Mini Reviews | WITSEC Series by Ashley N. Rostek

January 26, 2023February 6, 2023 ChapterMalliumpkinLeave a comment

Salutations everyone! I have another series mini review post for you! If you didn’t know, I’ve been doing series reviews for a hot second here on my blog and today, I get to bring the WITSEC series to the table. Book two and three are going to be short, and vague. Due to this being a series review and the fact that each book, except book one, picks up where the previous book before it left off. This is a dark contemporary romance series that comes with a lot of content/trigger warnings. So before we dive into the reviews or you dive into the books themselves, please make sure you’re in a good head space when you pick this series up. All content/trigger warnings I found in these books will be listed at the top of each review.

➸ Find Me (WITSEC #1) by Ashley N. Rostek

Content/Trigger Warnings: Violence, depictions of blood, death/murder recounted, loss of loved ones, grief, PTSD/trauma, graphic night terrors and flashbacks, underage drinking/alcoholism, smoking, bullying, depictions of panic & anxiety attacks, scenes of emesis, stalking, slut shaming, sexual assault, rape, scene of drugging, scene with a spider

Let me be frank, this was a lot, but oh, I was hooked and I couldn’t set this book down. I was completely sucked in and I ended up reading the next two books in the series, immediately after! There’s so much to unpack with this book, but I just want to say that please, please look at content and trigger warnings for this book and series as a whole. This won’t be a series for everyone because of all the content/trigger warnings and I just want to emphasize being in a good head space when picking this book, and series, up!

Shiloh has just relocated to Arizona, where she’s about to start life all over again. Picking up the pieces from a dark past, Shiloh wants to start anew, to live a normal life and finally graduate high school, to do as much as possible with this second chance at life. However, this is easier said than done. When Shiloh’s night terrors begin to impact her neighbors, soon the four handsome brothers begin crawling their way into Shiloh’s life and little does she know that the loneliness that’s eating away at her will slowly start to edge away.

I absolutely loved Shiloh’s character. I can’t begin to express what it truly means to read about a character who has PTSD/trauma and it be so accurately done, to see the portrayal be handled so beautifully. To read about a character who has gone through so much, survived so much, and to watch that character keep fighting just fills my heart with so many emotions and makes my heart melt into a puddle. That aside, Shiloh felt like such a realistic character. Shiloh constantly internally battles herself and we really get to see the highs and lows of the good and bad moments. I just have a lot of appreciation for Shiloh and the author creating this character. It means so much, more than words can describe.

Being introduced to the brothers was a whole entire experience in itself. Even though this is the first book, less than three-hundred pages, you still get a good feeling for the brothers. We’re introduced to the Stone twins first, Colt and Creed. Colt has a very golden retriever personality about him while Creed is very aloof, both brothers go to the same high school as Shiloh. We then meet Keelan next who is the second oldest Stone brother. Keelan is covered in tattoos, charming and friendly, and personally my favorite brother. Then lastly we have Knox. Knox is the oldest Stone brother, the most reserved and closed off brother, who carries the weight of everything on his shoulders. And he just so happens to be my second favorite brother of the bunch. Each brother has their own personality, but we see more of the twins than anything in the first book.

“You’re an asshole and your sexy muscles can go to hell.”

Now, here’s where we get to the good stuff. The spicy, the steamy, the smexy… nonexistent. Yup, you read that right, nonexistent. This isn’t a bad thing, though! This is a quartet series and like with many series tend to do, the first book is setting things up for the books to follow. Providing the back story, giving us those juicy details to questions we have, all that jazz. That’s probably one of the reason I loved this so much. I’m a sucker for writing bringing in details and it helps paint a bigger picture so you have a better idea of characters, situations, etc… So if you’re planning on picking this book up for sexy times, just know there’s no spice, only kissing.

Overall, this was such a fun start to a reverse harem, dark romance book! I truly don’t want to go into too many details because I don’t want to spoil anything for anyone. However, I’m fully, with my whole dang chest, invested in this series, the romance, the stalker subplot, literally everything. I’m here for it. Again, if you’ve been thinking about picking this series up, please check out the content ad trigger warnings because there are a lot of detailed scenes of PTSD/trauma in this book. If you’re someone like me who does deal with PTSD, a lot of those scenes may be triggering and I just really want to emphasize being in the right headspace for this series.

➸ Save Me (WITSEC #2) by Ashley N. Rostek

✨ Find Me ★★★★★

Content/Trigger Warnings: PTSD/trauma, graphic night terrors and flashbacks, depictions of blood, death/murder recounted, loss of loved ones, grief, scenes of drugging, violence, scenes of assault, gun violence, police brutality, attempted abductions, sexual content

Honestly, this was a fun time! I absolutely flew through my time reading this book and couldn’t stop thinking about what was going to happen next. With the first book setting the bar pretty high, I can confidently say that I still had a good time despite a few issues. I do want to say, this review will be on the shorter side of things as this book picks up where book one ended.

As I mentioned, this book picks up where book one ended. If you haven’t read the first book then you need to do that. No worries, this is a spoiler free zone. Getting past that part, we watch as Shiloh continues to build her relationships with the Stone brothers. If you’re a lover of the Stone twins, this is the book for you. There’s a huge heavy focus on the Stone twins in this book and we get to see Shiloh building deeper bonds, and connections with them. We do get brief moments with Keelan and Know, but they’re not given as big of parts in this book.

If you were hoping for spicy, steamy times then yes, we get some juicy scenes in the book. Yes, it’s more than kissing though there’s still a lot of kissing involved. Consent is heavily emphasized in this book and the Stone brothers (mainly the twins) checking with Shiloh on what she wants. I have a huge appreciation when consent is done well and really emphasized throughout a book and I just wanted to highlight that. The spicy scenes were great, not my cup of tea just due to the fact that I’m not the biggest fan of the twins. They were still enjoyable though.

There’s also a lot more exploration of Shiloh’s PTSD and trauma in this book, the way she manages and copes with it. We still get moment where we’re thrown in Shiloh’s past and there’s a few discussions involving how Shiloh has been handling all of that trauma. I don’t want to spoil too much in this department as I think it can be a bit spoiler-ish, but I appreciated a lot of things that were surrounding this as a whole.

“I was terrified at the time. But there are different levels of terror. Ones that will leave scars on your soul forever and completely break your sanity. As you try to move on, you’ll find yourself in a constant state of hating the idea of tomorrow, yet hoping you’re strong enough to see it.”

While there were many things I enjoyed about this book, I had a really big issue with this book and it was all the unnecessary drama that was added. Usually, I don’t mind when there’s a few subplots, however, I don’t like when minor subplots start taking over the main storyline and pushing aside the already established one. The whole stalker subplot basically takes to the back burner as a whole new subplot begins to take place. It completely took the focus away from the whole Mr. X thing and it just felt so unnecessary to be added in.

Overall, I still enjoyed this book despite the things I wasn’t loving. I still found myself breezing through this book the way I did the first one. I’m still invested in the series and again, I picked up the next book immediately just to know what was going to happen next. I do emphasize looking at content/trigger warnings in advance before starting this series or this book, just so you know what you’re in for.

Content/Trigger Warnings: Attempted abductions, multiple scenes of assault, harassment, violence, depictions of panic and anxiety attacks, PTSD/trauma, trauma recounted, graphic night terrors and flashbacks, loss of loved ones recounted, grief, underage drinking, police brutality, manipulation, sexual content, potential scene of rape/sexual assault

✨ Find Me ★★★★★
✨ Save Me ★★★★

Oh boy, this… this was not it friends. Okay, I still enjoyed this book, but I had so many issues with this book. I’m definitely in the minority on this, so take my review with a grain of salt, but all I can really is say is wow. This is book three in this quartet and so far out of all the books, this feels like the weakest book. As with Save Me, this is going to be a short review just to avoid any spoilers as book three does pick up right where book two’s cliff hanger ended.

Honestly, I don’t know where to begin with this review. In this book, Ethan and Isabelle are such forces and shine so brightly. I’ve loved Ethan and Isabelle from the very beginning. I think they’re wonderful characters who really stand by their friends and don’t let anything sway them one way or another. Isabelle really shined the most for me and it was so nice to see Shiloh connect genuinely with another female character outside of all the drama plot that was happening. It just made my heart a little warm and fuzzy to see how close they had grown, and to be able to say it felt like a realistic, natural friendship build-up.

We also get a lot more steamy moments in this book. Whew, yes we do! There’s a fantastic scene with Keelan, Knox, and Shiloh during a Halloween party. Oh my glob, it was delicious! Not a fan of Shiloh’s costume, but it was a really good scene for me. Of course, there are plenty of spicy scenes with the twins and we even get a scene with Shiloh and Keelan together. If you’re here for the steamy, spicy goodness then you’re going to enjoy the daylights out of this book.

“His lips moved over mine in such a devouring and needy way that my resolve finally snapped. My hands slid over his shoulders and I pressed closer to him. I reciprocated his kiss with equal neediness and the eagerness to be devoured.”

Despite these few good things, it was really hard to look past all the things that negatively impacted my reading experience with this book. Again, I want to restate that this is the third book in this quartet. My biggest issue with this book is the fact that we’re supposed to believe our main character, Shiloh, is in a relationship with all four of the Stone brothers. However, I’m not convinced and nothing bothers me more than when authors decide to take on polyamorous relationships or reverse harem relationships and then can’t bring a balance to the whole thing. There’s a huge imbalance in the relationships between Shiloh and the Stone brothers. If you love the twins, guess what, it’s your lucky day because they are so heavily focused in almost every aspect, sexual or otherwise, that I ended up really coming to despise the twins. Before I was indifferent and appreciated the way the connections were building, was even starting to enjoy the twins, but now that we’re in book three and Keelan and Knox still haven’t gotten enough page time with Shiloh, I could careless about the twins. This book had the chance to really solidify Shiloh’s connection and desire with Knox and Keelan, and it just wasn’t believable despite the spicy scenes we’re given because the twins are just so heavily focused.

My other issue is a little spoilery, but I wanted to add this in here because I just don’t have enough details to know if this should be labeled as a content/trigger warning. I still wanted to mention this scene because it unnerved me not knowing one way or the other and I feel it’s important to address it. There’s a scene of a potential home invasion, where Shiloh is really exhausted and a tall figure enters her bedroom, and Shiloh is so disoriented that she genuinely doesn’t know if it’s Knox or an intruder. That’s a whole scene that didn’t sit well with me and I wasn’t a fan of it. I just wanted to throw that in here as a warning because it may be triggering for some readers.

And of course, my other issue is the fact that this is the third book and the author waited until the very end of the book to bring back the Mr. X subplot. So, for the second book and the majority of this book (a whole 85-90%), we spend time in an entirely different subplot than the Mr. X stalker subplot. I can’t speak for other readers, but personally, I’m not a fan of being pulled away from an already pre-established subplot for a new one filled with unnecessary drama that didn’t need to be added in. It just wasn’t my cup of tea, personally.

Overall, I had high hopes for this book and this book just didn’t deliver the way I hoped to. And honestly, I don’t know if I even want to finish the series because of how this book as a whole left me feeling. I mean, yes, I enjoyed some aspects of this book, but now I’m nervous on whether or not the final book is going to be worth the read. Again, I’m definitely in the minority on this one. So please take my review with a grain of salt, but as always, I do hope you look over my content/trigger warnings for this book if you need them and to be in a good headspace when reading this series as a whole.

ARC Reviews

Twisted Love (Twisted, 1) by Ana Huang

October 14, 2022October 13, 2022 ChapterMalliumpkin2 Comments

This post contains affiliate links; if you use these links to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. Thanks for reading!

ALC was given by Libro.fm & Tantor Audio in exchange for an honest review.

Content/Trigger Warnings: Aquaphobia, drowning, trauma, PTSD/flashbacks/night terrors, anxiety/panic attacks, child abuse, loss of loved ones, mentions of divorce, murder, mention of suicide, mentions of drug addiction, mention of overdose, stalking, harassment, assault, physical violence, alcoholism, scene of emesis, scenes of gaslighting & manipulation, mentions of cheating & adultery, kidnapping, scene of hostage situation, implications of torture, coitus (sex), swearing

“You are the light to my dark, Sunshine,” he said in a raw voice. His lips brushed against mine as he spoke. “Without you, I’m lost.”

*takes a big sip of beverage* Well this was an unexpected read and even more unexpected of how much I enjoyed this book, altogether. While I did have a ebook copy, I decided to take a chance on the audiobook and I’m so glad I did. The voice narrators were perfect for this book. While I don’t think I could choose what I loved most about this read, I hope this review will speak for itself on how I feel about this read. BUT – Before we begin, reader, know that the title of this book is a little deceptive and I put emphasis on this book being very true to the dark romance genre.

We follow Alex Volkov and Ava Chen, two polar opposites of each other. Ava Chen chooses to approach life with smiles and love despite the cruel, dark past that haunts her dreams. While Alex Volkov might as well be an ice king. Barely anything seems to provoke emotion from him. When one day Ava is stranded in the the rain, her brother, Josh sends his best friend to help his little sister out. Only… Ava wasn’t expecting tall, mysterious, and stoic Alex to pick her up. Things only escalate from there as Josh leaves for his internship and forces Alex to look after Ava while he’s away. But many shadows from both their past are lingering, creeping closer in the present, and will put these two to the test, in more ways than one.

Okay, I’m just going to jump right into the good bits. That’s right, I’m talking about the steamy, goodie goods of intercourse! Look, if you went into this book expecting constant, wall banging, steamy hotness almost every other chapter or perhaps you were expecting more from of those steamy moments… Well, I hate to be the bringer of bad news, but this is mostly vanilla steaminess despite the constant implied kinky-ness thrown around. This is probably the issue I had the most with this book. It’s not the fact the steamy scenes played more to the vanilla scene, but it was the fact that it was implied Alex really liked to “go there” in the bedroom, but we never really see that, at all. Also, I want to point out that Alex’s choice for calling women bad names during sex wasn’t my cup of tea. I think if that’s your kink then you’ll enjoy it, but for me personally, my blood boiled and it didn’t do it for me. However, the steamy scenes are still good despite these two issues. If I had to give it a steamy rating out of ten, it’s probably sitting at a five or a six for me. It’s not the best, but it’s not terrible. Just a fun, steamy time and nothing too wow worthy.

“She felt like heaven to my hell, the closest I’d ever get to salvation, and yet I still wanted to drag her into the depths of Hades with me.”

However, despite my issues with the steamy scenes, the chemistry and sexual tension between was absolutely delicious. Throw in the banter that constantly played between them, oh, it’s a fantastic time! I think the author did a really fantastic job at creating a slow build between Ava and Alex, and the way they both slowly unraveled, descending into lust for one another was so good to watch unfold. Typically, slow burns can be hit or miss for me, but I think the way the author did the slow burning between these two characters really played to the book’s advantage, for my personal reading taste.

As always, whenever I find this representation, I always want to vocalize and address it. Trauma and PTSD representation is always, always something I point out whenever it’s present in a book. Beautifully done, absolutely beautifully done. Whether the author has personally experienced trauma/PTSD or knows someone who has, the way it’s portrayed in this book not only feels so real, so vivid, but a lot of scenes Ava would have with her night terrors felt very similar to the experience I have with myself with my own PTSD. So I just really wanted to put this in here as a little appreciation for the author and how well written, and respectfully done this representation was handled.

“You want the world to think you have no heart when in reality, you have a multilayered one: a heart of gold encased in a heart of ice. And the one thing all hearts of gold have in common? They crave love.”

While there were many things I loved, there were other things that bothered me aside from the more intimate parts. One of the issues being able to call two of the twists early. While I won’t go into which twists these were, it was a bit of a disappointment being able to pin-point these twists early. However, I also chalk this up to my own personal life experiences that allow me to see these things coming from a mile away.

My other biggest issue was the way a lot of the ending was handled. After the big conflict, I had a lot of issues with the lack of communication between Ava and Alex, and a lot of the repetitive stalker themes that were being thrown in at the end. All of it rubbed me the wrong for so many reasons and it almost felt like a double-standard. In the beginning Ava is dealing with stalking and harassment from an ex (which are bad, they escalate to physical conflict), but yet the stalker themes in the last 25% of the book are okay and fine due to it being in the name of love. It just left really weird feelings with me especially as someone who dealt with stalking in the past.

Overall, I really did enjoy my time reading this book especially the grumpy/sunshine pairing. Three stars is not a bad rating and this feels like a true three star read for me. There were a lot of things that I loved, but there was also a lot of things that rubbed me the wrong way, and some dark things from Ava’s side of things that hit very close to home for me that have me feeling a little rough. But this is a still good read and I think if you’re a lover of dark romances then definitely give this book a chance. I just want to encourage readers to look at content/trigger warnings before you decide to dive in.

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Her Soul for Revenge (Souls Trilogy #2) by Harley Laroux

May 23, 2022May 23, 2022 ChapterMalliumpkin4 Comments

This post contains affiliate links; if you use these links to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. Thanks for reading!

➸ Her Soul to Take (Souls Trilogy #1) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Content/Trigger Warnings: Sexual content, kink/fetish content (see author’s summary or cw/tw page for details), talk of drugs & drug dealing, mentions of adultry, occult themes, alcoholism, death, stalking, talk of hospitalization/institutionalization, loss of a loved one, grief, trauma/PTSD, depictions of blood, knife play, needles, gun play, talk of torture, violence, sex, anxiety, predator behavior (drugging drink), scene of emesis, scene of snuff (sexual arousal/climax by killing/murdering someone)

“Revenge had been a long time coming.”

Friends, I had been looking forward to this book so, so much. I read the first book and absolutely fell in love with it and was eager to continue this series. Plus, any bread crumbs about the third and final book had my motivation spinning into overdrive. However, this book was definitely not what I had expected and I definitely wasn’t expecting to feel the way I did after reading this. There were a lot of surprises, many tears shed, and maybe a few times where I almost threw my tablet across the room (I didn’t, but oh, there’s just some lines you shouldn’t cross). It was all around a rollercoaster of a time.

The Deep One demands it’s sacrifice… The one who got away… Juniper Kynes has other plans than to have her piece of light blown out all because the majority of the people she thought she knew, all seem to want her dead. Ever since that night, Juniper has been fighting for survival, but her fight isn’t lost on watching eyes. Zane is demon who loves things that are fierce, scarred, and have a history to them. So the story of Juniper has caught his interest not only as demon, but as a soul hunter. And oh, he will have Juniper’s soul and he’s willing to wait for as long as it takes until she’s his. Only problem is, every thing comes with a price and sometimes that means putting your life on the line to take on a god and cult out of control.

I absolutely loved Zane and Juniper together. I love them so much more than Leon and Rae. The way Zane feels about her, how he sees her despite everything she’s been through… it was just wow. It truly was everything. It really brings forth that whole theme of ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder’ and there’s so much emphasis from Zane (through Juniper’s perspective and Zane’s own perspective) of how beautiful he thinks people who have been through trauma and how they move on from that is. And it just hit like a ton of bricks. I don’t think there’s enough words to convey how that all made me feel. Not to mention, that these two together flip roles constantly of who’s the dom and sub. Like, how often do you get to see that in steamy time books? Not that often or at least in my case not that often. So that was a really fun time and the chemistry is so dang good.

One of the things I really appreciated about this whole book, even in the first book, was the trauma/PTSD representation. As someone who has permanent PTSD, seeing that in Juniper (also in Leon from the first book) and how she handles a lot of things, how she views herself and her body, it hit really close to home. I saw a lot of myself in Juniper especially with trying to bury the scars under layers of clothes or tattoo work, even building that hard exterior of showing no weakness. It hit like a ton of bricks. Every time I read a book with good PTSD or trauma rep, I get so emotional because there’s still so much stigma around PTSD and trauma, and trying to have conversations about is never easy. So seeing the author include that in these books and handling it so well just makes my heart feel really warm and full.

“Don’t be ashamed of what you want to say. I’m not going anywhere.” And that was the thing, wasn’t it? That was the spark that lit up my dark, dead, broken soul — he’d seen all its sharp edges and hadn’t left. He’d seen me as broken as I was and wanted me, regardless.”

Despite the many good things in the book like the quotes for days, I had two major issues with this book. The biggest issue of this book is that it reads like the first book of the series and it should have been the first book in the series. Having read the first book in this series and comparing it to this one, it would have been so much better for this book to be first. Even more so timeline wise with events and who’s the last to see whom within the book. And in my opinion, the first book sets things up better for the third and final book in this series. That’s the real kick that kind of gets me and has me feeling a little salty. It was a bit disappointing for me especially as someone who like the timeline of things and can really get sucked into the storyline very easy.

My final issue with a particular scene that’s an intimate scene. Typically, I love a lot of stuff that goes down in sexy time books, but not this, this crosses an uncomfortable line for me. The first scene that bothered me I’ve kind of let slide because looking back and reflecting, it’s not too big of a deal. However, this scene I’m about to talk about is and honestly, I think the author should have outright stated that there was a scene like this instead of not mentioning it at all in their own content warnings. At the 70-75% mark there’s a scene of snuff. Now some of you may be going, “What the hell is ‘snuff’?” Snuff is an extreme sexual act of getting a sexual arousal/climax from murdering someone. Now, I originally thought this was bordering into nercophilia territory and had to do some research because this whole scene didn’t feel right and kind of shocked my system. I also had someone else fact check me before I even made notes about it. Even more so, no one has talked or mentioned this scene, at all. So I’m talking and addressing it so others don’t have to. This is not a good scene, at all. It’s a really messed up scene and the author should have done better to actually make it known that this was in the book. And I really wish I could wipe this scene from my mind, but I can’t and now it lives in my memory with the other things I wish I could forget.

“Survival is messy. Survival has no morals or kindness. Survival isn’t black and white, good versus evil. Survival is shades of red; it’s blood taken and blood lost.”

Overall, what a freaking roller coaster of a book. I cried a lot, I cringed a lot, and I’m still trying to figure out what the hell I just read. There really was a lot of stuff I loved about this book and I think those who like dark romance erotica will also love it. But also, there’s a lot of things that just live in my brain rent free now. Some of them good, others regrets… yeah, lots of regrets. It was still a good read and as I mentioned with the first book, this series would be the perfect read for the fall/spooky season if you’re in need of books to chill your soul.

Buddy Read with Destiny ♥

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Her Soul to Take (Souls Trilogy, #1) by Harley Laroux

March 16, 2022March 15, 2022 ChapterMalliumpkin7 Comments

GoodReads|Amazon

This post contains affiliate links; if you use the Amazon link to make a purchase, I may earn a commission. Thanks for reading!

Content/Trigger Warnings: Sexual content, kink/fetish content (see author’s summary or cw/tw page for details), anxiety, captivity/enslavement (demon mc), talk of torture, indications of trauma/PTSD, cult themes, brief mentions of underage drinking, death, murder, talk of suicide, graphic gore & violence, depictions of blood, scene of decapitation, brief mentions of drug use (in the past), attempted drugging (drugged drink), scene of emesis, scene of needles

Side Note: Please check out the author’s personal content warnings for the kink/fetish play within this book for more details before reading!

“… but within those pages, in the dark, those golden eyes still shone.”

Look, are you really surprised I found myself in this rabbit hole? Are you really surprised? It was bound to happen eventually! It has demons, Lovecraftian themes, the female lead is a paranormal investigator for Pete’s sake! The banshee screeches that have erupted from me from having this literature at my finger tips has been nothing short of an experience, to say the least. Truly, it’s been a while since I’ve had a piece of literature that felt very on brand to my soul. I loved this, I loved this so much. I had to sit a think about my rating because I was very torn and I just have to be honest, I really freaking loved this book and this might be my favorite series to have demons in it thus far.

We follow the perspective of Leon, a demon who’s summoned and held captive by the local cult of Abelaum, Libiri, run by Kent Hadleigh, the head of one of the founding families in this small town. With the grimoire, the last known book with a physical record of Leon’s name, in Kent’s hands, Leon is forced to do the cult’s bidding. That’s until the grimoire goes missing. Enter our second perspective of paranormal investigator, Rae. A college student moving back to her hometown after being gone for seven years. With the promising potential of paranormal activity and whispers of strange creatures being seen in the local woods, Rae is determined to catch real paranormal activity on camera to help boost her blog and of course, finish her last year at university. So when her best friend, Inaya hands her a grimoire, suddenly Rae may be having second thoughts of being thrown into the world of the paranormal… or she just might be falling pretty damn hard in love with it.

These characters were absolutely fantastic read about! The duo perspective in this book definitely added to my enjoyment of these characters. Between our two main characters, Leon stood on the most to me. Not only is his personality very attention catching, but there were so many passages in this book that just hit home for me. When Leon would talk about wanting to find the grimoire and how much he values his freedom, it instantly, made me think of Genie from Aladdin. In the movie, there’s a conversation between Aladdin and Genie about the wishes and Aladdin asks Genie what they would wish for to which Genie responds with, “Freedom. But, oh, to be free! To be my own master. Such a thing would be greater than all the magic and all the treasures in all the world.” It made me really connect with Leon’s character, really love and appreciate his character build, and I don’t think that was the author’s intention when writing Leon’s character, but oh I couldn’t help myself from seeing the resemblance. On the other hand, Rae was an okay character for me. Honestly, I thought I would enjoy her character more, but there were parts in this book where I was just like, “I can’t deal with you.” I do like that she’s a paranormal investigator and how passionate she is about that, and I adore her cat, Cheesecake.

“I’ll rip Heaven and Hell and this goddamn Earth apart before I let them steal you from me.”

Speaking of characters, there’s some really amazing side characters we get to witness in this book. I freaking adore Zane. Zane is like a calmer, more level headed demon compared to Leon. However, Zane’s relationship with Leon was perfection. I’m very hungry for a novella talking about their past and their relationship to one another because they’re such a dynamic duo in their own way. There’s also Inaya, she’s not only best friends to Rae, but she runs her own bookstore, Golden Hour Books. Her character was absolutely wonderful and I would have loved to see more of her in this book. Plus, the few times we do meet her, you can tell how much she cares about all of her friends and just how far she’d go for them. And of course, I have to mention Everly because I just want to know so much more about her. I mean, she’s a witch and she’s here to rock this world! Before I forgot, I need to talk about Kent. Kent is a terrible character and he reminds me so, so much of Joseph from Dream Daddy. If you know, you know. Kent just gives me all the bad vibes and honestly, he made for a good villain in this book.

I want to circle back to Leon and his constant focus on his freedom. Not only is there such a heavy emphasis on demons valuing their freedom, but with Leon there’s an underlying theme of trauma/PTSD. Not just that trauma, but how after all of that you can still find love, happiness, or contentment. We see this theme unfold from both perspectives. We have Leon who has spent centuries being tortured and used only to find sanctuary with Rae. Rae’s side of things is different because she’s just dealing with a break up, but we see this escalate with how everything unfolds for Rae throughout this book. We see how this very snarky demon becomes a sanctuary for her in the chaos of all of this. I think the trauma/PTSD representation is done very well even though it’s subtle and not many readers have picked up on it. And I want to say that this is one of those relationships where two broken individuals can heal one another and have a good relationship with one another.

There’s also an entire theme of consent throughout this book. I don’t know who needs to hear this, but consent is super attractive. From the very beginning, Leon constantly asks if Rae is okay with the things they do intimately and constantly makes sure she knows the safe word before anything even happens. I don’t know about anyone else, but I love characters who check to make sure they’re comfortable or they’re okay with proceeding into more spicy things. It’s super attractive and often times in a lot of romance or erotica they’re just instantly jumping into the sheets. I really enjoyed how the author gave us spice, but also made sure to sprinkle the consent in throughout this book.

“You’re a light in the dark, and I’ve been in the dark a vert long time.”

Speaking of spicy scenes, this book has a lot of spicy scenes, If you thought there were only going to be a few scenes sprinkled in then guess what, that’s not the case here! It was a fun time for me and the entire time I was just hyped. However, I will say the scene where Leon was giving Rae her piercings was not my thing. For me, that was very triggering just due to my own bad experience, but I do like how the author tried to give this scene balance of it not only being about the that whole commitment, but Leon and Rae becoming closer to one another. So I think this will be one of those hit or miss things for many readers.

If I had to fault this book on anything, it would have to be Rae’s character. Look, it has to be said, Rae made some really questionable choices and acted really reckless a lot of the time. Actually, I liked Rae’s character up until the last handful of chapters. It was like the closer it got to the end of the book, Rae just got more naive and was making really poor choices. It was frustrating a lot of the time and as I mentioned earlier, it made it really hard to like her character. Also, it almost painted Rae in a light of hypocrisy because she’s not only a paranormal investigator, but she’s also a horror lover and the way she acts is entirely different to most horror and paranormal lovers I know. I think a lot of readers are going to feel frustrated with her character and wish that she had been structured different especially near the end of this book.

“But with your soul, death can’t touch you. The God can’t touch you. Nothing, nothing will take you from me.”

Overall, I had a really fun time buddy reading this with my friend. It was such a captivating read and I love the pre-setup we get to see for the second book in this series. I’m just hyped about this whole series, okay! I usually don’t read a lot of dark romances, but if and when I do, I always want them to have snarky demons in it. I think many lovers of dark romance are going to enjoy this book and this whole series. I hear book two has to do with Zane and I can’t begin to express how excited I am about this!

Buddy Read with Destiny ♥