Prey Drive

Parallel Prey #1

by Jen Stevens

I have two secrets.
One of them died with me.
The other haunts me.

I'm not sure if he's a ghost, a dream, or my living nightmare, but Sebastian Lancaster seems to have sunken his claws into every aspect of my life before I even accept that he's real.
A New York billionaire with far more things to be interested in than the poor girl renting his family's vacation home, Sebastian seems to evade all the stereotypes I've assigned to him.
But there's more to my stalker mystery man than he's letting on. While I'm trying to rebuild my life after being given a second chance, he spends his evenings as the judge, jury, and executioner against those responsible for his sister's death. It's not until my abusive ex-boyfriend returns to finish what he started that Sebastian reveals to me what he truly is: a cold-hearted killer.
Monster or not, he's claimed me as his own, and if there's one thing Sebastian has made clear, it's that he doesn't like to share.
Will I be his next victim or the one who saves him from his darkness?

Prey Drive is a dark and twisted story about obsession, desire, and the lengths one man will go to defend the ones he loves.

Genres: Dark Romance, Dark, Romance, Paranormal, Thriller, Smut, Contemporary Romance

336 pages, Paperback

Published June 15, 2023

Reviews

[Southern Lady Reads · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐⭐⭐.5/5 - Had me speed reading until the end - but I wish the ending had been more clear. I think could have been a fantastic twist had things been fleshed out a little more?

This is NOT a sweet romance. I even created a new category called 'dark romance' to accurately describe reads like this? If you're into those stalker serial killer romances like Haunting Adeline - you'll love this one!

NOTES:
CWs: Massive content warnings on this one. It's SO dark and twisty.. botched murder/suicid3 attempts, r4pe, s3xual cults etc.
- Available on Kindle Unlimited
- 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5 - Lots and Lots and LOTS of smut. You have been warned.

[Iqra · Rating 4 out of 5]

Her freaking out bc there’s a stalker in her backyard and him freaking out bc she’s living in his KILLHOUSE???

SHUT THE HECK UP THIS SOUNDS SO GOOD 🫦

Update: oh the author ate with this book. No bc the ending was a mindfuck I was NOT expecting 😭🤚

[B E L L S ᖭི༏ᖫྀ · Rating 4 out of 5]

you‘re confused? i‘m fucking confused, bro.

[Grace Threatt · Rating 3 out of 5]

ehhhh

Was good until that last plot twist… I didn’t think that it was very well explained the plot twist and didn’t make sense to me

[Selen ♡ · Rating 2 out of 5]

what the fuck happened in the end

[Nikita Stanley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A MINDBLOWING READ

I cannot recommend this book enough! This book is worth so much more than 5 stars!! Jen absolutely addled my brain with this book!

This is a dark stalker romthriller that you couldn’t see coming if you tried. It’s the perfect combination of unsettling, hot, thrilling and all together mind-boggling.

You don’t know what’s hit you with this read! The characters are dark and enticing, and the more you read their story the more you love them. Add in the creepy yet totally hot factor and just some incomparable twists to round it all up, and you’ve got yourself a proper “can’t close my mouth because where even is my jaw?” situation.

You’ll be left infuriated, screaming for more, and also totally satisfied all at once (and this isn’t just because of the MMC).

This is a MUST READ and is absolutely fantastically written! A book truly written to be devoured.

[Luna ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

»You can't escape me. Not in this life or any one that comes after it. My soul has latched onto yours, melding us into one. I'll always find you, Stardust.«

★ ★ ★

❥ 𝑱𝒐𝒗𝒊𝒆
She was cute but totally naive and a little crazy. She doesn’t think about consequences and just trusts Bash to not harm her.

❥ 𝑺𝒆𝒃𝒂𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒏
Liked him. He is dangerous and a serial killer but towards Jovie he is nothing but caring.

✥ 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒃𝒐𝒐𝒌
I don‘t really know what to think about this one.
The plot was thrilling and interesting but sometimes a little boring and flat. Bash hunts the people who were responsible for his sisters death and with each kill he get‘s new information. At the same time he stalks Jovie and falls hard for her. I liked their relationship and the tension between them. But I think their love story was too fast paced and Jovie was too naive (and a little bit dumb). I expected more of a dark romance considering the whole stalker and murderer trope - but it was rather cute. Of course there is a lot of violence and death but between Jovie and Bash everything just fits and is cute, that was boring to be honest.
The end was a big plottwist and I don‘t know if I like it or not. I can't make sense of it.
Overall for me this was not really a dark romance (like tiktok promised. Maybe I should stop trusting TikTok…)? More of a thriller with romance plot, I can‘t describe it.
It was good, but not wow.
If you’re interested in a twisted love story and a dark plot then read it. If you expect a dark romance like Haunting Adeline then this is not what you’re searching for.


𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝟓
plot: 3/5
spice: 2/5
humor: 2/5
couple/tension: 4/5
world building: 5/5
happy end?: cliff hanger

𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐬
forced proximity, possessive and protective hero, dark, thriller, crime, mystery, stalker, paranormal, rich x poor, ceo

𝐬𝐚𝐟𝐞𝐭𝐲
ages: both in their 30s I think
cheating: no
sharing: no
kinks: no

[Courtney Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

✨𝑷𝒓𝒆𝒚 𝑫𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆✨

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Darkness: 💀💀💀
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

If you are looking for a spicy dark stalker thriller, this is for you!

I finished this book & immediately was like, “WOW I’m going to be thinking about this book for a while.” Lol this was an absolute wild ride & a complete mind fuck - I didn’t expect any of the twists!

There is so much I was to say about this book but I’m going to leave you with the tr0pes below because there are so many twists & turns that I don’t want to give anything away. All I can say is Sebastian is 🥵🥵🥵 Stalk me daddy.

𝑻𝒓0𝒑𝒆𝒔:
🖤 Stalker Romance
🖤 Masked Billionare Posessive Serial Killer MC
🖤 Thriller
🖤 Secret Society
🖤 Primal - Hunter/Prey
🖤 Paranormal
🖤 Revenge Plot
🖤 Spicy
🖤 Dual POV
🖤 PLOT TWISTS
🖤 Partial HEA

𝑭𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝑸𝒖𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒔:
“I decide then that I have to taste her before I kill her.”

“I don’t think you get it, Stardust. The second I coast my tongue with your cum, you’re going to be mine.”

“Come for me, baby. Scream my name so everyone in this shitty, Podunk town knows who you belong to.”

“She deserves the entire night sky and every exploding, magnificent star floating inside of it. No, fuck that. She deserves the universe.”

Please check the TWs. Thank you to Jen for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

[Stephanie Nelson · Rating 2 out of 5]

All I wanted was your run-of-the-mill Stalker Romance, and instead I got some creepy secret society, dead ghost twin, parallel universe/time travel mullarky. Boooo

[moroccan oil · Rating 1 out of 5]

I don’t understand the ending. Someone explain it to me. What happened.

[alli☀️ · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.75☆
I did not understand that ending at all. Truly I have no idea what happened. I also didn't realize this book would have a paranormal aspect to it.
🝮 🝮 🝮
•Stalker
•Serial Killer
•Wanted to 💀 her, but became obsessed instead
•Paranormal?
🝮 🝮 🝮
The lamb (fmc) - Doormat. Dumb. Never thinks before doing stuff. “She's nothing like the women I'm used to.” Didn't really have a personality.

The wolf (mmc) - Controlling. Killer. Caring?

”I'm the hostile wolf with an insatiable prey drive, and she's the little lamb that's accidentally wandered into my path.”

“You can’t escape me. Not in this life or any one that comes after it. My soul has latched onto yours, melding us into one. I'll always find you, Stardust."
🝮 🝮 🝮
Just another quote😚
“Men are so weak. Women are capable of enduring days of labor pains, then pushing entire human beings out of their bodies, nearly splitting themselves in half in the process. We shed the linings of whole-ass organs and bleed quarts of blood every month, yet we're still expected to do the same jobs as men during that time. For less money, I might add.
And here he is, crying because of a little cut to his manhood.
Pathetic.”
🝮 🝮 🝮
Some of the Trigger Warnings
• Stalking & Hunting
• Dubious Consent
• Mention of Mental Health (Hospitalization)
• Mention of Suicide Attempt
• Abusive Relationship (Physical, Emotional, Verbal)
• Drug & Alcohol Addictions
• Drug Abuse, Needles, Overdose
• Death & Murder
• Blood & Gore Depictions Including: Flaying, Drowning, Knife Violence, Torture, Mutilation
• Cult Mentality
• Hazing
• Grief & Loss Depictions

[vivareads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mind blowing truly! 🤯🫠
How are all the guys named “Sebastian” (fictional obvio) are always THE BEST? Every Sebastian I’ve read, they are such PERFECT BEINGS, I can’t help falling in love 😽😍

Despite me enjoying this book a lot, the ending was kinda confusing. But guess we have book two for that so.

[m · Rating 3 out of 5]

what in the multiverse

[Lana (Bibliophileafterdark) · Rating 5 out of 5]

YOU *NEED* THIS BOOK IN YOUR LIFE!

I was fortunate enough to get this as an ARC and I cannot recommend this book enough. It was such a wild ride 🎢 from the beginning to the very last page, with a major plot twist that had me picking my jaw up from the floor 🤯

Bash is a serial unaliver, stalker, billionaire (the Holy Trinity). Jovie is a young woman who just got out of an abusive relationship and is trying to rebuild her life now that she has a second chance. Purely by kismet, her and Bash cross paths in a very interesting way, and Bash 🐺 decides that she is his next prey 🐇

Throughout this story we see how their dynamic evolves into something that is quite unexpected on both ends. On top of their deliciously twisted “relationship” we also have an additional plot that involves a secret society, paranormal occurrences and revenge (SHEEESH).

Bash and Jovie’s dynamic is addictive and my God do I want someone like Bash in my life. There was the perfect amount of spice and I loved how the tension beneath them built up to the perfect climax 😏

**What You’ll Find**
- Vigilante / Masked Anti-Hero
- Dual POV
- Billionaire MMC
- Paranormal
- Revenge Plot
- Touch Her and 🔪
- An FMC who is determined to overcome her past
- Wanting Bash to completely take control of you

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️.5
Darkness: 💀💀💀

[Cee · Rating 4 out of 5]

I... don't know what to think about this one. Mostly positive thoughts, but not sure if this time of story is my jam.
Definitely recommend this for those interested in dark stalker/serial killer romances.

[JL Roberts · Rating 4 out of 5]

That was a surprise ending! A dark twisted love affair that starts as stalking and turns into an obsession. Bash and Jovie are explosive. They might not be the HEA types, but they are fated. I loved how dark and twisted Bash was. His love and need for revenge for his sister. His wants and needs for Jovie. Sexy, dangerous A-typical predator and Jovie is his prey. Jovie for the most part was an okay character I liked her but was more frustrated with her most of the time. She was stubborn when it came to Bash and was very hot and cold toward him yet when her ex and mother come around after what they did to her, she kind of just rolls over and lets them walk all over her.

[Jos]

Si esto termina siendo horrible me gustaría dar un disclaimer de que lo voy a leer por culpa de este reel: https://www.instagram.com/reel/DFoCis...

[MooDolphin · Rating 1 out of 5]

one star bitch. tf was that ending. u best ring up your publisher so they can give u back the story so you can fix it. no because what is actually wrong with you, like psychologically. The rage i feel rn is beyond words. i want my money and my time back. And it’s the fact that i was getting into it, but nooooo you had to throw that bullshit ending in there. Clearly someone didn’t pay attention in english class when the teacher said the “it was all a dream” trope IS OVERUSED. LIKE STOP. I WISH YOU UNHAPPINESS OF A GREAT MAGNITUDE.

oh wait there’s another book. I DONT EVEN CARE! BOYCOTT CAUSE THIS SHIT MADE ME SO ANGRY

[Laura · Rating 1 out of 5]

I've been falling down the rabbit hole of dark romances and find that I either like them or don't. I thought the premise of the story was interesting but as I started reading I began to lose interest. The pacing of events was too quick for me and I felt that the reveal of the dark male lead to the female lead was too fast as well. I quickly lost interest and read it as fast as I could just to finish.

[micolreads · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,25 ⭐

I didn't really know what I was getting into, but I found myself enthralled by this book. The end is probably worth the entire book, I felt like it was original and unique and the bonus chapters were definitely useful!

[Nicole BHam · Rating 2 out of 5]

pass

It wasn’t bad but it was boring and anti Climatic for me. I skimmed and skimmed and skimmed and got the “twisty” end and was just like yah no I’m good

[vixen ‹𝟹 reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

Jovie explores her new home, unaware that a locked door puts her under the watchful eye of Bash, who uses it as his K.I.L.L. room, at first he’s keeping a close eye to keep his room undetected but he’s a hunter after all and he just found a new prey.

As soon as he ran her a bath I was sold, actually I was sold from way before that - with Bash you get the best of both worlds, he’s the type to run a bath & rock your world but also brutally unalive your enemies and his own.

Which isn’t that what we all look for in dark romance (among others😉) this was a win for me, and then all those twists made it a double win! But that ending was a bombshell that blew my mind in a way I can’t put into words… 🤯💥


—— ❗️𝘔𝘠 𝘚𝘗𝘐𝘊𝘌𝘚 𝘉𝘌𝘓𝘖𝘞 𝘊𝘖𝘜𝘓𝘋 𝘉𝘌 𝘚𝘗𝘖𝘐𝘓𝘌𝘙-𝘠 ❗️——

_____________

🏷️ 𝗧𝗥𝗢𝗣𝗘𝗦:
He Falls First, Paranormal Vibes, Secret Relationship, Star Crossed Lovers, All the Spice, New York Billionaire, Elitist Cult/Secret Society, Revenge Vibes, Tortured Antihero, PLOT TWISTS!

😈 𝗦𝗣𝗜𝗖𝗘𝗦:
Masked man, Primal: Hunter vs Prey, Somno Self Care, Bubble Bath, He’s Obsessed, Office Activities, Praise, Taste Pro, ‘Lessons’, Spnking👋🏼, Oh Control

🫠 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝘀:
—> “Good Girl.”
—> “Who did this to you?”
—> “I don’t repeat myself.”
—> “You're mine.”
—> “Crawl,”

🚩 𝗥𝗲𝗱 𝗙𝗹𝗮𝗴𝘀 (𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝘆 😉):
Stälker & Unaliver MMC, Human Prey, Touch Her and Bye, Possessive, Dubcon

⛔️ 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗲:
This book contains potential triggers similar to most dark romance books, among others. (Not limited to)
—> Mentions MH Hospitalisation
—> Mentions SUI Attempt
—> Mentions Child Neglect
—> ABU Relationship (Physical & Mental)
—> DRU/ALC Addictions (and use)
—> Cült Mentality
—> Hazing
—> Genital Mutilation
If unsure always check them first.

𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬: Parallel Prey #1
𝐭𝐲𝐩𝐞: duet 🧗🏻‍♀️
𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: dark suspense romance
𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐩𝐥𝐞: Sebastian Lancaster & Jovie Benvenuti
𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐫: Stardust
𝐏𝐎𝐕’𝐬: dual 🐺🐑

—— ❗️𝚖𝚢 𝚜𝚑𝚎𝚕𝚟𝚎𝚜 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚋𝚎 𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚕𝚎 𝚜𝚙𝚘𝚒𝚕𝚎𝚛𝚜❗️——

[Erika Hofmeister · Rating 2 out of 5]

Big time DNF at 30%. I wanted to like it, but the insta lust was just to much.

This man breaks into her house (to maybe kill her?) and then he's just so mesmerized that instead he draws her a bath to help her relax from her hard day?? Sorry?? And she's all "okay 🤷" and proceeds to get down and dirty with this man she's never seen before. All the while her ex boyfriend is trying to get back at her and she thinks this mystery man is somehow connected? Girl, have a LITTLE self-preservation PLEASE.

[Emilija · Rating 2 out of 5]

it pains me to give this 2 stars because i had high hopes for something truly unhinged to take place in this, i was hoping this would go in a completely different direction than it did. like, i respect this for what it is, but it's not what i had wanted. the ending also really threw me off, there was just so much going on that i think this was just spread too thin. actually, this entire book had so much happening yet there was little to no substance. idk.

[Hollie Senn Bookish Reviews · Rating 5 out of 5]

Holy Sebastian!!! Wow Jen this book took me on one crazy mind blowing roller coaster ride!!! The darkness is consuming!! But holy heck you had me from page one. The story between these two had me breathing hard and flipping the pages so fast. I hands down believe this is one of my favorite reads . Completely has a grip on me..

[Brittany (Brit.tea.reads) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Prey Drive is a must-read if you like dark and suspenseful spicy thrillers with shocking twists and turns and a book that makes you wonder, "What the heck did I just read?"

𝐼 𝒹𝑒𝒸𝒾𝒹𝑒𝒹 𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝐼 𝒽𝒶𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒶𝓈𝓉𝑒 𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝒷𝑒𝒻𝑜𝓇𝑒 𝐼 💀𝒽𝑒𝓇.

Trauma brings Bash and Jovie together; each fights a different battle, and they find comfort in one another.

𝐼 𝒹𝑜𝓃'𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝓀 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝑔𝑒𝓉 𝒾𝓉, 𝒮𝓉𝒶𝓇𝒹𝓊𝓈𝓉. 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝓈𝑒𝒸𝑜𝓃𝒹 𝐼 𝒸𝑜𝒶𝓉 𝓂𝓎 𝓉𝑜𝓃𝑔𝓊𝑒 𝓌𝒾𝓉𝒽 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 💦, 𝓎𝑜𝓊'𝓇𝑒 𝑔𝑜𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓉𝑜 𝒷𝑒 𝓂𝒾𝓃𝑒. 𝒩𝑜 𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇 𝓂𝒶𝓃 𝓌𝒾𝓁𝓁 𝑒𝓋𝑒𝓇 𝓉𝑜𝓊𝒸𝒽 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝒶𝑔𝒶𝒾𝓃 𝒶𝓃𝒹 𝓁𝒾𝓋𝑒 𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒶𝓁𝓀 𝒶𝒷𝑜𝓊𝓉 𝒾𝓉. 𝒲𝒽𝑒𝓃 𝐼 𝑒𝒶𝓉 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 😻— 𝐼'𝓂 𝓉𝒶𝓀𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑜𝓌𝓃𝑒𝓇𝓈𝒽𝒾𝓅 𝑜𝒻 𝒾𝓉.

Bash is an unhinged serial 💀, stalker, a billionaire who is seeking revenge for something that happened to his sister.
Jovie is healing from the trauma caused by her abusive ex-boyfriend and her crappy drug-addict mom.

𝒯𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝒷𝑒𝓉𝓌𝑒𝑒𝓃 𝓊𝓈… 𝒾𝓉'𝓈 𝓅𝑜𝑒𝓉𝒾𝒸. 𝒮𝒶𝒸𝓇𝑒𝒹. 𝒲𝑒'𝓇𝑒 𝓂𝑜𝓇𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓃 𝒿𝓊𝓈𝓉 𝓉𝓌𝑜 𝒹𝑒𝓅𝓇𝒾𝓋𝑒𝒹 𝓈𝑜𝓊𝓁𝓈 𝒻𝑒𝑒𝒹𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑜𝒻𝒻 𝑜𝓃𝑒 𝒶𝓃𝑜𝓉𝒽𝑒𝓇'𝓈 𝒹𝑒𝓈𝓅𝒶𝒾𝓇.

This book keeps you guessing, and I did not know what to expect, but that ending threw me for a loop!

𝒯𝒶𝓈𝓉𝑒 𝓉𝒽𝒶𝓉, 𝒮𝓉𝒶𝓇𝒹𝓊𝓈𝓉? 𝒯𝒽𝒶𝓉'𝓈 𝓎𝑜𝓊 𝑜𝓃 𝓂𝓎 𝓉𝑜𝓃𝑔𝓊𝑒. 𝒴𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒶𝓇𝑜𝓊𝓈𝒶𝓁… 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝑒𝒸𝓈𝓉𝒶𝓈𝓎. 𝐼𝓉'𝓈 𝓌𝒽𝒶𝓉 𝓉𝓊𝓇𝓃𝓈 𝓂𝑒 𝒾𝓃𝓉𝑜 𝓉𝒽𝒾𝓈 𝓅𝓇𝒾𝓂𝒶𝓁 𝒶𝓃𝒾𝓂𝒶𝓁.

I freaking loved Bash and Jovie; I need more of them!

[taylor · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5 ⭐️ ok i don’t even know where to begin here. i really love stalker romances so i did enjoy that part of this story. this is the first paranormal book i’ve read before so it took me some getting used to but it was actually incorporated quite well. i didn’t really feel a connection between jovie and sebastian throughout which is why i think this is such a low rating for me. the part i really disliked about this book was the ending plot twist. it just left me super confused and seemed really random and unnecessary.

[Em · Rating 2 out of 5]

Whoever said this was a thriller was LYING

Lol I literally saw a tiktok and someone recommended this “thriller” and to go in blind. LOL. This was not a thriller, which I noticed pretty fast. A stalker romance with thriller vibes ≠ a thriller. And yes, I kept reading anyway.

It might not have been what I was expecting, but at least it was interesting. To a certain level. And the pure confusion I’m currently feeling over that ending🥴 That was SO unexpected

[Icezoot · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Female lead is just TSTL, I disliked reading her POV. The male lead is also too gross for me. Killing the men who murdered his sister? Hell yes. Planning to f*ck a random girl before killing her just for a thrill? Ew. Ew. Ew.


DNF 25%

[Salem ☥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

You know what... I ate that shit up. Cringe one-liners and all.