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g_c_geeks's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Eating disorder, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Violence, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
robinainthood's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
"Do you like that you can make me weak?"
What I Loved
This book was, honestly, a pleasant surprise for me. The steamy scenes were hot and enjoyable to read, and for a change, I actually enjoyed the characters. The object of affection, Quin, is a defiant and headstrong journalist who knows what she wants. She's not a plain Jane like most of our female love interests in stories like this; she's on the curvy and chubby side with tattoos and piercings, a fiery attitude, and energy to match her dominant counterpart. Speaking of our mysterious protagonist, Joker is a seductive and possessive streamer with dark fantasies and pleasures, deciding very quickly what he wants out of their exchange. You can't go wrong.
"I wanted this kiss to communicate something to her I was too afraid to say out loud."
What I Didn't Love
Short, sweet, and to the point, this book ends at a 154-page mark; I started and finished it in 2 hours. To be clear, I'm impressed with how well the story was written in such a short amount of pages! The characters had genuine personality - I found myself invested in them despite only knowing them for a short amount of time - and the scenes were all fun to read. My only criticism is that it wasn't long enough! Joker's possessiveness and Quin's relentless defiance could have been really spicy and fun to experience in other contexts outside of their sexual encounters. Similar to Fifty Shades of Grey, I suppose, but minus the one-sidedness and lack of consent in their relationship. Gross.
Conclusion
Overall, I enjoyed this book and had fun reading it which is arguably the most important thing a book can do. It's by no means a knock-your-socks-off masterpiece but it was fun and hot and if it's your thing, the writing definitely holds up!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Violence
Minor: Eating disorder and Suicide attempt
michellemaas's review against another edition
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
* Beware of minor spoilers
3 - ⭐⭐⭐
The first installment in a series of standalone novellas. Adult Dark Romance with lots of sexual exploration (specifically degradation kink).
I have always seen this book be promoted as "short and spicy" so when I picked it up I thought I had a pretty good idea of what I was getting into: a quick and face-paced read to help me get ahead on my reading challenge and enjoy some good old smut along the way. Which, in fairness, it was short (only 108 pages) and it was spicy (I'd give it 🌶🌶🌶🌶) but it was also so much more than I bargained for and I'm kind of shocked no one talks about it.
"She thought we were done. How cute."
Games We Play follows Jack, a professional gamer, and Quinlan who is sent to write a story on him. When Quinlan makes a remark about Jack's side job, he offers to make use of their undeniable chemistry and help Quinlan explore sexually.
"You are everything to me, Quinlan. You found me when I had honestly given up on ever finding anyone. I was alone, hiding, and shut off to anyone, and in you walked with your big eyes and sass mouth and swept me right off my feet. You gave me something I didn’t know I could have."
However, this wasn't just 100 pages of bedroom shenanigans like I expected, but rather a surprisingly well-developed start to Jack and Quinlan's love story. They have some scenes where they get to know each other aside from their fondling, including discussions of some pretty serious topics along the way. We also get to meet Jack's ragtag but likable band of friends who will each get their own novella in the future.
The one thing I didn't like was the way the characters were written as individuals if that makes sense. Now I try not to take character analysis too seriously when I only have 100 odd pages to get to know them, but their personalities just seemed weird and unrealistic? For example, Quinlan talks about not understanding the appeal of a degradation kink, and after agreeing to explore it with Jack he keeps mentioning the defiance still in her. Literally, he's talking about how defiant she is against his wishes, and them the next chapter (which is less than a page later) she is perfectly submissive and comfortable wearing a collar and lying in a makeshift dog bed. Now with the story being purely from Jack's point-of-view, we don't even know what happened. . . Did she decide to just trust him since she was out of her element and give him control? Did she come to realize that she liked giving up control and that's why she was suddenly open to it after clearly being against it not too long ago? What happened? We don't know and it's never really addressed. It feels like there was at least an entire chapter exploring this transition that just got edited out? This would have been a perfect opportunity to explore how Quinlan came to some realizations regarding BDSM and how she liked trusting someone enough to submit to them in the bedroom but there was just nothing? Needless to say, it irked me.
"The deal was one night. One. But I wasn’t sure now that it would be enough."
Ultimately I was shocked at what Dana Isaly was able to fit into this book while still maintaining a natural progression of the plot and delivering on what was advertised. There was a perfect balance of sweet and spicy, along with good relationship development. The characters were likable, the story was paced nicely and you get some piping hot spicy scenes . . . All in all what more can you ask for?
Please note that this is an adult dark romance, therefore not suitable for minors or sensitive readers. Be sure to check the trigger warnings on Dana's website before reading. Your enjoyment is not worth risking your mental health for!
3 - ⭐⭐⭐
The first installment in a series of standalone novellas. Adult Dark Romance with lots of sexual exploration (specifically degradation kink).
I have always seen this book be promoted as "short and spicy" so when I picked it up I thought I had a pretty good idea of what I was getting into: a quick and face-paced read to help me get ahead on my reading challenge and enjoy some good old smut along the way. Which, in fairness, it was short (only 108 pages) and it was spicy (I'd give it 🌶🌶🌶🌶) but it was also so much more than I bargained for and I'm kind of shocked no one talks about it.
"She thought we were done. How cute."
Games We Play follows Jack, a professional gamer, and Quinlan who is sent to write a story on him. When Quinlan makes a remark about Jack's side job, he offers to make use of their undeniable chemistry and help Quinlan explore sexually.
"You are everything to me, Quinlan. You found me when I had honestly given up on ever finding anyone. I was alone, hiding, and shut off to anyone, and in you walked with your big eyes and sass mouth and swept me right off my feet. You gave me something I didn’t know I could have."
However, this wasn't just 100 pages of bedroom shenanigans like I expected, but rather a surprisingly well-developed start to Jack and Quinlan's love story. They have some scenes where they get to know each other aside from their fondling, including discussions of some pretty serious topics along the way. We also get to meet Jack's ragtag but likable band of friends who will each get their own novella in the future.
The one thing I didn't like was the way the characters were written as individuals if that makes sense. Now I try not to take character analysis too seriously when I only have 100 odd pages to get to know them, but their personalities just seemed weird and unrealistic? For example, Quinlan talks about not understanding the appeal of a degradation kink, and after agreeing to explore it with Jack he keeps mentioning the defiance still in her. Literally, he's talking about how defiant she is against his wishes, and them the next chapter (which is less than a page later) she is perfectly submissive and comfortable wearing a collar and lying in a makeshift dog bed. Now with the story being purely from Jack's point-of-view, we don't even know what happened. . . Did she decide to just trust him since she was out of her element and give him control? Did she come to realize that she liked giving up control and that's why she was suddenly open to it after clearly being against it not too long ago? What happened? We don't know and it's never really addressed. It feels like there was at least an entire chapter exploring this transition that just got edited out? This would have been a perfect opportunity to explore how Quinlan came to some realizations regarding BDSM and how she liked trusting someone enough to submit to them in the bedroom but there was just nothing? Needless to say, it irked me.
"The deal was one night. One. But I wasn’t sure now that it would be enough."
Ultimately I was shocked at what Dana Isaly was able to fit into this book while still maintaining a natural progression of the plot and delivering on what was advertised. There was a perfect balance of sweet and spicy, along with good relationship development. The characters were likable, the story was paced nicely and you get some piping hot spicy scenes . . . All in all what more can you ask for?
Please note that this is an adult dark romance, therefore not suitable for minors or sensitive readers. Be sure to check the trigger warnings on Dana's website before reading. Your enjoyment is not worth risking your mental health for!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Self harm, Suicide attempt, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Misogyny, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
jessie_lilienthal's review against another edition
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug use, Eating disorder, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
cozyreadswithcass's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Eating disorder and Self harm
docb's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Mental illness, Violence, Suicide attempt, and Injury/Injury detail
michele_reads's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Eating disorder
lea_talisa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and Suicide attempt
Minor: Eating disorder
caffeinatedfae's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
2 1/2 Caffeinated Stars
Genre: BDSM, Romance, Erotica
TW: Sexual Assault, Victim blaming rhetoric, detailed suicide attempt, mention of eating disorder
I saw this book on TikTok and couldn't resist getting it. It's described as a Corpse Husband fan fiction, and that immediately sold it for me. I read BDSM books, and I'm a sucker for books that have some of the hard edge kinks (degradation, CNC, etc.), so I was sure this book would be perfect for me. Unfortunately, this book fell into the curse of the novella. It was rushed, the character development was lacking, and I just wasn't all that impressed.
There were some great moments in this book, but the plot was lacking. At one moment, the hero victim blames the heroine for being touched & looked at without her permission. I'm all for darker heroes, but victim-blaming the love interest was a massive fail in my eyes.
All in all, it's a quick read with some decent sex scenes, but I wasn't that impressed.
Genre: BDSM, Romance, Erotica
TW: Sexual Assault, Victim blaming rhetoric, detailed suicide attempt, mention of eating disorder
I saw this book on TikTok and couldn't resist getting it. It's described as a Corpse Husband fan fiction, and that immediately sold it for me. I read BDSM books, and I'm a sucker for books that have some of the hard edge kinks (degradation, CNC, etc.), so I was sure this book would be perfect for me. Unfortunately, this book fell into the curse of the novella. It was rushed, the character development was lacking, and I just wasn't all that impressed.
There were some great moments in this book, but the plot was lacking. At one moment, the hero victim blames the heroine for being touched & looked at without her permission. I'm all for darker heroes, but victim-blaming the love interest was a massive fail in my eyes.
All in all, it's a quick read with some decent sex scenes, but I wasn't that impressed.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Eating disorder
talvisotilas's review against another edition
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Suicide attempt
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Eating disorder