And by worse, I mean emotionally devastating in the best possible way. 🥹

Read your trigger warnings first!

I thought I was already emotionally unwell after surviving the Rayne-Moore University series (Speak and Stutter wrecked me), but clearly, I had no idea how much lower I could be dragged, and how much l'd enjoy it.

In this expansion of the Rayne-Moore universe, the Duchess & Devil series kicks down the door and announces, "Hope you weren't emotionally stable." This book holds nothing back. What starts as a cautionary tale about Sabrina Winters, a former Rayne-Moore student whose night of fun turns into lifelong trauma, spirals into something darker, deeper, and disturbingly addictive.

Now an adult, Sabrina copes with a well-dressed smile, a tendency to self-destruct, and a full-time, ex-military bodyguard who's probably just as emotionally repressed as she is. (Spoiler: I adore him.) Her coping mechanisms? Bad. Her chemistry with said bodyguard? Worse. In the best way.

But beneath the spice, violence, and vengeance, Darling cuts deep with questions that linger long after the last page: What does love look like when you've been shattered by every form of it? Romantic, familial, platonic - even the elusive act of loving yourself. Can healing be found on a path lined with blood and barbed wire? And my personal favorite: How do you learn to love who you've become... when you're not sure that person deserves redemption?

This book is more than just tension and trauma; it's a dark, razor-sharp journey of survival and transformation. Yes, it will make you swoon. Yes, it will make you cry. And yes, it will absolutely make you sweat. The spice is filthy in the most cathartic way.

I was not ready, and I loved every soul-destroying second of it.

If you're a dark romance fan, run to this book - but don't skip Speak and Stutter first.

While this is its own series, the emotional depth and character callbacks pack more of a punch with the full background. (Plus, spoilers.)