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3.53 AVERAGE
3.53 AVERAGE
This book is not for everyone but it was for me. It kept me guessing to the end! What a beautiful, psychopathically unhinged, individual Dare was! I mean if your boyfriend doesn't torture someone because they wrote a derogatory poem about you do they even love you???
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
Dark and twisted. Perfect portrayal of a morally black villain who knows what he wants and goes after it. At first the red flags are gentle and ‘typical’ of such types of characters but slowly then suddenly they build. His calmness is the most terrifying. Loved every moment of this messed up ride of a book
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Stalking, Gaslighting
Moderate: Cancer, Drug use, Violence, Medical content
Minor: Death, Murder
I was not as fascinated by this as Untouchable by the same author. I thought it was less masterfully constructed. I found the first 30% of this book pretty boring. Nothing was happening. Then when the main characters started to interact more, I was more engaged. Aubrey wanting to be reliant on someone else because she has been the sole decision-maker for her family was a great setup for Dare to swoop in and start manipulating her life. However, that foundation was less clear as the plot went on and the author could have threaded it better throughout the book. Then as we got closer to the end, I thought so much of the suspense plotline was dumb. It didn't make much sense and it made me think Dare was actually pretty stupid and not very good at manipulating the world to his whims. There were a couple of points in the book where Dare did cross the line from "I'll give it a pass because this is dark fiction" to "this is not hero behavior." Sam Mariano doesn't build heroes who would sacrifice anything for their heroines or ever put them first. Aubrey was Dare's toy. The biggest problem with this book is that it ends with Aubrey unhappy. She is frightened and uncomfortable around Dare. This felt a little lazy on the author's part to not even try to build to where Aubrey actually likes her relationship with Dare. I wouldn't exactly call this a successful romance - it was more of a domestic thriller, and a mediocre one at that.
Sam Mariano is probably not the author for me, but the reading experience is always interesting.
Sam Mariano is probably not the author for me, but the reading experience is always interesting.
Bruh the “Hero” is fucking crazy as hell. The heroine should have ran because omg the things he was doing. Again with this author the dialogue and flow tot the story was so good. This is definitely not for everyone.
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I absolutely love a dark bully romance. That’s what this feels like initially. It doesn’t continue that way. This feels like a profile of how an abusive relationship starts. I love an Asshole love Interest that has a a soft spot for the heroine. He can mess with everyone but her. My issue is that Dare messes with Aubrey too. He told her she was the exception but she wasn’t. She was isolated from her support system, lovebombed, gaslit, constantly manipulated, constantly sexually assaulted and lied to.
There is no redemption arc for the hero. The heroine doesn’t get a backbone for even a second. It never got satisfying, only sad.
There is no redemption arc for the hero. The heroine doesn’t get a backbone for even a second. It never got satisfying, only sad.
Dare has very little redeeming qualities even by the need of the book. I honestly was hoping it ended with her killing him
dark
medium-paced
dark
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was a wild read with so many mind games. It was a engaging up until the last 20%. The peak action felt like it came out of nowhere and then sort of bumbled along before ending somewhat abruptly. The ending didn't come to enough of a conclusion or answers
The ending was unsatisfying ultimately because... the entire book the hero escalates in his psychopathic behavior and the heroine becomes less taken with him and more afraid which is worsened by the peak action. In the end it feels like she just stays with him out of this continued fear rather than because she comes to any sort of conclusion or desire to truly be with the hero. I wanted to see a change in her perceptions of the situation (e.g., she sees herself as special in her ability to tame or deal with his psychopathic tendencies OR reframing how she sees the heroes actions). I need just a bit more autonomy and/or a conscious choice on the heroines part to get some satisfaction out of the ending.
The ending was unsatisfying ultimately because...
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:
Yes