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danisadler's review
5.0
I absolutely loved this - I haven't read a 'dark' romance for ages it feels like, and this didn't disappoint me.
This story world already really intrigued me with the first book because I've never read much about Necromancy before, but Phelan just pulled me in with the extremes he was going to so he could prove his worth to his congregation and family.
I may have a massive obsession with Remiel now - his aggressiveness and possessiveness were exactly what I love to read in darker characters. I want to know that he truly will burn the world down for his love, rather than it being something a character says but never really backs up. I totally believed Remiel every time he told Phelan how he felt, and he did not fail to prove his devotion.
'He was at war with himself, his piety clashing with a primal need he didn't yet understand. The realization filled me to the brim with excitement. I'd be his first. His last. His everything. He was mine, completely'
'My Phelan. My Necromancer. A treasure that only I was allowed to admire, to touch, to find pleasure in. No one else'
'He was utterly beautiful in his sorrow. But in his quiet, seething rage? He was absolutely divine'
'He was trying to take you away from me, so yes, he did deserve to die'
'You, Phelan Oliver, are mine. Until the end of days'
Phelan was totally clueless about what he meant to Remiel though for the majority of the book, but I think that actually made me love Remiel and his insecurities so much more because he was constantly telling Phelan exactly what he meant to him in his own way.
'If I ruined him, no one else would want him - except me. Then maybe I wouldn't have to fight so hard for his affection, he'd give it willingly, grateful to have any at all'
The plot itself was really engaging and I loved all the twists and the way the information unravelled and came together because the outcome wasn't anything I was expecting. I really didn't want to put the book down to go to sleep which is always a good sign for me, especially when a book features my own arch nemesis - the arachnid.
I'm pretty sure Phelan and Remiel just barged their way into my favourite couples list, and I really hope there's more to come in this story world because I've loved everything about it so far.
This story world already really intrigued me with the first book because I've never read much about Necromancy before, but Phelan just pulled me in with the extremes he was going to so he could prove his worth to his congregation and family.
I may have a massive obsession with Remiel now - his aggressiveness and possessiveness were exactly what I love to read in darker characters. I want to know that he truly will burn the world down for his love, rather than it being something a character says but never really backs up. I totally believed Remiel every time he told Phelan how he felt, and he did not fail to prove his devotion.
'He was at war with himself, his piety clashing with a primal need he didn't yet understand. The realization filled me to the brim with excitement. I'd be his first. His last. His everything. He was mine, completely'
'My Phelan. My Necromancer. A treasure that only I was allowed to admire, to touch, to find pleasure in. No one else'
'He was utterly beautiful in his sorrow. But in his quiet, seething rage? He was absolutely divine'
'He was trying to take you away from me, so yes, he did deserve to die'
'You, Phelan Oliver, are mine. Until the end of days'
Phelan was totally clueless about what he meant to Remiel though for the majority of the book, but I think that actually made me love Remiel and his insecurities so much more because he was constantly telling Phelan exactly what he meant to him in his own way.
'If I ruined him, no one else would want him - except me. Then maybe I wouldn't have to fight so hard for his affection, he'd give it willingly, grateful to have any at all'
The plot itself was really engaging and I loved all the twists and the way the information unravelled and came together because the outcome wasn't anything I was expecting. I really didn't want to put the book down to go to sleep which is always a good sign for me, especially when a book features my own arch nemesis - the arachnid.
I'm pretty sure Phelan and Remiel just barged their way into my favourite couples list, and I really hope there's more to come in this story world because I've loved everything about it so far.
mingwve's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
sarah_fodots's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
bookishwishes's review against another edition
challenging
dark
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
5.0
winlunareads's review
4.0
3.5✨ for demons, toxicity, and sacrilege. The only thing that could have made this book better was better pacing.
ecpincumbe's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
ladymcgrace's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book is so confusing because the author didn't go into detail about certain things. for example, the logistics of one of them not having an actual body since he is a demon.
like how are they touching each other?
how did boyza end up in hell ?? was it physically or spiritually? was their entire interaction spiritual while phelan 's body lay somewhere unconscious, that typa vibe ?
boma projection Ish?
I did not expect that ending💀😳, I mean everything that happened from 50% of the book, to be honest✋🏾😂‼️. Curiousity got the best of me🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡.
Hence, I started this dualogy, so if you are Christian, I'd say stay away from this cause some things that were said are blasphemous 😬,
that said, the book is well written, nothing gets dragged, the pacing is just right, the mystery 👌🏾, It keeps you hooked trying to put pieces together.
like how are they touching each other?
how did boyza end up in hell ?? was it physically or spiritually? was their entire interaction spiritual while phelan 's body lay somewhere unconscious, that typa vibe ?
boma projection Ish?
I did not expect that ending💀😳, I mean everything that happened from 50% of the book, to be honest✋🏾😂‼️. Curiousity got the best of me🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡🤡.
Hence, I started this dualogy, so if you are Christian, I'd say stay away from this cause some things that were said are blasphemous 😬,
that said, the book is well written, nothing gets dragged, the pacing is just right, the mystery 👌🏾, It keeps you hooked trying to put pieces together.
j_readsbooks's review
5.0
I loved this. So much. Enemies to lovers, a necromancer and a demon. This was extremely dark, read trigger warnings if you need to.
Phelan and Remiel’s relationship was so good. Their relationship was toxic and possessive, but that’s exactly what I was hoping for from a demon and a necromancer. This wasn’t necessarily a slow burn but it did take a while for Phelan to come to terms with his feelings for Remiel. And before that, well read trigger warnings. While this was super dark there were still some light and humours moments and I loved it.
This story wasn’t what I expected it to be but I absolutely loved every second of it. This is not a redemption story, it’s dark and twisted and toxic. I knew that this story would touch on a lot of religious aspects, especially Catholicism, and it did worry me a bit, I’m not a fan of religious characters and stories. But it didn’t take long to realize that it wasn’t that kind of story and the religion was more of a history than anything else.
This story was dark and toxic with twists I didn’t see coming, I loved every sentence.
Merged review:
I loved this. So much. Enemies to lovers, a necromancer and a demon. This was extremely dark, read trigger warnings if you need to.
Phelan and Remiel’s relationship was so good. Their relationship was toxic and possessive, but that’s exactly what I was hoping for from a demon and a necromancer. This wasn’t necessarily a slow burn but it did take a while for Phelan to come to terms with his feelings for Remiel. And before that, well read trigger warnings. While this was super dark there were still some light and humours moments and I loved it.
This story wasn’t what I expected it to be but I absolutely loved every second of it. This is not a redemption story, it’s dark and twisted and toxic. I knew that this story would touch on a lot of religious aspects, especially Catholicism, and it did worry me a bit, I’m not a fan of religious characters and stories. But it didn’t take long to realize that it wasn’t that kind of story and the religion was more of a history than anything else.
This story was dark and toxic with twists I didn’t see coming, I loved every sentence.
Phelan and Remiel’s relationship was so good. Their relationship was toxic and possessive, but that’s exactly what I was hoping for from a demon and a necromancer. This wasn’t necessarily a slow burn but it did take a while for Phelan to come to terms with his feelings for Remiel. And before that, well read trigger warnings. While this was super dark there were still some light and humours moments and I loved it.
This story wasn’t what I expected it to be but I absolutely loved every second of it. This is not a redemption story, it’s dark and twisted and toxic. I knew that this story would touch on a lot of religious aspects, especially Catholicism, and it did worry me a bit, I’m not a fan of religious characters and stories. But it didn’t take long to realize that it wasn’t that kind of story and the religion was more of a history than anything else.
This story was dark and toxic with twists I didn’t see coming, I loved every sentence.
Merged review:
I loved this. So much. Enemies to lovers, a necromancer and a demon. This was extremely dark, read trigger warnings if you need to.
Phelan and Remiel’s relationship was so good. Their relationship was toxic and possessive, but that’s exactly what I was hoping for from a demon and a necromancer. This wasn’t necessarily a slow burn but it did take a while for Phelan to come to terms with his feelings for Remiel. And before that, well read trigger warnings. While this was super dark there were still some light and humours moments and I loved it.
This story wasn’t what I expected it to be but I absolutely loved every second of it. This is not a redemption story, it’s dark and twisted and toxic. I knew that this story would touch on a lot of religious aspects, especially Catholicism, and it did worry me a bit, I’m not a fan of religious characters and stories. But it didn’t take long to realize that it wasn’t that kind of story and the religion was more of a history than anything else.
This story was dark and toxic with twists I didn’t see coming, I loved every sentence.
nomomstayandread's review against another edition
4.0
What you’ll get:
Necromancers, Witches and Demons
Enemies to lovers
Kidnapping but make it sexy - but like way way later
CW/TW: Non-con, Dub-con, Violence, Suicide, Religious Trauma
Setting: Massachusetts
Author’s Note: Reader discretion is greatly advised as this book is NOT for everyone and most will probably find it offensive.
This was DARK. Ashlyn was not lying about the content warnings. This is much darker than Malum - they may share a location but that’s pretty much where the similarities end. Phelan is a necromancer and comes off as really lonely and an outcast. He ends up getting kidnapped by a demon and things are pretty bad for him for awhile. There’s a flat out sexual assault that I can’t even walk back so I’m not going to try to. The nonconsensual and dubiously consensual piece goes on for a bit. There’s no way to talk around it.
Remiel, the demon, made it really hard to root for him. Every time he made a little ground, he immediately took two steps back because he’s unapologetically violent. I’ll admit I never really buy the relationship between Remiel and Phelan for a host of reasons because there were things I definitely wouldn’t have been able to forgive (see above). Remiel’s heart to heart with the priest and the little heatwave that occurred at the church being two big things uber religious Phelan would be furious about.
BUT.
Phelan is such an interesting character and his story arc is compelling enough to not only finish the book but still give it a high rating. His journey and growth through the entire book was astronomical and I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen to him next. Sure, this book had eventual consensual spice but the book would stand on its own without a romantic storyline even so the story is solid.
The other thing I won't forgive Ashlyn for was harming my boys from Malum. Leave them alone! I was mad at Phelan exactly twice in this book and you can guess where.
I had an early copy of the audiobook and the two voice actors could not have been better suited. J.F. Harding and Michael Gallagher were excellent.
Thank you to Ashlyn Drewek for a copy in exchange for an honest review.
Necromancers, Witches and Demons
Enemies to lovers
Kidnapping but make it sexy - but like way way later
CW/TW: Non-con, Dub-con, Violence, Suicide, Religious Trauma
Setting: Massachusetts
Author’s Note: Reader discretion is greatly advised as this book is NOT for everyone and most will probably find it offensive.
This was DARK. Ashlyn was not lying about the content warnings. This is much darker than Malum - they may share a location but that’s pretty much where the similarities end. Phelan is a necromancer and comes off as really lonely and an outcast. He ends up getting kidnapped by a demon and things are pretty bad for him for awhile. There’s a flat out sexual assault that I can’t even walk back so I’m not going to try to. The nonconsensual and dubiously consensual piece goes on for a bit. There’s no way to talk around it.
Remiel, the demon, made it really hard to root for him. Every time he made a little ground, he immediately took two steps back because he’s unapologetically violent. I’ll admit I never really buy the relationship between Remiel and Phelan for a host of reasons because there were things I definitely wouldn’t have been able to forgive (see above). Remiel’s heart to heart with the priest and the little heatwave that occurred at the church being two big things uber religious Phelan would be furious about.
BUT.
Phelan is such an interesting character and his story arc is compelling enough to not only finish the book but still give it a high rating. His journey and growth through the entire book was astronomical and I couldn’t wait to see what was going to happen to him next. Sure, this book had eventual consensual spice but the book would stand on its own without a romantic storyline even so the story is solid.
The other thing I won't forgive Ashlyn for was harming my boys from Malum. Leave them alone! I was mad at Phelan exactly twice in this book and you can guess where.
I had an early copy of the audiobook and the two voice actors could not have been better suited. J.F. Harding and Michael Gallagher were excellent.
Thank you to Ashlyn Drewek for a copy in exchange for an honest review.