Bane (Sinners of Saint Book 5)

A powerful storyline full of emotions and intense healing power, allowing you to become deeply involved in the fascinating plot and leaving me breathless and wanting more.!!

Highly recommended!!

Amazing beautiful wonderful and an enjoyable read. As I knew it would be. Her books are amazing to read and well never be disappointed.

Ms. Shen thanks yet again for another great read.

Hengy

Bane was incredible. I love this series and while Trent's book is still my favorite, I loved Bane and Jesse. They were two people who fought to find happiness and I loved them together. This was a fabulous book!

The entire Sinners of Saint series is amazing and I can’t get enough of them. Bane was different but great! I loved this storyline. A little different from the other books but maybe even better. Great read :)

Please consider this book as a totally different story, not like the rest of the sinners of saint guys . I fell in love with Bane before the book about him was even written, and I've waited impatiently to get a copy so I could confirm my feelings. Roman and Jesse are not the usual couple you will read about, Jesse's story was hard and very quickly you will find yourself falling in love with her too. Great book !!

Oh Leah, please never stop what you’re doing! I was blown away once again! I did not expect such a heavy themed book and was amazed by how the story goes. I finished reading Bane few days ago and I’m still thinking about it.
Thank you Leah for your work! Now I’m impatiently waiting for your next one!

After being introduced to Bane in Scandalous I was intrigued by him. This story is like no other, we not only get to see how hard life can be but we see the good in it. Truly a great story and Leigh has done it again and brought us another wonderful book!!!????

I read the whole series and enjoyed every book! The 5th series kept me at the edge of my seat and I did not want to put it down! I kept thinking I would know what was going to happen but I was always surprised! Great read!

Please consider this book as a totally different story, not like the rest of the sinners of saint guys . I fell in love with Bane before the book about him was even written, and I've waited impatiently to get a copy so I could confirm my feelings. Roman and Jesse are not the usual couple you will read about, Jesse's story was hard and very quickly you will find yourself falling in love with her too. Great book !!

Oh Leah, please never stop what you’re doing! I was blown away once again! I did not expect such a heavy themed book and was amazed by how the story goes. I finished reading Bane few days ago and I’m still thinking about it.
Thank you Leah for your work! Now I’m impatiently waiting for your next one!

After being introduced to Bane in Scandalous I was intrigued by him. This story is like no other, we not only get to see how hard life can be but we see the good in it. Truly a great story and Leigh has done it again and brought us another wonderful book!!!????

***5 ‘Snowstorm’ Stars***

I’ve loved and adored all of the Sinners of Saint books, but Bane just may be my favorite of them all. Though, I could actually put it separately from the others since Bane (the guy) isn’t a HotHole….But that’s a whole different conversation. Simply put, I devoured this book. It had all the feels, and I mean ALL. OF. THEM. It was smexy, funny, did all the things to my heart and had me falling into full adoration with the characters.

After meeting Bane in Scandalous I needed/wanted more of him and though he is everything described in the description he is SO. MUCH. MORE. Seriously...just MORE. I need a little of Bane in my life. He’s charming, charismatic and the things that run around in his head and come out of his mouth killed me, but it’s his heart that is the winner. It may not be the first thing you notice about him, but when you see it, you’ll never forget it.

Jesse is on my girl crush list. What this girl has gone through in her short life would bury most, and when we meet her she’s definitely in the beginning phases of the decline, but there is a stubbornness to her that just won’t allow it. She has a fire in her that, when it finally comes out to play, is insane. She’s sassy, quirky and simply golden.

Despite the machinations behind their first physical meeting, what developed out of it was something beautiful. They ended up pushing each other to be more, feel more and truly take stock of who they wanted to be staring back at when they looked in the mirror. I loved their bantering, the chemistry between them was smexy as $%#@ and I loved how they connected on so many levels. Their journey wasn’t an easy one and there are a lot more issues than you can imagine, so when everything is revealed, the $%^$ really hits the fan, groveling happens (I totally approved of the groveling btw) and in the end they get the HEA they so richly deserve.

This really was a fun read. I loved the journey that Bane and Jesse went on, the spoiler in the beginning was spot on, and how it all worked out for them. The tone of Bane and Jesse’s relationship was definitely different than the others and it totally worked for me. But there are some issues that pop up that will definitely be triggers for some, so prepare yourself. The supporting cast of characters were all well written, some I loved, some I hated, but they definitely made for some good reading...and the HotHole sightings were definitely awesome. And though this is the last of the Sinners of Saints series, we aren’t really saying goodbye to Todos Santos and the Sinners. With the spin off, All Saints High, in the works we’ll have the next generation to keep us entertained and considering how all of the Sinners are tied together I have no doubt we’ll get updated on what’s going on with everyone!

Note: Yes, Bane can be read as a standalone, but you really should read the series from the very beginning.

~ Copy provided via Social Butterfly PR & voluntarily reviewed ~

WOW!!!!---What a ride this whole HOTHOLES journey has been. This book was a great end to a great series...but it was very different than the others. I'll start off by saying that BANE(Roman) got his nickname because someone said he was the "bane of my existence". After reading this book, I'd say that Jesse would say that Bane IS her existence!!! We first meet Bane in Scandalous--he used to date Edie(who is now married to another Hothole--Trent). He was the bad boy, surfer, trouble-maker, rule breaker, con, thief, male escort--who, much like the others we've read about, does things his own way. The only big difference between Bane, Vicious, Ruckus, and Trent is that Bane didn't come from a rich family. He was raised by a single mother(Russian father was never in the picture) and he had to steal, cheat, and sell himself in order to make ends meet. Here's where Jesse Carter comes in.........Bane needs money to start up a surf park(his longtime dream). He needs a LOT of money and no one trusts him enough to give it to him. Enter Darren--Jesse Carter's stepdad. He is supposedly a big oil tycoon but we get the impression that is is a very submissive, not so smart, mistreated? husband to Jesse's mom. He seems very meek, and timid at first. He agrees to a deal with Bane that involves his stepdaughter. Well, Bane needs the money, and he's pretty good with the ladies so....easy money, right? Problem is...he hasn't SEEN or MET Jesse before(other than a few years before when he saw her with another guy on the beach) Darren tells Bane that Jesse isn't like most girls. His hope is that Bane can MAKE her be like other girls though....he wants her to have a job, get out of the house, and do "normal" things that girls her age do. Little does Bane know....Jesse has had a very bad life---and she hasn't exactly had the most loving/caring parents(especially her Mother).
Jesse is a complex character. She had some things happen to her that have left the whole town with misjudgment towards her. They call her names and isolate her. Her parents don't support her--so she stays so herself most of the time. Darren wants Bane to "get her out of the house" "give her a job" but the deal is...he is NOT supposed to sleep with her. Well...there IS a big payout if Bane follows thru with the deal, but.......that all changes when he SEES Jesse and finds out that she's not as easy as some of his other business deals. She's not affected(much) by Bane. Sure..he's hot, he's a bad boy....he's also a whore. He's known all over town for his many sexcapades and less than stellar reputation. He doesn't affect her like he does most women......NOT AT FIRST.
Bane slowly gets Jesse to open up a bit, get out of the house, and he even talks her into working for him at his coffee shop. She slowly begins to make friends(something that she hasn't really ever had before), starts smiling again----and eventually, she succumbs to all that is Roman (Bane) Protensko.
This story is just DIFFERENT. Bane has to fight to make it to the top--whereas the other Hotholes were trust fund babies, or just plain born into OLD money that comes easy and plentiful to them. He has a wonderful Mom. Jesse does NOT. She has NO support system unless you count her old lady neighbor who has Alzheimers--and of course her dog, Shadow. I loved the way Jesse and Bane's story evolves. Jesse has also had to fight in her lifetime. She's had so many things happen to her that make you wonder if she will ever HEAL. She is strong and she is brave. She just needs for Bane to remind her of that. Jesse quickly became one of my favorite" Leigh Shen Heroines". This book consumed me and I LOVED the relationship these two shared. It wasn't easy but it was REAL. Bane realizes he needs Jesse just as much as she needs him. Did I mention that he MAY have had a hard time keeping his end of the deal??? The rule was not to Touch her or sleep with her.......Ummmm....this is BANE we are talking about, remember? Did I forget to mention the times he went back on his words and may have touched Jesse(like A LOT!!!???). I LOVED LOVED LOVED this book so hard. It had a completely different feel to me than Leigh's other books but it was a good kind of different --one that will stick with me forever. Kudos to this author--she nailed it again!!!!

(¯`v'¯)
.`•.¸.•' ?REVIEW ?

BANE BY L.J. Shen

I have really loved this series especially the previous ones where all the guys were best friends i just didn’t know how Banes story fit in. Even though he was a character that you knew from scandalous it was going to be a character we needed to know about. Was i surprised with Banes Story.

Bane was such a different character then i have ever written before and i love that about L.j Shens characters and writing it is always different and sometimes it just surprises the hell out of you but that’s what i love in a book.

This story was so much about the two main characters past and what they had to do to overcome it so they could have an amazing future. These two characters were both so broken that you just one they were made for each other and that they would pull each other out of the darkness.

Bane was not a guy that anyone should like but he way LJ Shen writes him you can’t help but really feel this character and understand the way he chooses to make money and what he has to do to live life the way he wants to. He was strong, alpha and at the end of the day another bad boy with an amazing heart once someone showed him that he really he was a good person, just had some pretty crappy things happen to him and he did what he did to survive.

Jesse well what can you say about this character, she had been thorough enough and more and you can’t help being heartbroken for her. I will never forget the feelings i go from this character of sadness but also one hell of a strong person once she figured out that she could be strong.

I have to say that this book has it all and more, there is drama, twists and turns you don’t see coming, a book that has your turning pages faster that what your reading.

Loved this book and this series one of my favorites. If you have read the others you will not be disappointed in book 4 and if your yet to start then you need to get into this series now you will not regret it.

This one was different. So different. I went in thinking Bane was going to be one thing and it was the complete opposite. 

"I was never distracted, never deterred, and never jealous. So, imagine my surprise when I found myself being all three at once."

I'm going to be honest my heart was heavy at times reading this. Some parts were hard. Devastating. Utterly and terrifyingly shocking and tough. 

"Lying isn’t only about the people you lie to, it’s mostly about your own integrity."

Jesse is my favorite kind of heroine. Strong. Her life may look all peaches and cream from the outside but that couldn't be further from the truth. She has been broken and the people closest to her have let her down in the worst way possible. Enters Bane. For years Jesse has stuck to her "no new friends" rule......especially men and she doesn't care how knee weakening his gorgeous face is, how much he insist he doesn't want anything from her and how much he always seems to pop up at just the right time she's definitely not......probably not....Maybe not? Falling for him. 

“The queen is the most powerful piece,” he hissed. “Don’t let the pawns bring you down.”

Bane's reputation proceeds him. He's cocky, crass, self assured and he does not do "feelings" He works hard and does other things even harder. He has his businesses, his "clients" and his very small circle of friends. So why the hell can't he get Jesse out of his head. 

"My Whole Life Has Been Pledged to This Meeting with You"

Guys. Get ready for a VERY twisted, raw, emotional and also beautiful and hopeful story. Leigh always has a way of bringing the most complex and tortured characters to life. 

“No, Snowflake. Where have you been before? When I was lost. When I was a monster. When nothing made sense. Where have you been all my life?”

“Do you want me?” I coaxed.

“Want you?” The table nearly flew to the other side of the room from the impact of his slap on it. “I’m way beyond want. I’m somewhere between need and desperate. And I don’t like that place, Jesse. I don’t like it at all.”
Bane. Man, oh, man! Now, none of the sinners are really very “likable,” when you first meet them, honestly. They do grow on you a little once you get down to their heart, but in the core of them they’re still a little … ahole-ish. I wasn’t sure, though, if I was going to be on board with Bane. I wanted to, but there was just something about him that kept me loathing him and not letting me break through to love him.

Jesse, though, I totally loved her. She was such a strong person. I couldn’t imagine living her life or dealing with what she did, so to me just surviving made her a much better person than me.

I wish I had better words to tell you what I felt along this journey. I felt all the emotions. I was angry, disappointed, sad, excited, anxious, relieved, surprised, happy, worried….just all the things. There was such depth to these characters, that I really felt as though I was changing and experiencing life right along with them . I dare say that I felt even more with this sinner than the rest.

If you haven’t been the biggest fan of the Hotholes, let me just say Bane is a little different. He’s still an overconfident jerkface, but there’s something about him that is a little different.

“The queen is the most powerful piece,” he hissed.
“Don’t let the pawns bring you down.”
I wanted to ask him if he was my king. Because I know how to play chess very well. But the answer was crystal clear to me. Roman ‘Bane’ Protsenko was my knight. The piece of the chess game that needed to be moved sooner than the pawns, the bishops, and the queens.
Bane, for me, has taken the Hothole crown.

After reading Scandalous where we were introduced to Bane I thought I knew what to expect when it was revealed his story was going to be told.
Holy Hell was I wrong!
Roman “Bane” is so much more than he shows the world.
He’s such a deep complex character.
The personality he portrays to others is a laid back stoned guy with no worries.
He takes what he wants with no apologies to anyone.
But what lays underneath all that is a unique man with a tangled life.
Jesse is one incredible young lady.
Wow that girl is one strong woman!
Outwardly she might appear weak and broken.
But in reality buried deep in her is strength,resolve and purpose.
She may be severely bent but never broken.
These two being so different with Bane’s laid back attitude and his sense of humor and Jesse’s controlled rigid lifestyle they absolutely should not mesh.
But they fit perfectly together.
Each one of them is the missing piece the other lacks.
Their banter and back and forth are funny and sassy and had me smiling from ear to ear or lol.
Some conversations are heavy and not sugarcoated that tore me to pieces.
When the twisted ugly past comes barreling into the future things are about to take a turn no one saw coming.
Ms. Shen doesn’t disappoint with this book.
She weaves a tale that’s gripping and intense.
She blends perfectly the heartbreak and the hope,the redemption and the recovery.
The two characters are imperfectly perfect and there’s no way not to root for them.
I loved every word written but one of my very favorite passages is:
“You don’t need a prince,princess. You need a sword.”
So much meaning behind these simple words ♥️

Dang !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That LJ Shen can write a book and then some. Gritty, Passionate, and let's just give her an award for the male characters she seems to bring to life that are truly larger than life.

It started with Vicious don't even get me started with him and now Bane. Where to begin with Bane. Unapologetic, a bit of a jerk, ambitious, just......... unhhhhhhhhhhhh. That man makes me incoherent. I was rendered speechless by him and I can't quite convey why that is.

See what I mean. Bane is just gah. A few times throughout this book LJ renders me speechless with just his words. And Jesse, well I love her fierceness and while at the beginning she was anything but it seemed that Bane was the catalyst she needed to take back her life. And take it back she did and I loved it.

Bane and Jesse, their story is captivating and their story was endearing to witness. I loved seeing these two together even though the circumstances that brought them to one another is less then ideal. And of course it was only a matter of time before things blew up and when they did, let's just say that LJ surprises you with something you didn't see coming which makes this story even more gripping.

This series just gets better and better. There's a reason that LJ is a go to author for me, she writes the words and stories that I love to lose myself in.

5 “A Dazzling Tragedy” Stars

Raw. Passionate. Intense. Phenomenal.

Bane is the story of our naked surfer and the girl he never thought he’d fall for. Working his way up the chain of command in his home town, Bane is making a name for himself. He just needs the funds to compete with the likes of the Hotholes. When he finally finds an investor, he realizes that he’s got take on a side project to get the money: Jesse. But what starts as Bane just befriending Jesse (even when it’s kind of against her will) the idea that this is “just another job” starts to fade when emotions he didn’t even realize he was capable of start to surface. Now the delinquent wants to go mainstream but he’s got secrets that will ruin everything.

I was captivated for the very start. Having met Bane previously, I was fascinated with his transformation. He was dark and gritty and ruthless and yet when it came to Jesse, he saw something more than he’d ever realized. He was never going to be the good guy next door, but maybe that was exactly what Jesse needed. Watching their relationship play out kept me fervently flipping the pages with a large dose of angst taking up residence in my throat.

I’d you’re new to LJ Shen, this is a perfect starting point. This standalone is a prime example of Ms. Shen’s talent and it will introduce you to the other characters those of us die hard Shen fans have grown obessed with.

First of all before anything this is my favorite book of the authors to date. Bane,you will fall deeply in love with this crazy, hilarious whore man. Jesse well all I can say is this woman reminds me of myself lost but stronger than she knows deep inside she just wants to be loved. This book blew me away I cried my eyes out and even had to take a breather at parts because I felt it in my chest. Never give up, don’t let anyone win over you. Fight and get your truly self back and maybe you might meet that one person that both of you need saving. I’m so glad the author wrote this story because woman truly need to realize we are strong and we deserve to be loved. 5/5 stars deserves 10 definitely a top 2018 romance for me

Bane is no Prince Charming so when Jesse becomes part of a business deal he has little remorse or emotion for using her for his own means, but he had never seen anyone the likes of her before.

Jesse is wounded both by what happened to her past and how everyone that she should have been able to trust to rescue her not only ignored her plight they ensured she had no way out. She has started over and has started to heal far away from her perpetrators but obviously not far enough.

When Bane sees underneath the persona that Jesse exhibits to others she calls to a part of him that he thinks no longer exists and his main concern becomes helping her heal and protecting her. Jesse as well is able to see Bane as he really is and not the bad boy with the questionable past but someone who proves that he can be depended on which is something she has never had before.

Words cannot express the depth of emotion that Bane and Jesse will bring out in you and it has the same humorous banter, hot chemistry and angst that we know and expect from this author. This may be my favorite novel by her to date and that is saying something. I voluntarily reviewed an Advanced Reader Copy of this book.

The Sinners of Saint series is one of my favorites because all of the lead male characters are so obnoxious yet so sexy you develop a love/hate relationship with them and are affectionately referred to as the Hotholes. Bane is no different. He’s no holds barred and takes no crap and he intrigued me from the start flaws and all. Roman “Bane” Protsentko gets what he wants no matter how he has to get it done. But there’s a softer side to him too - one that loves his mother and doesn’t want to repeat the sins of his father. Jesse Carter has been through hell and back. But she is one tough chick. With a mother that doesn’t care about anyone but herself and a stepfather that cares a little too much, Jesse has to be her own savior. She and Bane see each other, have great banter and have more than just physical chemistry going for them. Their story takes on not only love but healing and redemption. I can only describe the writing as being right there in their thoughts or as part of the scene - so natural and realistic. Bane is a fantastic addition to the series and ends it on a high note. But have no fear, we get to meet the children of those Hotholes soon and I’m really looking forward to that.