Smut Fanatics: Laura & Lauren's Review of Gabriel’s Redemption (Gabriel’s Inferno #3) by Sylvain Reynard

If you loved The Blackstone Affair series by Raine Miller, the Disastrous series by E.L. Montes, and the Fifty Shades of Grey series by E.L. James, then you will love this series!!!!!!

Basic Summary: 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 her 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 of Gabriel’s darkest secrets.

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

What I Love About This Book: I don’t think there has ever been a character that has seduced me as much as Gabriel Emerson ever has. He’s like Christian Grey taken to the next level of sexuality, and sensuality and just raw masculine realness.

This book takes starts about 6 months to a year after the last book ended. Gabriel and Julianne are settling into married life, they are renovating their home in Boston, and have finished renovations of their home in Selinsgrove, Pennsylvania. Julianne is establishing herself as a PhD student at Harvard, while Gabriel has become a tenured Professor at Boston University. It’s so great to see them more settled in the beginning, there isn't a constant question of where are they in this relationship anymore, it’s more them against the world going on in this book.

Because Gabriel is such a great seducer there were many sex scenes in this book but I have to say probably my favorite one involved Gabriel, Julianne, a wall, and a strategically placed mirror. I don’t think hot can even describe that scene correctly. Thank you for Sylvain Reynard for that!

I love that this series is written in 3^rd person so you get Gabriel’s and Julianne’s thoughts constantly throughout this book and the rest of the series. I love that you also get a lot more point of views in this book as well it makes Gabriel and Julianne’s journey more well-rounded as whole, which for me I don’t just get invested Gabriel and Julianne, but the supporting character’s stories as well. Great character development of all the characters in this book, really bringing you along several different stories all at once!

Cons: As much as I love Gabriel Emerson, he’s just too go to be true. Of course he’s a fictional character so he isn't true but sometimes I’m like okay this just a little TOO much seduction, and love, and hearts and flowers. Even in the darker parts of the story there is still all this I love you, you are my life and I’m just like come on!!!!!!! There were a couple parts of the book there were kind of boring, and I had a hard time powering through them waiting for it to get exciting again because the lulls were just inundated with details, like for example I didn't need to know Julianne’s entire speech at the conference that was a little much for me.

Also I would've liked to have seen a little of their day to day life in Cambridge. For much of the beginning of the book and in the middle they are traveling and Julia’s speaking at a conference and there is a lot going on so you don’t really grasp what their normalcy is. I know that it isn't an attractive part of a plot when an author is writing a story, but just knowing what their routine was in Boston, how they kind of lived happily ever after once they got married would've been great. Also I would've liked to have a scene where they are adjusting to living together, to see one of those small adjustments that people make for each other when they first start sharing their lives together. That’s just me though, and I don’t expect an author to cater to my likes or dislikes of a book.

Overall: The pace in this book was great. There were a couple lulls to me, but overall the pace was great. There is a big time period covered in this book and Sylvain Reynard connects the chapters together beautifully. I never felt like they was skipping over important things, or dragged down into every little thing going on in Julianne and Gabriel’s lives. I also loved at this book filled in some gaps from the previous book, especially when Gabriel and Julianne were apart, what Gabriel did to fill his time and tie up loose ends.

Another great part of this book was the different POV, and because you are able to switch between various characters it really intertwines nicely with the plot giving each story its own weight adding to make this book even better. The author does this so well it doesn't take away from the plot it only adds to it, making you more involved with not only the main characters but the supporting ones as well. It’s a great way to really suck the reader into the book making it difficult to put the book down.

I don’t think I could have asked for a more beautiful ending to this long journey between two soul mates. I had definitely had tears in my eyes at the end, so happy to see the result of their love for each other. Gabriel Emerson is such an amazing character, and I thank Sylvain Reynard for creating him and let us in on his journey through life as well as Julianne’s. This series isn't just a love story with its ups and downs; it’s also a story about forgiveness, charity, patience, and so many other things. I truly enjoyed reading this series, and cannot wait to read anything Sylvain Reynard writes after this!!!

Cutest Part: There are a lot of great parts in this story, and probably the cutest that put an instant smile on my face is when Gabriel and Julianne are at an orphanage in Florence, Italy and one of the kids asks Gabriel if he’s superman. That was so cute and so touching I was giddy reading, it was just so freaking adorable!

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Lauren's Review

Rating: 3.5 Stars

Ok don't hate me!! I know...I know... I didn't love it. I said it once and I will say it again, it is so hard for me to love a third book in a trilogy. Yes, I think there was enough of a story line to do a third book but so much of this book was unnecessary fluff. I cannot stress how much I LOVED Gabriel's Inferno and Gabriel's Rapture but Sylvian Reynard lost me on Redemption. With that being said...

What I Loved: I love the relationship between Julianne and Gabriel. They are so sweet to each other and we get to see a lot of how they react to each other and we know leaving this book that their journey together will be ok. Learning about Gabriel made me love him even more. The scene at the orphanage just brought a smile to face. Hot men and small children just make my inside mush!! I appreciate how Reynard wrapped up Julianne and Gabriel's love story but also gave us small glances into the other character's lives instead of just leaving them out.

Cons: This book is filled with FILLERS!!! Reynard went way overboard with Dante and God. It was too much at times and I skimmed over those parts. I am not a Dante enthusiast so a large part of the book went right over my head. The whole conference is what really got to me. So much could have been removed. Oh and what happened to the sex scenes?? Where is the sex?? Most of the scenes left me hanging and wanting more. There were so many missed opportunities! I wanted so much to love this book but it barely kept my attention. I just don't see how anyone could give this book 5 stars.