Overall an average read.

This is quite a unique little story. It has elements of the macabre but it is also a sexy character study. It is a quick novella and worth the read for the atmospheric tone. I do think the ending was a little rushed, but I recognize this is a novella, so I understand why. I wish the romance was a little bit more fleshed out but overall I think readers will enjoy this one-sitting kind of tale!

Thank you to Netgalley & Brigid Gate Press for the advanced readers copy of this novella. It did not affect my review in any way.

What I liked about the book:
1. That cover is gorgeous! It gives me pin up + Rob Zombie feels.

2. It was a super quick read as it’s a novella.

3. I loved the descriptions in this book, as well as the Paris setting. It was all very pretty to read. It had a very Moulin Rouge! feel to it, especially with George being a sweet artist and Cece being the starlet.

4. I also liked the mystical/paranormal feel to it. It was simple enough to not be convoluted, but enough of a story to want to see it through to the end.

What could have been better:
1. More time spent developing the characters would have had me more invested in them.

2. The romance really felt one-sided, which I didn't enjoy as I found George to be a sweetie.

3. This book was marketed as erotica, but I personally didn’t see it that way. Yes, there is sex and some taboo things, but nothing crazy that I haven’t seen in books purely marketed as romance. This tag is a bit of a stretch.

4. The ending was pretty jarring. I felt there was so much build up for a sudden change of plans on Selena’s part and everything came crashing down super fast. I would have appreciated not having a shock happen in the last 20 pages or so, as it just felt dizzying and out of place.

5. Most disappointing was I got the feel from the synopsis that Cece and George would be working together to solve the mystery, but there was barely any interaction between the two. I was looking for partners solving a mystery and I didn't get that.

Special thank you to NetGalley, Brigids Gate Press, LLC., and Antonia Rachel Ward for the opportunity to read this book for free. I am voluntarily leaving my honest review.

I have very mixed feelings about this one to be honest. And it’s definitely not terrible but it wasn’t amazing it was just okay.
The characters were interesting and their motivations were understandable but I did feel like the insta love for George to Cece didn’t make much sense but I can over look that since it’s a novella and it’s hard to build romantic relationships in such a short space.
The setting was perfect the olden days France really brought an atmospheric vibe to the whole story which I loved.
The spice wasn’t very spicy just very dark more horror that erotica to be honest
But the plot was so twisty and interesting I read this in one go and I’m glad I found it.
Thanks to Netgalley and Brigid Gate Press for an E-ARC of this novella.