Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

God of Malice by Rina Kent

13 reviews

challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad tense 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

is this the best literature I've ever read? surely not. did it make me actually kick, scream, blush, and devour every bit of it?! absolutely. I'll just leave you with this ....

"I love you, my monster"
"And I love you, baby"
More than she'll ever comprehend, think, or know. 
I love her to the point of fucking madness. 

if you're in for a morally black villain who sees only the FMC... you'll absolutely eat this up. idk if the next book will top this one but I'm willing to find out. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

⭐⭐⭐.5/5 || 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️/5

🩸 psycho mmc, like actually 🩸
🩸 innocent fmc 🩸
🩸 touch her and die 🩸
🩸 dark college romance 🩸
🩸 rivaling gangs for each university 🩸
🩸 gothic mansion mafia vibes 🩸
🩸 what did i just read?? 🩸

No seriously, what did I just read? TW for SA, this book is wild. The mmc is not a good guy; like the author's note at the beginning of the book says, he is truly a psycho, a villain, not just a morally gray good guy. So like if you can't handle that, def don't read this book. I went into it knowing all that and I *still* struggled to enjoy the book after the very first interaction in Ch 2 (spoiler alert, he SA's her), and like the rest of the book is her falling in love with him, only after she puts up a lot of fight, and like technically the rest of everything is consensual, but Killian Carson most certainly does not know the meaning of the word "no". 

Good thing he's hot and also FICTIONAL, because that is literally his only redeeming quality. Well, that and he does soften a little for her. Like he truly does love her, and she loves him and yearns for all the stuff he does, but it takes TIME, and I struggled to forgive him for Ch 2. I still don't know that I have, but I love a good protective mmc trope, and that's definitely Killian. He's actually more of a "burn the world to save her" type and I do eat that up, but dear lord, is this truly A READ.

I probably will continue with the rest of the series, most because surely the rest of them can't truly be as psychotic as Killian, and also because I've heard some hype about both Nikolai and Jeremy, so hopefully I'll enjoy the rest more. I also would've loved more plot, especially with the whole Devlin thing, but this book is obviously setting up for there to be more plot for the rest of the series, so I'll be expecting that from the rest of them for that particular storyline.

Anyway, 3.5 because is Killian hot? Yes. Did it do something for me? Also, yes. But have I forgiven him even though Glyndon has and said that truly deep down it was consensual? No, cause Glyndon may be living in delusion. But ultimately, it was she that experienced it, so I guess what she thinks matters more. And also, it's fictional, thank GOD.

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dark emotional tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I'll be honest I don't know how I feel about much of this book, but I liked enough of it that I will probably read the rest of the series. But man this is not for the faint of heart. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

This book is everything you'd expect from Rina Kent: dark, twisted, and emotionally intense. From the very beginning, the story dives into heavy themes and never really lets up—so trigger warnings are a must.

Killian is exactly the kind of morally gray, chaotic character I love to read about. He’s terrifying, magnetic, and entirely unpredictable. His backstory added some much-needed depth and gave a glimpse into the madness that drives him.

Glyndon herself is a bit of a mixed bag. She has an interesting emotional foundation—depression, insecurity, and an existential crisis—but those themes are barely scratched. It’s like all of that disappears once Killian enters the picture and gives her a reason to feel brave. I wish her development had gone a bit deeper.

There’s something deeply broken in both of them, and instead of fixing it, they just… fall in love. Somehow, it works.

The emotional tension was strong throughout, though the dramatic moments sometimes leaned into over-the-top territory. Personally, I prefer subtler, one-on-one scenes over full-blown emotional showdowns—but that’s just taste.

Despite a few overly dramatic moments, I flew through the story. It's dark, messy, and full of obsessive, morally questionable romance. And honestly? It delivers exactly what it promises.

Content warnings: Violence, dark themes, emotional and physical abuse, manipulation, and other mature content. Definitely 18+ and not for every reader.

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
challenging dark emotional tense medium-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

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional mysterious medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
adventurous challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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