Bitter Truths: A Dark Omegaverse Romance

Bittersweet Bonds #1

by Livi Weston

Up until my eighteenth birthday, life was pretty peachy. Or at least, close enough. Sure, I was still unawakened and had a secret big enough to blow everything wide open, but hey... tiny details.

Four scent-matched mates who also happened to be my brother’s best friends? Check.
Fate blessing me with the dreamiest, tastiest smelling alphas I've ever met? Check, check.

Weller. Owen. Tristan. Freddie.

I'd planned the perfect moment to reveal myself as their omega, their missing puzzle piece. Everything was working out perfectly... until it fell apart with a bang .

Graduation night was supposed to be the big moment. The night I finally came clean and admitted the I was theirs and they were mine. Turns out, the universe had other ideas.

The day after everything went wrong, my mother whisked me away to a remote mountain cabin for my graduation trip, because nothing says celebration like forced isolation, right? Stuck with no cell service and insidious, creeping anxiety, it took days to find out the truth.

My alphas were bonded. To someone else. My best friend of ten years, to be exact.
Talk about rubbing salt in a fresh wound.

Heartbroken, humiliated and betrayed... I did what any self-respecting girl would do. I threw my phone off a mountain and disappeared without a trace. Five years went by in the blink of an eye while I busied myself creating a life without them, and I convinced myself I'd buried it all deep enough that it couldn't touch me ever again.

But now, with my brother in a coma from a car accident, I have no choice but to return home to Emerald Hills. Back to the town I ran from, back to the alphas who smashed my dreams into a million pieces, back to the best friend who stabbed me in the heart and smiled as she twisted the knife.

Five years should’ve been enough to forget how they broke me. All it did was sharpen the edge.

My new wilderness skills might come in handy because now I'm out for blood.

Genres: Omegaverse, Romance, Dark Romance, Why Choose, Second Chance, Dark, Fantasy

339 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 20, 2025

Reviews

[Lani · Rating 3 out of 5]

dnfing at 52%. I really enjoyed the first half. I felt the FMCs pain at the betrayal from the boys she had loved all her life. The mental breakdown and the years of struggle it took to get to a good place mentally and physically. She is living a good life, with friends she loves and is completely her own person and at peace. Then her brother gets into an accident, she goes back home and it all goes to hell. The boys that destroyed her are now full grown alphas and basically barge right back into her life, kidnap her to make her listen to their excuses. And where is the badass she has become? The woman who trained in combat and weapons for 5 years? Suddenly she is down to throwing a temper tantrum and breaking mugs. And of course the alphas think it's just adorable how the cute little omega is having a fit.

The boys explain they were roofied and manipulated by her best friend and the FMC just accepts their explanation, removes all blame from them for what happened and lays it all on herself. She quickly forgets all the work she did to be her own person and now succumbs to my most hated trope, BBS. I'm quitting at the point where she accepts everything they say as truth and constantly lusts after the men that caused her to have a complete mental breakdown that took years to fix.

[Jackie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was invested till about the time the guys made an reappearance at 50% and lost interest. I didn’t like the way they were handling the fmc. As a group of males who are suffering from bond manipulations and losing their own autonomy , they sure don’t have a problem forcing her to do what they want. Cornering her, stalking her, tracking her, forcing her into the car, refusing to let her leave, touching her when she says no)

I ended up skimming toward the end. The ending was an interesting cliffhanger but I likely won’t continue the story.

[Darcey · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars

this book was kinda wild but I had fun!! loved to see her become a badass, and I support women’s wrongs so I loved seeing a little necessary murder. guys were pretty decent and had their own personalities (though lowkey they should all get therapy). I want book 2!

[Cassie · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNFed at 61%

What is up with KU books lately? This was overwhelmingly cringy.

What sucks is that the plot had potential to be really good. The execution was just horrible. For one, the FMC was written so poorly. I get going for a bad ass FMC, but this kind of landed like psycho off her meds pretending to be Rambo. Like, in high school when we’re acting like hot shit, but in reality we’d get our butts handed to us level of delusion. Also, the whole refuge thing just felt misplaced. Why archery and sword fighting? This isn’t medieval times 🤔🤔🤔 there could have been a better example of a refuge, that would’ve equally allowed the FMC to learn self defense and heal herself.

I don’t know, it all just felt disappointing and predictable, and the inner monologue got to the point of being too annoying that I had to DNF 🤷🏻‍♀️

[Zen · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stars

Not sure how I feel about this one. I get making the FMC a strong character that saves the alphas instead, but it feels like the author heaped so much helplessness, lack of power, lack of control, and in effectiveness that they don't seem very alpha-ish. Maybe it's a me thing and I'd rather the alphas stand beside her, not behind her, and that's what this book felt like.

[Sass · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its a bit ott, but I devoured it anyway.

[Camille · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5 ⭐️ for this thoroughly satisfying Omegaverse story that kept my attention from cover to cover. The very minimally slicked-up book (IYKYK) is mostly centered around a rejected mate trope, but there’s also some nefarious shenanigans being pulled by a wing nut of an evil OW and the greedy parents of the evil OW and the sadly Beta-like pack of alphas. This book ends on a cliffy, so don’t be like me and read it now. Wait until part 2 comes out so you don’t lose your mind with needing to know what the hell happens next!
I *still* don’t really Get the whole Omegaverse thing, but man, some of these books are such dependable sources of the gut punches i love so much. This one included!

[Faith · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was not prepared for the 🍇

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really good omegaverse book for the dark romance lovers.
First, I gave this 4 stars because it’s an omegaverse that had a fresh feeling. Normally this would be a 3 star read but the plot was giving more. The fmc deciding not to be a victim was believable. She didn’t just learn overnight or in 2-3 months how to be better and do better. She fought to make herself better and to become more. That right there is why I have it 4 stars. It had an authentic feel and progression.

[I’m a Paula too… Thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

I need the next book!

Okay, this was totally predictable in some ways, because I just knew what the bitch OW was going to do, considering her father is that research doctor. But the journey is excellent.

The cliffhanger is good, and I think we all need to know what happened after the bite. This is really interesting and I can’t wait for book two.

KU read, and I may need to buy this. If the next book is just as good, these may be keepers.

[Butthisbook]

DNF at 37%
Sadly this book wasn’t for me.

[Aplis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was sooo good!! And from a debut author?! Heck yeah!!! This book gave me everything I was looking for in the last few months of several disappointing or lacklustre reads.

The FMC turns into a total badass ✅ The so called betrayal that stung me in the best way possible ✅ and the smut that hit just right✅.

I loved every morsel it served ugh give me the next book like yesterday!

[Ebc_readsmut · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 underrated 🌟 This is different from any other omegaverse I’ve read so far! A completely original concept that had me gripping my kindle.

This was darker than I thought it was going to be! This had some sick and twisted concepts in it and I’m dying for book 2!

This is very well written & the emotions are described in a way that makes you feel it in your chest. The descriptions used to explain the soul aching pain the FMC was enduring made it feel real. I appreciate this FMC. She was broken, damaged, and betrayed. I love that even though this FMC is damaged, betrayed, and grieving, she finds a way to live. I like that she channels her hurt into becoming strong for herself. She’s still not whole but she’s surviving.

The plot twist 👏🏼 there were breadcrumbs so I knew something was off but I love the twist on this. It’s not a typical rejection. & I think that made me feel even more angry for her, for all the suffering & life that was stolen from her.

The MMCs are hot and I can see their individual roles in their pack. I can’t wait to get to know them more in the second book but so far I like what I see 😍

This ends kind of on a cliffhanger and I immediately preordered book 2!

[Jessica Emili-Jonnet · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book, truly.

The fmc gets screwed over to the point of absolute mental collapse and goes off grid for YEARS… then sticks around to see if things can work out. The villain(s) is horrible, yes. But the mmcs- they drag this woman into the thick of their shit and just… hope for the outcome they want. It was infuriating.

I’m going to give book 2 a chance, but I need a palate cleanser.

[lws 💐 · Rating 2 out of 5]

a mess after about 40%

[Innocence Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anybody else agree with me OBSESSED with this series and Bianca & her alphas 😍🥵 I KNOW I’m not the only one because my book club bestie hooked me up with this readdddd 😍 I was looking for a some recs to buy and to read when I reached out to her and she told me she was on an omegaverse kick and told me about this book. It sounded SOOOO good so I was like hell yeah . . . I didn’t expect to fall in love with the alphas and fmc and be FERAL for the second book 😍😩 I want this book on my SHELF , to reread and have the pride for saying I have it in physical copy 😊 Bianca is a BHADD ASS BITCH 💪🏾 I LOVE her , her jabbing her heartbroken and having the psychotic break broke my heart , I was crying with and for her because I know how much her boys meant to her , the friend betrayal at that too ?! All because Whitney is jealous ? She’s disgusting . I DISPISE Whitney triflin evil ass and I can’t wait til she gets what’s coming for her 😈 zero fucks to and for that bitch and I’m so hyped Bianca beat her ass 😂😂😂 Whitney wanted something she couldn’t have and the men will never want nor love her because they are mated for Bianca , so their forever rejection made her paranoid , possessive , and obsessive over men that will never be hers and Bianca ain’t going down without a fight 👏🏾 Those men are HERS 😌 Tristian is so sexy , hes the flirty , hot type , & Weller 🥵🥵🥵 , hot and intense type with Owen and Frankie being the sweet but naughty guys 😍 I’m obsessed with them all 😍 Dying for book two and this book will be living rent free in my head until I get book twooo 😍 5 stars for me indefinitely ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[x.o-St3fani3-o.x · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bitter Truths

On graduation night Bianca works up the courage to tell her brothers best friends that she likes them and that she believes they are hers. While at a party with her best friend Whitney she gets hurt and has to leave with her brother.

She finds out days later that the four alphas who she believed were hers are now bonded to Whitney and her world breaks.

She joins an omega rescue refuge and learns how to defend herself, hunt and be self sufficient. In the blink of an eye 5 years pass and she gets a call that her brother is seriously injured and she goes home.

Running into those 4 alphas turn her world upside down and things aren’t as they seem. Weller, Owen, Tristan and Freddie have their work cut out for them because now Bianca is a hellion.

[❌ Book Hunter ❌ · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was entertaining.

One thing that didn’t really make sense to me in my mind was the murder switch personality she had, felt like a cheap version of MindFucked. I could t really believe her as a badass character. No deep thought planning of anything, she only has five years of skill which wasn’t a warrior in training camp, living and breathing fight camp. It was also gardening, cooking, therapy which also to happen have some survival skills stuff. So it felt a little comical at least to me, to have her as this badass girl doing all these things because she spent five years away.


But like I said it was entertaining which is what we read books for!

[Jami Hoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Revenge seeking, bad at omega

This book had angst, betrayal, evil people in power, and one omega who built herself back up from the ashes and became strong enough to take down her enemies. I loved Bianca's character growth, the time she spent away to rebuilt herself and how bad a$$ she became. I'm hoping she gets further revenge in the next book! This book kept me hooked the entire time! Lovis d it! Check the trigger warnings because this is a dark omegaverse book series.

[Raychael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dang you cliffhanger

I like it so far, Bianca is so well written, and prices that even with heartbreak you can over come.
I can't wait for book two

[Moni · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5 ⭐ Jestem rozczarowana, bo liczyłam na coś ciut lepszego. Czegoś mi zabrakło, może trochę za szybko niektóre rzeczy się potoczyły.

[Sewster · Rating 3 out of 5]

Relatively good rejection angst. I’m confused about the world… they seem like shifters who don’t shift?

I’m not interested enough to continue the series.

[Mel B. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very bad harem.

**SPOILERS**

Bianca has been in love with her alphas since she was a little girl. She’s all prepared on her 18th birthday to reveal that she’s their scent match and they should bond. But she gets a horrifying notification instead. Her best friend Whitney bonded her alphas. Bianca’s mom whisks her away to a wilderness camp in the guise of healing but it’s a giant coverup and tactic to keep her away from her meant to be alphas.

Five years later she returns because her brother is in a coma only to have to confront the alphas that broke her heart. It turns out that the alphas didn’t want to bond Whitney. She, along with her psycho dad (and the alphas dads) put together a grand plan. They injected the alphas with rut medication, drugged them and forced them to bond Whitney during her heat. Then they made everyone believe that it was consensual. For five years Whitney (the psycho beyotch) has been forcing the alphas -using the bond- to have sex with her, her friends, and each other. She’s basically torturing them to help out her father’s dirty company AND to torture them because they never wanted her and only wanted Bianca. Bianca listens, and is furious. She’s determined to get revenge on everyone that hurt her and her alphas, including her doctor Dr. Montgomery who has knowingly been drugging her with suppressants since she was a child to keep her omega from awakening. It’s a huge conspiracy. Bianca and her alphas spend time together before Whitney returns, knowing that the sh*t will hit the fan when she does. But Bianca’s not the same scared little girl she once was…years in the wilderness taught her some very valuable, very violent skills, and she’s ready to put them all to use on behalf of her alphas.

**THOUGHTS/OPINIONS**

The story had potential, and it was an interesting twist on an omegaverse novel, but the execution IMO was lacking. I honestly liked Bianca’s character. I thought she was strong and fierce. But I didn’t like her alphas. I thought, frankly, they were too “weak” for her. Sure they all claimed to love her new bloodthirsty attitude, but I thought it was a little ridiculous that they didn’t fight harder for her. She was gone for five years, sure they were stuck with an evil bond, but they didn’t even look for her or try to help her in anyway. Yes they were made to do awful things and controlled by Whitney, but when she was away on meetings or doing her daddy’s dirty work they could’ve tried harder to find, explain, or mend things with Bianca. They just…waited until she came home. Heck, they profess to love her, but were they just going to “let her go” if she never returned home? Also, I didn’t like the rape. It’s abhorrent to me that Whitney continued to rape and loan out her alphas, and that it was filmed and discussed at length in the book. I couldn’t believe that the alphas couldn’t have tried harder to resist. It almost felt as if they just gave into their dad’s demands. Heck, even when Bianca returns they are giving into their perverted dad’s demands. Do these guys have any sort of backbone whatsoever? They say they tried to find a way to break the bond but only Dr. Montgomery has the antiviral. So you’re saying in five years they couldn’t break into the lab or find a way out of the bond, but when Bianca goes missing and is in trouble they mount a rescue just like that and get her out? WTH?! Frankly they were spineless. They were willing to put up with the torture and abuse, and it seemed as if they went along with it so their dads wouldn’t cut them off from the business no matter how evil they were. Sure, sure the author notes the dads would’ve ruined them…but so what? If they loved Bianca as much as they said they did, then it would’ve been worth it. Heck, they could’ve joined Bianca in her wilderness commune (lol) anything would’ve been better than living in constant fear of being tortured, raped, degraded and humiliated.

It’s hard to enjoy an omegaverse RH when you feel as if the harem members are not worthy of the heroine. I doubt I’ll be reading book 3. I don’t need one more scene where Bianca either saves herself, kills all the bad guys, or rescues her “damaged” and spineless alphas.

[nayezi · Rating 1 out of 5]

In case you ever wondered what Wattpad stories are like, this one's for you.

[BAG of Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

Bianca is 18 and graduating high school. She is close with her brother's (Winston) 4 friends:
Owen, stoic and business-like.
Freddie, good natured, cozy vibes.
Tristan, I think he's supposed to be the silly one, with crazy antics. It's hard to tell, because he never does any crazy antics.
Weller, I'm not sure what he's supposed to be.

She could tell they were her scent matches since she was 13. She never perfumed, so she has no way to prove it. She has a BFF who is really just a mean girl frenemy, Whitney. Whitney's dad is Bianca's doctor, who has been doing tests to figure out why she hasn't perfumed yet. The only person Bianca told about the scent match is Whitney.

A week before graduation, it is her 18th birthday. She meets the guys for a picnic and gets them to play spin the bottle, so they can kiss. She next sees them a week later at her graduation, then they all go to a graduation party at Whitney's house.

The day of the graduation, Whitney's dad, the doctor, tells Bianca she has a genetic disorder that will prevent her omega receptors from ever activating. She's also sterile. She decides to tell the guys what's going on, so they'll know why they'll never have a scent matched omega.

At the party, Whitney mixes Bianca a special cocktail, which is obviously roofied. Bianca wakes up the next morning and has to leave on a scheduled "hike through" with her mom. There won't be any cell service for 3 weeks. She tries to get the guys on the phone before she has to leave, but they never answer. (OTT OW omega villain. Check.)

During the trip, Bianca climbs a ridge and gets cell service, and sees a text from Whitney saying she went into heat, fucked the guys, and bonded to all 4 of them, with a heart emoji. Bianca realizes they guys never thought of Bianca in a romantic way, if they wanted to bond Whitney. They didn't even text her about their bonding or anything. She has a mental and physical breakdown and ends up in the hospital for a month. (breakdown/near death/hospital. Check.)

Her mom agrees to rent a house in a new town so she doesn't have to go back home and face the guys and Bianca. (YA/Teen living alone without parents. Check.) Then her mom eventually goes home and Bianca lives in this new town, low contact, very limited texting, with her family. She goes to an omega support group and gets recruited to live in a commune in the woods. She decides she's going to learn fighting and using weapons. (Weapons?? What kind of cult is this?? And I mean, archery? When are you going to use that? Are the training for the hunger games?) Obligatory fight training with a new found family group. Check.

Then the story skips forward 5 years. She's a bad ass who's now fuck buddies with the guy who recruited her, Ezra. Her mom calls her because Winston's been in an accident, and he's in a coma. So Bianca goes to the hospital to see him.

The guys are always around the hospital, but she never acknowledges them. When she leaves the hospital to get some air, they corner her at the coffee shop. She shanks Owen in the leg, and he likes it. They tell her if she lets them explain what happened, they will leave her alone after that. Which means they won't leave her alone. (You're cute when you're angry. Check.)

Bianca doesn't show up for the talk, so they kidnap her. (Forcing her to talk, check.) They tell her that they were drugged into an artificially induced rut, which forced them to bond with Whitney, who was in an artificially induced heat. (Controlled by someone through magic or other artificial means, Check.) Whitney's father and the guys' fathers wanted an arranged mating between their pack and Whitney, for business reasons. IDK, it sounded pointless to me. But anyway, arranged mating with non-fated-mate for business reasons, check. (Whitney is in on the scheme, not a victim. Whitney is away at a conference for a week, that's why they are able to be in contact with Bianca right now.)

But Bianca tells them her side of the story (without saying she's their scent match). The guys figure out Whitney's dad must of have done something to her to cause her condition. They also reveal Whitney can compel them to do things through the bond, so there's been a lot of nonconsensual sex with Whitney, Whitney's friends, other people, and each other. But lucky for them, Bianca's here now, and she's trained to kill. She considers whether she should go back to Ezra's cult, but decides to stay and fight for her pack.

Her brother wakes up from the coma eventually. They have a talk about why she's been spending time with the guys, when she couldn't even talk about them before. Her brother tells her he thinks her breakdown was bond sickness, because she really is their scent match and they bonded with OW. He doesn't think she's delusional about the scent match.

Phase 1 of Bianca's plan is to make Whitney's rapey friends admit to what they did and leave town. She doesn't kill them. She just tortures them into confessing while she records it, then tells them to leave town.

She agrees to meet with the guys again that night. She wants to play Truth or Dare. They get her to tell them about her relationship (or situation or whatever) with her Guy Best Friend She Fucks, Ezra. They get jealous and have sex with her, or at least oral.

Ok, I thought Phase 2 was going to be Kill Whitney, but apparently not, because when Whitney is scheduled to come home the next night, Bianca gets angry: "What's your endgame? Do you expect me to keep me a secret forever?" That kind of thing. I thought she had already figured out her endgame was to kill Whitney? The guys tell her that the doctor did some experiment so that breaking the bond will kill them. So they can't just kill Whitney. Although it doesn't sound like Bianca was planning to do that anyway.

Bianca had agreed to go with her mom to a spa day, the same day Whitney comes home. Whitney shows up at the spa. Whitney and Bianca threaten each other. Now Bianca is willing to implement a Kill Whitney plan. Since they were friends since childhood, Bianca is very familiar with Whitney's house (the same childhood house where the graduation party was). So Bianca plans to break in and kill her in the home.

That same night, Whitney has her dad drug them again, and they plan a sex party with their business investors. That sounds weird, but the thing they're investing in is the drug itself. They want to control alphas with a fake bond. So the sex party is a demonstration of control. Bianca shows up with her bow and arrows, but doesn't kill Whitney. It ends on a cliff hanger with Whitney alive, and I guess Bianca is poisoned by trying to bite Weller and form a bond. Whitney's father shows up with guards and takes them all away. So Bianca's plans weren't very good.

[coffeeinlibraries · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely loved this.

We get a twist that I personally haven’t read much of, where instead of the FMC being the one needing saving, it’s the MMCs.

I was gutted multiple times while reading this, tbh. So much trauma and secrets.

I adore each character, especially Bianca. She worked hard at becoming who she is now and is doing what she needs to get her alphas back, regardless of the dangers that lurk.

Looking forward to book 2!!

[Ana c · Rating 5 out of 5]

Needs More Hype!!

I've been in a reading slump and this just pulled me right out of it, chef kiss! This story checked all the boxes and then some, definitely a new favorite!!!

I loved Bianca, great FMC and if you can get past how she is a little reckless and doesn't think some things thru then you are going to love her too! As this is fiction, I'll let some of her stunts pass but any true murder show girly knows, she doesn't make smart decisions, I just want to smack her sometimes lol. But when she with the guys, loved every scene with her character, so good!! 🤗

The guys, I just loved them. They have all the alpha character traits you want when reading an omegaverse, truly perfection! I honestly loved their POV chapters, even more than the FMC chapters, I can only hope the next book gives me so much more of their POVs.

The villain characters and the "escape control plotline" are not that great if I'm honest, it could use some work but truthfully I really only care about the main characters. So if thats important to you to have an outstanding plot, the weak plot might be the only flaw of this book but as it doesn't really matter to me, this is a 5 star, highly recommend for a delicious read!!!

Spice 🌶🌶🌶- p.s. my scale is pretty wild, so to some this book might be a 5 Chilli 🌶, but for me, it's the right amount of heat and not straight up erotica.

[Danielle Mund · Rating 5 out of 5]

Twists and turns

Such a good book! Drama, betrayal, intrigue, morally grey FMC. You think you know what happened and maybe what to expect but you don't. The twists and turns kept me hooked. Plus, the FMC was not celibate after the betrayal which is always appreciated.

[Jordan Bailey · Rating 4 out of 5]

TOMORROW. IS. TOO. LATE!!! Have we learned nothing?!

I don’t usually like when we start in the past and then move to the present.

I liked the characters and the setup. It was immediately obvious that Whitney was not her bff but her enemy even if Bianca wanted to dress it up. It was obvious Dr. Montgomery was off and she should’ve gotten a second opinion but I suppose that comes with a fully developed brain, she was 18 so I’ll take it with a grain of salt.

The graduation party and the trauma and everything that happened with the reveal was terrible and awful.

I liked their sanctuary and the other omegas. I really liked Ezra and Meg, it is sad to consider that her coming home could mean leaving them behind.

I need Winston to be ok. I like him a lot.

I understand that the pack has been abused for the last five years, and not to victim blame (proceeds to victim blame) … THEY HAD NO PLANS FOR IN CASE Bianca EVER RETURNED?! They were truly just going to accept this forced pack and the abuse as their lot in life… and “go back into their cage” as Whitney’s “pets”??? What?! Why?! Why don’t we have an exit strategy??? We’ve accepted that the police are bought and paid for, and we’re wasting money on private detectives??? LETS GET A GETAWAY PLAN IN PLACE?? Why are we accepting this treatment?! THERE ARE MORE OF YOU THAN HER?!

They lost me with the evil forced mate, evil doctor/ FIL, evil dads AND NO EXIT STRATEGY?! You continually Say you didn’t take care of Bianca BUT YOU HAVE NO PLANS… so you continue to not take care of Bianca …

And don’t worry, Bianca doesn’t get off Scot free … BECAUSE WHY ARE WE NOT HANDLING THOSE THREE OMEGAS TO THE NEAREST RAVINE!!??? Why are we continuing to keep this scent match a secret?! It may be enough to get the pack moving!! But also, they don’t have a plan anyways- so why not all just continue down this path of almost guaranteed destruction?!

The worst part is it takes a plane ride, some driving and HIKING to get from the refuge to Emerald Hills… Bianca really is gonna have to choose one and give up the other.

I will be honest, it wasn’t until the pack was describing Whitney’s abuse, that I realized it was a dark omegaverse romance!! They did indeed mean dark.

It’s odd to get to 70% and we have no plans in place or discussed how we’re getting out of the clutches of The Montgomerys …

“Those are the sounds of a girl who should’ve come home sooner.” BUT YOU DOMT HAVE A PLAN FOR YOU ALL TO BE TOGETHER?! Why would she come home?! Bianca may not have planned on returning but she spent the 5 years changing herself … WHAT DID WELLER, TRISTAN, OWEN AND FREDDIE EVEN DO?!

We’re afraid of what Whitney is gonna do when she finds out they’ve been around Bianca, and instead of being proactive and thinking ahead, they don’t act as if it’s a care once they’ve said it out loud. IT. IS. INSANE. BEHAVIOR!! We had 0 will to live, we survived to see Bianca’s return, but no new renewed will to live AND THERE ARE ENDLESS QUESTIONS AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR THIS TO GO!!

Also, if she never had her omega awakening, why do we keep calling her an omega and why does she have omega reactions??? And why am I the only person questioning it?! Why isn’t Bianca and co questioning things?!

75% soooooo Ezra won’t be joining the pack … I didn’t think so, but I am disappointed.

What kind of egotistical alphas, don’t see and project themselves onto their alpha sons?! They’re the eldest sons and they’re not being groomed to take over the companies?! They have tasks and have to attend meetings, but they’re ok with Whitney and Dr. Montgomery holding the puppet strings?! NO ONE IS QUESTIONING THIS?! If this was all a business plan, what is the endgame for the dads??? It all has an expiration and they’re ok with their companies all falling into the hands of Whitney and Dr. Montgomery?! This is so odd. I’ve never seen such a weird display of allowing science to win over brawn.

79% finally a worthwhile conversation, and it amounts to nothing!!

It. Is. Too. Fantastical. It’s unnecessary how over the top the mad science has gotten by the end.

Guaranteed there was so back up plan. So here we are. The cliffhanger wasn’t as bad as I had made it in my head even though I’m still angry with Whitney and Dr. Montgomery.

[Shannon Lee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Summary: This is a fantasy, why choose romance.

Additional tropes:
✅ Other woman drama
✅ Omegaverse

Detailed spoilers/trigger warnings (if any) and final thoughts can be found below.

The FMC is Bianca. We meet her on her 18th birthday. She is an omega, and has recognized for some time that she is scent matched to the Alpha’s who happen to be her brother’s best friends. So she has known them pretty much her entire life. The initial part of the book is a little introduction into the dynamic of their relationship. They are very protective of her and always have been.

She has a best friend, who becomes the other woman in our story, who in more recent years, Bianca has noticed a change in their relationship. Bianca and the OW graduate and decide on a party to celebrate. It is this night the FMC intends to tell the MMC‘s how she feels, as well as a little bit more about herself, but before she can, an incident happens resulting in an injury forcing the FMC to leave to get care.

The next morning, the FMC leaves on a mother-daughter trip, having never been able to talk to the MMC‘s, and while she is away, she learns some devastating news. Deeply hurt by all of the betrayal, she sinks to a very bad place. Deciding she does not nor can she come home and face all of that, she pulls a runner instead.

Fast-forward five years, the FMC is living in a commune she found because of two new friends. She is settled in her life, at peace, having survived what had happened. All is well until she receives a phone call from her mother that her brother has been in a car accident and things are not looking good. She rushes home to be at his side, where of course she ends up running into the MMC‘s. They immediately try to explain to her that what happened 5 years ago was a misunderstanding and not what she thought, and certainly not for the reasons she believes. So she gives them one final opportunity to explain the truth in everything and she is shocked and devastated when she hears. Which is then quickly morphed into anger for those responsible.

The book is told mostly from the perspective of the FMC, although there are a few chapters where we get to learn the thoughts and understand the MMCs a little more. All they have gone through is revealed, detailing a darker side to this story. This is book one is a trilogy and ends on a cliffhanger.

⚠️SPOILERS/SPICE/DETAILED TRIGGERS⚠️

*Detailed recollections of assault and on page violence.
🌶️: 2/5

Final thoughts: I enjoyed this book. I’ve only read a few omegaverse books and liked that this one had a twist I had not read before. It’s dark and suspenseful as we are left trying to figure out exactly what the good doctor has been doing all these years.

I absolutely loved that the FMC pulled a runner, deciding not to go home and sit by while everything happened in front of her. While she was away, she really worked on herself, prioritizing her peace and well being. When she had to come back because of what happened to her brother, she made sure everyone knew she wasn’t the same Bianca that left. The scene in the spa with Whitney was absolutely savage.

I loved the ending, but I hate cliffhangers which is generally why I don’t read a series until it is complete and yet, somehow this one slipped by me. But that’s okay. I’m keeping my fingers crossed the author is able to release according to her posted dates because I’ll be able to start book two very soon.