I was completely enamoured by the cover and just had to check this book out! And let me tell you, I was not disappointed. Far from it actually!
The plot, the main characters, the side characters, the spice! Everything was incredible!
I stayed up late to finish this book, couldn't put it down!
If you love a book with an overprotective MMC who will stand behind his woman and let her burn the world to ashes, this one is for you.
Kai was the perfect book boyfriend and while Eryn's lack of self-preservation and stubbornness got on my nerves quite a bit, in the end she realised her own power and took charge, and I like her for it.

This was a fun, slow burn but steamy book with fated mates, shadow daddy (yes please) and enemies to lovers.

Eryn has grown up fleeing from anyone who becomes aware of what she is. Trust is defintely not a thing for her. Kaiden's is a sweet, protective and all he wants is Eryn. His self talk had me laughing so hard. You just have to fall in love with their journey with Kai trying to get Eryn to trust him enough to give their bond a shot. There are some very swoon worthy moments!

Even SC Rani and Ezra were characters who you loved and wanted to see more of, thankfully they will be book 2 - I am waiting for that one.

This was so close to 5 stars. I know Eryn had a rough life and doesn't trust but the amount of running away instead of facing things, locking herself in the bedroom, sulking or pouting kind of threw me off. It felt a bit repetitive.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving my honest review voluntarily. Thank you E.M. Rinaldi for allowing me to read this book early!

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC! Here is my honest review:

Bonded Nightmare was a spicy romance with just the right amount of warm and fuzzy on top!
I enjoyed the main characters, and their banter. The pacing of the romance was perfect. And the side characters were a perfect addition of funny best friend energy.
The story and plot is heavy on the romance, with only small elements of magic and world building, but I enjoyed the magic and even would have liked more. However, there is nothing wrong with a romance driven plot, if that's what you're looking for! There's nothing crazy new about the romance in this story, but I liked the different take on bonds and mates in a world of multiple supernaturals.
If you're looking for a romance heavy story, with steamy scenes, a panty dropping "protect her at all costs" male protagonist, and a sassy female protagonist - you will love this book!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

Thank you to NetGalley and to the author for the ARC of this book - the following thoughts are my own.

One of the things I liked the most about this book is that we get a very good backstory of the world it takes place in. Sometimes I find myself losing interest in fantasy novels because there’s:

1. not enough information about the fantasy world created/backstory so I feel lost for the majority of the story
2. The explanation is too complicated and I end up forgetting most of it a few pages in

This was not the case for this book. The backstory was explained well and in detail, without being so overwhelming that you forget after a few minutes. At no point did I feel like I had no idea what was going on.

The enemies to friends to lovers trope is a guilty pleasure of mine so imagine my delight when I got a full book of it while also dealing with the aspect of bonds/soulmates. The relationship between the two main characters was built up well without feeling rushed and I felt I was provided with enough time to get to know the characters and understand where they’re coming from. All my questions throughout the book were answered and I was not left disappointed by the ending. The smut scenes were also very well executed so if you’re looking for some sexy scenes with a well thought out plot, this is the book for you.

So why didn’t I give it 5 stars? Mostly due to the number of times I wanted to get into the book to shake some sense into Kai (and not always in a good way). He’s loyal, protective and in love but oh boy does he go about showing it completely wrong sometimes.