Does It Hurt?

I'm fighting everyone who recommended this book.

I dove in head-first into the dark "romance" category, it would seem. I had no clue what kind of story I was getting myself into, but this one was... certainly something. The author seems to prefer shock value to an actual story line. The characters are insufferable and have a very toxic relationship that doesn't make any sense. The filler in between SA scenes is an odd, poorly written ghost story. I ended up not finishing this one after the post glow worm cave shower scene. Would not recommend.

it was good between like 75% and 85% then it became cheesy and dragging

3.5⭐️

I'm going to ignore everything wrong with this book and say that I did like it.
It wasn't perfect but I was sooooo entertained

I feel like the whole story tied together really well at the end and the creepy vibes?? Loved it

There were times where I wanted to crawl out of my skin from embarrassment but the plot was original.
I was way more interested in finding out the lighthouse story and how she was going to figure out her life than whatever the hell she had going on with Enzo, which is a first cause I'm mostly in it for the romance 99% of the time.

all i gotta say is.. the epilogue.... in the- in the cage??????

I won't say that this book is one of my best reads and I also won't say that it sucks, but I'll surely say that at the beginning I wasn't really interested in it. I guess it is bcuz moving a bit too slow and then the at the end it was just stretching. Butttt I guess for the readers that like stories of this genre will totally appreciate it, the smut was amazing which increased my rating for the book.

Sure, I was drawn to this book due Haunting Adeline series.
Yes, I listen to the audiobook of it in just a few days. But even though I found myself enjoying the first chapters I soon got frustrated with it.

The way Swayers character changes from being a badass woman to a naive girl, the problematic plot that sometimes makes no sense, as truly two clever and strong physically and not only, people will be OK of being locked up every day without any reason, believing in ghosts without suspicion... and many more.

Yes, it could be a marvelous piece of work, but unfortunately it disappointed me and I can't get over the many unsatisfied plot holes it has.

4.5 stars.

- Dark Romance
- Morally Grey Characters
- Enemies to Lovers
- Thriller / Suspense
- Complicated Past
- Trapped on Island / Shipwrecked
- Forced Proximity
- Dual POV (Duet Audio)
- Juicy Smut
- Heavy Content*

* Trigger Warnings: mention of sexual assault, incest, rape, dub-con, violence, degradation, murder, depression, anixety

I enjoyed every single bit of this book. There was some heavy topics discussed in the book but overall it was great. I was definitely NOT expecting homeboy in the lighthouse to be so unhinged but wanting to know what his deal was really kept me hooked on the book. Something about him had me thinking he was weird BUT NEVER did I think he had his child captive. The description that the author gave and my very weird imagination had my heart hurting for that poor girl, I did wish that she hadn't died but then again I felt like she needed to be free and that was her way of doing it. I was also quite happy that Sawyer got to keep her name.

3.5 ✨

Really love the thriller story line! I honestly had no idea where it would go and it kept me reading which is a good thing because Enzo Vitale is so beyond infuriating! And he brought of the worst in Sawyer so I couldn't take her most of the time either. But all in all a great thriller and I'm looking forward to reading my next H.D. Carlton.

The type of couple to break up after the epilogue but then gets back together & then they just keep breaking up and getting back together over the course of 5 years

This was the May book pick for the Lost in Romance Book Club that I cohost with Michelle. I hadn't heard of this book until Michelle suggested it as our next book club book and while I was skeptical at first I have to say I'm glad we went with this book because in the end I enjoyed it. 

I would describe this book as a dark romantic suspense. I don't tend to read a whole lot of romantic suspense even though I am interested in them it's just hard to find ones that are well balanced. Luckily this one in my opinion balances the romance and the suspense really well. When I read the synopsis for this book I thought it sounded intriguing and then I started reading the book and I was like what the actual hell am I reading but I kept reading and the more I read the more I didn't want to stop reading. I was hooked on the romance from the very beginning  even though I know it's very very problematic. 

This book has the action, the smut, the angst honestly it has a little bit of everything. Some things were pretty predictable and somethings were a little lets say stupid like how can 2 grow ass people truly believe that the noises they are hearing are from ghosts? I didn't really care all that much for the suspense side of the story because I was all about the romance. I didn't hate the suspense or anything though. One thing I will say is that Enzo's reaction to what Sawyer did was overkill in my opinion. It definitely made for an explosive read though.

I liked this book, it was dark, thrilling, spicy, mild horror, and adventurous. The sharks were a huge bonus.

Lots of trigger warnings. The author tells you what they are in the beginning of the book.

Sawyer and Enzo. Kind of enemy lovers to a couple in love. Forced-Proximity.

“And that's exactly why I want to hate you. I was sleepwalking until I met you, and I wasn't fucking ready to wake up.”

Spice: 5/5
Plot: 3/5

2 or 2.5 This story was too long. Lots of spice but it got fairly repetitive. I started to get a bit bored in the middle and debated DNFing. Definitely check your TW before reading.