Mask of Deception and Sacrifice Paperback – March 20, 2024

Wow wow wow.I loved all of it.The mystery.The romance.The heart wrenching back stories that just give so much depth.Redemption and healing.Did I mention the swoony romance?Zee is a flirt is all I gotta say.The music references.Ugh so beautiful.💋Swoony kisses only⚠️Death of parents, she's a prisoner, he's a prisoner, hard back stories. (It's fantasy okay)

Interesting premise full of mysteries. I’m not convinced their love was completely healthy, but the characters’ backgrounds made for a very engaging plot. The only downside was the ending seemed faster and not entirely deserved, yet I still enjoyed the book.

This was a delightful mix of Beauty and the Beast, and the Greek myth of the Minotaur. I loved the descriptions of the guarded labyrinth (of bookcases, but still…) and of the growing relationship between the 2 main characters! The way the two stories were woven together was intricate, and highlighted the incredible story from start to finish! I also loved the happy ending!

Mask of Deception and Sacrifice is one of those books that I wanted to devour within a few hours…read! Read! Read! NO interruptions and NO breaks! Until I discover all it’s secrets and unraveled all it’s mysteries! Right now!All the while, simultaneously wanting to slowly immerse myself in the unexpected twists, relish all of it’s unique nuances, and continually hoping for it to never end.Princess Fiona somehow has gotten herself caught and thrown in the enemy dungeon. Her black hair betraying her and making the usurper king believe she may have Illusionist magic. Unbeknownst to him…she is actually the daughter and heir to the thrown he shed innocent blood for. Slowly starving to death and determined to escape Fiona is both confused and hopeful when she is chosen to try and tame the masked beast in the palace. Fill the challis. Pursued the monster to drink. Walk free. Easy right?!I guess you will just have to read this dangerously dark but unexpectedly swoony tale and find out for yourself!The thing I loved most about this story was the uniqueness. This story was unlike any story I have ever read before and although I did guess a couple of it’s surprises, it was so well written that discovering and trying to determine it’s secrets was one of the best and most exciting aspects of the story.I absolutely loved Fiona! She was determined and fierce, but yet not brazen and overly confident. She was such a strong and resilient character with a heart of gold and I really really enjoyed everything about her.I also really loved Zee and Alizar. They were nothing of what I expected but they brought so many twists and revelations and it was just so well executed. I couldn’t have loved them any more!!!So yep! Go read this awesome and fantastically sweet and swoony continuation of the Sacrificed Hearts MAS! It is absolutely unique and completely captivating and perhaps my very favorites of the entire series! I came for the romance but I’m raving about the interesting magic, fantastic characters, and unexpected storyline.

Before I begin, I would like to thank Callie Thomas for allowing me to read and review her upcoming book, Mask of Deception and Sacrifice, which will be available on Amazon on March 22, 2024.Thirteen years ago, Princess Fiona escaped the brutal attack against the rulers and people of Ravenwood Castle and is now the usurper king’s prisoner. Before capture, she used her power of illusion so no one could identify her, and now the usurper king wants her to defeat a dangerous man that is a danger to the kingdom. Fiona has to get the masked man to trust her even though he tries to distance himself from her with his barbs and personality shifts. But over time, she realizes that he is more than he portrays himself to be and wonders if there is another way for her to reclaim her freedom, and if so, will she take it?This book was fantastic. The plot twist at the end was well written. Fiona has dealt with so much throughout her life, and is mistreated by the guard that oversees the dungeons. When offered the choice of trying to outsmart a monster or immediate death, Fiona figured she didn’t have that much to lose. I looked forward to her encounters with Zee and honestly enjoyed his snark. Also, the worldbuilding in this book is wonderful, and I thought that the way the king used manipulation and propaganda to promote his own narrative was very realistic. I liked the message that with hard work, collaboration, and courage, truth can and should prevail. The world you live in doesn’t have to be terrible just because other people around you are too afraid to change it. Overall, if you like complex characters, suspense, sweet romance, and low amounts of spice, then I highly recommend this book.

This short story was more intense and intriguing than I had expected. I liked the Phantom of the Opera elements, though they were mixed heavily with a Dr Jekel/Mr Hyde vibe.SpoilersThere was a lot of world building and history packed, which was intetesting, but seemed more dense than this particular story needed. For example, I would have liked a bit more time having Fiona identify the differences between Zee/Alizar before seeing the similarities.Fiona was alright. She was self sufficient, smart, and capable to a reasonable degree (not the best at everything, isn't she so amazing!!!). The story is told from her first person view. She got snappish at times, but often realized it and apologized. Her thoughts, actions, and motivations were easy to follow, so even if I disagreed I understand why she chose as she did.Zee/Alizar was intriguing. I wish we got more time with each, then more time seeing them start to merge. It's also not clear how monstrous his actions truly were. Did he truly rampage across the land burning farms and killing innocents? If so, why? If angry at being locked away, why attack a farm? Does he realize what he's doing as he's raging?

4.5 ⭐️Several author & reader friends were raving about this book, and I knew I needed to try it. This was my first time reading something by Thomas and sufficed to say, I’m hooked!The delightful Beauty & the Beast, meets Phantom of the Opera, meets Doctor Jekyll & Mr. Hyde vibes turned out to be exactly what my reading heart needed in a book!While the stakes weren’t quite as high as I expected, still be prepared to be swept away in this swoony romantasy tale!

Gah, I loved this beautiful hope filled book so much!! It's a gorgeous, gothic style mash up of Phantom of the Opera and Jekyll and Hyde, with a really cool magic system and a great slow burn romance. I recommend it to any fairy tale retelling and romantic fantasy lover!

This book was my first in the fantasy direction and I absolutely love it! I enjoyed it so much to read it, that I directly looked for more books from the author. I definitely recommend you to buy and read this book as soon as possible!

A beautiful story based on The Phantom of the Opera and Jekyll & Hyde.When I first saw that it would be a retelling influenced by these two stories, I was a little doubtful but extremely curious about how that would turn out. But having read Callie's previous stories, I should've known it would be great!Of course, it is a bit darker than her previous books, but it is a beautiful romantasy with great world-building and strong character development.The MMC Zee is a unique and creatively written character. Callie proved that a "monster" inspired by Jekyll & Hyde and The Phantom can still be swoony!! He is also complicated and protective.The FMC Fiona is smart, spirited, courageous, and has a good heart. I loved her determination and positivity!This was absolutely an enemies-to-lovers story, combined with "who did this to you" elements. I loved reading about the growing connection and chemistry Zee and Fiona had. He also has a cute nickname for her.They were truly two halves, ment to find and complete each other.If you're looking for a wonderfully written, unique romantasy with angst, action, humor, swoony moments and things that are not what they seem, then I would absolutely recommend this book!

Fiona was a princess in hiding, long thought dead. Captured because she had the brown hair of the Illusionists (who were considered evil with black magic), she had been starved and poorly treated. Then on the usurping king's orders, told she had to get a monster to drink his potion or she would be executed. Except the monster wasn't as expected, and she wasn't as without support as she feared. I loved the two sides of the monster - Zee and Alizar and how he came to believe that he could 'be better' and 'be more' as Fiona kept challenging him to be, even though it came at a great price, he was willing to sacrifice for her.