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kathis_wonderland's review
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
The Darkest Hour by Lauren Smith is the fourth book in the Surrender series. Kenzie is working for Royce as a research assistant and finds him attractive. One night, people break into Royce' office and Kenzie is sucked into a new world. Crime, trafficking and BDSM are now a part of her world. Royce and Kenzie get closer as they try to do the right thing, but both know they can't be together.
I had this book on my Kindle for a very long time. When I started reading it, I did not expect it to be a book about BDSM. Nothing in the blurb hinted that. I am usually not really into books about BDSM as they tend to be very toxic and misogynistic. But as I am someone who cannot not finish a book, I got through with it. And I was a little fascinated. This is the first book about BDSM that explained what it is all about and also addressed that consent is very important. Very well done for that. But I still thought that Royce went a little too fast introducing Kenzie to the world of BDSM. She had no prior experience and sure gave her consent, but they never actually talked it through, especially at the beginning. I think boundaries and rules should be set right at the beginning and not like "I'm gonna spank you in front of my friends. Remember the codewords for stop and wait-a-sec."
Another scene really confused me. They went to a sex club that was more like a trafficking club on a secret mission. And they had some time to kill so they decided to kill it with having sex. In a trafficking club. Before they were about to kill someone. Exactly what I understand under preparing for the task and staying focused. There were some other scenes where I was rather confused and not fully into the story. But it was a quick read and nothing that you had to actively think about.
A rather quick read, which was okay. The first book I read that addressed BDSM and consent, so a plus for that. But other than that, it was nothing special and I did not agree with some scenes in the book.
I had this book on my Kindle for a very long time. When I started reading it, I did not expect it to be a book about BDSM. Nothing in the blurb hinted that. I am usually not really into books about BDSM as they tend to be very toxic and misogynistic. But as I am someone who cannot not finish a book, I got through with it. And I was a little fascinated. This is the first book about BDSM that explained what it is all about and also addressed that consent is very important. Very well done for that. But I still thought that Royce went a little too fast introducing Kenzie to the world of BDSM. She had no prior experience and sure gave her consent, but they never actually talked it through, especially at the beginning. I think boundaries and rules should be set right at the beginning and not like "I'm gonna spank you in front of my friends. Remember the codewords for stop and wait-a-sec."
Another scene really confused me. They went to a sex club that was more like a trafficking club on a secret mission. And they had some time to kill so they decided to kill it with having sex. In a trafficking club. Before they were about to kill someone. Exactly what I understand under preparing for the task and staying focused. There were some other scenes where I was rather confused and not fully into the story. But it was a quick read and nothing that you had to actively think about.
A rather quick read, which was okay. The first book I read that addressed BDSM and consent, so a plus for that. But other than that, it was nothing special and I did not agree with some scenes in the book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping, Murder, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Slavery, Torture, Trafficking, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Car accident, Death, Emotional abuse, Injury/Injury detail, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Medical content
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