Diamonds in the Dust: A Diamond Magnate Novel (Diamonds are Forever Trilogy) Paperback – May 19, 2020

I am always anticipating for some authors to release new books, and Charmaine Pauls is quickly becoming one of them. After zipping through her Loan Shark series and reading Beauty in the Broken, I was excited for her to release Diamonds in the Dust. I knew she would not disappoint because I love the way she writes her characters and structures her stories. After reading the blurb for Diamonds in the Dust I knew it was right up my alley, and when the book finally dropped I got to reading.Diamonds in the Dust is connected to her book Beauty in the Broken, and if you've read that (you really should) this book takes place a few years before Beauty in the Broken. Diamonds in the Dust is about Zoe Hart (the sister of Damian Hart, who is the male protagonist of Beauty in the Broken). Zoe Hart has been slaving away at a sweatshop after her older brother Damian was sentenced to a crime he didn't commit. Zoe is dirt poor but has dreams to be a designer. She is, as Charmaine describes her in the story, like a daisy growing on the pavement of a street. She's tough even though she might not be strong in the physical sense, and her poverty does not define her. One day walking home from work her life changes completely when two worlds collide. She is taken by a man named Maxime Belshaw and his intentions are less than stellar. Maxime knows Zoe's weakness-her love for her brother Damian-and he uses this to his advantage when he tells her to come quietly. Any rebelliousness from her and Damian will be killed in jail. Zoe is confused, terrified, and enraged as to how her brother in jail could have made an enemy of Maxime, but she does not have a choice. He makes her a deal: stay with him for a few years, and then he'll let her go.What may seem like a story about a rich man kidnapping a poor woman, is actually much more complex. Zoe is nothing but a pawn and there is a story within that story. Even Zoe does not know the full extent of the game Maxime is playing. When I realized his plan, I had to stop reading. Maxime may be the most unforgivable hero Charmaine has ever written, and its made even more annoying because of his confidence and disregard of Zoe's previous life. He snatches her from the only existence she's ever known and expects her to be grateful. Talk about the audacity...And Zoe, poor naive Zoe, whom I wish I could warn of her impending doom and heartache. She does not even know of the things coming for her.So long story short, she is trapped in a gilded cage. Like a princess in an ivory tower with all of the comforts she can desire at her fingertips, but there is no real freedom here. Nothing truly belongs to her. She's swimming with sharks now, and she is out of her depth.I do know this, though. Zoe is a survivor and she is tenacious. She was getting her bearings in this book, but I have a feeling that in the coming books we'll see her becoming the strong, independent female I know she can be. And Maxime...well he can go die in a fire. Seriously, for most of the book, my kindle was clutched so tightly in my hand, and I was cursing his pigheadedness. The thing with Charmaine's books is that the characters are consistent. The antihero doesn't suddenly turn into a good guy when he meets the girl, in fact, he becomes more of an antihero, and I expect Maxime to be nothing less. I didn't know quite how to contain myself after that cliffhanger, but I loved it. I like cliffhangers when done right (I know, I'm a masochist) and this one I felt was just dramatic enough. I cannot wait for the next book.And oh yeah, that "Italian deal" better not be what I think it is.

Wow, this book is dark but in a different way than other dark mafia books. Maxine makes some pretty shady decisions that would make any sane woman not trust him. Then he wants her blind trust and obedience. His inner conflict is explained a bit, but there is just too much that’s not made clear about his brother and why his family turns a blind eye to his crimes. And also no insight into Z’s brother and his POV. The book is really well written. My complaint is that it’s left in a cliff hanger, and each book is expensive for an e-book. It should all be in one book, one flat fee. Or better yet Kindle unlimited.

Diamonds in the Dust (BK1) by Charmaine PaulsDiamonds are Forever Trilogy #1)Since Zoe was a little girl, she dreamed of having a fairy-tale life. Riding off into the sunset with a beautiful prince charming, who would love and cherish her. Her Brother Damien warned her that it was just a fairy-tale and life was anything but that. Damien was in jail, for a crime he did not commit, but he was working from within, and those that had heard of him, were rightfully worried. Maxime, from the French Mafia, was one of them and knew he had to get collateral against Damien. What better way to do this, than to take Damien’s sister. One look at Zoe, and Maxime became obsessed with her innocence and her outlook on life. He delves deeper into her mind, into her life and learns how to manipulate her by showing her a fairy-tale life or the opposite, forcing her to choose in order to save her brother. Maxime was a psychopath, with no empathy towards others. But Zoe intrigued him, she fought him with her own truths, testing Maxime to the extreme. Zoe wanted her handsome prince charming, her fairy-tale, but instead, she received a scarred and cruel villain. Manipulated and played at every turn, only made her hate him that much more. He stole her dreams, her fantasies; he took what was not his. Could she be strong enough to survive the game until Damien found her? Or would Maxime manipulate her into loving him? Ms Pauls has such a way with words, they pull you in right from the start. The story was well-paced, the characters are beautifully written (yes, even the psychopath Maxime). Maxime was a complex character and in this instalment you hate him. Zoe was young, naïve but she started to find her backbone. And every time she did, he seemed to play her, giving her choices, but were they? I am so invested in this story and can’t wait to dive into book two.

This is one of the best series of books I have ever read together with Charmaine's next series Stolen that is so good that I had to reread. Waiting eagerly for the next instalment of stolen to be released in June x

This is a gritty good series. You won't wanna out it down. Dont!. Great writing, great characters. Definatly a series for the harder reader.

I’ve never read anything from this author before, but I will from now on. Brilliant writing, captivating storyline & very in-putdownable! I literally couldn’t put this book down & as soon as I finished it I was heading to Amazon to download the next book. I would highly recommend if you like a book to keep you hooked.

Great writing and characters. Pleasure to read. Crime family story based largely in France. Great strong crime lord, intelligent and dark. Zoe, our heroine, dealing with her situation and his actions. Looking forward to next

The first book was fantastic a definite 5-star rating.The second book 4-star rating it would have been 5 stars but the page count was a little over 200 and considering the price we should have had more to read.Third book 1-star ratingWhile I have enjoyed the different take on this Mafia series and the arcs in both Zoe and Maxime it was really grating on me how Zoe continually complains (to herself) that Maxime doesn’t love her and never will, it was getting exhausting and I started losing interest which is a shame because, before the longevity of Zoe’s internal whining my rating would have been 5 stars ⭐️ Even now she’s still doubting Maxime after 75% and beyond of the book, it’s slowly destroying all the enjoyment of this series for me it’s so depressing, I've started skimming now just to get it the end. I’m down to 3 stars now at 87% ☹️. Eventually, about 92% of the good stuff happens but it’s too late now because I lost interest. So damned disappointed 😔 I don’t know if I’ll ever read something from this author again.