Find out what Mumsnetters thought of Domina by L S Hilton

[SorchaMumsnet]

Are you ready for the shocking new thriller from the bestselling author of Maestra? Find out more about Domina, and the mind behind this darkly decadent series, L S Hilton.

Judith Rashleigh has made it. Living a life of luxury amidst the splendor of Venice, she's finally enjoying the life she always wanted. Then her past catches up with her. Facing blackmail, Judith faces a ticking clock - and if she doesn't win, she's dead.

Maestra introduced us to Judith - an exciting new heroine, as wickedly observant as Amy Dunne and as dangerous as Lisbeth Salander - and Domina is set to enthrall us with her escapades once more.

We ask all winners to share their thoughts about the book on this discussion thread. Everyone who gives detailed feedback on Domina by midday Monday 21 August will be entered into a prize draw to win a £100 Love2shop voucher:

Buy a paperback copy of Domina on Amazon

Buy a copy of Maestra (Book 1) on Amazon

This giveaway is sponsored by Bonnier Zaffre

Book giveaways T&Cs apply

I was really looking forward to receiving my review copy. Sadly, it wasn't worth the wait. Ridiculous characters and a confusing plot. I like the loose ends to be tied up by the end of a book so I hated being left hanging too.

I nearly gave up after a couple of pages because of the atrocious punctuation - can I please proof read the third book in the series!?? That aside I thought it was a pretty good read, although took a lot of concentration to remember who was who. Also thought the sex scenes might have qualified for worst sex writing of 2017, but as a friend said, when you've read one lot you've read them all so just skip. I thought Judith/Elisabeth was a revolting character - only once did she show any signs of humanity and seemed merely to be out for what she could get, no matter who she was dealing with. I hope she wasn't based on the life of the author.

I haven't read the first book so have nothing to compare it to.

I took the book on holiday and have really enjoyed it. I haven't been put off by either the punctuation or the sex!

I liked Judith/Elizabeth and felt that she was a good representation of a sociopath/psychopath which made the book a little different. The snippets of her former life were interesting although I am not sure what to make of the information about her sister. Maybe we will learn more in the 3rd book. I can't quite work out how this woman manages to make some lasting friendships when she seems to be such a loner though - not that this spoiled my enjoyment of the book. I did find myself rooting for Elizabeth and even wanted her to settle down and find a partner. I wasn't upset that she didn't - in fact I would have been more upset if she had.

It was fairly difficult to remember who was how and how exactly everyone fitted together but I didn't place too much weight on this. Mostly I figured it out as I went along, even if I needed my memory jogged. I did have to rack my brains to think who Da Silva was though.

I enjoyed the descriptions of Venice and liked the references to art. I know absolutely nothing about art so there was enough to keep me interested but not so many references that I got totally bored with it all.

I would definitely recommend this book to others to read. I think that it is a great holiday book. I stayed up late on several occasions just because I was hooked. And I can't wait to see what happens to this horrid woman, who somehow I quite like.

I have read this book. I didn't realise it was a follow up from majesta, I wish I read that one before reading this one as they are linked.
I thought the book was OK, I did struggle with several characters but still found it good with the thriller aspect of not knowing what is going on. Does make you question the art industry.
Thank you mumsnet for sending me a copy.

I've just finished my copy.

Good start, but got a bit slow. Found sex scenes hardgoing, interesting back story towards the end. Not my type of thriller overall. Sorry about that.

This book was a bit disappointing for me, the characters weren't very believable and the story was quite complicated to follow. It was an interesting idea but too many characters and different threads made it hard work. The setting of Venice was accurately and evocatively portrayed.

I haven't yet read Maestra, so I was fully aware that there were probably some insinuations of Judith's former life that I missed, but I intend to put this right in the near future!
I found the book to be quite exciting , and I was intrigued enough to carry on , but I think it will all fall into place a lot more after reading Maestra.
I was disappointed that it ended with a cliffhanger, although I understand, that as part of a trilogy, this makes sense. It's just personally, that when a book or tv series ends in this way, I feel 'left up in the air', although I've managed to forget before the next one comes out!

I've been reading Domina for the last few nights and must say it's not the easiest I've read. It uses lots of language to try and sound clever, but goes beyond that and sounds pretentious instead. For example "beneath her brioche of dyed black hair" - what is brioche hair? It has quite a complicated narrative which feels like it has been written to confuse and impress the reader. I've started just skimming the words I don't feel add anything to the story and am enjoying it more as a result. I am also finding it jumps quite a lot and sometimes seems to waffle about things which do not necessarily appear relevant, however I've not quite finished the book yet so they may add an unexpected twist but I'd be surprised as the story doesn't feel like it's going that way. She talks about the past, mentioning people who are are involved with a situation that I'm not sure if it was from a previous book (as I haven't read it) or just to enhance the character's background. Again maybe when I get to the end it'll be clearer. However so far it just feels like lots of little stories and nothing very gripping.

Overall, it's an OK read and something you can lose yourself in for a while, I doubt I'll read the first book or the next one, it just hasn't caught my imagination enough.

Thank-you for my copy of this. I am a bit ambivalent about it though. I found it a bit disjointed as a read. There were some interesting bits about art, some nice descriptions of Venice and some detailed sex scenes but I didn't really feel like the whole thing flowed together. The overall plot and characters weren't really developed enough for me so some of the narrative felt a bit tick box. I did read it through to the end and I didn't hate it but sadly it didn't engage me enough to want to bother with the next one in the trilogy despite the cliffhanger.

I haven't finished this book yet but I thought I would quickly share what I think so far. I really like it, the characters, the detail of European countries makes me feel like I am right there. The story is gripping and I am very impressed because I feel like this is a story I have never read before, and I have read alot.
Will post as soon as I finish with final thoughts, but I already know is they will be in wonder of this author!!

I haven't quite finished the book and wonder if reading Maestra first might have been beneficial?
It's an enjoyable read so far but it took a while for me to get into it, and I love the descriptions of Venice. I'm not looking forward to it having a cliff hanger ending as I find that exasperating because it assumes you'll buy the third book in the trilogy to round it off.

I have finally finished reading my copy of the new book by L.S. Hilton Domina. Thank you to Bonnier Zaffre, Mumsnet and Sorcha at Mumsnet to provide great book to review.

I haven't come across L.S. Hilton book before but I have ordered a copy of her 1st book Maestra.
I really like the fast pace of this book and the plot unfolding across Europe. The book is beautifully written and it is easy to read and immerse yourself in the world of art, painting and drawing. I wanted to know more about the different painters in the book.
I really enjoy this book and the plot.......I can't wait for the next book.
Great book!
Thanks again for my free copy.

Wow. Non stop action in this fast moving sexy thriller. Really good escapism stuff. Lisa Hilton really knows her artwork as well. Definitely a page turner, it had me hooked from the first page to the last. I was so disappointed when it ended. The only drawback for me was that I was not aware that this was part of a series, though it didn't really detract from this story. I can't wait for the next instalment.

Thank you Mumsnet for this book. I loved the descriptions of Venice having been there recently. It was hard to remember who all the characters were. The sex scenes were awful and I agree with a previous poster about worst sex scene writer of 2017!. However the story was fast moving and the cliffhanger ending encourages me to read the third in the trilogy. Thanks again Mumsnet for giving me an opportunity to read a book I was unlikely to read otherwise.

Thanks for the opportunity to review hope I'm still in time to enter competition as my email says 21st August but that it is a Friday but that day is a Monday?

The book like others may have been better if i had read the other book. I wouldn't normally be drawn to this type of book but it was interesting to learn about art pieces. The detail of places was also insightful. I couldn't connect to the characters even though it was clear the book made an effort to layer the complex background to the character. I agree the sex scenes and details were sometimes staged and gratuitous and didn't add to the story.
I would probably read the others now to understand more so it was useful to try a different reading style.

I have now received a copy of the book! - Many thanks!
Overall, I'm afraid to say that 'Domina' was just not for me. I disliked the heroine (sorry!:( ) and I found the plot rather messy. However, the fine art references were commendable and I felt that the author had certainly 'done her homework', I also enjoyed the biting wit too. Plot wise, I just didn't get it. Not for me but I'm sure that there are others who may enjoy this.

Thanks for my copy, I have not read the other books, but I really didn't enjoy it. The plot was confusing, sex scenes were just there for the sake of it, some parts were completely unrelated to the story, sorry!

@duggerlugs - indeed you're right! The deadline for feedback is midday today so you're in time to be entered into the prize draw :)

Half an hour left for any more!

Too late to be ent e red into the draw but I really enjoyed it, loved the descriptions of Venice. The storyline was gripping, I will be reading the last one. It would be better with proper editing but a good holiday read

It has taken me ages to read this book, as too be honest it did not leave me begging for more at any point.

It was a good enough book but not something I was able to devour in a couple of sittings. (That's my idea of a good book).

The plot was ok and I enjoyed getting to know the character but other than that, I'm not sure I would rush to read the next one

A bit late to post my review but thanks to Mumsnet for giving me the chance to review this book.

I was looking forward to reading this as I like a good thriller but I found it very disappointing. I found the plot confusing and difficult to follow and the story just didn't engage me. I also found the cliffhanger at the end so frustrating.

Thanks all for your feedback on Domina.

Congratulations to @LyndseyC21 who is the winner of the prize draw. Confirm your posting details by dropping us an email to [email protected] so we can send out your £100 voucher :)

I still haven't finished this book as it arrived extremely delayed and after I had just started another. It has started well though and I look forward to the cliff hanger that everyone is talking about :) thanks mumsnet

Thank you for my copy of this thriller. I had not read the first book, so was unsure what to expect. Overall, I felt it was a well written book - good character detail, and pacy plot, and extremely descriptive writing about Venice, as well as well researched art history. However, I find that I do not like anti-heroines. (I did not enjoy Patricia Highsmith's 'The Talented Mr Ripley' either). I was very disheartened to be left with a cliff hanger. I prefer my books to have an ending.

this book just didn't work for me,. I couldn't connect to the characters there are not many books I give up on but after 30 odd pages I just didn't want read any more, after reading other reviews about it not having a clear ending I think I was right to pull the plug on it when I did