AVENGE ME (Fifth Avenue Trilogy #1) by Maisey Yates-a review

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ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date May 27, 2014

TEN YEARS AGO ONE DEVASTATING NIGHT CHANGED EVERYTHING FOR AUSTIN, HUNTER AND ALEX. NOW THEY MUST EACH PLAY THEIR PART IN THE REVENGE AGAINST THE ONE MAN WHO RUINED IT ALL.

Austin Treffen was born into a world of privilege, but behind its gilded doors lies a corruption so sordid New York’s elite would never believe it; especially as his infamous philanthropic father is at its core! With everything he believed in shattered, how can Austin take down his father; risking his family name and those he loves; without any proof?

Until one earth-shattering night with Katy Michaels unlocks not only their deepest, most passionate desires but also the key to bringing Jason Treffen’s reign to an end. But with an intense sexual attraction that combines a heady mix of exquisite pleasure and sublime pain, will they satiate their thirst for revenge and each other; or lose themselves forever in the darkness?

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REVIEW: AVENGE ME is the first instalment in the Fifth Avenue contemporary adult, erotic Fifth Avenue Trilogy series with each subsequent connecting storyline written by a different author. Avenge Me is billionaire attorney Austin Treffen and events planner Katy Michaels’s storyline written by author Maisey Yates.

The overall focus of the series is the take down of Jason Treffen-lawyer, billionaire and Austin’s father. To the public Jason is the personification of perfection; an upstanding citizen and philanthropic family man but behind the scenes Jason is involved in illegal activities that have resulted in the destruction of many lives. For ten years Austin has felt the shame and guilt of his father’s sordid life until the day he meets Katy Michaels whose goal it is to destroy Jason Treffen and everything he represents.

The relationship between Katy and Austin is immediate and familiar to readers of damaged billionaire/eager virgin storylines. From a hot and steamy one-night stand Austin and Katy’s fast track to love builds in a matter of days until Austin proclaims that he is a man incapable of love and Katy should turn and walk away. Saying this, I did not feel the ‘insta-love’ or the attraction between Katy and Austin-their sex felt more like an arrangement and convenience.

Told from third person POV, the majority of this storyline focuses on the building relationship between Katy and Austin, but the take down of Jason Treffen has only started. The details surrounding Jason’s illegal activities are slowly revealed but the bulk of the information remains hidden.

The secondary characters include Austin’s best friends Hunter Talbot Grant and Alex Diaz-all three men are connected through friendship, a dark history and the death of someone they once knew and loved. It is with this understanding that each instalment in the series will focus on their (Austin, Hunter and Alex) links to Jason Treffen and the illegal activities that have resulted in too much heartache and guilt for all three friends.

AVENGE ME is an erotic storyline that felt a little choppy at times. The heroine’s need for revenge was lost in the details of her personal backstory which seem to engulf a good portion of her thoughts and direction, and detracted from the main story. As for Austin’s character, we do not get a good understanding of the man who has stolen Katy’s heart. His relationship with his parents is tense but there is very little character development or information revealed about the man. It would have been nice to see the primary characters fleshed out differently. The buildup towards Jason Treffen’s fall from grace never fully materialized as the premise focused more on Austin and Katy’s dysfunctional relationship. Hopefully, Jason Treffen’s personal and professional demise will come to fruition in the next two instalments.

Reading Order
Avenge Me (May 27, 2014)
Scandalize Me (June 24, 2014)
Expose Me (August 2014)

Copy supplied by the publisher through Netgalley.

Reviewed by Sandy