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dark
emotional
tense
fast-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
To date, I have not yet delved too deeply into the world of dark romances, with perhaps maybe only a handful under my belt thus far. So, when the opportunity to get my hands on an early copy of Sadist came around, I absolutely jumped at it! This, was sure to be one of, if not the darkest romances I'd ever gotten my hands on, and when I was making my way through the list of trigger warnings (absolutely make sure to check these), I found myself wondering if maybe I had gotten myself in too deep.
And this book does not start you off softly or try to build you up to anything slowly, opening into a literal torture scene, it's first three words, "You fucking psychopath." This scene introduces us to Theo, what she's capable of, and just how much she truly enjoys what she does.
But moreso, this book has absolutely awoken something in me. Not only was this book not beyond my limits, but now I absolutely have to read all of Chaos' previous books, and I am going to doing some deep diving into many more dark romances.
This book was absolutely phenomenal! The interplay between Theo and Octavia, whom she has kidnapped on behalf of the shadowy group for which she works, was so intriguing to see develop, with little surprises along the way. Like when Olivia is allowed to roam around outside her cell for the first time, until Theo ends it with my favorite quote from the book, "If you have quite fininshed using your free time inspecting my living quarters, hostage enrichment hour is over." And later, when Olivia has to care for an injured Theo and considers whether to hurt her further while unconscious, 'or...I could just read and not poke the concussed and irritable murder lesbian.'
Also, given that this is the first in a new series of interconnected standalones, I will be waiting with bated breath for the next installment.
Content Warnings
Please see the content warnings listed by author.