I was already irritated with Kit with how things ended in the last book. So it's no surprise the first few chapters of this book had me irritated AF.

But she got her head out of her ass. Actually EVERYONE did and they made it work. This was a fantastic series. My favorite guys were Austin and Wes. Kit is pretty likable. Sam is funny as hell. I'm overall satisfied. While my greedy butt would happily read another book it's not needed. Which is the best when ending a series.

I love Austin so much. That's it, that's my entire review.

Its always exciting to get an update but this one was uneventful and I could have done without it.

I was sooo looking forward to this story and it was a dud. Not bad at all. Just didn't hit the spot for me. Jet is such a great guy. And it was nice to get updates on Quinn, Pet, and Parker. But this was after-school special level romance. After 30+ books in this series I'm not sure it's progressing/aging well.

I really wish that we could do half stars because this would be 4.5 stars for me. Full disclosure I've never read an entire anthropology. I usually just go to the author I know and like, read their story then move on. However I was too impatient to wait for this book to hit KU and preordered it for $5 so I felt like I owed it to my wallet to read every single story.... A bitch was not disappointed, my reviews will be in order of the stories I liked the most. Pen was the only author I knew coming in but I have developed an extreme interest in many of the featured ones in this series.

5 Star Stories *******************************************

Ash City by Penelope Douglas
This is the entire reason why I bought this book. I love Pen and will sell my left kidney to get my hands on everything she writes. This story was HOT. First props for having a woman of color as the lead. It's always exciting to see that especially when it's by a white author because you know that it was a conscious decision that they researched. Cas and Ash have some amazing dynamic. They were magnets, everything around sizzled. There was action, blood, plot twists, age gap, a bit of taboo, and the ending was just OMFG I needed more. It was hot.

Asphyxiate by Ally Vance
This was so unexpected. Benny is fucked up in the head. He's level of obsession is serial killer. His rational is twisted. I loved him and wanted him to get the win he was looking for. Triggers for this would be breath play. It's not a kink I've ever been curious about... until this story lol.

Tamed by Measha Stone
Have you ever been reading something and you think HOLY FUCKING SHIT what the FUCK did I just read?? That was me, this entire story. All I kept repeating was RUN BITCH RUN. Triggers for this would be, I don't fucking know kidnapping, bdsm, humiliation, and physical harm. I was literally in a state of shock reading this and yet I loved ever fucking minute of it. Maybe I should talk to a therapist??

Exposure by Vicki James
This one had me all in my feelings. Dude was a victim of sexual assault at the hands of some selfish, evil, bitches. This entire story was about him getting revenge and closure. The sick bitch that I am wishes the details of his revenge had been more in depth but I was glad he got an HEA.

Terrene by Yolanda Olson
This read like an episode of Dateline. OMFG the plot twists were plentiful. Nothing about this story was predictable. Harvey needs Jesus. He needs help and Libby, that bitch. Triggers in this story - rape, murder, suicide, torture

4 Star Stories ***************************************

Carnal Value by Shane Starrett
I struggled with this one. It was HOT. But it was all over the place. I enjoy multiple POVs but this one had too many and the ending just was not want I wanted. I wish this was a full on novel so that we could get MORE. I feel like this was not focused too much on the Scouts but more so the female.

Fertile Ground by Jennifer Bene
This was a very sophisticated read. I felt like this could have been on the BBC or a Vincent Price feature. Annabelle is so freaking smart and she handled everything she was presented with in the calmest my logical way possible while freaking the fuck out. Theo gave me Red Dragon vibes. This story could be adapted into a movie feature my boy James McAvoy.

Malefactor by Abigail Davies
This is very vanilla with a dash a violence. I would say it's a true love story and probably one of the few stories where the Scout is a high functioning sociopath. This is Lifetime movie level in regards to darkness. Solid read, I have no complaints.

Corruption by Andi Jaxon
This gave me The Woodsman Vibes (Kevin Bacon movie, very intense). I wanted to dislike Scott so much but I couldn't. He was seriously struggling and Corbin, the little minx was testing and pushing him. There was a lot of hotness and an HEA I was mostly satisfied with.

3 Star Stories **************************************

Axed by Samantha Towle
Fresh out of prison for second degree murder our boy Axel learns that his high school crush is now his parole officer. I liked Axel, he had a compelling back story and the worst luck. I was not a fan of Eden though. I feel like she ruined the entire story but just existing. Their love story is taboo due to her position of power and there is a dash of mystery/suspense. But all in all it was a vanilla story that could be featured on the Hallmark channel.

Corrupt Us by J.M. Walker
Giving this 3 stars was hard. This story is HOT both Kitson and Bryson are likable, damaged, sexy, and gave me goosebumps. Every interaction between them had me holding my breath. BUT the storyline. I rather have 40 pages of sex scenes then an all over the place storyline. It was just everywhere and messy. There were so many holes, the author introduced characters for no reason. They played with my emotions by suggesting kinks but then didn't follow through. The patch was scuba, and it's like they were 98% done and remembered they needed to try and work in WTF a scuba patch had to do with things.

2 Star Stories **************************************************

Cutthroat by Natasha Preston
Look, this is the first story in the book. It started off ominous and exciting, then it just went flat. I'm a very analytical person so when the author presents you with every logical reason as to why the main characters didn't need to take the actions that they did, then fuck me but I'm gonna be a bit flabbergasted by their dumbassary! Nora was annoying AF and Dude (I can't even remember his name) was just messy.

History X by Ellie Meadows
Bryant was just too predictable for me. The story moved too slow for my liking. There was too much build up for nothing.

Sanctum by Claire C Riley
This could have been 3 stars except the ending tanked that. Dude has issues, lives isolated yet random chicks shows up on his 20 acres of private property and shit just gets weird. He has a dark and dominating side that we only get to see for a very very brief moment. I think what pissed me off is, I was on his side, I wanted him to have an HEA, and then the chick steps out of line with her thinking. It was unbelievable.

Caged by Cole Denton
As a parent, as an analytical person, the idea of someone giving up so much to pursue a crush is insane and the fact that no one questioned it made me want to scream. In a nutshell, Travis tracks down his dead brother's ex so he can what?? Make a move?? Travis just irritated me. Kyle hit me in the feelings. He struggled with his feelings as the brother of his former lover was bringing out a lot of personal conflict. I feel like this story was too short and didn't give enough to the reader to feel satisfied.

Archer's Release by Kamisa Cole
I debated on making this a 1 star. But I just couldn't be that mean. There are only 4 chapters and it took me hours to sit my ass down and finish them. These step brothers are sexually attracted to each other and it's a game of cat and mouse and it's not that good. Victor was just all up in his head with bullshit and Zion just got shit on. The pain/pleasure scenes were hot but that's all I got to say about that.

BOOM!!!! I did it, this is my longest review ever. I enjoyed this series. Every story had a lot of sexual energy and overall I would recommend this series to anyone that's into dark romance and has NO triggers. There are NO trigger warnings so I wouldn't even touch this book if you have any.

Most RH stories have a female that every man is drawn to in some way. But this one had me ferling bad for the girl. There are so many individual needs and relationships going on that sets this story apart from others in the genre.

This is a must read.

I really liked this book. It was so incredibly different from every RH story I've ever come across.

This is my first K. Webster book and I am so glad it was recommended. Nothing was cliché or mass produced. Every aspect in this duet was original, emotional, and refreshing.

First I want to say that there is no comparing Hades to MK. MK and her boys were young, they lacked open communication, their "bad assness" was backed by Hades and they leaned on her a lot to help with their challenges.

Hades embodies darkness, fear, and strength on her own. Her men trained MK's boys and proved they can and will put them in their place if needed. So keep that in mind if you see stupid discussions about WHO IS BEST...

Now... It has been a decade since a series hs kept me on the edge of my seat like this. I finished book 3, 8 hours before Timber dropped and during the wait I was unable to focus and I felt like my skin was crawling. THAT is how anxious and hyped I was to get answers.

Hades is officially imprinted in my heart. I love her strength, intelligence, her humanity, and selflessness. She is relatable to so many woman. She's a survivor not a victim. She empowers and exudes power and sexuality. As someone who is 5ft tall, I get annoyed when a female is described as 5'8 and petite. No that bitch is an amazon. I do not believe Hades height was ever stated (which I appreciate) but her small stature was mentioned several times, her love for tall heels, and how so many underestimated her made me love her more. The fact that so many big strong men stuttered and stumbled, that their hearts raced with fear and were rendered speechless at the sight of this tiny little red head was entertaining and appreciated.

Lucas my special Gumdrop. We are undeserving of him. From the jump he has been the most honest, understanding, supportive, confident, male counterpart I've ever seen. His shyness mixed with this alpha moments was just OMG the feels. I loved this acceptance and willingness to just go with the flow. He's so observant and analytical. I never once doubted is loyalty, I appreciated him stepping up and his desire to be an contributing asset to Team Hades.

Cass is only in his mid thirties! It killed me every time he was referred to as old. He's NOT old, he's experienced. THAT is why he was so perfect. I love how he stepped in as a mentor to Lucas on so many things. His self confidence allowed him to effortlessly ease into poly life. For me he was the most dangerous of all as he does not and has never needed a second.

Zed... saved Zed for last because while there are so many things I liked about him, there was just a vibe he gave off that I struggled with. YES he's sexy, suave, and violent. His loyalty and willingness to sacrafice for Hades was admirable. His paranoia, cooking abilities, and kinks were all turn ons in my book. BUT he was just so hard headed and enjoyed stirring the pot. His mama irked me. His lack of communication was not healthy. And knowing that he sabotaged Cass's chance was upsetting. Granted everyone get a HEA and as we learn EVERYTHING HAPPENS FOR A REASON, he just rubbed me wrong so than not. With that said he's still incredibly bad ass.

As a whole this poly grouping for me was intense, entertaining, and just perfection. In many "reverse harem" books, the guys usually already have an existing bromance/loyalty that the female is introduced into. Yet here, the men all had to learn how to coexist. The overall storyline with Chase, the organize crime and power struggle(s) were consuming. It is going to be hard not to compare other Dark Mafia Romances to this series.

* Side notes: I don't care for Seph, I appreciate her growth but I have no interest in her having her own book series just putting that out there. Rex's boys, yep totally interested, Little A, love her and look forward to seeing her growth as more Shadow Grove content is released.

This book was hands down 5 stars fire

This was my first ever Bookstagram read. I loved the reel. It indicated that this pushy little girl was determined to make the neighbor lady her mom to the point of sabotaging her chances with other men. I had high hopes for this.

Sadly it just was not that great for me. This is a LOVE story as all romance books should be. However I like adversity a bit of challenge, shit a spark and fire, some arguing. Anything really that shows passion.

Clea and Nolan were cute--ish. But any and all conflict was resolved within the first 20% of said book. Then the rest was just us watching their relationship come together and hit milestones, first baecation, move in, marriage, and baby. That's it. I felt like I was watching a Christian family movie.

There were two sex scenes, both were hella vanilla, which I don't mind. But both characters suggested that what they were doing was kinky and this made me giggle. My mind MUST be pretty trash to be annoyed with these two because they are honestly adorable. Like the Duggars holding hands before marriage cute. Ginger and Jeremy cute not rapey Josh and Anna.

I would suggest this book in a heartbeat to anyone who is into feel good stories with non stop declarations of love, and comical little kid. This is a good starter book to romance.