Katee Robert’s Cruel Seduction is a scorching yet action-packed tale

The Dark Olympus series by Katee Robert remains one of my favorite romance series of all time. That’s why I was so excited about Cruel Seduction.

As Cruel Seduction is Book 5 in the Dark Olympus series, there is a lot to get caught up on and to try to figure out. Thankfully, this series is a fun one to go back and re-read before you decide to pick up this one.

However, Cruel Seduction seems like a slight departure from the first three books in the series and honestly, I feel like both this one and Radiant Sin are a real turning point in the series but not in a bad way.

I’d be remiss to not thank Sourcebooks Casablanca for sending me a digital ARC of this because I adore this series and I will continue to read every book Katee Robert writes in it.

Cruel Seduction by Katee Robert is a scorching yet action-packed installment.

Let me just start by saying that if you’re not caught up on this series, then you probably should skip this. Radiant Sin featured such an amazing ending and we continue what happened in that story in this book. With that being said if you’re caught up, then let’s get into the romance and the plot.

The plot of this story seems simple at first since Aphrodite agrees to marry the new Hephaestus yet the two have a lot of previous entanglements. Aphrodite has a duty to her city and her family along with an on-and-off relationship with Adonis. Of course, her marriage to Hephaestus complicates things as they seem like they’re on opposite sides but the sexual tension between them is undeniable.

Things only get messier when Hephaestus and Adonis begin hooking up while Aphrodite starts seducing Pandora who is Hephaestus’ best friend. While it might seem confusing, it can be yet these four end up being in this poly relationship and it’s just delicious. Once again, Katee Robert kills it at writing chemistry between these characters.

While I enjoyed the romance, the political plot of Cruel Seduction is action-packed and had me guessing until the very last second. Add in the messiness at the very end of the book and I was done. I feel like Cruel Seduction ended with so many questions and potential for upcoming books which I adored. Plus it’s Katee Robert so there was a 0% chance I wasn’t going to love it.

The only complaint I had was that the “third-act conflict” seemed to come in too late at the end of the book. I wish it would have been paced a little better at the end but other than that, it was another 5-star read for me and one I know I’ll revisit before Midnight Ruin comes out.

Cruel Seduction by Katee Robert is out now wherever your favorite books are sold. 

What do you think, my fellow romance readers? Will you be picking up Cruel Seduction on release day?