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Never Alone
I didn’t know I was someone’s obsession. My life was just starting. I was finally an adult, looking forward to spreading my wings in college.
I didn’t know I was destined for a grimmer fate until it was too late.
The cold quiet imprisonment awaiting me would be endlessly disparaging if it weren’t for my neighbor, Levi Tillman, who’s locked up right here beside me. My brother in friendship, Levi has always been the quiet support I needed in my life. Except he’s not here to be just my friend. He’s here to be a stud, the proxy our captor uses to keep me in line.
All because Dr. Samuel Kelt is convinced: I’m his soulmate.
Dr. Kelt isn’t the homely, trustworthy doctor I once knew.
He says he’s going to make me happy.
He says he built this space so he could take care of me.
He says we’re going to be a family now. And we’re going to have a family of our own too.
He says Levi’s actions are my consequences.
And Dr. Kelt’s inner beast wants to see me suffer those consequences.
The jealousy is only festering.
I’m not sure we’ll make it out of these four white walls, and I worry that even if we do, we may not be in any shape to move forward anyway.
********************************
TW/CW:
This book is a dark romance featuring murder, kidnapping, violent sexual assaults, and torture. It is an age gap story featuring a possessive, deranged captor and two lovers in forced proximity. It is intended for adults and contains explicit sexual content between consenting and non-consenting adults. There are descriptions of situations that will make some readers feel uncomfortable.
Please do not read if you are sensitive to the following content: pregnancy, dubious consent, power imbalance, childbirth, voyeurism, breeding, virginity, sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse.
As always, there are plenty of other books out there, so please go read those if this content upsets you. If your dark, disturbed soul is like “fuck yeah,” then hop on board and don’t say I didn’t warn you.
I didn’t know I was destined for a grimmer fate until it was too late.
The cold quiet imprisonment awaiting me would be endlessly disparaging if it weren’t for my neighbor, Levi Tillman, who’s locked up right here beside me. My brother in friendship, Levi has always been the quiet support I needed in my life. Except he’s not here to be just my friend. He’s here to be a stud, the proxy our captor uses to keep me in line.
All because Dr. Samuel Kelt is convinced: I’m his soulmate.
Dr. Kelt isn’t the homely, trustworthy doctor I once knew.
He says he’s going to make me happy.
He says he built this space so he could take care of me.
He says we’re going to be a family now. And we’re going to have a family of our own too.
He says Levi’s actions are my consequences.
And Dr. Kelt’s inner beast wants to see me suffer those consequences.
The jealousy is only festering.
I’m not sure we’ll make it out of these four white walls, and I worry that even if we do, we may not be in any shape to move forward anyway.
********************************
TW/CW:
This book is a dark romance featuring murder, kidnapping, violent sexual assaults, and torture. It is an age gap story featuring a possessive, deranged captor and two lovers in forced proximity. It is intended for adults and contains explicit sexual content between consenting and non-consenting adults. There are descriptions of situations that will make some readers feel uncomfortable.
Please do not read if you are sensitive to the following content: pregnancy, dubious consent, power imbalance, childbirth, voyeurism, breeding, virginity, sexual abuse, physical abuse, emotional abuse.
As always, there are plenty of other books out there, so please go read those if this content upsets you. If your dark, disturbed soul is like “fuck yeah,” then hop on board and don’t say I didn’t warn you.
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Published August 8, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
August 10, 2025
ARC Review – Never Alone by Emilia Squire
First off, a huge thank you to Emilia Squire for allowing me the opportunity to be an ARC reader! This was my very first ARC experience, and although this week has been chaotic, I truly appreciate the chance. Please forgive me for being a day late with my review.
Now—wow. Never Alone was an intense, gripping read that I absolutely loved. It’s full of suspense, dark romance, non-con elements, restraint, forced proximity, fear, and even moments of unexpected happiness. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time.
Emilia’s writing was incredibly well done—the pacing, tension, and emotional depth were all spot-on. The story had me fully invested, and I couldn’t put it down.
If I could suggest one small thing, it would be to consider updating the content warnings. While the triggers are accurate, I’d personally label this book as horror in addition to close-proximity romance. The fear I felt around the doctor character was real!
Other than that—amazing job, Emilia! I can’t wait to read more from you.
First off, a huge thank you to Emilia Squire for allowing me the opportunity to be an ARC reader! This was my very first ARC experience, and although this week has been chaotic, I truly appreciate the chance. Please forgive me for being a day late with my review.
Now—wow. Never Alone was an intense, gripping read that I absolutely loved. It’s full of suspense, dark romance, non-con elements, restraint, forced proximity, fear, and even moments of unexpected happiness. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time.
Emilia’s writing was incredibly well done—the pacing, tension, and emotional depth were all spot-on. The story had me fully invested, and I couldn’t put it down.
If I could suggest one small thing, it would be to consider updating the content warnings. While the triggers are accurate, I’d personally label this book as horror in addition to close-proximity romance. The fear I felt around the doctor character was real!
Other than that—amazing job, Emilia! I can’t wait to read more from you.
August 12, 2025
Do check the trigger warnings ⛔️ 4.5 ⭐️
“𝘍𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤. 𝘐 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦 𝘓𝘦𝘷𝘪 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘷𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢.
𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥.”
Our two best friend MCs Delilah and Levi are kidnapped, held in a basement together, controlled by an older man to do his bidding. He wants a family but can’t perform himself without v!0lence, as such he needs Levi to impregnate her. He keeps them there, visiting them each evening, ruling them, teaching them. Scared and fearing for each other, they have no option than to appease him.
I finished this in one sitting, the story at times was a little WTF and why but it worked to the ultimate conclusion. Though I must admit I kind of wanted more retribution 😈
“𝘍𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘤. 𝘐 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦 𝘓𝘦𝘷𝘪 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘮𝘺 𝘷𝘢𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘢.
𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘩𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘸𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘯 𝘯𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥.”
Our two best friend MCs Delilah and Levi are kidnapped, held in a basement together, controlled by an older man to do his bidding. He wants a family but can’t perform himself without v!0lence, as such he needs Levi to impregnate her. He keeps them there, visiting them each evening, ruling them, teaching them. Scared and fearing for each other, they have no option than to appease him.
I finished this in one sitting, the story at times was a little WTF and why but it worked to the ultimate conclusion. Though I must admit I kind of wanted more retribution 😈
August 3, 2025
Super dark with some graphic themes that don’t hold back. But I truly enjoyed the FMC and MMC together. I appreciated the care the author showed to their mental health and the honest way she portrayed their recovery. Would definitely recommend for those who aren’t scared of an actual dark romance book.
August 6, 2025
ARC read!
If you're new to the world of dark romance, don’t just glance at those trigger warnings like they’re optional fine print. Read them like your emotional stability depends on it. Because Never Alone does not ease you in, it dumps you straight into the trauma pit.
This book had me clutching my coziest pillow like it owed me money. Picture this: a twisted pediatrician with major creep vibes sets his pervy sights on his newly-18 patient, snatches her and her bad-boy neighbor, and drags them into his basement “dollhouse”.
Enter Delilah, the sweet, sunshine-next-door, and Levi, the town’s bad boy. They're smart, cute, and suddenly stuck in a forced lovers scenario that would make your therapist quit. Their chemistry? Delicious. Their circumstances? Straight from a true crime doc. And every time things start getting sweet, BAM, their depraved captor pops in.
I was in need of a cortisol cocktail at just half way through. Emilia Squire writes in such a spellbinding way, next thing you know, you’re 300 pages deep and emotionally unwell. It’s dark. It’s spicy. It’s so messed up. But somehow… weirdly healing?
It all leads to a heart-melting HEA, so your soul won’t be completely crushed, I promise.
10/10 recommend, for emotionally stable readers with a strong stomach and access to snacks, a glass of wine and a support group.
If you're new to the world of dark romance, don’t just glance at those trigger warnings like they’re optional fine print. Read them like your emotional stability depends on it. Because Never Alone does not ease you in, it dumps you straight into the trauma pit.
This book had me clutching my coziest pillow like it owed me money. Picture this: a twisted pediatrician with major creep vibes sets his pervy sights on his newly-18 patient, snatches her and her bad-boy neighbor, and drags them into his basement “dollhouse”.
Enter Delilah, the sweet, sunshine-next-door, and Levi, the town’s bad boy. They're smart, cute, and suddenly stuck in a forced lovers scenario that would make your therapist quit. Their chemistry? Delicious. Their circumstances? Straight from a true crime doc. And every time things start getting sweet, BAM, their depraved captor pops in.
I was in need of a cortisol cocktail at just half way through. Emilia Squire writes in such a spellbinding way, next thing you know, you’re 300 pages deep and emotionally unwell. It’s dark. It’s spicy. It’s so messed up. But somehow… weirdly healing?
It all leads to a heart-melting HEA, so your soul won’t be completely crushed, I promise.
10/10 recommend, for emotionally stable readers with a strong stomach and access to snacks, a glass of wine and a support group.
September 18, 2025
Arc Review - this is one of my first so thankyou Emilia for allowing me to read this!
I 100% recommend checking your trigger warnings before diving into this, as this has some very dark themes. I'm not easily triggered so for me this wasn't as easy read per say, but I got through this in like a day so I don't know what that says about me.
So we have Delilah who has just turned 18, and she is pretty much best friends with her neighbour Levi, who is 24. They pretty much grew up together and it was really cute. But then we have Dr Samuel Kelt and what a twisted mf he is, my god, he has been her doctor her whole life up until she turned 18, and has pretty much been planning to kidnap her since she was a young girl and was just biding his time, he is obsessed with her, stalks her the lot.
So the book starts off with Lily waking up and feeling very dazed and confused, and then notices Levi is here is As well, turns out he drugged them both and then put them in the back of his van, and underneath the practice he had a secret room built kinda like an apartment underground which can only be accessed with this thumb print and a key, and it has cameras everywhere to the point they can’t even go to the toilet without him being able to see. He wants lily to be his forever and have his children, but there is one problem he can’t get hard like normal he literally says his cock is a sadist and his sperm count is also 0, which is where Levi comes in and he wants him to impregnate her and then once he’s finished with him he is going to kill him.
Now our poor girl Lily is a virgin and has never so much as kissed anyone before, while Levi is much more experienced in that department. Levi doesn’t want her to experience her first kiss with the Dr so asks if it’s okay if he kisses her first, she agrees but the Dr isn’t pleased that he took away one of his firsts with her, so tells Levi to handcuff himself to the chair while he punishes Lily, she then gets whipped 10 times and spanked twice, and he says that they will both get punished if they don’t do as he asks. This then moves onto Levi doing oral and then sex with Lily, until she gets pregnant and what do you know it’s twins a boy and a girl. Dr Kelt becomes more and more annoyed with Levi as they start to become very dependent on each other and when he tries to touch and do stuff with lily she doesn’t give the same response to him. The police finally find them like 8 months later to which lily is very much pregnant at this point, they end up moving into Levi’s parents house, as they still are very much dependent on each other but start going to counselling and start learning to take small amount of time apart from each other which turns out to be harder for Levi than lily. Levi also didn’t want any kids at all, but now couldn’t imagine life without them. Levi is at his session and lily is at home with his dad and mam, his dad leaves after getting a call from the police but doesn’t tell lily what about, and then hears a crash in the kitchen and Levi’s mam is on the floor, and who behold is there Dr Kelt, he faked a heart attack, stabbed a nurse and put on the scrubs and then came to house to kidnap Lily again. He takes her to the farmhouse which is where he wanted to take her when he killed of Levi and the babies where born. Levi returns home and finds the front door open, his mam on the floor and no sign of lily, his dad rings and asks where he could have taken her and he says about the farmhouse and the police find something under his dead wife’s Maiden name. Yes Dr kelt also killed his wife, as she noticed his obsession with lily so made her diabetic monitor malfunction and gave her a fatal dose of insulin. Lily is now at the farmhouse, he tells her to strip and get in the stirrups as she it is times for her give birth, he checks her and she is 3cm dilated, 11 hours later and she is only 11cm dilated so he said he might have to perform a c section, that’s until the police find them and rush lily to the hospital where she does have the c section and both her and the babies are fine. We fast forward a few years, the twins are grown up, she had another baby and is currently pregnant with baby number 4, and Dr Kelt died like 2 years ago on Labour Day so they use this day to celebrate that, and they are happily married and doing much better. I don’t know how to feel overall about this book, I read it in one sitting but like can I say I enjoyed it??? Can you really say you enjoy that type, I mean I know it’s dark romance but Levi and Lily’s relationship wasn’t dark?? Idk, I’ve never read anything like this before so I’m not sure what to make of it. I didn’t hate it but enjoy it idk??
I 100% recommend checking your trigger warnings before diving into this, as this has some very dark themes. I'm not easily triggered so for me this wasn't as easy read per say, but I got through this in like a day so I don't know what that says about me.
So we have Delilah who has just turned 18, and she is pretty much best friends with her neighbour Levi, who is 24. They pretty much grew up together and it was really cute. But then we have Dr Samuel Kelt and what a twisted mf he is, my god, he has been her doctor her whole life up until she turned 18, and has pretty much been planning to kidnap her since she was a young girl and was just biding his time, he is obsessed with her, stalks her the lot.
So the book starts off with Lily waking up and feeling very dazed and confused, and then notices Levi is here is As well, turns out he drugged them both and then put them in the back of his van, and underneath the practice he had a secret room built kinda like an apartment underground which can only be accessed with this thumb print and a key, and it has cameras everywhere to the point they can’t even go to the toilet without him being able to see. He wants lily to be his forever and have his children, but there is one problem he can’t get hard like normal he literally says his cock is a sadist and his sperm count is also 0, which is where Levi comes in and he wants him to impregnate her and then once he’s finished with him he is going to kill him.
Now our poor girl Lily is a virgin and has never so much as kissed anyone before, while Levi is much more experienced in that department. Levi doesn’t want her to experience her first kiss with the Dr so asks if it’s okay if he kisses her first, she agrees but the Dr isn’t pleased that he took away one of his firsts with her, so tells Levi to handcuff himself to the chair while he punishes Lily, she then gets whipped 10 times and spanked twice, and he says that they will both get punished if they don’t do as he asks. This then moves onto Levi doing oral and then sex with Lily, until she gets pregnant and what do you know it’s twins a boy and a girl. Dr Kelt becomes more and more annoyed with Levi as they start to become very dependent on each other and when he tries to touch and do stuff with lily she doesn’t give the same response to him. The police finally find them like 8 months later to which lily is very much pregnant at this point, they end up moving into Levi’s parents house, as they still are very much dependent on each other but start going to counselling and start learning to take small amount of time apart from each other which turns out to be harder for Levi than lily. Levi also didn’t want any kids at all, but now couldn’t imagine life without them. Levi is at his session and lily is at home with his dad and mam, his dad leaves after getting a call from the police but doesn’t tell lily what about, and then hears a crash in the kitchen and Levi’s mam is on the floor, and who behold is there Dr Kelt, he faked a heart attack, stabbed a nurse and put on the scrubs and then came to house to kidnap Lily again. He takes her to the farmhouse which is where he wanted to take her when he killed of Levi and the babies where born. Levi returns home and finds the front door open, his mam on the floor and no sign of lily, his dad rings and asks where he could have taken her and he says about the farmhouse and the police find something under his dead wife’s Maiden name. Yes Dr kelt also killed his wife, as she noticed his obsession with lily so made her diabetic monitor malfunction and gave her a fatal dose of insulin. Lily is now at the farmhouse, he tells her to strip and get in the stirrups as she it is times for her give birth, he checks her and she is 3cm dilated, 11 hours later and she is only 11cm dilated so he said he might have to perform a c section, that’s until the police find them and rush lily to the hospital where she does have the c section and both her and the babies are fine. We fast forward a few years, the twins are grown up, she had another baby and is currently pregnant with baby number 4, and Dr Kelt died like 2 years ago on Labour Day so they use this day to celebrate that, and they are happily married and doing much better. I don’t know how to feel overall about this book, I read it in one sitting but like can I say I enjoyed it??? Can you really say you enjoy that type, I mean I know it’s dark romance but Levi and Lily’s relationship wasn’t dark?? Idk, I’ve never read anything like this before so I’m not sure what to make of it. I didn’t hate it but enjoy it idk??
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 12, 2025
In Never Alone by Emilia (presumably Emilia Squire, known for her dark romance novels), the narrative plunges readers into the disturbing world of Delilah, held captive by Dr. Samuel Kelt, a man convinced she is his soulmate. Trapped alongside her childhood friend, Levi Tillman, Delilah faces not only the psychological and physical torment inflicted by Kelt but also the twisted dynamic with Levi, forced into a perverse role by their captor. The writing, lauded as excellent, immerses the reader in this dark and depraved world, evoking strong emotions of obsession, abuse, trauma, and a glimmer of hope amidst the suffering. The novel offers a unique take on dark romance, exploring the depths of human resilience and the complexities of relationships under unimaginable duress, culminating in a promise of a happy ending after intense pain.
September 21, 2025
Sick and twisted. But also sweet and swoony… never thought I would make such a contradictory statement😂 My brain feels absolutely violated but the mc’s made it so enjoyable! Their connection was palpable and I was giddy and kicking my feet in parts. I’m a sucker for small little gestures or actions and this book was full of them.
I don’t even know what to say without spoiling the book so all I will say is Basement. Rogue old man with a limp dick. Childhood BFFs. Dub Con. Torture. Virginity. Lordy just so much😵💫 it’s also 10pm as I am writing this and my brain is fried maybe I’ll try again tomorrow after I have slept on it because my god my brain is spinning after this one!
The only reason it wasn’t a 5 star read for me was because I am currently breastfeeding and said Rogue old man with a limp dick kept going on about breast milk and I felt queezy 😂
I don’t even know what to say without spoiling the book so all I will say is Basement. Rogue old man with a limp dick. Childhood BFFs. Dub Con. Torture. Virginity. Lordy just so much😵💫 it’s also 10pm as I am writing this and my brain is fried maybe I’ll try again tomorrow after I have slept on it because my god my brain is spinning after this one!
The only reason it wasn’t a 5 star read for me was because I am currently breastfeeding and said Rogue old man with a limp dick kept going on about breast milk and I felt queezy 😂
August 3, 2025
Never Alone hooks you from page one and doesn’t let go. It’s a full-blown rollercoaster of emotions — you’ll cringe, swoon, squirm, and smile, sometimes all in the same chapter.
Levi and Delilah’s relationship is the heart of the story — raw, slow-burning, and beautiful in how it grows despite the chaos surrounding them. On the flip side, Kelt is an absolute monster. He throws around the word “love” but treats Delilah like trash — a walking red flag with more issues than a magazine rack.
This isn’t a light read. Emilia Squire doesn’t shy away from tough, triggering subjects, so check the content warnings first. But if you're looking for a dark, gripping, emotionally intense story that makes you feel everything, this one delivers.
Levi and Delilah’s relationship is the heart of the story — raw, slow-burning, and beautiful in how it grows despite the chaos surrounding them. On the flip side, Kelt is an absolute monster. He throws around the word “love” but treats Delilah like trash — a walking red flag with more issues than a magazine rack.
This isn’t a light read. Emilia Squire doesn’t shy away from tough, triggering subjects, so check the content warnings first. But if you're looking for a dark, gripping, emotionally intense story that makes you feel everything, this one delivers.
August 8, 2025
Holy crap! way to dive in without lube. This book does not ease you in, it dives headfirst into darkness, depravity and emotional, physical, and psychological trauma. Just when you see a glimmer of hope, it plunges you back into the depths. Emilia was not messing around. I finished this book in a day and I'm not okay. The writing is excellent, immersing you in Delilah, Levi, and Dr. Kelt's twisted world. You'll feel the obsession, evil, abuse, trauma, and healing. It takes you on an emotional rollercoaster that promises a happy ending after a lot of pain and suffering. If you're into dark romance, give it a shot, but be mindful of your triggers if you're new to the genre.
August 27, 2025
BEFORE reading, please check the trigger warnings!
This book didn't capture me right away, but as I continued to read it freaking did.
This book was dark, I feel like it's kind of the darkest one I've read this year. The things Delilah and Levi had to endure was heart breaking and HARD to read. They only had each other to count on mentally, emotionally, and physically. In my opinion, if one wasn't there for the other, they wouldn't be where they are now. Dr. Kelt, freaked me out. He had creepy vibes throughout the whole book. His thoughts and reasonings didn't make a whole lot of sense to me of why he did what he did. He was just evil.
This book was sooo good. If you enjoy dark and the triggers don't mentally hit you, I recommend.
ARC provided from the author for an honest review.
This book didn't capture me right away, but as I continued to read it freaking did.
This book was dark, I feel like it's kind of the darkest one I've read this year. The things Delilah and Levi had to endure was heart breaking and HARD to read. They only had each other to count on mentally, emotionally, and physically. In my opinion, if one wasn't there for the other, they wouldn't be where they are now. Dr. Kelt, freaked me out. He had creepy vibes throughout the whole book. His thoughts and reasonings didn't make a whole lot of sense to me of why he did what he did. He was just evil.
This book was sooo good. If you enjoy dark and the triggers don't mentally hit you, I recommend.
ARC provided from the author for an honest review.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews