A steamy romance with plenty of spiciness

The characters are wonderful and i loved the writing and look forwad to reading much much more of this author

Thanks to Netgalley, the publisher, and author for the copy of this eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book will most likely really appeal to fans of this genre/trope, but it was too much for me. The writing style works, but I wasn't prepared for what I was going to read. There is a story, and it's well-witten, but the subject matter just isn't my thing.

Honestly shifter books are not usually my thing, however I found that I absolutely whipped through this book. The characters were interesting enough that I would read the next one when it comes out. The only part that got me was the gymnasium scene with all of the alphas.

Thank you NetGalley and author Darcy Fayton for the copy in exchange for an honest review.

"Haunted by her dark past, nineteen-year-old wolf shifter Kira enrolls in Volmasque Academy with a single goal: to unite the wolf packs and overthrow their vampire oppressors. Little does she know that she's caught the attention of a dangerous enemy, one who would kill her if he discovered her secret.

Nathaniel, a powerful vampire with an icy heart, humiliates Kira in order to claim her for himself. He expects her to sit, and stay, and wear a plug like a good pet. But Kira is not so easily tamed, and he soon realises that she is not his pet—she is his death.

As Kira and Nathaniel navigate a dangerous power dynamic, forbidden desires rise to the surface, threatening to reveal their true natures, and they will both discover just how far they are willing to go for revenge, power...and even love."

This is the first book in the Plug And Claim Duology. This is a spicy book and please read at your own risk.

Quick Summary: A dark, disturbing supernatural romance

My Review: Plug and Claim by Darcy Fayton is part 1 in the Plug and Claim Duology. It is a BDSM fantasy fiction novel with a slow burn romance, heavy spice, and ever-increasing drama. It presents as an enemies to lovers story.

About the Book: The Revolution between vampires and wolves changed the course of history. A societal hierarchy was established that elevated one group over another. One group became the dominant pleasure seekers, while the other group became passive submissives with a penchant for pleasure taking...if they were open to doing so. Volmasque Academy just so happened to serve as the bridge and point of access for vampires and wolves alike. When wolf shifter and long lost heir, Kirabelle, forcibly entered the halls of the academy for training, she had a specific plan for herself. Unfortunately, the vampire prince had another. For both, what was initially clear quickly became murky and convoluted.

My Final Say: This story was multifaceted. There were so many things at play. I didn't want to miss anything.


What Captured My Attention: (abbreviated to avoid spoilers)

- Although BDSM was a huge part of what was going on in this book, there was actually more to it.

- The leads both had compelling backgrounds.

- The connection that Kira and Nathaniel had was evident from their first encounter until their last encounter.

- The contrast between what was good and what was evil was alluded to throughout.

- The true villain was present even when he was absent.

- The macro/micro scenarios for the groups proved interesting.

- That ending! (Can you say cliffhanger?)


Questions Needing Answers: (coded to avoid spoilers)

- What is the real story behind the lost magic?

- Who is really dead and who is really alive?

- Is there a prophecy that tells the story of the seemingly fated mates?

- How does the puzzle fit together where the triangle is concerned?

- Will the protagonist get what's coming to him?


Other: This book had multiple triggers. It is not for every reader. It gets a HUGE red light rating. All interested readers should thoroughly review the author's notes. You have been warned.

Rating: 4/5
Audience: A
Status: M
Level: 🚨🚨🚨

Thank you to the author, to the publisher, and to NetGalley for the opportunity to review Plug and Claim. The words I have voluntarily shared are my own thoughts and opinions. I look forward to reading Plug and Tame.

This book unfortunately was not for me, as someone only dipping their toe into the Dark Romance genre. But in the book’s favour the spicy scenes were well done and the MCs seemed to have chemistry which is really good.

Rating 3 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Plug and Claim is an adult version of Vampire Diaries with all the spice. Wolves and Vampires academia romantasy in all its glory. I can’t wait to read the next book.

I’m a little conflicted on this one. I love me a dark romance…add in the paranormal elements of witches, shifters, and vampires and I was super excited to get into this one. I’m also good with reading romances with BDSM elements. However, something in this book just did not work for me. Degradation and humiliation aren’t really my thing…not yucking anyone’s yum here, just stating a fact about myself. Nathaniel and Kira had lots of heat and chemistry. The spice in this book is through the roof! Unfortunately, for me it took too long to get into the plot of the story. This is the first book in a duology, so I am interested in seeing what happens next.

Unfortunately, this book wasn't for me.

I think the spicy scenes were done really well but everything else didn't work out. There were a lot of inconsistencies with the relationship and plot development as well as the characters.

Kira, our FMC, who wanted to change the world, made no moves towards her goal after her initial plan went awry. She was described to have a lot of skills like knife combat for example but they were just baseless words. The perfect idiom would be to say, all bark no bite. Nathaniel, our MMC, seemed to contradict his character when the POVs switched. In his POV, he's depicted to be a classic nice guy and his thoughts mirrored the same but in Kira's POV, it was the opposite. He was cruel and exhibited a morally gray character. Both of their characters felt incomplete.

After the initial buildup of something big, it all devolved into a story focused on the master/slave relationship of our main characters. The worldbuilding and plot became nonexistent and were pushed to the sidelines. Our main characters unfortunately had no intimacy (not sex). Suddenly, our MMC declares himself in love which is again contradictory to his character, when he's actually planning to marry someone else. Furthermore, the relationship between our MCs and their relationship with other characters felt shallow since it wasn't given enough attention.

As we got closer to the ending, a lot of revelations and details started overflowing. The cliffhanger also felt inadequate and failed to make an impact. I think writing this book as an erotica that focused on the BDSM relationship of our MCs in this world dynamics would have been amazing. A very intriguing world but had a disappointing execution.

Thank you Netgalley and Darcy Fayton for this ARC.

This book was a really fun read! I just wish the title and cover were not so embarrassing *wipes sweat off forehead* I like the BDSM, dark paranormal romance genre, but I don't want everyone else to know I'm reading it. I thought the plot-to-smut ratio was good, which is hard to balance in steamy books sometimes. I liked the idea of the werewolf/vampire feud or war, and I liked the academy setting, though I didn't quite understand the purpose of the academy within the worldbuilding. It felt like it was chosen for the plot but wasn't really explained WHY this society had an academy like this, how students were chosen, and what they were supposed to be learning.

There was one typo I noticed towards the second half of the book (I didn't get the page, sorry) where it says, "'Get dressed. I'll take you to out for breakfast in the city,' he said." It could instead be "I'll take you to breakfast in the city" or "I'll take you out for breakfast in the city". Overall, though, the grammar and style were pretty good.

I am rating it 3 stars, because I found it entertaining and enjoyable, but it just didn't really stand out to me as something I would recommend compared to books I liked more this year.

Kira is a 19 years old wolf shifter who is found by Nathaniel, the vampire prince, to get her to the Volamasque Academy. An academy where the vampires dominate the wolf shifters till they are they pets.
In this book you'll find BDSM, some other trigger warnings, dual pov and a cliffhanger (the second book releases in january 2024)
Please read the trigger warnings because this is a dark paranormal romance with a lot of spicy.

- I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange of an honest review -

This book was kindly sent to me as an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Rating: 3 ⭐️
Genre: Paranormal Dark Romance
Format: ARC Ebook
Pages: 380
Spice: 3 🌶️
POV: Double third POV
S/S: Plug and Claim #1
Check trigger warnings for any book

This was spicy. Plot? Somewhat there but not what we’re here for.

We follow Kira and Nathaniel, a werewolf and a vampire, as they develop a peculiar relationship.

The relationship develops very quickly, it does feel a bit insta-lovey. This whole book’s timeline happens in less than a month. Especially the biggest development happened over a weekend.

Plot-wise, there was a good premise but this book is way more a character romance-heavy than an adventure plot-heavy book. We kind of get a « Kira is going to bring the government down », but nothing happens.

Also, the whole thing about Nathaniel needing to get married before his birthday was mentioned quite a few times, but they didn’t do anything to work towards that.

Romance-wise, very very veryyyy fast development. Overnight feelings. But as for the spice, nothing to critic. We’re here for the spice and the spice was delivered. Very heavy on the BDSM.

The bad king is mentioned loads but doesn’t have much impact. The Academy doesn’t make too much sense, we kind of just accept it as it is. Also no explanation for Susie’s situation?

Also that last chapter? Very confused and ickyyyyy.

Overall it’s a fine enough book, don’t go into it for the political plot, go in this for the spice. I’ll read the sequel!

FAVORITE QUOTES (possible spoilers!!!):

« It made little difference to Kira - vampires could suck a dick for all she cared. »

« He was beautiful in the same way a dream was beautiful before it transformed into a nightmare - ominous and clouded with darkness. »

« And for all that the white sock claimed of innocence, he knew she thought of killing him mire than any other wolf he’d ever met. And that was hot. »

« Try as he might, his heart beat only for Kira. »

« Ironically, the prospect of seducing Nathaniel terrified her more than killing him did. »

« In a matter of minutes, her lips would be on the enemy’s cock. »

« He was beautiful. Fucked in the head, but… beautiful. »

« There isn’t a good enough incentive in the world for me to give you up. »

« What does it feel like? » « Like I’m the luckiest man alive. »

Leena - Leena.reader review - @leena.reader on tiktok and instagram

Kira (the FMC) is a shifter who has a secret.... and unfortunately, she's just been captured and taken to the Volmasque Academy by a handsome, powerful vampire, Nathaniel (the MMC).

In an attempt to claim Kira as his, Nathaniel humiliates her in of her shifter kin and the damage is done. Kira is now Nathaniel's pet and is expected to act as such. Only maybe he has some secrets of his own? And maybe some feelings are starting to creep in???

I really liked this book. Not only is the book extremely spicy, high steam and not for pearl clutchers, I loved the main characters and the world around them. The plot is straight forward, which is good because that means there's more time to spend in the bedroom.

🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ 🌶️🌶️ /5
(It broke the spice-o-metre)

✨ Dual POVs
✨ Vampires 🦇
✨ Shifters 🐾
✨ Enemies to lovers 💞
✨ Age gap
✨ He fell first ❤️
✨ BDSM ✴️

Despite the "master-pet" relationship, the author peppers the book with tender and sweets moments between the MCs. So you can't help but root for them as they try and navigate a world that is truly against shifters as a species.

The book ends in a cliffhanger and I cannot wait to read book 2, which comes out in January 2024.

DNF 25%
Thank you for the opportunity to read and review this book. Unfortunately, it’s not for me.

What I liked:
~The cover is gorgeous. It caught my attention and drew me in.
~The blurb is great. I love vampires, werewolves, and dark romance so this sounded right up my alley.
~The world-building is really interesting. I love the idea of born vs made vampires, and I love an academy setting.

What didn’t work for me:
~I’m not connecting emotionally to the characters.
~Too much telling, not enough showing.
~I love dual POV, but it’s not balanced enough. It doesn’t have to be 50/50, but in the first 14 chapters, Nathaniel only has two (and it’s a bit repetitive with Kira’s parts in the carriage).
~The opening scenes are not very active. There’s a lot of standing around while reminiscing about previous events. I would have preferred a more active narrative. Perhaps starting with the moment Kira shifts and someone sees what she is. Then racing home and having a heartfelt goodbye with her foster parents before they leave. Bits of world-building could have been fed into this and I’d feel more emotionally invested in the story.
~I’m not a fan of the super short one-scene per-chapter division of this book. Having over fifty chapters feels excessive and disjointed. I prefer multi-scene chapters.

Because this is a DNF, I won’t review this on Goodreads or Amazon.

I wish the author all the best for her release.

This is a hard review for me. I stay fairly open-minded going in to any new book. With that being said please read all trigger warnings before reading this.

For me this had a too much non-consent to the point where it overpowered the story.

I liked this concept and I enjoyed most of the story itself. However, in my opinion this would have been an amazing dom/sub book with the storyline without the strong abuse/non-consent.

I did enjoy the writing style which is a huge bummer simply because I will not move forward reading anymore in this series. My reasoning is due to the warnings the author gave about the next book being even harsher in terms of the non-consent and trigger warnings.
I do appreciate the openness and how up front the author is, that is a plus.
_______________
I just reviewed Plug and Claim: An addictive enemies-to-lovers Steamy Dark Paranormal Romance by Darcy Fayton. #plugandclaim #NetGalley

I got this book from Netgalley. I wish to thank the author for allowing me to read this book. This book was an amazing epic read. It has everything that has to be there in a dark enemies-to-lovers romance. The book is very well-written. The plot, the story everything is perfect. I started reading this book and could not put it down. The plot is so interesting that I was on the edge of my seat and the cliffhanger at the end of the book...lol...I was not expecting that. I knew something big would happen but not that.....anyway you're warned there is a spicy cliffhanger. I can't wait to read the next book.

P.S. If the author is reading I would say please please change the book cover. Create something beautiful that depicts the story well. The current book cover does not depict it well. The story is so good so I think the book cover should be excellent.

This was fantastic. I will be honest and say that I chose this book blindly, liking the pretty pink and black cover and was intrigued by the “plug” in the title and wondered if it was about what I thought it would be about (It was, in the best way!). I did wonder if this was just going to be pure smut, little plot (which I wouldn’t have been upset about) but truthfully it has a wonderful plot. The worldbuilding is enriched, there’s a lot going on to take in and the pacing for the information is well paced. It’s a very well written story and I absolutely adore the two main characters, Kira & Nathaniel. They are brilliant characters, it’s really good fun to read their different POVs as things are happening and it’s just great.
Nathaniel is a vampire, Kira is a werewolf and the dynamic is great. It’s an age gap (he’s older), it’s niche, it is a Dom/Sub dynamic and there are trigger warnings a plenty so make sure you check those out. I never do, I see a massive list of trigger warnings and always think, “the more the merrier” and usually view them as a challenge so I tend to ignore those things preferring ignorance but be mindful of your own mental health because like any BDSM/ Smut there will always be dark themes.
I enjoyed this book so much but I will be having words with Darcy because THAT ENDING? When I tell you I almost threw my kindle in absolute shock, I was not expecting that and got a little caught up in what was happening so it blindsided me. I need to know what happens next.
Also, side note on the relationship between Kira & Nathaniel but it is proper enemies to lovers, and there’s a few things that made me laugh but there’s something related to that which had me howling in laughter. It’s all just so well done. So, if this is a subject that you like, you will enjoy this story.

Plug & Claim is being published on 31/12/2023
#plugandclaim #NetGalley

Vampires and werewolves but a bit different than the usual, and quite the complex and often tortuous ride! Nothing is as it seems, hidden agendas abound, and who shall win in the end. A fair amount of BDSM, definitely not for the prudish - but for every paranormal romance reader out there! Ends on a craggy cliff, waiting for the next one!!!!

This is a mind bending book. I love the world that the author has created for us to play in. The history and the society and how they mesh and intertwine is stunning. The characters are so vibrant, bright, and oddly enough realistic, that I want to be there interacting with them. The plot is a very twist little rollercoaster and the cliffhanger is killer. I am waiting on the edge of my seat for the second part of the duology.