Scan barcode
rae_bookmarkchronicles's review against another edition
dark
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
2.75
While I enjoyed the twists and turns of this book, I did not enjoy the read overall.
I hated most of the dialogue. The romance did not feel believable because when things started between them they simply had not spent enough time together or even had enough straight forward conversations to develop real feelings. However, the author kept emphasizing the feelings were more than lust and I'm not convinced that they were.
A lot of the things that Grayson says were cringey af. I kept reading though because I was curious about how it would end and then I disliked the ending. I am curious about the second book but I will not be reading the second book... I'll just look up what happens lol
If you want to read this for the smut heads up that it is a very slow burn. Every time you think they will....they won't.
I hated most of the dialogue. The romance did not feel believable because when things started between them they simply had not spent enough time together or even had enough straight forward conversations to develop real feelings. However, the author kept emphasizing the feelings were more than lust and I'm not convinced that they were.
A lot of the things that Grayson says were cringey af. I kept reading though because I was curious about how it would end and then I disliked the ending. I am curious about the second book but I will not be reading the second book... I'll just look up what happens lol
If you want to read this for the smut heads up that it is a very slow burn. Every time you think they will....they won't.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Torture
Moderate: Death of parent and Kidnapping
Minor: Pedophilia
madz_'s review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Stalking, Murder, Body horror, Drug use, Violence, Toxic relationship, Car accident, Confinement, Child abuse, Torture, and Sexual content
monicaaaaa's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Body horror, Confinement, Mental illness, Murder, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Torture, Blood, Physical abuse, Self harm, Violence, Vomit, and Child abuse
Minor: Pedophilia
queencariad's review against another edition
dark
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Well! This was really fucked up, but in a very addicting kind of way!
Pick Born, Darkly to follow the story of a sort of Robin Hood sadist murderer and his equally fucked up psychologist.
I particularly read the end of the book as quite the Criminal Minds episode, with huge thriller/true crime vibes.
Grayson gave me the creeps— which is actually normal and reassuring, I’d say— and was uncomfortably fascinating.
London was just as interesting, as her past gets revealed layer by layer.
I “enjoyed” the closed quarters setting that covered a good half of the book and definitely helped building the tension between the characters, and the growing feeling of… being trapped.
I also appreciated how London acknowledged her attraction to Grayson all the while admitting the fact that he was a complete sadist (and that she has her own issues, too, lmao.)
My biggest complaint would be that the place is overall extremely slow, despite the book being so short.
I’m not sure I’ll read the second volume yet, but the ending did intrigue me. We’ll see!
3 stars.
Pick Born, Darkly to follow the story of a sort of Robin Hood sadist murderer and his equally fucked up psychologist.
I particularly read the end of the book as quite the Criminal Minds episode, with huge thriller/true crime vibes.
Grayson gave me the creeps— which is actually normal and reassuring, I’d say— and was uncomfortably fascinating.
London was just as interesting, as her past gets revealed layer by layer.
I “enjoyed” the closed quarters setting that covered a good half of the book and definitely helped building the tension between the characters, and the growing feeling of… being trapped.
I also appreciated how London acknowledged her attraction to Grayson all the while admitting the fact that he was a complete sadist (and that she has her own issues, too, lmao.)
My biggest complaint would be that the place is overall extremely slow, despite the book being so short.
I’m not sure I’ll read the second volume yet, but the ending did intrigue me. We’ll see!
3 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Murder, and Kidnapping
Minor: Rape and Pedophilia
nerdylari's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Violence, Sexual violence, Pedophilia, Emotional abuse, Confinement, and Sexual content
sistershelves_fasya's review against another edition
challenging
dark
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
4.5
This book makes me question my conscience.
You know I've read serial killer romance books before, but I've never left a review or rate the book just because I read it as a joke, just pure for my personal entertainment.
But this. I think this book was pretty well written. It didn't romanticize the fucked up things the main character did. The love interest, in this case, the psychiatrist wasn't portrayed as an innocent woman who makes the killer fall in love and yadda yadda you know the drill. Usually, the characters in this kind of story are attracted to each other because of how hot they are and decided "fuck it I'll have sex with them even though they kill people", but no, they were attracted to each other because of how fucked up they were. They play mind games with each other. The killer didn't brainwash the psychiatrist (imho), because it was already there all along, hence why she felt the pull toward him from the beginning.
Not gonna lie I kinda root for them and hope they wouldn't get caught and go full-on Bonnie and Clyde killing bad people (note: the serial killer only kill rapist, pedophile, etc, well you know bad people who are untouched bu the law. Another reason why I'm into it.) Also, he didn't personally kill his victims. He used traps, similar to the movie Saw.
Not recommend to everyone since it has lots of trigger warnings (I mean the idea is already triggering). If you watched Saw, you get the picture of how gruesome it is. Don't tell me I didn't warn you. But to all dark romance lovers, I say go for it!!!
You know I've read serial killer romance books before, but I've never left a review or rate the book just because I read it as a joke, just pure for my personal entertainment.
But this. I think this book was pretty well written. It didn't romanticize the fucked up things the main character did. The love interest, in this case, the psychiatrist wasn't portrayed as an innocent woman who makes the killer fall in love and yadda yadda you know the drill. Usually, the characters in this kind of story are attracted to each other because of how hot they are and decided "fuck it I'll have sex with them even though they kill people", but no, they were attracted to each other because of how fucked up they were. They play mind games with each other. The killer didn't brainwash the psychiatrist (imho), because it was already there all along, hence why she felt the pull toward him from the beginning.
Not gonna lie I kinda root for them and hope they wouldn't get caught and go full-on Bonnie and Clyde killing bad people (note: the serial killer only kill rapist, pedophile, etc, well you know bad people who are untouched bu the law. Another reason why I'm into it.) Also, he didn't personally kill his victims. He used traps, similar to the movie Saw.
Not recommend to everyone since it has lots of trigger warnings (I mean the idea is already triggering). If you watched Saw, you get the picture of how gruesome it is. Don't tell me I didn't warn you. But to all dark romance lovers, I say go for it!!!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Gore, and Torture
ohmydemigod's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
My heart lies in dark book like this where the “bad guys” win. This book was downright wild and fun. I loved to see the breakdown of renowned psychiatrist London and the mischievous ways of serial killer Grayson.
I simply didn’t want to put this book down once I began, in a similar way as the Mindf*ck series. I’d also describe this as a combination between Dexter, Criminal Minds, and Hannibal. I would highly recommend if you’re looking for a dark psychological thriller & romance!
I would advise looking into any content warnings before reading this book. Some that I’ve noted (but not a complete list): descriptive gore, kidnapping (mentioned), physical abuse, psychological torture, pedophilia (mentioned).
Note: Grayson and London are toxic people who are even worse when together, and I acknowledge that. However, I still adored seeing their darkness intermingle and I laughed at the wild nature of their relationship.
I simply didn’t want to put this book down once I began, in a similar way as the Mindf*ck series. I’d also describe this as a combination between Dexter, Criminal Minds, and Hannibal. I would highly recommend if you’re looking for a dark psychological thriller & romance!
I would advise looking into any content warnings before reading this book. Some that I’ve noted (but not a complete list): descriptive gore, kidnapping (mentioned), physical abuse, psychological torture, pedophilia (mentioned).
Note: Grayson and London are toxic people who are even worse when together, and I acknowledge that. However, I still adored seeing their darkness intermingle and I laughed at the wild nature of their relationship.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Physical abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Toxic relationship, and Torture
Moderate: Blood, Car accident, and Mental illness
Minor: Child abuse, Child death, Sexism, Pedophilia, and Misogyny
More...