Scan barcode
A review by the_joyful_book_club
God of Malice (Deluxe Edition) by Rina Kent
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This book had me completely absorbed and obsessed with it. I read it in less than a day, and I couldn't stop thinking about it. What a rollercoaster.
This is a dark romance, and the author has a trigger warning at the beginning, and for good reason. Side note: I do notice the Kindle version (with the male cover model) didn't show a trigger warning in it. However, I read a paperback deluxe edition that did include a trigger warning for the following: non-con, dub-con, and suicidal thoughts.
This book is dark and starts that way from the beginning. There's no letting the story warm up; we jump into the scalding heat immediately. The reader is immediately pulled into the sorrow that Glyndon feels over her friend, Devlin, who's taken his life recently. She goes back to the cliff where he passed and there she first encounters Killian. Which is likely the craziest, and dirtiest, encounter she's ever had.
This story is told from both Glyndon's and Killian's perspectives. As we get to know them, and their friends and family, we learn that they attend competing universities, one American and one English. There is some mention of families not getting along, and elite clubs that are at odds with each other too. The conflict is there but doesn't seem fully developed, since these two groups of friends keep intermingling and not completely killing each other.
I think the reason that isn't more of an issue is that the real discourse for Killian and Glyndon is both of them fighting their own nature within the relationship. Killian is dealing with some more complex desires and Glyndon is walking the line between her desires and her own mind telling her to stay away.
There is a big twist at the end of this story that I did not expect or even remotely see coming. I think I had to do an actual slow blink because...what?!? It made total sense, but the author does a nice job of keeping the reader engaged with other aspects of the story.
If you like dark romance, dark academia mixed with the mafia, and an intense story, then you'll likely enjoy this.
This is a dark romance, and the author has a trigger warning at the beginning, and for good reason. Side note: I do notice the Kindle version (with the male cover model) didn't show a trigger warning in it. However, I read a paperback deluxe edition that did include a trigger warning for the following: non-con, dub-con, and suicidal thoughts.
This book is dark and starts that way from the beginning. There's no letting the story warm up; we jump into the scalding heat immediately. The reader is immediately pulled into the sorrow that Glyndon feels over her friend, Devlin, who's taken his life recently. She goes back to the cliff where he passed and there she first encounters Killian. Which is likely the craziest, and dirtiest, encounter she's ever had.
This story is told from both Glyndon's and Killian's perspectives. As we get to know them, and their friends and family, we learn that they attend competing universities, one American and one English. There is some mention of families not getting along, and elite clubs that are at odds with each other too. The conflict is there but doesn't seem fully developed, since these two groups of friends keep intermingling and not completely killing each other.
I think the reason that isn't more of an issue is that the real discourse for Killian and Glyndon is both of them fighting their own nature within the relationship. Killian is dealing with some more complex desires and Glyndon is walking the line between her desires and her own mind telling her to stay away.
There is a big twist at the end of this story that I did not expect or even remotely see coming. I think I had to do an actual slow blink because...what?!? It made total sense, but the author does a nice job of keeping the reader engaged with other aspects of the story.
If you like dark romance, dark academia mixed with the mafia, and an intense story, then you'll likely enjoy this.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Physical abuse, Sexual content, and Suicidal thoughts