I'm kinda sad that I DNF at 25%...

Legacy of Temptation is the first in a spin-off series within the Demonica universe and the author does a great job with world-building and doesn't necessarily require you to have read any of the prior books.

The concept and premise for this particular story were intriguing, but I think at this moment in time, there was too much bigotry and classism, and what in the world was going on with "G-ma"?!

In general, I'm fine with sexual aggression towards a character, but the aggressor in this story is the person's grandmother and despite the "theme" fitting this particular character, it's still a bit much and super uncomfortable.

Thank you to Netgalley and Blue Box Press for sending me an eARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

This was a 3.5 start book for me and I think if I had read the Demonica Series this would have been bumped to a 4. It is very clear that this is a well established world and the events of the past series have heavily impacted this story and while the author did a fine job giving the reader enough information to make the story enjoyable I think I would have been so much more invested if I knew all the details surrounding the full cast of characters and the overarching story that has unfolded.

While I don't love the insta lust between the characters Eva is refreshing as an FMC. She feels real in the fact that she isn’t automatically great at everything but she does put real effort behind everything she does and doesn’t want to rely on others to save her. She is open minded and doesn’t ignore when people present logical challenges to her beliefs.

There were a few times where the pacing felt a little off and I really didn't care for Lilith or how she was introduced. It is hard to picture her as a big bad, she comes off as more of a minor single arc baddie but I’ll have to wait and see if she is developed more as the books progress.

The world and characters are very interesting and had me fully ready to dive into the previous series to know even more.

Excellent step back into the world of Demonica again by Larissa Ione!!!
I have missed this world so very much with its unique and complexed characters and they are some of my very favorite demons!!! Legacy of Temptation is the first book in the series of the next generation! And it promises to be just as awesome and well written as the original series! These are the children of the four horseman and Angels both heavenly and fallen and one of my favorite characters of all time and favorite all around sexy bad ass grim reapers...... Azagoth!!!! Damn! I've missed this bad boy of Sheoul-gra!!! And the whole gang is back again! This is Logan's book and he is the son of Thanatos and Regan. Logan has grown up looking over his shoulder waiting for the his fathers and the others enemies of the four horseman to extract revenge and he and the other offspring have been targeted many times. After Azagoth sent free souls from Sheoul-gra one in particular has waited for revenge and Logan is in her crosshairs. Logan is a agent with The Demonic Response Team and is asked to stand in to welcome a group of guardians from The Aegis exchange team not something he wants to really do considering it was Aegis who tried to kill him as a child. But when he locks eyes with the beautiful and smart Eva, hes attracted instantly! Just as they start getting closer one of the team members fiancee is killed and its a race to keep one step of a powerful demon lover bent on revenge for his mate. And if this isn't enough! In heaven shits hitting the fan and the archangels Michael and Gabriel and Radiant Reaver are caught in the middle of a coup when Zaphkiel the asshole! along with a couple other groups decide to take over heavens throne and strip Michael,Grabriel and Reaver of their powers! No one can enter or leave heaven but Reavers mate Harvester makes a daring move and busts out!! In doing so she upsets the balance and if the new king of Hell Revenant finds out theirs a opening his horde of demons could not only storm heaven but come for them all. Larissa Ione is a fantastic writer and her storytelling and characters AMAZING!!! Can't wait to read each of this next generation's books! We get a little taste of what each of their personalities and they are all fascinating so far! Until next time Luv's😉💋

Thank you to NetGalley and Blue Box Press for the ARC of Legacy of Temptations by Larissa Ione.

I was on Reddit Urban Fantasy subreddit last week, and one reader recommended Larissa Ione's Demonica series and then specifically named this book as being an entry-level choice to get into Ione's universe. Ione clearly has spent a lot of time building out this world and its magic - there are 22 books in the Demonica series before the Birthright series begins, and that is impressive and clearly indicates there is a readership for this series and Ione's voice. Ione does include a large glossary at the beginning of the story, and it is clear a lot of energy and time has been put into making this accessible to new readers and old ones. In its own way, seeing this massive series reminded me a bit of Kresley Cole's Immortals After Dark Series, which I think is now at 26 books with a young adult offshoot to it now.

Unfortunately, this book just was not for me and I made it 25% of the way through before I opted to DNF, which I try to do rarely. There were three things that led to this:
1) It was a bit hard to keep up with all the characters of Logan's side of the story. There were a LOT of people. I was working my way through this, as it wasn't the worst problem to have, but it did sort of throw of my reading of his plot. I did think Logan was written well though and seemed to have a cool and levelhead toward his role in DART and toward his family.
2) Eva is kind of the worst. I could get over her bias and bigotry toward demons once we learned more about her tattoo, but I could not get over her referring constantly to another woman colleague as a bitch, when, for all we know, she's just filling in on the job, and then she and Logan have almost one drink together before she is kissing him, jealous of other women around him, and inviting him to her room while still hating everything he stands for. Just...it's 2024, the petty, jealous woman vs woman, judgmental characterization isn't cute.
3) The real main reason I had to stop, because I was willing to grow with the first two items, was the super strange incest plotline. There is a reviewer on Goodreads for Alex Stern's Hell Bent that just says "There is a glowing demon dick and no one even uses it." That is how I feel about this story except it's more, "Logan's grandma keeps trying to fuck him or make gooey demons rape him which also somehow gets her off and because she's a succubus he is constantly fighting a hard on and it is a lot to mentally handle." I think if maybe I went back to the original series first book I might be able to have that level of forgiveness and leeway with Ione, but as a first time reader of hers, I could not get past what seems to be the core plotline of this story.

Thank you NetGalley, Blue Box Press, and the author for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

I've never read a Larissa Ione book before. I didn't realize this was a standalone part of a larger universe, but I didn't feel too confused in terms of world-building. However, I couldn't connect with the characters as much as I'd hoped. I think it would have been slightly helpful if I had read the other books in terms of forming emotional bonds with the characters. Once I finished reading the book, I looked up the series. The vast cast of characters stretches over many books, so anyone who has read the series will be much more connected to the characters and the events in the book more influential. However, this isn't to say I didn't enjoy the story and the characters.

The premise of the book kept my interest the entire time. The action scenes were well-written and engaging. As I read, I felt like I was watching the OG supernatural shows, which warmed my heart. I enjoyed the government agency/sci-fi-esque attributes of the story. However, the writing, especially the dialogue, was a bit cheesy and repetitive at times, but it didn't take me out of the story.

The rivals to lovers and forbidden love tropes between the MMC, Logan, and the FMC, Eva, are well written. Their relationship is well-developed, so when the spice scenes occurred, I believed the feelings the characters possessed.

Overall, it was a quick read, and I couldn't put it down.

4/5 stars; 3/5 spice - spicy but nothing crazy.

Oh oh oh! Going to love this series to! But heck what not to love about her books! Eva is the face of the Aegis, when she’s selected to be in a trade with the DART she’s not happy, then she meets Logan!
Follow the story.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley, the opinions expressed in this review are completely my own

The Demonica world gets even larger as the children get their own stories, and the danger to them all becomes more than they were prepared for. An evil they all hoped was gone has resurfaced, and one of their own will become a danger to all of them
DART and the Aegis create a task force comprised of both agencies to foster a possible partnership. Eva is one of those agents. She thinks she is prepared for what her stay at DART requires of her, yet she is not prepared for Logan or what transpires next.
Logan has been hurt before and is wary of any interaction with human females, especially an Aegis that hates all demons. Their attraction is palpable and hard to deny, for both of them. But s..t hits the fan as it inevitably always does, and they must fight to keep her safe and stop the evil that has been set loose. Action pact, sexy and brutal, it's everything you could want from the next generation and of course the old.

This book was absolutely amazing!
Demons, angels, Horsemen of the Apocalypse, vampires, werewolves, shapeshifters…and humans, this book had them all. I was a little skeptical because I thought it would be too much for one book but I was wrong! Everyone fit in so well into the story and I couldn’t put down the book. Love the main characters- Eva and Logan, it was so easy to connect to them and watch their story and relationship unfold.
I am definitely looking forward to reading the next book in the series and also reading the other books by Larissa Ione, I heard they were just as good.
I would recommend this book if you like all things supernatural!
Thank you, NetGalley for providing me an ARC of Legacy of Temptation.

A new series from another series. In the beginning Alexandra Ivy recommends reading Azagoth and Reaper from the Demonica series. I have read both but decided to read both again prior to reading this since it has been awhile. This story is one disaster after another. It kept me on my toes. I couldn't wait to see what will happen next. Loved reading about the old characters and learning more about all their children. Without spoilers I do want to say there are some spots I did need tissues. And I did yell a lot at the author. This is a must read.

I needed this spark to go back to the Demonica series after 14 years!

Legacy of Temptation is a standalone in the new Demonica Birthright series by Larissa Ione. This series takes place after her Demonica and Horsemen series and is in the same world. I went into it basically with no background. I had read the first few books 14 years ago but remembered very little besides the basics. So much has changed!

This follows our heroine Eva, spokesperson and Guardian for The Aegis, the pro-human, anti-demon and supernatural agency. She's sent with a select contingent to visit with the Demon Activity Response Team (DART). In theory it's to learn to work together. In reality, it's to spy. There she meets Logan, the human appearing son of the Horseman known as Death. We follow along as they get to know each other, though they are both supremely against the other agency, and of course sparks follow.

There is so much information in this book. Not being super familiar with this world, and not remembering or yet meeting so many of the characters from the other series' books, there was a lot of catching up to do. That being said, I never got lost and stayed with the story. It was just a whole lot to wrap my head around, and so much happened! Ione has 16 years of this world's development, so it is extensive.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book and will continue it. I'll also go back to the other series when I have time and catch up, but it's a lot of books!

First let me start by saying I have the worst memory ever, it's a serious flaw of mine, so even though Larissa did a round up of who is whose kids, I honestly would've needed to takes notes while reading to remember so I really wished the book came with a family tree. So many amazing characters are part of this fabulous world, my failing memory just can't keep track of it all.

That being said, I really liked it! It was such a pleasure to dive back into this world I love so much and meet the newest generation! Honestly, it makes me want to reread all the original series.

I think Logan was a great choice for the first MMC to be featured. He was grounded, loveable and still had enough attitude to keep things interesting. He went through a lot over the course of this book and I was really surprised by the sheer amount of trauma Larissa dished out onto him.

Eva was also a great FMC and even now that the main plotline for this book is wrapped up, I feel like there's still more to her we haven't been told; I don't know, call it gut feeling!

The plot itself was action packed and the author did a really great job of keeping things moving while giving us a glimpse of every major player involved in the storyline.

(I will also post a review on tiktok)

I have mixed opinions about this book. The writing was fantastic, and the plot line was well thought out and engrossing (Romeo and Juliet vibes, anyone?), with sound world building.

I loved the character development, watching the characters grow and mature as we get to know them better. I was hooked from page one, eager to find out what happens next.

However, I had a deep theological issue with the way that the heavenly creatures were presented, and I found it difficult to accept the behaviours the beings exhibited as natural.

Loved this book. This is the first book in a new spin off series, you get the background of the Horseman from the previous series so you don’t have to read that series to follow this book, they were given a chance to catch up in the beginning before the 2nd generation took over.
Amazing writing!!! I loved Logan and Eva.

I’m completely looking forward the rest of the series
I was given this arc for a review

I am a huge Demonica Series fan so when I saw the Larissa Ione was doing a spin off I jumped all over it. When I started this books we are thrown in 30 years after the finish of the last books and the world is pretty different as in the prior series Demon, Angels, Vampire ect were all hidden and now they are out, and we are now being introduced to the "children" of characters I feel in love within the Demonica series. In a world where everyone is immortal or have really long lives the fact that we are now meeting all the offspring is a little awkward but I am going with it cause I love this world.
While I loved diving back into the world it was a bit of a data dump of characters being introduced. I kept having to remind myself of names and who they were related too. It almost felt like I was missing stories and names were thrown around and I wasn't sure if I was supposed to know them or if they were new characters. I felt this distracted from the main story line and almost felt like Logan and Eva were back seats to the world building and over all Arc of the story instead of the focus on their love story and world happening behind them.
I really thought Eva was an interesting character and I found her openness and positive attuite help her navigate her integration into DART and the whole Demon world even though she was raised to believe all demons are bad. She was smart and brave she wasn't afraid to do the right thing. It made her an easy character to like.
:Logan was a little one dimensional and I didn't feel for him in the way I had fell in love with other characters in this series. His father was over the top dramatic and his mom was so bad ass and we kinda got a middle of the road MEh for him. I just couldn't really get into him.
That being said although the characters weren't my favorite, they were a good stepping point to introduce us to the new world and to set up the arc of Heaven's take over, the Lilith story line and end of the world ( again). We have so many protentional characters for future books it is hard to even know where to start. I can't wait to keep reading as this is really one of my favorite worlds..

I would not recommend this series unless you have a good grasp on the Demonica series - a read through of the family tree is a must as the names of all the kids and then remembering all the pairing was a lot. But if you LOVE epic battles, good vs evil, match up between heaven and hell where hell isn't always the bad place, and amazing love stories. Buckle up...this is series is going to be so good!

It seems like forever since we've had a new series from Ione, and I have to say it was well worth the wait. Last book that I loved this much of hers was Reaper. I still think about that book often. If this is how the whole series is going to be we are very lucky readers.
I went into this story not sure what I thought of it. Would it be another were they fight each other the whole time because of their differences, or would it be that they fall for each other too quickly. I'm happy to say that neither happened. Okay, some of that happened. They often spoke about what the each believed of each other, but I liked that even though they both believed differently they respected each other enough that they could act like adults.

I also worried what would happen to all the past characters of these kids. I was happy to remember that as supernatural's they are still alive and kicking.

Right away I enjoyed both Eva and Logan. I like how they clicked with each other even when they knew that they shouldn't. Even though Eva dislikes the demons she treats they well unlike most of the other people in her group.

So much happens within this story. First you kind of get a look at what's in for the supernatural's of the series and what they are up against. It's not just one thing either. They are being hit by all sides and will have to work together to come through it all.

Legacy of Temptation had so much happened in it that I want to talk about but feel it would ruin it for you guys. The story is very fast paced and moves. It moves so fact that I didn't want to put it down and ended up reading late into the night so I could finish it.

If you enjoyed the last two series of her that happened in the same world as these then you'll love this one. For me I would start in the beginning and read both the other series though. Yes, this story stands of its own but there are people who are brought up including Logan's family that you'll want their stories too. Not to worry ones you start reading you'll get lost in the series and won't stop until you are done with them all.

Rating: ⭐⭐


Overall Review (spoilers)

I think this book has a lot of potential, but overall the book just wasn’t for me. I didn’t like the whole grandmother sexually assaulting the grandson incest plot line, and since that was the start of the book, I am shocked I didn’t DNF’ed it. I like the concept of the four horsemen of the apocalypse and humans living on earth with demons, but I really couldn’t get past the incest plot line. Somethings should maybe just stay in people’s heads, you know? If you like dark dark romance with taboo topics, I guess this is for you?

Plot Rating: ⭐⭐

Spice Rating: 🌶️

Genre: fantasy, romance, fiction

Trigger Warnings: slurs, racism, sexual assault, rape

It was so good! Love the world building and war between two sides, also all the characters and their dynamic. Logan and Eva is so cute together! Also love the plot and all the actions, looking forward reading book 2!

Loved this book. Pervious characters were given a lead in this book before it was handed over to the next generation. Though this is the first in a new spin off series, it does give a hint to the back stories of the Horseman, so you are able to follow the story without reading the pervious books.
Wonderful writing, the world building and the emotion through out was also wonderful.

Greatly looking forward the rest of the series.

Legacy of Temptation-Book #1 Demonica Birthright

By Larissa Ione-I read all the books in the series-highly recommended!

Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐⭐⭐⭐ ½

📄Page Count: 392 kindle

Publication 2/6/24, Read 1/26/24

🙏🏾Thanks to NetGalley and Blue Box Press for this ARC💙 ! I voluntarily give my honest review and all opinions expressed are my own.

🤷🏾‍♀️What to Expect:

✔️ paranormal romance/fantasy
✔️enemies to lovers
✔️family drama
✔️ opposites attract
✔️forced proximity
✔️bad boy romance
✔️forbidden romance
✔️office romance

⚠️murder, mind invasion, sexual harassment

Summary: Eva is running for Chief Spokesperson for a global demon-slaying organization called the Aegi. She is tasked with spending two weeks in an exchange program with the Demon Activity Response Team (DART). Logan, son of the Horsemen of the Apocalypse known as Death, works for DART as a demon-fighting warrior with a hellhound named Cujo. When tragedy happens both must choose a side while fighting an attraction to each other. As the Aegi are hunted by a vengeance demon, Logan becomes Eva's protector as she is framed for murder.

The characters:

♀️ FMC Eva Tennant (28), both of her parents (Tessandra and Charles) are lawyers w/ a contract w/ the Aegi. Eva has been haunted by a nightmare demon that brings good fortune to everyone around her. Her Elder/mentor Maja Weso is the youngest in Aegi history, and she already "knows" Logan.

♂️ MMC Logan Thanatos (33), his mother Regan and father Thanatos are pregnant and he has a younger and more reclusive sister, Amber. His grandmother Lilith has been resurrected and reeking havoc.


🤔 My Thoughts:
There were a lot of characters to keep straight, so I recommend starting from book one of the Demonica series. It felt like I was at my high school reunion seeing friends I've not seen in twenty years. I read Reaper in 2019 and remember a little, but as LoT goes on I got more comfortable knowing who was who. Because of the world building and getting to know all the players, the romance between Eva and Logan took a back seat. It seemed like LoT was setting up for the books to come. There's plenty of action, gruesome kills, and kidnapping. The standouts, besides Eva and Logan, were Mace the hothead and Stryke the tech genius. Both were Logan's cousins who had a lot going on and made their presence known. Thanatos and Regan were so sweet together as well as Ares and Cara. After everything that happened in the Lords of Deliverance, they really are happy! I love this series and am so glad it's back. I can't wait for the coming books!

Logan is the son of the horseman of Death and has dedicated his life to fighting demons with DART(counterpart to the Aegis) Eva is part of the Aegis's media team and as a good PR stunt the two agency's do a six person exchange student sort of deal.
Everything goes to hell when one of the Aegis members kills two demon members of DART triggering another DART members vengeance demon which of course goes badly for a lot of people. In the midst of the Chaos though Eva finds she's not as racist against demons as she thought and things between her and Logan heat up.
If you loved the Demonica and Horsemen series' you will love this as it has all the vibes of the originals as well as appearances from some well loved characters to go with the fun new problems they've created.