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Sovereign #1
The Chain Loop
I survive on grit, scraps, and the refusal to die.
Beyond the city walls, the world is ash and ruin. Storms hunt the living. So do worse things. Things like him.
Silent. Part man – part machine. Deadly.
He chains me up and drops me into a world where obedience is currency and flesh is owned.
But I’ve fixed machines tougher than him. And I see the cracks in his code.
If I play this right, I might escape.
If I don’t, I won’t just be trapped underground – I’ll be a keepsake.
And the worst part?
Some twisted part of me wants that.
The Chain Loop is a gritty, psychological dark sci-fi romance about a captive tech-savvy heroine, a cybernetically augmented brute unravelled by obsession, and a world ruled by AI where autonomy is coded, suppressed, and violently reclaimed.
!Full list of trigger warnings on the author's website!
Beyond the city walls, the world is ash and ruin. Storms hunt the living. So do worse things. Things like him.
Silent. Part man – part machine. Deadly.
He chains me up and drops me into a world where obedience is currency and flesh is owned.
But I’ve fixed machines tougher than him. And I see the cracks in his code.
If I play this right, I might escape.
If I don’t, I won’t just be trapped underground – I’ll be a keepsake.
And the worst part?
Some twisted part of me wants that.
The Chain Loop is a gritty, psychological dark sci-fi romance about a captive tech-savvy heroine, a cybernetically augmented brute unravelled by obsession, and a world ruled by AI where autonomy is coded, suppressed, and violently reclaimed.
!Full list of trigger warnings on the author's website!
218 pages, Kindle Edition
Published September 20, 2025
1 person is currently reading
6 people want to read
About the author
N. von Wolf
4 books17 followersN. von Wolf writes dark, psychological romance set in worlds where myth bleeds into obsession and love walks a razor’s edge. Her stories explore the intimate territories of power, trauma, and fate – whether in vampire courts, ancient battlegrounds, or dystopian futures.
Rooted in the Balkans and shaped by years in Ireland and Scandinavia, she draws on haunted history, folklore, and cultural echoes to craft emotionally charged tales where the past never sleeps and the heart is never safe. Her favourite playgrounds are epic fantasy, historical and paranormal fiction – but she loves to dip her toes into sci-fi waters, as well.
By night, she writes of forbidden desires and fractured worlds; by day, she thrives as a Technical Engineering Team Lead, a wife, and a mother of two.
You can see what she's currently brewing on her website, or follow her on Social Media (links on the site).
Rooted in the Balkans and shaped by years in Ireland and Scandinavia, she draws on haunted history, folklore, and cultural echoes to craft emotionally charged tales where the past never sleeps and the heart is never safe. Her favourite playgrounds are epic fantasy, historical and paranormal fiction – but she loves to dip her toes into sci-fi waters, as well.
By night, she writes of forbidden desires and fractured worlds; by day, she thrives as a Technical Engineering Team Lead, a wife, and a mother of two.
You can see what she's currently brewing on her website, or follow her on Social Media (links on the site).
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
September 22, 2025
I'm not usually one for cyberpunk or Apocalyptic but when I say this book was beyond what I thought i would like the way N. can and will pull you in with whatever she has is something I think everyone needs to experience.
this will in some ways crush you and put you back with a couple of wtf moments but trust the process.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½/5
🫦🫦🫦/5
this will in some ways crush you and put you back with a couple of wtf moments but trust the process.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️½/5
🫦🫦🫦/5
September 10, 2025
I stumbled across this book on TT and it instantly intrigued me - post apocalyptic, cyberpunk, dark romance/thriller - are you mad!! I'm all over that. I was NOT disappointed. Did someone say trigger warnings? ohhh yeahhhh nearly 2 pages of them. chef's kiss (for me)
so, the book, where the hell do I start? I must admit the start I was a little confuzzled with all the technology talk (this isn't my usual book, ok!) BUT she does give us a glossary which helped - to be fair I actually understood it apart from some reason my brain couldn't function and I didn't know what a human augment was 🤦🏻♀️🤣 if you know what one of those is, you're good.
I really liked the FMC the struggle she went through is so real and the MMC (jeeezzzzz he's smoking HOT if you like the tall dark haired tattooed silent broody type 🥵) and he's soooo obsessed with the FMC it's insane, literally. I loved him from the get go I don't know why but he just had something about him (I do know why but you have to read it to find out😝). The tension is something else in this book, I've read a lot of DR and this blew it out the park with tension. Sometimes in books I find the tension too much, like I'm saying to myself "will you hurry up" not in this book! She kept me on my toes for sure.
The ending - I'm split between I understand and HOW DARE YOU!! The emotions I went through in this book, wow just wow!! what a rollercoaster. I put this book down 2 days ago and I am STILL thinking about it.
I was absolutely glued to this book, as soon as I started, if I didn't have to work I wouldn't have put it down! it was incredible, loved it. 5* for me. the spice? when it spices - it SPICESSSS
side note, please read the trigger warnings as it is dark and some points I was even like "ok that's f***ed" but I can't even put into words how much I enjoyed this book. How she wrote it as well, my brain has been well and truly blown away. I look forward to the next one ✌️😊
so, the book, where the hell do I start? I must admit the start I was a little confuzzled with all the technology talk (this isn't my usual book, ok!) BUT she does give us a glossary which helped - to be fair I actually understood it apart from some reason my brain couldn't function and I didn't know what a human augment was 🤦🏻♀️🤣 if you know what one of those is, you're good.
I really liked the FMC the struggle she went through is so real and the MMC (jeeezzzzz he's smoking HOT if you like the tall dark haired tattooed silent broody type 🥵) and he's soooo obsessed with the FMC it's insane, literally. I loved him from the get go I don't know why but he just had something about him (I do know why but you have to read it to find out😝). The tension is something else in this book, I've read a lot of DR and this blew it out the park with tension. Sometimes in books I find the tension too much, like I'm saying to myself "will you hurry up" not in this book! She kept me on my toes for sure.
The ending - I'm split between I understand and HOW DARE YOU!! The emotions I went through in this book, wow just wow!! what a rollercoaster. I put this book down 2 days ago and I am STILL thinking about it.
I was absolutely glued to this book, as soon as I started, if I didn't have to work I wouldn't have put it down! it was incredible, loved it. 5* for me. the spice? when it spices - it SPICESSSS
side note, please read the trigger warnings as it is dark and some points I was even like "ok that's f***ed" but I can't even put into words how much I enjoyed this book. How she wrote it as well, my brain has been well and truly blown away. I look forward to the next one ✌️😊
September 21, 2025
I'm going to start this off by saying, I do not like Sci fi at all.
But this book had me wanting to read more lol. I was a little confused with the technical terms but the glossary helped me in that regard. And even with needing to scroll through it, it didn't take away from the story at all.
The dark elements were there, oh boy were they.
I found this book to be very well written with a great plot and CLIFFHANGER!!! I need to know what happens next.
Anyway. I loved the overall style of this book, the characters were developed nicely. I love it when an author puts effort into their characters because it makes it easier and more enjoyable to read if you can really see them in your mind while reading. The same can be said for the story itself. I love a movie in my mind when I read, and this hit the nail on the head.
This book was dark, emotional, catching your interest and want to keep knowing more. I truly can't wait to read the next book in line
But this book had me wanting to read more lol. I was a little confused with the technical terms but the glossary helped me in that regard. And even with needing to scroll through it, it didn't take away from the story at all.
The dark elements were there, oh boy were they.
I found this book to be very well written with a great plot and CLIFFHANGER!!! I need to know what happens next.
Anyway. I loved the overall style of this book, the characters were developed nicely. I love it when an author puts effort into their characters because it makes it easier and more enjoyable to read if you can really see them in your mind while reading. The same can be said for the story itself. I love a movie in my mind when I read, and this hit the nail on the head.
This book was dark, emotional, catching your interest and want to keep knowing more. I truly can't wait to read the next book in line
September 8, 2025
The Chain Loop completely pulled me in. It’s a dark romance, yeah but not in a way that felt too much. It dips into trauma, messed-up relationships, mental health, even murder... So the dark part is definitely down.
The suspense is Wild. I devoured it in two days because N. von Wolf does not hold back with the twists. Every time I thought I knew what was coming: boom, curveball. And the ending is one hell of a cliffhanger.
Quick heads-up: the trigger warnings are super easy to find right at the start of the book and excerpt where I got them. And i really appreciated that because I had some trauma in my life too.
If you’re into dark, twisty reads where everyone is a little bit broken and the stakes are high you’ll eat this up.
The suspense is Wild. I devoured it in two days because N. von Wolf does not hold back with the twists. Every time I thought I knew what was coming: boom, curveball. And the ending is one hell of a cliffhanger.
Quick heads-up: the trigger warnings are super easy to find right at the start of the book and excerpt where I got them. And i really appreciated that because I had some trauma in my life too.
If you’re into dark, twisty reads where everyone is a little bit broken and the stakes are high you’ll eat this up.
September 8, 2025
Trigger Warnings. Don't say you weren't warned. I've popped the list of them below this review.
This story is dark, but not quite as dark as I was expecting. Maybe I dissociated while reading it? Everyone is a little broken, a little (or a lot) augmented and all engage in manipulation for their own survival.
Just when you think you know where it is going, the author inserts a little left hand curve.
Be warned this book ends on one hell of a cliff hanger. I, for one, will be hanging on with my fingernails for the next installment.
Trigger Warnings
Emotional and Sexual Manipulation, Coercion and Power Imbalance, Psychological Abuse, Gaslighting (mild and manipulative conditioning), Physical Abuse, Torture, Medical Torture / Physical Restraint, Human Trafficking (implied), Sexual Exploitation (implied and referenced), Objectification, Non-Consensual Sexual Acts and Undertones, Dubious Consent, Light BDSM Elements (non-kink context), Domination and Submission, Voyeurism (implied and observed), Obsessive and Controlling Behaviour, Threats of Violence During Intimacy, Emotional Blackmail, Emotional Collapse / Dissociation, PTSD and Trauma Responses, State-Sanctioned Abuse, Dehumanisation, Aftereffects of Abuse, Psychological Trauma, Suicidal Ideation (brief), Loss of Autonomy, Violent Retaliation, Moral Ambiguity, Forced Drugging / Ingestion of Substances (implied), Power-Imbalance Sexual Dynamics, Stockholm Syndrome Undertones, Trauma Bonding, Cybernetic Modification Without Consent, Gore and Bodily Injury (including neural chip procedures), Implied Sexual Violence (against secondary characters), Cannibalism (referenced and implied), Neurological Overload and Sensory Torture, Forced Memory Extraction, Violence Between Siblings, Non-Consensual Medical Procedures, Psychosexual Threats and Humiliation, Unreliable Reality / Induced Delusions, Emotional Numbing / Suppression as Control Mechanism, Eroticisation of Captivity, Mass Surveillance and Loss of Privacy, Complicity in Abuse (morally grey characters)
This story is dark, but not quite as dark as I was expecting. Maybe I dissociated while reading it? Everyone is a little broken, a little (or a lot) augmented and all engage in manipulation for their own survival.
Just when you think you know where it is going, the author inserts a little left hand curve.
Be warned this book ends on one hell of a cliff hanger. I, for one, will be hanging on with my fingernails for the next installment.
Trigger Warnings
Emotional and Sexual Manipulation, Coercion and Power Imbalance, Psychological Abuse, Gaslighting (mild and manipulative conditioning), Physical Abuse, Torture, Medical Torture / Physical Restraint, Human Trafficking (implied), Sexual Exploitation (implied and referenced), Objectification, Non-Consensual Sexual Acts and Undertones, Dubious Consent, Light BDSM Elements (non-kink context), Domination and Submission, Voyeurism (implied and observed), Obsessive and Controlling Behaviour, Threats of Violence During Intimacy, Emotional Blackmail, Emotional Collapse / Dissociation, PTSD and Trauma Responses, State-Sanctioned Abuse, Dehumanisation, Aftereffects of Abuse, Psychological Trauma, Suicidal Ideation (brief), Loss of Autonomy, Violent Retaliation, Moral Ambiguity, Forced Drugging / Ingestion of Substances (implied), Power-Imbalance Sexual Dynamics, Stockholm Syndrome Undertones, Trauma Bonding, Cybernetic Modification Without Consent, Gore and Bodily Injury (including neural chip procedures), Implied Sexual Violence (against secondary characters), Cannibalism (referenced and implied), Neurological Overload and Sensory Torture, Forced Memory Extraction, Violence Between Siblings, Non-Consensual Medical Procedures, Psychosexual Threats and Humiliation, Unreliable Reality / Induced Delusions, Emotional Numbing / Suppression as Control Mechanism, Eroticisation of Captivity, Mass Surveillance and Loss of Privacy, Complicity in Abuse (morally grey characters)
September 22, 2025
Fascinating book that kinda explores Stolkholm Syndrome a bit. I'm not sure if that's what I would classify the FMC and MMC's relationship as though, so don't be too worried about that. I really liked the view on a post-apocolypic world where AI and machines run the world. Add in the spice and this book was great!
I really enjoyed the story and the characters! I thought it was poignant that the evil human character portrayed as less human/more beast than the mech character.
Heads up, there is non con and dub con, as well as a hint of a grape kink.
The ending made me very excited for the next book in the series! Waiting impatiently now 😅
I really enjoyed the story and the characters! I thought it was poignant that the evil human character portrayed as less human/more beast than the mech character.
Heads up, there is non con and dub con, as well as a hint of a grape kink.
The ending made me very excited for the next book in the series! Waiting impatiently now 😅
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews