Blurb: I was imprisoned for twenty-seven years for the crime of defending my King. Now I’m a free man, and I rule the Court of Paravel once more. The lords and ladies, the debutantes, the great and the good of Paravel all answer to me. And yet, social upstart Wraye Rugova is ruining my life.
Lady Wraye is attempting to use my daughter Aubrey as a springboard into the upper echelons of the court. When I find her in my house trying on Aubrey’s clothes, no amount of pleading will move my ironclad heart. Decades may have passed, but I remember how to punish a disobedient young lady.
She’s deceived everyone with ease, but now she’ll face the hardest ordeal of all. Devrim’s discipline. This is going to sting.
Author’s note: This book contains a Daddy Dom relationship with a thirty-two-year age-gap.
Review: As always, waiting for the next Brianna Hale book was a slow, decadent torture. Midnight Hunter will always be my favorite books of hers--good luck any other books!--but Devrim's Discipline will go down as my second favorite book (which is crazy because I usually don't even like the royalty trope). I was craving another full on Daddy Dom from her and she nailed it.
Paravel is a modern-day country in the midst of an uprising in which the former members of royalty, imprisoned for decades, have been restored to their rightful place within the kingdom. I normally dislike faux kingdoms for the simple fact that they're almost always cheesy beyond belief, but Paravel isn't like Genovia (ala Princess Diaries). It's dark and gritty, chalked full of secrets, and holding onto its respectability by its fingernails.
Dear Daddy Devrim is everything a reader could want from a DD. He's a grumpy, domineering, damaged, dirty-talking man. Cherry on top, he's also mature, and rich, and never doles out punishment without reason. I loved that he wasn't afraid to show his emotions, even though he struggled to come to terms with having said emotions. He didn't walk out of that prison after two decades a well-adjusted man. He's damaged, angry at the world, and wrestling with the adjustment back to 'normal' life. He loves his daughter and regrets not being there for her childhood, he's pissed about missing out on the best years of his life, and he despises that he couldn't protect his King. All he wants now is some semblance of normalcy and a woman to spend the rest of his life with. So many feels from such a fascinating, multi-faceted hero.
Wraye was a fascinating heroine because she's living the Cinderella dream--rags to riches--but she doesn't want it. She wasn't happy scrubbing toilets at a hotel room, but she's not happy dressed in pretty gowns attending fancy parties either. She struggles with this newfound change in her life and she's stumbling her way through court etiquette and failing rather miserably in her attempts to woo a rich suitor to please her mother and secure their new status. She wasn't a weak, simpering girl waiting for a rich daddy to rescue her and that's why I loved her. She was a strong-willed, brilliant girl who only wanted to find someone to navigate this new world with her.
Devrim and Wraye's relationship was dirty when it needed to be, but it had its super sweet moments too. They bonded over more than just good sex. They supported each other, lent each other a shoulder, and listened to one another when no one else was there. Their love for each other revolved around having someone to talk about their problems with, or navigate the difficulties of being thrust into royalty, or...just be with.
So, the bottomline is that this book is sweet and filthy, without being dark like so many daddy doms tend to be. The perfect Daddy Dom for those who like their men damaged and struggling, but honorable and respectable.
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