Author: J. Rose

Series: Harrowdean Manor

First Published: 29 November 2024

“Because I’ll always be safe with a villain on my side.”

I will start by saying that I was given an ARC copy in exchange for an honest review. Thank so much J. Rose and the team over Valentine PR for sending a copy my way!

I will try and keep my review as spoiler free as possible but just be wary if you haven’t read the first book, Sin Like the Devil.

“This documentary is your chance to set the record straight. All we want is the truth.”

Harrowdean Manor is on fire.

When a violent riot erupts, the fragile order inside the institute’s walls crumbles overnight. Mob mentality and chaos now reign.

We’re in the eye of the storm.
But the real war is in our minds.

Amidst the anarchy, the true enemy lurks just beyond the barricades. Plotting. Preparing. Waiting to strike.

Escaping their sick experiment won’t erase our sins. Danger still lurks around every corner as we flee a criminal conspiracy on the verge of collapse.

Penniless. Broken. Abandoned.
I’ve lost everything, but I still have them.

Lennox hurt me.
Xander broke me.
Raine healed me.

Banding together, we’re a twisted, imperfect family of misfits and criminals.

We sacrificed our sanity to survive. Our voices are all we have left. Now we’ll tell the world our story and clear our names.

Even villains deserve happy endings.

J. Rose’s Sabre Security universe might be one of my favorite fictional worlds—and Harrowdean Manor slots in perfectly. The minute Burn Like an Angel hit my Kindle, I knew I had to read it. I was desperate to discover what became of Ripley and her team after the wild ending of Sin Like a Devil.

Thankfully, we picked up right where we left off. Ripley and Lennox have escaped the horrors the Incendia Corporation had ordered them through, and Harrowdean has descended into the chaos of a riot. The group escapes Harrowdean and is on the run. It’s on the run where their beautiful found family dynamic develops. They’ll resort to any means necessary—theft, forgery, violence, even murder—to survive and gain their freedom. It’s hard for them to trust anyone since they know exactly how far the Incendia Corporation’s power extends. Despite its dark and twisted nature, Burn Like an Angel has some light and quiet moments, especially when they find a safe place to hide. These moments give them all a chance to heal and forgive each other for the horrible things they’ve done while locked up in the Incendia’s institutions.

I adore the dynamic of this group. Xander, our cold psychopath, has claimed them as his family and will use every tool and dirty trick in his arsenal to protect them. I loved how he threatened the authorities to ensure any plea deal they signed wouldn’t include a prison sentence. Xander is a hacker–which honestly thank God, because I don’t know how else they would’ve survived. He gets them money and forges prescriptions that Ripley and Raine need. Raine is the light of the group. He has the biggest heart and reminds the rest of them to find time for those special moments. Lennox, underneath his rage, is honestly the biggest softie for his family. He will always be the wall of protection against danger for those he loves. I adored seeing this different side of him as he and Ripley explored their new dynamic. And Ripley is the glue that holds them all together. Especially now she allowed herself to be loved instead of pushing people away to wallow in the guilt of the horrible things she has done. She’s become a safe place for the guys to escape their demons.

It’s no surprise that romance takes a backseat while they are on the run. But we get some beautiful moments, like the first date the guys organise for Ripley when she’s having a bad day. My heart swooned at how hard they tried to give Ripley a normal movie date night experience. On their date, the guys’ gift Ripley a bracelet. The scene in the hospital where she rips them to shreds about the covert reason for the bracelet left me cackling. If you know, you know. We still have a handful of steamy scenes, which are all kinds of fantastic. I’m looking at you, the morning after date night. Wow, that group scene! A grade smut right there. I needed to cool down after that one.

The tension throughout is perfect. The group is trying to escape and hide from this powerful entity who wants to kill them. They know too much to be left alive. Ripley and Raine’s health issues made their escape more difficult. Ripley doesn’t have her medication and is struggling with the manic and depressive episodes of her bipolar disorder. Raine is running low on methadone, which is the only thing that keeps his opioid withdrawal from killing him. The depiction of these mental health issues here was raw, dark, and felt authentic.

I wish this book was longer. I wanted to see their interviews with Sarbe and how they dealt with that. Seeing the trail and witnessing them taking the stand would have been amazing. The story didn’t need it necessarily. I’m just being selfish and wanted more time with these characters.

Like with the first book, we get a handful of scenes from the modern day. This time focusing on Xander’s feelings about the interview. I wish we also saw more from Lennox and Raine in these to gauge their feelings. But again, this is me wanting to spend more time with these characters that I love and adore.

Burn Like an Angel was the perfect way to end Ripley, Raine, Lennox and Xander’s story—even if, selfishly, I wish we got a little more. I have my fingers and toes crossed so that we get to see them in the next series. I am beyond excited about the next series in this universe, which will feature the Anaconda team. If you love a dark, why choose romance with morally grey characters—yes, Ripley holds her own against these guys—Harrowdean Manor is the book for you!