#there is no devil

[lucy-the-wyrm]

She's out of her fucking mind, and so am I. Our madness aligns in all the right ways.

There Is No Devil - Sophie Lark

[con-alas-de-angeles]

Sophie Lark, There Are No Saints (Sinner’s Duet #1)

[juleworm]

hello!! given that it is the first weekend in june, i'd like to go through everything that i read in the month of may and say if i would or would not recommend it and why. lets go !!

in chronological order of reading:

king of pride - ana huang: YES absolutely! god i loved this book. more specifically, yes i would recommend it if you like opposites attract in romance and dating, or if you like income gap relationships ( he's a billionaire, she's a struggling author ), and yes if you like incredibly hot and well written spicy scenes between characters. i honestly can't even think of a no unless you literally just hate spicy romance as a genre; even then i still think this book deserves a chance for your time. i absolutely adore this book.

2. den of vipers - k.a. knight: yes if you miss reading self-insert on wattpad and like pick me fmcs. the vipers themselves do have a lot of good character behind them, but as far as the fmc...i just really didn't like her. i did finish the entire book hoping that it would get better towards the end, but in my opinion the ending was one of the worse parts of the book and throughout it all it felt very predictable. would i generally recommend this? no. but it's definitely a hit or miss book. you'll either really like it, or not like it at all.

3. does it hurt? - h.d. carlton: yes yes yes yes yes. this was my favorite read of the month of may. i'd recommend it even more if you like witty and funny fmcs; it's sort of a dark romance version of grumpy x sunshine. it has a lot of spice and it's very creative if that makes sense? it's not just boring vanilla missionary, that's for sure. the mmcs character is phenomenal and both of them each have very full character arcs. but i wouldn't recommend it if mentions of incest and domestic abuse trigger you, or if body horror and gore triggers you.

4. never lie - freida mcfadden: yes if you're new to thrillers and want something easy to digest. definitely not if you're not new to thrillers and have read some absolutely breathtaking ones that kept you up at night. to me it had a rather predictable storyline, a twist that falls flat, and characters with absolutely zero depth or anywhere near a completed arc. i really did not like this book at all. also yes if you like a quick read; this didn't take me very long to get through.

5 + 6. there are no saints / there is no devil [ sinner's duet ] - sophie lark: yes if you like a "beginner" dark romance that doesn't stray too far into depravity, but still has a very dominant and demanding mmc. no if you've read things by h.d. carlton or other dark romance authors and that's your expectation level. this might come off as boring to you. however as this was a bit tame for me storyline wise, the spicy scenes were amazing and i did like that they were both artists. i feel like usually billionaires are business-oriented but it was cool to see a wealthy and famous artist. also yes if you like mentor romance dynamics.

7. iced out - veronica eden: yes if you like boys who are very clearly written by women ( in a good way! ). the mmc is perfectly balanced; he's as hot and dominant as he is cute and sweet and nice and thoughtful. he's pretty much the picturesque model citizen for what a girl typically would want in a perfectly healthy romantic relationship. there's very little drama between characters, which i personally liked. but no if parental death or familial death or grief/loss are triggers for you. for a more in-depth response, i did a spoiler free book review here!

if you do read any of these let me know! i'd love to see how our opinions differ :))

[bookhermitt]

Every time someone tells you that you’re wrong, it didn’t happen like you said it happened, it couldn’t, you’re a liar, you’re a child, you don’t understand . . . Each hack of the hatchet takes a chunk out of your confidence, until you don’t even believe yourself anymore.

[measabibliophile]

I find it kind of ironic that some of my favorite and most feminist lines came from some of the darkest characters

“Give me a little credit,” he scoffs. “Whatever else I may be, I was never a man who had to tear a woman down to shine bright beside her. If you’re not as good as me, then you’re no good at all. And when I saw you, Mara … I thought, this girl is really fucking good. I don’t want to hold you down, chop you down, diminish you in any way. I already know I found something special. Now it’s time for everyone else to see it.”

- Cole Blackwell (There Is No Devil by Sophie Lark)

"You teach your daughter to hide in everyone else's world," I shot back, "and I'll teach mine everyone else exists in her. Go fuck yourself, and leave the kid alone."

- Damon Torrance (Kill Switch by Penelope Douglas)

I know these characters did terrible things but just for these lines I will forgive them everything 🤩

Ps. Just realized it's almost been a year since I last posted 🫢

[calming-chaos]

[lucy-the-wyrm]

'At first it was against my will,' I tell her. 'But now I'm all in. I have to have you. Even if it blows up my life.'

There Is No Devil - Sophie Lark