A review by caffeinatedfae
Her Soul to Take by Harley Laroux

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 
Content Warnings: Graphic violence, gore, horror elements, Consensual non-consent, breath play, bloodplay, spit, needles, masochism, fear play, public play, BDSM elements.

As you all know by now, I'm one of Harley's biggest fans when it comes to her erotica. Ever since I read The Dare, I haven't shut up about how much I love her novellas and shorts. So, when I heard that Her Soul To Take was a full-length novel, my life became complete. I've been (very obviously) stuck in a reading rut lately. I haven't been reading as much, and it's been taking me AGES to read a book. Imagine my surprise when outside of me being hypercritical in the first chapter (this is the first sign of a reading rut), I couldn't help but turn the page. I devoured this book and could not put this book down. It was that good.

You can always tell that I love a book because I can never seem to write a review for it. I just can't seem to put into words how much I enjoyed it. The book started off a bit slow, but I was hooked by the end of chapter 3. The plot was nothing that I have experienced before. The creepy horror aspects paired with the erotica and romance had me a bit worried, but they worked surprisingly well. The horror aspects of this book really fit with Harley's erotica style. The harder kinks work incredibly well with the plot and the characters. I highly suggest that you note the content warnings when it comes to anything Harley writes but especially this book. It wouldn't be a Harley LaRoux book without talking about the erotica, which was explosive, to say the least. Seriously, this book might just make you have to go to confession. I've read Demon romances before, but... damn.

As always, Harley's characters were well written, and I loved watching Leon and Rae interact. I will admit, at times, I wanted to yell at Rae for being an idiot, but she was idiotic in a realistic way. I never thought that her reactions were not natural, even though they were not the choices I would have made. I also loved that Leon wasn't all-powerful. Many books with supernatural characters have the main hero as the mightiest of them all, and I loved that that wasn't Leon. Leon truly is a cinnamon roll for Rae, and I just loved it.

All in all, this book is incredible. It kept me wanting to turn the page & brought back the feel of reading for me. Seriously, it was fantastic. The horror aspects were great, and the romance aspect of it was incredible. Seriously, it's excellent, and I can't wait for it to be out in the world so I can shove it down everyone's throats.