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Where the Dark Things Bloom
Prequel Novella for All the Things We Buried
Dark psychological gothic romance, taboo, step-siblings trope.
She was never supposed to leave, he was never supposed to stay.When her estranged father dies, Lenore Thorn returns to the one place she swore she'd never set foot in again- a crumbling gothic mansion on the edge of a town that whispers her family's name in fear.
Her only intention is to sell it and leave for good. But someone is already there.
Dorian Thorn, her stepbrother, never left. Raised beside her but never truly her brother, he has always been possessive, cruel, and unreadable.
He tells her the house is still theirs, that she belongs here and to him.
She resists his cold touch, his hungry gaze, and the way he speaks of their past in riddles.
But when she discovers the darkest secrets that hide behind the walls; blood rituals, missing children, a locked room her father forbade her to enter- she realizes Dorian isn't the one keeping her here.
The house won't let her leave.
And neither will he.
Dark psychological gothic romance, taboo, step-siblings trope.
She was never supposed to leave, he was never supposed to stay.When her estranged father dies, Lenore Thorn returns to the one place she swore she'd never set foot in again- a crumbling gothic mansion on the edge of a town that whispers her family's name in fear.
Her only intention is to sell it and leave for good. But someone is already there.
Dorian Thorn, her stepbrother, never left. Raised beside her but never truly her brother, he has always been possessive, cruel, and unreadable.
He tells her the house is still theirs, that she belongs here and to him.
She resists his cold touch, his hungry gaze, and the way he speaks of their past in riddles.
But when she discovers the darkest secrets that hide behind the walls; blood rituals, missing children, a locked room her father forbade her to enter- she realizes Dorian isn't the one keeping her here.
The house won't let her leave.
And neither will he.
204 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 14, 2025
30 people are currently reading
515 people want to read
About the author
A. Em
20 books383 followers“Where others write ever after, I write never after.” -A.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 147 reviews
July 26, 2025
Sitting here wiping tears for the girl I used to be…
This book didn’t just strike a nerve—it shattered one.
A.eM has this uncanny, almost cruel gift of peeling open old wounds and turning them into something poetic. Something that bleeds beauty.
She holds up your pain like it’s artwork, raw and aching—and you, the spectator, can’t look away. You just stand there, stunned. Maybe shedding tears you didn’t know you were still carrying.
Where the Dark Things Bloom is heartbreakingly beautiful in the quietest, loudest ways.
Lenore isn’t just a character—she’s a mirror.
Her silence, her fear, her flickering hope. Her fractured pieces, so fragile yet so fierce. She is me. She is you. She is every version of ourselves we buried just to survive.
This isn’t a happy ending kind of story.
This book will drag you into the dark corners of your own mind.
It will unearth scars you thought had healed—but were really just forgotten.
It’s raw. It’s unsettling. It’s real.
A twist of beauty and brokenness that feels like it was written from the inside out.
A.eM has crafted a masterpiece of wreckage—one that speaks in silence and aches with truth. But within that pain, there’s something more.
Hope.
The quiet kind. The kind that says:
You are not alone.
That through the trauma, through the heartbreak, through the shattered pieces…
You can still bloom.
Even in the dark.
This book left me crying for the little girl I once was—grieving her loss and holding her closer than I have in years. And somehow, within that ache, I found the woman I’ve become.
Still scarred.
Still standing.
Still healing.
And finally… seen
If you love dark, psychological romances that sink their teeth into your soul and don’t let go—stories that leave you wrecked and aching in the best, most cathartic way—then Where the Dark Things Bloom is not just a book. It’s an experience. A reckoning.
One I’ll never stop thinking about.
One I will carry with me.
And one I will recommend—for as long as I live.
This book didn’t just strike a nerve—it shattered one.
A.eM has this uncanny, almost cruel gift of peeling open old wounds and turning them into something poetic. Something that bleeds beauty.
She holds up your pain like it’s artwork, raw and aching—and you, the spectator, can’t look away. You just stand there, stunned. Maybe shedding tears you didn’t know you were still carrying.
Where the Dark Things Bloom is heartbreakingly beautiful in the quietest, loudest ways.
Lenore isn’t just a character—she’s a mirror.
Her silence, her fear, her flickering hope. Her fractured pieces, so fragile yet so fierce. She is me. She is you. She is every version of ourselves we buried just to survive.
This isn’t a happy ending kind of story.
This book will drag you into the dark corners of your own mind.
It will unearth scars you thought had healed—but were really just forgotten.
It’s raw. It’s unsettling. It’s real.
A twist of beauty and brokenness that feels like it was written from the inside out.
A.eM has crafted a masterpiece of wreckage—one that speaks in silence and aches with truth. But within that pain, there’s something more.
Hope.
The quiet kind. The kind that says:
You are not alone.
That through the trauma, through the heartbreak, through the shattered pieces…
You can still bloom.
Even in the dark.
This book left me crying for the little girl I once was—grieving her loss and holding her closer than I have in years. And somehow, within that ache, I found the woman I’ve become.
Still scarred.
Still standing.
Still healing.
And finally… seen
If you love dark, psychological romances that sink their teeth into your soul and don’t let go—stories that leave you wrecked and aching in the best, most cathartic way—then Where the Dark Things Bloom is not just a book. It’s an experience. A reckoning.
One I’ll never stop thinking about.
One I will carry with me.
And one I will recommend—for as long as I live.
May 7, 2025
he literally finger banged with the severed hands of her cheating boyfriend 🧎🏻♀️ if that doesn’t already have you adding this to your tbr idk what to say
wow. i’m lost for words 😩 this was literally just a prequel novella and it was PACKED with so much. literally i couldn’t stop reading and finished in like an hour. what. the. actual. fuck. did. i. just. read.
i need more and i can’t wait for the full length novel to come out omg !!
this is not just a book about forbidden love, taboo / step siblings, ghosts and a haunted manor. it’s absolutely more than that. the words a. em. wrote shook me to my core. i grabbed onto every word like the author was speaking to me 🥹 such a perfect prequel for what’s to come.
i literally can not wait to read the full novel and be back with dorian and lenore. they have so much chemistry and history. they’re both broken souls who found each other. everything the went through, all the abuse and neglect from their parents just pushed them closer together. they are both crazy over each other even if lenore doesn’t admit it. dorian quite literally sacrificed himself so she wouldn’t get harmed. their love for each other is heartbreak. they find peace in the pain. but in their love they blossom 🥀
🌶️🌶️
wow. i’m lost for words 😩 this was literally just a prequel novella and it was PACKED with so much. literally i couldn’t stop reading and finished in like an hour. what. the. actual. fuck. did. i. just. read.
i need more and i can’t wait for the full length novel to come out omg !!
this is not just a book about forbidden love, taboo / step siblings, ghosts and a haunted manor. it’s absolutely more than that. the words a. em. wrote shook me to my core. i grabbed onto every word like the author was speaking to me 🥹 such a perfect prequel for what’s to come.
i literally can not wait to read the full novel and be back with dorian and lenore. they have so much chemistry and history. they’re both broken souls who found each other. everything the went through, all the abuse and neglect from their parents just pushed them closer together. they are both crazy over each other even if lenore doesn’t admit it. dorian quite literally sacrificed himself so she wouldn’t get harmed. their love for each other is heartbreak. they find peace in the pain. but in their love they blossom 🥀
🌶️🌶️
April 30, 2025
We all know my undying devotion to A. EM. But my goodnessss this was TOP TIER. Major The Shining vibes. Spooky, dark, traumatic, bit of gore. And always with quality, well placed SPICE. HIGHLY HIGHLY RECOMMEND!!!
“I’ll haunt every corner of your mind until even your nightmares look like mercy.”
“Will you be my heart? he murmured. “I never knew I had one until I met you.”
“How could I look into those eyes and not see the iron bars hiding in them? How could I want him, still, when I could taste the cage in every breath?”
“I’ll haunt every corner of your mind until even your nightmares look like mercy.”
“Will you be my heart? he murmured. “I never knew I had one until I met you.”
“How could I look into those eyes and not see the iron bars hiding in them? How could I want him, still, when I could taste the cage in every breath?”
April 17, 2025
Oh my…. I thought I had an inkling of what this book entailed, let me just say how wrong I was! This was a complete wtf mindf*ck but in the best possible way. The darkness of this book the psychological element had me trying to figure out what was real and what wasn’t. The fear, the hatred, the love, the hurt was all present during this book, The tears came at the end as with every book written by A.em. That epilogue thank you A, the little girl in me that I thought I lost a long time ago needed that.
April 17, 2025
I have no idea where to start with this one for you, it’s a dark psychological suspenseful thriller. Once you get through some present parts. We end up in a gothic mansion, with some nefarious goings on, we are taken to the past and brought back to the present by our FMC and then our MMC. Honestly, your brain is trying to work out what’s real, what’s not, who’s alive and who’s not, did that just happen or not 🤣 Your mind is in the story, the creepy happenings pulling you further in. I can’t give you anymore than this as I wouldn’t want to spoil it for you.
It was well written, with some profound descriptions that are going to stay in your head. You are made to feel jumpy, scared, unnerved, unloved/loved?, happiness/sadness, it has all the feels however, it’s not your normal fluffy romance, I wouldn’t categorise it as a dark romance. There is a connection between the two MCs, maybe to the obsessive point, that goes beyond being step-siblings but it’s up to you how you see that. There is spice, so it’s not all doom and gloom, they do bloom at Gloomsbury manner! Just never assume 😈 I totally enjoyed it, for me it was something a little different and I certainly couldn’t predict where it was going.
It was well written, with some profound descriptions that are going to stay in your head. You are made to feel jumpy, scared, unnerved, unloved/loved?, happiness/sadness, it has all the feels however, it’s not your normal fluffy romance, I wouldn’t categorise it as a dark romance. There is a connection between the two MCs, maybe to the obsessive point, that goes beyond being step-siblings but it’s up to you how you see that. There is spice, so it’s not all doom and gloom, they do bloom at Gloomsbury manner! Just never assume 😈 I totally enjoyed it, for me it was something a little different and I certainly couldn’t predict where it was going.
April 17, 2025
Psychological mystery thriller! Drags you in and doesn’t let up. A deep mystery that has you turning the pages, riveting plot, diving head first into Lenores world. Spiraling and spinning along the darkest Of hidden mental secrets and family curses. The fmc Lenore and Mmc Dorian are Intense, crafty, unbalanced and need each other, like a life raft. Both are beautifully cracked and bruised with twisted mentality’s and broken souls. The spice is unhinged, not for the faint of heart. At moments entwined in this story, I found myself holding my own breath, not noticing until I had to take another or mind blown at different intervals. I devoured this novel in one day as it devoured my mind, as one for mystery, Romance and thrillers, I was enthralled. Such a good twisted gothic read with the message that even the darkest shadows, deserve the light.
May 2, 2025
"If they see beauty, they want to own it. If they see damage, they want to fix it. But there’s beauty in the broken, too."
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶🌶
Absolutely incredible!
Where the Dark Things Bloom is a dark psychological novella that follows Lenore and her stepbrother Dorian. It's an echo of their story.
A. Em. masterfully weaves a story that will have you questioning everything. She consumed me with this story from page one, and I literally felt the pain, despair, and paranoia right along with Lenore.
I truly don't think I have ever felt so engaged and haunted by a book or an MMC. I can not wait for All the Things We Buried. I have to know where these two beautifully broken characters began.
Check your triggers. This one is not for the faint of heart. It's gothic, haunting, terrifying, dark, unapologetic, and absolutely amazing.
Thank you, A. Em. for this, you have captivated me with this book!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶🌶
Absolutely incredible!
Where the Dark Things Bloom is a dark psychological novella that follows Lenore and her stepbrother Dorian. It's an echo of their story.
A. Em. masterfully weaves a story that will have you questioning everything. She consumed me with this story from page one, and I literally felt the pain, despair, and paranoia right along with Lenore.
I truly don't think I have ever felt so engaged and haunted by a book or an MMC. I can not wait for All the Things We Buried. I have to know where these two beautifully broken characters began.
Check your triggers. This one is not for the faint of heart. It's gothic, haunting, terrifying, dark, unapologetic, and absolutely amazing.
Thank you, A. Em. for this, you have captivated me with this book!
April 25, 2025
This is a dark physiological novel, please read your trigger warnings.
This is a short Novella, one which is dark, full rollercoaster emotions oh and spice..
This is a step siblings Novella, one where we see Lenore and Dorian, where we see lots of twists and turns for these characters. Lenore's father wasn't nice, he had a twisted secret that Lenore didn't realise until one fateful night that would change everything.
Lenore wasn't supposed to leave the mansion, but Dorian stepped in and took a beating so she could escape.
Fast forward... Lenore's father d!ed, she had no other choice but to go back.. Go back to the place where she thought Dorian was gone forever..
This Novella is beautifully written, it isn't the first novel of this authors I have read and I can honestly say it will not be the last!!
It's dark, it's forbidden, full of twists and turns. So much trauma, anger and history in this story!
This Novella caught me hook line and sinker! I need more of this authors deliciously dark words!!
This is a short Novella, one which is dark, full rollercoaster emotions oh and spice..
This is a step siblings Novella, one where we see Lenore and Dorian, where we see lots of twists and turns for these characters. Lenore's father wasn't nice, he had a twisted secret that Lenore didn't realise until one fateful night that would change everything.
Lenore wasn't supposed to leave the mansion, but Dorian stepped in and took a beating so she could escape.
Fast forward... Lenore's father d!ed, she had no other choice but to go back.. Go back to the place where she thought Dorian was gone forever..
This Novella is beautifully written, it isn't the first novel of this authors I have read and I can honestly say it will not be the last!!
It's dark, it's forbidden, full of twists and turns. So much trauma, anger and history in this story!
This Novella caught me hook line and sinker! I need more of this authors deliciously dark words!!
April 18, 2025
Where the Dark Things Bloom is a psychological thriller, gothic romance story that follows the taboo “relationship” of step siblings, Dorian and Lenore. This book was a total mindf*ck, in the best ways. I was second guessing every theory my brain came up with regarding what was happening and would happen until the very end. I personally love when a book keeps me guessing, it adds to the suspense of the book but also the experience of reading it. Even now that I’ve finished it, I’m still not clear on what exactly what happened and if it was real!! I can’t wait for the next one!
April 28, 2025
Incredible!! I’m still processing this book…
“She was never supposed to leave, he was never supposed to stay.”
This book was haunting, i honestly got sucked in to this book I didn’t want to get out.
The emotions i had reading this was gasping…the twists, the dark secrets it’s a psychological mindf**k.
I don’t want to give anything away as the feeling you get from reading it blind is like no other.. definitely check the trigger warnings.
“She was never supposed to leave, he was never supposed to stay.”
This book was haunting, i honestly got sucked in to this book I didn’t want to get out.
The emotions i had reading this was gasping…the twists, the dark secrets it’s a psychological mindf**k.
I don’t want to give anything away as the feeling you get from reading it blind is like no other.. definitely check the trigger warnings.
May 10, 2025
Where The Dark Things Bloom by A. Em
Please check your trigger and content warnings before reading this.
As soon as I started reading this I was completely sucked into it. I couldn't put it down because my mind was going in a million directions. There were so many times while reading this that I wanted to reach into my kindle and hug both Lenore and Dorian because of everything that happened in this prequel (yes prequel). When Lenore comes back to the house after the loss of her father, step mom and Dorian things weren't quiet how they were when she left. The house seemed different, there was a different vibe going on.
As I kept reading I kept thinking to myself if what was happening was really happening? Things seemed like they were very off and Dorian didn't seem like himself. I couldn't stop reading because I wasn't sure if what I was reading was real anymore. Was What happened between Lenore and Dorain real? What happened to Dorian? Was anything even real?
UM EXCUSE ME! I NEED MORE! WHAT DID I JUST READ!?
Please check your trigger and content warnings before reading this.
As soon as I started reading this I was completely sucked into it. I couldn't put it down because my mind was going in a million directions. There were so many times while reading this that I wanted to reach into my kindle and hug both Lenore and Dorian because of everything that happened in this prequel (yes prequel). When Lenore comes back to the house after the loss of her father, step mom and Dorian things weren't quiet how they were when she left. The house seemed different, there was a different vibe going on.
As I kept reading I kept thinking to myself if what was happening was really happening? Things seemed like they were very off and Dorian didn't seem like himself. I couldn't stop reading because I wasn't sure if what I was reading was real anymore. Was What happened between Lenore and Dorain real? What happened to Dorian? Was anything even real?
UM EXCUSE ME! I NEED MORE! WHAT DID I JUST READ!?
April 25, 2025
I got an arc, but my rating/review are my own!
I've been meaning to read the authors books for so long and i hadn't pick them. sooo i was SO excited when I got the confirmation for this arc because their works intrigue me 👀👀 and I can tell you that I will for sure pick them soon because this was AMAZING
and knowing this was only a prequel is killing me because how good will be the novel??? I cannot wait to learn more about their story
I gave it 4.5 ⭐️ but i think I will change and give it 5 ⭐️ because l'm OBSESSED!!!! I was telling my friend the story, she likes to know spoilers about the book, so I had to read her the last 2 chapters and I was obsessing
over again 😳😳
Quotes:
"My stepbrother was haunting me tonight.
Again." -hello sirrrr👀👀 can I get that too?👀
••
"SOME HOUSES DON'T NEED ghosts-just memories sharp enough to bleed, and someone too broken to leave them behind."- this quote???? Chef kisses
Tropes:
☆🍁 dark psychological romance
☆🍁 taboo romance
☆🍁gothic
☆🍁haunted house
☆🍁dark secrets
☆🍁step siblings
☆🍁possessive mmc
☆🍁breath play
☆🍁snake play
I've been meaning to read the authors books for so long and i hadn't pick them. sooo i was SO excited when I got the confirmation for this arc because their works intrigue me 👀👀 and I can tell you that I will for sure pick them soon because this was AMAZING
and knowing this was only a prequel is killing me because how good will be the novel??? I cannot wait to learn more about their story
I gave it 4.5 ⭐️ but i think I will change and give it 5 ⭐️ because l'm OBSESSED!!!! I was telling my friend the story, she likes to know spoilers about the book, so I had to read her the last 2 chapters and I was obsessing
over again 😳😳
Quotes:
"My stepbrother was haunting me tonight.
Again." -hello sirrrr👀👀 can I get that too?👀
••
"SOME HOUSES DON'T NEED ghosts-just memories sharp enough to bleed, and someone too broken to leave them behind."- this quote???? Chef kisses
Tropes:
☆🍁 dark psychological romance
☆🍁 taboo romance
☆🍁gothic
☆🍁haunted house
☆🍁dark secrets
☆🍁step siblings
☆🍁possessive mmc
☆🍁breath play
☆🍁snake play
April 17, 2025
This was another amazing dark psychological read from A. that leaves you desperate for more! Loved every dark and twisted moment of Where the Dark Things Bloom and can't wait to read what comes next!!!
April 18, 2025
This story left me wondering if the fmc was crazy, or was it the MMC who is crazy…or am I crazy?! There were times where I couldn’t tell if something was really happening, or that’s just how the character's mind was perceiving the situation, or if they were dreaming…story definitely was packed full of both MC’s having BUCKETS of trauma separately AND together. Plus the spooky vibes im coming to love from this author 💜💜
April 30, 2025
Please read the trigger warnings before you read.
This was a psychological gothic suspense mindf@ck read. I am not sure if I could of read this at night, because there were many things that would leave me over-thinking and freaking myself out of what was going on with Lenore.
This story of Lenore & Dorian was gut-wrenching, hard and it's left me heartbroken. It was hard to read what Lenore went through and what she felt or thought was love.
A has done it again. She has you thinking and feeling for these characters.
Another great read!
ARC provided from the author for an honest review.
This was a psychological gothic suspense mindf@ck read. I am not sure if I could of read this at night, because there were many things that would leave me over-thinking and freaking myself out of what was going on with Lenore.
This story of Lenore & Dorian was gut-wrenching, hard and it's left me heartbroken. It was hard to read what Lenore went through and what she felt or thought was love.
A has done it again. She has you thinking and feeling for these characters.
Another great read!
ARC provided from the author for an honest review.
April 18, 2025
Once again, this author has totally excelled herself. I stumbled across A by total accident and I’m so glad I did. She literally takes your mind on a psychological journey that is brutal, catastrophic and one that will change your brain chemistry forever.
We start off with our FMC - Lenore, an innocent, sweet girl caught up in a world she has no idea about, a father who has taken to being a cult leader, with a stepmother with a deep rooted hatred.
Then comes home our MMC - Dorian. The dark soul in the story, the one who’s so morally black, he makes all the other morally black characters in any other story look like labradors. He’s sinister and his obsession and protective instincts is above all others.
This story makes you face dark and brutal situations and bends your mind into thinking of your past in a different light. The development of this story for such a short book is incredible. The character developments and how they flow is top notch. I don’t know how she does it.
I’m literally on tenterhooks waiting for the novel that is due to follow. I need more and I need it now.
Well done A. You spoil us 🖤
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️.75
Touch her and 💀
Cult
Psychological
Severed hands
Cliffhanger of sorts
We start off with our FMC - Lenore, an innocent, sweet girl caught up in a world she has no idea about, a father who has taken to being a cult leader, with a stepmother with a deep rooted hatred.
Then comes home our MMC - Dorian. The dark soul in the story, the one who’s so morally black, he makes all the other morally black characters in any other story look like labradors. He’s sinister and his obsession and protective instincts is above all others.
This story makes you face dark and brutal situations and bends your mind into thinking of your past in a different light. The development of this story for such a short book is incredible. The character developments and how they flow is top notch. I don’t know how she does it.
I’m literally on tenterhooks waiting for the novel that is due to follow. I need more and I need it now.
Well done A. You spoil us 🖤
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️.75
Touch her and 💀
Cult
Psychological
Severed hands
Cliffhanger of sorts
April 24, 2025
This book is poetry at its finest. I can't say enough good things about how this one was written, the emotions poured into it, and what it made me feel while reading. I needed that - it's perfect! The story is deep, it keeps you guessing as to what is truly going on, there's so many emotions being portrayed through the characters, and I could feel every bit of it.
August 12, 2025
*ARC provided by author in return for honest review*
Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 2.5 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Tissues Needed: 2 🤧🤧
Dolls:🪆🪆🪆🪆🪆(Too Many)
Tropes:
🐍 Taboo
🖤Step-Siblings
🐍 Pet Snake
🖤 Haunted House
🐍 Cults
Nicknames: Trouble 😈
Scents:🍋🟩🪵
Lenore - Lime & Basil or Cotton & Lavender Oil
Dorian - Dark, Metal, Cedarwood, & Sweat
<><><><><><>
Thoughts:
It took me way too long to figure out how to express my love for this book, & I still don’t think I have the right words.
This novel is descriptive and compelling, making you feel like you have to turn the next page to figure out what happens next even if the information destroys you in the process. With every chapter, I felt as though I was the one experiencing the events & living through the deep dark emotions the characters showcased.
Lenore & Dorian’s relationship is complex and gorgeous. From their traumatic bonds formed from abusive parents to the feelings of betrayal and escapism after Lenore fled from their family’s home.
I cannot express enough that I wasn’t expecting any of the twists and turns even when they were there in plain sight. The house won’t rest until it has what it wants, & I don’t think I’ll rest until I read the next novel.
Rating: 5/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 2.5 🌶️🌶️🌶️
Tissues Needed: 2 🤧🤧
Dolls:🪆🪆🪆🪆🪆(Too Many)
Tropes:
🐍 Taboo
🖤Step-Siblings
🐍 Pet Snake
🖤 Haunted House
🐍 Cults
Nicknames: Trouble 😈
Scents:🍋🟩🪵
Lenore - Lime & Basil or Cotton & Lavender Oil
Dorian - Dark, Metal, Cedarwood, & Sweat
<><><><><><>
Thoughts:
It took me way too long to figure out how to express my love for this book, & I still don’t think I have the right words.
This novel is descriptive and compelling, making you feel like you have to turn the next page to figure out what happens next even if the information destroys you in the process. With every chapter, I felt as though I was the one experiencing the events & living through the deep dark emotions the characters showcased.
Lenore & Dorian’s relationship is complex and gorgeous. From their traumatic bonds formed from abusive parents to the feelings of betrayal and escapism after Lenore fled from their family’s home.
I cannot express enough that I wasn’t expecting any of the twists and turns even when they were there in plain sight. The house won’t rest until it has what it wants, & I don’t think I’ll rest until I read the next novel.
April 30, 2025
Where do I even begin? Let’s just say this one left me speechless. I’m struggling to find the right words to express my thoughts and give this story and author the recognition they truly deserve because it takes a special kind of author to write in a way that just completely speaks to your soul. And That’s what A.eM does with her stories.
"Where the Dark Things Bloom" is about a young woman going back to her childhood home and dealing with what is essentially a haunted house or presence. It’s dark themed and yes it has its dark romance spice to it. It isn't just a dark, spicy, haunted house story though; it's a psychological warfare that will leave you questioning everything from the first page. I found myself constantly trying to piece together the puzzle and yet finding myself completely in the dark about what the hell was truly going on. I didn’t know what was real, what was fake, or if I’m being entirely honest…anything at all! lol. I loved every disorienting minute of it
A.eM. Has a way with words that just always seems to pull me into the story on a personal and emotional level. Her words don't just tell a story, they pull you into its emotional core. The narrative grips you on a deeply personal level, and despite being what should have been a short read, I found myself lingering and getting distracted. It wasn't a lack of engagement with the story – quite the opposite. The book had its hooks in me. It wasn't until I reached the epilogue that the reason for my hesitant pace became clear.
A.eM writes, "If you’ve stayed with this story until the end, it means some part of you was ready—to go back to where it hurt. To finally face the thing you’ve been carrying. To stand in front of the wreckage and say, “This is where I died... and this is where I begin again.”
These words struck me with the realization that
Unknowingly, this story stirred within me echoes of my own past traumas and issues I have yet to heal from. The distractions were my subconscious resistance to confronting my own buried emotions. But I made it to the end and it wasn't the ghostly happenings within the haunted house that brought tears to my eyes in the end; it was the raw, empathetic message in that epilogue written by A.eM to her readers.
So, thank you, A.eM. Thank you for being the writer that you are! A writer who can craft a story that holds space for those of us navigating the complexities of healing. While "Where the Dark Things Bloom" will no doubt captivate any reader, for those carrying unspoken wounds, it offers something more profound – a mirror, a validation, and a quiet acknowledgment of the difficult path towards wholeness. This isn't just a great book; it's a powerful story.
"Where the Dark Things Bloom" is about a young woman going back to her childhood home and dealing with what is essentially a haunted house or presence. It’s dark themed and yes it has its dark romance spice to it. It isn't just a dark, spicy, haunted house story though; it's a psychological warfare that will leave you questioning everything from the first page. I found myself constantly trying to piece together the puzzle and yet finding myself completely in the dark about what the hell was truly going on. I didn’t know what was real, what was fake, or if I’m being entirely honest…anything at all! lol. I loved every disorienting minute of it
A.eM. Has a way with words that just always seems to pull me into the story on a personal and emotional level. Her words don't just tell a story, they pull you into its emotional core. The narrative grips you on a deeply personal level, and despite being what should have been a short read, I found myself lingering and getting distracted. It wasn't a lack of engagement with the story – quite the opposite. The book had its hooks in me. It wasn't until I reached the epilogue that the reason for my hesitant pace became clear.
A.eM writes, "If you’ve stayed with this story until the end, it means some part of you was ready—to go back to where it hurt. To finally face the thing you’ve been carrying. To stand in front of the wreckage and say, “This is where I died... and this is where I begin again.”
These words struck me with the realization that
Unknowingly, this story stirred within me echoes of my own past traumas and issues I have yet to heal from. The distractions were my subconscious resistance to confronting my own buried emotions. But I made it to the end and it wasn't the ghostly happenings within the haunted house that brought tears to my eyes in the end; it was the raw, empathetic message in that epilogue written by A.eM to her readers.
So, thank you, A.eM. Thank you for being the writer that you are! A writer who can craft a story that holds space for those of us navigating the complexities of healing. While "Where the Dark Things Bloom" will no doubt captivate any reader, for those carrying unspoken wounds, it offers something more profound – a mirror, a validation, and a quiet acknowledgment of the difficult path towards wholeness. This isn't just a great book; it's a powerful story.
April 17, 2025
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ out of 5
🌶🌶🌶🌶 out of 5
🖤Dark Psychological Romance
🫦Step-Siblings
🕸Gothic Manor Full of Haunted Memories
🥺Tr@uma
❤️🩹Scarred (physically/emotionally) MMC
💥Forbidden/Taboo
❤️🔥Age Gap (20, 28)
Review
"There's beauty in the broken." I LOVED this descent into psychological tr@auma and darkness. This is a prequel, an apertif to a complex and haunting tale of love, grief, pain, ghosts, horror, and facing dark truths. And can a glimmer of salvation still be within reach after such destruction?
Raw, unabandoned and unrestrained in its portrayal of a forbidden love wrought by mutual pain and the healing they found in one another, this is not for the faint of heart. The dual timelines move fluidly and bridge to the present beautifully, enabling us to strengthen our connection to their (Lenore & Dorian) relationship and see how far each has fallen into a new kind of despair.
The house becomes a tattered gothic battlefield of painful memories. A graphic and heartbreaking look at the results of such pain and t0ture inflicted upon Dorian (both before and after she left him). The prose is dark but deeply visual and gutteral.
I basked in the richness of both these characters, as well as the haunting atmosphere. A true reflection of Dorian's mental state, the mansion is in ripped shreds, dusty memories frozen in time, a snow globe filled with dust and brandished in cracks.
His POV is intensely compelling and breaks your heart. But Lenore's is one that deepens unexpectedly as the story progresses. I applaud this brave, raw look into psychological damage and how richly vivid this gothic setting became to its allegory. Very highly reccomend for those that feel safe with the triggers. This couple's story has only been dipped into, but the murky waters are indeed swirling with more darkness to come, but also, dare I say, a glimmer of sunlight may just penetrate its surface.
🌶🌶🌶🌶 out of 5
🖤Dark Psychological Romance
🫦Step-Siblings
🕸Gothic Manor Full of Haunted Memories
🥺Tr@uma
❤️🩹Scarred (physically/emotionally) MMC
💥Forbidden/Taboo
❤️🔥Age Gap (20, 28)
Review
"There's beauty in the broken." I LOVED this descent into psychological tr@auma and darkness. This is a prequel, an apertif to a complex and haunting tale of love, grief, pain, ghosts, horror, and facing dark truths. And can a glimmer of salvation still be within reach after such destruction?
Raw, unabandoned and unrestrained in its portrayal of a forbidden love wrought by mutual pain and the healing they found in one another, this is not for the faint of heart. The dual timelines move fluidly and bridge to the present beautifully, enabling us to strengthen our connection to their (Lenore & Dorian) relationship and see how far each has fallen into a new kind of despair.
The house becomes a tattered gothic battlefield of painful memories. A graphic and heartbreaking look at the results of such pain and t0ture inflicted upon Dorian (both before and after she left him). The prose is dark but deeply visual and gutteral.
I basked in the richness of both these characters, as well as the haunting atmosphere. A true reflection of Dorian's mental state, the mansion is in ripped shreds, dusty memories frozen in time, a snow globe filled with dust and brandished in cracks.
His POV is intensely compelling and breaks your heart. But Lenore's is one that deepens unexpectedly as the story progresses. I applaud this brave, raw look into psychological damage and how richly vivid this gothic setting became to its allegory. Very highly reccomend for those that feel safe with the triggers. This couple's story has only been dipped into, but the murky waters are indeed swirling with more darkness to come, but also, dare I say, a glimmer of sunlight may just penetrate its surface.
May 1, 2025
For the broken homes that made us, the memories that haunt us, and the strength it takes to go back.
Where the Dark Things Bloom @iam_a_em
I swear every time I read anything by this phenomenal author, it feels like it was written just for me. The dedications alone hit different and the stories themselves..... I have no words to do them justice, so l will use the authors own.
The stories are dark, morally grey, messy and don't ask for approval - they also come with a huge list of trigger warnings.
What I will say though, is that after every read it feels like something missing has been found and slowly you become more whole. Much like Lenore and Damian in WTDTB, although they have a messed up idea of love/ relationships - the story slowly brings the missing pieces together only to leave you wanting and needing more.
The emotional rollercoaster in this book is something else, it has been written unbelievably well. Take from the review what you will, it's hard to explain properly unless you read it and once you do, you will want to read everything! Fall down that rabbit hole and into these characters life's.
Where the Dark Things Bloom @iam_a_em
I swear every time I read anything by this phenomenal author, it feels like it was written just for me. The dedications alone hit different and the stories themselves..... I have no words to do them justice, so l will use the authors own.
The stories are dark, morally grey, messy and don't ask for approval - they also come with a huge list of trigger warnings.
What I will say though, is that after every read it feels like something missing has been found and slowly you become more whole. Much like Lenore and Damian in WTDTB, although they have a messed up idea of love/ relationships - the story slowly brings the missing pieces together only to leave you wanting and needing more.
The emotional rollercoaster in this book is something else, it has been written unbelievably well. Take from the review what you will, it's hard to explain properly unless you read it and once you do, you will want to read everything! Fall down that rabbit hole and into these characters life's.
April 28, 2025
ARC Review: Where the Dark Things Bloom by A.eM
Rating 5⭐️ and spice 2🌶️
This book was everything I didn’t know I needed. I absolutely love Dorian. I know he has issues and may be a ghost but love him all the same haha no red flags only green. A.eM never seems to disappoint with her books and I can’t wait for part two of this story because I need to know more.
“Some houses don’t need ghosts—just memories sharp enough to bleed, and someone too broken to leave them behind.”
❌PLEASE CHECK TRIGGERS❌
“Do you feel it?” I whispered, dragging my mouth close to her ear. “That pounding in your throat? That’s not fear, stepsis. That’s need.”
DORIAN- older stepbrother, monster, ghost?, bad boy who loves her dearly
LENORE- little sister, haunted, ghost?, she loved him and yet all she wanted was to be free
That’s how you know someone’s yours. If they love your darkest parts without flinching, they’re meant for you. If they ran, they were only chasing a dream. And me? I don’t do halfway. I’m all or nothing, baby.
People romanticize broken souls like we’re just waiting for someone to love us right. But when two broken people find each other, it doesn’t heal anything. It just teaches you how to bleed in sync.
He is going to ruin me. He was my ruin. But even ruins have beauty, and I mistook his wreckage for romance.
Rating 5⭐️ and spice 2🌶️
This book was everything I didn’t know I needed. I absolutely love Dorian. I know he has issues and may be a ghost but love him all the same haha no red flags only green. A.eM never seems to disappoint with her books and I can’t wait for part two of this story because I need to know more.
“Some houses don’t need ghosts—just memories sharp enough to bleed, and someone too broken to leave them behind.”
❌PLEASE CHECK TRIGGERS❌
“Do you feel it?” I whispered, dragging my mouth close to her ear. “That pounding in your throat? That’s not fear, stepsis. That’s need.”
DORIAN- older stepbrother, monster, ghost?, bad boy who loves her dearly
LENORE- little sister, haunted, ghost?, she loved him and yet all she wanted was to be free
That’s how you know someone’s yours. If they love your darkest parts without flinching, they’re meant for you. If they ran, they were only chasing a dream. And me? I don’t do halfway. I’m all or nothing, baby.
People romanticize broken souls like we’re just waiting for someone to love us right. But when two broken people find each other, it doesn’t heal anything. It just teaches you how to bleed in sync.
He is going to ruin me. He was my ruin. But even ruins have beauty, and I mistook his wreckage for romance.
April 30, 2025
Where the Dark Things Bloom is a psychological mindfuck of a book. I've been having a hard time putting my thoughts and feelings about this one into words, and I feel like I can't do it justice. A has a way of writing stories that draw you in, sink its claws into you, and when it lets go, you're not the same. You've learned something, you've changed, you've grown, and Where the Dark Things Bloom was no exception from that.
I feel like saying too much about this book will give things away but just know that the thought, effort and dedication A puts into her books is insanely incredible, and you can definitely feel it in her writing. The dedication and the explanation of Where the Dark Things Bloom, and the story itself really sat with me. They made me feel seen, made me feel less alone.
This book won't be for everyone, and that's okay. But if books that make you question your sanity with spooks, surprises, and gothic taboo vibes are your thing, this one is definitely worth checking out!
I feel like saying too much about this book will give things away but just know that the thought, effort and dedication A puts into her books is insanely incredible, and you can definitely feel it in her writing. The dedication and the explanation of Where the Dark Things Bloom, and the story itself really sat with me. They made me feel seen, made me feel less alone.
This book won't be for everyone, and that's okay. But if books that make you question your sanity with spooks, surprises, and gothic taboo vibes are your thing, this one is definitely worth checking out!
April 16, 2025
This book ruined me in the most achingly beautiful way. I finished it feeling like part of me had been cracked open, stitched together with thorns, and left to bloom in the dark alongside Lenore.
🌹🗝🕯
A.eM doesn’t just write stories—she reaches into your soul and writes you into them. I felt seen. I felt shattered. I felt home. Lenore's grief, rage, longing, and wild defiance hit so deeply I swear I could feel the soil under my nails and the secrets pressed into my skin.
🌹🗝🕯
It’s not just a book. It’s a spell. A shadow-laced love letter. A whisper in the night.
And I’m still listening.
🌹🗝🕯
Step-sibling taboo? Check.
Dark haunted manor setting? Check.
Possessive, obsessive, beautifully broken MMC? CHECK.
I didn’t fall down the rabbit hole—I dove in screaming.
🌹🗝🕯
Thank you for trusting me with this ARC—it was an honor to walk these pages before the world did.
💀 Rating: emotionally wrecked/10
🖤 Trigger warning: all of them
🌹🗝🕯
A.eM doesn’t just write stories—she reaches into your soul and writes you into them. I felt seen. I felt shattered. I felt home. Lenore's grief, rage, longing, and wild defiance hit so deeply I swear I could feel the soil under my nails and the secrets pressed into my skin.
🌹🗝🕯
It’s not just a book. It’s a spell. A shadow-laced love letter. A whisper in the night.
And I’m still listening.
🌹🗝🕯
Step-sibling taboo? Check.
Dark haunted manor setting? Check.
Possessive, obsessive, beautifully broken MMC? CHECK.
I didn’t fall down the rabbit hole—I dove in screaming.
🌹🗝🕯
Thank you for trusting me with this ARC—it was an honor to walk these pages before the world did.
💀 Rating: emotionally wrecked/10
🖤 Trigger warning: all of them
April 18, 2025
Where to even begin? My brain is still trying to process and understand what just happened.
Dont let the 113 pages of the book fool you, it’s a mind fuck, it’s an unreliable narrator, it’s chaos - complete and utter chaos!!
The first few chapters are from our FMC, who hasn’t had the best run and ends up having to return to her family Manor, the place she ran from, back to her past that haunted her.
Then we are introduced to Darion, her stepbrother and his pet snake Ngari. The way this MMC thinks and speaks is unhinged and then some, dark and twisted - just the way we like them!
Theres religious cult themes, along with mentions of rituals and sacraficies, however do I know if any of it actually happened? Guess you’ll have to determine that for yourself!
Dont let the 113 pages of the book fool you, it’s a mind fuck, it’s an unreliable narrator, it’s chaos - complete and utter chaos!!
The first few chapters are from our FMC, who hasn’t had the best run and ends up having to return to her family Manor, the place she ran from, back to her past that haunted her.
Then we are introduced to Darion, her stepbrother and his pet snake Ngari. The way this MMC thinks and speaks is unhinged and then some, dark and twisted - just the way we like them!
Theres religious cult themes, along with mentions of rituals and sacraficies, however do I know if any of it actually happened? Guess you’ll have to determine that for yourself!
April 19, 2025
Where the dark things bloom,
From the very first note to the readers, I was already captivated by the words thrown out in this book, which is unlike any other I’ve ever read. It transports you to different situations of your mind and emotions, exploring how we hide and meticulously store things deep within our very depths of our minds and souls. It’s what breaks us, what plunges us into the pitch black, but it can also be our source of healing. All we need to do is accept those things in order to grow and heal. Have you ever stopped to think that your flaws, those deep dark thoughts, can be healed? That you can find peace and move on? We all can find ourselves in this book—it’s deep, well-written, and speaks the truth of what we all feel but are too afraid to voice.
From the very first note to the readers, I was already captivated by the words thrown out in this book, which is unlike any other I’ve ever read. It transports you to different situations of your mind and emotions, exploring how we hide and meticulously store things deep within our very depths of our minds and souls. It’s what breaks us, what plunges us into the pitch black, but it can also be our source of healing. All we need to do is accept those things in order to grow and heal. Have you ever stopped to think that your flaws, those deep dark thoughts, can be healed? That you can find peace and move on? We all can find ourselves in this book—it’s deep, well-written, and speaks the truth of what we all feel but are too afraid to voice.
October 3, 2025
Where the dark things bloom
By: A. EM.
5/5🌟
First of this being a taboo (step sibilings) book really drug me in. Well the authors note did first, but what really drug me in deeper was the taboo (step siblings) trope. I really loved it. The story and the glimpses in the past we get of Lenore was really heartbreaking but seeing how good her Dorian was to her when her step mom and dad were brutal towards her really sparked something in this story.
this book left me speechless. I wasn’t expecting the plot twist that happened. this book was something else, but a really good read. I really enjoyed it. I enjoyed it so much I read it in two days. That’s how good it was. It was hard to put down. And I loved how the author went into detail at the end and explain what the book was truly about
April 18, 2025
A.em has never disappointed me in any book I have had the pleasure of reading by her of I could give her more than 5 stars I would. Where the dark things bloom is a dark psychological gothic romance. Make sure you read your trigger warnings.
Some more things it includes:
* age gap (8 YEARS)
* gothic
* forbidden love
* Step siblings
* Haunted house
* Pet Snake (Snake play)
* Psychological mindfuck
* Cult
* Possessive MMC
* Breath play
* Scars
* Dark secrets, dark past
I can not wait until the next book comes out I’m impatiently waiting. it is hard to put into words how this book would make you feel so you wouldn’t know until you read it. It has an amazing storyline the spice is in there aswell.
Some more things it includes:
* age gap (8 YEARS)
* gothic
* forbidden love
* Step siblings
* Haunted house
* Pet Snake (Snake play)
* Psychological mindfuck
* Cult
* Possessive MMC
* Breath play
* Scars
* Dark secrets, dark past
I can not wait until the next book comes out I’m impatiently waiting. it is hard to put into words how this book would make you feel so you wouldn’t know until you read it. It has an amazing storyline the spice is in there aswell.
April 18, 2025
This is a book you never knew you needed. The author knows how to reach into your body a caress your soul like a wounded animal.
This story is like a poem for the broken mind.
“But they don’t know I loved you like a secret, and you loved me like a dare.”
3:18 a.m-Gloomsbury Manor-Two shattered minds-Walls drenched in memories-The manor remembers-Shadows and ghosts roam the halls-The chosen-Cult-Curses-Secrets
She returns to the manor looking for solace…..
He has been waiting two years to make him her nightmare….
What is real? What is a dream? Am I real…or a nightmare?
Death would be our only escape…or maybe we are already dead..
This story, just like all of her others, needs to be experienced.
Thank you to the author for the opportunity to read this book.
This story is like a poem for the broken mind.
“But they don’t know I loved you like a secret, and you loved me like a dare.”
3:18 a.m-Gloomsbury Manor-Two shattered minds-Walls drenched in memories-The manor remembers-Shadows and ghosts roam the halls-The chosen-Cult-Curses-Secrets
She returns to the manor looking for solace…..
He has been waiting two years to make him her nightmare….
What is real? What is a dream? Am I real…or a nightmare?
Death would be our only escape…or maybe we are already dead..
This story, just like all of her others, needs to be experienced.
Thank you to the author for the opportunity to read this book.
April 19, 2025
I can not stress this enough… READ THE TRIGGER WARNINGS. THIS IS DARK AND MAY NOT BE FOR YOU
Holy f*cking sh*t. This was one of the most beautiful, mind f*cky books I have ever read and it was so good. It’s dark, thrilling, haunting, psychologically disorienting, romantic…., etc. I could go on and on about how much I loved this book. I can not WAIT for the next book. The ending is really what did it for me. That’s what pushed me to give this read 5 stars. I’m just in awe at how beautiful it turned out to be. I 110% will be reading more books written by A. Em.
I wish I had more to say but I can’t put it all into words. AMAZING.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️
Holy f*cking sh*t. This was one of the most beautiful, mind f*cky books I have ever read and it was so good. It’s dark, thrilling, haunting, psychologically disorienting, romantic…., etc. I could go on and on about how much I loved this book. I can not WAIT for the next book. The ending is really what did it for me. That’s what pushed me to give this read 5 stars. I’m just in awe at how beautiful it turned out to be. I 110% will be reading more books written by A. Em.
I wish I had more to say but I can’t put it all into words. AMAZING.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶️🌶️🌶️
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