I am so genuinely impressed with R. Scarlett’s debut novel! I had the pleasure of acting as a beta reader for just a little while during the revision stages, but I wasn’t able to complete the task. Bad Liz. Bad Beta Reader Liz. Back then, I wasn’t so sure how things were going to turn out, but UGH what a fantastic job. The writing flows well. It feels fresh without making you question if it’s too much. The diction in the smexy scenes wasn’t overly purple or wrought with nonsense. It struck a nice balance.

One of my biggest concerns diving back into this book was that I kind of can’t with alpha romance heroes. Basically, I’m sick of reading about assholes and the women fawning over them. Here, we get an asshole in the form of a demon named Tensley, but there was so much more to him than just his dickishness. He was a well-rounded, enjoyable character who is in just as shitty a situation as Molly. Neither of them want this engagement, but Tensley has responsibility and this oppressive culture on his shoulders that makes him act the way he does. I can get behind that. I can see the struggle and the willingness to make an effort on his part, especially after being forced to break it off with the woman he actually wanted to be with in order to try to make something halfheartedly work with Molly.

Molly Darling. I can see why she might get under people’s skin. She’s young. She’s naive. She’s led a sheltered life and doesn’t really jive with the other Manhattan socialites. She makes mistakes. She tries her best and still fucks up. I don’t blame her at all for not wanting to marry this random asshole who showed up and acted like a jerk. I don’t blame her for looking for an out.

I think what I enjoy the most is that Scarlett stays true to her characters, flaws and all. Oh, and also the worldbuilding. Demons that are more related to Greek mythology than Christianity? That’s something I can absolutely get behind.

Fresh, unique, interesting. The romance errs on the darker side of things, given all that happens to Molly from the start to the end of the book. #devastated with what went down with Abbadon. I can’t even imagine the pain and fear and just… ugh. Anywhoodle. This is a mature read for those who don’t mind putting up with two characters who are almost painfully true to themselves, even if their personas below the surface are something different than what they show each other.

Definitely a recommended read!

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