Between the Devil and the Sea

3.5 stars. I loved the sci-fi elements of this story. I can't reveal too much because of spoilers, but they made the darker parts of Shadow and Apollo's relationship (so basically, all the parts) much more palatable, which was needed for me because I'm not too accustomed to reading very dark romances.

The main character, Shadow, has severe abandonment issues and is plagued with intense self-loathing. While at times repetitive, I think the way those issues were tackled by way of the psychological aspects of the dark romance was very smart.

This is a long book for a romance. The first 300 or so pages or so felt like they could have been condensed without sacrificing too much of the content. But I'm not too upset because the payoff was worth it, ending in a happily ever after.

If you're thinking of reading this, please download a sample of the book and read the author's note first. I'll give an excerpt of it here:

‘Again, this book does have a HEA, It features two people who, by the end, decide to put their relationship above everything else, including the bad things that may or may not have transpired between them. This relationship is messy, twisted and in many ways, wrong. To reiterate, I in no way shape, or form condone anything mentioned in above in real life. This is purely fictional.'

This is explicitly categorized as a dark MM romance, so you've been warned; please heed the trigger warnings and remember to put your mental heath first :)