What do you think?
Rate this book
Ricochet
Callum Hayes
The first time I witnessed death was my mother’s when I was eight years old. It devastated me. The second was at sixteen when I stumbled on my stepfather’s body after he was brutally murdered. That one screwed me up in a different way.
Since then, I’ve kept my shadows at bay, my secrets locked up tight. That is until Stone Wakefield joins my college hockey team.
Five years ago, he saw something I meant to take to my grave. He saw me weak, and I hate him for it. I have no choice but to keep hating him so he never sees past my mask again.
Stone Wakefield
Callum hates me, and he does nothing to hide it. While that makes it easy to get under his skin, it presents a problem on the ice. However, the bigger threat is my growing need to protect and possess him.
When I start to wonder if he’s just as obsessed with me as I am with him, I’m not sure if I can stay away. I know I should because I have secrets of my own.
But what if the darkness in both of us is the piece we’ve each been missing?
Callum Hayes is mine. He just doesn’t know it yet.
Ricochet is a standalone dark MM hockey romance with a guaranteed HEA. Specific content warnings can be found on the author's website.
The first time I witnessed death was my mother’s when I was eight years old. It devastated me. The second was at sixteen when I stumbled on my stepfather’s body after he was brutally murdered. That one screwed me up in a different way.
Since then, I’ve kept my shadows at bay, my secrets locked up tight. That is until Stone Wakefield joins my college hockey team.
Five years ago, he saw something I meant to take to my grave. He saw me weak, and I hate him for it. I have no choice but to keep hating him so he never sees past my mask again.
Stone Wakefield
Callum hates me, and he does nothing to hide it. While that makes it easy to get under his skin, it presents a problem on the ice. However, the bigger threat is my growing need to protect and possess him.
When I start to wonder if he’s just as obsessed with me as I am with him, I’m not sure if I can stay away. I know I should because I have secrets of my own.
But what if the darkness in both of us is the piece we’ve each been missing?
Callum Hayes is mine. He just doesn’t know it yet.
Ricochet is a standalone dark MM hockey romance with a guaranteed HEA. Specific content warnings can be found on the author's website.
387 pages, Paperback
Published December 8, 2024
1029 people are currently reading
4246 people want to read
About the author
River Hale
9 books378 followersRiver Hale is a pseudonym, created because her mother once told her that she'll read everything she ever writes. She's a writer with a tea addiction and a love for everything dark, twisted, haunted, and beautiful. She's written and published more appropriate books that her mother is allowed to read under her real name, but she'll always have a special place in her heart for dark romance.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 733 reviews
![Profile Image for moonlight ☾ [semi-hiatus].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1645500038i%2F37448930._UX200_CR0%2C0%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
December 14, 2024
TWs (on the author’s website):
“You’re okay.” I’m not sure when my thumbs started tracing the apples of his cheeks, but he’s not pulling away. So I don’t stop. “Keep breathing just like that. I’m not going anywhere, okay? Just give it some time. You’ll be alright.”
He swallows hard. When he speaks, his voice is wrecked and raw. “How can you be so sure?”
“Because I won’t let you not be.”
oh i’m OBSESSED!! completely obsessed with Stone and Callum—and their obsession for each other. not me thinking
What would surviving the darkness of my mind look like? Beyond what I’ve already had to do.
I know what it would look like.
I’d belong to Stone.
I’d give myself over to him completely. I wouldn’t give a damn who he killed, as long as he killed for me.
I’d be his.
Utterly, unequivocally his.
But he’d be mine too.
“You’re okay.” I’m not sure when my thumbs started tracing the apples of his cheeks, but he’s not pulling away. So I don’t stop. “Keep breathing just like that. I’m not going anywhere, okay? Just give it some time. You’ll be alright.”
He swallows hard. When he speaks, his voice is wrecked and raw. “How can you be so sure?”
“Because I won’t let you not be.”
oh i’m OBSESSED!! completely obsessed with Stone and Callum—and their obsession for each other. not me thinking
What would surviving the darkness of my mind look like? Beyond what I’ve already had to do.
I know what it would look like.
I’d belong to Stone.
I’d give myself over to him completely. I wouldn’t give a damn who he killed, as long as he killed for me.
I’d be his.
Utterly, unequivocally his.
But he’d be mine too.
January 4, 2025
2.5
It happened again, I must have read a different book to everyone else 😂 Theoretically I should have loved this, but it was so disappointing.
I did love the literal hurt him and die vibe, I loved the possessiveness and I liked how they were two sides of the same coin when it came to murder but there was nothing else to them! They had no personality!
I had zero connection to either character. I couldn't figure out how they fell in love? They don't get to know anything about each other except the past trauma and the murder tendencies. There's literally no other conversations going on except sex talk, hockey talk and murder talk. They know barely anything about each other but somehow they're in love??
There was also so much repetition during their internal monologues that I could have turned it into a drinking game. Callum is extremely limited in how he describes Stone considering he's an artist - if I see the description about his eyes again... Stone just repeats his justification for murder and how he's obsessed with Callum but I don't really understand why that obsession even exists? He wanted to protect Callum but there was no reason as to why he felt that way - they weren't even friendly as teenagers so I just didn't get it 🤷🏼♀️
I also thought there were a few plot holes, especially with the Coach. How did he even figure out or begin to suspect that Stone was responsible for any of the murders? Why did he get Eric involved at all? Honestly the showdown in the arena felt farcical and just had me rolling my eyes!
The proposal also had me cringing so badly...
I really didn't see what everyone else did with this book or these characters!
It happened again, I must have read a different book to everyone else 😂 Theoretically I should have loved this, but it was so disappointing.
I did love the literal hurt him and die vibe, I loved the possessiveness and I liked how they were two sides of the same coin when it came to murder but there was nothing else to them! They had no personality!
I had zero connection to either character. I couldn't figure out how they fell in love? They don't get to know anything about each other except the past trauma and the murder tendencies. There's literally no other conversations going on except sex talk, hockey talk and murder talk. They know barely anything about each other but somehow they're in love??
There was also so much repetition during their internal monologues that I could have turned it into a drinking game. Callum is extremely limited in how he describes Stone considering he's an artist - if I see the description about his eyes again... Stone just repeats his justification for murder and how he's obsessed with Callum but I don't really understand why that obsession even exists? He wanted to protect Callum but there was no reason as to why he felt that way - they weren't even friendly as teenagers so I just didn't get it 🤷🏼♀️
I also thought there were a few plot holes, especially with the Coach. How did he even figure out or begin to suspect that Stone was responsible for any of the murders? Why did he get Eric involved at all? Honestly the showdown in the arena felt farcical and just had me rolling my eyes!
The proposal also had me cringing so badly...
I really didn't see what everyone else did with this book or these characters!
December 13, 2024
I am obsessed with this story. I cannot get enough of their dynamic with one another and their tremendous amount of growth. Stone and Callum are a one of a kind pairing that are completely possessive, unpredictable and devoted to one another in an amazingly primal way.
I loved the journey Stone and Callum go on in this story. I love how I was shocked, surprised and intrigued at the direction this story took, while blending a great balance of sports and dark romance tropes. Callum and Stone both have trauma and pain that constantly lingers while haunting their day to day lives. I enjoyed how Callum and Stone dealt with their pain, which was either through words or distinctive actions.
Together they are the only person to fully understand what the other has gone through, making their bond concrete, significant and entirely fulfilling. I could not get enough of these two and their wild journey together, which was just as entertianing as it was shocking. Overall I cannot recommend this story highly enough and the rollar coaster of emotions that kept me fully invested.
*** I reviewed a complimentary copy of this story.***
I loved the journey Stone and Callum go on in this story. I love how I was shocked, surprised and intrigued at the direction this story took, while blending a great balance of sports and dark romance tropes. Callum and Stone both have trauma and pain that constantly lingers while haunting their day to day lives. I enjoyed how Callum and Stone dealt with their pain, which was either through words or distinctive actions.
Together they are the only person to fully understand what the other has gone through, making their bond concrete, significant and entirely fulfilling. I could not get enough of these two and their wild journey together, which was just as entertianing as it was shocking. Overall I cannot recommend this story highly enough and the rollar coaster of emotions that kept me fully invested.
*** I reviewed a complimentary copy of this story.***
July 28, 2025
6 ⭐️
spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
format: ebook
OH NOM NOM NOM, I ATE THIS THE FUCK UP.
this is a top read of the year—and a guaranteed reread for sure. i am obsessed with this couple and their dynamic. hockey, touch him and die, obsessed mmc to the max. was the plot 100% convincing? i don’t know, ask something who gives a fuck because it sure ain’t me.
spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️/5
format: ebook
OH NOM NOM NOM, I ATE THIS THE FUCK UP.
this is a top read of the year—and a guaranteed reread for sure. i am obsessed with this couple and their dynamic. hockey, touch him and die, obsessed mmc to the max. was the plot 100% convincing? i don’t know, ask something who gives a fuck because it sure ain’t me.
December 20, 2024
I received an ARC and I was so happy thank you
If you were looking for an actual dark hockey romance, this is the one 🔪 🩸 🏒 it’s not just a toxic romance hes actually a serial killer
Murderous hockey player x hockey player with an obsession with death
There’s some pretty dark/ past traumatic themes in this book so keep that in mind
Overall, I liked it . The possessive and jealous nature of Stone was good. Callum came off at ditsy and careless sometimes but Maybe he got his head bashed on the ice one too many times 😣
I think there could easily be a continuation with a side character but idk if that will happen
If you were looking for an actual dark hockey romance, this is the one 🔪 🩸 🏒 it’s not just a toxic romance hes actually a serial killer
Murderous hockey player x hockey player with an obsession with death
There’s some pretty dark/ past traumatic themes in this book so keep that in mind
Overall, I liked it . The possessive and jealous nature of Stone was good. Callum came off at ditsy and careless sometimes but Maybe he got his head bashed on the ice one too many times 😣
I think there could easily be a continuation with a side character but idk if that will happen
January 4, 2025
Oof! This grabbed me so quickly and never let me go. There was so much I wanted to know. I love when a book makes me super curious. Why would I read something if I simply don’t care? Make me care! Please!!! This…made me care. I really love this writing style and the established tone. It felt so immersive, I knew what everything and everyone looked like. But without being too much, ya know what I mean? We don’t need to know everything. I could draw scenes from this book if I wanted to, much like one of the main characters. Callum, the artist! He’s broody and moody. And he has every right to be! I could feel his anger, his hurt, his whole being from the pages. Stone is more playful and free but he has that same intensity and fire Callum has just the same. He hides behind smirks and jokes but the secrets, the hurt; they’re all there too. So I really liked seeing this slight contrast play out. It’s a special thing to encounter a romance book about being so instantly seen and known because hey. I feel that too. Similar in all the ways it matters. I see you. I understand you. Do you see me too?
But here I am drawing his eyes just so they can see me again.
There’s also murder. FYI! But I don’t want to spoil what unravels so I’m not going to go into that part at all. Obsession and the need to possess and protect. Top tier spicy scenes.
”I swear I’ll never let anyone hurt you ever again,” he says, voice deep and full of what should be a scary kind of promise.
“We play hockey, Stone.” The corner of my mouth lifts in a small grin. “That’s not an oath you can keep.”
These feelings are so all consuming and I so enjoyed watching our main characters experience this intensity with each other. Feelings so big that words such as love and obsession feel like a trivialization of their relationship. They were all consumed. I was all consumed. I can’t say it enough. I read some of it at what felt like the loudest coffee shop in existence and yet I was so engrossed, all of the noise faded away. And after all, isn’t that why we read in the first place?!
”Those shadows can’t touch you when I’m with you,” I tell him again, holding him a little tighter. He nods. “I don’t belong to them anymore. I belong to you.”
But here I am drawing his eyes just so they can see me again.
There’s also murder. FYI! But I don’t want to spoil what unravels so I’m not going to go into that part at all. Obsession and the need to possess and protect. Top tier spicy scenes.
”I swear I’ll never let anyone hurt you ever again,” he says, voice deep and full of what should be a scary kind of promise.
“We play hockey, Stone.” The corner of my mouth lifts in a small grin. “That’s not an oath you can keep.”
These feelings are so all consuming and I so enjoyed watching our main characters experience this intensity with each other. Feelings so big that words such as love and obsession feel like a trivialization of their relationship. They were all consumed. I was all consumed. I can’t say it enough. I read some of it at what felt like the loudest coffee shop in existence and yet I was so engrossed, all of the noise faded away. And after all, isn’t that why we read in the first place?!
”Those shadows can’t touch you when I’m with you,” I tell him again, holding him a little tighter. He nods. “I don’t belong to them anymore. I belong to you.”
August 11, 2025
⭐️ 4.5/5 — This book said, "Step into the darkness, and I’ll show you how beautiful it is inside." And, of course, I said yes. 🖤🧎🏻♀️
🌶 4.5/5 — Murder as foreplay? Blood play? Depraved sex? Check, check, and fuck yes. 😏🙂↕️
This book didn't just walk into my life—it kicked the door down, grabbed me by the throat, and whispered "watch me ruin you" before dragging me into a mess of obsession, violence, and the kind of sex that makes you question your own sanity. 😫
I’m always weak for VULNERABLE DARKNESS—the kind that makes you want to protect it and devour it at the same time. From page one, it had zero chill, and the tension only climbed higher and higher. 📈
Reading it felt like watching a top-tier thriller horror—unsettling, suspense humming in the background, knowing a slap in the face is coming from some shocking plot twist or emotional gut punch… and yet you can’t stop. You don’t want to stop, because the adrenaline is ADDICTIVE. 🫦
📖 The Premise 📖
At sixteen, Callum Hayes was a boy stitched together with shadows, fascinated by the beauty in blood and the quiet poetry of death. At seventeen, Stone Wakefield was split between two hungers—the protector who shields, and the beast who destroys.
One violent night tied them together. Five years later, they collide again, and everything festers. Hate sharpens into intrigue. Protectiveness turns into possessiveness. And once obsession takes root, it’s not only love they’re falling into—but an all consuming, exquisite ruin. ✨️❤️🔥
🔥 The Scene Where Breathing Became Illegal 🔥
Quote
Stone stands in the center of the room, holding my sketchbook open in his hands.
The one I drew his eyes in.
The one I’ve drawn about a dozen sketches of him in since.
“Are you obsessed with me, Hayes?”
Fuck fuck fuck.
“Does this mean I’m your muse?”
“Drop it.”
“You like my eyes, Callum? You like me in my sweater? Should I put it back on and pose for you?”
He takes one step forward, then another.
The closer he gets, the more erratic my breathing becomes.
“Stop it, Stone. Just fucking let it go.”
“I will when you answer my question. Are you obsessed with me? Do you want to know a secret?” He leans forward slowly. Then he turns his face, leaning just a bit more until his low, deep words sweep along the shell of my ear. “I’m obsessed with you too.”
-
OH. MY. FUCKING. GOD. THAT SCENE??? I had to put my e-reader down and pace the damn room because holy hell, the TENSION. My brain short-circuited, my soul ascended, and I am now legally deceased. Send flowers to my funeral, babes. Please and thank you. 🪦🌹🌹🌹
🌶 The Spice 🌶
It's a full five-alarm fire with murder kink and possessive obsession dripping off every sentence. That’s the kind of scene that makes your brain short-circuit and your morals… politely step outside for a smoke. 🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Every page drips with that push-pull madness where you don't know if they're gonna kiss, fuck, or kill someone next—and somehow you're praying they do all three. It's unhinged. It's intoxicating. 🫦🍆💦🔪🩸
🏁 The Ending 🏁
The ending is the most perfect, biggest payoff ever!!!
✨️ Championship win? ✅️
✨️ Thousands of people watching? ✅️
✨️ Stone lifting Callum off the ice, ripping off helmets, and kissing him like the rest of the world doesn’t even exist? ✅️
And then—this crazy, perfect man just drops a “Marry me?” like it’s the most normal thing ever. No ring in sight, no romantic setup… just raw, unfiltered obsession. And Callum says “fuck yes” because obviously. 🥹💍
Flash forward two years and they’re still stupidly in love, building a life, planning a future, Stone ready to follow Callum anywhere. A killer and his boy, forever. My heart and soul? So fucking full and well fed. 💖😋
📝 TLDR 📝
Dive in if you’re craving:
🖤 A dark romance with a razor-sharp psychological edge 🔪
🖤 Spicy tension tangled up in angst-heavy, emotional storytelling ❤️🔥
🖤 Enemies-to-lovers energy that’s messy, raw, and addictive 💥
🖤 Mutual obsession so intense it’s basically a drug 💊
🖤 Secrets, trauma, and the kind of darkness you can’t look away from 🫣
🖤 And yes… hockey, just to make it all more delicious 🏒🔥
This book is dripping with tension, obsession, and the kind of dark, messed-up push-pull that’ll have you locking your door, silencing your phone, and binging until your brain is fried—in the best way. ✨️🖤🧎🏻♀️
-
Quotes:
Here’s the thing. I’m really not an asshole. I swear.
But I can be.
There’s a difference.
I can be an asshole to people who deserve it. I can be an asshole to people who are a dick to me first. It’s called matching energy, and I’m pretty good at that.
-
I’ve saved him once before, and I’ll be damned if I let anyone else hurt him again.
I want to protect him.
But this other side of me?
It wants to fucking ruin him.
It wants to be the only one allowed to ever touch him.
-
Callum Hayes is the first person to make me think the two halves of me might be able to overlap.
-
“You’re okay. Keep breathing just like that. I’m not going anywhere, okay? Just give it some time. You’ll be alright.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I won’t let you not be.”
-
I swear if this guy touches him or calls him pookie again, someone's getting their arm ripped off.
-
“Callum! Tell me what I’m supposed to stop, and I’ll stop.”
Maybe.
“Stop trying to save me.”
Never.
-
A knight in shining armor is only protective.
But with me?
Protective turns into possessive.
Possessive turns into obsessive.
Once compulsion hits, there’s no going back.
-
I don't want to be the reason for more of his distress.
Hate is easier. Hate is kinder.
-
“If I can’t taste your lips, then I’ll just have to taste every other inch of you.”
-
Stone lowers his head and licks a hot stripe up my throat, no doubt tasting salt and sweat. When he swirls our cum around my abs, scooping the combination into his mouth, my soft cock twitches.
He peers up at me and licks his lips.
“So fucking good.”
-
“What the fuck did I just tell you?”
“What the hell is your problem? You’re being fucking crazy.”
“Crazy? You haven’t seen crazy yet.”
-
“Give me a reason, Callum. Give me a fucking reason not to do this. I’m begging you.”
-
“What is it about killing that you enjoy? Because I can tell you do. You fucking bask in it.”
“The power. Holding a life in my hands, controlling it. Taking it away.”
“What?”
“I think you just made me realize why I’ve never tried to do it myself. I don’t think I’d like that part. For me, it’s…the feeling of being around death. Not the killing. It’s the sight, the smell. But more than that, it’s as though I can sense a fading life in the air. One that’s not mine. Everything just goes quiet. Calm. Tranquil.”
-
I guess it’s a pretty big coincidence that the boy who’s obsessed with death, one who can’t bring himself to murder another person, would find himself a serial killer.
-
“I’m so fucking sorry I hurt you. I never wanted to hurt you, Callum.”
“I know. You don’t like to see me hurt. I realized that’s why you looked at me the way you did five years ago. I thought it was because you thought I was weak.”
-
I’ll never let anyone hurt you ever again.”
“We play hockey, Stone. That’s not an oath you can keep.”
“Fine. Then I swear to make anyone who hurts you pay. Including me.”
-
“Tell me what you want, Cal. I’ll fucking give you anything.”
“Anything?”
“Anything, baby.”
Baby?
Why do I love that so much?
-
“I was trying to scare you because I was desperate. I thought I could bleed a reason out of you. I didn’t want to go to prison, but I’d rather go to prison than kill you. I’d leave my mom and my sister to fend for themselves. I’d give up everything for you.”
-
“Just…bite if I need to stop. Not too hard, fucker. I’ll take as much pain for you as I need to, but I’m rather fond of my dick.”
-
“I’m so fucking obsessed with you. Obsessed with the way you look with your mouth stuffed full of my cock.”
Obsessed with the way he trusts me.
Obsessed with the way he looks up at me like he wants so much more.
I want more too.
Fuck, I want so much more.
-
“I want you to fuck me.”
“Are you sure?”
“Erase him. Please, Stone. Fucking erase him. Erase all of it.”
-
I don’t know if there’s a difference between being obsessed and being addicted. But it doesn’t matter because I’m both.
-
If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him.
If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him.
If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him.
If he needs death, I’ll kill for him.
-
“There will always be a boundary between us no matter how many times we fuck. That boundary is your safe word. I’ll always respect it, Callum. I just need to make sure you know that your trust in me when it comes to that isn’t misplaced.”
So not only did the boy obsessed with death find himself a serial killer, but that same boy who carries around trauma found himself a consent king.
Murder good, rape bad.
“You’re perfect.”
“So are you.”
-
“Fuck, I love kissing.”
“You better end that sentence with you.”
-
“I’ve never lost my head like that before.”
“Never?”
“I’ve always been at least a little protective over my teammates. But when it comes to you… I’ve never felt as protective over anyone else before. Close. But never like this.”
-
“Did I say you could touch?”
“Fuck, Callum.”
“Not only into dominating, huh?”
“Not when it comes to you apparently. Fuck me up, baby.”
“Open your mouth, killer.”
-
”Can we…can we just sleep like this?”
“Anything you need, baby.”
“You. Like this. That’s what I need. When I have nightmares, you could…I mean…”
“You want me to wake you up like this?”
“Yes. With your fingers or your cock, it doesn’t matter.”
“Turn all my bad things good, Stone. I think you’re the only one who can.”
“It’s because I’m yours, Callum. All fucking yours.”
-
“I just don’t know what I’d do if I lost you. I don’t think I could accept it. I’d do anything to keep you. And we both know if I hurt you, I’d have to hurt myself too.”
“That’s so fucking toxic.”
“Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
“That I’m yours.”
“Say it again.”
“I’m yours, Stone. I belong to you.”
-
“You’re okay, Callum. It’s me, baby. You’re safe.”
“Stone.”
“I’m here. Those shadows can’t touch you when I’m with you.”
-
“I love you.”
“I know. I love you too. You’re mine, Callum, and you’ll always be mine. I want to give you everything you want. Forever. But I think the one thing I could never give you if you wanted it was to let you go.”
“I’ll never want that.”
-
“Fuck me, Callum. Please. I’ll tell you a secret. I’ve always wanted to get fucked after a kill.”
“Then I’ll give you what you want, killer. Just like you always do for me.”
-
“Look at what I did for you while I fuck myself on your cock. Remember the way my knife slid across his throat, the way all that blood came gushing out of him. The way I held his life in my hands and took it away so you could feel alive.”
-
“You’re going to feel only me until the end of time. There will be no purging me from your veins. No carving my touch from your skin. No ridding the memories of me from your mind. If I can’t do any of that when it comes to you, then I won’t let you either. You’re fucking everywhere, and I’m not capable of letting you go. You belong to me, and I belong to you.”
-
“I love to kill, I love to kill for you. But nothing in this world will ever compare to the feeling of being inside you.”
-
”Tell me you’re mine.”
“I’m yours. Only yours. Forever yours.”
“What else is mine?”
“My ass.”
“And?”
“My cock.”
“What else, Callum? What else belongs only to me?”
“My heart.”
“And mine belongs to you.”
-
“You’re it for me, Stone, I just want you to know that.”
“You’re it for me too, Callum. No one’s ever had a hold on me the way you do, and it just gets stronger every day. I fucking love the power you have over me, and I never want it to go away. I belong to you. I always will. For-fucking-ever.”
“For-fucking-ever.”
-
⚠️ Detailed spoiler below ⛔️
RC and MCs:
🏒🩸 MM, mostly strict top/bottom with occasional switching
🏒🩸 Stone Wakefield 23yo and Callum Hayes aka Cal 21yo
🏒🩸Stone: First line center college hockey player
🏒🩸 Callum: First line left winger college hockey player
🏒🩸 Stone: Mostly top, gray-green eyes, black hair, clean-shaven, sharp jawline, ivory skin, muscular (bigger than Callum), several inches taller than Callum
🏒🩸 Callum: Mostly bottom, dark brown eyes, brown hair, muscular (leaner than Stone), clean-shaven
Genre and tropes:
🏒🩸 MM contemporary romance
🏒🩸 Dark college hockey romance
🏒🩸 Enemies-to-lovers
🏒🩸 Teammates
🏒🩸 Morally gray MCs
🏒🩸 Serial killer, psychopathic MC
🏒🩸 J/P obsessive MCs
🏒🩸 Mine mine mine
🏒🩸 Codependency
🏒🩸 Separation anxiety
🏒🩸 Toxic relationship
🏒🩸 Mental health
🏒🩸 Dark psychological elements
🏒🩸 Kills for him
🏒🩸 Vigilante justice (Stone)
🏒🩸 Touch him and die (literally)
🏒🩸 Stone helped Callum through a panic attack while they're still enemies
🏒🩸 Forced proximity
🏒🩸 Consent and check in king (Stone)
🏒🩸 No kissing (Callum, only on their first hookup)
🏒🩸 Callum is stone-sexual (he's never felt any sexual attraction and never been in any kind of romantic relationship besides Stone)
🏒🩸 First times
🏒🩸 Stone hurts himself on the same spot he hurts Callum
🏒🩸 "Good boy"
🏒🩸 Pet names: Baby, killer
Safety info:
🏒🩸 Angst: High
🏒🩸 OW/OM drama: Eric, Callum's high-school friend got Stone jealous AF, but nothing happened between them.
🏒🩸 Cheating/sharing: No
🏒🩸 Third act breakup: Yes, Callum asks for some time apart from Stone for almost a week
🏒🩸 Ending: HEA
🏒🩸 Epilogue: Yes, Callum: 4 months later, Stone: 2 years later
🏒🩸 POV: Dual, 1st person
🏒🩸 Series structure: Standalone
Spice and kinks:
Blowjob, frotting, biting, cum play, bareback, rimming, power exchange, D/s dynamics, light restraint/bondage, dirty talk, dry humping to completion, cum in pants, throat fucking, rough sex, marking (cum, bite marks, hickeys, scratches), snowballing, finger warming, somnophilia, in one scene Stone rims and tongue fucks Cal with his cum still inside Cal's hole, murder and death (for titillation, as foreplay), sex near a bleeding dead body, 69, finger fucking, choking, blood play
CW/TW:
Violence, murder (serial killer), blood and gore, grief and trauma, childhood abuse and childhood sexual assault (not on-page), PTSD, panic attack, nightmares, brief suicidal ideation, profanity, graphic sex, mild violence between MCs, repressed memories, choking, blood play, pain play, light BDSM, light dubious consent, somnophilia (consensual)
🌶 4.5/5 — Murder as foreplay? Blood play? Depraved sex? Check, check, and fuck yes. 😏🙂↕️
This book didn't just walk into my life—it kicked the door down, grabbed me by the throat, and whispered "watch me ruin you" before dragging me into a mess of obsession, violence, and the kind of sex that makes you question your own sanity. 😫
I’m always weak for VULNERABLE DARKNESS—the kind that makes you want to protect it and devour it at the same time. From page one, it had zero chill, and the tension only climbed higher and higher. 📈
Reading it felt like watching a top-tier thriller horror—unsettling, suspense humming in the background, knowing a slap in the face is coming from some shocking plot twist or emotional gut punch… and yet you can’t stop. You don’t want to stop, because the adrenaline is ADDICTIVE. 🫦
📖 The Premise 📖
At sixteen, Callum Hayes was a boy stitched together with shadows, fascinated by the beauty in blood and the quiet poetry of death. At seventeen, Stone Wakefield was split between two hungers—the protector who shields, and the beast who destroys.
One violent night tied them together. Five years later, they collide again, and everything festers. Hate sharpens into intrigue. Protectiveness turns into possessiveness. And once obsession takes root, it’s not only love they’re falling into—but an all consuming, exquisite ruin. ✨️❤️🔥
🔥 The Scene Where Breathing Became Illegal 🔥
Quote
Stone stands in the center of the room, holding my sketchbook open in his hands.
The one I drew his eyes in.
The one I’ve drawn about a dozen sketches of him in since.
“Are you obsessed with me, Hayes?”
Fuck fuck fuck.
“Does this mean I’m your muse?”
“Drop it.”
“You like my eyes, Callum? You like me in my sweater? Should I put it back on and pose for you?”
He takes one step forward, then another.
The closer he gets, the more erratic my breathing becomes.
“Stop it, Stone. Just fucking let it go.”
“I will when you answer my question. Are you obsessed with me? Do you want to know a secret?” He leans forward slowly. Then he turns his face, leaning just a bit more until his low, deep words sweep along the shell of my ear. “I’m obsessed with you too.”
-
OH. MY. FUCKING. GOD. THAT SCENE??? I had to put my e-reader down and pace the damn room because holy hell, the TENSION. My brain short-circuited, my soul ascended, and I am now legally deceased. Send flowers to my funeral, babes. Please and thank you. 🪦🌹🌹🌹
🌶 The Spice 🌶
It's a full five-alarm fire with murder kink and possessive obsession dripping off every sentence. That’s the kind of scene that makes your brain short-circuit and your morals… politely step outside for a smoke. 🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Every page drips with that push-pull madness where you don't know if they're gonna kiss, fuck, or kill someone next—and somehow you're praying they do all three. It's unhinged. It's intoxicating. 🫦🍆💦🔪🩸
🏁 The Ending 🏁
The ending is the most perfect, biggest payoff ever!!!
✨️ Championship win? ✅️
✨️ Thousands of people watching? ✅️
✨️ Stone lifting Callum off the ice, ripping off helmets, and kissing him like the rest of the world doesn’t even exist? ✅️
And then—this crazy, perfect man just drops a “Marry me?” like it’s the most normal thing ever. No ring in sight, no romantic setup… just raw, unfiltered obsession. And Callum says “fuck yes” because obviously. 🥹💍
Flash forward two years and they’re still stupidly in love, building a life, planning a future, Stone ready to follow Callum anywhere. A killer and his boy, forever. My heart and soul? So fucking full and well fed. 💖😋
📝 TLDR 📝
Dive in if you’re craving:
🖤 A dark romance with a razor-sharp psychological edge 🔪
🖤 Spicy tension tangled up in angst-heavy, emotional storytelling ❤️🔥
🖤 Enemies-to-lovers energy that’s messy, raw, and addictive 💥
🖤 Mutual obsession so intense it’s basically a drug 💊
🖤 Secrets, trauma, and the kind of darkness you can’t look away from 🫣
🖤 And yes… hockey, just to make it all more delicious 🏒🔥
This book is dripping with tension, obsession, and the kind of dark, messed-up push-pull that’ll have you locking your door, silencing your phone, and binging until your brain is fried—in the best way. ✨️🖤🧎🏻♀️
-
Quotes:
Here’s the thing. I’m really not an asshole. I swear.
But I can be.
There’s a difference.
I can be an asshole to people who deserve it. I can be an asshole to people who are a dick to me first. It’s called matching energy, and I’m pretty good at that.
-
I’ve saved him once before, and I’ll be damned if I let anyone else hurt him again.
I want to protect him.
But this other side of me?
It wants to fucking ruin him.
It wants to be the only one allowed to ever touch him.
-
Callum Hayes is the first person to make me think the two halves of me might be able to overlap.
-
“You’re okay. Keep breathing just like that. I’m not going anywhere, okay? Just give it some time. You’ll be alright.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I won’t let you not be.”
-
I swear if this guy touches him or calls him pookie again, someone's getting their arm ripped off.
-
“Callum! Tell me what I’m supposed to stop, and I’ll stop.”
Maybe.
“Stop trying to save me.”
Never.
-
A knight in shining armor is only protective.
But with me?
Protective turns into possessive.
Possessive turns into obsessive.
Once compulsion hits, there’s no going back.
-
I don't want to be the reason for more of his distress.
Hate is easier. Hate is kinder.
-
“If I can’t taste your lips, then I’ll just have to taste every other inch of you.”
-
Stone lowers his head and licks a hot stripe up my throat, no doubt tasting salt and sweat. When he swirls our cum around my abs, scooping the combination into his mouth, my soft cock twitches.
He peers up at me and licks his lips.
“So fucking good.”
-
“What the fuck did I just tell you?”
“What the hell is your problem? You’re being fucking crazy.”
“Crazy? You haven’t seen crazy yet.”
-
“Give me a reason, Callum. Give me a fucking reason not to do this. I’m begging you.”
-
“What is it about killing that you enjoy? Because I can tell you do. You fucking bask in it.”
“The power. Holding a life in my hands, controlling it. Taking it away.”
“What?”
“I think you just made me realize why I’ve never tried to do it myself. I don’t think I’d like that part. For me, it’s…the feeling of being around death. Not the killing. It’s the sight, the smell. But more than that, it’s as though I can sense a fading life in the air. One that’s not mine. Everything just goes quiet. Calm. Tranquil.”
-
I guess it’s a pretty big coincidence that the boy who’s obsessed with death, one who can’t bring himself to murder another person, would find himself a serial killer.
-
“I’m so fucking sorry I hurt you. I never wanted to hurt you, Callum.”
“I know. You don’t like to see me hurt. I realized that’s why you looked at me the way you did five years ago. I thought it was because you thought I was weak.”
-
I’ll never let anyone hurt you ever again.”
“We play hockey, Stone. That’s not an oath you can keep.”
“Fine. Then I swear to make anyone who hurts you pay. Including me.”
-
“Tell me what you want, Cal. I’ll fucking give you anything.”
“Anything?”
“Anything, baby.”
Baby?
Why do I love that so much?
-
“I was trying to scare you because I was desperate. I thought I could bleed a reason out of you. I didn’t want to go to prison, but I’d rather go to prison than kill you. I’d leave my mom and my sister to fend for themselves. I’d give up everything for you.”
-
“Just…bite if I need to stop. Not too hard, fucker. I’ll take as much pain for you as I need to, but I’m rather fond of my dick.”
-
“I’m so fucking obsessed with you. Obsessed with the way you look with your mouth stuffed full of my cock.”
Obsessed with the way he trusts me.
Obsessed with the way he looks up at me like he wants so much more.
I want more too.
Fuck, I want so much more.
-
“I want you to fuck me.”
“Are you sure?”
“Erase him. Please, Stone. Fucking erase him. Erase all of it.”
-
I don’t know if there’s a difference between being obsessed and being addicted. But it doesn’t matter because I’m both.
-
If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him.
If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him.
If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him.
If he needs death, I’ll kill for him.
-
“There will always be a boundary between us no matter how many times we fuck. That boundary is your safe word. I’ll always respect it, Callum. I just need to make sure you know that your trust in me when it comes to that isn’t misplaced.”
So not only did the boy obsessed with death find himself a serial killer, but that same boy who carries around trauma found himself a consent king.
Murder good, rape bad.
“You’re perfect.”
“So are you.”
-
“Fuck, I love kissing.”
“You better end that sentence with you.”
-
“I’ve never lost my head like that before.”
“Never?”
“I’ve always been at least a little protective over my teammates. But when it comes to you… I’ve never felt as protective over anyone else before. Close. But never like this.”
-
“Did I say you could touch?”
“Fuck, Callum.”
“Not only into dominating, huh?”
“Not when it comes to you apparently. Fuck me up, baby.”
“Open your mouth, killer.”
-
”Can we…can we just sleep like this?”
“Anything you need, baby.”
“You. Like this. That’s what I need. When I have nightmares, you could…I mean…”
“You want me to wake you up like this?”
“Yes. With your fingers or your cock, it doesn’t matter.”
“Turn all my bad things good, Stone. I think you’re the only one who can.”
“It’s because I’m yours, Callum. All fucking yours.”
-
“I just don’t know what I’d do if I lost you. I don’t think I could accept it. I’d do anything to keep you. And we both know if I hurt you, I’d have to hurt myself too.”
“That’s so fucking toxic.”
“Do you understand what I’m telling you?”
“That I’m yours.”
“Say it again.”
“I’m yours, Stone. I belong to you.”
-
“You’re okay, Callum. It’s me, baby. You’re safe.”
“Stone.”
“I’m here. Those shadows can’t touch you when I’m with you.”
-
“I love you.”
“I know. I love you too. You’re mine, Callum, and you’ll always be mine. I want to give you everything you want. Forever. But I think the one thing I could never give you if you wanted it was to let you go.”
“I’ll never want that.”
-
“Fuck me, Callum. Please. I’ll tell you a secret. I’ve always wanted to get fucked after a kill.”
“Then I’ll give you what you want, killer. Just like you always do for me.”
-
“Look at what I did for you while I fuck myself on your cock. Remember the way my knife slid across his throat, the way all that blood came gushing out of him. The way I held his life in my hands and took it away so you could feel alive.”
-
“You’re going to feel only me until the end of time. There will be no purging me from your veins. No carving my touch from your skin. No ridding the memories of me from your mind. If I can’t do any of that when it comes to you, then I won’t let you either. You’re fucking everywhere, and I’m not capable of letting you go. You belong to me, and I belong to you.”
-
“I love to kill, I love to kill for you. But nothing in this world will ever compare to the feeling of being inside you.”
-
”Tell me you’re mine.”
“I’m yours. Only yours. Forever yours.”
“What else is mine?”
“My ass.”
“And?”
“My cock.”
“What else, Callum? What else belongs only to me?”
“My heart.”
“And mine belongs to you.”
-
“You’re it for me, Stone, I just want you to know that.”
“You’re it for me too, Callum. No one’s ever had a hold on me the way you do, and it just gets stronger every day. I fucking love the power you have over me, and I never want it to go away. I belong to you. I always will. For-fucking-ever.”
“For-fucking-ever.”
-
⚠️ Detailed spoiler below ⛔️
RC and MCs:
🏒🩸 MM, mostly strict top/bottom with occasional switching
🏒🩸 Stone Wakefield 23yo and Callum Hayes aka Cal 21yo
🏒🩸Stone: First line center college hockey player
🏒🩸 Callum: First line left winger college hockey player
🏒🩸 Stone: Mostly top, gray-green eyes, black hair, clean-shaven, sharp jawline, ivory skin, muscular (bigger than Callum), several inches taller than Callum
🏒🩸 Callum: Mostly bottom, dark brown eyes, brown hair, muscular (leaner than Stone), clean-shaven
Genre and tropes:
🏒🩸 MM contemporary romance
🏒🩸 Dark college hockey romance
🏒🩸 Enemies-to-lovers
🏒🩸 Teammates
🏒🩸 Morally gray MCs
🏒🩸 Serial killer, psychopathic MC
🏒🩸 J/P obsessive MCs
🏒🩸 Mine mine mine
🏒🩸 Codependency
🏒🩸 Separation anxiety
🏒🩸 Toxic relationship
🏒🩸 Mental health
🏒🩸 Dark psychological elements
🏒🩸 Kills for him
🏒🩸 Vigilante justice (Stone)
🏒🩸 Touch him and die (literally)
🏒🩸 Stone helped Callum through a panic attack while they're still enemies
🏒🩸 Forced proximity
🏒🩸 Consent and check in king (Stone)
🏒🩸 No kissing (Callum, only on their first hookup)
🏒🩸 Callum is stone-sexual (he's never felt any sexual attraction and never been in any kind of romantic relationship besides Stone)
🏒🩸 First times
🏒🩸 Stone hurts himself on the same spot he hurts Callum
🏒🩸 "Good boy"
🏒🩸 Pet names: Baby, killer
Safety info:
🏒🩸 Angst: High
🏒🩸 OW/OM drama: Eric, Callum's high-school friend got Stone jealous AF, but nothing happened between them.
🏒🩸 Cheating/sharing: No
🏒🩸 Third act breakup: Yes, Callum asks for some time apart from Stone for almost a week
🏒🩸 Ending: HEA
🏒🩸 Epilogue: Yes, Callum: 4 months later, Stone: 2 years later
🏒🩸 POV: Dual, 1st person
🏒🩸 Series structure: Standalone
Spice and kinks:
Blowjob, frotting, biting, cum play, bareback, rimming, power exchange, D/s dynamics, light restraint/bondage, dirty talk, dry humping to completion, cum in pants, throat fucking, rough sex, marking (cum, bite marks, hickeys, scratches), snowballing, finger warming, somnophilia, in one scene Stone rims and tongue fucks Cal with his cum still inside Cal's hole, murder and death (for titillation, as foreplay), sex near a bleeding dead body, 69, finger fucking, choking, blood play
CW/TW:
Violence, murder (serial killer), blood and gore, grief and trauma, childhood abuse and childhood sexual assault (not on-page), PTSD, panic attack, nightmares, brief suicidal ideation, profanity, graphic sex, mild violence between MCs, repressed memories, choking, blood play, pain play, light BDSM, light dubious consent, somnophilia (consensual)
December 12, 2024
Is it ok to add a murderer to my list of book boyfriends? Because come on… Feral baby 🔪🖤🏒
5 pucking ⭐️!
If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him.
If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him.
If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him.
If he needs death, I’ll kill for him.
I absolutely pucking love it. Completely ott and morally wrong, but I am *obsessed*—feral, even—for these murder babies, especially when they’re dealing with bad guys! I can barely form coherent thoughts right now because my brain is clouded, sated, and utterly drenched in bloody love, wrongness, and depravity.
This book had *all* the -nesses I adore: protectiveness, possessiveness, sweetness, hotness, darkness, obsessiveness, goryness, jealousyness and, of course, the perfect balance of rightness and wrongness. 🥵
Stone and Callum’s dynamic was everything. Stone’s violent tendencies paired with his gentle, caring love for Callum melted my heart. Watching him cast away at years of trauma and guilt was both brutal and beautiful. The writing, pacing, and plot hit all the right notes, with just enough sexy and healing moments to keep me completely hooked. Stone is the most caring, violent cinnamon roll ever, and Callum deserves every ounce of that love. The time on the ice was a perfect add to the story.
A note of care: Callum’s past trauma was a significant part of his journey, and the story handled it with sensitivity, portraying its impact through his nightmares, panic attacks, and struggles with self-worth. While his healing felt raw and genuine, I wish therapy had been included to further explore his recovery and add more realism.
Disclaimer: A brick in the face was far too soft for that man—I was there with them uncliping the gun!
Minor penalties without sin bin:
- The timeline was a bit hard to follow; I sometimes couldn’t tell that days or weeks had passed.
- As mentioned, Callum’s trauma was addressed thoughtfully but could have benefited from more focus, especially in terms of ongoing recovery.
- The proposal was so OTT… but honestly, I kind of loved it anyway.
Murder babies who kiss like this
“When it comes, it’s nothing like how I imagined it’d be. He drops his thumb to my chin and presses his lips to mine. The lightest touch. It’s the sweetest, warmest, most agonizing feeling. The contact is electric. The pressure of his lips against mine has a desperate moan getting caught in my throat. (…)
The world has stopped spinning, and time will remember only this kiss.”
kintsugi
“Turn all my bad things good, Stone,” he says again, his voice growing tired. “I think you’re the only one who can.” With my arm that’s still around him, I squeeze him a little tighter. His words start to heal that fracture in my heart that opened up when he first awoke, filling in that crack with gold.
This is quote heaven
“Those shadows can’t touch you when I’m with you,” I tell him again, holding him a little tighter.
He nods. “I don’t belong to them anymore. I belong to you.”
“That’s right, baby.”
Final verdict? Bloody brilliant! “For-fucking-ever.” “For-fucking-ever”
I received an Arc from River and this is my feral in love opinion!
5 pucking ⭐️!
If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him.
If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him.
If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him.
If he needs death, I’ll kill for him.
I absolutely pucking love it. Completely ott and morally wrong, but I am *obsessed*—feral, even—for these murder babies, especially when they’re dealing with bad guys! I can barely form coherent thoughts right now because my brain is clouded, sated, and utterly drenched in bloody love, wrongness, and depravity.
This book had *all* the -nesses I adore: protectiveness, possessiveness, sweetness, hotness, darkness, obsessiveness, goryness, jealousyness and, of course, the perfect balance of rightness and wrongness. 🥵
Stone and Callum’s dynamic was everything. Stone’s violent tendencies paired with his gentle, caring love for Callum melted my heart. Watching him cast away at years of trauma and guilt was both brutal and beautiful. The writing, pacing, and plot hit all the right notes, with just enough sexy and healing moments to keep me completely hooked. Stone is the most caring, violent cinnamon roll ever, and Callum deserves every ounce of that love. The time on the ice was a perfect add to the story.
A note of care: Callum’s past trauma was a significant part of his journey, and the story handled it with sensitivity, portraying its impact through his nightmares, panic attacks, and struggles with self-worth. While his healing felt raw and genuine, I wish therapy had been included to further explore his recovery and add more realism.
Disclaimer: A brick in the face was far too soft for that man—I was there with them uncliping the gun!
Minor penalties without sin bin:
- The timeline was a bit hard to follow; I sometimes couldn’t tell that days or weeks had passed.
- As mentioned, Callum’s trauma was addressed thoughtfully but could have benefited from more focus, especially in terms of ongoing recovery.
- The proposal was so OTT… but honestly, I kind of loved it anyway.
Murder babies who kiss like this
“When it comes, it’s nothing like how I imagined it’d be. He drops his thumb to my chin and presses his lips to mine. The lightest touch. It’s the sweetest, warmest, most agonizing feeling. The contact is electric. The pressure of his lips against mine has a desperate moan getting caught in my throat. (…)
The world has stopped spinning, and time will remember only this kiss.”
kintsugi
“Turn all my bad things good, Stone,” he says again, his voice growing tired. “I think you’re the only one who can.” With my arm that’s still around him, I squeeze him a little tighter. His words start to heal that fracture in my heart that opened up when he first awoke, filling in that crack with gold.
This is quote heaven
“Those shadows can’t touch you when I’m with you,” I tell him again, holding him a little tighter.
He nods. “I don’t belong to them anymore. I belong to you.”
“That’s right, baby.”
Final verdict? Bloody brilliant! “For-fucking-ever.” “For-fucking-ever”
I received an Arc from River and this is my feral in love opinion!
March 9, 2025
I guess it’s a pretty big coincidence that the boy who’s obsessed with death, one who can’t bring himself to murder another person, would find himself a serial killer.
When I saw that this story was Dark romance /College Hockey romance I was so intrigued, because what do you mean? How do those things work together? I suppose the short answer is that they don't really, lol realistically this is a dark romance that features some hockey elements, where they are on the team together and they play games together to allow for some scenes of violent possessiveness, but it is in no way an actual sports romance in my opinion.
The writing in this was truly so incredibly melodramatic, I definitely had a few eye rolls and laughs at some of the over the top shenanigans. It was giving me the same dark angst vibes I imagine from a 15 year old writing what they believe to be the darkest work of fanfiction they can imagine and thinking it's really edgy. And yet, all that aside I actually had quite a bit of fun reading this.
Probably one of the biggest surprises (given the above mentioned over the top melodrama) is that I was actually impressed and surprised at the positive representation of sexual identity, consent, safe sex preferences and safe words that this book had. It's been a bit of a pet peeve of mine that so many 'dark romances' are really negligent in how they treat kinks and portray some sexual practices which could be very harmful in real life if not treated with the seriousness they deserve, but Stone and Callum actually had some realistic conversations about their likes and kinks, so the book won some brownie points for me there.
Definitely not a serious book (a completely silly goose time) and absolutely don't look at anything too closely for logic, but an enjoyable enough read if you're in the mood for a dark, possessive, kinky romance. 3.5 stars.
CWs for childhood abuse and SA (off page and inferred), choking, blood play, somnophilia and various other violent dark romance shenanigans
When I saw that this story was Dark romance /College Hockey romance I was so intrigued, because what do you mean? How do those things work together? I suppose the short answer is that they don't really, lol realistically this is a dark romance that features some hockey elements, where they are on the team together and they play games together to allow for some scenes of violent possessiveness, but it is in no way an actual sports romance in my opinion.
The writing in this was truly so incredibly melodramatic, I definitely had a few eye rolls and laughs at some of the over the top shenanigans. It was giving me the same dark angst vibes I imagine from a 15 year old writing what they believe to be the darkest work of fanfiction they can imagine and thinking it's really edgy. And yet, all that aside I actually had quite a bit of fun reading this.
Probably one of the biggest surprises (given the above mentioned over the top melodrama) is that I was actually impressed and surprised at the positive representation of sexual identity, consent, safe sex preferences and safe words that this book had. It's been a bit of a pet peeve of mine that so many 'dark romances' are really negligent in how they treat kinks and portray some sexual practices which could be very harmful in real life if not treated with the seriousness they deserve, but Stone and Callum actually had some realistic conversations about their likes and kinks, so the book won some brownie points for me there.
Definitely not a serious book (a completely silly goose time) and absolutely don't look at anything too closely for logic, but an enjoyable enough read if you're in the mood for a dark, possessive, kinky romance. 3.5 stars.
CWs for childhood abuse and SA (off page and inferred), choking, blood play, somnophilia and various other violent dark romance shenanigans
January 12, 2025
I like the cover. There, I'm starting with a positive.
The rest...this was not dark, it was silly.
Shadows drag me down with their teeth and claws. They live inside me, drowning me in their darkness nearly every night when I’m least able to fight them.
My eyes blink against the amber glow of the streetlamp that stands right outside my window. It’s nothing more than a worthless sentinel. 😂
The foreshadowing was more like forehammering.
These two MCs had two very, very brief encounters in high school, and you won't forget because the post-shower scene was brought up over and over again, I lost track after 60 pages.
A lot of 'inner beast' talk.
Beneath my exterior, there are two parts. A protector and a beast.
I’d rather keep him safe than unleash the beast on him.
Between the protective side of me and the beast, I’m not sure how they would react at seeing them. Those two halves of me would blend together, ignite like a match, and cause some kind of cosmic explosion. Without anyone left to kill for him, they’d have nothing to feast on. They’d end up feasting on him instead. They’ve already reared their ugly heads when it came to provoking him enough to unleash some of that pent up fury. Who is they?
The protector and the beast nearly spring into action.
His eyes darken as his pupils dilate. The beast in me wants it to be fear.
His eyes widen like he can see it. See that I’m no longer me. No longer Stone. Just the beast. I get it, you're a killer beast.
Meh sex. Past violent abuse, rape by the stepfather and friends, scars, calling the killer MC 'killer', fucking next to dead bodies. Yawn.
Cheesy dialogue, some attempt at poetic something, really not sure about that.
There’s not much light. Only the glow of the streetlamp provides any illumination as I work. It doesn’t matter though. My eyes have long since adjusted to the darkness. Way before tonight.
It was like I was being flayed alive. That is, until I didn’t feel alive at all. I was a frog, dead, lifeless limbs pinned down as his eyes sliced me open with the cold blade of a scalpel, peeling back every layer of skin so he could dissect me. Study my ruined insides.
Even I can admit his pale gray-green eyes are mesmerizing. Rain-washed. Like white sage or a forest in the fog.
I figured out what else he smells like, the other scent I couldn’t name before. His eyes are a forest in the fog, but he smells like a forest in a storm. Pine and ozone. It’s fitting considering the effect he has on me.
Oh and a very dramatic nonsense. 🙄
I wonder how many little pieces I could cut Eric’s body into. 🤣 All this murder-y killer beast stuff was funny.
Watching him unleashed is a thing of fucking beauty. He’s the roaring thunder in a storm. The violent waves that capsize ships. The howling gale that uproots a forest.
The missing piece that he needed, the piece that needed him to finally be whole. Like that puck on the ice that ricocheted off the boards between us, we’ve been ricocheting off each other this whole time.
Tags: NA, murder, vigilante serial killer, college hockey players, scars, past abuse, past rape, blood, lite gore, marking/biting, felching, snowballing, throat grabbing, barebacking, first time, come-eating, face-fucking, fucking next to a corpse, vers, cockwarming, finger-warming, somnophilia, possessiveness, cutting, , frotting, handsfree orgasm, grinding, coming in pants, turned on by murder and death, tasting blood, stabbing, rimming, nightmares, traumatic past, self-harm (on-page, semi descriptive - see spoiler), revenge killings, punching, Connecticut, Pennsylvania.
The rest...this was not dark, it was silly.
Shadows drag me down with their teeth and claws. They live inside me, drowning me in their darkness nearly every night when I’m least able to fight them.
My eyes blink against the amber glow of the streetlamp that stands right outside my window. It’s nothing more than a worthless sentinel. 😂
The foreshadowing was more like forehammering.
These two MCs had two very, very brief encounters in high school, and you won't forget because the post-shower scene was brought up over and over again, I lost track after 60 pages.
A lot of 'inner beast' talk.
Beneath my exterior, there are two parts. A protector and a beast.
I’d rather keep him safe than unleash the beast on him.
Between the protective side of me and the beast, I’m not sure how they would react at seeing them. Those two halves of me would blend together, ignite like a match, and cause some kind of cosmic explosion. Without anyone left to kill for him, they’d have nothing to feast on. They’d end up feasting on him instead. They’ve already reared their ugly heads when it came to provoking him enough to unleash some of that pent up fury. Who is they?
The protector and the beast nearly spring into action.
His eyes darken as his pupils dilate. The beast in me wants it to be fear.
His eyes widen like he can see it. See that I’m no longer me. No longer Stone. Just the beast. I get it, you're a killer beast.
Meh sex. Past violent abuse, rape by the stepfather and friends, scars, calling the killer MC 'killer', fucking next to dead bodies. Yawn.
Cheesy dialogue, some attempt at poetic something, really not sure about that.
There’s not much light. Only the glow of the streetlamp provides any illumination as I work. It doesn’t matter though. My eyes have long since adjusted to the darkness. Way before tonight.
It was like I was being flayed alive. That is, until I didn’t feel alive at all. I was a frog, dead, lifeless limbs pinned down as his eyes sliced me open with the cold blade of a scalpel, peeling back every layer of skin so he could dissect me. Study my ruined insides.
Even I can admit his pale gray-green eyes are mesmerizing. Rain-washed. Like white sage or a forest in the fog.
I figured out what else he smells like, the other scent I couldn’t name before. His eyes are a forest in the fog, but he smells like a forest in a storm. Pine and ozone. It’s fitting considering the effect he has on me.
Oh and a very dramatic nonsense. 🙄
I wonder how many little pieces I could cut Eric’s body into. 🤣 All this murder-y killer beast stuff was funny.
Watching him unleashed is a thing of fucking beauty. He’s the roaring thunder in a storm. The violent waves that capsize ships. The howling gale that uproots a forest.
The missing piece that he needed, the piece that needed him to finally be whole. Like that puck on the ice that ricocheted off the boards between us, we’ve been ricocheting off each other this whole time.
Tags: NA, murder, vigilante serial killer, college hockey players, scars, past abuse, past rape, blood, lite gore, marking/biting, felching, snowballing, throat grabbing, barebacking, first time, come-eating, face-fucking, fucking next to a corpse, vers, cockwarming, finger-warming, somnophilia, possessiveness, cutting, , frotting, handsfree orgasm, grinding, coming in pants, turned on by murder and death, tasting blood, stabbing, rimming, nightmares, traumatic past, self-harm (on-page, semi descriptive - see spoiler), revenge killings, punching, Connecticut, Pennsylvania.
May 21, 2025
Callum + Stone 🖤
Serial Killer | Death obsessed | Posessive AF | Consent Kings
Love love love all of it! Callum and Stone are two halves of a depraved whole.
"If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him.
If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him.
If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him.
If he needs death, I’ll kill for him."
*Make sure to read the bonus scene*
....
“Keep breathing just like that. I’m not going anywhere, okay? Just give it some time. You’ll be alright.” He swallows hard. When he speaks, his voice is wrecked and raw. “How can you be so sure?” “Because I won’t let you not be.”
“If I can’t taste your lips, then I’ll just have to taste every other inch of you.”
“I want to fucking worship you, baby.”
"I don’t know if there’s a difference between being obsessed and being addicted. But it doesn’t matter because I’m both."
"So not only did the boy obsessed with death find himself a serial killer, but that same boy who carries around trauma found himself a consent king. Murder good, rape bad."
“Open your mouth, killer.” I have a murderer on his knees, about to shove my cock down his throat. Talk about a power trip."
“Would you like that, baby?” he asks as he runs his hands up my stomach to my chest. “You wanna fuck a killer?”
....
⚠️potential spoilers below in detailed tropes and trigger warnings
Tropes/content:
Enemies
Hockey players
Artist
Teammates
Serial killer
One man obsessed with murder. One man obsessed with death.
Obsession
Possessive AF
Kills for him
Morally gray
Revenge
Vigilante justice
Broken boys
Help through panic attack while they're still enemies
Forced proximity
Forced to share hotel room while enemies
Consent kings
No kissing rule
Callum is "Stone-sexual". He's never felt sexual attraction to anyone besides Stone.
Aftercare
Healing sex ("Erase him. Erase all of it.")
Licks blood from a cut of other MC
Kisses old abuse scars
Hurts himself after hurting his love
"Baby" slip
Bareback
First kiss
Callum's first consensual sexual experience is with Stone
Touch him and die (literally)
Dry hump makeout to completion
💦 in pants
Somnophilia
Cock warming
Finger warming
Rimming
Snowballing
Biting
Marking
Mine
Soulmates
Murder as foreplay
Death as an aphrodisiac
Murder with a plug in his ass
Light bondage
Sex in front of bleeding dying body
Stabbed eyes of victim because "no one can see what's mine"
"Watch him bleed while I eat your ass"
Sketches of death
Versatile roles
TWs:
Murder on page
Death on page
Mention of past rape of a side character
Panic attacks
Nightmares
Childhood rapes of an MC (not described in detail)
Stalking between MCs
Violence between MCs
Kidnapping between MCs
Pedophiles (not MCs)
Serial Killer | Death obsessed | Posessive AF | Consent Kings
Love love love all of it! Callum and Stone are two halves of a depraved whole.
"If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him.
If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him.
If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him.
If he needs death, I’ll kill for him."
*Make sure to read the bonus scene*
....
“Keep breathing just like that. I’m not going anywhere, okay? Just give it some time. You’ll be alright.” He swallows hard. When he speaks, his voice is wrecked and raw. “How can you be so sure?” “Because I won’t let you not be.”
“If I can’t taste your lips, then I’ll just have to taste every other inch of you.”
“I want to fucking worship you, baby.”
"I don’t know if there’s a difference between being obsessed and being addicted. But it doesn’t matter because I’m both."
"So not only did the boy obsessed with death find himself a serial killer, but that same boy who carries around trauma found himself a consent king. Murder good, rape bad."
“Open your mouth, killer.” I have a murderer on his knees, about to shove my cock down his throat. Talk about a power trip."
“Would you like that, baby?” he asks as he runs his hands up my stomach to my chest. “You wanna fuck a killer?”
....
⚠️potential spoilers below in detailed tropes and trigger warnings
Tropes/content:
Enemies
Hockey players
Artist
Teammates
Serial killer
One man obsessed with murder. One man obsessed with death.
Obsession
Possessive AF
Kills for him
Morally gray
Revenge
Vigilante justice
Broken boys
Help through panic attack while they're still enemies
Forced proximity
Forced to share hotel room while enemies
Consent kings
No kissing rule
Callum is "Stone-sexual". He's never felt sexual attraction to anyone besides Stone.
Aftercare
Healing sex ("Erase him. Erase all of it.")
Licks blood from a cut of other MC
Kisses old abuse scars
Hurts himself after hurting his love
"Baby" slip
Bareback
First kiss
Callum's first consensual sexual experience is with Stone
Touch him and die (literally)
Dry hump makeout to completion
💦 in pants
Somnophilia
Cock warming
Finger warming
Rimming
Snowballing
Biting
Marking
Mine
Soulmates
Murder as foreplay
Death as an aphrodisiac
Murder with a plug in his ass
Light bondage
Sex in front of bleeding dying body
Stabbed eyes of victim because "no one can see what's mine"
"Watch him bleed while I eat your ass"
Sketches of death
Versatile roles
TWs:
Murder on page
Death on page
Mention of past rape of a side character
Panic attacks
Nightmares
Childhood rapes of an MC (not described in detail)
Stalking between MCs
Violence between MCs
Kidnapping between MCs
Pedophiles (not MCs)
December 14, 2024
4.5 stars for Stone and Callum!!
I’m not in the mood to write a long review so this will be quick.
Loved these guys. It’s not enemies to lovers because Callum is the only one with hate in his heart for Stone but I enjoyed watching them fall in love. Stone is literally everything!!!! Callum is great too but Stone is chefs kiss. He’s sweet, so damn protective, possessive, obsessive. He says it’s so many times that he will literally do anything for Callum and he does. He can’t fathom ever hurting Callum and when he does just a little he’s so beside himself. This man cries!! Ugh I loved how much Callum was his everything. It’s touch him and die for real. You’re his friend? Don’t care! Don’t touch or even look at my man. There’s no one else for either of these two. I loved that Stone was Callums first kiss. First everything really. Callum was sexually assaulted in the past so Stone is the first person he is with willingly. And Stone is NOT a manwhore!! Loved him even more for that!!! Anyway the plot was pretty good, I was just here for this possessive romance.
NO CHEATING
NO OM DRAMA (just stone being possessive)
NO THIRD ACT BREAK (though the did separate for a couple days)
PAST CHILD SEXUAL ASSAULT ON MMC
MURDER
HEA (married)
I’m not in the mood to write a long review so this will be quick.
Loved these guys. It’s not enemies to lovers because Callum is the only one with hate in his heart for Stone but I enjoyed watching them fall in love. Stone is literally everything!!!! Callum is great too but Stone is chefs kiss. He’s sweet, so damn protective, possessive, obsessive. He says it’s so many times that he will literally do anything for Callum and he does. He can’t fathom ever hurting Callum and when he does just a little he’s so beside himself. This man cries!! Ugh I loved how much Callum was his everything. It’s touch him and die for real. You’re his friend? Don’t care! Don’t touch or even look at my man. There’s no one else for either of these two. I loved that Stone was Callums first kiss. First everything really. Callum was sexually assaulted in the past so Stone is the first person he is with willingly. And Stone is NOT a manwhore!! Loved him even more for that!!! Anyway the plot was pretty good, I was just here for this possessive romance.
NO CHEATING
NO OM DRAMA (just stone being possessive)
NO THIRD ACT BREAK (though the did separate for a couple days)
PAST CHILD SEXUAL ASSAULT ON MMC
MURDER
HEA (married)
July 4, 2025
Rating: 3.5 ⭐️
Well, I’d like to start this by saying this rating is maybe – most probably – thanks to Stone Wakefield who's the highlight of this book.
“Ricochet” by River Hale tell the story of Stone and Callum, navigating a very bloody relationship. I won’t say there’s a real plot besides their romance, which to be honest, I was totally here for it. Seriously, the premises of the book were insane: a boy obssessed with death being attracted to a murderer? I was sold. And extremely curious, considering all the quotes I have seen the past few days, which were beautiful and unhinged, just the way I like it.
However, I think I was disappointed. It wasn’t how I thought it would be, but I’ll come back to those aspects later.
First, let’s begin with what I truly appreciated. I enjoyed Stone’s character. Yes, he was a killer, and kind of psychotic, but I loved how he wasn’t just that, or worse, a bloody asshole. To be honest, he was just cute most of the time. His protective side was wholesome. Protective and possessive heroes just became one of my weaknesses in romance! My only ick was his “beast”. It was ridiculous, and each time it was mentioned, I just pictured a whole demon with horns and claws possessing Stone. It’s Christmas time guys, not Halloween…
Stone and Callum had strong chemistry from the start. It was inevitable, the two of them, and when they finally let themselves loose, it was very satisfying and hot. Their intimate scenes were well executed, especially their kinks. This couple was sexy as fuck. While I’ll admit some of their moments were a bit over the top for me, I loved their relationship, and how Stone absolutely refused to willingly hurt Callum. When he did (without meaning to), his reactions made me want to comfort him. The way Stone loved Callum was completely insane, but never on the bad side I’d say. Stone was so obsessed about Callum, there wasn’t anyone for him, except for Callum, and it’s that kind of faithfulness that makes me appreciate him even more.
What bothered me in this book was Callum’s personality. Don’t get me wrong, I love stubborn characters but Callum’s stubbornness was painful to read sometimes (not in an enjoyable way!). I know he had issues, but I have so many characters in mind when it comes to the broken boy type who were so great and enjoyable (Brandon King, for example). His animosity toward Stone in the beginning was understandable, but became a teeny-weeny bit annoying. If I’m completely honest, I got the feeling Stone loved Callum more than Callum loved Stone. Yes, by the end of the novel, Callum is all “I’m madly in love with him.” But it felt a bit…underwhelming. Around 60%-70% of the book, I had difficulties with him.
What I didn’t enjoy was how their relationship seemed to revolve mostly around Callum, and not around the two of them. Again, I know the book is mainly about Callum and his trauma, but come on! I really dislike when I can feel a character liking another character more. I don’t doubt Callum’s love for Stone, but I didn’t get the same feelings when I was reading Stone’s thoughts about Callum…which makes me sad honestly.
*Spoilers below*
For instance, the whole scene with Eric breaking in Stone’s apartment, and Stone wanting to kill him for “threatening Callum”. Can we just talk about that? Callum literally threatened to injure himself if Stone decides to kill Eric. I understand his motivations, but the execution was not it. That scene was just…sigh I don’t think I was frustrated with a character as much I was with Callum in this moment.
*End of spoilers*
The ending felt a bit rushed too. Very dramatic, very K-drama-ish I’d even say, but I won’t complain about that too much since I was entertained.
Ultimately, I enjoyed the story, especially some of its quotes which were so romantic and full of love for some, but my hopes were too high for this one.
Well, I’d like to start this by saying this rating is maybe – most probably – thanks to Stone Wakefield who's the highlight of this book.
“Ricochet” by River Hale tell the story of Stone and Callum, navigating a very bloody relationship. I won’t say there’s a real plot besides their romance, which to be honest, I was totally here for it. Seriously, the premises of the book were insane: a boy obssessed with death being attracted to a murderer? I was sold. And extremely curious, considering all the quotes I have seen the past few days, which were beautiful and unhinged, just the way I like it.
However, I think I was disappointed. It wasn’t how I thought it would be, but I’ll come back to those aspects later.
First, let’s begin with what I truly appreciated. I enjoyed Stone’s character. Yes, he was a killer, and kind of psychotic, but I loved how he wasn’t just that, or worse, a bloody asshole. To be honest, he was just cute most of the time. His protective side was wholesome. Protective and possessive heroes just became one of my weaknesses in romance! My only ick was his “beast”. It was ridiculous, and each time it was mentioned, I just pictured a whole demon with horns and claws possessing Stone. It’s Christmas time guys, not Halloween…
Stone and Callum had strong chemistry from the start. It was inevitable, the two of them, and when they finally let themselves loose, it was very satisfying and hot. Their intimate scenes were well executed, especially their kinks. This couple was sexy as fuck. While I’ll admit some of their moments were a bit over the top for me, I loved their relationship, and how Stone absolutely refused to willingly hurt Callum. When he did (without meaning to), his reactions made me want to comfort him. The way Stone loved Callum was completely insane, but never on the bad side I’d say. Stone was so obsessed about Callum, there wasn’t anyone for him, except for Callum, and it’s that kind of faithfulness that makes me appreciate him even more.
What bothered me in this book was Callum’s personality. Don’t get me wrong, I love stubborn characters but Callum’s stubbornness was painful to read sometimes (not in an enjoyable way!). I know he had issues, but I have so many characters in mind when it comes to the broken boy type who were so great and enjoyable (Brandon King, for example). His animosity toward Stone in the beginning was understandable, but became a teeny-weeny bit annoying. If I’m completely honest, I got the feeling Stone loved Callum more than Callum loved Stone. Yes, by the end of the novel, Callum is all “I’m madly in love with him.” But it felt a bit…underwhelming. Around 60%-70% of the book, I had difficulties with him.
What I didn’t enjoy was how their relationship seemed to revolve mostly around Callum, and not around the two of them. Again, I know the book is mainly about Callum and his trauma, but come on! I really dislike when I can feel a character liking another character more. I don’t doubt Callum’s love for Stone, but I didn’t get the same feelings when I was reading Stone’s thoughts about Callum…which makes me sad honestly.
*Spoilers below*
For instance, the whole scene with Eric breaking in Stone’s apartment, and Stone wanting to kill him for “threatening Callum”. Can we just talk about that? Callum literally threatened to injure himself if Stone decides to kill Eric. I understand his motivations, but the execution was not it. That scene was just…sigh I don’t think I was frustrated with a character as much I was with Callum in this moment.
*End of spoilers*
The ending felt a bit rushed too. Very dramatic, very K-drama-ish I’d even say, but I won’t complain about that too much since I was entertained.
Ultimately, I enjoyed the story, especially some of its quotes which were so romantic and full of love for some, but my hopes were too high for this one.
January 3, 2025
WOW it’s difficult for me to rate and review this one, because I’m quite new to this particular genre, so bare with me!
First of all: Yes, this was indeed dark. There was murder, ideation of death in general, gore, blood play, sexual assault, child abuse (past), trauma, there was fucking while watching a man bleed to death and very dark grey morals (”Murder good. Rape bad”). It was a lot for a genre newbie like me.
There was also a bit of hockey lol
BUT: The absolutely delicious co-dependency, mine, obsession, possessiveness, jealousy, touch him and literally die had me giddily kicking my legs and cackling throughout the whole entire book. Fuck, I loved these two together. They were so incredibly hot with their kinky, all consuming, healing sex and they were so incredibly sweet with all their caring and comforting and protecting GAAH 🫠
The whole story was a bit (a lot?) unrealistic, ott - especially the ending- and too gory for me personally, but the dynamic between these two?! Holy fucking shit, I’m obsessed with these murder babies. I’ll give it 4⭐️ but if you’re a bit more used to dark romance than I am, I can easily see this being a 5 star read for you!
🔥🔥🔥
First of all: Yes, this was indeed dark. There was murder, ideation of death in general, gore, blood play, sexual assault, child abuse (past), trauma, there was fucking while watching a man bleed to death and very dark grey morals (”Murder good. Rape bad”). It was a lot for a genre newbie like me.
There was also a bit of hockey lol
BUT: The absolutely delicious co-dependency, mine, obsession, possessiveness, jealousy, touch him and literally die had me giddily kicking my legs and cackling throughout the whole entire book. Fuck, I loved these two together. They were so incredibly hot with their kinky, all consuming, healing sex and they were so incredibly sweet with all their caring and comforting and protecting GAAH 🫠
The whole story was a bit (a lot?) unrealistic, ott - especially the ending- and too gory for me personally, but the dynamic between these two?! Holy fucking shit, I’m obsessed with these murder babies. I’ll give it 4⭐️ but if you’re a bit more used to dark romance than I am, I can easily see this being a 5 star read for you!
”If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him.
If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him.
If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him.
If he needs death, I’ll kill for him.”
”If I go too far too soon, I might break him. And I don’t want that.
Ruin him, yes.
Make him mine, yes.
Break him, no.
I don’t know if there’s a difference between being obsessed and being addicted. But it doesn’t matter because I’m both.”
“You’re going to feel only me until the end of time,” he says, his warm breath kissing my lips. “There will be no purging me from your veins. No carving my touch from your skin. No ridding the memories of me from your mind. If I can’t do any of that when it comes to you, then I won’t let you either. You’re fucking everywhere, and I’m not capable of letting you go. You belong to me, and I belong to you.”
🔥🔥🔥
December 12, 2024
Easily one of my favorite reads of 2024!
I loved everything about this book. The writing, the story, the characters, the spice... Absolutely EVERYTHING!!
From the very first pages, I was captivated, and just couldn't wait to read on and spend this time with Callum and Stone.
I got hooked on the characters very early on, Callum didn't have it easy at all in life, and he touched me a lot. He was so well written that it was very easy to put yourself in his shoes and impossible not to love him! 🥹 And Stone, what can I say? He's nothing short of perfect! (I guess this is where I should say something like if you take away his murderous side 😆 because obviously in real life that would be a big problem, but in a book it's fine, well at least for me 🤪) I wouldn't change a thing about him, and he's just taken a really important place at the top of my book boyfriends list 😍 I just adore them both with all my heart!
As for the story, I don't think I'll venture into that territory because I think it's best to go in blind, unless you have trigger warnings, then definitely check that out first. But know that even though the book has a lot of serious subjects and is a bit dark, I'm a hyper-sensitive person and I found it very easy to read.
And as for the spice, it was SO delicious! 🔥🔥🔥 Honestly, I wonder if River wrote this book for me because it really had everything I love in it and more 🥵 I stopped counting the number of times I melted, because it happened so often 🫠🫠🫠
And finaly, in case it wasn't clear enough, I really do recommend it to everyone! 🥰 I'll even take complaints if you don't like it. I might be a little upset, though 😔 Kidding... (Not really 😇)
Ok that's all now, before I continue on for another round... Go and read it, you won't regret it! 🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡
I loved everything about this book. The writing, the story, the characters, the spice... Absolutely EVERYTHING!!
From the very first pages, I was captivated, and just couldn't wait to read on and spend this time with Callum and Stone.
I got hooked on the characters very early on, Callum didn't have it easy at all in life, and he touched me a lot. He was so well written that it was very easy to put yourself in his shoes and impossible not to love him! 🥹 And Stone, what can I say? He's nothing short of perfect! (I guess this is where I should say something like if you take away his murderous side 😆 because obviously in real life that would be a big problem, but in a book it's fine, well at least for me 🤪) I wouldn't change a thing about him, and he's just taken a really important place at the top of my book boyfriends list 😍 I just adore them both with all my heart!
As for the story, I don't think I'll venture into that territory because I think it's best to go in blind, unless you have trigger warnings, then definitely check that out first. But know that even though the book has a lot of serious subjects and is a bit dark, I'm a hyper-sensitive person and I found it very easy to read.
And as for the spice, it was SO delicious! 🔥🔥🔥 Honestly, I wonder if River wrote this book for me because it really had everything I love in it and more 🥵 I stopped counting the number of times I melted, because it happened so often 🫠🫠🫠
And finaly, in case it wasn't clear enough, I really do recommend it to everyone! 🥰 I'll even take complaints if you don't like it. I might be a little upset, though 😔 Kidding... (Not really 😇)
Ok that's all now, before I continue on for another round... Go and read it, you won't regret it! 🧡🧡🧡🧡🧡
January 13, 2025
This book is everything I’ve been waiting for and more. I’ll keep this completely spoiler free, because I can’t wait for everyone to experience it themselves!
I’m obsessed with Callum & Stone. OBSESSED.
🏒psychopath
🩸obsession
🔪murder
🏒codependency
🩸touch him and ☠️
🔪childhood trauma
🏒hockey teammates
🩸enemies to lovers
🔪murder husbands
Callum must be protected at ALL COSTS. Stone is with me on this.
I’m obsessed with Callum & Stone. OBSESSED.
🏒psychopath
🩸obsession
🔪murder
🏒codependency
🩸touch him and ☠️
🔪childhood trauma
🏒hockey teammates
🩸enemies to lovers
🔪murder husbands
Callum must be protected at ALL COSTS. Stone is with me on this.
July 7, 2025
This was the first book I've read by River Hale. I really enjoyed it.
It was an interesting mix of hockey and murder.
It was an interesting mix of hockey and murder.
December 6, 2024
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️
If you’ve been looking for a Dark, MM, Hockey, POSSESSIVE, OBSESSIVE, Spicy as heck, Murdery Puck Boys, Hurt / Comfort, Somno, absolutely DELICIOUS Romance, well I’m here to tell you that this was absolutely perfect. ABSOLUTELY PERFECTTTT. You don’t understand, let’s see if I can explain.
Stone & Callum. They have a complicated, intertwined past, one full of secrets and you guessed it, murder. Well they’re back on the same hockey team for a season, and as much as Callum has tried to run from his life in Pennsylvania for the last 5 years, with the return of Stone in his life, everything comes back. EVERYTHING. The nightmares, the memories, and the feelings. So many feelings.
Stone is a born protector. He’s possessive of those he loves, to the point of murder. Literally. He will kill for those he cares about. And he does. Often. He’s always wanted to protect Callum, and he will continue to do so.
Stone is possibly THE MOST POSSESSIVE MC I HAVE EVER READ. EVER. This man can’t even THINK about someone touching his man. And when they do? Well it’s not pretty 😂 The marks? The bites? The blood? Yes, yes, yes. SO MUCH YES. 🫠
These two get themselves into a whole mess of trouble that includes lust, love, bloodshed, secrets, revelations, and STEAMY scenes that will live in your mind rent free. (did someone say something about a body, and a couch scene? Just me? Okay 🤭)
There were so many twists, turns, unexpected happenings, secrets, and suspenseful moments between these two, it was a wild ride from beginning to end. I didn’t want to put them down at any point. Not a single chapter had been used as filler, and it was perfect.
This book had a really good mix of actual hockey playing, plot, spice, and emotion which I obviously really enjoyed. I have no idea how River managed to fit all of THIS into one book but WOW. I am so happy she took a chance on sending me an ARC (after some grovelling 😅) Ricochet quickly rose to one of my top reads of 2024. And I couldn’t think of a better book to leave the year with. These boys are going to look so good on my shelf 🥹
🌶️🌶️🌶️
If you’ve been looking for a Dark, MM, Hockey, POSSESSIVE, OBSESSIVE, Spicy as heck, Murdery Puck Boys, Hurt / Comfort, Somno, absolutely DELICIOUS Romance, well I’m here to tell you that this was absolutely perfect. ABSOLUTELY PERFECTTTT. You don’t understand, let’s see if I can explain.
Stone & Callum. They have a complicated, intertwined past, one full of secrets and you guessed it, murder. Well they’re back on the same hockey team for a season, and as much as Callum has tried to run from his life in Pennsylvania for the last 5 years, with the return of Stone in his life, everything comes back. EVERYTHING. The nightmares, the memories, and the feelings. So many feelings.
Stone is a born protector. He’s possessive of those he loves, to the point of murder. Literally. He will kill for those he cares about. And he does. Often. He’s always wanted to protect Callum, and he will continue to do so.
Stone is possibly THE MOST POSSESSIVE MC I HAVE EVER READ. EVER. This man can’t even THINK about someone touching his man. And when they do? Well it’s not pretty 😂 The marks? The bites? The blood? Yes, yes, yes. SO MUCH YES. 🫠
These two get themselves into a whole mess of trouble that includes lust, love, bloodshed, secrets, revelations, and STEAMY scenes that will live in your mind rent free. (did someone say something about a body, and a couch scene? Just me? Okay 🤭)
There were so many twists, turns, unexpected happenings, secrets, and suspenseful moments between these two, it was a wild ride from beginning to end. I didn’t want to put them down at any point. Not a single chapter had been used as filler, and it was perfect.
This book had a really good mix of actual hockey playing, plot, spice, and emotion which I obviously really enjoyed. I have no idea how River managed to fit all of THIS into one book but WOW. I am so happy she took a chance on sending me an ARC (after some grovelling 😅) Ricochet quickly rose to one of my top reads of 2024. And I couldn’t think of a better book to leave the year with. These boys are going to look so good on my shelf 🥹
January 5, 2025
I'm starting to believe dark romances just aren't for me. Not because of the content. Not because of the gore, or really any of the ✨dark✨ things.
I just haven't read one that wasn't so... cringey.
This was supposed to be the one! My hopes were high! I was looking forward to a good, fun time. I knew the book was overwritten and embarrassing just a few pages in, but it all seemed manageable.
Then... Stone (what kind of fucking name is that, anyways) started growling.
I could take that! Nothing we haven't all seen before, right? Bitches growl all the time, even outside of dark romance. But then he kept going. And going. And going.
The beast. The beast. The beast. I'm holding in the beast. He can't see the beast. I'm letting go of the beast.
I was staying strong, even then. I could do it. I was still having a good time. I was laughing at every page of this book (at the book, not with), but I was still enjoying myself.
Then they get together, not even halfway through the book, and we start going downhill. Now I'm dealing with countless, eternally italicized He's mine. Mine. Mine. Mine.
I'm gritting my teeth. I'm struggling. I'm still holding on.
But then....
"Fuck. I love that you're just as fucking depraved as I am. Your ass was made for my cock, and your twisted mind was made just for me."
Out. Out. Get out. Get away. 13 y/o me would have LOVED this in her Itachi/reader fanfiction, but we have long since let that ship sail.
The story really isn't that bad, too? But dear GOD every page off of this book shot me right back to my years of buying neon pink skinny jeans from Hot Topic. I could smell the 50 cans of hairspray I'd go through a day just to tease my hair how I liked it. I could hear the roar of the crowd of every Black Veil Brides concert I went to.
Did I hate every second of this book? No. Did finishing it feel like I was released from prison? Yes.
Let me out. God, please, let me out. It's over. I'm free.
Like that puck on the ice that ricocheted off the boards between us, we've been ricocheting off each other this whole time.
Roll credits.
I just haven't read one that wasn't so... cringey.
This was supposed to be the one! My hopes were high! I was looking forward to a good, fun time. I knew the book was overwritten and embarrassing just a few pages in, but it all seemed manageable.
Then... Stone (what kind of fucking name is that, anyways) started growling.
I could take that! Nothing we haven't all seen before, right? Bitches growl all the time, even outside of dark romance. But then he kept going. And going. And going.
The beast. The beast. The beast. I'm holding in the beast. He can't see the beast. I'm letting go of the beast.
I was staying strong, even then. I could do it. I was still having a good time. I was laughing at every page of this book (at the book, not with), but I was still enjoying myself.
Then they get together, not even halfway through the book, and we start going downhill. Now I'm dealing with countless, eternally italicized He's mine. Mine. Mine. Mine.
I'm gritting my teeth. I'm struggling. I'm still holding on.
But then....
"Fuck. I love that you're just as fucking depraved as I am. Your ass was made for my cock, and your twisted mind was made just for me."
Out. Out. Get out. Get away. 13 y/o me would have LOVED this in her Itachi/reader fanfiction, but we have long since let that ship sail.
The story really isn't that bad, too? But dear GOD every page off of this book shot me right back to my years of buying neon pink skinny jeans from Hot Topic. I could smell the 50 cans of hairspray I'd go through a day just to tease my hair how I liked it. I could hear the roar of the crowd of every Black Veil Brides concert I went to.
Did I hate every second of this book? No. Did finishing it feel like I was released from prison? Yes.
Let me out. God, please, let me out. It's over. I'm free.
Like that puck on the ice that ricocheted off the boards between us, we've been ricocheting off each other this whole time.
Roll credits.
July 26, 2025
I went into this book blind and happy I did!! this book was amazing!!
![Profile Image for ♡Gabi♡ [life & work is chaotic hiatus].](/_next/image?url=https%3A%2F%2Fi.gr-assets.com%2Fimages%2FS%2Fcompressed.photo.goodreads.com%2Fusers%2F1764457886i%2F137459201._UX200_CR0%2C0%2C200%2C200_.jpg&w=128&q=75)
December 27, 2024
3.5 ✰
serial killer hockey player x death obsessed hockey player
🔪🩸🥅⛸️
read through this pretty quickly while on my flight.
loved the unhinged possession from one mmc towards the other and enjoyed their dynamic overall!
serial killer hockey player x death obsessed hockey player
🔪🩸🥅⛸️
read through this pretty quickly while on my flight.
loved the unhinged possession from one mmc towards the other and enjoyed their dynamic overall!
December 3, 2024
"Whether it’s because of his words or the proximity of his body to mine, I can’t be sure. A white heat arcs through my spine, settling low. Intensifying. It’s a million butterflies on fire, blood traveling on wings. Down, down, down. The moment he pulls back and our gazes lock, I know one thing for sure now. I like it when his eyes are on me."
Oh my, I loved this one! Ricochet marks a move into MM sports romance for River Hale but this still has the darrrrrrk themes and fabulously gritty writing that the author's previous books are known for. And this one is dark (like, murdery dark) which is really unusual for a sports romance, which are usually known for their light-hearted, slightly angsty, enemies to lovers/rivals or best friends to lovers vibes.
"If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him. If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him. If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him. If he needs death, I’ll kill for him."
Ricochet is different. You should check out the author's notes before you dive in, because Callum and Stone's story this won't be for everyone.
What To Expect:
🖤Enemies to lovers (but were they really enemies)
🖤Sport (hockey) romance
🖤Psychopath MC
🖤MH rep
🖤SO MANY DARK THEMES
🖤ALL THE STEAM
🖤Touch him and ☠️
🖤HEA despite everything
Like I said, I LOVED it!
Oh my, I loved this one! Ricochet marks a move into MM sports romance for River Hale but this still has the darrrrrrk themes and fabulously gritty writing that the author's previous books are known for. And this one is dark (like, murdery dark) which is really unusual for a sports romance, which are usually known for their light-hearted, slightly angsty, enemies to lovers/rivals or best friends to lovers vibes.
"If he needs comfort, I’ll soothe him. If he’s touch starved, I’ll feed him. If he wants pleasure, I’ll satiate him. If he needs death, I’ll kill for him."
Ricochet is different. You should check out the author's notes before you dive in, because Callum and Stone's story this won't be for everyone.
What To Expect:
🖤Enemies to lovers (but were they really enemies)
🖤Sport (hockey) romance
🖤Psychopath MC
🖤MH rep
🖤SO MANY DARK THEMES
🖤ALL THE STEAM
🖤Touch him and ☠️
🖤HEA despite everything
Like I said, I LOVED it!
July 25, 2025
I could NOT, for the life of me, take this seriously. Wdym you're hockey players but one of you moonlights as a serial killer?
Be so for real.
I mean, I'm glad there was no prolonged pretense about Stone not being the killer because it was obvious as fuck from chapter 1 that he's the one who killed Callum's step-dad.
So, kudos for leading with it in chapter 2 rather than pretending the reader's dumb.
The whole serial killer thing outside that, though? Lololol. I mean, do you. But I always struggle with young adults being the big bad in dark romance.
You're staying afloat in college, you're the star centre on the hockey team, you're being a flirty little shit to the guy you like whenever you get a chance, but you STILL have time to commit a little light murder on the side?
Stone MUST put me in touch with whoever's managing his schedule.
Loved that Stone was a consent king, if you discount the pesky murder sprees.
Required extreme suspension of disbelief that Callum would see Stone take a life and immediately be all 'this is exactly what soothes me'.
A lot of convenience with that.
On Stone's end, it feels a lot more like obsession than love.
Actually, even on Callum's end, it doesn't quite add up for me. I'd have bought it more if he'd realized Stone killed his step dad, THEN fell in love with him. I could see a survivor of childhood sexual assault casting the person who kills their abuser in a savior light.
As is, he saw this guy he really disliked killing someone and..........fell in love, for some reason. Right.
At least they support each other no matter what, though.
"There's nothing wrong with you."
"Says the serial killer."
"Fair. "
There's a scene I ABSOLUTELY expected in this and was not disappointed💀. You know that thing where there's only one person who can 'tame the beast' in the bad guy, and he's all 'Look at me. You're better than this. Please don't do this. For me? 🥺'
Very, very cliché.
A lot of it just felt like kids cosplaying vigilante life, but maybe I'm just ageist?
But maybe not. Because Lord of the Flies has much younger protagonists and that shit freaked me out for several years. And the 'beast' mentions did not have me rolling my eyes or chuckling at the draaaama.
Didn't hate it. Didn't love it. But Goodreads STILL won't let us do halfsies so 2.5 rounded up.
Be so for real.
I mean, I'm glad there was no prolonged pretense about Stone not being the killer because it was obvious as fuck from chapter 1 that he's the one who killed Callum's step-dad.
So, kudos for leading with it in chapter 2 rather than pretending the reader's dumb.
The whole serial killer thing outside that, though? Lololol. I mean, do you. But I always struggle with young adults being the big bad in dark romance.
You're staying afloat in college, you're the star centre on the hockey team, you're being a flirty little shit to the guy you like whenever you get a chance, but you STILL have time to commit a little light murder on the side?
Stone MUST put me in touch with whoever's managing his schedule.
Loved that Stone was a consent king, if you discount the pesky murder sprees.
Required extreme suspension of disbelief that Callum would see Stone take a life and immediately be all 'this is exactly what soothes me'.
A lot of convenience with that.
On Stone's end, it feels a lot more like obsession than love.
Actually, even on Callum's end, it doesn't quite add up for me. I'd have bought it more if he'd realized Stone killed his step dad, THEN fell in love with him. I could see a survivor of childhood sexual assault casting the person who kills their abuser in a savior light.
As is, he saw this guy he really disliked killing someone and..........fell in love, for some reason. Right.
At least they support each other no matter what, though.
"There's nothing wrong with you."
"Says the serial killer."
"Fair. "
There's a scene I ABSOLUTELY expected in this and was not disappointed💀. You know that thing where there's only one person who can 'tame the beast' in the bad guy, and he's all 'Look at me. You're better than this. Please don't do this. For me? 🥺'
Very, very cliché.
A lot of it just felt like kids cosplaying vigilante life, but maybe I'm just ageist?
But maybe not. Because Lord of the Flies has much younger protagonists and that shit freaked me out for several years. And the 'beast' mentions did not have me rolling my eyes or chuckling at the draaaama.
Didn't hate it. Didn't love it. But Goodreads STILL won't let us do halfsies so 2.5 rounded up.
August 15, 2025
I think I loved this book so much because it reminds me of “the pucking wrong” series that I love so much but MM
December 15, 2024
Loved this dark beauty. A beautifully dark story. Both our MC's are well justified for their vices. The flow is good and the dangerous vibes are fluent throughout.
This is not rocket science and is made to be enjoyed so there is a bit of over simplification in some situations. But that's ok😜🔪
The first kill together is a thing of dark beauty.🔪🔥🔥🔥
Note to self: This has an essence of God of Fury. Obsessive touch him and die vibes. Dark knight, Enemies to lovers, serial killer, revenge/punishing killing
This is not rocket science and is made to be enjoyed so there is a bit of over simplification in some situations. But that's ok😜🔪
The first kill together is a thing of dark beauty.🔪🔥🔥🔥
Note to self: This has an essence of God of Fury. Obsessive touch him and die vibes. Dark knight, Enemies to lovers, serial killer, revenge/punishing killing
December 18, 2024
DNF @ 85%
First part was 3 stars but it's gone downhill from there. If I have to force myself to finish, I'd probably give it 1 star so I'm going ahead and throwing in the towel now. I'm honestly too bored to finish, and it's steadily gotten more and more cringy and OTT.
First part was 3 stars but it's gone downhill from there. If I have to force myself to finish, I'd probably give it 1 star so I'm going ahead and throwing in the towel now. I'm honestly too bored to finish, and it's steadily gotten more and more cringy and OTT.
December 13, 2024
3.5🌟
I went into this book expecting a dark romance, but honestly, it felt more like a comedy to me. The only genuinely dark or sad element was Callum's trauma—everything else was just over-the-top and absurd. That said, the plot twist near the end was a pleasant surprise and one of the few things that really made sense.
I can’t deny that I enjoyed Stone and Callum’s relationship, though. They were completely chaotic but also adorably crazy together. I lost count of how many times I almost put the book down because I needed a break from Stone and his "beast." Honestly, when he finally let it loose, I was relieved—it was about time! He kept it caged for way too long, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
Stone as a killer was just… wild. The sheer carelessness of it all—saying he thought he’d lost his touch when, honestly, I don’t think he ever had any to begin with? I’m still baffled at how he managed to avoid getting caught this whole time. He doesn’t think; he just acts.
Despite all that, I had a lot of fun reading this. It was a wild ride, and even though it wasn’t what I expected, it was entertaining in its own chaotic way.
I went into this book expecting a dark romance, but honestly, it felt more like a comedy to me. The only genuinely dark or sad element was Callum's trauma—everything else was just over-the-top and absurd. That said, the plot twist near the end was a pleasant surprise and one of the few things that really made sense.
I can’t deny that I enjoyed Stone and Callum’s relationship, though. They were completely chaotic but also adorably crazy together. I lost count of how many times I almost put the book down because I needed a break from Stone and his "beast." Honestly, when he finally let it loose, I was relieved—it was about time! He kept it caged for way too long, and I couldn’t help but laugh.
Stone as a killer was just… wild. The sheer carelessness of it all—saying he thought he’d lost his touch when, honestly, I don’t think he ever had any to begin with? I’m still baffled at how he managed to avoid getting caught this whole time. He doesn’t think; he just acts.
Despite all that, I had a lot of fun reading this. It was a wild ride, and even though it wasn’t what I expected, it was entertaining in its own chaotic way.
January 5, 2025
DNF. I'm the biggest enemies to lovers fan but there's only so many times I can hear the word BEAST before I actually gag😭 christ stone, we get it. You're a killer but you're literally the only one that never shuts up about it
May 23, 2025
What a ride this was! I tend to think that actual dark romance might not be for me and then I read a gem like this one. I loved everything about this story and Stone & Callum Were perfection. I will definitely be reading more from River!
December 18, 2024
3 stars. This was entertaining, dark, and honestly pretty uncomfortable to read 😭 (but clearly not enough for me to DNF). I liked the mutual possessiveness and obsession, but I don’t think this needed to be a hockey romance. It could have just been a dark college enemies-to-lovers. I’m lowkey tired of authors making everything hockey-centric.
One huge plus though was the author’s writing style. It flowed nicely and made this book really easy to binge in one sitting.
One huge plus though was the author’s writing style. It flowed nicely and made this book really easy to binge in one sitting.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 733 reviews