Their Blood Rite

Crimson Covenant #1

by M.J. Lawrie

Their job should be to kill me.
Instead, I have become their favourite toy.

The bones of every blood witch mark the entrances to the human villages. Blood magic is forbidden.
It's evil incarnate.
Everybody knows that.

So, on my twentieth birthday, when my coven's sacred blood rite ritual reveals me as the first blood witch to appear in the last twenty years, I fully expect my bones to be added to the pile.

What I don't expect is to be kidnapped by three egotistical, frustratingly gorgeous and devious witch-killing warrior immortals with a peculiar and insatiable taste for my blood.

Shaw, a domineering dream-walker who collects monsters.
Dorian, a broody shadow-master who likes to play with poppet dolls.
And Archie, a slightly unhinged wolf shifter who enjoys pushing everyone's limits.

They want something from me but refuse to tell me what.

As I'm dragged into a mess of dark magic, twisted desires and an all-consuming power that marks me for death, my list of enemies grows.

My old coven wants me back.
My ex-fiancé has become obsessed with making me pay for betraying him.
And secrets come to light that might just rip my soul to shreds.
What little soul I'm clinging on to, at any rate.

Their Blood Rite is Book One of the Crimson Covenant series. It's a dark, enemies to lovers, why choose romance full of magic, danger, passion, and pain.

*Please Note: This is a reverse harem book and contains explicit content and darker elements, including mature language, abduction, violence, torture and dubious consent.
It is not intended for anyone under 18 years of age. For full trigger warnings, see the author's website.

Genres: Fantasy, Why Choose, Dark, Dark Romance, Vampires, Paranormal, Romance

425 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 23, 2024

About the author

MJ Lawrie has always had a love for storytelling. Formerly a film student, she started writing her debut series, The Last Witch, shortly after the birth of her first baby. Driven mad by the boredom of nap times and avoiding housework at all costs, she decided to finally get to work on her lifelong dream of writing a book. A true lover of fantasy, dark romance and thriller fiction, she's combined the three and poured her unusual imagination into the creation of characters that you love to hate and hate to love.

Follow her on Facebook :)
https://www.facebook.com/HelloMJLawrie

Reviews

[Vee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I hated these men instantly😒We’re talking peak, premium, award-winning prick behaviour in chapter one. And yet… somehow I ended up loving them, which would be great if I didn’t now find myself hating them all over again. Emotional whiplash at its finest.

To preface, the book was set in a rustic, gothic fantasy world where vampires, witches, humans, and other supernatural beings coexisted. However, society operated very much on a strict “stay in your lane” rule. Everyone kept to their own kind, and mixing was definitely not encouraged.

Now, back to my hate-to-love point. The heroes 🧛 (it’s an RH, so we’ve got multiple Edward Cullens) saved the heroine 🧙‍♀️ (a witch) from a horrendous situation and hid her away from her coven. They somehow swayed me after their prickish behaviour by turning broody and assertive, and suddenly there was tension everywhere. I was getting a little hot and extremely annoyed about it. Because yes, they were awful people, but apparently not the most awful people…

The guys came across as sinister and completely unfeeling, then suddenly they turned almost soft. Sleeping on the floor with the heroine because that was where she felt safest or holding her while she cried. Not the heroes I expected, but I was not mad about it.

They said things like “I couldn’t deal” a lot. The mix of dark fantasy and very modern phrases was unexpected. Not bad, just… surprising.

I should also mention that this book was dark. There was some dubcon and other triggers you should probably check before going in. The biggest were physical abuse and SA. None of this came from the MMCs.

It was heavy, but it served a purpose. It showed the oppression of women and, frankly, how men can be absolute 🗑️. The good news was that she got her revenge. And honestly? She gave me serious Lana/ Mindfuck energy.

It was a solid 4-star read until the last 20% then I hated them again. The kind of hate where I still wanted them to redeem themselves, but I had no idea how they were going to pull that off. It felt like there were a lot of weird motivations behind some very questionable and confusing decisions. They kept justifying their actions and hurting her, and the accountability was missing. I get that they are millions of years old and carrying a lot of trauma, but I could not quite rationalise how they called this love or why they kept testing the FMC.

Maybe that was the point. Maybe I am supposed to go into the next book enraged so the redemption arc hits harder. But right now…they can get f*cked, so it is a three-star for me.

[Alexa · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️

IF YOU’RE IN THE MOOD FOR DARK FANTASY x REVERSE HAREM, GATHER ROUND!!

WILD. I LOVED THIS.

THE PLOT WENT HARD there was never a dull moment. 3 immortal, hot men kidnapped Ashe from her absolutely vile fiancé & abusive father?? Yes please

🩸Forbidden blood magic
🕯️Witches + coven DRAMA
🖤Vampires + wolf shifter
⛓️3 possessive, pitch black MMCs
🥀Lore + secrets

This will not be everyone’s cup of tea, insanely DARK check the long list of triggers 💋

** Perfect vibes for spooky season **
MJ Lawrie where have u been all my life??!!

[Emily O'Leary · Rating 5 out of 5]

MJ simply NEVER disappoints me.

It's been an absolute pleasure being able to alpha read this for her and I can't wait for the finished product to be in all of your hands because it was PHENOMENAL.

The trauma. The action. The characters. The spice. 🤌🏻 all perfection.

I always really enjoy the worlds MJ crafts, they always bring something a little different to the table and that's what makes her books so great.

Here we have Ashe, a daughter of the Earth Coven of witches, kidnapped by three witch hunters with some intriguing powers and very questionable motives 👀 I don't want to say much more than that because I honestly feel like going in blind is your best bet - it's dark fantasy, it's dark romance, there absolutely are lots of triggers, but it's absolutely amazing.

I also just have to say I LOVE that we have Earth Magic here. I was literally complaining just last week at the lack of books I've read in recent years that utilise Earth magic! It's great to see and a great contrast to the other themes of the book!

Also Ashe? Slays. She has some moments in this book where I was pure fist pumping the air like "GIRL, GO ON!" Feminine rage, girl power, yes yes yes. One in particular had me just 🙌🏻🙌🏻 you will absolutely know them when you see them. 💦

Honestly if you've enjoyed MJ's books so far, you'll love this just as much. And if you're new to the world of MJ then all I can say is, buckle up bitches, it's one hell of a ride!!!

[Julotlinde · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a wild fucking ride is this book. Absolutely nuts and quite dark, especially for (apparently) baby me. I thought I was fine with some intense reads, but I almost quit after the first 50 pages. While I guess for dark romance readers, they would not even care about the scene lol. Either way, I decided to continue, as I'm no quitter, and I’m actually happy I decided to finish the book. Although quite bloody, dark, and gruesome, this book had a solid plot, romance (if you want to call it that), and good writing. I was very much hooked and stayed up way too late to see what would happen. The three MMCs were okay, cruel, and weird, but hot. The FMC was written well for the story, and her actions made sense to me, but I still didn't really connect with her. I’m just kinda done with these 20 old girls who are together with ancient men and surprise (!) the woman is some special shit with immense powers. Furthermore, sometimes this book was a bit too dark and gruesome for me. It's not a bad book, I think it might actually be really good if you like this genre. However, personally, I thought it was a bit much at times. Will read the second one, though, because now I’m interested in what will happen.

2,75 stars!

[Merry Jayned · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dark, dense, deranged, and unhinged violence. 🤷‍♀️ I guess I know what I like to read?

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thought I was prepared mentally going in to Blood Rite, but boy was I wrong. It was such a good read and I can’t wait to see what happens in the next book. It was such a rollercoaster of emotions as we watch Ashe, our FMC, go through some awful times but still come out as the badass she is. Then her three very, very morally grey guys OMG, one minute you hate them, then love them, then back to hating 🫣
All I can say is read the warnings, but if they don’t put you off (like me 😉) you are in for a ride but oh it’s so good!

[Carrie O’Leary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having read all of M.J.’s books, my expectations going into this first in her new series were high. And she doesn’t disappoint; the story grabs you by the short and curlies and doesn’t let go until you reach the end of the book. Ashe is a badass heroine and uses earth magic, my favourite brand of magic, so I knew that I would love her from the get go. The morals of our male protagonists are most definitely questionable, but I fell in love with them regardless. The book comes with trigger warnings, so check those before embarking on the journey into this new world. There is plenty of extremely hot spice and adult language, so not suitable for a younger audience. I absolutely cannot wait for book two in the series. Love it!!!

Addendum 22nd May 2025 - just listened to the audiobook. Thoroughly enjoyed hearing the story brought to life

[Phoebe · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will give a full review when I’ve processed because wow so good. Thank you MJ for the honour of letting me read it early!

Okay here goes! Sorry this took so long school for the best of me again 🙄

Anyways, MJ yet again stuns with an amazing first book in the series. I loved this intro to MJs new world! I was introduced to MJ books by a friend and I love each and every one of them for the different and special worlds and characters we get from them.

We get introduced to Ashe in this book, a witch in an Earth coven who gets kidnapped by witch hunters 😱. Naturally they are three most attractive and morally grey men in the universe and thus I am instantly intrigued. 😏👀

I loved all the different types of magic that was explored in the book and I can’t wait to learn more about all these different magics.

Ashe serves queen energy throughout this whole book. I was routing for her every step of the way and cheering her on through her badass moments(there were many!) I love reading about feminine rage and girl power and this book was no different! There is one scene in particular that had me absolutely screaming in awe 💦😍

If you loved MJ precious series you will absolutely love this book and if you’re completely new to this amazing author, then get ready cuz you’re in for an RIDE.

Thank you again MJ for the honour of alpha reading this book, I could not be more excited for this book to be out in the world!

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you M.J.Lawrie for allowing me to alpha read this read.

I LOVED this book so much. It has everything you want in a dark adult fantasy:
Feminine rage✔️
Traumatised characters ✔️
A unique and interesting magic system ✔️
3x actually morally grey alphahole ✔️
Exquisite spice👌✔️

To say I devoured this book is an understatement. I made the mistake of reading this at work & was left clutching my pearls at my desk & checking over my shoulder. I cannot wait to see where the chatacters go in the next book, and what trauma MJL will inevitably put them through 🥰

Fans of MJLawrie will love this, and those who are picking up her books for the first time are in for a wild ride 🙌

[T.P.A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5- 4 stars: Demigods, ancient rituals, blood witches and carefully hidden secrets are some of the elements that could be found in this story. The story starts with some pretty dark vibes as the main heroine is expected to be part of the Rite Ritual, one that clearly disregards females within the coven. The Rite turns into a gory scene and the physical harm that the FMC goes through is heart- wrenching. When the MMCs take her, she finds herself in the clutches of yet another prison. In the midst of this chaos, the leading female characters starts to discover what lays behind her real powers. I really felt for her as she did not get a chance to catch a break, from the degrading deeds by her coven and her so called father to the ruthlessness of her supposed saviours.

As I am writing this review, I am still struggling how to rate it because there were quite a few elements that I did enjoy here, but the MMCs's deeds were unredeemable and I am not sure whether they would be able to make any amends. I have come across some pretty vicious male characters, but I think even in the supernatural world, there are lines that should not be crossed.

The male protagonists would need to make quite the self- sacrifice in my books to be even given a chance for redemption. There better be one heck of a grovelling taking place. In fact, I hope the FMC makes them tremble at her feet. I'm am a but livid with the situation and my emotions slightly all over the place, but I am interested to see how this plays out.
When loyalty and trust is such a fragile concept, one wonders if there potentially could be any saving grace in atonement.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Look if you've read M.J. Lawrie before you just know you are going to suffer with her FMC. And my goddess do you suffer in this book! 😱 The author's 2 pages of trigger warnings should not be taken lightly...

Ashe is a fantastic and strong woman in beautifully realised magical world dominated by the patriarchy. The full horror of the oppression experienced by women and the insidious entitlement of men in this world is drip fed to readers in bits and pieces, via the narrative, and is all the more chilling for it.

I binged this fast-paced novel over two evenings (well into the wee small hours, if I'm honest!). Their Blood Rite is exciting, gory, spicy, rage-inducing and on occasion absolutely jaw-dropping. I can't recommend it highly enough - there is no way you can read this passively.

This is 100% my type of poison so I bloody loved Their Blood Rite and I cannot wait for book 2. I want Ashe to get revenge on the whole damn world. I want Ashe to pee on and spit in the face of her enemies (again 😉) and then I want her to disappear with her familiar and a large library and live happily ever after.

[K · Rating 2 out of 5]

After reading The Last Witch series, this was a cake walk (iykyk)

And maybe it's just me not enjoying books where the FMC loses bodily autonomy and is completely controlled, but it really bothered me in this book. And I was enjoying the book until the third act, it felt so cold because I felt like there was an equilibrium happening, only for them to fuck her over. I mean they literally threw her ragdoll body in the moment of danger and ran like cowards ffc, it just felt heartless.

One last minor thing, but the author introduces the characters with their first and last name but not sticking to one or the other when addressing them. I kept forgetting who was who and questioning if this was the same character talking a second ago. E.i. saying Shaw one moment and then Ronan then back to Shaw a page later

[Marta Dudzik · Rating 2 out of 5]

If there’s a problem, they’ll fuck about it

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book truly was a dark romance and I loved it. It’s my first time reading this author and the story is definitely twisted so check trigger warnings but it was a fun time to read and I felt real anger more than once towards what was happening. Honestly, Ashe in the last paragraph has me excited for book two!

[Alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was delightful to read!!

As always check your triggers! This was a slightly heavy one!! This is action pack and ALOT
Of spice!

As soon as the book starts in drags you under and refuses to let up till you finish it!
Ashe is a badass FMC with earth magic with a big plot twist at the blood rite, the 3 MMC are questionable in want they want with her! I fell in love with all of them but archie has my heart😅

Now to binge the rest of the books!

[Chloe Gledden · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was an absolutely delightful drop into the world of MJ 😮‍💨

This was so well written and absolutely action-packed from the first chapter! Ashe has girl power with an attitude absolutely down to a T and I both love and want to be her, especially in *THAT* scene 👀

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this early MJ, I’m forever grateful I got to meet who I can only describe as ‘My’ Shaw 😮‍💨😍

[M.J. Lawrie]

A dark, spicy, RH, romantasy. Coming 23rd Feb 🖤

[Celia Liver · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you don't like betrayal and trashy men, don't read it.
Everything was fine until what's happening at the end of the book (90% of it).

What I'm the most disappointed here is that I spent days / hours on this book because it was good and somehow captivating.
I endured the OW drama, the "wh*re" surnames, the constant humiliations the MC didn't deserve bc I thought, as a stupid reader, this was all was going to happen.
Then, the end of the book came and all I saw was disgusting MLs.
I won't ever read another book of the author.

I just don't understand how this is so well accepted by other readers.

!!! Big spoilers here !!!
: Since the start they only make her stay alive in order to make her dissolve their curse by ressucitating their ex-lovers.
To ressucitate them, and it's just honestly the worst I've ever read in an RH book, she endures excruciating suffering : they bring her in a cage with a muzzle, cut her hundreds of times, hung her, kills her again and again the worst ways.
And after all of it, she still returns with them and accept to be called a sl*t.
What a disappointment.

[Carina G · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am in between 3 and 4 stars.

The guys gave me whiplash. Like every sentence out of their mouth gives different attributes.

It would've been so nice to read their point of view. A bit more about their backgrounds.
The same goes for her. I feel like it would benefit the readers to have more insight in her life before the main story starts. You could read some, but it was kinda short.

love the plot! it was really awesome, but at some point, i was like : what?


I would have loved to read that she becomes a bad bitch like turn her humanity off ? or at least be totaly broken by what they did to her, but what is this in-between situation?


SPOILER:
wtf would she hate fuck them after they betrayed her? And if she is really that so crazy powerful, she can not get away from them even for like 1 chapter? Like what??

[Sammy ⭐️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 Captivating Page Turning Stars

There is something to say when an author can hook you from the opening page and with every book that MJ writes I find myself more and more invested in her worlds.

It's hard to write a full review without giving away any of the story. I loved the FMC Ashe, she was strong, fisty and full of snarky banter. The Witch Hunters Shaw, Archie and Dorian were sooooo morally Grey. For most of the book I couldn't decide if I hated them or loved them. There's so much that happens within those 300 plus pages that had me reading as fast as I could and trying to guess where the story was going, roll on July for the conclusion :)

[Sara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Whoa. I'm not quite sure where to begin. I have just been thrust into the magical world of M.J. Lawrie and I am enthralled! I absolutely loved the writing style and storytelling in this dark, spicy romantasy. This book sent me through a roller coaster of emotions, I even teared up. I never in a million years thought I'd love 3 morally deficit, kidnapping monsters but yet here we are. The whole book I'm cheering on Ashe and hoping the best for her. She absolutely slays! I cannot wait to dive into into more of M.J. Lawrie's books, especially the next in this series.

[Melo · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF

Am I missing something here? Did the heroine want to die? Did she want to be raped?? She has nowhere to go but she gives the MMCs hell .... Her own father didn't care. I was reading this thinking make sense to me.. Not even one thank you.

Maybe a better world build would help too.

[Tiana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I felt so excited to read this after looking at the blurb again and seeing that it is a reverse harem book about vampires and witches, and a medieval sounding world that's on the brink of some kind of rebellion or ancient evil. Moral of the story is that i need to stop buying books and then forgetting about them for a year before i pick them up again 😬

started so strong and the writing style was super easy to read. I really like the addition of all the other supernatural creatures like goblins and pixies. I thought from the beginning that it would probably help make the story feel that much more interesting and full of lore AND I WAS RIGHT!
I was not expecting to meet the 3 potential love interests in the first chapter, but they are so villainous and I couldn't be happier about it! Thank god that there was no waiting till 20% or more through the book for them to get introduced, because i HATE when its just info dumping and lore without anything interesting and important to the plot happening.

Genuinely was not expecting how graphic the language and themes have been. Like she pissed on her ex father in laws face as he laid there dying. There’s been so much talk of r*pe and mutilation. Don’t even remember there being a trigger warning or anything, but damn it took no time at all to build up to being corse as heck.

i also really liked just how on the edge of my seat this one kept me. About 40% of the way in and it really threw me for a loop that the 3 guys were still acting borderline abusive and red flaggy, but they're also doing a lot of things that its plainly obvious they don't have to do. They're doing things for her because they finally realised that she isn't a pampered little princess or a witch who hasn't known hardship (especially that whole scene where her glamour is taken off and they see all the scars that she's gotten over her last 20 years)

I truly was not expecting all of that to take place at the end, it had me freaking blown away and on the edge of my seat!
I knew that there wouldn't be a "happy ending" at the end of this book, but I also wasn't expecting it to be so dramatic and kinda sad either. Like after everything that she has gone through and had to endure, that's what she goes through? Even more betrayal and earth shattering news? No wonder she is going to be freaking insane in the next book.

truly an amazing book, and I immediately downloaded the second book because I just couldn't be left on that freaking cliffhanger.

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

"You are mine, and I will not allow you to walk away from me to your death."
"I’ll take your threats. But I won’t let you say your lies."
"I’ll say whatever the fuck I want to you. And it’s not a fucking lie. I’m in love with you."

🩸 vampires, witches, necromancers...
❤️ kidnapping
🩸 virgin FMC
❤️ secrets
🩸 touch her and die
❤️ enemies to lovers
🩸 MMCs are killers of her species
❤️ why choose, MFMM
🩸 spicy
❤️ " MINE "
🩸 There is insta lust, not insta love

TW:
~ Explicit sexual content between one female and three males.
~Violence.
~Torture.
~Graphic language.
~Dubious consent.
~ Sexual violence (not between the main love interests),
~Emotional and physical abuse.
~Past child abuse.
~Kidnapping.
~There is blood play.
~Breath play.

When the author wrote this:
"Let's start with the trigger warnings. Or, as I call it, a shopping list."
I knew I had to read the book😉

there is only one word for this book "amazing"💕

[Alina]

Note : they all torture, cage her, put a muzzle on her, cut her, humiliate her, kill her , SA her and make her go through he all so they can use her to resurrect their dead lovers, and she just takes it and takes them.
they call her a slut and whore and no not in a fun way, it's meant as a shameful thing.

[Denise Ekk · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow. Just, wow. This was my first M.J. Lawrie book. I'm immediately starting the next book. I may put aside my entire TBR to read her catalogue because I don't think there's anything else out there that can touch what I just read.

[cityanimal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Compelling enough to finish - but I skimmed lots of this & did not miss much. Not sure I will read next one - predictable. RH not as hot as it sounds.
Also I really dislike how all the women characters are evil and jealous.

[InkBoundHearts · Rating 2 out of 5]

This got stupid towards the end. And the ‘Love’ if you can call it that just isn’t believable. There’s no relationship development

[Steph Nakrasius · Rating 2 out of 5]

Wtf? Way too much going on and none of it came together and made sense

[Jennifer Barnes · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was basically smut with a slight plot IMO