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키스 프롬 헬
세계적인 미디어 재벌의 사생아 요한. 하루아침에 어머니를 잃은 그는 난생처음 만난 아버지를 따라 영국으로 건너간다. 그리고 그곳에서 제 인생을 송두리째 흔들어 놓을 천사를 만난다. 이전에는 존재하는지조차 몰랐던 이복동생 발렌타인이었다.
“약속해, 요한. 우리는 늘 서로가 첫 번째인 거야.”
발렌타인은 교묘하게 덫을 치며 요한의 세계를 축소하고, 매일 밤 그를 자신의 품으로 길들인다. 시간이 흐를수록 둘의 관계는 외줄을 타듯 아슬아슬해지고, 요한을 향한 발렌타인의 집착 역시 극단으로 치닫는다. 그리고 고등학교 졸업을 앞둔 어느 날, 둘의 관계를 단숨에 바꾸어 버리는 사건이 발생하는데…….
* * *
“인정하기 싫지?” 발렌타인은 자신의 어깨에 이마를 기댄 요한에게 나지막하게 속삭였다.
“사실은 너도 원한다는 거.”
“……읏.”
허리를 치대는 감각에 요한은 헐떡이는 숨을 내뱉었다. 그를 밀어내기 위해 뻗었던 두 손은 어느새 부들부들 떨리며 주먹을 말아 쥔 채였다. 등 뒤로 샤워 부스의 유리문이 닫혔고, 곧이어 뜨거운 물이 전신으로 쏟아져 내렸다.
두 개의 나체가 빈틈없이 엉겨 붙었다. 숨을 제대도 쉴 수 없는 것이 세차게 쏟아지는 물줄기 때문인지 아니면 발렌타인 때문인지, 요한은 도무지 알 수 없었다.
“솔직해지는 게 무서우면 지금처럼 외면해도 돼. 넌 그냥 그 상태로 있어.”
“하아…… 흐으…….”
“이기적인 내가 억지를 부리는 거라고 칠게. 그러니까 요한, 쓸데없는 죄책감은 집어치우고…….” 우리 그동안 못 했던 거 하자.
“약속해, 요한. 우리는 늘 서로가 첫 번째인 거야.”
발렌타인은 교묘하게 덫을 치며 요한의 세계를 축소하고, 매일 밤 그를 자신의 품으로 길들인다. 시간이 흐를수록 둘의 관계는 외줄을 타듯 아슬아슬해지고, 요한을 향한 발렌타인의 집착 역시 극단으로 치닫는다. 그리고 고등학교 졸업을 앞둔 어느 날, 둘의 관계를 단숨에 바꾸어 버리는 사건이 발생하는데…….
* * *
“인정하기 싫지?” 발렌타인은 자신의 어깨에 이마를 기댄 요한에게 나지막하게 속삭였다.
“사실은 너도 원한다는 거.”
“……읏.”
허리를 치대는 감각에 요한은 헐떡이는 숨을 내뱉었다. 그를 밀어내기 위해 뻗었던 두 손은 어느새 부들부들 떨리며 주먹을 말아 쥔 채였다. 등 뒤로 샤워 부스의 유리문이 닫혔고, 곧이어 뜨거운 물이 전신으로 쏟아져 내렸다.
두 개의 나체가 빈틈없이 엉겨 붙었다. 숨을 제대도 쉴 수 없는 것이 세차게 쏟아지는 물줄기 때문인지 아니면 발렌타인 때문인지, 요한은 도무지 알 수 없었다.
“솔직해지는 게 무서우면 지금처럼 외면해도 돼. 넌 그냥 그 상태로 있어.”
“하아…… 흐으…….”
“이기적인 내가 억지를 부리는 거라고 칠게. 그러니까 요한, 쓸데없는 죄책감은 집어치우고…….” 우리 그동안 못 했던 거 하자.
1831 pages, ebook
Published March 7, 2018
2 people are currently reading
4 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
December 20, 2025
4.5⭐
No le doy las 5 estrellitas nada más porque me da rabia que me hiciera llorar tanto🥺
Todo fue taaaaan frustrante, la impotencia que te hace sentir, las ganas que tenia de meterme a la novela para matar a varios personajes y/o cachetear a otros. Y la impaciencia por el tan esperado reencuentro, se me hizo eterno😫
Todo se fue construyendo de a poco, muchos muchísimos altibajos, escapes, malos entendidos, los pequeñísimos (migajas) momentos dulces.
Aunque confieso que el final para mi, fue agridulce. No sé si fue por esperarlo tanto, o porque en realidad esperaba (otra cosa) más.
Como que si pero no, nose... Te deja una sensación rara.
No le doy las 5 estrellitas nada más porque me da rabia que me hiciera llorar tanto🥺
Todo fue taaaaan frustrante, la impotencia que te hace sentir, las ganas que tenia de meterme a la novela para matar a varios personajes y/o cachetear a otros. Y la impaciencia por el tan esperado reencuentro, se me hizo eterno😫
Todo se fue construyendo de a poco, muchos muchísimos altibajos, escapes, malos entendidos, los pequeñísimos (migajas) momentos dulces.
Aunque confieso que el final para mi, fue agridulce. No sé si fue por esperarlo tanto, o porque en realidad esperaba (otra cosa) más.
Como que si pero no, nose... Te deja una sensación rara.
September 23, 2025
4.5 stars. Holy shit, this was amazing. Leave it to asian BL novels to deliver exactly the type of dark stories and unhealthy dynamics I love. This was a short one but somehow it felt very close to being perfect because of how it tackled everything I wanted.
The story is simple but effective. John is a teen that discovers his father is a rich man, so he is brought to his mansion to be part of the family. He meets a kid that is younger than him there, Valentine, who will now be his step brother. From the moment Valentine sees him, he becomes attached to John and both turn out to be get very close as they grow up together. When they go to the same school, things change. Valentine starts behaving in a certain way towards him but John doesn't think it's out of place since he's an alpha. That is, until Valentine begins his advances.
I really liked how eerie things felt from the beginning. From the moment Valentine appeared, I knew there was something else about him. It made the story feel thrilling and I was at the edge of my seat because things just felt wrong. And boy, it really went all downhill.
The novel surprised me more than once because it went beyond that what I expected. I also didn't think Valentine would be my favorite character. He sure isn't a good person, but he's really interesting and exactly the flavor of MLs that I love. Ruthless and dangerous. John was great as MC too, most of the decisions he took were reasonable and he felt real - especially given everything he went through. I also liked that he was resilient and tried his best to get up back on his feet despite what life threw at him.
The evolution of the dynamic was another great thing. It stayed consistently fascinating through the entire novel, even more so considering the MCs are step brothers. There is a lot of guilt and shame involved, which made sense given that John wasn't prepared for such type of affection coming from Valentine. What's more heartbreaking is that there is a line near the end where John admits to his feelings and how things would've gone differently if Valentine had acted at a different pace. The 'forbidden' theme stayed as a central part of the story, it's another thing that I loved because it represented an actual obstacle and threat.
Speaking about obstacles, I wanted to mention that there was a side character I really liked and could even be considered a 'second ML' (although maybe not given how consistent the main pairing was). I loved that this person added drama to the story. He and John definitely had good chemistry and I was very into the idea of them as a possible couple. He served as a mirror to display what Valentine wasn't.
Valentine's journey as a character was amazing. I cannot say he's redeemable because the things he did just aren't forgivable, but considering this is fiction I could definitely see his growth and even felt that his groveling/chasing is a perfect example of how to do these tropes. I don't always want a terrible character to be redeemed, I like some awful ones as they are. I don't really care about them being likeable or not neither. All I want in a book is for the MCs to have a solid construction. The novel managed to do that and a good job in their development as individuals and the relationship.
I ended up going down the rabbit hole along with John and Valentine. Are they healthy as a pair? Absolutely not. Do I loved them together despite everything? Hell yes. Would both be better without the other? Possibly, but the real fact is that neither would survive that.
The only reason this novel isn't a perfect 5 stars for me is that there were some parts from the last chapters that I wanted to be executed in a slower pace. Besides that, the ending was brilliant and exactly what I wanted within the circumstances. It felt satisfying and a well done conclusion to the chaos.
Overall, this was a compelling and thrilling novel that explores themes of obsession, codependency and a forbidden attraction.
Tags: (might miss some of them)
-POV: third person
-Content warnings:
-Elements:
-Sexual act(s):
-Dynamic:
The story is simple but effective. John is a teen that discovers his father is a rich man, so he is brought to his mansion to be part of the family. He meets a kid that is younger than him there, Valentine, who will now be his step brother. From the moment Valentine sees him, he becomes attached to John and both turn out to be get very close as they grow up together. When they go to the same school, things change. Valentine starts behaving in a certain way towards him but John doesn't think it's out of place since he's an alpha. That is, until Valentine begins his advances.
I really liked how eerie things felt from the beginning. From the moment Valentine appeared, I knew there was something else about him. It made the story feel thrilling and I was at the edge of my seat because things just felt wrong. And boy, it really went all downhill.
The novel surprised me more than once because it went beyond that what I expected. I also didn't think Valentine would be my favorite character. He sure isn't a good person, but he's really interesting and exactly the flavor of MLs that I love. Ruthless and dangerous. John was great as MC too, most of the decisions he took were reasonable and he felt real - especially given everything he went through. I also liked that he was resilient and tried his best to get up back on his feet despite what life threw at him.
The evolution of the dynamic was another great thing. It stayed consistently fascinating through the entire novel, even more so considering the MCs are step brothers. There is a lot of guilt and shame involved, which made sense given that John wasn't prepared for such type of affection coming from Valentine. What's more heartbreaking is that there is a line near the end where John admits to his feelings and how things would've gone differently if Valentine had acted at a different pace. The 'forbidden' theme stayed as a central part of the story, it's another thing that I loved because it represented an actual obstacle and threat.
Speaking about obstacles, I wanted to mention that there was a side character I really liked and could even be considered a 'second ML' (although maybe not given how consistent the main pairing was). I loved that this person added drama to the story. He and John definitely had good chemistry and I was very into the idea of them as a possible couple. He served as a mirror to display what Valentine wasn't.
Valentine's journey as a character was amazing. I cannot say he's redeemable because the things he did just aren't forgivable, but considering this is fiction I could definitely see his growth and even felt that his groveling/chasing is a perfect example of how to do these tropes. I don't always want a terrible character to be redeemed, I like some awful ones as they are. I don't really care about them being likeable or not neither. All I want in a book is for the MCs to have a solid construction. The novel managed to do that and a good job in their development as individuals and the relationship.
I ended up going down the rabbit hole along with John and Valentine. Are they healthy as a pair? Absolutely not. Do I loved them together despite everything? Hell yes. Would both be better without the other? Possibly, but the real fact is that neither would survive that.
The only reason this novel isn't a perfect 5 stars for me is that there were some parts from the last chapters that I wanted to be executed in a slower pace. Besides that, the ending was brilliant and exactly what I wanted within the circumstances. It felt satisfying and a well done conclusion to the chaos.
Overall, this was a compelling and thrilling novel that explores themes of obsession, codependency and a forbidden attraction.
Tags: (might miss some of them)
-POV: third person
-Content warnings:
-Elements:
-Sexual act(s):
-Dynamic:
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews