Much like Before the Darkest Hour, I stumbled upon this book by way of a free audiobook made by the author and posted up on YouTube. Unfortunately it's ALSO narrated by a text-to-speech AI, but I suffered through it because the prose was good and the story has a really interesting premise with it's two leads: a young woman named Brella who's life has been rife with religious abuse at the hands of her father, and the demon she may or may not have manifested in her mind named Thellvok. She explores her sexuality and BDSM play with him, and he proves to be her only real source of comfort, despite the danger he brings along with him.

Like with Before the Darkest Hour, we switch between the two protagonist's perspectives, which makes their dynamic all the more interesting, as Thellvok needs to torture Brella and bring her suffering if they are to stay together forever - he feeds on suffering after all...

This is also the first erotica book I've ever read/listened to! I'm an asexual myself, so while I didn't go into it for the "spicy" scenes, I have to admit that they're weaved in naturally with the plot, especially when you consider that the heroine has suffered from religious abuse and was sexually repressed for the longest time - that part will be extremely relatable for anyone who's gone through a similar experience. It's also refreshing to see a BDSM style relationship done well, as while Thellvok needs to bring some form of suffering to Brella or those around her, he doesn't outright abuse her, or abuse his role in their kinky relationship; serving as more of a comforting, sensual dom to her. ABSOLUTELY REFRESHING in a sea of Fifty Shades of Grey and books trying to be the next Fifty Shades of Grey with wannabe doms and daddies who think being the dominant means being abusive to your partner in the name of kink! So for those wanting to hear/read about kink done well - this is a good book for that (provided you like overly protective demon boyfriends who'll kill just to make you happy).

The kidnapping points of the plot may be a disappointment, but thankfully they are brief.

It's a really solid story, the spicy scenes have a reason to be there (and not only do our characters actually want it, but they also prove to be somewhat cathartic to Brella in some instances when it comes to facing her trauma), and the male demon love interest just wants to make his human lady happy. Really what more could you ask for with a monster boyfriend at your beck and call? I'll definitely try getting a physical copy of the book if I can find one because while it is mighty convenient for the author to post up audiobook versions of her work for free on YouTube, that text-to-speech voice can sure get grating after a while - and hey, consuming on YouTube is free, might as well thank her with royalties if I can get a physical copy! ( )