Synopsis:
A conflicted villain and his unstoppable bride form the realm’s most chaotic alliance in this riotously funny dark romantasy perfect for fans of Assistant to the Villain, but darker and spicier.

“What’s mine stays mine.”

Step One: Kidnap someone cute.
Step Two: Force her into marriage.
Step Three: Try not to catch feelings.

When Dark Lord Kazimir Blackrose kidnaps Lady Arabella for a forced marriage, he expects an obedient, trembling bride. What he gets is a knife to the throat and a furious woman with demands of her own. He may need her heroic bloodline to achieve ultimate dominion, but she’s not about to make this easy for him.

Arabella has already survived her father’s tower prison and a lifetime of being treated like property. Getting abducted by the realm’s most notorious villain is just another Tuesday. If she must be married to the infuriating (and infuriatingly attractive) Dark Lord, she’ll do it on her terms: freedom within his fortress, hands strictly to himself, and complete honesty about his plans.

But when those plans go awry, Kazimir faces his most terrifying challenge yet: he must date his own wife. Between magical training sessions, playing golf with the eyeballs of his enemies, and aphrodisiac dinners gone spectacularly wrong, his attempts at villainous seduction are failing at every turn.

As Kazimir and Arabella navigate magical explosions and jealous exes, they discover a far more terrifying prospect than war or magical catastrophe: They might actually be falling for each other.

This dark and sexy fantasy romance is perfect for readers who love: a morally gray antihero (who stays that way); a strong heroine who embraces her dark side (she doesn’t need rescuing, thanks); the touch her and die trope; hilarious, wicked banter and sizzling spice; one bed/forced proximity; kidnapped bride/forced marriage; and dark humor.

Review:
“Marriage, it turned out, was an annoyingly complicated arrangement.” (Page 143)

This book is the perfect amount of banter mixed with slow (earned) trust and romance. While Kazimir clearly seems emotionless it is obvious that Arabella is more than a force to be reckoned with. I absolutely loved watching as Kaz attempted to woo Arabella with gifts and food (*ahem* aphrodisiacs) and as they learn more about the others abilities, even more amusement was had. I loved the back and forth between the two characters, and how Arabella, though publicly known as a troublesome and having lit someone on fire, had much more intensity (and tragic backstory) than one would expect. This book made me hate her father, love Kaz, and need the next book immediately. The slow burn of this was absolutely perfect, and I absolutely love how, despite being kidnapped, Arabella very much is not a damsel in need of rescue. Seeing Kaz develop feelings and open up was lovely, as was getting to see Arabella use those court manners that she would have had drilled into her. This book was everything and I cannot wait to continue on in the next.

Star rating: ✯✯✯✯✯