Wicked Heart (The Starcrossed Series Book 3)

Wicked Heart by Leisa Rayven ~ 5 STARS So have you read Romeo and Broken Juliet yet? I suggest you get on it!!! Wicked Heart is the third installment of the Starcrossed series and this can be read as a standalone. Leisa really is amazing at creating such incredible love stories. This one is different from what I read before – I really like that this story is surrounding Broadway. “Liam Quinn is talented, gorgeous, and one of the biggest movie stars in the world. He's also the only man Elissa Holt has ever truly loved. After being out of her life for six years, he and his gorgeous fiancé are set to star in the new Broadway show Elissa is stage managing. The only trouble is, when late night rehearsals bring Elissa and Liam together, the line between what is and what could have been gets blurred, and one moment of weakness will lead to a scandal that echoes around the world. Elissa knows that falling for Liam again would be a tragedy in the making, but as any good romantic will tell you, love doesn’t always follow the script.” Please don’t be alarmed!!!! This is NOT a love triangle… Yes there is scandal, drama, tears, laughs, tons angst and heartache but you have to read and find out what really goes on after the curtain falls :) This story follows Elissa (Ethan’s sister from Bad Romeo) and Liam’s relationship. Elissa met Liam one fateful night when she was out with her best friend Josh. It was love at first sight. A nice carpenter (she thought) but it turns out Liam is casted as Romeo for her school play. Elissa and Liam kept things professional. After the show wrapped, Elissa and Liam could no longer resist each other. They had one unforgettable night together - the connection was incredible, the sex was panty-dropping hot – it was meant to be. But, Liam unexpectedly had to move across the country. At first they kept in touch but sadly Liam seems to have a change of heart. Just as Elissa’s biggest fear – a hot movie star had left her for his equally hot co-star. Elissa was broken hearted. Six years later Elissa found herself stage managing for a new Broadway production where Liam is the star. Fate right? Unfortunately, Liam is not alone - his beautiful fiancé is right by his side. They are the perfect couple deeply in love, the Brangelina of Broadway. Talk about getting your heart ripped right out of your chest AGAIN. That’s how I feel for Elissa – load of hurt, regret and pain. A grown Liam is incredibly handsome, sexy, irresistible, and talented but oh so taken. Liam’s fiancé Angel is beautiful, sweet, just amazing inside and out, and she has the only man Elissa ever loved. How do you work days in and days out with the man you secretly love and the woman you want to hate? Especially as said man appears to want to maul you every chance he gets??? Uh oh!!! Well, this makes for a very exciting, trouble plot :) “Heartache doesn’t teach you to be resilient. It teaches you to protect your fragility. It teaches you to fear love. And it draws a bright red circle around all the ways you’ve failed as a person and laughs while you cry.” ~~~ God! I broke down crying with this quote. Crying for Elissa’s hurt, pain and heartbreak. It’s very rare that I love all the characters in a book. Someone has to be a villain and someone has to be a hero – well, this book is quite an exception. Leisa created these beautiful, amazingly complex characters . I mean what’s not to love about the four main characters? Liam is sexy, confident, a little vulnerable and sweet – at times I felt like his action toward Elissa was unfair but trust me he HAS an excuse … by the end of the book he became my best book boyfriend. Just perfection! Elissa is beautiful but she does not know it, so that makes her even more appealing. She is corky – hates exercise but loves cheese. LOL, LOVE her!!!! She is also a young, talented, most-wanted stage manager. Elissa’s best friend Josh? Please say no more. Loyal, protective, best wing-man one could ever ask for. Not to mention his touching admission at the end – God! SWOONS. He is a textbook definition of a BFF. I want to be his BFF – Josh! I am coming for you. Angel – a perfect name for a perfect angel – she is sweet, down to earth, beautiful, America’s sweet-heart. You can’t help but fall head over heal with these characters. “…Fate is what we make it. You get the love you fight for. The one you think you deserve.” I love Leisa’s style of writing in all her books – it’s fantastic, flawless. The words she delivered are funny, sharp, wicked, and sexy. The kissing, the foreplay, the hot sex scene. The dialogues, the descriptions of characters … and pretty much EVERYTHING in between – just PERFECTION. I also thought it was very clever that Leisa makes different references from shows such as the Kardashians, and Friends – “So, do I get to choose another lobster now, or is that it? I’m to go through life forever lobsterless?” Leisa has an amazing talent for sucking you into her story. She captures my attention from the very start. I could not put my kindle down – I swiped the page so fast because I was desperate to find out what’s next. There is a twist – Ooohhh! It was a good one! Took my breath away! I DEVOURED this book in no time. So, you want a book that makes you cry, laugh out loud, and scream at your kindle in frustration? Are you in need of some angst, sexual tension, heart-ache, joy, love, happiness, basically all the feels? – GOT IT RIGHT HERE baby! Don’t miss this gorgeous love story. I highly recommend Wicked Heart along with Bad Romeo and Broken Juliet. I feel overjoyed with the sweet ending. Happiness and Love actually is all around (See Elissa? I am making a reference too). I selfishly want a long Epilogue on their life especially Josh’s journey. Thank you in advance!!! Wink wink wink :) “Love is like a lion in captivity – it can be embraced, but never tamed.”

Loved Elissa and Liam's story. Glad they brought back some of the original characters. It really was an enjoyable read.

There is something spectacular about being able to read a book that is written so perfectly. And a Leisa Rayven book encapulates spectacular in a million different ways. I fell in love with Leisa Rayven’s writing and her beautiful characters in Bad Romeo and Broken Juliet. The world she has created is one of my absolute favourites and one I love visiting over and over again whether it be by book or by audio. Cassie and Ethan have always held a special place in my heart so knowing I was getting the chance to read Wicked Heart early and spend time lost in Elissa’s story was like a dream come true. Wicked Heart is a Second Chance Love Story filled with so much emotion. Its one of my favourite Romance troupes to read and something that Leisa Raven writes in such a captivating way. The character and story development in Wicked Heart are fantastic. The development of the relationship between Elissa and Liam is heart wrenching and so romantic in there own special way. “Strong fingers dig into my neck muscles, and i bite back a groan. "Oh, my God.” “Come on now. We’re past that sort of formality. You can call me Liam.” Liam is absolutely everything that I love in a book boyfriend. Hot, sweet and just a little bit arrogant. I adored him from the very first page he was on. He was funny and honest and smoking hot! It’s clear that Liam cares about Elissa but when he’s offered the chance of a lifetime theres no way he can turn it down. Leaving Elissa heartbroken and jaded. Jump forward 6 years and Liam is back in Elissa’s life and it doesn’t look like he’s going anywhere. However Liam didn’t come alone. Enter Angel, Liam’s fiancé. At first you want to hate her because she’s engaged to Liam but god she’s perfect! She’s so nice it almost sickening but so funny and so incredibly genuine. You instantly love her and almost feel bad for wanting Elissa and Liam to get there second chance at love. “Despite my best efforts to remain detached, he’s like a sexual lightning rod, and all my sparks gravitate toward him. It’s exhausting.” Wicked Heart is written from Elissa’s POV and its a good POV to be written from. Elissa is brave, honest, professional and hilarious. The way she cares herself through all of her heartache is commendable. She’s a commanding presence back stage and on the page. I loved her bravery, I loved how true to herself she was. The love that she has for Liam is Epic. There’s no other way to describe to it. “I once read an Oscar Wilde quote that said, “A kiss may ruin a human life.” It perplexed me, because up until now, i’d always thought kisses were sweet but unimportant. But this kiss? It’s ruined me. This is the type of kiss I never knew existed. It’s like falling and flying, all in the same moment.” In Wicked Heart we also meet Josh, who you instantly adore. His platonic relationship with Elissa is perfect and hilarious. They’re like an old married couple without Sex! They work together, live together and if circumstances had been different probably would’ve been perfect together. Leisa Rayven has a way with words. Reviews for her books are impossible to write. I never feel like I can quite capture how phenomenal her stories are. There is so much more to this particular story then I can mention without spoiling how epic the love between Elissa and Liam is. She is truly one hell of a writer. I absolutely love that she has incorporated her Theatre back ground into her stories. Its such an interesting insight to see. I fell in love with Leisa’s words last year and that love continues to grow with every book she writes. I had the pleasure of meeting Leisa at Fictionally Yours in Melbourne last year and she is without a doubt one of the loveliest people i’ve ever met! So incredibly kind and generous. When you read her books you can tell that her personality is planted into every word. One of my absolute favourite quotes she has written is below. I don’t think any author has ever perfectly captured what it’s like to miss someone you love dearly. “I used to think missing someone was a choice, but that was before Liam. Now I realise all you can do is choose to ignore missing someone. The actual longing never goes away. It stays in your body like toothache, deep in your bones, and every time you forget to deny it, the hum of it builds into a roar that’s so loud, it’s the only thing you can hear." Wicked Heart is a 5 Star Read. A book you can loose yourself in and completely forget about the world until the last page. Its the perfect type of book to read when you need an escape and I highly recommend you read everything this lady writes.

LOVED THIS ONE SO HARD!!!! I don’t know where to even begin with my review on this book. I want to start off by saying that you can’t judge an author by only having read one book by them. I was one of the rare few that didn’t love BAD ROMEO. I actually kind of despised it. I decided that I wouldn’t bother to continue on with this series. A month ago, I received an email from the publisher, offering a Netgalley ARC of WICKED HEART. Not sure why I accepted it, but THANK GOD I DID!!!! This book was so addicting for me! It was seriously book crack!! I loved the story and I loved the characters. Most of all I fell pretty hard for Liam Quinn. He is nothing short of SPECTACULAR!! I am now wholeheartedly apologizing to Leisa Rayven for having doubted her writing ability and I am officially going to be fangirling over her when I meet her this summer!! Lissa Holt is Ethan’s, from Bad Romeo, younger sister. She’s currently working as the Production Manager on the Broadway rendition of Shakespeare’s Taming of the Shrew. She’s about to come face to face with the man who obliterated her heart, Liam Quinn. He’s the male lead in the show and he’s the one guy she broke her ”no dating actors” rule for, six years ago. It has taken Lissa years to get over the heartache Liam caused but with just one look, all those feelings come rushing back. What’s worse is Liam’s co-star on the show, Angel Bell, is his fiancé and Lissa will be forced to witness their tender and loving gestures towards each other on a daily basis. When Liam finally crosses paths with Lissa, it is very apparent that she still has an effect on him and there is a tortured sadness in his eyes. From there, we are brought back six years in the past, where these two first met. I loved the transition to the past because in this one we follow it all the way through. The author doesn’t alternate every chapter between the past and present. We get a few chapters in the beginning that are in the present and then we are transported back to the past and we don’t come back to present day until the whole story from how these two met and fell in love and then lost that love is totally explained to us. I LOVED how Lissa and Liam first met and how that first date ended made me weak in the knees. It’s just how I’d fantasize about meeting that once in a lifetime true love. I felt the butterflies in my stomach the entire time. At the time that the two met, Liam was a construction worker and Lissa was a production manager on the set of the Broadway rendition of Romeo and Juliet. After their beautiful night together, Lissa refused to give her number to Liam. The girl was seriously NUTS!!! But she did mention that there were open auditions for the part of Romeo and Liam decides to give it a try. So this is how the two meet up again. Unfortunately, he gets the part and Lissa has a very strict rule about not dating anyone that she works with. For two months they have to endure the torture of seeing each other every day but not being able to be with each other. Let me just say I was in agony along with the two of them and HOLY HELL, on the night that the show is finally over when these two finally get together again, my freaking panties nearly disintegrated!!!! The sex is seriously EXPLOSIVE!! I was panting and just relieved that they were finally together, but it was bittersweet because Liam was off for Hollywood the next day. My heart hurt so much for the two of them. I loved that there were some refreshing surprises in this one. Like I had expected to really despise Angel, but she ends up being a real sweetheart and it’s literally impossible to dislike this character. The angst was just on the verge of unbearable but it was oh so good!!! Even though I predicted what the true story was behind all the angst, it never did take away from my pure enjoyment of this book. Liam Quinn had my heart from the beginning and by the end I decided he is so worthy of being added to my top ten book boyfriends of all time list.

Honest review in exchange for an ARC 5 amazing, wonderful, fantastic ⭐️ for "Wicked Hearts"! This was my first book by Leisa Rayven. I own the first two books but have yet to read them (they have moved to the top of my TBR list now due to this beautifully crafted story). Even though I didn't read the first two books yet, I chose to dive into this book since it can be read as a stand-alone, and the teasers were too good to pass up. I wasn't disappointed with my choice, because I absolutely adored this story and these characters. The structure of this story draws the reader in to the lives of the characters immediately. Leisa Rayven accomplishes this by having Liam and Liss see each other again and the beginning of the book. The story then jumps back to see their courtship and it just engages the reader. I was invested in these characters by 13% and emotionally destroyed so many times throughout the first couple chapters. This agony, and I mean it in the best way possible, is only drawn out as the reader returns to the present to see Liss handle Liam while trying to remain professional at work and stay loyal to her friendship with Angel. The story ultimately caused me to experience a varying range of emotions, and when an author can make you feel a hollowness in your chest, an aching in your heart, and joy all in one story, you know it is fabulous! More than the story, I loved these characters. Angel is beautiful, sweet, kind, and in the end her loyalty to her friends makes her such a likable character, even when you want to hate her. Josh, can we be friends? I loved him, and his comic relief was expertly placed to relieve tension in scenes (There was one area at the end of the book during the epilogue between Liss and Josh that surprised me because it didn't show throughout the book. So, although I thought is was an odd to include the detail at the end of the book, it didn't bother me that it was there. I just personally didn't feel it was necessary.). He was also incredibly loyal and supportive to Liss throughout the whole story. Liam and Liss were a fantastic characters. Both have lived their lives to fulfill obligations, but eventually have enough. Liam is your typical heartthrob, but I loved him anyway. Liss, like Liam spends a good portion of the book being honorable but eventually realizes that life is just too short. This idea is summed up in my favorite line from the book, "...You can give up a lot of things in life and still be happy...but the one thing you're absolutely not allowed to give up on is true love. When you find it, you should grab it with both hands and never let it go, because although it may not be easy or convenient, it's worth it...You get the love you fight for. The one you think you deserve" Liss and Liam decided to fight for what they thought was worth it. Finally the other part I enjoyed was the lack of vilifying a character I loved. Leisa Rayven could have easily taken the traditional route with the conflict, but I loved the outside character. I would have been devastated if one of the characters I came to adore had been tainted by certain behaviors, but it never happened. In the end, the reader is left with a happily ever after for all involved. Ultimately, the writing was beautiful, and the characters were wonderfully complex. I can't say enough wonderful things about the book, and I can't wait to see what this author does next!

I liked the timeline of Wicked Hearts better than Bad Romeo/Broken Juliet. Instead of going back and forth from past to present, Wicked Hearts was mainly past to present. I absolutely loved parts of this book, especially anything with Josh. Unfortunately, I also skimmed a lot of the book.

5 Amazing Stars!! "How long does it take to fall in love? A second? A week? A year? It's like asking how long it takes to fall asleep. Some people are gone as soon as their head hits the pillow. Others lie awake for hours, and it's only when their brain stops churning for a while that sleep sneaks in and drags them under. That's how I visualize falling in love. Some people fall so easily, they seem reckless. They love freely and unashamed." "Ask me to give up a limb and I swear, I'll find a way to do it. But don't ask me to live without you anymore. I can't. I'm so godd**n in love with you, it hurts." "But the one thing you're absolutely not allowed to give up on is true love. When you find it, you should grab it with both hands and never let go, because although it might not always be easy or convenient, it's worth it. I can tell you that much for sure." Wow! Just wow!! Wicked Heart, you have definitely taken my heart and ran away with it. I didn't know what to expect when I picked up this book. I mean, Leisa Rayven set the bar pretty high with Cassie and Ethan's story. I didn't know if I could love a couple more than those two. And then I read the first page and was like Ethan and Cassie who???!! From the moment I picked up this book, I was sucked in. I was utterly captivated by Elissa and Liam's story. You see Liam is the only man that Elissa has ever loved, but their relationship ended almost faster than it began. It will be six long years before these two are reunited. And when they are finally reunited....Watch out!! Elissa tries and I mean tries her hardest to keep things professional, but the more Liam and Elissa are around each other, the harder it is to fight the intense connection these two share. However the road to HEA for these two won't be an easy one. There are truths that need to be told and obstacles to overcome. If they two of them can move on from the past, they may just end up with the life they've always wanted...... Wicked Heart has totally blown me away. Told from dual points of view, this story gave me everything I could ask for and more. Alpha male: Check. Intense Connection: Check. Heartbreak and Misunderstandings: Check. Angst: Check Check. As you can tell, it checked off all my little boxes. Liam and Elissa's story gave me so many feels. The angst and heartbreak between the two of them was so palpable, it took my emotions for one heck of a ride. My heart ached so much for these two. I wanted to reach through my kindle and shake the two of them. I wanted to yell at them that they belonged together. But, in reality, all I could do is just sit back, read and enjoy the ride. And boy, what a ride it was. I devoured Wicked Heart in just one sitting. I couldn't put it down. Liam and Elissa's story demanded to be told and I couldn't read the pages fast enough. I loved everything about this story. The story is well-written, fun and entertaining. The characters; you just couldn't help fall in love with them. The side characters were amazing as well. I loved the romance, and the angst and the drama. I just couldn't get enough of it. Wicked Heart was one of my most anticipated reads of the year and boy did it deliver.

I'd say the first half of this book was enjoyable and very funny. The second half read like a corny sitcom. I feel it had a weak plot. It just wasn't executed well. Also, it felt rushed at the end. It was just unbelievable and that really took from the story. Cute read just didn't do it for me.

Wicked heart, una autora que sabe escribir y atraparte completamente. La recomiendo, es de mis favoritas. ❤️ ⭐️. Se merece completamente las estrellitas. 🤓❤️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hat mir sogar noch besser als die vorherigen Teile gefallen!!! Ein wirklich schöner Liebesroman/New Adult Roman mit viel Gefühl und auch ein wenig Herzschmerz. Die Charaktere sind auch sehr sympathisch.

Oh I loved this book! I enjoyed all three books in this series but this was definitely my favourite. For once we have a writer who has found us a heroine that is the right balance of strong and vulnerable, I was rooting for her throughout the whole story. And she was perfectly matched with Liam, I fell in love with him and got mad at him and swooned over him just as much as Elissa did. I broke my heart with Elissa when everything fell apart after she'd been so brave, and it was the most exquisite angst, but I also adored the banter between her and Liam, it was top notch and so many times I snorted out loud with laughter. And the icing on the cake, was the awesome characters of Josh and Angel. It was refreshing that Angel was no villain, and I adored Josh and his relationship with Elissa. Fantastic read, can't wait to read more from this author.

I ordered Leisa Rayven's book by a recommendation of another author I enjoy. I'm SO glad I ordered all three of her books at once! The books (Bad Romeo, Broken Juliet as well as Wicked Heart) are great reads. Many of the things that come out of the characters mouths or the thoughts they have are true to life. The stories are well written and in parts down right hilarious! She is a fantastic gem! I cannot wait to read her next book!

This author is incredible, the way she writes, you feel like you know the characters intimately and miss them terribly once the book is finished. A brilliant third book in the series.