ARC Review : Illusions of Grandeur by Kathryn Ann Kingsley



Illusions of Grandeur by Kathryn Ann Kingsley
Series : The Impossible Julian Strande #1
Genre : Villain Romance
Publication Date : May 12th, 2020
Alice has never been much for ordinary, and her new job at the mysterious Strande Mansion comes complete with strange noises, a sinister ghost, creepy legends, and a sexy amateur magician.
Of course, Alice doesn’t actually believe in ghosts, but what she encounters at the Strande Mansion has her questioning a lot of things—including whether or not her gorgeous new boss is as skilled in the bedroom as he is at illusions.

Julian Strande may have died a century ago, but that doesn’t stop him from taking a keen interest in the new caretaker of his estate. It’s been such a long time since he’s had anyone to play with. And he plans to have a great deal of fun with Alice. That is, if she doesn’t run screaming from his home first…

Available on KU!
I really don't think I could ever get tired of praising Kathryn Ann Kingsley's writing! And I don't even know how she never fails to surprise me with every new book of hers! Each time I go in expecting something based on the blurb, I'm amazed by the completely different experience that I get when I'm done reading!

Illusions of Grandeur is what I'd classify as villain romance or even dark romance! It's dark, twisted and magical on a whole new level!

Alice has just arrived at the Strande Mansion to interview for the position of a Caretaker when she's hired on the spot! She's not one to make impulsive decisions, but after losing her job and coming across an ad for this position she decides to take a leap of faith and try her hand at this!

The Strande Mansion also holds a lot of secrets, illusions and ghosts, and it's upto Alice now to figure out whether to stay and unearth them or leave them as it is!

Along with Kathryn's writing my favorite thing about her books is the characters! Alice was an intriguing protagonist, who prefers her own company but has a lot of curiosity! We also have her new boss Charles who's both flirty and dangerous! And let's not forget the ghost of Julian Strande who finds himself drawn to Alice! The interplay between all of them was amazing!

I found myself drawn to the puzzle of Julian just like Alice was and the Strande mansion is essentially an extension of him. And some of the steamy scenes were downright explosive!
After finishing this book in one sitting, I'm as invested as Alice and I need answers to all of my questions! So many things to find out and I can't wait for book two!
Alice has a lot of things to figure out and I definitely don't believe the fact that a certain someone's death didn't have foulplay in it, so I don't know what Alice is going to do when the truth comes out!

Arggh! June feels too far away!

*I was provided with an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

Kat has always been a storyteller. With ten years in script-writing for performances on both the stage and for tourism, she has always been writing in one form or another. When she isn’t penning down fiction, she works as Creative Director for a company that designs and builds large-scale interactive adventure games. There, she is the lead concept designer, handling everything from game and set design, to audio and lighting, to illustration and script writing. Also on her list of skills are artistic direction, scenic painting and props, special effects, and electronics. A graduate of Boston University with a BFA in Theatre Design, she has a passion for unique, creative, and unconventional experiences. In her spare time, she builds animatronics and takes trapeze classes.

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