3.5 stars 
 Well things just got interesting....oh boy. 
 I'm a little scared after reading this what Ward has in store now. Hmm...I'm not sure I like the move Jim pulled at the end.:( Gave Devina waaaay too much leverage IMO. *sigh* 
 *slightly spoilerish ahead* 
 Wasn't planning on leaving a review for this but oops! would you look at that: 
 First let me just get this out..all this 'let's fuck' anger foreplay between Jim and Devina is grossing me the eff out. I mean really Ward? Come on! That shit is starting to veer off into 'oh hell no' territory for me. Enough! I have to say for the villain in this series, Devina is getting way too much of the upper hand for my tastes. With the game but more so where Jim is concerned. Jim pissed me off at one point in this story with the stunt he pulled. Ward is seriously starting to blur the lines here with the 'I loathe you but you are still making me hard' angle. Um no. No no and NO! Jim's entire reasoning and 'logic' behind how he keeps getting turned on by Devina doesn't make a lick of sense considering what she's done to him and oh yes! She's pure evil. Stop it Ward. Stop it right now. How the hell does someone get turned on and have a few rounds of rough fucking in a boathouse with a demonic being who tied you down and raped you in her dungeon of hell? KNOCK THAT SHIT OFF. That boathouse scene was such a complete 180 and not even necessary because it had absolutely nothing to do with the game. There was no rhyme or reason to it and just made Jim look like a complete lame jackass. And his 'gee I don't know' shrug of an explanation after wards was solid confirmation of that. Are you kidding me?? You don't have sex with your rapist no matter how hot she is. GMAFB. I'm amazed how much it bothered me but it did. Jim's whatever attitude after wards made it even worse. 
 Any who, besides that, not a bad book, I enjoyed it. Curious yet scared to see what happens next. The second half is when things started to really kick in to gear and when I started to pay attention. To be honest the first half just dragged on and I struggled to connect with both Matthias and Mels. Mels in particular came off very one dimensional through most of story until the drama started to unfold, which is a first for a Ward heroine. I can't even remember or get a clear picture of what she looks like. The first half of the story she came off more like an after thought which is part of the reason I struggled to connect or feel anything for her. And I have to say in regards to this series, the fall outs with the hero's lady of choice turning on him after a 'truth' is revealed is getting really tiring, predictable and damn frustrating at this point. Argh! To go from loving a person so openly and completely to quickly turning against them and believing them as a 'liar and schemer' with the flip of a switch is disappointing to say the least and a little contrived. I feel like Warden's heroines in this FA series are also given their own 'crossroads' and ultimate tests in seeing if they have faith and believe in the men they love and so far all of them have failed miserably :( (with the exception of Marie-Tharese...I think). It's a great leverage for angst and drama but when it's a perpetual pattern used in every. single. book it just takes away from the story and character growth. While I will give Mels the benefit of being suspicious of Matthias from the beginning, she was very quick to jump on the 'you're a liar, get the hell away from me' bandwagon and wanting to turn him in. It's a human flaw and very natural to have doubts and suspicions and believing what's right in front of you, I totally get that. It's part of being human. But what gets under my skin every time I see this fall out play out is how quick the heroine goes from trusting and loving the man to thinking the absolute worse about him with a few realized facts or well placed lies. All I'm saying is I hope Ward changes things up a bit in that department. 
 I wasn't crazy about Matthias before starting this. I just never cared for the guy and idea of him being given an entire book I wasn't thrilled about. But he managed to change my mind as I read this. He went from a selfish sociopath cardboard cut-out to a real flawed vulnerable man with a tender side that surprised me and had me swaying a few times. lol A confinement in Hell really does the soul good doesn't it? Well technically it doesn't, but it sure is a hell of a wake up call. No pun intended!I also really wish Ward would let these 'rounds' in the games span out for more than just a couple of days. Timeline-wise it makes it very hard to keep track and very contrived to think this all (the series) started and went down in 2 weeks time. That just is bizarre to me and way too fast given everything that's gone down in 3 books prior to this one. Ward should slow it down and pace herself. Why does everything have to play out in a 2-3 day span in each book? I don't mind it story-wise but I do think the romance arc suffers a bit from it. You have 2 virtual strangers meeting and falling for one another in a matter of 1-2 days. What's the rush? That all being said, I did enjoy the romance in this story even though I felt it was rushed, the connection and emotions these 2 people shared and what they both overcome separately and together was great to see. 
 I still want Eddie to come back. It's not the same without him. And seeing Adrian make references to him and 'watching out' for him is heartbreaking. Dog is cute as ever. Loved seeing his real 'identity' revealed in this. Yay! I found it sweet and touching and oddly...comforting. 
 Wonder who the next soul will be? Hmmm...