When Cora attends her sister’s birthday party, she expects at most a hangover or a walk of shame. She doesn’t anticipate a stolen wallet, leaving her stranded and dependent on Dean—her arch nemesis and ultimate thorn in her side.

And she really doesn’t anticipate waking up in shackles in a madman’s basement.

To make matters worse, Dean shares the space in his own set of chains.



⚠️ Dark Romance ⚠️



I’ve been back and forth on how I wanted to review this book. After some thought, I’m in between. The beginning started off strong and had my attention. The kidnapping was fast and horrible. They were held hostage in a basement for weeks. Cora and Dean struggled to hold on and fight back.

There were a lot of moments that I didn’t care for in this story. I missed the dark romance warning, pay attention to that. It didn’t go how I expected, just not the book for me. I don’t want to give much away, but I will say Cora’s sister is the worst and still bothers me.

I truly just adore this book. This story, this author. i absolutely just fall into these characters & this story.

This was my second read, as the first i read the paper copy. I really enjoyed the story as much as the first time but their voices just weren’t what i had envisioned for the characters so it was hard for me to consume sometimes.

overall, adore the story!

Trigger Warnings: Vivid depiction of sexual assault, murder, and suicide. - This is a drak romance

“Every love story is worth writing, no matter how messy it might be..."

I loved that it was so bare, tragic, poignant, and profound. This book was extremely well-written the reason that it brings very vivid images, sharing you the pain and horror the main characters both endured when they were abducted. This was a very beautiful story set in the most ugliest environment.

This is a story centered between two long-time nemesis, brought together by a horrible circumstance, and developed feelings during a moment of survival that chained them forever. They escaped the horror of that place. But the trauma that it caused and the barrier that was awaiting, Maddy—Cora's sister and Dean's fiancee—made the story more intricate, adding more complications for the main characters to grow.

I won't make this long. I just want to say that I loved Jennifer Hartmann for making the second and the third part of the story emotional. I loved that she took the story in that direction. Why? Because I've got to see and feel how they recovered from the trauma that they both suffered when they escaped that hell. Every guilt and shame that Cora felt for falling in love with her sister's fiance was shown effectively. The story made me delve deeper making me understand, and giving me the answers I needed whether the love they felt for each other was real, or if it was just merely an illusion of everything they've both been through.

Overall, I extremely loved the book. Dean and Cora easily claimed a spot as one of my favourite couples. This is my first book by this author but I can already tell that she is a great storyteller. If you do try this one, please go in blind. It's not safe. It's dark. It's disturbing. It's heartbreaking. It's confusing. But it's love.

I recommend this to those who like Jennifer Hartmann, dark, captive, enemies to lovers, forbidden, love triangle, taboo, second chance, emotional read, and a happily ever after.

"He places his hand over my heart, while reaching for my own hand and placing it against his. With my hand to his chest, and his to mine, our heartbeats vibrating through our fingertips, he whispers down at me, “They’re still beating. As long as they’re beating, we’re okay.”

Thank you to Netgalley and Jennifer Hartmann for the ARC.

Thank you to NetGalley for this audio ARC.I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Check the content warning before going into this book.

I'm just going to come out right and say it. I did not like this book at all. It felt like a chore to get through. I didn't like any of the characters, I felt like most of the story happens in the first 20% and then it took a nosedive into snoozeville. I didn't care for the different POVs, I didn't care for any of it really. I was expecting this to be an emotional story about trauma healing and I got a bore fest. The story in itself was one dimensional, as were the characters. The book as a whole felt really under developed and it was far longer than it needed to be.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for my honest review. Cora and Dean have known each other for 15 years and he has always been like a big brother to Cora since he started dating her sister, Mandy back in high school. Now Mandy and Dean are engaged and about to be married. Cora is out with friends one night and her wallet is stolen and leaves her stranded at a bar with no cash for a taxi. She starts calling everyone in her contacts to see if she can get a ride home but no one is answering her call at 2:30 am. Her last call is to Dean and thankfully he answers and agrees to pick her up from the bar. However, on the way home they are pulled over by flashing red and blue lights and their lives are forever changed after that. I did enjoy this book and can't imagine what these 2 had to go through in order to get home safely. The bond that they share now could go either way. Walk away from each other so that the memories of their ordeal is put in the past or stay in each other's life and try to heal from the experience together and make something good out of the bad. Enjoy!!!

Loved it!! I read this book a while back and listening to the audiobook, gave me a fresh perspective and I felt like I was going through the emotions that the characters felt

I did not expect to enjoy this book as much as I did. The audio version was fantastic and had me on the edge of my seat the entire time.

This book is so beautifully written, and I felt so many emotions while reading it. Which is why I give this book 5 stars. That being said, the audiobook was not my favorite.

I read this book and I loved it, so I had to listen the audiobook !
It was such a powerful story. Cora and Dean hate each other but one day something happened to them and binds them forever.
I was more aware of the story and loved it once again in this version.

Unfortunately this was archived before I got the chance to listen to it all. I was really looking foreword to finishing it too.

This audiobook was well done and both narrators did a fantastic job. I was engaged the entire time. This book had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish! What Dean and Cora went through was unimaginable and my heart broke the entire time I was reading this book. I love the bond that these two created and how protective he grew of her. He genuinely only wanted her to get better and the fact that he understood that couldn't happen while he was there just showed his love for her. This book is one of my top reads of the year, I just absolutely loved it. It is a dark romance, please check triggers!!


Thank you #netgalley for an early read of #stillbeating in exchange for my honest review, all opinions are my own.

Honestly, I probably would have liked this book a lot better if I liked the characters. I strongly disliked Cora, and I didn’t much care for Dean either. I found them both to be childish and plain petty. This is very “she’s not like other girls”, and I can’t seem to find the reason. Cora was extremely judgemental of literally everyone and everything, and somehow everyone still loved her. The basement section was the most emotional depth I got from the characters, and that’s saying a lot. So, clearly, it wasn’t for me.

Cora + Dean 💕
💙 Dark romance
💙 Frenemies to lovers
💙 Banter
💙 Forbidden
💙 Forced proximity
💙 Her sisters fiance
💙 Kidnapped

DARK romance - on page! Read triggers there are a lot. *One I didn't see widely mentioned is miscarriage.*
This book will definitely not be for everyone.
However I think it was a beautiful bumpy road.

Emotional heart strings pulling. Edge of my seat. This was a reread for me and I still was full engrossed in the story. Cora + Dean go through so much and we get to see the growth after the darkness as well.
The sister 🙄 is literally awful. Can't believe she wasn't more understanding. The went to hell everyday for 20 days. Give them a break!!!

The audiobook was done so well. The narrators did a beautiful job.

Thank you for this ARC.

Still Beating! I have been holding off on reading this book because of the triggers, but I am happy I did decide to listen to the audiobook and read it. The author did a good job with this story and how the character handled the situation and overcame everything they had been through. Cora, aka Corabelle, is the MFC, and Dean is the MMC. Cora attends her sister's birthday party but doesn't expect to wake up shackled in the basement with Dean and a madman doing whatever he wants to them. This story was so heart breaking, I hated what Cora and Dean had to go through, knowing it would change their lives for real. Cora and Dean struggles are unique in their own way and having to figure out how to deal with what they went through. My favorite quote from this story is, "Your heart was still beating, as long as its beating it's okay." That line along tells you whatever you are going through, you're strong.

•Thank you to Netgalley for the ALC for my honest opinion.

One hell of a wild ride, Still Beating is definitely not a romance for the faint of heart.

The narration was fantastic, both Laurie West and Christian Black truly bringing the characters of Cora and Dean to life and while I had to pause several times to collect my thoughts, I'm glad I continued to push through till the ends of this book.

While I love going into books blind, if you have anything that could potentially be triggering, please check out the content warning before diving into this story.

*sigh* I haven't cried reading a book in a while. This one did the job. I'm honestly glad I waited until I could listen to the audiobook because I loved Cora and Dean. They deserved so much more than what they were served. The nightmares they endure together, kidnapped by a serial killer, broke them. They only had each other to cling to, no matter what they were forced to do.

Dean and Cora have a connection that not even they could not deny. They met in school. Dean had a crush on her from the very moment they met eyes in that classroom. But Dean was a bit of a troublemaker towards her and he began dating her sister instead. When she finds herself drunk at a bar with no ride home, she calls him.

That's where their mutual nightmare begins. The Matchmaker was now holding them in his grasp, in a dark basement. Their forbidden romance begins soon after. Even when they managed to get out, Dean and Cora still clutch to each other for support. Her sister sees this and tries to redirect Dea towards herself. But it's no use. Dean and Cora had survived a traumatic event together. They were each other's lifeline. Their hearts beat for one another.

❈•≫────≪•◦𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒆𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕◦•≫────≪•❈
• cheating
• consent king
• dark and broody mmc
• dark romance
• enemies to lovers
• forbidden romance
• forced proximity
• grumpy x sunshine
• hate to love
• mental health rep
• morally grey
• mutual pining
• sister's fiancé
• taboo romance
• TWs: kidnapping, emotional torture, SA
• unrequited love

Wow. Sexy and seductive. This book was phenomenal and left me wanting more. I absolutely loved the narration!

This book ripped my heart out, shattered it, and then pieced it back together. What a rollercoaster!

Cora is out celebrating her sisters birthday, but ends up having her wallet stolen, no way home, and dependent on Dean, her sisters fiancé and her arch nemesis of 15 years. Both are abducted by a madman, and wake up shackled in his basement. They soon learn that he has a plan for them and the line between love and hate is blurred.

I have never met fictional characters more deserving of a HEA than Cora and Dean. The traumas they go through, and the demons they have to battle and continue to face are a true testament to the strength of their bond and love. My ONLY beef with this book is that NetGalley did not have a stronger trigger warning in the description. All it said was contains mature themes, but I was not expecting the extent of violation that occurs throughout the first 20% or so of this book.

Thank you NetGalley and Tantor Audio for my ALC of this Audio copy in exchange for my honest feedback!

This book!! I went into this blind. I saw some posts that seem split down the middle between love and hate. I loved it!!

This story is powerful, dark, and emotional. It has kidnapping, trauma, family, healing, torture, rape, violence, and some sex scenes that are hard to read because you can feel the damage between Cora and Dean created by their circumstances. This may put some people off and I get it, but what evolves through the pain, was worth the read. This is my first 5 star review in awhile!

Thanks Netgalley, Jennifer Hartmann, and the publisher for audio ARC!

WOAH. Just WOAH.

I didn’t know much about this author- but when a bunch of blogger groups are buzzing about a book, you tend to notice. So I blissfully added this to my TBR without really knowing just what I was getting myself into.

And oh my, there might not even be words. This story is dark, haunting, painful and faw- but also hopeful, sincere, and profoundly tender. A story of incredible contrasts- the dark and light, peaceful and traumatic- and what emerges is a love story that is incredibly complex and original. One that perhaps we can’t even full explain or understand, but one that we feel soul deep.

Full disclosure, this will not be a story for everyone- and not only because of the repeated disturbing and deeply painful trauma our leads suffer at the hands of a madman. Some will have trouble with the “sister swapping” trope- the complex and challenging history of Dean and Cora’s relationship as well as the “cheating” elements that ensue much later. For me, it was hard to see this as cheating -and it’s really not the POINT of this story. But, for some, it might not be your cup of tea.

And, while I normally populate the “no spoilers camp,” I feel like this is a story that I would actually go into with eyes at least somewhat open. I read many reviews so I could make sure the triggers here were what I could handle- I have very few, but to me the triggers here don’t really lie in the physical nature of the trauma- it is more so in the psychological turmoil both characters experience in the aftermath. That is what makes this story so profoundly unsettling yet beautiful- but it was hard to read, hard to experience, and at times hard to digest. So, tread lightly if you have either triggers or more strictly constructed conceptions of safety when it comes to romance. This may not be for you.

But for everyone else, this is a story that will unsettle and challenge. Early on, JH is depicting abject trauma and juxtaposing it with sweet and pure moments. And later, the story explores the lingering impact of both those experiences- not only the pain of their horrific situation but the powerful but quiet ways these two characters connected to survive, the unexpected safety they found in the most horrific experience.

I must also mention that the narrative structure of this story was really clever- a story told in multiple parts, with each part told solely from one POV, either Dean or Cora’s. It makes for such a more psychologically and immersive experience- because that is REALLy what this story is about, the nexus of trauma and connection. What is authentic vs. what is enabling or healing. And that is MESSY. So messy. But undeniably right. JH finds the most right, the most pure, the most beautiful love story within something so wrong, so depraved, and so ugly.

This is not an easy romance- but it is incredibly rewarding, if the triggers are something you can work through. You will be gutted, ripped apart, and horrified- but hopefully you’ll also find the power and light. I know I did- days later, I’m still thinking about this love story and what it says about the human heart and mind. It will stay with you- even if the journey there is far from easy.

And the audio- GAH my heart. The performances captured the emotions beautifully. It's immersive and beautifully done.