The name of the game is fame, and the trick is simple:

If you aren’t a player … you’re being played.

Isobel knows it. The Alphas know it. Yet every time they make a move, Ironside counters with two, always one step ahead, outsmarting them at every turn. Just when they grasp a lifeline, Ironside threatens to hang them with it.

They have only one choice: play the game—the real game, exactly as it was designed. With new contracts pulling them deeper into the service of the Stone Dahlia and yet another settlement tour looming on the horizon, they must execute their roles flawlessly.

It’s time to dim the lights, switch on the cameras, and get down to business.

Nearing the end of this series and honestly, it’s been a complete wild ride. You’d never get me on a real rollercoaster but I’ve enjoyed this written one.

This is book five in the series so the characters are now well established but there is still subtle world building going on in the background.

I read this in three parts because life got busy, so my thoughts on it are somewhat separated.

Isobel really needs to learn how to defend herself. She wants to be independent, she wants to be with her mates. Somehow she always falls short on the former. It doesn’t really bother me in terms of her character but it does bother me in terms of how the plot focuses on her trying to become better but always falling for something. Isobel in this book has evolved, she is more mature, she does explore her relationships with the alphas. I felt, not just with her, but with all the alpha’s that their characters are gearing up to something climactic for the last book of the series.

Theo and Moses, grouped together for the first time in my reviews, and not because they are brothers! Theo’s happy go lucky attitude is still there and Moses is still a grumpy shit but they have both evolved. Theo has gained more seriousness and almost world experience and Moses has learned to let others in and not use his grumpy ‘don’t look at me’ persona to hide behind.

Oscar is one who constantly changes and those changes always surprise me even when I know they are coming. He is a far cry from the character he was in the first book and I don’t think his changes can just be from Isobel’s involvement. I think he has come to respect the group as a whole and no longer thinks only of himself.

Niko, the one who produced much of the ‘sick’ adrenaline feeling for me in book 4, is also changing again. Much of his changes come from what has happened to him but as much as we’re aware he won’t fully return to who he was, I think his character is starting to accept who he is now.

Cian and Killian have been so much in the forefront of characters interacting with Isobel that it was almost time for them to step back. They are still very much there and involved in the plot but this book focuses more on exploring other characters.

Elijah has always been the tech alpha, the one who needs to know everything so he can stay in control of the situation. We see much more of Elijah in this book in terms of his relationship with Isobel. It is lightening to see and adds to his character development. He was definitely one of the more reserved standoffish characters at the beginning of the series but in this book he has very much cemented his life to be besides Isobel.

Gabriel has always been a bit of a mystery. He keeps more than he says but he has been getting closer to Isobel as the series progresses. We learnt more about his backstory in this book due to a new side effect of the bond and in learning this it put so much of his character in perspective. After learning of his backstory I felt that I understood him much better and it also allowed Isobel to connect to the part of him that he keeps locked away.

Kalen is one who has definitely kept away from Isobel through the series. Mostly because of his position within the Academy and because of his own personal lifestyle choices. There have been moments throughout the series where they have been paired together either in argument or flirtation but in this book I saw a real emphasis on Kalen wanting to let Isobel into his life and in accepting of the bond he shares with Isobel.

Mikel was more of a surprise in this book. He has always been an authoritarian figure to the alpha’s and Isobel and while he has duitifully taken care of them and pushed them when they need it, his relationship with Isobel has been pretty platonic. There have been moments where sexual intimacies have happened but they’ve been far and few between. In this book we see more of Mikel and more of his character. He is very dominant but it becomes clear through the book that he doesn’t know how to be anything but dominant and it puts an interesting perspective on things. Isobel is always going to want to push his buttons but it was interesting to see him become unguarded and vulnerable in a few choice moments.

I never thought I’d say this about Braun – because I have despised Isobel’s father throughout the series – but he does have a spine after all and is capable of caring for someone other than himself. He is still an opportunist and will do anything within his power to continue climbing the social ladder but aside from the ending which changed my opinion of him, there were little moments throughout the book that showed he realised the errors he made all through Isobel’s life, understood that it was completely wrong of him to do, and was willing to make the changes to become a better person. I don’t have to like him but I do respect him for seeking help.

I think out of all the books so far, this one had the least climactic ending but in all honesty, I think the series needed it. I have no doubt that the final book will be explosive in some way and while this book captivated me, the somewhat simpler ending did calm me down. I look forward to reading how it all ends.