Tarnished Embers

Dark Retellings #2

by Rosa Lee

Instead of two ugly stepsisters, I get four gorgeous stepbrothers.
Caspian, Oct, Kit and Prince.
The twins and their older stepbrothers. All more beautiful than the last. All as dark and depraved as demons. All with wounds that run so deep, there's no way to heal them.
Sounds like a fairytale right?

Wrong.

I do get the wicked stepmother, and when my father dies not long after their marriage, everything changes and suddenly all their secrets come to light and I'm in the middle of something that nightmares are made from.

There's no fairy godmother coming to magic me a pumpkin coach and a pretty dress. No Prince Charming to rescue me from a life of torment and punishment.
Just four wicked boys with black souls, and dark pasts who are just as trapped as I am.

Tarnished Embers is a dark whychoose stepbrother fairytale retelling, where our girl (and the guys) will end up with more than one love interest. If you love broken bad boys, a FMC who's not afraid to take what she wants and don't mind a whole load of heartache then this is the book for you! Be warned, love hurts.

***Warning: 18+ Please be aware that this book may contain graphic scenes that some readers may find upsetting or triggering, so please read the author’s note at the beginning. ***

*Disclaimer: Please note. Rosa Lee cannot be held responsible for the destruction of underwear of any kind. She recommends you take adequate precautions before reading to avoid any sticky situations.*

Genres: Dark Romance, Why Choose, Romance, Dark, M M Romance, BDSM, Smut

Kindle Edition

Published March 30, 2024

About the author

Rosa Lee lives in a sleepy Wiltshire village, surrounded by the beautiful English countryside and the sound of British Army tanks firing in the background (it’s worth the noise for the uniformed dads in the local supermarket and doing the school run!).

Rosa loves writing dark and delicious whychoose romance, and has so many ideas trying to burst out that she can often be found making a note of them as soon as one of her three womb monsters wakes her up. She believes in silver linings and fairytale endings...you know, where the villains claim the Princess for their own, tying her up and destroying the world for her.

If you’d like to know more, please check out Rosa’s socials or visit

www.rosaleeauthor.com

https://Linktr.ee/RosaLeeAuthor

Reviews

[Kursed Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five years after losing her mother to cancer, Ember Everly finds herself coming face-to-face with Odette, her father's surprise wife. Following behind her, her four new stepbrothers.

Having been promised Ember as a reward for their loyalty, the brothers are anxious to finally have something of their own. Though they didn’t predict the intensity of their feelings or the chemistry they’d share.

“We won’t leave you alone. You are now ours. You are the first thing to ever truly belong to us, and we will never let you go.”

Rosa was unaliving me with her teasers on Insta. I was giddy when selected for an ARC and couldn’t wait to dive in. You know how when you build something up for so long it can be a disappointment? That. Did. Not. Happen. Here.

Dayum y’all!! I will admit that the story had far more depth and emotion than I was expecting. It was impossible not to fall in love with Ember who was so broken after losing her mother. While we only see snippets of the boys’ backstories, they will put you in your feelings.

All in all, this read was everything I was hoping for except all her 🕳️ filled. Is it really a why choose if she’s not stuffed clear full? Joking. Kind of. Actually, not really. But I did love this read and am excited to have found another new author to stalk. Love. I meant love.

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Burn: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Darkness: 🩶
Heat: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Range of Emotions: 😬🥵😳😭😍
Ending: 💗 {HEA}
POV: 👨🏼‍🤝‍👨🏻🧍🏼‍♂️👫🏻 {Multiple}

🗂 Genre: Dark Romance

✨ Tropes: Alphahole, Boy Obsessed, Curvy Woman, Forbidden, Found Family, Insta-Obsession, MINE!, Retelling/Reimagining, Tattooed & Pierced, Touch-Her-and-💀, Why Choose

💋 Kinks: 🍑, Biting/Marking, Cum Jammer, Dirty Talk, Domination, DVP, Finger Licking Good, Hand Necklace, Pain Play, Pierced 🐓, Praise, Somnophilia, Squirting, ⚔️

⚠️ Warning: This one-handed read may cause blushing, squirming, combusting panties, and/or self-care. It may also leave you questioning your morals.

🚩 Safety Squad: Attempted Șuìçíde (Brief On-Page), CSA (Not by H, Off-Page, Past), 🍇 (Not by H, Off-Page), Self-Harm (Cuťťìng), Vìolençė (Mild), Unalìvíng, and other potentially triggering elements. If you have any hesitation, check the warnings before diving in. Otherwise, blind is best!!

📣 Type: Tarnished Embers is a standalone.

🛑 Be Advised: My Goodreads shelves are … explicit in both senses. As such, they could be considered spoiler-y.

[tay_readsbetweenthewines · Rating 1 out of 5]

Just………..Dumb.

Dumb.
That’s all that comes to my mind.

If you like unrealistic Insta-love, extremely DUMB characters and can pick the plot within the first two chapters, sure proceed.

I was so excited for this based on the person who recommended it, they’ve never let me down until now.
My expectation was high due to the fact it was banned, but that was just straight stupid lollll I can’t believe I finished it for the sake of my trope challenge.

Annnddd, need I mention the spice wasn’t even worth it punishing myself through that.
Oh fun gang bangs. Please 🙄.

[TheSassyNerdBlog · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was my first book by this author and I am kicking myself on why I haven’t picked up a boon by Rosa Lee before. I saw the blurb to this book and knew I needed this book in my life and I was right and I was not disappointed at all.
This was AMAZING. I was hooked from page one.. and when I say I was hooked, I mean I cannot stop thinking about this book, about these characters, about everything that happened in this book, even though I finished it hours ago! I think I’m going to reread it before the weekend is up! I think this book when go down as a top read for this month and even this year. It’s definitely going to have a place in my heart.

This was a fast-paced read with a handful of tropes. It’s a dark, reverse harem, forced proximity, found family, stepbrother romantic suspense romance and was also a Cinderella retelling, and you wouldn’t think these tropes wouldn’t work well together but they did and it made for such an intriguing, suspenseful, twisted, dark and spicy plot!

Ember and her boys were incredible and the passion and heat between them all was intense, to say the least, and I’m not complaining. I was obsessed. I love my smut and this book brings you all the smut.

Even though this book was spicy AF, it also touched down on some serious topics and tackled some traumas that Ember and the boys have been through… My heart went out and hurt so much for these characters and all they had to deal with. They had so much trauma in their life for their age and it really does take hold of your heart as you read it. I think they all came together perfectly because they all helped each other learn how to heal together. It was kind of heartfelt to read in a way.

All in all, this was incredible. It had so many WTF moments, so much spice, so much pain, heartache and trauma, but also so much love, passion and heartfelt moments throughout the book. I was completely obsessed. It’s not for the faint of heart, so check the trigger warnings.

5 STARS!

[Skylar Lescord · Rating 1 out of 5]

Honestly terribly written lol. If you like cringey Wattpad books this is the one. The smut is honestly not very good and the plot had potential but the play by play of it made it bad. Definitely didn’t plan on finishing it but here we are 🥴

[Paige · Rating 1 out of 5]

no from me

I DNF’d this book at 11%. I hated the way the brothers were enamored by Ember right away. I was expecting some enemies to lovers or at least some tension or build-up before they jumped into a s€xu@l relationship. Maybe it was because their relationship is taboo but I don’t feel like any of the MC’s really struggled w/ the idea of having relations with their step sibling and I didn’t love that.

[Emma · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book has major consent problems and needed a trigger warning.

The main character hasn’t graduated high school yet. One of the first chapters involves 2 love interests pleasuring her in her sleep. She has never had a conversation with them, and didn’t know they were in the room.

[The Bookworm Hermit · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was lucky to be asked to beta read for Rosa Lee for Tarnished Embers. I cannot wait to get my hands on the final copy because the beta copy was amazing!! Ember is both broken and strong. She deals with the death of her mother and abandonment of her father while they both struggle with loss. This is a Cinderella re-telling and instead of evil stepsisters Ember gets 4!sexy as sin stepbrothers who want to make her theirs in every way.

[Courtney · Rating 2 out of 5]

honestly, one of the cringiest & worst books I’ve read but somehow I felt the need to finish it. Pretty much 90% smut and 10% plot (which was predictable).

For better step-brother romances which have an actual plot and aren’t insta-love, try the Fallen Crest series or Paper Princess series!

[Ellie Feltovic · Rating 1 out of 5]

Everything about this was a prison experience. I think the MC cried in literally every single scene of this book. At least they all went to therapy in the end.

[Sasha Viers · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow!!

I absolutely loved this book! Started off a bit differently than a lot of books I read.. but the taboo was perfect and continued throughout the whole book! The spicy was absolutely amazing and dark. Please check the triggers on this one, I can't stress it enough!

[Cassy Maart · Rating 3 out of 5]

That was an absolute fever dream. Also the guys names were Oct, Cas, Prince, and Kit. Like who did they wrong to be given those names😭?! But it was interesting. That evil step-mother was CRAZY with the stuff that she did. I was in shock. Ember was a pretty cool MC too.

[Read.and.Blossom · Rating 4 out of 5]

I highly advise to check the trigger warnings for this book. It was dark. This is supposed to be a Cinderella retelling and as expected the step mom sucked. She got what she had coming.

Our FMC had a lot of grief and I could understand why she acted the way she did at times

The MMCs were all different but they all work so great together. They have a tragic childhood and even up until the end of the book. I’m glad everyone got the help they needed in the end.

[Melissa Mendoza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cinderella retelling?

Wow. This book is all thing filth and fire!! Is it a realistic book no but it captivated me from page one and I couldn’t put it down. If you like your books filthy with a dark edge then this is the book for you!! I don’t think I stopped fanning myself the entire time I read. Bravo!

[Caley Mielke · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wowza.
My first mmfmm (is that correct?) did not disappoint. Apparently I have more books to dive in to later this year.

[Ashley Branch · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 solid stars
***Edit, 2.5 stars rounded up to 3***

Maybe I wasn't in the right frame of mind, because usually I devour a "smut over plot" situation any day. But this just didn't do it for me.
The smut was semi-boring, the plot was dumb, and I had a difficult time envisioning the scenes. Normally I can play the book out in my head, especially if there's a song list or playlist of some sort. But this was just solidly flat for me.

We've got Ember/Little Spark/Pretty Girl/Little Sis/Baby/Cinders, hoarder of nicknames, who lost her mom 5 years prior and now her and her father just kind of exist in each other's orbits. Until he just *poof* announces she got married to a random woman and now Ember has four smoking hot step-bros, Prince, Cas, and the twins Oct and Kit. The thought of her absent father so ridiculously enamoured by a woman he's known for all of 6 months that he'd completely ignore the signs of his step-sons obsessing over his daughter is laughable.
Which brings me to my next hang up. There's insta-love and then there's whatever the hell this was. It was so instant and sappy it made me cringe. And we never really get any background on what they know, why they know it, why they researched this chick, and what they found that made it so easy to fall head over heels for, in my opinion, a very boring girl. The math ain't mathin' on their obsession.
Nevertheless, they persist. Eventually all four boink this chick, usually at the same time. Like we jump DIRECTLY into DVP like it's nothing. Like these men AREN'T toting weapons of crotch destruction in their pants. I ain't buying it! And even more smoothly introduced is the anal. You're telling me this tiny girl is not only able to easily take two dongs to the ding, but her first time doing anal (with minimal preparation, might I add) is a walk in the park? Naaaaaaaaah...
They have a lot of sex and admissions of love within a 48 hour period before tragedy strikes and Ember's dad is snuffed out. Shocker! The overtly predictable plotline is overtly predictable. The ONLY thing about this book that caught me unawares is the fact that these boys/men didn't put two and two together and suspect their step mom sooner. Also, do NONE of these guys have other family? I'm expected to believe she kept custody of not one, not two, but FOUR people after their fathers ✨mysteriously✨ pass away shortly after making her acquaintance? I can only suspend my logical brain for so long.
So mommy dearest is throwing a sex party to raise some funds by whoring out her step kids AND her flesh and blood son. She makes promises that if the fellas do this, she won't put sweet Ember in harm's way. And these dudes BELIEVE her scheming ass! She even locks Ember in the attic and the guys STILL believe she'll keep her word about not letting creepy men pass her around like a bop it. These dudes are idiots. It almost made me DNF the book.
One redeeming quality in this book is the lack of a descriptive grape scene. We're given just enough to comprehend the gravity of the situation without being disproportionately exposed to those emotions. I mean the dudes irrationally fawning over Ember already sets the stage for the level of sense we experience. We can't have legit trauma stealing the show.

Anyway, everything ends on a happy, albeit rushed, note. Evil step-mom and creepy grapey men all get theirs. The guys spend Ember's inheritance without her input and she's totes okay with this. Everything is all "happily ever after."

There was minimal room for character development in this book. No one changed fundamentally. They all just shoved their self-deprecating guilt further down.

What I will say I enjoyed was the MMFMM scenes. Something about these dudes touching mouth parts to not mouth parts while she's getting hers from two other dudes was hawt! That's where the positivity kind of ends. We're told Prince is some kind of dom virtuoso, but he never really sells it.

After typing this review out and really reflecting on the book, I'm going to have to reduce my original rating from 3 solid stars to 2.5 rounded up to 3. I couldn't in good conscience recommend this book unless you don't bring literary standards to the table when you enjoy a book. Some folks will love it for the taboo angle, and I get that, I really do. But I don't think the kinkiness can atone for the plot, the flat characters, or the weird infatuation.

[Faye Revika · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is officially now one of the worst written books I have ever read, right along with Den of Vipers. I’m cool with RH, taboo, BDSM, dub con, revenge fiction so those aren’t my issues with this. In fact some of my top 5 favorite books are dark revenge plot books with all those triggers/tropes and more. So it’s not the triggers that make me loathe this book. This book is just not written well.

(Tons of spoilers below, beware!)

•the writing is atrocious, even for the smut scenes
•the plot pacing is similar to a shitty long form improv show that needs to tell a full story in 45 minutes, so all the scenes are on an ultra rushed timeline that would never, ever happen in any universe. Every single thing that propelled the plot forward needed significantly more breathing room in the story timeline than what was given.
•the lack of trigger warnings inside the front of the book is obscenely irresponsible for something that depicts self harm and SA in such detail on page (potential triggers need to be in the book, not only on the author website—ESPECIALLY when they are this dangerous)
•the names are ridiculous (Oct? Cinders? Giving out nicknames before you’ve even met someone??)
•the villain is cartoonish. We never find out how on earth she bewitched her late husbands to allow her such harmful control over their children, as Odette had with Ember. And her villain origin story was BS. She was not the way she was because someone left her with a small child to raise and no resources. She’s a villain because she’s a psychopath, plain and simple. Or at least that’s the only (flimsy, poorly written) evidence we get from the book that is remotely believable if you judge by Odette’s behavior.
•the medical realities for the FMC make one of the last smut scenes (the day of her release from inpatient care, when they pick her up and go directly to the new house) a near impossibility only weeks after her SA. I find it extremely reckless of the author to portray such a g*ng b*ng as possible physically or psychologically following so soon after an assault so brutal that the survivor needed intimate stitches.
•it is not remotely believable that any medical professional could get away with covering up the overwhelmingly obvious and tragic evidence of a brutal SA on a MINOR. I don’t care how evil and well funded the villain is. And if you want to try and make BS like that believable, you need to show us why a doctor would be willing to commit such an atrocity against a stranger and a minor and risk their own career. Money is not a sufficient motive alone. Not when the doctors likely make a good living, and are probably wealthy or on their way to it.
•Oh yeah and while we’re at it, the FMC was a minor. Her age is never explicitly stated (nor that of the MMCs), I presume because this book had been previously banned and the ages subsequently edited out (although I admit that’s a presumption on my part) but she is not able to have access to her inheritance and she requires a legal guardian after her father’s death so…. Yep. She’s a minor.


I’m not a complete idiot, I know none of the things in dark romance should be evaluated based on how realistic they would be. But the absurdity of this plot was too extreme to the point that it took the reader out of the narrative and eliminated any possibility for suspension of disbelief. And the writing. Ugh. I can’t decide which is worse, this or Den of Vipers.

[The_Book_Brat · Rating 4 out of 5]

*Reverse Harem
*Contemporary
*Multi-PoV
*fairytale retelling
*cinderella plot
*stepbrothers
*dark themes
*established harem (4)
*fast burn
*standalone
Strong seggsy standalone
I think because we know the plot of Cinderella we can see parts of this book coming as you read it but the author still makes it an interesting and captivating read, especially with the darker elements twisted into it! (Please do check your TWs). The only thing for me and it a minor giggle and something of my WHN reading preference is that there was no ages given for the characters I know Ember is at school and there supposed to be older but not clear how much of an age gap between her and then between the lads as well. Oh and whether Ember was a virgin or not was unclear. But like I say that’s just my preference for knowing. I still really enjoyed this book it the dark elements and the love the MMCs have for the FMC!
The story follows Ember and her navigation of her new life after it’s been infiltrated by her dads new wife and her four sons - the wife she knew nothing about 😳 And it certainly seems like this new wife has a bitter and twisted side to her in the way she treats all the youths in the house 😣
Thankfully despite going on with potentially insincere intentions these four men fall hard for Ember there’s something about her innocence and vulnerability that draws them in. There’s Prince the unofficial leader of the group who is madly obsessed with the girl; Cas is her safe harbour and carer; Oct is her sunshine showing her there’s more to life and then his twin Kit her protector and guarding her from all they face. There’s a good mix with clear differences between the characters apart from their consuming love for our leading lady.🥰
As the story progresses we w realise there’s more to their relationship with Odette and it’s clear she is holding something over them and is not the woman she projects. Can they work together to find a way out before something happens they can’t recover from?!

[Jessica Beach Pandoff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is definitely an insta-love, why choose, step sibling, fairy-tale retelling, UNREALISTIC romance that left me with so many unanswered thoughts... How did Richard and Odette meet? What was the motivator for Odette to kill Richard so early on in their relationship, especially since he was loaded with money which suited her lifestyle goals? How did the "brothers" get so close - a flashback or context would have gone a long way with their relationship since they were also intimate with each other. Did Ember ever learn Prince's real name? How did the "brothers" meet the Shadowmen? Why did the "brothers" decide to essentially stalk the MFC six months before meeting her when she was just meant to be a prize from Odette? How did Odette get started with her "parties" and when did she truly start involving her kids? What were the "brothers" like at the beginning when the parties first started vs how they ended? How did the "brothers" meet "The Fallen"?

With the novel being so character forward, I did expect a little more development and context from them and was not surprised when the conflict resolution was just okay. Since this ebook had so many issues with KU, I really expected this to be way spicier than it was. There are definitely some very real trigger warnings that people should check out before reading this. I also just got to say that the pet names used in this book were very cringe for me.

MFC: Ember Everly
MMC: Prince "Eugene" Brown, Caspian Scott, Octavian Johnson, Christopher "Kit" Johnson

[TheGoodGirlBooktok Kai 🥀🖤 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Laughed, Cried, SMUT, LOVE

This book had me experiencing ALL those emotions. I loved every single page of it. I would love to see this be turned into a good tv series. When I say I’m JEALOUS of Ember! I’ve never wanted to be a character more in my life. So many of the scene were relatable! Definitely check your trigger warnings. The SPICY SPICE!!! It was several times I had a permanent blush on my face! Get this book!

[What the smut · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an ARC review
This story had me captivated, and did not disappoint on the spice.🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ . The characters all have a story of their own.I especially liked that there were previous relationships among the male characters. The plot was easy to follow. I think the reader will enjoy the twists.

[Brittany selken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh this book I don’t what to say about it so freaking good. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵🥵🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ @rosaleeauthor you did once again with this book. Amazing story and it was very well written. I couldn’t believe the stepmother in the books. But the stepbrothers step up.

[Elizabeth M. · Rating 5 out of 5]

speechless

When a book has me open mouthed giggling on page 16 ( yes 16!) and then wanting to throw my phone on page 207 I know I’ll read it again! Be warned of the triggers this book has.

[Tiffany · Rating 1 out of 5]

NOPE. I was uncomfortable the entire time.

Now I’m not hard to please. I saw multiple MMCs and i said SIGN ME UP.

I was nervous about this being about step siblings but i found out quickly that they didn’t grow up together and were just meeting for the first time so I felt better.

Now i knew this was a dark retelling but i didn’t expect the things that happened to them and the whole book was just them trauma bonding 🥴. ALSO hey why are there so many reminders about them being siblings? The amount of times she referred to them as her brothers and vice versa was ridiculous. and maybe we don’t have one of them calling her “little sis” at the end of every sentence ??????? so honestly felt sick about most of this.

“Such a good girl for your brothers” “Always”

What are you doing to my brother little sis?” “Making him feel good as a little sister should do”

“What are big brothers for?”

HUHHHHH ?????????

Do with that what you will. Not for me and never will be but hey if that’s your thing i guess go off……………

[Siobhan Giggins · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rosa Lee never fails to write something that is super fast paced, has lots of plot and is spicy as hell! The twists and turns were so good and the spice was definitely nice 😜 I mean her life is literally turned upside down and inside out when her Dad just reveals that Ember has not only a new stepmother but that said stepmother comes with 4 (yes 4) very handsome, dark and twisted stepbrothers. Talk about being thrown into the deep end. But not everything is as it seems. It then gets flipped over again, when a tragic event shakes her world and tips it back upside down - without spoiling it - it's shaken multiple times and bless her little soul, you really start hoping Ember and her guys might finally catch a break. Please check the TWs as this is dark and not for everyone.. And our girl Ember isn't your typically strong FMC that we are used to seeing throughout our dark romance books but she makes me remember that we don't always have to be strong. We can lean on those around us and it doesn't make us any weaker for needing that support. That being said she's definitely strong in her own way. I also love that we get a crossover that has left soooo many new questions I can't wait to see what Rosa writes next 🙌 if you love dark contemporary romance with a bit of why choose. Then this book is for you but in the words of Rosa be warned, love hurts. And this book definitely gives you all of that 🖤

[Darcy’s Good Opinion · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 stars
Steam: 4.5/5
Strong Language: 4/5
Characters: 5/5
Plot: 4.5/5

Tarnished Embers is book two of the Dark Retellings series. It can be read as a standalone. It does have some brief crossover from the characters in Rosa Lee's other romances. It is a dark, Cinderella fairytale retelling.

Ember is a poor little rich girl. She has family money but is terribly alone. She's suffered the loss of her mother and isolation of her grieving father. She's living a shell of a life until her father surprises her with not only a new wife she's never met but also 4 new stepbrothers. Her stepbrothers vow that she'll never be alone again and they develop a *close* relationship.

This is definitely a dark romance and full of the content warnings. Please read carefully.
The book is an excellent read. The characters are fantastic and don't change over the course of the book for the 'good'.

[FloofyMooseReads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a dark stepbrother Cinderella retelling. Tropes include why choose, taboo love, mental health representation and revenge. The spice, of which there is a lot, includes F/M, M/M and group. See content warnings as this story (more than the romance) is quite dark.

The Lovely: I loved the stepbrothers and their relationship with the FMC (no blood relation, nor did they grow up together). The stepbrothers are loyal, caring, protective and hot 🥵. The FMC comes to the situation having already experienced her own trauma that she’s never dealt with in a safe manner.

Also Lovely: I also loved the pacing and tension of this story, especially the second half. The second half is also where the story turns quite dark. I liked the twists and turns on the way to the ending.

Rating: 4/5 Stars 4/5 Flames

Recommendation: This was a satisfying read, especially with the why choose romance and the dark elements. I appreciated how the story pulled in the Cinderella tale as I always love a good fairytale retelling. If you like why choose contemporary romance with a dark dark story, I think you would like this book.

[Madeleine Rivas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rosa Lee never fails to disappoint me, she just loves to break my heart. I’m truly obsessed with her books and this one was incredible! The SPICEEE was astronomical, I was melting every single chapter. An absolute panty dropper! I’m so sad this one was a standalone, I loved each character, the story line and these MEN good lord Rosa, you do your readers so dirty!! These are my new favorite book boyfriends for sure!
I didn’t think I would love a book like this but, it was so good I couldn’t put it down. And of course I love that the FMC has the same name as my daughter!
I am so obsessed with this book, I’m honestly going to read it again. I’m counting down the minutes till her next book releases!

[Jess Scott · Rating 4 out of 5]

I will say I was swinging back and forth between 3 stars and 4 stars, so my true rating is probably 3.5 stars. I enjoyed many aspects of the book. The characters were fun, and I definitely fell in love with all the brothers and Ember. The chemistry between them all is intoxicating. I adore that the brothers don't just love Ember but each other as well. I wish that were explored a little more in-depth; seeing the brothers being intimate was definitely a highlight for me. My biggest issue with this book was the pace, especially at the start. It felt like an insta-love, and I don't mind instant attraction or lust, but loving 4 mysterious men straight off the bat seems a bit much. Overall, enjoyed the book and would 100% screw my stepbrothers if they looked like Prince, Cas, Oct and Kit.

[April Chin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was 3.5 stars and 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️

This wasn’t as unhinged as i thought it would be but it was still good. Definitely be aware that there is on page and off page rape, cutting and suicide attempts. It’s dark romance and a bit of a thriller.

Some things were predictable, hello evil step mother.

But her “sons” are all pretty hot which she’s used to her advantage over the years.

There is a liberal use of nicknames some more heinous than others

Sugar
Pretty thing
Lil sis
Cinder

This tries to be taboo with the step brothers but she isn’t related to these men and just meets them. (It’s no flowers in the attic) Only 2 of the guys are blood related so they are more of a found family.

The story moves quickly and there are several scenes of dpv, multiple 🍆 piercings etc. our hero’s are dark and have distinctive scents which are commented on every.single.paragraph.

But overall I liked the writing Ember and Prince are fleshed out characters with cas, kit, and Oct being our usual teddy bear feel good dudes. There is definitely sword crossing between the men with Kitt and Prince being the most tantalizing due to the roll reversal wish she would have explored this a bit more.

As always with MM romance it’s nice to see tough men be sweet and kind with each other.

[annasbook nookk · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story of Tarnished Embers was a dark and twisted retelling of a fairytale.

Embers' father dies soon after her stepmother marries her, and the story takes a dark turn.

Secrets are revealed, and the Ember finds herself in the middle of a nightmare.

She is trapped with four wicked boys who have black souls and dark pasts.

Tarnished Embers is a whychoose stepbrother fairytale retelling.

Ember was a strong and determined fmc who wasn't afraid to take what she wanted, even if it meant heartache and trauma.

Tarnished Embers was an intense read and kept me kept me on the edge of my seats, eager to uncover the secrets throughout.