Book Review: The Dark King by Gina L. Maxwell

About the Book:

Title: The Dark King

Author: Gina L. Maxwell

Series: Deviant Kings #1

Page Length: 352

Publication Date: Sept. 27, 2022

Publisher: Entangled Pub.

Synopsis: I thought a weekend away would be the perfect escape. Until I woke up married and trapped…by the king of the Dark Fae.

“Neon Gods meets Fifty Shades… Deliciously dark and sexy!” —#1 NYT bestselling author Helen Hardt

For Bryn Meara, a free trip to the exclusive and ultra-luxe Nightfall hotel and casino in Vegas should’ve been the perfect way to escape the debris of her crumbling career. But waking up from a martini-and-lust-fueled night to find herself married to Caiden Verran, the reclusive billionaire who owns the hotel and most of the city, isn’t the jackpot one would think. It seems her dark and sexy new husband is actual royalty—the fae king of the Night Court—and there’s an entire world beneath the veil of Vegas.

Whether light or shadow, the fae are a far cry from fairy tales, and now they’ve made Bryn a pawn in their dark games for power. And Caiden is the most dangerous of all—an intoxicating cocktail of sin and raw, insatiable hunger. She should run. But every night of passion pulls Bryn deeper into his strange and sinister world, until she’s no longer certain she wants to leave…even if she could.

LINKS: Goodreads | Amazon

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My Review:

Dark King is a steamy and dark paranormal romance and the first in Gina Maxwell’s Deviant Kings series. The story follows Caiden and Bryn, who have an intense and passionate romance with total grumpy/sunshine vibes.

Overall, I enjoyed Bryn and Caiden’s romance and thought it was spicy and sexy. They both go through so much over the course of the story, and they are dependent on each other for survival, which makes their relationship even more intense. And the pull they feel toward each other is constant. However, I didn’t like the idea that Bryn was basically a captive who couldn’t leave when she wanted to. There was one scene where Caiden used his powers of compulsion during sexual acts to get information from Bryn, and I didn’t love that. I feel like she had little control over many of the things that happened to her in the story, and that scene in particular showed how much Bryn was at Caiden’s mercy. It made me dislike him a little bit and made me question their relationship. However, their chemistry and growing feelings for each other are undeniable.

The world-building is interesting, and I love the ACOTAR vibes mixed in with modern Las Vegas. It’s a unique blend. Caiden is the King of the Night Court, he and others are fae, and many of their abilities and qualities are similar to the characters in ACOTAR. I feel like we were just briefly introduced into this unusual world, and I want to know more. I have a feeling the supernatural world will be further explained as the series progresses.

One of my favorite aspects of the story is the found family Bryn finds when with Caiden. He has such a loyal and wonderful group of people surrounding him. Some are friends and some are relatives, and they make this amazing group. Bryn develops a strong connection with many of these characters and even learns a bit more about herself, and she gains a sense of belonging that she hasn’t felt in a long time. Though Bryn’s relationship with Caiden is tumultuous, Bryn’s relationship with him opens her up to this whole new world of people and support that she never expected.

Overall, this was a good read for me! When I first started reading it, I wasn’t in the right mood for the book. However, in my reread, I ended up really enjoying it. I think the book will appeal to people who enjoy erotic romance or dark fantasy/romance, but know that it’s described as A Court of Thorns and Roses meets Fifty Shades of Grey, so the spicy scenes include BDSM and explicit sex.

Thanks to Entangled Publishing for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

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