Savannah’s Desires

By the time I got to Savannah’s Desires, I already knew exactly what kind of chaos I was walking back into. Astoria cannot seem to go five minutes without something supernatural going sideways, Roman’s mansion has basically become Grand Central Station for immortals with baggage, and no, nobody has suddenly decided that keeping their pants on is a priority. 😂 At this point, that part is what it is. If you made it to Book Three, you already know Carnal Sanctuary is spicy as hell, and honestly, I have accepted that these people are never going to become acquainted with modesty.

What I cared about much more this time was whether the story itself was going to keep growing, and thankfully, Savannah’s Desires finally started giving me more of what I have been waiting for.

The book picks up after Savannah’s Temptation, and even though some time has passed, the danger surrounding Savannah and Roman has definitely not packed a bag and left Astoria. Ryler and Cain are still out there somewhere, Lilith is still a giant supernatural question mark, and what originally looked like a bunch of separate problems starts feeling a whole lot less separate. Missing women, suspicious deaths, magical doors, strange mirrors, supernatural blind spots, and people quietly operating in the shadows all start adding up to one very obvious conclusion: something is seriously wrong, and everybody has probably been underestimating just how wrong.

That mystery was one of the things I liked most about this book because it actually gave me something to question while I was reading. I was not just waiting for the next villain to jump out and announce themselves. I was trying to figure out how all these pieces connected, who knew more than they were saying, and just how deep Ryler and Cain’s influence actually went. The danger felt more deliberate this time. It felt bigger, messier, and a lot closer to home, which made the storyline way more interesting for me.

Savannah also started becoming more interesting to me as a character, and thank freakin’ goodness, because I have been waiting for that. Her powers are growing, yes, but what I liked more was watching her start questioning what she is supposed to do with them. She is beginning to look beyond Roman, the mansion, and their immediate little circle and realize that innocent people are getting hurt while a bunch of extremely powerful immortals are basically hiding behind very expensive walls.

And Savannah is not exactly the type to look at that and go, “Well, sucks for them.”

She starts questioning whether protecting only their own is really enough, and I loved that because it finally gives her growth some weight. Becoming more powerful is one thing. Deciding what kind of person you are going to be once you have that power is something else entirely. Savannah’s compassion has always been one of the things that separates her from Roman, and this book leans into that more. Roman has had centuries to become cautious, suspicious, and very focused on protecting the people he considers his. Savannah has not had hundreds of years to become emotionally constipated, so her instinct is still to care first and think about the consequences after. 😂 That difference between them gives their relationship something much more interesting to work through than who wants who.

I also really liked how much the supernatural mythology opened up in this book. The more we learn about Lilith, Cain, Sophia, the Monad, ancient gods, shadow magic, moon mythology, and the possibility that the supernatural history everyone thinks they know may only be part of the truth, the more interested I became. That is my weakness every single time. Give me ancient mythology, questionable immortals, secret histories, old grudges, and somebody saying, “Well, technically, that is not exactly what happened,” and suddenly I need seventeen notebooks and a conspiracy wall. 😂

The magical doors were another part I wanted more of because they make Astoria feel connected to something much larger. There is clearly a whole supernatural network here that Savannah is only beginning to understand, and Zoey’s storyline helps widen that world even more. The threats around Astoria are not necessarily staying neatly inside city limits, and there are other immortals, other communities, other histories, and probably a whole lot of people minding everybody’s business from very far away.

I also liked seeing the supporting characters become more important instead of just existing around Savannah and Roman. Belladonna, Lucas, Zoey, Eliza, Sanura, Candice, and the others all bring different pieces into the story, and several of them have backgrounds and abilities I genuinely wanted to know more about. Eliza’s history adds a much darker human element to everything and shows how manipulation, exploitation, and supernatural power can get tangled together in ways that are honestly just gross. Without spoiling where any of that goes, her part of the story helped make the larger threat feel more real because it showed just how far certain people were willing to go and how many lives had already been affected.

This is where Carnal Sanctuary really starts working better for me because Astoria no longer feels like a backdrop built around Savannah and Roman. It finally feels like an actual supernatural community with history, corruption, alliances, enemies, magical systems, old grudges, and secrets buried under secrets. There are witches, shifters, immortals, ancient beings, magical pathways, and people who have apparently been keeping information to themselves for years because communication in supernatural communities is clearly optional. 😂

And I love that.

I also really liked that the book lets Savannah and Roman realize how much they do not know. Roman may have centuries of experience, but even he does not have every answer. Savannah may be ridiculously powerful, but she is still figuring out what she is capable of. Other immortals know things Roman does not, different supernatural groups understand pieces of the world that others do not, and there is still this constant feeling that everyone only has part of the puzzle. That makes the world much more interesting because there is still room to be surprised.

As for the spice, nothing has changed since the previous books. Nobody has finally decided to keep their pants on, and at this point, I would probably be suspicious if they did. 😂 It is still a solid five peppers, it is still very much part of the identity of the series, and if you have enjoyed that side of Carnal Sanctuary so far, you are not going to be disappointed here.

Where this still fell short of five stars for me had a lot more to do with depth than spice. There are so many interesting things happening in this book that I kept wanting the story to stay with them longer. I wanted more time with the ancient mythology, more of the history behind the different supernatural beings, more of the magical door network, more of the connections between the supporting characters, and more of Savannah digging into what her role in all of this is actually going to be.

There were several moments where I felt like the book opened a door, showed me something really interesting on the other side, and then went, “Okay, anyway…” while I was still standing there yelling, “EXCUSE ME, I HAVE QUESTIONS.” 😂

That is really what would have pushed Savannah’s Desires to five stars for me. I did not need the story to become something completely different. I just wanted more of what was already working. The mystery around Ryler and Cain was interesting enough that I wanted more investigation and suspense. The mythology was interesting enough that I wanted more answers. Savannah’s changing view of what she owes the people around her was interesting enough that I wanted that conflict pushed further. The supporting characters were interesting enough that I wanted more of their histories, motivations, loyalties, and baggage.

Basically, the book made me greedy. And honestly, that is not the worst complaint to have.

I also really want to keep seeing Savannah grow into someone who exists as more than Roman’s partner. Her compassion, stubbornness, curiosity, and refusal to sit quietly while people are being hurt have the potential to make her a much stronger character. I especially like the growing difference between how she and Roman view responsibility. Roman has spent centuries surviving. Savannah is starting to ask whether survival is enough when you have the power to actually help people. There is so much potential there, and I really hope the series keeps digging into it.

Overall, Savannah’s Desires is a four-star read for me because this is where the larger Carnal Sanctuary story really starts opening up. The mystery is stronger, Savannah is growing, the supporting characters matter more, the mythology is expanding, and Astoria finally feels like one piece of a much bigger supernatural world.

Most importantly, I finished this one wanting to know what happens next. There are too many unanswered questions, too many old secrets, too many suspicious immortals, and entirely too much supernatural crap happening behind the scenes for me not to be curious.

So yes, everyone can keep losing their pants. I have accepted defeat on that one. 😂 Just keep giving me the mystery, mythology, character growth, and supernatural chaos happening around them, and I am happily along for the ride. 🖤📚

NOTE: As always, all thoughts, reactions, fangirling, suspicious side-eyeing, and sleep-deprived ramblings are entirely my own. My reviews are always unbiased, unfiltered, and unapologetically honest—whether I loved the book, wanted to throw my Kindle across the room, or somehow managed to do both.  –Mz. Sassy K.  

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