Reviews with content warning for Physical abuse - Cruel Seduction

Listened to the audio book. One challenge for this one for me was that there are four POVs in the book, but only two narrators. The narrators obviously tried to have different voices for each, but sometimes they blended together. If you missed the brief name mention at the top of the chapter, it could be difficult to tell who was narrating just off the cuff.

I love the Dark Olympus series - definitely a guilty pleasure of mine. I find the plot-to-spice ratio to be relatively well balanced (both are buck wild, so it evens out). I also love the variety of relationship types that Katee represents in her stories. This one is heading towards a polyamorous throuple +1.

As with all Katee Roberts books that I've read so far, check trigger warnings on her site. Some notable triggers for this book include: mentions of abuse, violence, murder, blood

Spice notes: FMM, FF, MM, dual p-in-v, rough

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kylasmv15's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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zefancifulreader's review

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dark hopeful mysterious 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

4.75

This was really really great! I really enjoyed the polyamorous dynamics and the bisexuality/pansexuality that was treated as a baseline rather than a “complexity” or something needs to be discussed, it just IS. I found it wonderfully refreshing.
Also, special shout out to having both they/them AND Xe/Xem usage in this book!!

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shaykay's review against another edition

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dark emotional tense fast-paced

4.0

This is one of the few series I develop every time a new book comes out, and I constantly need the next one ASAP. Even though this one isn't a new favorite in the series, I still really enjoyed it. There is always so much going on in these books, but I wanted to focus on the big mystery that involved the whole series more. Regardless, Aphrodite, Adonis, and Pandora were so much fun to read about! Even Hephaestus was all right. I just can't wait to see what happens in the next book, and we're getting so close to the end of the series!

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ambenicole418's review

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dark emotional mysterious tense fast-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

3.0

I’m a little disappointed with this book because I really thought I was gonna love this one just as much as I loved book 2 in this series. I mean the main plot of both books is that the main male love interest is seen as a weapon by his parent/parental figure, he falls in love, and then he has to confront the parent to break free from their hold. So, really when you think about it Cruel Seduction is basically just Electric Idol, but make it polyamorous lol. However, the reason I ended up not enjoying this installment in the series as much as I enjoyed Electric Idol is pretty much the same reason I didn’t really enjoy Neon Gods, the ending was anticlimactic. I was so hyped for the final confrontation between Theseus and Minos where Theseus would finally choose himself, do what’s best for him, and stand against Minos, but the actual confrontation only lasts about 2 pages and basically NOTHING happens. There’s no big fight. There’s no power struggle. There’s nothing! Theseus basically just walks in, says he wants to live his own life without being a pawn, and then leaves. Honestly, it was incredibly disappointing.

That being said at the end of the day this is an erotica and I have to say I did enjoy the relationship. Based on the synopsis, I thought this was going to be a wlwlmlm romance but it’s actually a wlw plus a wlmlm romance since Pandora and Eris’s romance is separate from Eris’s romance with Adonis and Theseus. That didn’t dampen my enjoyment of the romance though. I actually liked how all 4 of them got along, supported each other, and were intimate (non romantically) with each other even though Pandora wasn’t romantically interested in Adonis or Theseus. I also really liked Eris, Adonis, and Theseus as a throuple. Honestly, I kind of wish the book was longer, so we could get more Eris x Adonis x Theseus and Eris x Pandora scenes because there were times where the romance felt a little rushed, especially between Adonis and Theseus. They knew each other for like 2 days, had sex once, and suddenly they were SUPER into each other. It was definitely a little instalovey in that aspect but I’m gonna give the book a break since this relatively short book technically had to develop 2 relationships at the same time, a couple and a throuple.

On the the topic of Eris and Adonis though…..<B>SPOILERS</B> Eris is a much better person than me because I would not have let Adonis get away with the things he did in this book. Adonis supposedly was in love with Eris and yet he JUMPED at the first opportunity to HAVE SEX WITH HER HUSBAND and help him better his public image just to spite her knowing full well that Theseus is a MURDERER and an enemy of the whole city! The thing that really got me though was when the book tried to convince us that what Eris did with Pandora was the same thing as what Adonis was doing with Theseus because it really wasn’t! Eris started talking to Pandora to spite her literal enemy and her falling for Pandora had nothing to do with Adonis. She didn’t set out to hurt the person she was supposed to be in love with. Whereas Adonis’s entire relationship with Theseus is based on him just wanting to get back at Eris for marrying Theseus. Then he had the gall and audacity to say to Eris’s face that he wouldn’t hurt Theseus for her. But clearly he had no qualms about hurting Eris knowing that hurting her and her public image would serve Theseus! Idk personally, me and Adonis would’ve had to scrap for that but that’s just me 🤷🏽‍♀️.

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singingshooter's review against another edition

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dark emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.75

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katloupet's review against another edition

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dark emotional 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? It's complicated

4.0

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