ARC Review: Selfish is the Heart by Megan Hart

Description:

The national bestselling author of No Greater Pleasure delivers a new novel featuring a reluctant student of seduction.

To escape an arranged marriage, Annalise Marony decides to become a Handmaiden of the Order of Solace. But she is thwarted at every turn by Cassian, a teacher of the faith, who must test her dedication. Older than most of the girls, Annalise knows that she will be expected to please a patron in pleasures of the flesh-and she is not shy about teasing Cassian. And as they both play out the game of master and student, the secrets in their souls will either tear them apart-or bind them together forever.

Review:
Before I start this review I have to give a shout out to pattepoilue. She is one of the nicest and loveliest persons I ever met and without her I wouldn't have had the opportunity to read this book. Thank you! And thanks to Megan Hart too, for being such a wonderful writer and person.

Megan Hart did it again- she wrote a romance novel different from anything I ever read before. Sure we have the romance and the usual struggle till we get to our Happily Ever After but the way we get there is again something so unique, it will catch you flat-footed.

I enjoyed the first 2 books in The Order of Solace Series and I was always curious how these Handmaiden studied their profession before their first patron. I think I had many things in common with Annalise there, we both were full of prejudices and false ideas about how naughty this education would be.

Annalise went to the Motherhouse for the wrong reasons. She wanted to escape an arranged marriage. She is bethroted to her gay best friend but she knows with all her heart that they both will be unhappy in an union like this. She had to find a way out of this without making their lives even harder as they already are. So she
feigned a vision and ventured to the Order to become a Handmaiden. She is a strong heroine with a will of steel. She never backs down or is not once afraid to say what she thinks. She's not one of those cold hearted woman though, she is full of compassion and understanding for others. She stands up for what she believes and seems to be fearless in her actions. On her her journey to the motherhouse she meets the dark and broooding Cassian and he leads her astray. Later she discovers that he's her teacher and not only this first meeting makes them clash together more than ones. They don't often agree about anything and their attraction to each other isn't helping them either.

Cassian has his own struggles to live through. He worked hard to become the hard looking and untouchable teacher he is now. He likes to be on his own, unbothered by the rest of the world. He likes to bath in his guilt without interruptions. And Annalise just won't let him hide behind his cold mask- she always picks at him without mercy but still he just can't bring himself to not care for her even though she's a nuisance.

It was totally refreshing to read about those two. It's really not your typical romance. Most of the time they are fighting and you always think now they will make up. *wink* I loved how Annalise was never afraid to tell Cassian and everyone else what she thinks but never was too much. I loved that she knew how to push his buttons and it was wonderful to watch them grow closer with every single fight. I think this is one of the facts why I love Megan Hart's books so much. She never goes the traditional way and so it never gets boring for us as the reader. I think Ms. Hart describes it wonderfully in this book:

In her dreams, in the fae stories, such a declaration was always met with a kiss and an embrace, with mingled laughter and tears and followed by a wedding.

This was not a fae story.

Selfish is the Heart is by far my favorite Order of Solace novel. The heroine is wonderful independent and strong- I could completely relate to her. The hero is just wonderful broody and dark and both together made my heart ache. This series is so different to every thing else I read in this genre so far. As always  I adore Ms. Hart's writing and her words just enthrall me from the first page.
Wonderful exotic fantasy romance- you won't be able to put it down and it won't leave your thoughts long after you closed it.

To learn more about Megan Hart and her books please visit her website here.

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