5/5. Highlights may contain spoilers. Read at your own risk.

Content Warnings for book: Alcoholism, domestic violence (not between MCs), emotional abuse, gaslighting, on-page rape (not between MCs), death, hospitals, parental death (referenced), vomiting

Kink: N/A

A note that many of the CWs listed happen on-page, in detail, mostly in flashbacks or recalled memories. One MC inhabits the body of an abuser and this, obviously, comes with its complications.

This book is over 450 pages — and it didn’t feel like it, at all. I was engrossed on every page. Being in the heads of Cal and Dawson, their perspectives and character voices were wonderfully different. Raine is good at weaving emotion and connection between these two.

I don’t want to say too much about the plot - I really think it’s good to read it yourself with only the blurb as the premise. However, if you’re worried about it, there is a reveal of the paranormal aspect to the story. The truth does come out. Albeit, I do think it’s a tad rushed. I imagine the paranormal world building comes out much clearer in Gabe’s book, so I’m content to wait. Really, this is the author’s first series, and one of my other favorite authors struggled a bit with paranormal element pacing too in the beginning. Now they do it effervescently, and I believe Raine can do the same.

One thing I’ll note is: I saw complaints about Kieran and Olivia’s reactions. Why? Yes, they were flawed human beings. Yes, they were sometimes rude to Dawson. It’s also known that cutting yourself off from someone who is being abused - with harsh judgement, pushing them - really just robs them of a supportive network. However, I am sure if we had a friend who finally was ready to commit to a divorce and had real set out plans to leave and then all of a sudden we see all these things from an outside perspective… we might be angry and upset too.

I don’t really enjoy angst and slow burn, but it doesn’t matter here because this did it for me