Eros is a monster. The son and enforcer of Aphrodite, he's used to having blood on his hands. So turning up to a party injured is no big deal. Except he's met on arrival by Psyche who, despite his reputation, offers to help him clean up. But her mother is still determined to set up one of her daughters as Hera, which enrages Aphrodite, as matchmaker is her job. Taking out Psyche offers too many advantages, and she has the perfect assassin on hand. But when kindness is such a rare thing in his life, will Eros be able to strike the killing blow?

The literal only reason this book doesn't get the full five stars is because there are a couple of small moments that stick out as a bit too contrived , and my favourite couple don'tmake quite enough of an appearance. Other than that, I loved this book! I don't even know where to start with my praise!

Psyche is a wonderful character, well rounded and 'real'. I've never really been bothered about what size the characters I read about are described as; it just doesn't matter to me. But having Psyche as an overt plus-size character, who still has amazing body confidence and is generally considered to be gorgeous and desirable... it feels important, and gave me an image to aspire to. It made her so easy to identify with, despite all the other madness going on in the story. Likewise, Eros leaps off the page and, right from the start, it's obvious there is more to him than his reputation would suggest. His protective instincts are written to perfection, and yes, you get a little shiver down the spine with every claim of 'mine'. 

Yes, the story is chock full of tropes, most obviously 'marriage of convenience'. And despite the slightly bizarre leap from 'I've been ordered to unalive you' to 'marry me', the logic makes just enough sense for the set up to work. But once you're there, the characters themselves carry ypu off so well that the plot is a secondary concern. While there is a story arc and a thread to follow, the background just dropped away as my focus fixed on Eros and Psyche and their realisation that they might just be meant for each other. I'm fairly confident that there are some seeds planted for future books in the series in here, so you do have to pay a little bit of attention, but overall it's the developing relationship and cute moments where it's just the two of them that really hold your attention. 

The world of Olympus continues to grow in this book, with new haunts and new lore being introduced which makes the city start to feel more immersive. Seeing fresh characters' takes on the structure and machinations of the Thirteen, the way the city works and the things that are important to them also helps bring the whole vision to life, and I love it! Where it's still early days in the series for me, I am still getting used to the way these Olympians 'rule' (I.e. their not being actual Gods and Goddesses), but I think it's a clever and original take on the theme.