Beneath the Skin by Zara West
Series: The Skin Quartet Series (# 1)
Release Date: June 17, 2016
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Pages: 251
Source: Book provided by the author for review
Ex-Olympic wrestler and reclusive billionaire artist Aristides Stavros has one mission—to rescue his sister, a popular tattoo artist from the old enemy who has kidnapped her. But at every turn, he is confronted by anthropologist Melissa Dermot. Is she just an innocent girl in over her head, or is she working for the international crime boss holding his sister?
Only one thing is certain–when Ari holds the beautiful Asian-American in his arms, questions of guilt and innocence fade against an undeniable fiery attraction. But can their wild passionate love survive the tangled web of long-buried secrets, intentional deceit, and murderous revenge that lie just beneath the surface?
Review: From the beginning of Beneath the Skin, author Zara West drew me into the storyline by creating a backdrop of fascinating details.
Within the first few pages, the author introduced a key element with the disappearance of a tattoo artist. It was fascinating to watch the story unfold as Melissa tried to find clues. This was the first time I can remember reading about a character who is studying anthropology, so I found Melissa’s doctoral project to be quite interesting.
While Ari’s physical appearance may leave much to be desired, it’s clear that he has suffered greatly in the past. I found that his physical scars make him more relatable. I was pleased with the attraction between Ari and Melissa, but wanted to speed it up a bit when they were derailed by Theo Tuccio.
There’s definitely a lot going on in this story. Not only is there Bella’s disappearance, Ari’s art exhibit and Melissa’s doctoral project, but there’s also an effort to rescue abused women. A street gang known as T-Crew plays a big role, highlighting the use of street graffiti. Of course, my heart was won over by the cats in the story.
The criminal element kept me on my toes because I kept wondering who the real villain was. I was thrown off by the details that unfolded surrounding the death of Melissa’s sister. Needless to say, the author maintained by interest until the end.
