Reviews with content warning for Gore - There Are No Saints

Warning, a couple spoilers lie ahead, but honestly, nothing much beyond what would have been listed in a list of trigger warnings if this book, y’know, had one.

I have extremely mixed feelings about this book. I’ve read a few dark romances before that have been really solid, where usually one or both main characters do or have done bad things for some reason that’s explainable or justifiable, especially in the context of fiction. This is not one of those books. The MMC is a serial killer because he - get this - likes killing people, and the FMC is into him despite him leaving her for dead in the woods because she had ✨childhood trauma✨. No, seriously. This guy seems to be actively aware that he’s a bad person and doesn’t care for the wellbeing of others. He repeatedly reminds us that he does only things that bring him pleasure, and will literally do whatever he feels like doing.

Despite all this I found myself morbidly curious about the plot and what was going to happen next. I was fascinated, and couldn’t bring myself to look away, even though the MMC, his “rival”, and the main “relationship” were seriously disturbing. I was definitely entertained in more of a thriller/horror kind of way than a romance.

Lastly, for someone who seems so traumatized by her (objectively terrible) childhood, she really seems to bounce back fast from all the terrible things that happen to her throughout the course of this book.

Also, PSA for any of you KU girlies, the cover with the snakes is the only one I had ever seen, and the one that's listed on KU, but when I used the very convenient "mark as currently reading" kindle feature, it set my goodreads edition to the "half-naked couple clinging to one another" cover

Content Warnings

angiebanuelos's review against another edition

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Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Content Warnings

_serena_'s review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

I think this is the first "dark romance" type book that I've enjoyed.

I liked the artistic description in this book - the intensity of Mara working on her pieces. I loved her strong will. I can't stand when the FMC finally gets the man and instantly becomes a watered down version of herself. I don't think this happened to Mara at all. I think she really stepped into herself as the story progressed. She didn't feel weaker at the end.

The serial killer aspect was cool and fun to work with. I would like to know more about Cole and Shaw's kills. I want their methodology. I know Cole must be cold and calculating, insane attention to detail. I want to know his process, his justification.

I'm interested to see where this story goes in the second one.

Content Warnings

manimick's review against another edition

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Too dark and honestly crazy. There were no TW in the beginning of the book so it was just jarring and the characters were obviously not lovable. It was ridiculous that I only got a third of the book through all seem too much lmao

Content Warnings

nixonice's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

Content Warnings

julianacosta_01's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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