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Pain is the most potent drug and Frankie Marconi is addicted to the burning sting of it. Maxim Koslov, a deranged crime lord with a tormented past, is more than willing to deliver the dose she needs.
But when lust becomes obsession, Frankie begins to realize that there is only one way out of this dangerous game of Russian Roulette...
And Maxim never loses.
This is a dark romance.
But when lust becomes obsession, Frankie begins to realize that there is only one way out of this dangerous game of Russian Roulette...
And Maxim never loses.
This is a dark romance.
284 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 1, 2019
473 people are currently reading
1894 people want to read
About the author
Lana Sky
61 books1,328 followersI am a quirky writer from the US who dabbles in dark, paranormal and contemporary romance. My stories aren't always typical, but contain a little something for everyone.
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September 12, 2021
look, if i was a decent human being, i would just leave this crazy motherfucker unrated. sadly, i am not, thus, i shall not.
𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐠 : 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲 ⋆ 𝐤𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐨
it. just…fits…so. fucking. well.
club xxx :
#1: submit ↠ 4 stars???, i think, idk, i don't know if i believe in my rating, but i do know that yoU definitely should not.
#2: obey ↠ …
so, this was safe in that the other man / other woman drama was literally nonexistent. this was not safe in every other way.
this is nO review; this is merely proof i'm too far gone.
˗ˏˋ ᴍᴇᴍᴏʀᴀʙʟᴇ ᴍᴏᴍᴇɴᴛs ´ˎ˗
➺ maxim beating up a man, till said man resembled pulp, using only his chisel, cuz he is a sculptor in his free time.
➺ after their first time wherein he fucks her six ways from Sunday till she legit passes out, tHiS is his final assessment :
gOOd eNoUgh—wtf—mY kiNd Of mAn. 💀🥀
➺ the sporadic degradation, the humiliation, and the degradation again, of which i lived and breathed for—in agony, tho, cuz sometimes i couldn't tell if he meant it or not :
➺ that initial bathroom scene between francescamaxim.
➺ when he manifested a romantic and lit a candle for her, then manifested his Psycho and burnt her with said candle.
➺ every time he motioned for her to get on her knees :
rEaL taLk : when i tell you every last blowjob scene was pure and utter *chef's kiss* (also, that there were more than i've ever counted in a single instalment or standalone before…i fucking mean it, i tell you, that shit cannot be made up. that shit was glorious, for me, personally. that shit is what i want in my smut because, imo, blowjobs that are done and written right are nothing if not fucking hot.
➺ when he came all over her face after washing her clean :
➺ ch. 12 was fucking hard, for lack of a better word, for me :
➺ maxim's nonchalance and otherwise facetiousness :
➺ *le sigh* à la my personal fave :
when he carved each letter of his first name into her thigh.
the sick satisfaction that ran through my veins? unspeakable.
˗ˏˋ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴍᴀxɪᴍ ᴅɪᴅ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴍᴀᴅᴇ ᴍᴇ ᴡᴀɴɴᴀ ʙᴇ ғʀᴀɴᴄᴇsᴄᴀ ´ˎ˗
𓇗 dress her up because she is his doll.
𓇗 bathe her like a frog by filling up the tub with lukewarm water before abruptly blasting the hot water and scalding her.
𓇗 ever-so-gently just grazing her skin with his bruised knuckles and blood-stained fingers before strangling her.
𓇗 caress her like a lover before pinching her, hard.
𓇗 have her sit on his lap so that he can hand-feed her food from his plate, not only occasionally burning her tongue on purpose but then making her hold the straight-outta-the-saucepan morsels in her mouth till he tells her to swallow.
𓇗 brush her hair. grab her by her hair in order to pick her up off the floor. play with her hair—whether it be in comfortable silence or casual boredom, either or. run his fingers through her hair. viciously tug on her hair literally just for kicks alone…
i mean, the list really does go on, and the versatilities are as endless as they are mellifluous, music to my ears, and such.
𓇗 effectively administer her birth control before she can even muster up the mental wherewithal to remember to think of it :
𓇗 tie her to his bed, naked, with delicate silver chains, for hours and hours on end while he traipses the rest his house :
𓇗 tell her to take off her clothes for literally no other reason other than that they're her sister's and do not smell like her :
𓇗 i died a little bit inside in a ball of bliss every time maxim growled, murmured, or snapped, 𝒦ℴ𝓉𝓎ℴ𝓃ℴ𝓀. it's just such a contradiction, pet-naming her anything akin to a kitten when his actions and behaviour towards her are so polar opposite.
˗ˏˋ ғᴀᴠᴇ ᴏ̨ᴜᴏᴛᴇs, ᴏʀ, ɪғ ɪ'ᴍ ᴡᴀxɪɴɢ ᴘᴏᴇᴛɪᴄ, ᴏ̨ᴜᴏᴛᴇs ᴛʜᴀᴛ sᴘᴏᴋᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴍʏ sᴏᴜʟ & sᴜɴɢ ʟᴜʟʟᴀʙɪᴇs ᴛᴏ ᴍʏ ʜᴇᴀʀᴛsᴛʀɪɴɢs ´ˎ˗
a smile has never appeared to be so beautiful to me.
˗ˏˋ ʀᴀɴᴅᴏᴍ ᴀғ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛs ´ˎ˗
➺ 𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐚, 𝐚𝐤𝐚 "𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐞", 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐢
all i'm saying is, she holds serious if not ALL potential to be one of my all time favourite heroines ever. in. the. world. ever.
➺ 𝐦𝐚𝐱𝐢𝐦, 𝐚𝐤𝐚 𝐚𝐥𝐥-𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠-𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐞, 𝐤𝐨𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐯
if maxim isn't the embodiment of gut-wrenching pain, severe fucking paranoia, never-ending lust, raw violence, mercurial rage and malice…then…i don't know who the fuck is.
➺ idk why, but i think i've always had a little bit of a soft spot for blond (anti-)heroes. i feel like they're so few and far between, lost in an ocean of ubiquitous Dark and Handsomes. you get me? anyway, i experienced this immense insta lust with him the second he entered the scene.
➺ the fact that the abuse maxim sustained as a child resulted in intestinal damage that resulted in his having a stoma…
➺ what is the purpose of a 'safe word' if, when one thinks about uttering it, the other dulcetly asks them to hush? like, i'm not exactly raging about it in this particular case with francescamaxim, but still. in any other one, i could've been. i'm biased to maxim, methinks.
➺ i'm obSeSSed with francescamaxim, bYe.
⋆⋆⋆
it's 3AM.
absolutely nothing i say could ever truly absolve me of this.
𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐠 : 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐛𝐲 ⋆ 𝐤𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐨
it. just…fits…so. fucking. well.
club xxx :
#1: submit ↠ 4 stars???, i think, idk, i don't know if i believe in my rating, but i do know that yoU definitely should not.
#2: obey ↠ …
so, this was safe in that the other man / other woman drama was literally nonexistent. this was not safe in every other way.
trigger warning : everyfuckingthing under the sun.
this is nO review; this is merely proof i'm too far gone.
It’s awful.
It’s incredible.
It’s disgusting.
It’s fucking insane.
˗ˏˋ ᴍᴇᴍᴏʀᴀʙʟᴇ ᴍᴏᴍᴇɴᴛs ´ˎ˗
➺ maxim beating up a man, till said man resembled pulp, using only his chisel, cuz he is a sculptor in his free time.
➺ after their first time wherein he fucks her six ways from Sunday till she legit passes out, tHiS is his final assessment :
In the hazy moments after, he says something else. Something raspy and gruff smothered into my hair that I barely comprehend.
"Good enough."
gOOd eNoUgh—wtf—mY kiNd Of mAn. 💀🥀
➺ the sporadic degradation, the humiliation, and the degradation again, of which i lived and breathed for—in agony, tho, cuz sometimes i couldn't tell if he meant it or not :
"I’ve had women prettier than you come to me before," he says. "With tighter cunts than yours. Women who suck cock better than you could dream.” He drags his thumb across my cheek in a gentle caress. "I’ve fucked them harder than I have you. I enjoyed them more. None of them lasted the week." He takes a step forward, urging my head back so that I meet his gaze directly. "You will not last the week."
➺ that initial bathroom scene between francescamaxim.
➺ when he manifested a romantic and lit a candle for her, then manifested his Psycho and burnt her with said candle.
➺ every time he motioned for her to get on her knees :
The smile fades as he cups my jaw and tilts my head back while manipulating the clasp of his jeans. "Open wide. At least pretend that you have what it takes before you run."
Run. His thumb pries my mouth open before the thought finishes. He sighs at the sight, flexing his hips to help loosen his jeans.
rEaL taLk : when i tell you every last blowjob scene was pure and utter *chef's kiss* (also, that there were more than i've ever counted in a single instalment or standalone before…i fucking mean it, i tell you, that shit cannot be made up. that shit was glorious, for me, personally. that shit is what i want in my smut because, imo, blowjobs that are done and written right are nothing if not fucking hot.
➺ when he came all over her face after washing her clean :
He growls when the final drop splatters my chin, satisfied, and adjusts his pants, redoing the clasp. "Now, you are clean," he tells me, snapping his fingers for me to stand.
➺ ch. 12 was fucking hard, for lack of a better word, for me :
hard for me to read.
hard for me to stomach.
hard for me to be able to tolerate.
hard for me to force myself to not…cry.
➺ maxim's nonchalance and otherwise facetiousness :
"I’m disappointed," he tells me once he sees the scabbed-over marks his teeth left on my breasts. The fingers of his other hand trace one of them, pressing down on the skin hard enough to make it bleed. "You heal too quickly."
➺ *le sigh* à la my personal fave :
when he carved each letter of his first name into her thigh.
the sick satisfaction that ran through my veins? unspeakable.
˗ˏˋ ᴛʜɪɴɢs ᴍᴀxɪᴍ ᴅɪᴅ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴍᴀᴅᴇ ᴍᴇ ᴡᴀɴɴᴀ ʙᴇ ғʀᴀɴᴄᴇsᴄᴀ ´ˎ˗
𓇗 dress her up because she is his doll.
𓇗 bathe her like a frog by filling up the tub with lukewarm water before abruptly blasting the hot water and scalding her.
𓇗 ever-so-gently just grazing her skin with his bruised knuckles and blood-stained fingers before strangling her.
𓇗 caress her like a lover before pinching her, hard.
𓇗 have her sit on his lap so that he can hand-feed her food from his plate, not only occasionally burning her tongue on purpose but then making her hold the straight-outta-the-saucepan morsels in her mouth till he tells her to swallow.
𓇗 brush her hair. grab her by her hair in order to pick her up off the floor. play with her hair—whether it be in comfortable silence or casual boredom, either or. run his fingers through her hair. viciously tug on her hair literally just for kicks alone…
i mean, the list really does go on, and the versatilities are as endless as they are mellifluous, music to my ears, and such.
𓇗 effectively administer her birth control before she can even muster up the mental wherewithal to remember to think of it :
"I had you injected with a serum on your last night here…
It is effective in only a few days. You will not get pregnant. That is the one thing you never have to worry about me inflicting upon you."
𓇗 tie her to his bed, naked, with delicate silver chains, for hours and hours on end while he traipses the rest his house :
"Then stay here, just like this. All night. Until I come for you." He pets me just once, his fingers lingering in my hair. "You move so much as an inch and when I’m through, you won’t be able to walk for days." His thumb caresses my cheek, the nail grazing the skin. "Do you understand?"
It hurts to suck in enough air to reply. "Y-yes."
"Fine." His thumbs traces my mouth before he pulls away.
𓇗 tell her to take off her clothes for literally no other reason other than that they're her sister's and do not smell like her :
His fingers clench the fabric, bringing one of the sleeves to his nose. "This doesn’t belong to you," he declares after a sharp inhale. Then he tosses it away, somewhere inside the suite.
My teeth start to skewer my lower lip as I hand the shirt over, and he sniffs that item as well. Frowns. Tosses it.
"The rest," he commands.
I strip down to nothing while he observes every piece of me. My pants next. My bra. My sneakers. Finally panties.
Those he inhales more than once, grinding the fabric between his fingers, growling at whatever he senses. Whatever he tastes.
"These belong to you," he tells me before bawling them into a fist and shoving them into his pocket.
𓇗 i died a little bit inside in a ball of bliss every time maxim growled, murmured, or snapped, 𝒦ℴ𝓉𝓎ℴ𝓃ℴ𝓀. it's just such a contradiction, pet-naming her anything akin to a kitten when his actions and behaviour towards her are so polar opposite.
˗ˏˋ ғᴀᴠᴇ ᴏ̨ᴜᴏᴛᴇs, ᴏʀ, ɪғ ɪ'ᴍ ᴡᴀxɪɴɢ ᴘᴏᴇᴛɪᴄ, ᴏ̨ᴜᴏᴛᴇs ᴛʜᴀᴛ sᴘᴏᴋᴇ ᴛᴏ ᴍʏ sᴏᴜʟ & sᴜɴɢ ʟᴜʟʟᴀʙɪᴇs ᴛᴏ ᴍʏ ʜᴇᴀʀᴛsᴛʀɪɴɢs ´ˎ˗
Everyone likes to think that their soul doesn’t carry a price tag—and sure, some lucky sons of bitches never become desperate enough to find it. The first step is having to look at yourself in the mirror and no longer seeing a person, just an object with pretty eyes. She’s worth about fifty a lay, you tell yourself—a hundred dollars tops.
I know pain: all of those “accidental” cuts. I know what it’s like when a john gets too rough or tries to gain backdoor access. This is something else.
The light in the room is blinding. At the same time, it’s too dark. Maxim’s face is covered in shadow. I can only make out his smile: pure-white teeth in a beautiful, lethal row.
a smile has never appeared to be so beautiful to me.
He smiles—or at least his lips lift higher than their usual stern line. It’s the most terrifying thing I’ve ever seen.
I’m cold. I’m numb. And then I’m on fire—like the bastard doused me in gasoline and lit a match. My legs burn up. My hips. My cunt. My soul.
I’m dying. Rigor mortis sets in fast: I stiffen, every muscle clenched so tightly that I can’t breathe. Maxim is the only part of me that’s still alive. Still moving. Still fucking. Striking the same deep, distant part of me over and over and over.
And you begin to understand that the only thing more terrifying than the monster you find lurking within it is the fact that…
You’ve missed it all along.
Because the fear feels more familiar than anything else.
He’s almost like the sun: You know he’s there, though you know better than to look at him directly.
You’ll go fucking blind.
His eyes glow, tinged dark with bloodlust. There isn’t a shred of humanity in them.
And a part of me—some sick, twisted part—sighs in relief. Finally.
He’s a wolf, barely fitting within the sheep’s clothing he’s trying to wear—but it’s all part of the game. There is no honesty in Russian Roulette.
˗ˏˋ ʀᴀɴᴅᴏᴍ ᴀғ ᴛʜᴏᴜɢʜᴛs ´ˎ˗
➺ 𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐚, 𝐚𝐤𝐚 "𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐞", 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐢
all i'm saying is, she holds serious if not ALL potential to be one of my all time favourite heroines ever. in. the. world. ever.
➺ 𝐦𝐚𝐱𝐢𝐦, 𝐚𝐤𝐚 𝐚𝐥𝐥-𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠-𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐞, 𝐤𝐨𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐯
if maxim isn't the embodiment of gut-wrenching pain, severe fucking paranoia, never-ending lust, raw violence, mercurial rage and malice…then…i don't know who the fuck is.
➺ idk why, but i think i've always had a little bit of a soft spot for blond (anti-)heroes. i feel like they're so few and far between, lost in an ocean of ubiquitous Dark and Handsomes. you get me? anyway, i experienced this immense insta lust with him the second he entered the scene.
➺ the fact that the abuse maxim sustained as a child resulted in intestinal damage that resulted in his having a stoma…
if i didn't understand him, see him through francesca's eyes, i wouldn't ache at the thought of him, his trauma, the damage it's done to him. i still can't imagine his pain, not just physical but mental. this is why i loathe my empathy, it fucking eviscerates me, thinking about maxim—no, i change my mind. i-i actually can't talk about this anymore lest i start hyperventilating uncontrollably. pls don't ask.
➺ what is the purpose of a 'safe word' if, when one thinks about uttering it, the other dulcetly asks them to hush? like, i'm not exactly raging about it in this particular case with francescamaxim, but still. in any other one, i could've been. i'm biased to maxim, methinks.
➺ i'm obSeSSed with francescamaxim, bYe.
⋆⋆⋆
it's 3AM.
absolutely nothing i say could ever truly absolve me of this.
April 19, 2020
4.5 STARS!!
Trigger warnings:
Plot: Maxim is a sadist who hires women to sate his desires. Frankie is desperate for cash . . . yeah, you get the picture.
Yikes. I felt a bit like a lookie-loo at the site of a car crash while reading this one . . . I just couldn't turn away. This was DARK, you guys, and disturbing and all kinds of wrong. So if you're faint of heart, you'll want to avoid this one, but if you love your S&M? You'll need to get on this one :D
The 'relationship' between Max and Frankie was well done for the most part, and the author did a good job of convincing me of Frankie's masochism. However, be warned that there's not much romance to speak of in this installment, but that felt organic to the story . . . especially since there are two more books in the series.
My only complaint is that the author took things too far a few times, and that unfortunately removed the story from the realm of plausible. But hey, it made for some pretty good entertainment and I'll definitely be reading book 2!
My devil.Holy cow! Submit held me in its thrall from beginning to end. I 'accidentally' started it at about 10pm last night and read it straight through until after 4am. (When will I learn that the book will still be there the next day? LOL)
My deliverer.
My doom.
Trigger warnings:
Plot: Maxim is a sadist who hires women to sate his desires. Frankie is desperate for cash . . . yeah, you get the picture.
Yikes. I felt a bit like a lookie-loo at the site of a car crash while reading this one . . . I just couldn't turn away. This was DARK, you guys, and disturbing and all kinds of wrong. So if you're faint of heart, you'll want to avoid this one, but if you love your S&M? You'll need to get on this one :D
The 'relationship' between Max and Frankie was well done for the most part, and the author did a good job of convincing me of Frankie's masochism. However, be warned that there's not much romance to speak of in this installment, but that felt organic to the story . . . especially since there are two more books in the series.
My only complaint is that the author took things too far a few times, and that unfortunately removed the story from the realm of plausible. But hey, it made for some pretty good entertainment and I'll definitely be reading book 2!
July 28, 2020
4 ”Money makes the world go round” stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Maxim.
Koslov.
Drives.
Me.
Wild. Wild like a thunderstorm with deadly lightning. Wild like a fucking tornado. He rips me to shreds. Tears me apart.
And I never stood a chance.
Dark. Edgy. Brutal. Extreme. Filthy. These are some of the words that come to my mind after finishing this fucked up of a book. I’m usually unfazed when it comes to dark romance but this one...this pushed my limits, half of the time I was questioning just how much I could handle. I came close to not reading this but I just couldn’t put it down, I always came back almost like watching a train wreck happen. I mean I finished this last week yet am writing the review now. My thoughts were jumbled. What I loved the most was this author’s writing, it just sucks you in.
TRIGGERS: self-harm, knife-play, cutting, heavy BDSM, extreme intimate scenes.
Francesca is nineteen year old and a prostitute struggling to make ends meet and is responsible for taking care of her five siblings ever since their abusive mother left them and only shows up when she needs money. So when her pimp tells her about a client who is a little unconventional, she agrees to meet him since the money is too good to pass up never realising the path she’s going on or just what’s in store for her.
A wave of pain hits me all at once like a punch to the chest and my thoughts shatter. Pain, because it knocks me under. It sets me free. I can think. I can feel. I can scream. Really scream.
I’m flying.
I’m falling.
I’m drowning.
I’m crashing back down to Earth.
He doesn’t catch me; he just watches me burn.
Francesca was one damaged character. Her life was no rainbows and sunshine. My heart broke for her. She had nothing easy and eventually things took a toll on her and the only way she could cope with it was by inflicting pain on herself.
”I would tear you apart with my cock tonight,” Maxim says as a watery, broken sound trickles out of my throat. He growls in response, swirling the pad of one of the searching fingers along my “inner walls, making them shake. “So delicate you are.”
The pain is still there. Still screaming through my system. He’s right. He’d break me. Rip me apart. Tear me open.
“And yet the thought of it”—another searing thrust and brutal caress—“seems to make you even wetter.”
The first time she meets Maxim, her instinct is to run in the other direction but something makes us her stay. No matter how much pain he inflicted and boy...it was a lot, and how many chances he gave her to run, she always came back for more. She was so attuned to his darkness, they simply fed each other’s bad habits. With him there’s a clarity, a freedom she longes for.
”This is pain, kotyonok,” he tells me gruffly, releasing the lobe. “This…is all I will ever give you. This?” He grinds his deflating cock into my clit, sparking off another scorching chain-reaction. “This is all you will ever need.”
Maxim was just as damaged and a very complex character and we haven’t even scratched the surface yet. He is one scary and mean looking guy. His aura is dark. If I ever saw a guy like him, I’m going to run in the opposite direction really fast. His intensity and domineering side is on a whole other way. I have honestly never read a guy as fucked up as him. He never minced his words. What rattled his nature was how she reacted to him.
”You don’t think,” he tells me, lifting my hips from the water so he can ram in another inch, so hard that I see stars and shadow. White. Black. Yellow fucking fireworks. “You never think. Not while you are with me—”
Another thrust and my eyes roll back. I swear I can see the inside of my skull, my brains being whisked to mush.
“I think. You listen. You obey. You feel.”
The chemistry is sizzling between the two. Every time they are together, it only gets more extreme. Both were confused to their reactions to each other. Pain is what gets her off and sadist in him can’t help but give her more. What started as a simple contract turned into possession and obsession. They are far from falling in love but it’s inevitable.
”Mine,” he says, smothering every other concern but him.
Deep down, I know this is not a heartwarming confession.
It’s a promise.
A threat.
This man will never let me go.
And maybe…I don’t want him to.
I have no words for this author, all am gonna say is that she delivers dark well and not once did she hold back. This only felt like a beginning to their story and am excited to see what’s more to come since it’s a trilogy. The only reason it didn’t become a full five star read for me was because of the whole knife play, I’m so not a fan of that and it was the main reason I came close to dnfing this book. Other than that I was simply hooked.
If after reading all of this you’re intrigued, it’s definitely worth a shot. You are so not ready for Maxim. ♥️
Maxim.
Koslov.
Drives.
Me.
Wild. Wild like a thunderstorm with deadly lightning. Wild like a fucking tornado. He rips me to shreds. Tears me apart.
And I never stood a chance.
Dark. Edgy. Brutal. Extreme. Filthy. These are some of the words that come to my mind after finishing this fucked up of a book. I’m usually unfazed when it comes to dark romance but this one...this pushed my limits, half of the time I was questioning just how much I could handle. I came close to not reading this but I just couldn’t put it down, I always came back almost like watching a train wreck happen. I mean I finished this last week yet am writing the review now. My thoughts were jumbled. What I loved the most was this author’s writing, it just sucks you in.
TRIGGERS: self-harm, knife-play, cutting, heavy BDSM, extreme intimate scenes.
Francesca is nineteen year old and a prostitute struggling to make ends meet and is responsible for taking care of her five siblings ever since their abusive mother left them and only shows up when she needs money. So when her pimp tells her about a client who is a little unconventional, she agrees to meet him since the money is too good to pass up never realising the path she’s going on or just what’s in store for her.
A wave of pain hits me all at once like a punch to the chest and my thoughts shatter. Pain, because it knocks me under. It sets me free. I can think. I can feel. I can scream. Really scream.
I’m flying.
I’m falling.
I’m drowning.
I’m crashing back down to Earth.
He doesn’t catch me; he just watches me burn.
Francesca was one damaged character. Her life was no rainbows and sunshine. My heart broke for her. She had nothing easy and eventually things took a toll on her and the only way she could cope with it was by inflicting pain on herself.
”I would tear you apart with my cock tonight,” Maxim says as a watery, broken sound trickles out of my throat. He growls in response, swirling the pad of one of the searching fingers along my “inner walls, making them shake. “So delicate you are.”
The pain is still there. Still screaming through my system. He’s right. He’d break me. Rip me apart. Tear me open.
“And yet the thought of it”—another searing thrust and brutal caress—“seems to make you even wetter.”
The first time she meets Maxim, her instinct is to run in the other direction but something makes us her stay. No matter how much pain he inflicted and boy...it was a lot, and how many chances he gave her to run, she always came back for more. She was so attuned to his darkness, they simply fed each other’s bad habits. With him there’s a clarity, a freedom she longes for.
”This is pain, kotyonok,” he tells me gruffly, releasing the lobe. “This…is all I will ever give you. This?” He grinds his deflating cock into my clit, sparking off another scorching chain-reaction. “This is all you will ever need.”
Maxim was just as damaged and a very complex character and we haven’t even scratched the surface yet. He is one scary and mean looking guy. His aura is dark. If I ever saw a guy like him, I’m going to run in the opposite direction really fast. His intensity and domineering side is on a whole other way. I have honestly never read a guy as fucked up as him. He never minced his words. What rattled his nature was how she reacted to him.
”You don’t think,” he tells me, lifting my hips from the water so he can ram in another inch, so hard that I see stars and shadow. White. Black. Yellow fucking fireworks. “You never think. Not while you are with me—”
Another thrust and my eyes roll back. I swear I can see the inside of my skull, my brains being whisked to mush.
“I think. You listen. You obey. You feel.”
The chemistry is sizzling between the two. Every time they are together, it only gets more extreme. Both were confused to their reactions to each other. Pain is what gets her off and sadist in him can’t help but give her more. What started as a simple contract turned into possession and obsession. They are far from falling in love but it’s inevitable.
”Mine,” he says, smothering every other concern but him.
Deep down, I know this is not a heartwarming confession.
It’s a promise.
A threat.
This man will never let me go.
And maybe…I don’t want him to.
I have no words for this author, all am gonna say is that she delivers dark well and not once did she hold back. This only felt like a beginning to their story and am excited to see what’s more to come since it’s a trilogy. The only reason it didn’t become a full five star read for me was because of the whole knife play, I’m so not a fan of that and it was the main reason I came close to dnfing this book. Other than that I was simply hooked.
If after reading all of this you’re intrigued, it’s definitely worth a shot. You are so not ready for Maxim. ♥️
Read
July 10, 2021No rating. Just because.
Money: the thing that puts people on the path of depravity, makes them succumb to their desires of doing deplorable, outrageously sinful things. Things that include selling your body—and soul—to a complete stranger.
It was indeed a gluttonous appetite for money that made Francesca Marconi sign a contract that included clauses like:
Trigger warning: This is not a romance book. Not by any stretch of the imagination. This is dark. Brutal. Violent. Disturbing. Gritty. It includes mutilation, knife-play, sexual violence, self-harm, explicit sex. You should definitely heed the author’s warning when she says this is not for the faint of heart, or for readers under 18.
🩸🩸SPOILERS🩸🩸
Abandoned by her drug addict mother and left to fend for her 6 younger siblings, Francesca (Frankie) Marconi (19), has no choice but to sell her body to any man willing to pay her a few measly dollars, so she can pay her bills and support her siblings. Her debilitating selflessness drives her to sell her body to Maxim for a base salary of $16,000 per month. An incentive tempting enough to condone the clauses of the contract.
I think it’s important I share some the aforementioned clauses with you because it’ll give you an insight into what this book entails:
I should have dnf’d this book after reading that but I guess it was the allure of the forbidden that had me turning the pages. 🥂
Maxim the deprived bastard:
What do you call a person who derives pleasure from inflicting pain? Sadist? Yes. A sadist. That’s what Maxim is. A brute with sadistic tendencies far beyond what is normally acceptable, and a penchant for delivering punishments. He puts Christian Grey to shame with his brutal ways, I tell ya!
I was ok with everything in this book except the knife play. It made me squirm. It made me flinch. It doesn’t matter that the h was a masochist, had suicidal tendencies and the knife play and shii probably (definitely) turned her on but I wasn’t buying it. It was too much even for someone as morally wicked as me. 😌
Francesca was required to spend 5 nights of the week with Maxim. In these 5 nights he sated all his deviant desires on her battered and bruised body. I found myself chanting a litany of ’this is too much,’ and wishing Maxim would just relent; grant her a reprieve from all the brutal fucking, and caress her face or smooth her hair and tuck her into bed. AND NOT COME WITHIN AN INCH OF HER FOR MONTHS! Any sign to show she wasn’t just a vessel to him, that he felt something for her that wasn’t just sexual. But I never got my wish. Francesca always came back to him with her body ravaged after her 2 days prison break, and he always sent her home with moreeee bruises and cuts mottling her skin and her already sore, uh, honeypot stretched and battered. It was a miracle the girl could even walk without falling over. It made me wince. But it also aroused some primal, dark, erotically sinful part of me. Can’t say it wasn’t H. O. T. 🥵
The BDSM (?) aspect:
I know this is the first book in a trilogy but there was no plot progression whatsoever. The H’s vocabulary consisted of ‘come, kneel, get up, eat, sleep’ blah blah.
The sex carried this whole book. Literally. It was OFF THE CHARTS hot!
I am a sadist, when I was 10 or 11 (don’t remember my exact age) I used to fantasize about dousing women in scorching water. HAHA, such a ludicrous kink now that I think about it but my sadistic tastes have developed. I’m more into Christian Grey shit now.
But I digress.
I am a kinky bitch and I like reading about couples doing it rough, sprinkle in some bdsm shii and I am a goner.
Being fucked with a knife handle? How obscene and callous and repulsive and monstrous and unsanitary…I’d love to experience it someday!
I don’t think I should have read that because I can’t stop thinking about it! So titillating! So painfully arousing. Fans myself.
How do I explain how painfully, sinfully, tantalizingly erotic this is without sounding unsound?!? If my future husband isn’t like this I don’t want it—
The safe word:
Like in all morally grey contracts a poor gullible h signs, this contract too gave Frankie the liberty of using a safe word which would nullify the contract. There was only one instance when Frankie was almost whipped and fucked to death that she tried to say the safe word—try being the operative word—and this is how dear ol’ Maxim reacted:
She was trying to say the safe word and he SHUSHED her!?!? I’m certain she could have had him incarcerated for breaching the contract. Does he not know the purpose of the safe word? This was wrong on so many levels!!!
This scene made me feel so indignant…I wish I could say that, but despite the wrongness of the situation I couldn’t help the BUTTERFLIES that swarmed my stomach—
Am I down that bad? Apparently yes. 😌👺
Some redeeming qualities of Max:
🩸His generosity in granting Frankie an orgasm
🩸His lack of generosity in NOT granting Frankie an orgasm
As I mentioned earlier, this is not a romance book. God knows why it is advertised as such. The only thing that could remotely be considered romance was Maxim taking Frankie to see her siblings after he threatened to kill them.
This book really advertises a toxic relationship, if you decide to read this please know that you’re willingly jumping into the fiery furnace of damnation.
“Money. Money. Money. It makes the world go ’round. It makes my world stop spinning.
I stay here, like this, for money.”
Money: the thing that puts people on the path of depravity, makes them succumb to their desires of doing deplorable, outrageously sinful things. Things that include selling your body—and soul—to a complete stranger.
It was indeed a gluttonous appetite for money that made Francesca Marconi sign a contract that included clauses like:
“In the event of accidental death, the designated relatives of the aforementioned party will receive a lump sum amount of $500,000.”
Trigger warning: This is not a romance book. Not by any stretch of the imagination. This is dark. Brutal. Violent. Disturbing. Gritty. It includes mutilation, knife-play, sexual violence, self-harm, explicit sex. You should definitely heed the author’s warning when she says this is not for the faint of heart, or for readers under 18.
🩸🩸SPOILERS🩸🩸
“Everyone likes to think that their soul doesn’t carry a price tag—and sure, some lucky sons of bitches never become desperate enough to find it. The first step is having to look at yourself in the mirror and no longer seeing a person, just an object with pretty eyes. She’s worth about fifty a lay, you tell yourself—a hundred dollars tops.”
Abandoned by her drug addict mother and left to fend for her 6 younger siblings, Francesca (Frankie) Marconi (19), has no choice but to sell her body to any man willing to pay her a few measly dollars, so she can pay her bills and support her siblings. Her debilitating selflessness drives her to sell her body to Maxim for a base salary of $16,000 per month. An incentive tempting enough to condone the clauses of the contract.
I think it’s important I share some the aforementioned clauses with you because it’ll give you an insight into what this book entails:
“Clause 1: In the event of a burn, wound, cut, or any similar injury greater than ten inches in length or diameter, the aforementioned party will receive $1,000 per inch.”
Clause 2: In the event that the aforementioned party is rendered unconscious and unresponsive—no pulse and/or pupil reaction—for a period of documented time extending more than one minute in duration, the party will receive $5,000 for each additional minute and $500 for each remaining second of.”
I should have dnf’d this book after reading that but I guess it was the allure of the forbidden that had me turning the pages. 🥂
Maxim the deprived bastard:
“I only want to hurt you,” he tells me as his stare reconnects with mine. “However I want. Whenever I want. In any way that I can. Do you understand what I mean by that?”
What do you call a person who derives pleasure from inflicting pain? Sadist? Yes. A sadist. That’s what Maxim is. A brute with sadistic tendencies far beyond what is normally acceptable, and a penchant for delivering punishments. He puts Christian Grey to shame with his brutal ways, I tell ya!
“One minute, the knife is clutched in my fist. The next, its sharp edge grazes my skin, creeping across my inner thigh. The slightest bit of pressure sends the tip right through the skin. I jump at the feeling, even as my wrist flexes, extending the damage. Two more sharp lines. More. More. More.
His hand guides me, but I’m the one doing it. Me. Bit by bit, he makes me sign an entirely different kind of contract. In blood. In pain.
M
A
X”
I was ok with everything in this book except the knife play. It made me squirm. It made me flinch. It doesn’t matter that the h was a masochist, had suicidal tendencies and the knife play and shii probably (definitely) turned her on but I wasn’t buying it. It was too much even for someone as morally wicked as me. 😌
Francesca was required to spend 5 nights of the week with Maxim. In these 5 nights he sated all his deviant desires on her battered and bruised body. I found myself chanting a litany of ’this is too much,’ and wishing Maxim would just relent; grant her a reprieve from all the brutal fucking, and caress her face or smooth her hair and tuck her into bed. AND NOT COME WITHIN AN INCH OF HER FOR MONTHS! Any sign to show she wasn’t just a vessel to him, that he felt something for her that wasn’t just sexual. But I never got my wish. Francesca always came back to him with her body ravaged after her 2 days prison break, and he always sent her home with moreeee bruises and cuts mottling her skin and her already sore, uh, honeypot stretched and battered. It was a miracle the girl could even walk without falling over. It made me wince. But it also aroused some primal, dark, erotically sinful part of me. Can’t say it wasn’t H. O. T. 🥵
“I would tear you apart with my cock tonight,” Maxim says as a watery, broken sound trickles out of my throat. He growls in response, swirling the pad of one of the searching fingers along my inner walls, making them shake. “So delicate you are.”
The pain is still there. Still screaming through my system. He’s right. He’d break me. Rip me apart. Tear me open.
“And yet the thought of it”—another searing thrust and brutal caress—“seems to make you even wetter.”
The BDSM (?) aspect:
I know this is the first book in a trilogy but there was no plot progression whatsoever. The H’s vocabulary consisted of ‘come, kneel, get up, eat, sleep’ blah blah.
The sex carried this whole book. Literally. It was OFF THE CHARTS hot!
I am a sadist, when I was 10 or 11 (don’t remember my exact age) I used to fantasize about dousing women in scorching water. HAHA, such a ludicrous kink now that I think about it but my sadistic tastes have developed. I’m more into Christian Grey shit now.
But I digress.
I am a kinky bitch and I like reading about couples doing it rough, sprinkle in some bdsm shii and I am a goner.
“Then stay here, just like this. All night. Until I come for you.” He pets me just once, his fingers lingering in my hair. “You move so much as an inch and when I’m through, you won’t be able to walk for days.” His thumb caresses my cheek, the nail grazing the skin. “Do you understand?”
“I think the violation is the worst of it. Being fucked with a knife—it can’t get any more humiliating than this. But he proves me wrong when the callused, heavy pad of his thumb drifts up to the flesh above the knife. Teasing. Rubbing. One brush and every fucking muscle in my body tenses. The knife feels bigger, impossibly huge inside me. My skin feels hotter. Fuck.
“Look at you. Even this gets you off,” Maxim remarks, his voice low and gravelly. Angry.”
Being fucked with a knife handle? How obscene and callous and repulsive and monstrous and unsanitary…I’d love to experience it someday!
“Actual ice.
Shit! I react out of pure instinct, clawing at his fingers.
He only has to say one word. “Stop.”
I do, just like that, lying back against the mattress. My hands go limp and he continues his assault. Almost lazily, he slides the ice along the outside of my pussy first, pressing so that I feel every firm, curved edge. My knees buckle, and I can’t keep myself from shaking. Both hands clench, my nails digging into the duvet beneath me with every swipe. Just when I think I can’t bear it for a second longer, he begins to thrust his fingers, working the ridge of ice inside me.”
“The ice is still inside me when he steps back. I know that much. My muscles tighten, numbed by the frigid chill. My stomach cramps. I have to shove my fingers into my mouth and bite down hard just to keep from reaching down again.
From the corner of my eye, I see shadows dance across the room, flickering. I blink once and realize why: The flame is in his hand now.
“Look at me.”
The moment I do, he extends his arm over me. Slowly, he tilts the candle, sending a stream of hot, clear liquid onto my stomach. Fire. Ice. I’m drowning between two consuming sensations.”
I don’t think I should have read that because I can’t stop thinking about it! So titillating! So painfully arousing. Fans myself.
“Hold your breath,” he tells me as his hips jerk, his cock sinking in. “Don’t let it out until I tell you to.”
My cheeks fill with air as my body becomes full of him. I fight to hold it in as he starts to thrust. Slow. Hard. Harder. Harder.
“Not yet,” he warns when I gasp, swiveling his hips, making me choke.
My head buzzes. My thoughts blur. My lungs are screaming. My body is on fire. Tightening. Clenching.
When his thumb returns to my clit with devastating strokes, my eyes roll back in my head. I see lightning. I feel it.
“Now.”
I gulp at the air while my body comes, riding his length as a million sensations hit me at once. And all the while, he just keeps thrusting.
“Fuck.”
How do I explain how painfully, sinfully, tantalizingly erotic this is without sounding unsound?!? If my future husband isn’t like this I don’t want it—
The safe word:
Like in all morally grey contracts a poor gullible h signs, this contract too gave Frankie the liberty of using a safe word which would nullify the contract. There was only one instance when Frankie was almost whipped and fucked to death that she tried to say the safe word—try being the operative word—and this is how dear ol’ Maxim reacted:
“The ordeal doesn’t end, even when he finally climbs off me. I hear him pace, still throwing off rage like heat from a bonfire. I know the moment he picks the whip up again and the last coherent thought I have is of the safe word. Remembering it.
My lips tremble, fighting to say it. “I’m hap—”
“Shhh.” The mattress vibrates as Maxim finally collapses beside me. And the world goes black again before I can say a damn thing.”
She was trying to say the safe word and he SHUSHED her!?!? I’m certain she could have had him incarcerated for breaching the contract. Does he not know the purpose of the safe word? This was wrong on so many levels!!!
This scene made me feel so indignant…I wish I could say that, but despite the wrongness of the situation I couldn’t help the BUTTERFLIES that swarmed my stomach—
Am I down that bad? Apparently yes. 😌👺
Some redeeming qualities of Max:
🩸His generosity in granting Frankie an orgasm
🩸His lack of generosity in NOT granting Frankie an orgasm
As I mentioned earlier, this is not a romance book. God knows why it is advertised as such. The only thing that could remotely be considered romance was Maxim taking Frankie to see her siblings after he threatened to kill them.
“My house gleams in all of its fucked-up glory. The lights are on. Even from here, I can hear Ainsley screaming—but before the fear can bite deep, I make out what she’s saying. Curse words. Apparently, Eric got to her stupid-ass dolls again.
“I cannot say the same for you, but I will never hurt them,” Maxim tells me, his voice trickling into my ear, louder than anything else. “Do you understand? Say it.”
This book really advertises a toxic relationship, if you decide to read this please know that you’re willingly jumping into the fiery furnace of damnation.
March 31, 2025
"Do you know the secret behind committing sin?” This time, he doesn’t wait for an answer. “It is absolution. Punishment in exchange for release. So let me deliver it to you.” He tilts my head back, exposing my wet face to his gaze. “Tell me how.”
“You came back to me the first time, then the second. I could have thrown you away, even after the second.” He flips me over so that I’m facing him fully. “Even the third time,” he says as he scans my body. “I believed the lie that I could let you leave whenever I fucking wanted. But the fourth? No. The fifth? Never. It’s too late now.”
4.5 stars, rounding up. This is my favorite book I've read by Lana Sky. I've always respected her writing style, so it's no surprise this book was well-written. In the past some of her books haven't 100% clicked with me, but this one did :) A riveting dark erotic thriller, Lana did not hold back. Please be warned for strong S/m themes, knife play, violent sex, dubcon/noncon, violence, references to child abuse, and depictions of self harm /. I don't have it in me to leave a thorough review with warnings, but I 100% agree with the top 4 star review for this book.
Random thoughts:
“You came back to me the first time, then the second. I could have thrown you away, even after the second.” He flips me over so that I’m facing him fully. “Even the third time,” he says as he scans my body. “I believed the lie that I could let you leave whenever I fucking wanted. But the fourth? No. The fifth? Never. It’s too late now.”
4.5 stars, rounding up. This is my favorite book I've read by Lana Sky. I've always respected her writing style, so it's no surprise this book was well-written. In the past some of her books haven't 100% clicked with me, but this one did :) A riveting dark erotic thriller, Lana did not hold back. Please be warned for strong S/m themes, knife play, violent sex, dubcon/noncon, violence, references to child abuse, and depictions of self harm /. I don't have it in me to leave a thorough review with warnings, but I 100% agree with the top 4 star review for this book.
Random thoughts:
July 7, 2021
second read, 06/07 ⤞ 3.75 stars
thank you, K, for making me lose my mind and my precious sleep.
✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
first read, 24/05 ⤞ dnf at 54%
why did i dnf'ed this book again?
thank you, K, for making me lose my mind and my precious sleep.
✄┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈┈
first read, 24/05 ⤞ dnf at 54%
why did i dnf'ed this book again?
March 16, 2024
Romance muy muy dark
Frankie solo sabe que necesita dinero para mantener a sus 6 hermanos, pero sus dos trabajos y sus "extras" todavía no le alcanzan. Hasta que recibe una proposición muy diferente, si puede quedarse un mes con un sujeto, este le pagaría una cantidad tan grande que podían sobrevivir un año. Pero que tendrá que hacer? Podrá hacer lo necesario? Que descubrirá de ella en ese tiempo?
Ok, se que es un romance dark, pero esto fue un erotico-dark, casi sin sentido. No logré conectar con ninguno de los personajes. No los entendí, no entendí muchas de las situaciones. Cómo tampoco entendí lo que los llevaba a tomar esas decisiones. Quizás por el ser el primero de una serie, apenas son introducciones, pero no llego a convencerme.
Eso sí, es una historia totalmente erótica de violación "consensuada", si ese es su género, este libro les puede gustar. Personalmente, me pareció un libro promedio, pero quién quita y lea otra cosa del autor más adelante.
Frankie solo sabe que necesita dinero para mantener a sus 6 hermanos, pero sus dos trabajos y sus "extras" todavía no le alcanzan. Hasta que recibe una proposición muy diferente, si puede quedarse un mes con un sujeto, este le pagaría una cantidad tan grande que podían sobrevivir un año. Pero que tendrá que hacer? Podrá hacer lo necesario? Que descubrirá de ella en ese tiempo?
Ok, se que es un romance dark, pero esto fue un erotico-dark, casi sin sentido. No logré conectar con ninguno de los personajes. No los entendí, no entendí muchas de las situaciones. Cómo tampoco entendí lo que los llevaba a tomar esas decisiones. Quizás por el ser el primero de una serie, apenas son introducciones, pero no llego a convencerme.
Eso sí, es una historia totalmente erótica de violación "consensuada", si ese es su género, este libro les puede gustar. Personalmente, me pareció un libro promedio, pero quién quita y lea otra cosa del autor más adelante.
July 17, 2019
Dazed, confused, uncomfortable, discombobulated (love that word) you name it, I’ve felt it with this book.
I’ve had quite the discussions with a friend about this book today. You see we did a very informal buddy read (she is not on any social media whatsoever) and boy do I wish she was - I would have been messaging her constantly. Anyway, since finishing it we have had several full and frank exchanges of opinion - all lighthearted I might add. We have discussed whether this book is hardcore kink? Abuse? Borderline torture? Flat out wrong? And surprisingly our options have differed on all of them. The heroine is young, the hero is violent and very disturbed. Both have shit lives. I sympathise with Frankie who is very much a victim of circumstance and other people’s bad choices. More so than Maxim who is a... well I’m not exactly sure what he is to be honest. How do you describe someone who has not one redeeming quality in this book? He is referred to as “a monster” so I’ll go with that here. The “real” Maxim is a far more complex character than we are privy to, monstrous, yes, yet I suspect just as much a victim.
Maxim and Frankie together are fucked up and fucked. They are the sorts of characters that could quite easily end up killing each other. That turn of events wouldn’t surprise me in the least if it ever happened. Theirs is not a romantic relationship . It is not lust at first sight. I wouldn’t call it erotic, or even a relationship in the traditional, linear sense. It is just...dark. And darkly disturbing.
This is a well written book that has unexpectedly challenged me. I could list a whole raft of triggers but if you like it dark you aren’t expecting sunshine and flowers anyway and unlikely to be surprised by content. This is dark as I said before. It’s also book one of a trilogy so Frankie and Maxim have a very long way to go yet. I’m not entirely sure they’ll get there, at this point I’m very sceptical. Prison seems more likely.
On a final note my friend asked if I’d have had as many concerns if Maxim had been an M/M book (my preference at the moment.) I was a bit nonplussed for a second but hand on heart have to say no, I wouldn’t, at least not as many. Now I’m off to contemplate my double standards.
Rating wise this is tricky for me and I’m about to go off point. Bear with... you see I would often walk the dog after reading a challenging book, think about things, digest and let it settle. Then I would talk pooches ears off, have a cuddle, a coffee and reach a decision. Unfortunately pooch went to rainbow bridge recently and can’t hear me anymore. Now I talk to myself out loud (don’t judge) after much wandering around the house today muttering to myself I’m going to go with my gut and give this one...
.......
*4 Stars* for putting me on the back foot
Well done Lana Sky! Not many books do that to me.
Read
January 7, 2021RTC 😳🤯
This is the first time I feel like I can’t rate a book.
This is the first time I feel like I can’t rate a book.
January 24, 2023
2.5⭐️
90% traumatised 10% into it
90% traumatised 10% into it
July 29, 2024
This was a freebie that i’ve had for a while now,and in this case i don’t regret downloading it…..
Because it may be hard to read,painful and even disturbing,it makes me FEEL!
It may look like Frankie is weak for allowing Maxim to treat her the way he does,but she isn’t.
She’s responsible for her siblings,and she’s doing her best to give them what they need,even if she’s just 19 years old.
When her pimp has a new client,she doesn’t think it’ll be any different than the other jobs she’s had to do in the six months she’s been doing this.
But the money is a first indication it isn’t the same…..and meeting the client,hearing his demands,that makes it clear this is a make or break kind of deal.
And she’ll be the one that’s doing the breaking…..
But somewhere along the line,things seem to change,and somehow it’s not just about the money anymore.
No matter how much he hurts her,no matter how he treats her,she starts to need more.
And then her mother returns,with a new man,ready to destroy the life she so desperately tries to give her siblings…..and something snaps in Frankie.
But she didn’t count on Maxim who by now considers her as his,and has issues with others touching his property….
That was just the basics of the story,so much is going on.
So many secrets,so many painful moments shared.
And it’s got me hooked….i need more,as painful as it may be…..
Because it may be hard to read,painful and even disturbing,it makes me FEEL!
It may look like Frankie is weak for allowing Maxim to treat her the way he does,but she isn’t.
She’s responsible for her siblings,and she’s doing her best to give them what they need,even if she’s just 19 years old.
When her pimp has a new client,she doesn’t think it’ll be any different than the other jobs she’s had to do in the six months she’s been doing this.
But the money is a first indication it isn’t the same…..and meeting the client,hearing his demands,that makes it clear this is a make or break kind of deal.
And she’ll be the one that’s doing the breaking…..
But somewhere along the line,things seem to change,and somehow it’s not just about the money anymore.
No matter how much he hurts her,no matter how he treats her,she starts to need more.
And then her mother returns,with a new man,ready to destroy the life she so desperately tries to give her siblings…..and something snaps in Frankie.
But she didn’t count on Maxim who by now considers her as his,and has issues with others touching his property….
That was just the basics of the story,so much is going on.
So many secrets,so many painful moments shared.
And it’s got me hooked….i need more,as painful as it may be…..
February 14, 2019
Weeeeeeelp..... this was DARK ! Maxim is scary AF !!!!!!!!!!!!
April 24, 2020
3.5 stars
Im not sure how I really feel about this one other than, yes, I’ll read book 2.
I read a lot of BDSM but Maxim is possibly the most brutally violent and true sadist I’ve ever come across as a character. He truly doesn’t care about Frankie or her wellbeing. He just wants to hurt her, badly. Hence the “accidental death” clause in her contract. He’s a mystery. A violent man and an exhibitionist who lives about as far from safe, sane and consensual as you can get.
The “kink” here is not my jam. Extreme sexual violence, torture, blood play, knife play, humiliation, the list goes on and there is no aftercare. Frankie stays because she needs the money and if she safewords she’s out...with no payment. Not really sure how consensual you can say this “relationship” is because of that.
Frankie is 19 and though she’s been surviving in her totally messed up world for some time she is still very naive. So naive that she has no idea when she has an orgasm with Maxim. And as a reader we’re right there in her confusion. And while I respect her for doing what’s necessary to help her family, I can’t say I understand her at all.
As with most dark romances there’s none here. There’s only the smallest amount of give that Maxim will ever allow. Towards the end there’s hints of a kinship and the possibility of something more-which gives me hope amongst the brutality- but for the majority of this I was uncomfortable reading their “exchanges”. Frankie and Maxim barely exchange more than a few words for 3/4 of this and considering Frankie frequently has blood dripping down the inside of her legs leads me to believe she should be seeing a doctor, not coming back for more.
But Maxim intrigued me as a character. His back story and where the plot is at the end of book 1 suggests something deeper. He’s possessive and obsessive of Frankie and that’s about as much kindness as he’s capable for now. I’m not sure if I can stomach any more violence but if these two become equals Ill feel a lot better about it.
Im not sure how I really feel about this one other than, yes, I’ll read book 2.
I read a lot of BDSM but Maxim is possibly the most brutally violent and true sadist I’ve ever come across as a character. He truly doesn’t care about Frankie or her wellbeing. He just wants to hurt her, badly. Hence the “accidental death” clause in her contract. He’s a mystery. A violent man and an exhibitionist who lives about as far from safe, sane and consensual as you can get.
The “kink” here is not my jam. Extreme sexual violence, torture, blood play, knife play, humiliation, the list goes on and there is no aftercare. Frankie stays because she needs the money and if she safewords she’s out...with no payment. Not really sure how consensual you can say this “relationship” is because of that.
Frankie is 19 and though she’s been surviving in her totally messed up world for some time she is still very naive. So naive that she has no idea when she has an orgasm with Maxim. And as a reader we’re right there in her confusion. And while I respect her for doing what’s necessary to help her family, I can’t say I understand her at all.
As with most dark romances there’s none here. There’s only the smallest amount of give that Maxim will ever allow. Towards the end there’s hints of a kinship and the possibility of something more-which gives me hope amongst the brutality- but for the majority of this I was uncomfortable reading their “exchanges”. Frankie and Maxim barely exchange more than a few words for 3/4 of this and considering Frankie frequently has blood dripping down the inside of her legs leads me to believe she should be seeing a doctor, not coming back for more.
But Maxim intrigued me as a character. His back story and where the plot is at the end of book 1 suggests something deeper. He’s possessive and obsessive of Frankie and that’s about as much kindness as he’s capable for now. I’m not sure if I can stomach any more violence but if these two become equals Ill feel a lot better about it.
February 16, 2019
What an experience this book was.
Submit is harsh, gritty,violent,no butterflies and rainbows, it's pretty fucked up, and to be honest I wasn't feeling it at the begining but the book and its intensity grasped me.
The charaters Maxim and Frankie are authentic with difficult and sad life,their relationship is interesting and the evolution is subtle and realistic.
Lana Sky brings me out of me comfort zone,and I enjoy the ride.
I can't wait for book two to see where this two are going to take us.
Submit is harsh, gritty,violent,no butterflies and rainbows, it's pretty fucked up, and to be honest I wasn't feeling it at the begining but the book and its intensity grasped me.
The charaters Maxim and Frankie are authentic with difficult and sad life,their relationship is interesting and the evolution is subtle and realistic.
Lana Sky brings me out of me comfort zone,and I enjoy the ride.
I can't wait for book two to see where this two are going to take us.
April 28, 2022
Maxim is looking for a hooker who can hold up under his OTT need to Carve them up with a knife, humiliate, control, dominate, punish and basically play
A lot of Dark psycho mind games. The h Francesca is the daughter of a woman of very loose morals who
Popped out 7 kids Francesca being the oldest. Her Mom
Left and Francesca has been doing
Whatever it takes To keep A Roof Over her siblings head and food on the table. She has resorted to prostitution for the last year. She is 19 and really a broken girl. She’s desperate for money and will do anything for it. Exactly what Maxim is looking for. It’s the usual 30 day contract
Trope. This is pretty dark and morose even though you can see a romance somewhere in the dregs of this espresso.
A lot of Dark psycho mind games. The h Francesca is the daughter of a woman of very loose morals who
Popped out 7 kids Francesca being the oldest. Her Mom
Left and Francesca has been doing
Whatever it takes To keep A Roof Over her siblings head and food on the table. She has resorted to prostitution for the last year. She is 19 and really a broken girl. She’s desperate for money and will do anything for it. Exactly what Maxim is looking for. It’s the usual 30 day contract
Trope. This is pretty dark and morose even though you can see a romance somewhere in the dregs of this espresso.
November 9, 2022
“Golden hair frames his features like a halo, while his shadow stretches over the floor in a way that resembles broken wings. My devil. My deliverer. My doom.”
I’ve been in a reading slump for some days and no book seemed to grab my attention completely. This one definitely did! I got myself reading it wide eyed several passages of this book and my mind never wandered.
It’s definitely a dark reading. Maxim was not kind by any means, he was usually mean and treated Frankie badly. The surprising part is that she craved his mistreatment and tried to convince herself she was doing it because of the money only. It’s possible to feel her desperation at all times and I felt bad for her most of the story.
The book is only told in her POV, so Maxim is still a mystery to me. We can only see snippets of his personality, aside from his bad part. I am jumping into the next book right away.
“He’s the hammer. I’m the chisel, at his mercy. Always.”
I’ve been in a reading slump for some days and no book seemed to grab my attention completely. This one definitely did! I got myself reading it wide eyed several passages of this book and my mind never wandered.
It’s definitely a dark reading. Maxim was not kind by any means, he was usually mean and treated Frankie badly. The surprising part is that she craved his mistreatment and tried to convince herself she was doing it because of the money only. It’s possible to feel her desperation at all times and I felt bad for her most of the story.
The book is only told in her POV, so Maxim is still a mystery to me. We can only see snippets of his personality, aside from his bad part. I am jumping into the next book right away.
“He’s the hammer. I’m the chisel, at his mercy. Always.”
May 18, 2021
2.5 Stars
This book has so much potential, but it seriously needs a good developmental and copy edit.
This book has so much potential, but it seriously needs a good developmental and copy edit.
March 19, 2022
Just- what a waste of a read 🥴
February 9, 2019
Wow Lana Sky has done it again leaving you a train wreck of emotions you could not stop if you wanted to. She had me within the first paragraph and keep me flipping pages well into the night wanting to know all the tantalizing details. She peppers the pages with dark twisted eye opening glimpses of esmerizing but horrific looks into the very essence of who Frankie and Maxim truly are. Which explains so much and leaves you invested in these riveting intriguing characters, long after you have closed the book. I'm so excited that Obey is already a pre-order, and happy to say it has already be ordered and I'm waiting patiently impatient for more.
April 22, 2021
OHMYFUCKINGGAWWWD....I just finished this book and it was so so dark and intense and extreme. Pitch Dark. The S and M in BDSM but the very hard core ones. Sadism and Masochism on high level.
“You should know that this isn’t about companionship,” he tells me. “In fact, this isn’t even about sex.” One of his hands reaches across the table, the thumb of it coming to brush my lower lip. It’s bitten: a wound I only remember as his touch stirs up the pain. My eyes start to blink, watering. He presses down harder. When he finally draws his hand away, the thumb is red with blood. He stares at the drop for a second and then rubs it carefully into the tablecloth. “I only want to hurt you,” he tells me as his stare reconnects with mine. “However I want. Whenever I want. In any way that I can. Do you understand what I mean by that?"
There are lots of triggers that are not for everyone. Lots of degradation and humiliation. Lots of pain and knife play. Self arm etc. This certainly is not a read for the faint of hearts, but I fucking loved every part of it. When it comes to dark taboo romance I have no limits, I can take anything.
But FUCKKK this book was so good.
“I would tear you apart with my cock tonight,” Maxim says as a watery, broken sound trickles out of my throat. He growls in response, swirling the pad of one of the searching fingers along my inner walls, making them shake. “So delicate you are.” The pain is still there. Still screaming through my system. He’s right. He’d break me. Rip me apart. Tear me open. “And yet the thought of it”—another searing thrust and brutal caress—“seems to make you even wetter.”
Gosh Maxim was so intense and one hell of a sadist. They both got off to pain. And I was so intrigued by his character.
"Maxim could make any sin seem acceptable: wrath, lust, gluttony. As he strolls the floor with a predatory grace, it feels like he’s already mastered them all."
Hands down Ms. Sky sure knows how to deliver dark and filthy reads. She is now one of my one click favorite authors for dark romance.
If you love very dark erotic BDSM reads with hell lots of triggers, I highly recommend this one.
“You should know that this isn’t about companionship,” he tells me. “In fact, this isn’t even about sex.” One of his hands reaches across the table, the thumb of it coming to brush my lower lip. It’s bitten: a wound I only remember as his touch stirs up the pain. My eyes start to blink, watering. He presses down harder. When he finally draws his hand away, the thumb is red with blood. He stares at the drop for a second and then rubs it carefully into the tablecloth. “I only want to hurt you,” he tells me as his stare reconnects with mine. “However I want. Whenever I want. In any way that I can. Do you understand what I mean by that?"
There are lots of triggers that are not for everyone. Lots of degradation and humiliation. Lots of pain and knife play. Self arm etc. This certainly is not a read for the faint of hearts, but I fucking loved every part of it. When it comes to dark taboo romance I have no limits, I can take anything.
But FUCKKK this book was so good.
“I would tear you apart with my cock tonight,” Maxim says as a watery, broken sound trickles out of my throat. He growls in response, swirling the pad of one of the searching fingers along my inner walls, making them shake. “So delicate you are.” The pain is still there. Still screaming through my system. He’s right. He’d break me. Rip me apart. Tear me open. “And yet the thought of it”—another searing thrust and brutal caress—“seems to make you even wetter.”
Gosh Maxim was so intense and one hell of a sadist. They both got off to pain. And I was so intrigued by his character.
"Maxim could make any sin seem acceptable: wrath, lust, gluttony. As he strolls the floor with a predatory grace, it feels like he’s already mastered them all."
Hands down Ms. Sky sure knows how to deliver dark and filthy reads. She is now one of my one click favorite authors for dark romance.
If you love very dark erotic BDSM reads with hell lots of triggers, I highly recommend this one.
December 21, 2020
I have read Crossed Lines before and loved Lana Sky's writing. This book/series has completely different topic but still brilliantly written.
February 15, 2019
I don't even know where to begin, Intense doesn't even begin to cover it. Lana Sky a new to me author definitely all about the dark. This story as grand and amazing as it is, there is no rainbow and butterflies. and I loved it
A hard life leaves you with hard choices to make just to survive, especially when it's not just you. A prime deal comes your way and you snatch like its a lifeline, a quick answer to all your problems.
The lifeline's name is Maxim, he has specialized tastes, needs and wants that require a signed contract. (A few of the key points even had me flinching) to Frankie none of that matters, it's just about the payout, until it isn't.
Superbly written, had me on the edge and flip the next pages. Amazing! Enjoy.
February 17, 2019
Submit is by far the most extreme book from the author.
With a killer suspense, unsettling and, sometimes borderline scary, Lana gave us Frankie and Maxim story, making pain its biggest protagonist of all, while gambling its role between both tormentor and reliever.
Can't book two come any sooner?!
With a killer suspense, unsettling and, sometimes borderline scary, Lana gave us Frankie and Maxim story, making pain its biggest protagonist of all, while gambling its role between both tormentor and reliever.
Can't book two come any sooner?!
February 16, 2019
This is the first book in a new series from this talented author, and in my opinion, is her best work to date. Frankie and Maxim’s story is dark, raw, gritty, twisted, fascinating, and an emotional roller coaster. I was totally hooked and intrigued throughout and cannot wait to read the next book in this amazing series.
October 19, 2024
4.5 stars
WHY WAS THIS SO FUCKING GOOD???
I couldn’t put it down- this was downright addicting and I don’t even like S/M. Actually, I don’t like any of the things this novel delved into but Lana sky’s writing? It’s just pure magic, That’s what it is. The chemistry oozed off the pages.
WHY WAS THIS SO FUCKING GOOD???
I couldn’t put it down- this was downright addicting and I don’t even like S/M. Actually, I don’t like any of the things this novel delved into but Lana sky’s writing? It’s just pure magic, That’s what it is. The chemistry oozed off the pages.
May 16, 2020
OMG What A Crazy Ride
How much can one body take? You can’t help but feel for both characters, Maxim and Francesca. They are both two horribly broken souls who come together in the most sadistic ways.
This is a dark mafia read and oh so hot as Hades. I love how Lana Sky’s writing style can make your heart beat faster and make you feel so much for each character.
This series is getting oh so good! I’m a Maxim and Francesca fan already!
Can’t wait for my next fix!
How much can one body take? You can’t help but feel for both characters, Maxim and Francesca. They are both two horribly broken souls who come together in the most sadistic ways.
This is a dark mafia read and oh so hot as Hades. I love how Lana Sky’s writing style can make your heart beat faster and make you feel so much for each character.
This series is getting oh so good! I’m a Maxim and Francesca fan already!
Can’t wait for my next fix!
April 13, 2019
That was an intense, gripping, dark story.
Frankie is a young woman with way too much responsibility. She finds herself with a man, Maxim, who teaches her submission in such a dark, twisted way.
This book made me feel anxious and tense but as a reader you also feel compassion and hope for these characters.
I highly recommend this book if you love the dark side of romance!
Frankie is a young woman with way too much responsibility. She finds herself with a man, Maxim, who teaches her submission in such a dark, twisted way.
This book made me feel anxious and tense but as a reader you also feel compassion and hope for these characters.
I highly recommend this book if you love the dark side of romance!
February 21, 2019
This is a amazing book that WILL TAKE YOU ON A VERY DARK TWISTED READ THAT IS A VERY CONTROLED ALPHA THAT WILL HAVE YOU CHECKING YOUR HEARTBEAT THROUGHOUT THIS BOOK. THIS BOOK HAS MANNY TRIGGERS, BUT IF YOU CAN HANDLE THE CONTROL THIS IS A MUST READ. CANT WAIT TO READ NEXT BOOK.
Want to read
October 30, 2024🎁 FREE on Amazon today (12/27/2022)! 🎁
December 29, 2020
Submit by Lana Sky is a dark mafia romance that I listened to on audio narrated by Zara Eden. This is the first book in the Club XXX series.
This book does come with a caution “18+ Extremely Dark Themes. Strong Sexual/Adult content. Mentions of abuse and violence.”
This is the first book of Lana’s that I have read and it definitely won’t be my last. This book was dark and twisted in all the best ways. The messed up relationship between Frankie and Maxim kept me at the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next. I can’t wait to dive into the next book in the series Obey so I can get more of their story.
Zara did an amazing job on the narration. She really knows how to bring a story to life. I look forward to listening to more of her work in the future.
I would highly recommend this book if you like dark and twisted romance.
This book does come with a caution “18+ Extremely Dark Themes. Strong Sexual/Adult content. Mentions of abuse and violence.”
This is the first book of Lana’s that I have read and it definitely won’t be my last. This book was dark and twisted in all the best ways. The messed up relationship between Frankie and Maxim kept me at the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next. I can’t wait to dive into the next book in the series Obey so I can get more of their story.
Zara did an amazing job on the narration. She really knows how to bring a story to life. I look forward to listening to more of her work in the future.
I would highly recommend this book if you like dark and twisted romance.
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