Haunting Beauty

The Mate Games (Death, Book 1)

By: Meg Anne, K. Loraine

Narrated by: Stella Hunter, J.F. Harding, Jason Clarke, John Hartley, James Joseph, Samantha Brentmoor - featuring

Length: 9 hrs and 52 mins

Publisher's summary

An all new duet narrated multicast series from USA Today best-selling authors Meg Anne and K. Loraine.

One heroic act damned me for eternity. With a name like Tor, I should have been a hero, just like my father and twin. Turns out I’m not. Not even close. Instead I’m the very thing we hunted. A depraved monster. I thought there was no escaping the curse. No hope for a future.

And then I met my mate in the unlikeliest of places: Blackwood Asylum. A place for criminals. Power-hungry madmen. Supernatural outcasts. And her, the curvaceous writer who sees ghosts.

I’m not the only one with a need to claim her though, and I don’t know which of us she’ll choose.

The dragon

The pirate

The lost soul, or me...the beast.

Dahlia was my reason for holding on to the last shreds of my humanity, but with every passing day I lose more of myself. And I’m starting to think that’s for the best.

With threats closing in from all sides and a serial killer on the loose, maybe fate brought us together because she doesn’t need a hero. Maybe what my beauty really needs is a villain.

For fans of Supernatural and American Horror Story, USA Today best-selling authors Meg Anne and K. Loraine are thrilled to bring you another installment in the Mate Games Universe.

Warning: The Mate Games: Death is a spicy paranormal series with a cast of antiheroes utterly devoted to their heroine (even if they haven’t realized it yet). It contains a cursed Novasgardian berserker with primal energy, a dastardly pirate captain who deals in pixie dust, a possessive fae dragon shifter who is fond of hand necklaces, and a mysterious Southern gentleman who’d show her what he liked, if only he could remember. Please refer to the authors' website for all tropes, tags, and CWs.

©2023 Ravenscroft Press (P)2023 Ravenscroft Press

Absolutely superb steamy fantasy audio experience!

Haunting Beauty is absolutely superb and kicks off the Mate Games: Death series with a devastatingly smoldering suite of vibrant characters. This very old/new threat will have you on the edge of your seat as the layers are peeled back - all while each character unravels the hidden secrets about themselves! I laughed out loud at Dahlia's expert-level snark, and even clapped a few times. It's funny, mysterious, suspenseful, and beyond steamy perfection! I took the day off work and listened straight through - and then listened again. I seriously cannot wait for the rest of this series!

Within the first few chapters I was completely hooked on Dahlia’s journey, and with the introduction of each new character I was more and more invested. There is a lot going on, but it’s not chaotic. Blackwood Asylum is a character itself, wrapped in magic and full of powerful beings, each with a story of their own. I feel like I could wander the halls and never see everything. I love that type of inspiration with the setting for this book. This first book does a wonderful job setting up these complex characters, worldbuilding, re-introduction of beloved characters, and laying the groundwork for how such possessive personalities will find their way in a why-choose dynamic to set the stage for this HAF adventure through magic, mystery, suspense, and erotic adventures while saving the world!

Perfection in casting - period! Every single word is beautifully performed!! Absolutely brilliant performances by all: Every word - every breath - every moan - every sigh - every growl - EVERY SINGLE aspect is everything I love about audio performed by #humanvoice. Haunting Beauty is the full experience in DUET!

Stella Hunter is showing her range with Dahlia and she just keeps getting better. Dahlia’s quick wit is disarming, especially in light of her painful past and the truths she is uncovering. I was both in awe of and could see myself in this character, which is a great way to start a new series!

Jason Clarke as Tor is simply stunning growly perfection with a very powerful performance. Tor is tortured by his curse and finds hope and devastation in his connection to Dahlia and his drive to protect her at any cost. #JasonEffingClarke once again earns this hashtag hardcore. You aren’t ready for this!

J.F. Harding as Cain is a heartbreaking enigma. His performance is truly excellent! I have no idea where this will go and how much we will be tortured by it, but I can’t wait to see what happens with him!

John Hartley as Kai, the Dragon shifter, just WOW!! I am extremely invested in this character development. There is so much potential there and he is dealing with a lot of guilt and frustration while managing to be HAWT in every meaning of the word.

James Joseph knocked my socks off as the Fae pirate Caspian who is always scheming, wrapped in trouble, covered in mystery and devilishly clever. He is that sneaky character who seems like a lot of fun but is actually a huge threat (to panties and storylines).

Samantha Brentmoor is the perfect fit for Kiki and Dr. Masterson - Who knew she has been hiding a Scottish accent (full disclosure - I am NOT an expert), because holy crap she is awesome!! Dr. Masterson is one of those surprising characters that just feels like there is something hiding behind that calm analytical personality. She could be a champion for good or something more sinister and I have absolutely no idea which is more likely.

Bottom Line - Meg Anne and K. Loraine are evil geniuses who are plotting our destruction in all the best ways - guaranteed to take us on a fantastic journey with truly wonderful audiobook experiences, and I can’t wait to see where this goes!!

JFC

Let me just say….. I DEVOURED this book. I started it at like 11 pm, and had it completed within 12 hours. It's was so spicy, and the plot was enjoyable!!! Such a good weaving of different characters! I also LOVE duel narration, and the whole cast of narrators!!! ❤️❤️❤️

Get all their books!

there has not been a but l book they they've written together or apart so far that I do not love. the voice duet cast is amazing.

What’s not to like?

Oh the tease..only to be satisfied by the character depth to do what I am about to do…buy next book. Low angst, perfectly fantastical, my cheap arse is in for the ride. The narration is so eargasmic! The cast alone is an insta-buy!!

Highly Entertaining!

I went into this book hesitantly, not expecting much. I was highly surprised at how fun it was! The cast did such an amazing job and the writing was so much fun. I love the humor in the story and really enjoyed how truly entertaining it was.

SPOILER ALERT!




My only complaint was at the very end when Caspian released the patients in No Man's Land. I don't see him willingly putting Dahlia in danger even if it was to get to Tor. He knew she was there and his actions didn't match up with how he feels about her, in my opinion.

Amazing

I love these audio actors! They bring this whole series to life. I binged this book now desperately awaiting the next book!! Guess I have to restart mate games war and redo the whole series while waiting lol

💕♥️

So good I mean great, fan funking tastic! Next book please please please please 🙏🏼. 😂🤣♥️🥰🤭🤩🫠🤤🥵 need I say more

Dahlia and her Antiheroes

Haunting Beauty is the start of The Mate Games Death series. Narrated by a stellar cast that consists of Stella Hunter, Jason Clarke, J.F. Harding, John Hartley, and James Joseph with the addition of Samantha Brentmoor to the Mate Games family, plus a cameo from Aaron Shedlock. As absolutely amazing as Stella is, it's nice to have a new female voice in the mix. With characters overlapping between the series, I would expect that the addition of Samantha will give Stella a little bit of a vocal break.

Just from this first book alone, I'm predicting so many plot twists in the series, and I don't think any of us are ready for it. There's plenty of suspense and mystery, and while it took awhile to get to some spice, it all plays out how it's supposed to. Dahlia is a sassy character and I think she'll hold a special place in all of our hearts. On top of the spice is the witty banter that I am a sucker for.

There were a couple continuity issues with the story, and maybe I missed something while listening or maybe those things will be explained later in future books. For example, Dahlia has flash back, but when she discusses it with one of the MMCs, there is a new detail that doesn't work with the flashback. I know nothing about dialects and accents, but there was something about John Hartley's Scottish accent that sometimes seemed more eastern European than Scottish. Now was that a choice because the character is a dragon and not originally from our world? Maybe.


I started off the book a bit confused, and felt like I was missing something. Once I was really into the story, I didn't feel like I missing something important; however, I saw a post on social media from Meg Anne about checking out her Undercover Magic books because they are part of this universe, so I plan on checking the series out. It's amazing how these 2 authors have woven their universes into one.

The audio was everything! Awesome performances!

I loved loved loved the narration performances in this book!

The writing style, the interesting character development, the wit, the banter, the intrigue, the s3xual tension. I was here for all of it. First off, be aware that there is a "to be continued" ending, but I knew this going in and it was worth it. I love romance, including paranormal romance, but prior to last year, I was not a fan of the RH/Why Choose trope. But K. Lorraine and Meg Anne are the writers who convinced me that RH paranormal romance was worth trying with the first Mate games 4 book series (loved the audio). I couldn't wait to listen to this book in audio. I was not disappointed. I devoured the Haunting Beauty ebook in one day. It was that good and the same was for the audiobook. I ate that up with a spoon, left no crumbs. All the characters were so lovable in different ways, I was just rooting for all the MMCs. The dialogue and interactions between characters was rich, and the extra sound effects OMG, sooo good! Spectacular performances by all the narrators. Bravo!
Also can't wait for book 2.

Fantastic!!

This was a brilliant RH Paranormal Romance!!! Very spicy!! A very unique and interesting story, with paranormal creatures, romance, fated mates, mystery and lots of fun!!

The full-cast narrative was FANTASTIC and brought the story alive!! A great cast of narrators!!! I need the next book!!!