Tag Archives: Gabriel’s Inferno

Blog Tour + ARC Review & Giveaway: Gabriel’s Redemption by Sylvain Reynard

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Gabriel's Redemption blog tour

Gabriel's Redemption by Sylvain Reynard

Gabriel’s Redemption by Sylvain Reynard
Series: Gabriel’s Inferno #3 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: December 3rd 2013
Source: I received an ARC from the publisher (Berkley Trade) in exchange for an honest review
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From the author of the New York Times bestsellers Gabriel’s Rapture and Gabriel’s Inferno comes the epic conclusion to the captivating romantic trilogy.

Professor Gabriel Emerson has left his position at the University of Toronto to embark on a new life with his beloved Julianne. Together, he’s confident that they can face any challenge. And he’s eager to become a father.

But Julianne’s graduate program threatens Gabriel’s plans, as the pressures of being a student become all consuming. When she is given the honor of presenting an academic lecture at Oxford, Gabriel is forced to confront Julianne about the subject of her presentation—research that conflicts with his own. And in Oxford, several individuals from their past appear, including an old nemesis intent on humiliating Julia and exposing one of Gabriel’s darkest secrets.

In an effort to confront his remaining demons, Gabriel begins a quest to discover more about his biological parents, beginning a chain of events that has startling repercussions for himself, Julianne, and his hope of having a family.

Buy Links:
Amazon Kindle • Amazon Paperback • Barnes & Noble Nook • Barnes & Noble Paperback
iTunes iBook • Chapters Indigo Paperback • Chapters Indigo Kobo

review

Gabriel’s Redemption was an absolute delight to read, and I thoroughly enjoyed the conclusion to Julia and Gabriel’s heartfelt, enchanting love story.

“For you, my love, I would endeavor to pluck the stars from the sky, only to shower them at your feet.”

This third and final book of the Gabriel series picks up a few months after Gabriel’s Rapture, and Gabriel and Julia are married. In the beginning, they’ve adjusted to married life pretty easily, dealing with Julia’s upcoming lecture and Gabriel’s new job. Julia’s graduate program brings her much stress, but her husband takes it upon himself to ease her, and he does so very well. Gabriel shows his love so thoroughly and completely, and yet sometimes he still can’t accept that he’s been given a chance at happiness.

In Gabriel’s Redemption, all of Gabriel’s anxieties and fears come to light. Gabriel still has demons from his past rearing their heads, and they strain his marriage. Julia and Gabriel are in love–there’s no doubt about this, but Gabriel’s past–his biological parents, his past drug use and drinking problem–all of his flaws are all he sees in his marriage. He wants to have a child with Julia, but he’s terrified he won’t make a good father.

But no matter how deep into the darkness Gabriel falls, his love for Julia holds him strong. They support one another, as a couple should, and their marriage solidifies and grounds their love. Gabriel goes through much emotional growth throughout the series, but especially once he’s married. He has to deal with his family history, finding out more about his biological father and his family, and he finally gets his answers.

There’s quite a bit of religious undertones in Gabriel’s Redemption, and I felt SR handled it with skill. Mostly, it’s of keeping faith and believing in redemption for Gabriel. He’s lost his way, and truly believes he can’t be redeemed, but Julia lights his way through the darkness. Gabriel’s journey toward happiness is so heartfelt and heart-wrenching, but I also loved how all of the secondary characters are dealt with too. We get a solid conclusion for Julia and Gabriel, as well as for Paul and Christa. Loose ends are tied up, and SR does it all with his gorgeous writing.

“I love you more now than I did before we were married.” Julia wore a contemplative expression. “Marriage is the strangest thing. Almost without realizing it, I feel as if our lives and our hearts became knitted together. I don’t know how it happened.”

The Gabriel’s Inferno series is an absolute must-read. It’s beautifully written, and Gabriel and Julia’s love story is one of the best I’ve ever read. Gabriel’s Redemption was a perfect conclusion to the series, and I was really happy with how the story played out.

4 hearts
lacey

Quotes are taken from the arc and are subject to change in the final version.

Reading Order: Gabriel’s Inferno series

Gabriel's Inferno by Sylvain Reynard Gabriel's Rapture by Sylvain Reynard Gabriel's Redemption by Sylvain Reynard

#1 ~ Gabriel’s Inferno: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ Gabriel’s Rapture: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#3 ~ Gabriel’s Redemption: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

about the author

I’m interested in the way literature can help us explore aspects of the human condition – particularly suffering, sex, love, faith, and redemption. My favourite stories are those in which a character takes a journey, either a physical journey to a new and exciting place, or a personal journey in which he or she learns something about himself/herself.

I’m also interested in how aesthetic elements such as art, architecture, and music can be used to tell a story or to illuminate the traits of a particular character. In my writing, I combine all of these elements with the themes of redemption, forgiveness, and the transformative power of goodness.

I try to use my platform as an author to raise awareness about the following charities: Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep Foundation, WorldVision, Alex’s Lemonade Stand, and Covenant House. For more information, see my Twitter account.

Website • Facebook • Twitter • Goodreads

giveaway

a pair of Christian Louboutins
15 sets of the Gabriel’s trilogy

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Review: Gabriel’s Rapture by Sylvain Reynard

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Gabriel's Rapture by Sylvain Reynard

Gabriel’s Rapture by Sylvain Reynard
Series: Gabriel’s Inferno #2 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: May 22nd 2012
Purchase: Ebook • Paperback

Professor Gabriel Emerson has embarked on a passionate, yet clandestine affair with his former student, Julia Mitchell. Sequestered on a romantic holiday in Italy, he tutors her in the sensual delights of the body and the raptures of sex. But when they return, their happiness is threatened by conspiring students, academic politics, and a jealous ex-lover. When Gabriel is confronted by the university administration, will he succumb to Dante’s fate? Or will he fight to keep Julia, his Beatrice, forever? In Gabriel’s Rapture, the brilliant sequel to the wildly successful debut novel, Gabriel’s Inferno, Sylvain Reynard weaves an exquisite love story that will touch the reader’s mind, body, and soul, forever.

I enjoyed this much more than the first book! Thank god Gabriel’s Rapture was shorter than Gabriel’s Inferno. I really liked GI, but it was just too long. But, GR being shorter wasn’t the only reason I loved reading it! This sequel perfectly captures the very essence of Gabriel and Julia’s beautiful love story. They have their ups and downs, but at the end of the day, these two are perfect for each other, and they belong together.

“The only tragedy would be losing you,” he said, kissing her lightly.
“You’ll only lose me if you stop loving me.”
“I’m a lucky man then. I’ll be able to keep you forever.”

Gabriel’s Rapture picks up right after Gabriel’s Inferno, and Gabriel and Julia have finally made love. They avoided this when Julia was still Gabriel’s student, but now Julia is done with his class, and they’re free to openly show their relationship. They’re so sweet and adorable together, and Gabriel is his usual smooth, classy, charming, and seductive self. And oh gosh, he says even more things that made me blush and fan myself. I really started loving Gabriel in GR. I wasn’t a huge fan of his in GI, but in GR, he really stepped it up, and I didn’t see him as a jerk anymore. He’s just so freaking sweet and loving to Julia!

But, not everything is rainbows and butterflies. When Julia and Gabriel come back from their trip to Italy, it’s the first time their relationship is out in the public in their hometown. And they get in trouble by the university administration. Christa, a vindictive bitch who wanted to get into Gabriel’s pants, has ousted their relationship, accusing them of having an affair when Julia was still Gabriel’s student. This causes complications for them and their relationship. Both Gabriel and Julia go through heartbreak and separation, and SR did an excellent job bringing out both of their heart-wrenching emotions.

“I’ll love you forever, Julianne, whether you love me or not. That’s my heaven. And my Hell.”

Gabriel’s Rapture’s writing is still as stunning as it was in the first book. I adore the writing, the feel the author gives the book. It perfectly matches Gabriel and Julia and their romance. The Gabriel series is truly one of the most beautifully written books and has one of the most beautiful love stories I’ve ever read. It’s captivating and hooks you in from start to finish. You become invested in Gabriel and Julia’s romance, and you want them to have their happily ever after. And even though there is a third book, if the series had ended with GR, it would have been a heartfelt, incredible ending for Julia and Gabriel.

“I want to be your first and your last. I love you, Julianne. I offer you my heart and my life.”

4-hearts

lacey

Reading Order: Gabriel’s Inferno series

Gabriel's Inferno by Sylvain Reynard Gabriel's Rapture by Sylvain Reynard Gabriel's Redemption by Sylvain Reynard

#1 ~ Gabriel’s Inferno: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ Gabriel’s Rapture: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#3 ~ Gabriel’s Redemption: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

Review: Gabriel’s Inferno by Sylvain Reynard

Posted in 3.5 hearts, Reviews by

Gabriel's Inferno by Sylvain Reynard

Gabriel’s Inferno by Sylvain Reynard
Series: Gabriel’s Inferno #1 (full reading order below)
Publication Date: April 4th 2011
Purchase: Ebook • Paperback

Enigmatic and sexy, Professor Gabriel Emerson is a well respected Dante specialist by day, but by night he devotes himself to an uninhibited life of pleasure. He uses his notorious good looks and sophisticated charm to gratify his every whim, but is secretly tortured by his dark past and consumed by the profound belief that he is beyond all hope of redemption.

When the sweet and innocent Julia Mitchell enrolls as his graduate student, his attraction and mysterious connection to her not only jeopardizes his career, but sends him on a journey in which his past and his present collide.

An intriguing and sinful exploration of seduction, forbidden love and redemption, “Gabriel’s Inferno” is a captivating and wildly passionate tale of one man’s escape from his own personal hell as he tries to earn the impossible…forgiveness and love.

So I’m reading this series in time for the release of the third and final book, Gabriel’s Redemption (out today!), and… I’m not really sure how to feel about Gabriel’s Inferno. On one hand, I really liked the story and the characters and the writing, but on the other, it was just so freaking l o n g. It’s about 500 pages or so, and my lord, I’m not sure it need to be.

I wasn’t sure what to expect in Gabriel’s Inferno, but what I got I ended up really liking. The writing is pretty different than what I’m used to. It’s more sophisticated, if a bit pretentious at times, but overall, I really liked the feel the author gave the book. Everything was very slow and sensual, which fit perfectly for Julia and Gabriel’s story.

Julia is a very, very shy and innocent 23-year-old who is in grad school studying to become a Dante specialist. She has to take a class taught by Professor Gabriel Emerson, who is a cold-hearted, strict man, despite his charming good looks. Even though Gabriel is intrigued by Julia’s innocence and sweetness, he’s contemptuous of her. He doesn’t want to care about some lowly, poor grad student, and so he doesn’t. He was a bit hard to like in the beginning, since he’s so arrogant and cold and just a gigantic jerk, but he slowly grew on me once his and Julia’s romance started.

Julia is the quintessential pure, good, virginal girl that I had a hard time liking at first, but somehow, her shyness worked. I got used to her innocence, to her goodness, and she was a perfect contrast to Gabriel, who has a very dark past.

“Why not think that sometimes–just sometimes–you can overcome evil with silence? And let people hear their hatefulness in their own ears, without distraction. Maybe goodness is enough to expose evil for what it really is, sometimes. Rather than trying to stop evil with more evil.”

It turns out that Julia and Gabriel have already met before, and only Gabriel has forgotten that meeting. Julia was only seventeen, but she fell in love with Gabriel, her best friend’s adopted older brother. They met and talked at an orchard, and they were so sweet with each other. Gabriel called Julia his Beatrice, who was the love of Dante’s life. It was a magical, beautiful night that changed the both of them, but Gabriel has no recollection of it, and Julia is hurt. But she toughens up her heart against Gabriel, which is very difficult for her, due to both her shyness and his overbearing attitude. But they can’t fight the attraction they have for each other, and once Gabriel remembers who Julia is, they begin their romance, even though it’s against the rules for student-teacher fraternization.

Gabriel has a tragic, heart-breaking past that is alluded to throughout the book, and it’s the sort of past that shaped Gabriel into the kind of man he is now. He used to sleep with a different woman every night, get drunk all the time, but now, Julia changes things for him. He falls in love with Julia, and he’s such a romantic man. He worships Julia and treats her like a queen, even as he believes he doesn’t deserve her.

“You deserve better. You deserve everything, and that’s what I’m going to give you.”

They have a ten year age gap, which wasn’t too bad for me, and it made sense for Gabriel to be a bit older since he’s a college professor. And oh my goodness, I could go on and on about the sweet things he says to Julia. Gabriel does a total 180 from the beginning of the book, and he kept making me go Aww and blush.

“When I told you that I was intending to worship you with my body, I meant it. With all my heart. I will never take from you. I will only give. In my bed and outside of it.”

Gabriel and Julia have a whirlwind love that is so powerful and passionate. They open up to one another, body, mind, and soul, and their romance had me hooked from start to finish (even though the book was crazy long!). Gabriel’s Inferno is raw and dark and gritty, and I’m glad I read it, because it’s such a unique, captivating read.

3.5 hearts! Although I totally give a 5 for all the mushy stuff Gabriel says. Sah-woon!

3.5-hearts

lacey

Reading Order: Gabriel’s Inferno series

Gabriel's Inferno by Sylvain Reynard Gabriel's Rapture by Sylvain Reynard Gabriel's Redemption by Sylvain Reynard

#1 ~ Gabriel’s Inferno: Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#2 ~ Gabriel’s Rapture: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads
#3 ~ Gabriel’s Redemption: My Review • Ebook • Paperback • Goodreads

Sylvain Reynard Novel Announcement

Posted in Book News, Exclusive by

Sylvain Reynard (author of the Gabriel’s Inferno series) has a new novel coming out! Here is SR’s announcement (which you can read on his blog as well, which I linked at the bottom of the post).

Dear Everyone,

Back in September, I wrote a post in which I mentioned my next novel. I’m pleased to be able to give you more information now.

My next novel is the first in a new series, and it will be entitled The Raven.  With this novel, I’m asking you to pack your bags and travel with me to the city of Florence. The Gabriel Series showed you the city during the day.  This time, I’ll show you Florence’s underworld, which is ruled by creatures of the night …

Here’s the formal announcement:

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Gabriel Series comes a dark, sensual tale of romance in a city shrouded in mystery…

Raven Wood spends her days at Florence’s Uffizi Gallery restoring fine works of Renaissance art.  But an innocent walk home after an evening with friends changes her life forever. When she intervenes in the senseless beating of a homeless man, his attackers turn on her, dragging her into an alley.  Raven is only semi-conscious when their assault is interrupted by a cacophony of growls followed by her attacker’s screams.  Mercifully, she blacks out, but not before catching a glimpse of a shadowy figure who whispers to her …

Cassita vulneratus.

When Raven awakes, she is inexplicably changed.  She returns to the Uffizi, but no one recognizes her and more disturbingly, she discovers that she’s been absent an entire week.  With no recollection of the events leading up to her disappearance, Raven also learns that her absence coincides with one of the largest robberies in Uffizi history – the theft of a set of priceless Botticelli illustrations. When the baffled police force identifies her as its prime suspect, Raven is desperate to clear her name. She seeks out one of Florence’s wealthiest and elusive men in an attempt to uncover the truth about her disappearance.   Their encounter leads Raven to a dark underworld whose inhabitants kill to keep their secrets …

As I mentioned in my September post, readers of Gabriel’s Redemption will be able to read an excerpt from The Raven at the end of both the paperback and e-book editions.

But what I didn’t mention was that one of the characters of The Raven appears in Gabriel’s Redemption.  Can you identify him or her? I welcome your guesses in the comments below and on social media.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention that there’s a connection between The Gabriel Series and my new series – a connection that is more than simply me, or the city of Florence, or the Uffizi Gallery. If you’ve read the cover copy above carefully, probably you’re beginning to guess the answer. But I’ll be explicit and state that we won’t be saying goodbye to the Professor and Julianne at the end of Gabriel’s Redemption. Look for them to have cameo appearances in The Raven as well …

While I don’t have a release date for The Raven yet, I hope to have one soon. This novel marks my transition from a contemporary love story to a paranormal one. I hope you’ll join me on this journey and that if you have friends and family who enjoy paranormal novels, you’ll help me share the news with them.

As we approach the December 3rd release date of Gabriel’s Redemption in North America, my American publisher has listed a giveaway of the novel on Goodreads.  US entrants can enter the contest  here.

And if you’d like to read a new excerpt from Gabriel’s Redemption and enter another contest, you can do so here at Romance Times.

Finally, I want to wish everyone who is celebrating Thanksgiving this week a very happy holiday. I have much to be thankful for and in particular, I’m thankful for you, my readers.

All the best and thank you for your continued support,

SR

www.sylvainreynard.com