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Club Pétale
Don't Stop Me
She was everything I ever wanted.
Smart. Beautiful. Passionate.
I became obsessed with her, or at least who I thought she was.
And then, she showed me her true colors, by showing up on my doorstep as my son's girlfriend.
She was off-limits.
But I couldn’t deny the part of me still wanted her and by the look in her eyes...
Neither could she.
Smart. Beautiful. Passionate.
I became obsessed with her, or at least who I thought she was.
And then, she showed me her true colors, by showing up on my doorstep as my son's girlfriend.
She was off-limits.
But I couldn’t deny the part of me still wanted her and by the look in her eyes...
Neither could she.
316 pages, Paperback
First published August 23, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 628 reviews
September 13, 2022
➥ 1 Star *:･ﾟ✧ dnf @ 10%
I knew going into this that I knew it'd be bad, mainly considering that I tried reading Contract Bound by this author a while ago and couldn't stand it, but I was still hoping to remain optimistic.
All I ask for in characters or dialogue, is for them to be someone I can take seriously. The dominant girl used the petname "love" sometimes but it was horribly forced, and even worse, she then started using the petname "kitten". Moment of silence for me please. The fmc was annoying and Anastasia from fifty reincarnated and they're just insufferable - always inexperienced and wide-eyed at everything the other person does. The dominant one was obviously trying to be hot but failing imo. Again, I just couldn't take her seriously what. I imagine this is what tumblr smut would be like idk.
The writing was bad but also I've learnt to never expect good writing from stories with bdsm - they just never correlate (The Siren is the only exception).
The smut was also bad and vague and tensionless. I'm tired and I can't bring myself to deal with this, I don't recommend it, bye.
“Say the words, kitten,” she commanded.
━━━━━━━━━━━ ♡ ━━━━━━━━━━━
I knew going into this that I knew it'd be bad, mainly considering that I tried reading Contract Bound by this author a while ago and couldn't stand it, but I was still hoping to remain optimistic.
All I ask for in characters or dialogue, is for them to be someone I can take seriously. The dominant girl used the petname "love" sometimes but it was horribly forced, and even worse, she then started using the petname "kitten". Moment of silence for me please. The fmc was annoying and Anastasia from fifty reincarnated and they're just insufferable - always inexperienced and wide-eyed at everything the other person does. The dominant one was obviously trying to be hot but failing imo. Again, I just couldn't take her seriously what. I imagine this is what tumblr smut would be like idk.
The writing was bad but also I've learnt to never expect good writing from stories with bdsm - they just never correlate (The Siren is the only exception).
The smut was also bad and vague and tensionless. I'm tired and I can't bring myself to deal with this, I don't recommend it, bye.
━━━━━━━━━━━ ♡ ━━━━━━━━━━━
August 16, 2022
i went into this book expecting something along the lines of "praise" from the salacious players club - the similarities were pre-established in the blurb, bdsm club setting, ex boyfriend's mom, age gap -, and the author themselves have stated they want to convert traditionally mf tropes into ff stories. but this felt bigger and all due to the dark romance undertones imbued in it. paralleled to the world building as a way to introduce the different characters at play in this universe (including a small cameo from the couple of "the ties that bind us") and set up possible future stories, such as sloan's, the author gradually unveiled the darkness lurking beneath the plot until it culminated in the climax of the third act conflict of the book. to say i was expecting this to dive into the criminal underworld in such a seamless way that complimented the romance would be a lie.
i tend to be highly critical of dark ff romances given it's my representation and the lack of it often leads to having to compromise quality in detriment of visibility, but this gave me everything i've ever wanted from a wlw morally gray love story. there isn't a single detail i would nitpick, i just wish it was longer. this author has me on a chokehold and i can't wait for the next installment of club pétale.
*i was sent an arc by the author in exchange for a honest review
i tend to be highly critical of dark ff romances given it's my representation and the lack of it often leads to having to compromise quality in detriment of visibility, but this gave me everything i've ever wanted from a wlw morally gray love story. there isn't a single detail i would nitpick, i just wish it was longer. this author has me on a chokehold and i can't wait for the next installment of club pétale.
*i was sent an arc by the author in exchange for a honest review
March 14, 2024
3.5 stars 🌟
March 2, 2025
4.5⭐️
Well this was H O T.
Listen, if you read the Salacious Players Club series by Sara Cate and wished it was sapphic with mafia adjacent vibes, then you’ll love this series. I absolutely devoured this!
There was one smut scene in particular that had my brain buffering for a good 10 minutes afterwards because it was so hot.
The only reason it’s not a full 5⭐️ for me was because of the nicknames used. “Kitten” in particular is probably my least favorite nickname of all time haha.
Well this was H O T.
Listen, if you read the Salacious Players Club series by Sara Cate and wished it was sapphic with mafia adjacent vibes, then you’ll love this series. I absolutely devoured this!
There was one smut scene in particular that had my brain buffering for a good 10 minutes afterwards because it was so hot.
The only reason it’s not a full 5⭐️ for me was because of the nicknames used. “Kitten” in particular is probably my least favorite nickname of all time haha.
September 19, 2022
Y’know, there are books u get excited about because damn, they should be good, they should work… and then you are met with disappointment because really, what did you expect?
I won’t talk about the smut factors of the book (as in, wont talk about the nsfw but will mention the bdsm as a whole) nor the finale (couldn’t bring myself to finish it, wasn’t worth the headache), even tho I almost reached a 60% of the book I can say with certainty that both main characters had no romantic chemistry, sex chemistry? Yeah, romantic? No, but if that’s your jam go ahead but listen to this:
1) The author pointed it out at the beginning but i will stress this bc it needs to be said: this book doesn’t reflect BDSM at ALL, like fr, it is just a macabre twisted fantasy, y’know, like 50 shades.
2) The characters are, to say the least, annoyingly unrealistic, and I say this as someone who can consume pretty much whatever kind of written media. Nyx? Ax? Asher? Their drama was painful to see, and this ties up to point one, but nobody really into the BDSM scene will lack that many communication skills, less of all a supposedly experienced and respected domme. Ax’s lack of abilities to simply talk like a human being with Nyx made me lose my mind. No domme would be so irresponsible.
3) The whole gang and dark themes in general, maybe it is because I started the book with cero knowledge about it and tbh that one’s on me, but damn, how many plot points where inside this book? Gang crime, money laundering, at some point they even introduced a secret service agent? The whole main plot of the mom dating her son’s ex that somehow ended being a subplot. A roller coaster, but like, not the enjoyable kind, more like the ones that leave you puking on a corner after the ride.
4) Asher, literally, that’s it, him.
5) This last point is all about how i feel regarding the correlation of physical and mental abuse with BDSM. Like I said before, this book is unrealistic and doesn’t really portrays a faithful idea of what BDSM truly is (which to me works as a way to unwind and connect with your partner). We are inside of Nyx’s head a lot. And tbh? This story would have worked way better as a cautionary tale of horror than a sexy porny tale. Because even to people into pain play, degradation and impact play, the way the MC is like, going between recognizing the abuse but also linking it to arousal can put some people off. Again, that’s my own personal views and tbh they might vary from others. Nyx for most part is an unreliable narrator, just like Ax, but we don’t see that as a plot point, we just get stuck on weird monologues about desire and nonexistent romantic chemistry that only the two MC truly felt. But whatever, good for them i guess.
Now, that’s what I felt while reading till the point i got, the idea was interesting, i really wanted to like it, the very first part i actually enjoyed, but then we got this series of crazy plot points and decisions made by both MC that truly made no sense that left me with no desire to finish.
Maybe read this, maybe not, just remember, bdsm isn’t abuse, but just different ways to explore intimacy.
Last but not least: i would have totally loved a story with the same premise, the ex’s mom, the bdsm and the gal but idk, maybe a suburban mom who is a domme, a bisexual girl trying to understand her internalized hatred towards her submissive desires and the ex boyfriend kind of like a jock who is shocked at first but then chill about his mom dating his ex. But lesbians/sapphics never get it easy 😭💀
If u read all that… damn, thanks for staying n reading my 4 am rants
✌🏽
I won’t talk about the smut factors of the book (as in, wont talk about the nsfw but will mention the bdsm as a whole) nor the finale (couldn’t bring myself to finish it, wasn’t worth the headache), even tho I almost reached a 60% of the book I can say with certainty that both main characters had no romantic chemistry, sex chemistry? Yeah, romantic? No, but if that’s your jam go ahead but listen to this:
1) The author pointed it out at the beginning but i will stress this bc it needs to be said: this book doesn’t reflect BDSM at ALL, like fr, it is just a macabre twisted fantasy, y’know, like 50 shades.
2) The characters are, to say the least, annoyingly unrealistic, and I say this as someone who can consume pretty much whatever kind of written media. Nyx? Ax? Asher? Their drama was painful to see, and this ties up to point one, but nobody really into the BDSM scene will lack that many communication skills, less of all a supposedly experienced and respected domme. Ax’s lack of abilities to simply talk like a human being with Nyx made me lose my mind. No domme would be so irresponsible.
3) The whole gang and dark themes in general, maybe it is because I started the book with cero knowledge about it and tbh that one’s on me, but damn, how many plot points where inside this book? Gang crime, money laundering, at some point they even introduced a secret service agent? The whole main plot of the mom dating her son’s ex that somehow ended being a subplot. A roller coaster, but like, not the enjoyable kind, more like the ones that leave you puking on a corner after the ride.
4) Asher, literally, that’s it, him.
5) This last point is all about how i feel regarding the correlation of physical and mental abuse with BDSM. Like I said before, this book is unrealistic and doesn’t really portrays a faithful idea of what BDSM truly is (which to me works as a way to unwind and connect with your partner). We are inside of Nyx’s head a lot. And tbh? This story would have worked way better as a cautionary tale of horror than a sexy porny tale. Because even to people into pain play, degradation and impact play, the way the MC is like, going between recognizing the abuse but also linking it to arousal can put some people off. Again, that’s my own personal views and tbh they might vary from others. Nyx for most part is an unreliable narrator, just like Ax, but we don’t see that as a plot point, we just get stuck on weird monologues about desire and nonexistent romantic chemistry that only the two MC truly felt. But whatever, good for them i guess.
Now, that’s what I felt while reading till the point i got, the idea was interesting, i really wanted to like it, the very first part i actually enjoyed, but then we got this series of crazy plot points and decisions made by both MC that truly made no sense that left me with no desire to finish.
Maybe read this, maybe not, just remember, bdsm isn’t abuse, but just different ways to explore intimacy.
Last but not least: i would have totally loved a story with the same premise, the ex’s mom, the bdsm and the gal but idk, maybe a suburban mom who is a domme, a bisexual girl trying to understand her internalized hatred towards her submissive desires and the ex boyfriend kind of like a jock who is shocked at first but then chill about his mom dating his ex. But lesbians/sapphics never get it easy 😭💀
If u read all that… damn, thanks for staying n reading my 4 am rants
✌🏽
January 1, 2024
5 stars.
my favorite eden emory/rose book so far. the club petale series is SO good and has me in a chokehold. the dark romance loving gays really won with this series fr. this book is my favorite in the series so far even if i'm still reading don't forget me, lol.
i still think about ax. she can have me anytime she wants!!! ax>>>>>>>>>>
i LOOOOOVED the dynamic between ax and nyx. it was electric oh my gooddd.
the spicy scenes were a gift from the heavens. i'm remembering some of them as i type this review and i already want to reread them.
it was definitely dark. so beware. i hated the stupid ex-boyfriend. i understand why he was kept in the plot but god, i wanted to kill him.
can we go back to how much i love ax?
ALSOOO if you have a praise kink... i'm telling you... this is the book for YOU!!
10/10. still obsessed with this story. read it.
my favorite eden emory/rose book so far. the club petale series is SO good and has me in a chokehold. the dark romance loving gays really won with this series fr. this book is my favorite in the series so far even if i'm still reading don't forget me, lol.
i still think about ax. she can have me anytime she wants!!! ax>>>>>>>>>>
i LOOOOOVED the dynamic between ax and nyx. it was electric oh my gooddd.
the spicy scenes were a gift from the heavens. i'm remembering some of them as i type this review and i already want to reread them.
it was definitely dark. so beware. i hated the stupid ex-boyfriend. i understand why he was kept in the plot but god, i wanted to kill him.
can we go back to how much i love ax?
ALSOOO if you have a praise kink... i'm telling you... this is the book for YOU!!
10/10. still obsessed with this story. read it.
June 23, 2025
I went into this expecting the “salacious vibe” and was a bit disappointed we didn’t get more of that side. The spice was still top notch and I’m looking forward to getting to see Sloan’s story. 3.5 stars rounded up.
March 23, 2025
4 ⭐️s
Ngl i ate this book up. This is my first FF book and it was honestly not bad. It’s ex-bf mom age gap uh huh uh huh 😮💨
Love the crime/light maf!a aspect of it. It was a lil predictable but i love how the ending was so realistic.
Ngl i ate this book up. This is my first FF book and it was honestly not bad. It’s ex-bf mom age gap uh huh uh huh 😮💨
Love the crime/light maf!a aspect of it. It was a lil predictable but i love how the ending was so realistic.
January 12, 2023
“You look good in my money.”
2.5 stars. This is, I think, my third foray into the world of f/f dark romance, and I'm glad to say that this was more successful than previous times. I'm still coming out of this with a lot of frustrations, especially because in the first half, this looked like it would have been a pretty good, steamy taboo read. I liked a lot of things, but so many more things were so frustrating. And it wasn't the dark stuff.
This is a taboo, age-gap, ex-boyfriend's mom romance, with a lot of BDSM aspects and some dark elements because of Ax's criminal business. It started off pretty good. It had one of those painful misunderstandings that I actually kind of like, because I enjoy the kind of angst that comes from it. Ax and Nyx had a one night session months ago that blew both their minds, and when they meet again for the second time, it's under very different circumstances. I loved them dancing around each other, taunting each other, having to keep things hidden. I felt really bad for Nyx, because she was in such a terrible situation, what with being blackmailed by her ex, but she was able to hold her own for the most part. Ax is a complete dream and a pleasure domme, and I liked her a lot. It's never explicitly stated, but I guess she's a stone top? I'm not going to lie, I was a little disappointed at how one-sided all of the love scenes turned out to be.
But what really disappointed me was the second half of the book and how things turned out with the plot and some of the character work. This fell into one of my more despised pits, where the author writes the characters into a corner, and they just sort of wait for the plot to happen to them, instead of taking action and doing things to further the plot themselves. It was just really hard for me to believe that the characters that I'd been getting to know would have reacted to certain things in certain ways. It made them look silly, and made a lot of the events seem stupid and pointless.
Spoilers ahead:
So yeah. A lot of frustrations. The typos and tense mistakes didn't really help either. So much of the dialogue was stilted and forced; no one seemed to want to use contractions. But don't get me wrong. This was definitely really sexy and swoony at times, and I did really enjoy that first 40 percent, even with my frustrations. Some aspects of the sex scenes were decidedly meh/not my thing, but others were great. I'm thinking of those nights at Ax's home, and the wedding reception... whew. 🔥 I remain convinced that once I'm in the right mood, I can really enjoy a dark romance. But this wasn't it for me. I liked this author's cowritten holiday romance, so maybe I'll check her out again.
Content warnings:
June 14, 2025
A dark, intense, and emotional read that blends crime, thriller, and heavy BDSM elements with a HEA. It's definitely not a light or easy story—the characters are deeply flawed, and the author gives fair warning about that in the author notes.
I couldn’t help but feel for Nyx throughout. The way she was treated by almost everyone, including Ax, was heartbreaking. She truly deserved better. Still, it was a gripping and very spicy read.
If you're into dark erotica with gritty themes and morally grey characters, you'll likely enjoy this one.
I couldn’t help but feel for Nyx throughout. The way she was treated by almost everyone, including Ax, was heartbreaking. She truly deserved better. Still, it was a gripping and very spicy read.
If you're into dark erotica with gritty themes and morally grey characters, you'll likely enjoy this one.
August 25, 2024
2 Stars?
I don’t think I could finish this. The degradation was just too much. The name calling with intent to hurt instead of like sex play wasn’t doing it for me.
I don’t think I could finish this. The degradation was just too much. The name calling with intent to hurt instead of like sex play wasn’t doing it for me.
July 21, 2025
DNF @ 70%
Listen, I HATE DNFing books. I have sat through some pretty shitty ones just to say I gave them a fair chance.
There I was, forcing myself to finish this book… but then I realized I have free will.
The first half had me in a chokehold. Ex-Boyfriends mom??? High class BDSM club??? It’s the kind of scandalous shit I love and I ate it up. The spicy scenes were top tier, but that’s about all this book had going for it.
As the chapters went on, I realized that I simply just didn’t care about these characters in the slightest.
Nyx’s personality flip flopped so often it gave me whiplash.
Ax was better I guess. But let me tell you, if anyone ever called me kitten in bed… 🤢 I would actually commit a felony. Ew.
My favorite was Sloane. She had more personality than all the others combined.
I don’t know, it just got really boring REALLY fast. I’m not a huge fan of books that drag on and save the all good shit until the very last part of the book.
All in all, the book was centered around a dude that had mommy issues and was acting out. The entire plot of the book was created because of miscommunication.
Listen, I HATE DNFing books. I have sat through some pretty shitty ones just to say I gave them a fair chance.
There I was, forcing myself to finish this book… but then I realized I have free will.
The first half had me in a chokehold. Ex-Boyfriends mom??? High class BDSM club??? It’s the kind of scandalous shit I love and I ate it up. The spicy scenes were top tier, but that’s about all this book had going for it.
As the chapters went on, I realized that I simply just didn’t care about these characters in the slightest.
Nyx’s personality flip flopped so often it gave me whiplash.
Ax was better I guess. But let me tell you, if anyone ever called me kitten in bed… 🤢 I would actually commit a felony. Ew.
My favorite was Sloane. She had more personality than all the others combined.
I don’t know, it just got really boring REALLY fast. I’m not a huge fan of books that drag on and save the all good shit until the very last part of the book.
All in all, the book was centered around a dude that had mommy issues and was acting out. The entire plot of the book was created because of miscommunication.
May 12, 2023
3.5⭐️
September 1, 2023
3.5⭐️
dark• spicy• lesbian
dark• spicy• lesbian
June 12, 2023
Although I have enjoyed in the past books that contain a BDSM theme, I have to say that this book was a little too much for me.
Since it was the first book of this author that I have ever read I pushed myself to read until the very end in order to give it a fair chance.
Fair warning, please take into serious account the author's notes in the beginning or the description of the book which pretty much describe what the book is about.
There is a plot, but it's quite abstract. The main theme of the book is the BDSM.
Ax and Nyx who are the main characters are drawn to each other from the firs time they meet at a sex club. Their reason for being there is very specific and they never hope to see each other outside of these premises. Little did they know that life has a tendency to get complicated really fast.
Nyx had been dating Ax's son and even though they have broken up quite a while ago she's forced for reasons beyond her control to present herself as his girlfriend at a family event where she realizes that the woman who rocked her world at the sex club is actually her ex-boyfriend's mother. But this is not all Ax is. She's someone involved in a very dark world, a dangerous world to which Nyx is pulled into and the rollercoaster begins.
There is sex, and lots of it. But basically very little of it was satisfying as least for this particular reader.
Since it was the first book of this author that I have ever read I pushed myself to read until the very end in order to give it a fair chance.
Fair warning, please take into serious account the author's notes in the beginning or the description of the book which pretty much describe what the book is about.
There is a plot, but it's quite abstract. The main theme of the book is the BDSM.
Ax and Nyx who are the main characters are drawn to each other from the firs time they meet at a sex club. Their reason for being there is very specific and they never hope to see each other outside of these premises. Little did they know that life has a tendency to get complicated really fast.
Nyx had been dating Ax's son and even though they have broken up quite a while ago she's forced for reasons beyond her control to present herself as his girlfriend at a family event where she realizes that the woman who rocked her world at the sex club is actually her ex-boyfriend's mother. But this is not all Ax is. She's someone involved in a very dark world, a dangerous world to which Nyx is pulled into and the rollercoaster begins.
There is sex, and lots of it. But basically very little of it was satisfying as least for this particular reader.
July 17, 2024
UGH. this series is marketed as “stereotypical MF romance tropes with queer characters”, and i was so hyped to pick this up. so often, wlw stories feel sanitized and two-dimensional (don’t get me on my soapbox about the PG-ification of queer women in media), so the idea of reading a queer story that leans into dark romance had me excited.
unfortunately, writing queer stories is about more than just copy-and-pasting a woman into the masculine POV. this romance lacked depth, character development, and the intimacy paramount to queer relationships. given this was a KU garbage read, i could forgive the messy plot + two-dimensional writing… but i struggled to see a love story being told beyond the (clinical? dry? off-putting?) spicy moments. i’ve been known to dabble in sara cate’s salacious players club series, so i know i’m not out of my depth here.
all that to say, i guess we’ve come so far as a society that queer ladies can have poorly written KU novels, too. but could i get just one that doesn’t have a dumb cartoon cover + coming out or difficult family members as the driving plot? 🤨
unfortunately, writing queer stories is about more than just copy-and-pasting a woman into the masculine POV. this romance lacked depth, character development, and the intimacy paramount to queer relationships. given this was a KU garbage read, i could forgive the messy plot + two-dimensional writing… but i struggled to see a love story being told beyond the (clinical? dry? off-putting?) spicy moments. i’ve been known to dabble in sara cate’s salacious players club series, so i know i’m not out of my depth here.
all that to say, i guess we’ve come so far as a society that queer ladies can have poorly written KU novels, too. but could i get just one that doesn’t have a dumb cartoon cover + coming out or difficult family members as the driving plot? 🤨
August 14, 2022
If you’re a fan of the phrase “good girl” and everything it entails, you will DEVOUR this book. Super steamy and spicy but the plot is great as well. I’d give it a 4/5 on my spice scale. I think this may be my new favorite book and I have MANY scenes book marked for later 😉🥵💦
So happy I was approved to be an ARC reader for this book. 💚
So happy I was approved to be an ARC reader for this book. 💚
December 27, 2025
3 ⭐️
So this book wasn't bad but it wasn't good. Im trying to get into the dark romance world so I wanted to give this book a chance.
What I didn't like?
•pet names (daddy, kitten, sir?) soo overused and I couldn't help but cringe with the sir and daddy thing.
•The dom was too masculine for my liking (i know some gay girls like heavy masc women and thats fine everyone have different tastes)
•The sub at some point gets shared
•The plot starts good but half in the book it changes and jumps alot that it felt everything was everywhere.
•There was a point where there was way too much sex with no connection or foreplay to start, it was straightforward and it felt Idk not real?.
Everything else was ok but this book is definitely not for everyone.
So this book wasn't bad but it wasn't good. Im trying to get into the dark romance world so I wanted to give this book a chance.
What I didn't like?
•pet names (daddy, kitten, sir?) soo overused and I couldn't help but cringe with the sir and daddy thing.
•The dom was too masculine for my liking (i know some gay girls like heavy masc women and thats fine everyone have different tastes)
•The sub at some point gets shared
•The plot starts good but half in the book it changes and jumps alot that it felt everything was everywhere.
•There was a point where there was way too much sex with no connection or foreplay to start, it was straightforward and it felt Idk not real?.
Everything else was ok but this book is definitely not for everyone.
August 12, 2023
3.4 ⭐️ Dark WLW romance with a side of fast paced gritty thriller action.
The writing was fairly solid so if you like grittier dark romances with more degradation then this is probably for you. It is heavy on the degradation / cruel vibes though and made me realise maybe I like my dark romances with a dash more comfort to balance the hurt lmao.
It’s very fast paced with a lot of action and crime business feels.
There was a handful of issues with grammar etc but I mainly marked it down because our MC at times was serving meek scorned lover vibes when it came to her ex bf. She was at times doing monologues in support of him and I was like PLEASE stop babes he’s feral.
There was a lot of kinks (it has both mommy/daddy & needle kink in this, I’ll list the rest in TW’s) and whilst not for everyone it did feel well researched. Whilst aftercare was broached it definitely leans more into the Christian Grey kinda dom feel which I’m not huge on.
Would I recommend this? Yes. If you like a much more bleak heavy read this is for you. There are a handful of issues with the text but not enough to detract from the story which kept me intrigued and had some awesome plot twists and humour.
Rep// Lesbian masc MC, bi/pan woman MC, WLW SC’s. Central relationship is age-gap WLW / sapphic (I believe one character is mid/early 20’s and the other is 40s/50s but unsure.
TW’s listed below (including kinks) please skip if you don’t want spoilers.
Tw//CW// taboo themes, stalking, death (including of a parent) murder, guns, death of a loved one, blackmail (extensive), themes of outing (surrounding kink), physical abuse, police & dirty cops, drugs, drug distribution, drug addiction (not MCs) parental neglect, guns, crime, injury, age gap relationship.
Kink// degradation (eg whore, extensive), use of dom name play (incl daddy, mommy, sir) , overstimulation, sharing / threesomes (all women), needle / piercing play (incl nipple & clitoral), dubious consent, public sex, straps and toys, pain play, exhibitionism, impact play. Safe words are in place and when used are respected. Aftercare is (on most occasions) offered.
The writing was fairly solid so if you like grittier dark romances with more degradation then this is probably for you. It is heavy on the degradation / cruel vibes though and made me realise maybe I like my dark romances with a dash more comfort to balance the hurt lmao.
It’s very fast paced with a lot of action and crime business feels.
There was a handful of issues with grammar etc but I mainly marked it down because our MC at times was serving meek scorned lover vibes when it came to her ex bf. She was at times doing monologues in support of him and I was like PLEASE stop babes he’s feral.
There was a lot of kinks (it has both mommy/daddy & needle kink in this, I’ll list the rest in TW’s) and whilst not for everyone it did feel well researched. Whilst aftercare was broached it definitely leans more into the Christian Grey kinda dom feel which I’m not huge on.
Would I recommend this? Yes. If you like a much more bleak heavy read this is for you. There are a handful of issues with the text but not enough to detract from the story which kept me intrigued and had some awesome plot twists and humour.
Rep// Lesbian masc MC, bi/pan woman MC, WLW SC’s. Central relationship is age-gap WLW / sapphic (I believe one character is mid/early 20’s and the other is 40s/50s but unsure.
TW’s listed below (including kinks) please skip if you don’t want spoilers.
Tw//CW// taboo themes, stalking, death (including of a parent) murder, guns, death of a loved one, blackmail (extensive), themes of outing (surrounding kink), physical abuse, police & dirty cops, drugs, drug distribution, drug addiction (not MCs) parental neglect, guns, crime, injury, age gap relationship.
Kink// degradation (eg whore, extensive), use of dom name play (incl daddy, mommy, sir) , overstimulation, sharing / threesomes (all women), needle / piercing play (incl nipple & clitoral), dubious consent, public sex, straps and toys, pain play, exhibitionism, impact play. Safe words are in place and when used are respected. Aftercare is (on most occasions) offered.
July 10, 2023
4⭐️
3 🌶️
Tropes
Age gap
Bdsm club
Forced proximity
Dark ff romance
Praise
Crime
Thoughts
I ate this up. This was so good!! I’ve been looking for a good dark romance for ff and this was exactly I was looking for! Some of the things that were said had me jaw dropped! Truly. Eden Emory is a new auto buy for me!
3 🌶️
Tropes
Age gap
Bdsm club
Forced proximity
Dark ff romance
Praise
Crime
Thoughts
I ate this up. This was so good!! I’ve been looking for a good dark romance for ff and this was exactly I was looking for! Some of the things that were said had me jaw dropped! Truly. Eden Emory is a new auto buy for me!
August 30, 2022
I was lucky enough to receive and ARC of this book from the author. Thank you to the author for the opportunity to be an ARC reader for you for this book! This will be a spoiler-free review. A spoiler review will be going up around a week after release on here and on Amazon!
If you plan on reading this book then definitely check the trigger warnings before reading, as it has a lot of dark themes!
Overall star: 4.5*/5
Spice: 5/5
Plot
The thing that hooked me in wanting to be on the ARC team for this book in the first place was knowing that it had an "I'm going to call your mum, daddy" theme (I know I know that shouldn't be the only thing that I wanted to read it for)
The toxic nature between Nyx and Asher does make it difficult to imagine what drew her to him in the first place, but we don't see what he was like before this book (and I don't really care to tbh).
Nyx and Axelle's relationship is so messed up on so many levels but I love that kind of thing (idk why), but you can definitely see that they also care so deeply for each other that they would quite literally do anything.
Honestly, there was an overarching plot but I didn't think that it was the main focus of the book (which is what I expected going into this to be fair because of the genre).
That being said when we did get to read about the background plot it was full of twists and turns. If I wasn't so intent on figuring out everything before it's revealed I don'#t think I would've figured out the plot twist.
Call me what you will but I actually didn't mind the multiple spicy scenes! I have only recently ventured into these types of books but I've found that I've come to enjoy them even with their occasionally dark and messed-up scenarios!
Characters
Nyx : Nyx definitely has some personal issues but we know that almost immediately from the get-go. I love Nyx because she wasn't just one-dimensional like can sometimes happen with these sorts of books. She had personality and at times made me laugh.
Ax : The TRAUMA but pure dominance that radiates off Axelle had me gasping for the majority of this book. Ax is another character who also has a tonne of personality, she's cocky and sometimes unlikable! That being said, she also has a soft and caring side to her.
The last character I'm going to mention is Asher : What can I say about him? Well, he's a bit of a douchebag and super unlikeable. However, that means that he's got a lot of layers. He's definitely not my favourite character from this book but I do appreciate him somewhat. He's got the trauma and broken boy feel to him. There's more to him than meets the eye.
Overall
This book had me laughing one minute and crying the next, whilst also keeping me interested enough to read on. Most of my time was spent being internally hot and flustered at the spicy scene (there's a lot of them y'all), but it was still a thoroughly enjoyable read. Whilst I know that it isn't an accurate take on the BDSM scene, (as the author acknowledges before the story begins), I do think that it was still quite insightful. I can't wait to see the next instalment of this (I believe) Duology! I also hope we get to see more about Ax and Nyx in the next book, even if it is just a background/side character mention.
I would recommend it to anyone over the age of 18, but as I mentioned above definitely check the content and trigger warnings before reading as there are some sensitive topics.
If you plan on reading this book then definitely check the trigger warnings before reading, as it has a lot of dark themes!
Overall star: 4.5*/5
Spice: 5/5
Plot
The thing that hooked me in wanting to be on the ARC team for this book in the first place was knowing that it had an "I'm going to call your mum, daddy" theme (I know I know that shouldn't be the only thing that I wanted to read it for)
The toxic nature between Nyx and Asher does make it difficult to imagine what drew her to him in the first place, but we don't see what he was like before this book (and I don't really care to tbh).
Nyx and Axelle's relationship is so messed up on so many levels but I love that kind of thing (idk why), but you can definitely see that they also care so deeply for each other that they would quite literally do anything.
Honestly, there was an overarching plot but I didn't think that it was the main focus of the book (which is what I expected going into this to be fair because of the genre).
That being said when we did get to read about the background plot it was full of twists and turns. If I wasn't so intent on figuring out everything before it's revealed I don'#t think I would've figured out the plot twist.
Call me what you will but I actually didn't mind the multiple spicy scenes! I have only recently ventured into these types of books but I've found that I've come to enjoy them even with their occasionally dark and messed-up scenarios!
Characters
Nyx : Nyx definitely has some personal issues but we know that almost immediately from the get-go. I love Nyx because she wasn't just one-dimensional like can sometimes happen with these sorts of books. She had personality and at times made me laugh.
Ax : The TRAUMA but pure dominance that radiates off Axelle had me gasping for the majority of this book. Ax is another character who also has a tonne of personality, she's cocky and sometimes unlikable! That being said, she also has a soft and caring side to her.
The last character I'm going to mention is Asher : What can I say about him? Well, he's a bit of a douchebag and super unlikeable. However, that means that he's got a lot of layers. He's definitely not my favourite character from this book but I do appreciate him somewhat. He's got the trauma and broken boy feel to him. There's more to him than meets the eye.
Overall
This book had me laughing one minute and crying the next, whilst also keeping me interested enough to read on. Most of my time was spent being internally hot and flustered at the spicy scene (there's a lot of them y'all), but it was still a thoroughly enjoyable read. Whilst I know that it isn't an accurate take on the BDSM scene, (as the author acknowledges before the story begins), I do think that it was still quite insightful. I can't wait to see the next instalment of this (I believe) Duology! I also hope we get to see more about Ax and Nyx in the next book, even if it is just a background/side character mention.
I would recommend it to anyone over the age of 18, but as I mentioned above definitely check the content and trigger warnings before reading as there are some sensitive topics.
July 1, 2023
Believe or not I have no idea what did I just read.
I obviously disliked a lot of things in this book,and for good reason.
Let's take some examples:
1)The most atrocious ever created petname being used "kitten ".Just no.
2)The red flags on Ax's whole personality
3) The obvious lack of self respect from Nyx
4)The idiotic choices the characters were making, making it impossible not to roll my eyes
5) The eazy way to dislike the characters
6) The fact that after everything Az didn't grovel ONCE AT LEAST ONCE!??!BITCH HOW!??!
Now even tho this was bad,I also wanted to continue reading.I will continue reading from this author purely for my entertainment.
I JUST KNOW AVERY'S BOOK IS GONNA BE THE BEST
/I will take the secret of me reading this book in my grave/
I obviously disliked a lot of things in this book,and for good reason.
Let's take some examples:
1)The most atrocious ever created petname being used "kitten ".Just no.
2)The red flags on Ax's whole personality
3) The obvious lack of self respect from Nyx
4)The idiotic choices the characters were making, making it impossible not to roll my eyes
5) The eazy way to dislike the characters
6) The fact that after everything Az didn't grovel ONCE AT LEAST ONCE!??!BITCH HOW!??!
Now even tho this was bad,I also wanted to continue reading.I will continue reading from this author purely for my entertainment.
I JUST KNOW AVERY'S BOOK IS GONNA BE THE BEST
/I will take the secret of me reading this book in my grave/
June 19, 2023
After reading Contract Bound I wasn’t surprised I enjoyed this. Eden Emory/Elle Mae is really good at writing Butch/femme pairings, and dark f/f. I did get a little annoyed because the conflict was a lot of the characters just not talking to each other and the book would have been over pretty quick, or at least would have opened the door for different or better conflict had they just said what they wanted to say. Really excited for some of the potential foreshadowing for future books that happened in this.
October 6, 2022
3.5-4 is where I’d rate this one. I was expecting it to be super spicy, which it was, but I did not expect the action and suspense. Very dark themes as well including drugs, abuse, etc.
June 30, 2023
FF, BDSM, Ex boyfriends MOTHER?! How can I say no?
This book ticked all the right boxes. It has plot, spice & tension. It’s a dark romance, so expect that coming into it.
Let me start off by saying that you have to go into these books with an open mind, they are dom/sub & age gap. There are taboo topics. Yes that means cringey pet names and usually some inexperience from the younger character & this is to be expected.
If you don’t go in with an open mind, especially because this is a darker age gap/BDSM read, you might not enjoy this as much.
*read the authors note at the beginning of the book, it explains everything for you*
————
Ax & Nyx meet at Ax’s women-only BDSM club, Nyx requests Ax and they have a heated night with Nyx as her sub & Ax as her pleasure domme.
A few months later, Ax is trying to sort out her relationship with her son and honestly, her son is a absolute prick, but I digress. Ax’s main focus was always on mending her relationship with her son at her nieces wedding, until NYX IS THERE.
Their heated entanglement only happened a couple months ago and now her son is saying they’ve been dating for 7 months?! Uh oh indeed.
Little does Ax know, her dick head son has blackmailed his ex girlfriend (after he cheated on her 🙃) to attend the family event with him and pretend to be back together.
It’s all happening from there and the spice doesn’t stop, the tension between Ax & Nyx is constant and you’re on the edge of your seat as to whether they are going to rip each other apart or rip each others clothes off.
The last half of the book was where one star dropped off for me. I think I knew, with the dark undertones in this book, that there was going to be some of those moments where I was sitting there wondering why all these terrible things were happening to our FMC & I was right.
The last 30% I was basically screaming at my kindle “SOMEONE SLAP ASHER IN HIS STUPID FUCKING FACE”. I didn’t want him to be forgiven, I still don’t, and I think he needed more consequences.
The good thing about this book is that Ax is always true to her main character point, which is she is always trying to mend her relationship with her son. So of course she won’t always believe the bad was in him (even tho we all do x).
So yes, the last 30% of the book dropped a star for me, but this book was still such a great read. And I haven’t managed to find an FF, ex boyfriends mother book yet so, TICK TICK TICK!
4⭐️
This book ticked all the right boxes. It has plot, spice & tension. It’s a dark romance, so expect that coming into it.
Let me start off by saying that you have to go into these books with an open mind, they are dom/sub & age gap. There are taboo topics. Yes that means cringey pet names and usually some inexperience from the younger character & this is to be expected.
If you don’t go in with an open mind, especially because this is a darker age gap/BDSM read, you might not enjoy this as much.
*read the authors note at the beginning of the book, it explains everything for you*
————
Ax & Nyx meet at Ax’s women-only BDSM club, Nyx requests Ax and they have a heated night with Nyx as her sub & Ax as her pleasure domme.
A few months later, Ax is trying to sort out her relationship with her son and honestly, her son is a absolute prick, but I digress. Ax’s main focus was always on mending her relationship with her son at her nieces wedding, until NYX IS THERE.
Their heated entanglement only happened a couple months ago and now her son is saying they’ve been dating for 7 months?! Uh oh indeed.
Little does Ax know, her dick head son has blackmailed his ex girlfriend (after he cheated on her 🙃) to attend the family event with him and pretend to be back together.
It’s all happening from there and the spice doesn’t stop, the tension between Ax & Nyx is constant and you’re on the edge of your seat as to whether they are going to rip each other apart or rip each others clothes off.
The last half of the book was where one star dropped off for me. I think I knew, with the dark undertones in this book, that there was going to be some of those moments where I was sitting there wondering why all these terrible things were happening to our FMC & I was right.
The last 30% I was basically screaming at my kindle “SOMEONE SLAP ASHER IN HIS STUPID FUCKING FACE”. I didn’t want him to be forgiven, I still don’t, and I think he needed more consequences.
The good thing about this book is that Ax is always true to her main character point, which is she is always trying to mend her relationship with her son. So of course she won’t always believe the bad was in him (even tho we all do x).
So yes, the last 30% of the book dropped a star for me, but this book was still such a great read. And I haven’t managed to find an FF, ex boyfriends mother book yet so, TICK TICK TICK!
4⭐️
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 14, 2025
I was almost confused... but then I wasn't. Then I got so annoyed, and then I wasn't. Back and forth between those two emotions, so I just resigned to see how it all pans out. I will revisit this series another time.
Read
July 11, 2024There's a thin line between abusive or toxic relationships and a morally gray character. This book was on the abusive side, and I don't care if it's BDSM or if it's dark, it was abusive.
Read
May 12, 2024DNFed, it's not for me. I think a lot of readers will like this book, but I found the story from the jump rather unbelievable. Maybe if there was more setup and a deeper dive into the why behind decisions, it would make sense.... Also, very insta lovey, which is not my cup of tea.
August 17, 2022
/ I received an ARC from the author in exchange of an honest review /
3,5 ★
If I'm being honest, I was mainly interested in reading this book for the smut but surprisingly I liked the plot a lot more, dark romance is not something I usually read so I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did, but this was well written and paced, and the drama was interesting and well-developed. The relationship between Ax and Nyx was endearing given the circumstances, and I'm really looking forward to Sloan's book !! I would recommend this book, but definitely check TW before reading it.
Thank you, Elle Mae, for providing me with an ARC.
3,5 ★
If I'm being honest, I was mainly interested in reading this book for the smut but surprisingly I liked the plot a lot more, dark romance is not something I usually read so I wasn't expecting to enjoy it as much as I did, but this was well written and paced, and the drama was interesting and well-developed. The relationship between Ax and Nyx was endearing given the circumstances, and I'm really looking forward to Sloan's book !! I would recommend this book, but definitely check TW before reading it.
Thank you, Elle Mae, for providing me with an ARC.
August 29, 2022
I received an arc for this copy and by god am I glad I did!
Every single spicy scene had me clutching my pearls in the best way possible. The taboo was just the right amount of wrong to not totally freak me out. The only irk I had was the scene where Asher takes Nyx to Ryder’s drug den (?) and she seems to actively have a ptsd moment only to get turned on moments later. I have the EXACT same trauma that Nyx does in regards to her mother, and to have something like that happen is yucky. That is mostly me nitpicking but it really bothered me when I read it. Everything was wrapped up very cleanly, almost too cleanly. Some parts seemed so so rushed and I wish we knew what happened in regards to Nyx’s business and Ax’s club. Did they compromise? Did Nyx give up her business? All the characters were so interesting and complex that I wish we could’ve delved into all of their stories individually. Overall wonderful spicy book for the kinky gays out there!
Every single spicy scene had me clutching my pearls in the best way possible. The taboo was just the right amount of wrong to not totally freak me out. The only irk I had was the scene where Asher takes Nyx to Ryder’s drug den (?) and she seems to actively have a ptsd moment only to get turned on moments later. I have the EXACT same trauma that Nyx does in regards to her mother, and to have something like that happen is yucky. That is mostly me nitpicking but it really bothered me when I read it. Everything was wrapped up very cleanly, almost too cleanly. Some parts seemed so so rushed and I wish we knew what happened in regards to Nyx’s business and Ax’s club. Did they compromise? Did Nyx give up her business? All the characters were so interesting and complex that I wish we could’ve delved into all of their stories individually. Overall wonderful spicy book for the kinky gays out there!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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