So I will start by saying I don't think this was a book that suited my usual tastes. I have read some dark romances before but I'm a sap for contemporary all day every day. 

This one started off well- you were thrown straight into the story where they meet. Now keep in mind that I haven't read any of the other books in the series (and from what I gather, you don't really need to unless you want to see some glimpses of the characters lives from the previous books) so I don't know this author's style of writing very well.

I was intrigued by Stella. Her trauma from the stalker was pretty well done. It wasn't just mentioned and forgotten about- Ana Huang made sure that she jumped if a presence wasn't announced beforehand and made sure to keep some tension in scenes where she felt like she was being watched. She definitely undergoes some character growth but seems to start relying on Christian too much and gets too used to his help...and money. Her family just sucked overall and I don't think they should have been worthy of forgiveness.

Christian didn't really feel authentic. There was no reason for his violent behaviour/nature and his enjoyment of torture, His reason for his obsession with Stella doesn't seem to be enough for what it manifested into. It was overall quite weird and uncomfortable but he does help her gain her confidence. 

Overall I just didn't vibe with this book though. It might be good for a dark romance for others but it felt too cliche and boring to me. I didn't feel compelled to finish the book. There were scenes which felt excessive or unnecessary that I didn't think added to the story either,