We love a good friends to lovers and a brother’s best friend to boot! The Lust Crusade is a fun and easy to read romance with action in the Raiders of the Lost Heart series. While it isn’t my favorite, it’s still a solid sequel. Keep reading this book review of The Lust Crusade for my full thoughts.
Summary
Daniela Guiterrez has been in love with her brother’s best friend for as long as she can remember—until he went missing a year ago during an archaeological expedition. But on a solo trip to Greece, the intrepid librarian discovers that Theo is very much alive, although judging by the criminals holding him hostage, he is not doing well.
An expert in Ancient Greek archaeology, Dr. Theo Galanis has been abducted by artifact smugglers in search of a priceless gemstone—the Eye of the Minotaur. This ridiculous assignment was supposed to get Dani out of his system, not keep her tied up next to him. But when a little white lie spirals into his captors believing Theo and Dani are engaged, they must utilize her research skills and his expertise to solve the centuries’ old Minoan mystery, all while feigning a romance to keep each other alive.
Now with less than six days to find the jewel, underground societies, mythological beings, and pesky abductors are only half the battle. Because among the ancient ruins and temples they explore is an even bigger falling in love for real.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
A mixture of archaeology and romance, The Lust Crusade is an action packed romance. It features an unexpected crush coming back from the dead, brother’s best friend, childhood friends to lovers, and fake fiancees. While this is my least favorite of the series, I really loved the other two, The Lust Crusade was a fun and easy to read sequel. Childhood friends to lovers is my catnip. I love the childhood memories and while there isn’t the typical brooding brother figure, we have this brother’s best friend trope. But I think the action took away from the romance for me. Daniela as a character, her strengths especially as a librarian really got overshadowed in the mystery plot in a way that felt unbalanced to me.
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In the previous books, their expertise has been equally showcased, but here in The Lust Crusade, I often forgot Daniela’s strengths and it seemed very focused on Theo. That just meant that her character journey ended up being a bit more focused on their romance instead of also Daniela’s personal character journey. The pace of their journey and the whole forced proximity because, ahem, kidnapped, also made the pacing feel a little stop and start. There were times of intense action and they felt like they overshadowed the characters at times. Even if this is my least favorite of the series, it was still a fun and easy read and I liked the cameos to the past. Find The Lust Crusade on Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon, Bookshop. org, Blackwells, & Libro. fm.