Thank you so much to Berkley for the advance copy of this book!
Thank you to PRH Audio for the complimentary audio!

This book is out now!

I am still new to the paranormal romance world and this one may have challenged me. I am not big in world building and fantasy and I felt that this book had more of that than I was expecting. Of course I know there is an element of that in a paranormal romance but it just may have been a tad too much for me.

"I know you don't like my scent."
"I fucking love your scent."

I am a romance reader so let's start there. Lowe and Misery were an interesting couple. I am not sure if I felt their chemistry at all until the rubbing of scents began. I think I was the most frustrated with Lowe because of his reasoning for resisting his feelings for her which is understandable giving their different species but still! I also am not a fan of slow burns and this was the slowest of burns. When they were together, they were really hot and of course Ali kills it with the spice! Also I just cannot take knotting seriously. It makes me laugh every time.

Even though there is romance, it is not the prominent focus of the book. I would say the mystery of finding Misery's best friend/sister Serena. And without going into anymore context, Misery's dad is the WORST!

I paired my reading with the audio & Hazelwood tapped her narrator queen Thérèse Plummer. She definitely pulled off the snarkiness of Misery. What I wish we got more of was Lowe's narrator Will Damron as I love his voice.

This did seem like there was going to be a second book and I likely will be reading as I just love Ali's writing.

Even though this didn't work for me, it probably will work for you because a lot of people love it! I think those that enjoy fantasy would be able to follow this a lot more than me. If you are a fan of world building with a mix of a mystery and romance - this is for you!

Memorable Quotes:
"When do you think your future husband will try to kill you? Tomorrow? Next week?"

"Heartbeats are like fingerprints, one of a kind, distinctive, the easiest way to tell people apart."

"You smell like you're mine, Misery."

"You're not a problem, Misery. You're a privilege."