Ivan

Gideon's Riders Series, Book 3

By: Kit Rocha

Narrated by: Tatiana Sokolov

As the sheltered princess of Sector One, Maricela's life is defined by duty: to her people and to her family. Her wealth and influence have allowed her to build a better world, but they come with a price - the responsibility to secure political stability with a practical marriage. Maricela cherishes the idea of marrying for love, but there's not much romance in the endless line of suitors interested only in prestige and power.

And her handsome, brooding new bodyguard isn't helping the situation.

Ivan is the perfect, deadly warrior, a man trained from childhood to be the ultimate protector to the Rios family. His focus on keeping her safe is intense - and a little intoxicating. When the threat of danger cracks his icy control, Maricela realizes she's not the only one fighting against temptation.

Ivan knows that the blood on his hands makes him unworthy of the pure-hearted princess. But from the first kiss, their forbidden affair feels inevitable. He can give her a glimpse of life outside her gilded cage and a lover who wants the woman instead of the crown. The only thing he can never do is promise her forever.

Because spurning her noble suitors to marry her bodyguard wouldn't just be a scandal. It could set off a political firestorm that would tear Sector One apart.

Contains mature themes.

©2018 Kit Rocha (P)2018 Tantor

Engaging characters

Love or hate the characters come to life and make you feel. You become increasingly invested in the story and want more glimpse into the world of the sectors.

Absolutely fantastic!!

Absolutely loved this audiobook!! Loved the story, characters and the narrator!! Great addition to the series! Totally recommend the full series!!

The ‘Let Them Eat Cake!’ episode

This one was a little too much about rich people’s problems for me. If this was a regency romance, maybe I could get behind Maricella as a pampered princess. But, this was a post-apocalypse U.S. where the other sectors in this part of the country struggled daily to survive and yet Maricella lived in luxury. They throw a ball for her, with lobster for everyone, tuxes, and new gowns and I’m supposed to be on board with that?

If being royal wasn’t enough, Marcella’s family was worshipped as divine. The family worked to maintain the fiction with the condescending attitude that they knew what’s best for the people … and what’s best was to let the rabble serve.

This series was a spin-off series where the original Beyond series featured the “evil” overlords in Eden. The various sectors were the good guys. Unfortunately, after Eden was vanquished, I wasn’t convinced that the Rios family ran Sector One any better. The only difference between Eden’s and this family’s Sector One control was that Eden used force first, while Marcella Rios’s family in Sector One used the con of being divine rulers first, and then backed it up with force from The Riders (of which Ivan was one) and strict laws resulting in executions without trials.