Gabriel's Inferno: Gabriel's Inferno, Book 1

After I stopped lavitating and gasping for air I decided to finally write my review :). It took a while though :).I don't even know where to begin.Usually, when I finish reading a book I start to compare it to the other similar books that I have read and think about what I liked and didn't liked. I compare stories and characters in them. It helps me to choose winners for my top 5. I'm a sucker for romance novels :).After I finished reading Gabriel's Inferno I had a really hard time trying to place the book in any category. Not because book was bad or confusing, but because romance bit in the book was so out of this world that I thought it deserved it's own category. There wasn't any books I could compare to. I felt like I should be comparing it to a beautiful painting, statue, a song or some other piece of art.You know when sometimes you read in a book, or hear in a movie, when girl says to a guy "You ruined me for any other man."? Well, this book did just that. It ruined me for any other romance novel:).English is not my first language, God, it's not even my second. So I only hope that my review will do the justice...Ok, first things first. Cover! The reason that I got the book in the first place was the cover. It got my attention right away. I really appreciate that the author put some thought in choosing the cover. I have read some good books which had a covers that didn't do them justice and was a huge turn off. But in this case cover lured me in. I felt like there was something mysterious about the man on it. His eyes were telling me a story, even though he was not looking at me. It felt like he was trying to fight some demons and I wanted to know more about them.WARNING SPOILERS!Gabriel. Hmmm... :). He has to be one of my favorite alpha males of all times. Highly educated, intelligent, professional (at the beginning), mysterious, a bit arrogant and at times very mean. There was something wrong with him, I just couldn't put my finger on it ( well I could, but it felt like there was something more than the words being said). The way he spoke to her, the way he looked at her and the way he acted when she was around, I didn't liked one bit. And that's why I kept reading :). I wanted to know what in a hell was his problem. I got the impression that there was something more that the written words. Like it was something in between the lines.The other thing that I like was that author softened him a bit after a while, but at the same time was able to keep his personality intact. Because I have read many stories where male characters have been turned in to a circus monkeys dressed in a pink dresses doing backflips to impress a girl. Don't get me wrong, Gabriel swept Julia of her feet alright (boy did he ever). But he did it while still being him self, confident and a bit dominant, just minus the bad attitude towards Julie.Julie. Oh Julia... Young, smart, beautiful, a bit naive and crushing on her professor. At the very beginning I really thought that she was loosing it. Even though I wanted to believe her story, there were som moments that I thought that the whole thing was just in her head and that she was imagining things that wasn't there. Or maybe she was mistaking him for someone else. But again, her side of the story was very convincing. I didn't knew what to think. I had a feeling that I will get my happy ending I just had no idea how author going to spin it and which direction he is going to take to give it to me.I was blown away after I read a scene when everything finally became clear about who was who. When Julie finally snapped after getting tired of dealing with Gabriel and walked out of his apartment, Gabriel finally realized who she really was and called her Beatrice. But it was too late. I really liked that author didn't rush to bring them back together, because I felt like Gabriel deserved to suffer for what he did to her :).I have heard many say that after you read a good book you always want to talk to the authors, ask them a bunch of questions how, why and what. Because even though you kind of get your happy ending there is always something that makes you wonder. I say screw that! What I would like to do is to travel back in time, get in to Sylvains head when he started writing the first book and say there until he finished the second one :-).The whole story (both books) sucked me in and kept me in it until the very last word on the last page. It felt like I was holding on to every single word for dear life.I understand that there are some readers who didn't get the story and gave bad reviews. It's not an easy read. And maybe it felt like it was just too much. But I'm glad that it wasn't an easy read. Even though I'm not familiar with the books author was referring to, it made want to read them. God, it made me want to learn Italian just to read them:). Analyses and quotations of Dante's books was beyond amazing.The story broke my heart, made me angry, saduced me, made me happy, made me sad and sometimes made me laugh.Overall, beautifully written, nicely edited. Well polished books. Bravo! And congratulations to the author..

A friend asked me to read Gabriel's Inferno because she was looking for a second opinion. I knew a bit about the plot based on the blurb on Amazon and what my friend told me but I was in no way prepared for how good this book really is. Gabriel's Inferno is not for the fainthearted as it a very, very dark romance that will leave the reader feeling on edge throughout. As a reader, I am drawn to books that are character driven and this novel is one of the strongest I have come across in quite some time. Reynard's male characters elicited strong responses from me from the very beginning and continued to do so throughout. For example, there's Paul the fellow graduate student who always made me feel a little creeped out and in need of shower after reading scenes which required his presence. And then of course, there is Gabriel who, on the one hand is a total rat bastard and on the other is just so completely compassionate and caring. Gabriel is by far the strongest, most damaged, and most fascinating character in this book. To the world, Gabriel is a buttoned down professor who specializes in the works of Dante and favors bow ties and expensive suits. Then there's the other Gabriel, the man with passions that run deep and inhibitions that are virtually nonexistent who has a taste for fine food, fine wine, and morally ambiguous women. Gabriel's story alone would be enough to keep the casual reader interested but for those looking for more substance, meet Julia. Julia is the only female character of significance in this novel and like the male characters she elicited a very strong response from me. Unfortunately that response was not always a good one. Julia takes pathetic to a whole new level and while I certainly appreciate that she has had a very difficult life she's got to get over it and move on. I frequently found Julia's "I'm so pitiful I can't do anything" routine a bit tiresome. But then there are her other moments, those few and far between times when Julia snaps the tether and unleashes all of her anger and frustration. Those moments are golden and reveal to the reader exactly what Julia is made of. When the lives of Julia and Gabriel begin to intersect, first in the classroom and then elsewhere, things get even darker. You see, both Julia and Gabriel have painful secrets and painful pasts that they would very much prefer stay secret and stay in the past. But that would not make for a good novel and so the stories of their lives, both separately and together begin to unravel in what is a fairly twisted plot. With each new chapter is another revelation and many of them the reader will not see coming. As Julia and Gabriel are facing and dealing with their personal demons, they are also dealing with their growing attraction to one another. The reader is almost always uncertain of the outcome of this novel and that feeling of uncertainty adds to the drama and to the anticipation of finding out what comes next. The bottom line: if you're a casual romance reader looking for a quick and easy read then this book is definitely not for you. Gabriel's Inferno is a lengthy read with an overwhelming sense of darkness that takes frequent trips into the world and works of Dante. This is my kind of romance! Reynard has crafted a novel that reads smoothly and beautifully all the while dealing with topics that are often uncomfortable yet intriguing. My only disappointment with this book is the knowledge that the story of Julia and Gabriel is not over and will continue on in future novels. Normally I would be very excited to see good, strong characters live to fight another day but Gabriel's Inferno is a complete read for me; it ended quite satisfactorily and is strong enough to stand on its own as a single novel and not a first-in-a series book.

Fiquei curiosa sobre este livro. Adorei a história

Definitely solidly in the romance category, with all that that entails. But gripping in it's exploration of deeper themes such as religion, faith, grief, pseudo-religiousity, academic snobbery. I would definitely say this is an epic of tge romance genre. I read this after watching the first three movies, and still greatly enjoyed this book.

I read in in kindle, i love this book.

When I first read Fifty Shades of Grey it was out of curiosity since romance was not my genre of fiction reading, I then read it several times, bypassing the bdsm (was educational) but it does not float my boat, thought this was an exceptional and erotic love story and the best romance story I ever read. Subsequently when I could read no more, I suffered from withdrawal and bought several authors who all came out of the woodwork to capture the FSOG audience, I threw all those books in the garbage. There are currently 6 authors I will re-read in this quality of romance and Sylvain Reynard (SR) is at the top of the list. Not into bdsm romance, chic lit, YA, paranormal, vampires etc.Stumbled over the Gabriel Inferno/Rapture and stayed up till the break of dawn enthralled with this erotic love story, with an intellectual point of view. I love books that have a takeaway, and the Gabriel series did that for me, I am so intrigued with Dante and Beatrice and Renaissance art and literature I was left wanting to know more. Not particularly inclined to poetry but am open to experience what I never learned. Some might balk at the religious inference but the life of Dante was during the 13th century when religion and politics influenced each other, keeping in mind Dante's questioning of his life and his redemption was based on biblical teachings and it was obvious Dante was of the catholic faith. I loved the life of St. Francis of Assisi even though I am not of the catholic faith; the current Pope is an example of St. Francis. The Gabriel series made me yearn to visit Assisi.I thought SR captured the relationship between Dante and Beatrice and skilfully wove it into the lives of the Professor and Julianne and made it current. Who did not fall in love with this troubled, enigmatic, sexy Professor? His sartorial elegance seemed to be a cover for how conflicted he feels about himself and his demons. I loved that he was not a pretty package and that he was so highly educated and intellectual and enjoyed the finer things in life, some of which was not so complimentary. I was somewhat perturbed by the way he `worshiped' Julia, as if she was the epitome of perfection, which she was not. But it later turns out he was seeking redemption - maybe thru her own goodness and spiritual beliefs, he somehow finds the better parts of himself as his love for her evolves and escalates into a heated affair to the exclusion of jeopardizing his job and tenure the University of Toronto. Thought the Professor's choice of radio stations were boring......CBC and BBC!! I loved that the Manulife building is a place I have known and all the familiar sights and sounds of Toronto, what a pleasant change to most books written in and around the U.S.Julia with her innocence and her abiding love for Gabriel who captured her heart at 17 and influenced her career as a Dante specialist, takes us on her tumultuous journey from her troubled childhood to becoming Gabriel's post grad student unbeknownst to him at the time. I loved that she never gave up on him no matter what, or maybe until she thought he deliberately broke her heart. I loved all the intellectual bits and pieces and the reality of politics even in academia.I loved the whole premise of love, forgiveness, faith, redemption which gives us all hope thru our own belief system. I loved the whole courtship until it was no more, loved all of the experiences in Italy, made me want to pack my suitcase and take off and go drink some wine in Italy. I loved the storytelling between these two and how healing her love was to Gabriel who was trying to escape his demons. Courtship today is unheard of.Looking forward to the release of Gabriel's Redemption and the continuation of this most passionate, romantic love story that just grabs your attention from the first go and doesn't let you go. Well done SR, you are a keeper, now have purchased the whole trilogy for my bookshelf.

Questo libro definisce l'amore romantico per eccellenza, l'amore che tutti sognano di trovare! L'autrice narra la storia un modo fluido, dando una visione completa e profonda dei personaggi principali con molte citazioni letterarie. Lettura consigliatissima!