Original Sinner is forced proximity romantasy with a side of BDSM kink. The banter and tension between the two main characters, Charlotte and Lucifer, was so much fun to read. Charlotte is escaping her life by running to New York. She’s just trying to experience what she believes life is “meant to be”. Lucifers arc is redemption, though he IS the devil, so he can’t be all good! The supporting characters are fleshed out enough that they assist in bringing the story to life.
Great start to what is hopefully a new series. I’ll certainly be reading it!

This book kept my attention from the opening paragraph, and the story paced really well. It’s the first book I’ve read by Kait Ballenger, but it certainly wont be the last.

Note: The FMC has flashbacks to her distant and recent past which may trigger some readers. I recommend they read the Authors Note at the beginning of the book to see if it may affect them.
#NetGalley #OriginalSinner #KaitBallenger #NetGalleyArc

Thank you to Netgalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review. I did read an advance reader copy that was an uncorrected proof.

Original Sinner is more than anything the story of a young woman who has been marginalized and made to feel "less" because she is a woman and how she navigates this to turn into her true self.

Trigger warnings for this book include (copied from the books' trigger warmings): heavy themes of religious trauma with frequent references to shame, sex, virginity, self-worth, body image, body shaming, purity culture, the concept of sin and the role those assigned female at birth are expected to play in the fundamentalist Christian church. References to previous emotional, physical and sexual abuse that is parental, religious and spousal in nature and occurs mostly off page. There is manipulation, stalking, references to drug/alcohol abuse, forced confinement and the nonconsensual drugging of a secondary character. It references forced marriage and pregnancy, graphic violence and murder, and a healthy dose of swearing.

The characters are likeable, and the story is alright. In its current form, it has lots of potential, but just didn't achieve it. For me, the references to religion and God were a little awkward. It felt like it was trying to be "Netflix Lucifer" but it landed for me as "Generic Lucifer" not as witty or smart as the original and a little cringy at times. That is not to say this is a police drama- our Main Character, Charlotte takes a job working in Lucifer's corporation as an intern to his secretary and things take off from there.

This book is heavy on the spice, it is well written and the chemistry between the characters is on point. I know in the author's note she indicates that "it's an exorcism of my own demons" and it is readily apparent. I could tell at points in the story this was absolutely what was going on, and while I applaud the author for facing her demons and offering others the opportunity to do the same, for me, it distracted from the story when I became aware of this fact. Maybe I am not the target audience, even though I love a good, spicy romance with domineering men who take charge in the bedroom. For this reason, I gave this book 3 stars.....trying to give it the benefit of the doubt. For me personally, it was closer to a two star read- I finished it, but I considered not finishing at several parts. I am also not likely to read any other books in this series......but that isn't to say I wouldn't read this author's work. I think she is a good writer.

I could not put this down!
I don’t know how this isn’t solely 5 stars because it was well written and fun to read.
The story was different than the normal church girl and bad boy, for obvious reasons.
I’m really hoping it becomes a series!


Romance 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Crying ❌
Laughing ❌
Kicking feet ❌
Action 👊🏻👊🏻

I’m giving this book 3 stars because while it had potential, it ultimately felt too cliché for my taste. The premise—a regular person caught up in a scandal involving Lucifer—was intriguing at first, and I appreciated the dark, seductive atmosphere the author built around the character of Lucifer. His power and charm were undeniably captivating, and the chemistry between the characters was palpable.
That said, the writing was engaging enough to keep me reading, and there were some fun, steamy moments that helped balance out the predictability. If you're a fan of forbidden romance and power dynamics, you might enjoy this one more than I did.

this was a strong start to the Original Sinner series, it had that element that I wanted and enjoyed about this type of book. The characters had that feel that I was looking for and enjoyed the overall concept of this. Kait Ballenger has a strong writing style and enjoyed the way the characters worked in this universe. I'm excited for more as this was wonderfully done.