annagracet's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
tmclain4's review against another edition
Interesting story idea. Dark. I'm just not into it.
karentje's review against another edition
5.0
Amazing forced proximity romance!! Dark, steamy, and with a true connection between the MC’s. Loved it!!
Jaguar was an enigma in the previous book, Scum, and I’ve been so curious to find out more about him. He didn’t disappoint! Rather he completely blew me away with his pure soul and how brave he is, both in a physical and an emotional sense. His view on how life and relationships ought to work were sometimes a bit skewed, to put it mildly, but he means so well and is so oddly endearing. I loved him for Dane. I liked how resourceful Dane was when put in a scary, dangerous position. He held his own with Jag, standing up to him when necessary but also willing to find a middle ground and learn to live in his lover’s, erstwhile kidnapper’s, world, quite off the beaten track. This is anything but a sugary sweet read, but there are still heartwarming moments with both the MC’s families, which made me melt completely.
The emotions in this dark romance were intense as always with K.A. Merikan; passions run high and danger awaits, but love conquers all. Even for these two characters who come from such incredibly different worlds with clashing views on life.
The worldbuilding, gritty and realistic, and the well-rounded, intriguing secondary characters made this into a brilliant story and left me craving the next book in this series, and the next. Because I’m hoping for at least two more. Fingers crossed!
Jaguar was an enigma in the previous book, Scum, and I’ve been so curious to find out more about him. He didn’t disappoint! Rather he completely blew me away with his pure soul and how brave he is, both in a physical and an emotional sense. His view on how life and relationships ought to work were sometimes a bit skewed, to put it mildly, but he means so well and is so oddly endearing. I loved him for Dane. I liked how resourceful Dane was when put in a scary, dangerous position. He held his own with Jag, standing up to him when necessary but also willing to find a middle ground and learn to live in his lover’s, erstwhile kidnapper’s, world, quite off the beaten track. This is anything but a sugary sweet read, but there are still heartwarming moments with both the MC’s families, which made me melt completely.
The emotions in this dark romance were intense as always with K.A. Merikan; passions run high and danger awaits, but love conquers all. Even for these two characters who come from such incredibly different worlds with clashing views on life.
The worldbuilding, gritty and realistic, and the well-rounded, intriguing secondary characters made this into a brilliant story and left me craving the next book in this series, and the next. Because I’m hoping for at least two more. Fingers crossed!
dirtydewey's review against another edition
4.0
4 stars…
This was possessive, brutal, overall out there, and a bit ridiculous but I’ll take it. Didn’t love the plot at times and often found myself angry with Jags inability to compromise but Dane was the bomb and I liked how much Jag LOVED Dane and how much he thought he was perfect.
3/5 on spice. 3/5 on kink. 1/5 on tears. Primal kink and kinda monster kink lol
This was possessive, brutal, overall out there, and a bit ridiculous but I’ll take it. Didn’t love the plot at times and often found myself angry with Jags inability to compromise but Dane was the bomb and I liked how much Jag LOVED Dane and how much he thought he was perfect.
3/5 on spice. 3/5 on kink. 1/5 on tears. Primal kink and kinda monster kink lol
caiacassiopeia's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
fast-paced
4.5
Re-read (i think the zillionst)
Primal play
Breeding kink
Monsterfcker kink
Cnc
Fish out of water
Plus-size LI
Big bottom small top
Full rtc
Bonus scene small knife play
Primal play
Breeding kink
Monsterfcker kink
Cnc
Fish out of water
Plus-size LI
Big bottom small top
Full rtc
Bonus scene small knife play
haletostilinski1's review against another edition
5.0
A definite improvement on the first book and such a great second installment in this series.
Jag is an odd character. He grew up in almost a commune type of situation, in the woods, that was started by his father. He grew up almost feral, if you could call any human feral, Jag and his family would be close to it.
But 4 years ago, he left said commune, because he knew he was only attracted to men, but his father of course didn't approve of it, and so Jag had to get away, because he knew he'd never be able to be with a woman that way.
But it was still all he knew growing up, so he's a wild man living in a civilized world, not understanding our ways of living.
When Dane is set for burial by Jag at the junkyard - because Frank believes it to be a dead body. He's wrapped up in a carpet and everything - Jag hears noise coming from the carpet, and so he finds Dane, who is very much alive, just very badly beaten.
Jag sees him and instantly wants him as his mate. But he knows it'll take some time to get Dane to agree to it, so he just....takes Dane to his 'den' and....ties him up.
Not the greatest start to the relationship, as Dane is not happy about it, and Jag is determined to be the "provider" and the "man" of the relationship, and already sees Dane as his mate before Dane has a chance to like or love him back.
Dane is interested in Jag, as Jag is certainly a sexy man, and Dane is into the fantasy of a guy holding him down and "forcing him" to submit and take his cock, but in reality he wants a choice, in all things, and he wants to see his family too and let them know that he's not dead, as he helps provide for them and his 5 siblings as well.
But Jag has his preconceived notions, and how courting and mating should work, and doesn't think Dane needs to see his family, thinks he's an adult and they can survive without Dane, that he should let go of his past life, because Dane was sleeping with a biker, who wanted him to do something to cover up his own betrayal of the MC, and then tried to kill him so he wouldn't talk. It would be easier if the guy thought Dane was dead, right?
But Dane has responsibilities, and he loves his family, and you can't get someone to love you by tying them up and making them stay with you.
Jag just needs to learn that.
As a few weeks go by, Dane does come to care for and feel for Jag, but he still wants to see his family and Jag won't let him, so Dane still is planning to escape to see his family.
Things change when Jag accidentally gets hurt, and the others in the junkyard become aware of Dane's presence as well (Jag was definitely keeping Dane hidden for about a month)
But it turns out to be for the better, as a stubborn Jag has to come to understand Dane's side of things and that you can't hold someone captive and just expect them to wait around for you and look pretty while you do everything. There needs to be more out of life for someone than that, and it takes a bit for Jag to understand that.
But Jag grew up differently, and it's hard for him to let those notions go and understand that it doesn't work that way for Dane, who grew up in civilization and not out in the woods.
I adored these two together. Dane, once he truly had the choice to stay with Jag or not, chose to stay with Jag, and that's better than if he's forced to do it. And as much as Dane wanted to go see his family, he didn't actually want to leave Jag.
Because like we would be, Dane knows what Jag was doing wasn't okay and that it was messed up, but he saw more to Jag, and that underneath it all he was really actually very sweet and adorable, he just tried to be so much like how he was taught men should be a lot of the time.
But as this goes on, and Jag starts to let go a little, we see the real Jag underneath it all, and how sweet and kind and again, adorable he is. His ignorance of the modern world and when he's out in it is adorable, and later on how he just wants to impress Dane and be the kind of mate Dane needs, but he doesn't know social etiquette and might stumble a few times. But it's adorable all the same.
And Dane never looks at Jag like he's a freak like others do and did, like in the first. He obviously doesn't think Jag holding him hostage is okay, of course, and some of the things he does is weird, but he comes to see some of his quirks as wonderfully weird instead of truly weird.
And I loved watching Jag adjust a little to bring in part of Dane's world too, and he lets go of parts of his ways of living to accommodate Dane so he can truly be happy and comfortable together with Jag.
These two had great chemistry as well, and I absolutely adored Jag's utter devotion to Dane. I also loved watching Dane come to love Jag as well.
The story was well done too, and there was nothing like in the first book with what happened between Shane and Ros.
Jag made his missteps, but he was ultimately just misguided and ignorant and needed a little guidance and explaining of how things should be by Dane.
I'd definitely give this one a try, it was such a win for me. Definitely better overall than the first one.
I'm also definitely interested in the next one in the series about Dex. He's been mostly immature and annoying so far, but I wonder who could be the guy to make Dex stop sleeping around and settle down with someone. I always love stories if one has a lot of sex with people, then finds someone who makes them not care about sex with anyone else anymore.
Definite thumbs up from me for this one, HIGHLY recommend it!
Jag is an odd character. He grew up in almost a commune type of situation, in the woods, that was started by his father. He grew up almost feral, if you could call any human feral, Jag and his family would be close to it.
But 4 years ago, he left said commune, because he knew he was only attracted to men, but his father of course didn't approve of it, and so Jag had to get away, because he knew he'd never be able to be with a woman that way.
But it was still all he knew growing up, so he's a wild man living in a civilized world, not understanding our ways of living.
When Dane is set for burial by Jag at the junkyard - because Frank believes it to be a dead body. He's wrapped up in a carpet and everything - Jag hears noise coming from the carpet, and so he finds Dane, who is very much alive, just very badly beaten.
Jag sees him and instantly wants him as his mate. But he knows it'll take some time to get Dane to agree to it, so he just....takes Dane to his 'den' and....ties him up.
Not the greatest start to the relationship, as Dane is not happy about it, and Jag is determined to be the "provider" and the "man" of the relationship, and already sees Dane as his mate before Dane has a chance to like or love him back.
Dane is interested in Jag, as Jag is certainly a sexy man, and Dane is into the fantasy of a guy holding him down and "forcing him" to submit and take his cock, but in reality he wants a choice, in all things, and he wants to see his family too and let them know that he's not dead, as he helps provide for them and his 5 siblings as well.
But Jag has his preconceived notions, and how courting and mating should work, and doesn't think Dane needs to see his family, thinks he's an adult and they can survive without Dane, that he should let go of his past life, because Dane was sleeping with a biker, who wanted him to do something to cover up his own betrayal of the MC, and then tried to kill him so he wouldn't talk. It would be easier if the guy thought Dane was dead, right?
But Dane has responsibilities, and he loves his family, and you can't get someone to love you by tying them up and making them stay with you.
Jag just needs to learn that.
As a few weeks go by, Dane does come to care for and feel for Jag, but he still wants to see his family and Jag won't let him, so Dane still is planning to escape to see his family.
Things change when Jag accidentally gets hurt, and the others in the junkyard become aware of Dane's presence as well (Jag was definitely keeping Dane hidden for about a month)
But it turns out to be for the better, as a stubborn Jag has to come to understand Dane's side of things and that you can't hold someone captive and just expect them to wait around for you and look pretty while you do everything. There needs to be more out of life for someone than that, and it takes a bit for Jag to understand that.
But Jag grew up differently, and it's hard for him to let those notions go and understand that it doesn't work that way for Dane, who grew up in civilization and not out in the woods.
I adored these two together. Dane, once he truly had the choice to stay with Jag or not, chose to stay with Jag, and that's better than if he's forced to do it. And as much as Dane wanted to go see his family, he didn't actually want to leave Jag.
Because like we would be, Dane knows what Jag was doing wasn't okay and that it was messed up, but he saw more to Jag, and that underneath it all he was really actually very sweet and adorable, he just tried to be so much like how he was taught men should be a lot of the time.
But as this goes on, and Jag starts to let go a little, we see the real Jag underneath it all, and how sweet and kind and again, adorable he is. His ignorance of the modern world and when he's out in it is adorable, and later on how he just wants to impress Dane and be the kind of mate Dane needs, but he doesn't know social etiquette and might stumble a few times. But it's adorable all the same.
And Dane never looks at Jag like he's a freak like others do and did, like in the first. He obviously doesn't think Jag holding him hostage is okay, of course, and some of the things he does is weird, but he comes to see some of his quirks as wonderfully weird instead of truly weird.
And I loved watching Jag adjust a little to bring in part of Dane's world too, and he lets go of parts of his ways of living to accommodate Dane so he can truly be happy and comfortable together with Jag.
These two had great chemistry as well, and I absolutely adored Jag's utter devotion to Dane. I also loved watching Dane come to love Jag as well.
The story was well done too, and there was nothing like in the first book with what happened between Shane and Ros.
Jag made his missteps, but he was ultimately just misguided and ignorant and needed a little guidance and explaining of how things should be by Dane.
I'd definitely give this one a try, it was such a win for me. Definitely better overall than the first one.
I'm also definitely interested in the next one in the series about Dex. He's been mostly immature and annoying so far, but I wonder who could be the guy to make Dex stop sleeping around and settle down with someone. I always love stories if one has a lot of sex with people, then finds someone who makes them not care about sex with anyone else anymore.
Definite thumbs up from me for this one, HIGHLY recommend it!
gabriela18live's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
melissaulv's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
renwzi's review against another edition
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
ailsagordxn's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0