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synclarestubbe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
kat_reads26's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
First off, the setting of Club X and the concept of the submissive auction is very promising. One of my favorite things about the book was the world building of Club X and establishing the rules. There was so much more of the club that I wanted to see.
Now more specifically about the main characters and their story. It feels incredibly rushed. I knew it would be when I saw how many pages this book contained and when I realized it was a standalone book. If you're looking for something hot and fast to read and you don't mind the very entry-level BDSM sex all throughout then you might devour this. I feel as though we barely scratched the surface on the dom and sub dynamic between the main characters and that their sex wasn't as heavily descriptive as I would have liked. The sex they have is very one note and repetitive. Really the only aspect of their sex life that is dom/sub is how Lucian speaks to her during their bedroom scenes. The sex itself is very entry level in terms of BDSM/kink. That's fine, but as someone that's looking for an incredibly kinky, morally gray spicy romance, I was left still hungry.
I think Lucian is a very intriguing and sexy character, but where he lost me was the transition from only seeing Dahlia as a sub to seeing her as a lover. It felt rushed. The second thing that lost me was
As for Dahlia, I did not care for her at all. Without Lucian and the world building, I would have gave up on this story. She toes the line of "adorkable" and her only personality traits really are awkward and
Overall, Bought has a very strong set up and is still a fun read even if it didn't meet all of my expectations for a spicy BDSM romance. It is definitely a fast burn. I would recommend this to anyone looking for a spicy strangers to lovers novel with BDSM themes that isn't too heavy and is more entry-level.
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Cursing, and Sexual assault
Minor: Alcohol
danie_faye's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Rape and Murder
mj_86's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse and Sexual violence
Minor: Death and Murder
beccabenson's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content
savskies's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
Minor: Death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, and Injury/Injury detail
kristenthebookworm's review against another edition
2.0
The concepts were absolutely there, and if there was just a bit more development of the character’s relationship I think I would have enjoyed this book a lot more. We had almost zero scenes (outside of the smut) that made me believe they were in love by the end.
It also ended very abruptly, and the second book doesn’t follow the same characters. Unfortunately, I don’t think I’ll be continuing the series.
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Rape
caitrc365's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Rape
thedreamydragon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault
coralcrab77's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I read the last book of this series first (Madam Lynn's story) and I really liked it. This one just wasn't it.
Some of my issues with it: the therapist sucked (shouldn't have offered her tissues, didn't actually work w/ Dahlia to solve her problems and how many times can you ask "how did that make you feel??)
the bdsm wasn't that great nor was it the focus. it was spicy and it was hot, but I wanted more of a fleshed out D/s relationship.
and I guess the "growth" that the couple went through wasn't very fleshed out either. nothing seemed solved, and all Lucian wanted to do was to fix it for her? idk, it wasn't great, wasn't awful.
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Rape
Minor: Murder