The Pawn (Endgame Book 1)

"Move into jeopardy. Be captured. So simple and yet so hard to do. Surrender."The Pawn is a darkly intoxicating story of a young woman who sells her body and her soul to the highest bidder in order to save the only surviving remnant of her former life and the man who comes to own her. A calculated game of wits and maneuvers ensues within these pages, a dark battle for control and surrender takes place. And in this dangerous game of give and take, of fear and lust, each move of the pawn and the king reveal bits of strategy, of secrets, of desire, of truth."In chess we’re well matched. I still lost, sacrificing the game to get information that broke my heart. But when it comes to sex, he’s the far superior player. I’m a novice. I’m nothing."Like every Skye Warren book I've ever read, I couldn't put The Pawn down. Skye Warren knows how to create that razor sharp line between love and hate for her readers, taking them on a deliciously dark ride through pleasure and pain, often tangling the two so intricately, the reader is unsure which they're even feeling at any given moment. That's the same tumultuous journey Avery James is taken on with the man who buys her, the king who owns her. This book hurts so good in a way that only this author's books do. The sensuality in these pages is perfectly yet painfully laced with terror and heartbreak, with uncertainty and fear, that the reader, right along with these characters, is left consumed by everything they're made to feel."It’s my role in this game: to fall when the time is right, to protect the king until I’ve run out of time. To sacrifice myself at the perfect turn."This author is brilliant. A uniquely smart writer, a captivating storyteller, there's no other way to describe Skye Warren than brilliant. Unsurprisingly, there's nothing straight forward about this storyline. It's intense, it's complex. It's completely unpredictable. This story of sex and lust is so exquisitely woven together with the game of chess, with the game of seduction, with the game of lies and deceit. It's a masterful, emotional labyrinth rife with pleasure, pain and heartbreak. The Pawn is a ruthless barrage of emotions you'll both love and hate to feel all at once. And this is just the beginning...

I read this book twice and I really fell in love with the characters of Gabriel and Avery. I will admit that I am not used to the hard-core sex scenes, but I did find them very sexy and exciting! In the second reading, I really got even more out of the chess game metaphor. I thought it was extremely helpful in understanding the characters and this non-traditional love story. It was also very well written. I was hoping for more gentleness and caring from Gabriel toward Avery, but there are still two more books to go, so hopefully we'll see that! I would recommend this series as a very sexy, nontraditional love story with strong characters and a unique plot. Skye Warren is a very talented writer.

I wish one of the other reviews would have mentioned that this book ends with a cliffhanger.It was a relatively fast read that I enjoyed enough however I didn't feel that it was that dark and mysterious.I also thought the sex scenes needed a bit more.Considering all the hype on the book I was a bit underwhelmed.

Does not matter how well this may have been written, it is not a complete story. Authors who do this are being deceitful when they don't make this clear.

Skye Warren has proven once more that she's the true mistress of dark, disturbing, devious and twisted stories.The writing is absolutely flawless, the plot imaginative, original and fast-paced with lots of twists and turns, the characters so intriguing, credible villains with plausible motivation, and the story-line so captivating, dark, disturbing, haunting, devious, and sinful.The Pawn is a story about revenge, deception, power, control, depravity, lust, romance and much more. It pulls you in immediately and keeps you turning the pages until the end.I won't go into details as to not spoil the plot, but this story is absolutely amazing.

Wow! Skye found her calling. I'm so impressed by this new author! I can see this series going so far. I love it and can't wait to read the rest of the books! Avery's life has had some major changes and I can't wait to see her develop into one of my favorite characters. I can see her getting jealous and having her intellect get her into trouble with her buyer.

I was hesitant on reading this book at first because I am not a huge Skye Warren fan. I fell in love with this book!It captured by attention and I just could not put my kindle down. I finished the book in a matter of hours. The suspense and the surprises in the book really make it. I think this book is a must read!!

Sooo Goood!Cliffhanger alert!! I hate reading a book and having to wait for the rest of it to be released. I usually just wait until the whole thing to be published. Oh well, now I wait, just like everyone else...Very good story. Dark read. Main hero constantly is warning the main lady away from him. He doesn't seem to think he's good enough for her, even though he is very clearly obsessed with her. She is still growing up. Trying to learn how to do adult things like pay bills and take care of her father's medical needs. You saw her trying, throughout the entire story. Felt really bad for her, even though she never pitied herself.I will definitely read this again. Have to wait for the rest of the darn story to be published, first!Like all Skye Warren books, this was a dark read. No easy romance here. Be prepared to have your heartstrings pulled in every direction. Features some of her other characters from other books. You don't need to read the other books, though. I didn't and didn't have any trouble following along.