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Nutcracker: A Briarwood Sanitorium Novella
They called her the nutcracker.
Go on, get your laughs in. I sure did the first time I heard it. But that was her nickname. The quack with the pretty eyes and the distant stare. And they weren’t wrong.
Dr. Olivia Winters went around cracking all us nuts. In some form or another. Figuring out what made us tick or breaking us so hard it didn’t matter anymore.
Not today, though. Today she was the one who was under the microscope, and I was the guy sitting across from her, just waiting to see which one of us would crack first.
Nutcracker is a dark standalone novella and a spin-off of The Renegades Series. Please heed the trigger warnings at the beginning of every book.
Go on, get your laughs in. I sure did the first time I heard it. But that was her nickname. The quack with the pretty eyes and the distant stare. And they weren’t wrong.
Dr. Olivia Winters went around cracking all us nuts. In some form or another. Figuring out what made us tick or breaking us so hard it didn’t matter anymore.
Not today, though. Today she was the one who was under the microscope, and I was the guy sitting across from her, just waiting to see which one of us would crack first.
Nutcracker is a dark standalone novella and a spin-off of The Renegades Series. Please heed the trigger warnings at the beginning of every book.
212 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 7, 2026
About the author
Sybil Knight
31 books631 followersSybil is a career-driven Philadelphian native. A crime show enthusiast by day, and a BDSM club hopper by night. When she isn't working or writing, she is talking about working and writing. She is a single mom to her beta fish (Fish) and way too many dead houseplants.
Her stories range from gray to black, with darker themes throughout. She prefers heroines with a kick-ass mentality and the heroes who know how to rein them in. The mental and medical aspects of her books are well-researched, though they are given a humanistic approach and diagnoses aren't the focal points. She believes her characters don't need to wear labels in order to get her messages across.
Her books are mostly standalones, though her characters may interact and intersect worlds. Additionally, she works closely with and writes alongside author Dahlia Reign and some characters will appear in cameos in each of their publications.
Her stories range from gray to black, with darker themes throughout. She prefers heroines with a kick-ass mentality and the heroes who know how to rein them in. The mental and medical aspects of her books are well-researched, though they are given a humanistic approach and diagnoses aren't the focal points. She believes her characters don't need to wear labels in order to get her messages across.
Her books are mostly standalones, though her characters may interact and intersect worlds. Additionally, she works closely with and writes alongside author Dahlia Reign and some characters will appear in cameos in each of their publications.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 164 reviews
November 9, 2026
This was exactly what I wanted from this one. If you’ve read any of the authors books in this series you’ll know what to expect…and this one did NOT DISAPPOINT!
Sybil gave me everything I wanted. Every twist and demented thought.
And the ending….what have you done 😳🤯😱
Sybil gave me everything I wanted. Every twist and demented thought.
And the ending….what have you done 😳🤯😱
Review of advance copy received from Author
ARC review
“Made ya wonder which one of us had a higher body count, didn’t it?”
The story follows Cole, a convicted murderer who is transferred from prison to Briarwood Sanitorium. There he becomes the patient of Dr. Olivia Winters, a psychiatrist who seems to have her own unusual methods of treating the people in her care. As Cole undergoes treatment, strange things begin to happen. He experiences disturbing visions and encounters that leave him questioning his surroundings, the people around him and even his own mind. The more time he spends at Briarwood, the harder it becomes to separate reality from delusion.
This was definitely not what I expected going in! Despite being labeled a dark romance, I would describe Nutcracker much more as a medical thriller with horror elements. There is smut, but honestly, I wouldn’t call this a romance. The atmosphere, the disturbing medical practices and the constant question of what is real make this a very different but interesting kind of read.
I found the story genuinely interesting and enjoyed how it kept me guessing. Cole is a fascinating, unpredictable character and I was never quite sure what to believe. Is he actually losing his mind, or is there something much more sinister going on? Even when I reached the end, I was still left wondering whether Cole was crazy or whether there was more to his experiences than anyone wanted him to believe. I really liked that lingering uncertainty.
The medical setting also added a creepy atmosphere and the story had some genuinely unsettling moments.
“Made ya wonder which one of us had a higher body count, didn’t it?”
The story follows Cole, a convicted murderer who is transferred from prison to Briarwood Sanitorium. There he becomes the patient of Dr. Olivia Winters, a psychiatrist who seems to have her own unusual methods of treating the people in her care. As Cole undergoes treatment, strange things begin to happen. He experiences disturbing visions and encounters that leave him questioning his surroundings, the people around him and even his own mind. The more time he spends at Briarwood, the harder it becomes to separate reality from delusion.
This was definitely not what I expected going in! Despite being labeled a dark romance, I would describe Nutcracker much more as a medical thriller with horror elements. There is smut, but honestly, I wouldn’t call this a romance. The atmosphere, the disturbing medical practices and the constant question of what is real make this a very different but interesting kind of read.
I found the story genuinely interesting and enjoyed how it kept me guessing. Cole is a fascinating, unpredictable character and I was never quite sure what to believe. Is he actually losing his mind, or is there something much more sinister going on? Even when I reached the end, I was still left wondering whether Cole was crazy or whether there was more to his experiences than anyone wanted him to believe. I really liked that lingering uncertainty.
The medical setting also added a creepy atmosphere and the story had some genuinely unsettling moments.
November 1, 2026
Cole was a prisoner arrested before he could cross into the Mexico border, but while in prison he studied what he might need to do to convince people he was insane. Before he knows it, he wakes up in Briarwood Sanitorium, at the mercy of a doctor known as “the Nutcracker” who will do whatever it takes to break the patients in her care. Cole is determined to try to break her before she can break him, and the treatments he’s receiving allow him to dominate her, when he isn’t strapped to the table, that is.
Cole knows he’s not really crazy, but the more he’s submitted to Dr Winters’ experiments, the more he begins to wonder, until suddenly he isn’t sure what’s real and what isn’t. But in the end, who will be the first to crack?
I received an early copy of this book from the author and really enjoyed it. As expected, it was completely unhinged, with Dr Winters’ experiments crossing every line into inappropriate, but Cole wasn’t so easily defeated. It becomes clear early on that someone isn’t telling the truth, with the Dr leaving a lot out of her reports, but as the truth is finally revealed, readers will be left with even more questions.
Cole knows he’s not really crazy, but the more he’s submitted to Dr Winters’ experiments, the more he begins to wonder, until suddenly he isn’t sure what’s real and what isn’t. But in the end, who will be the first to crack?
I received an early copy of this book from the author and really enjoyed it. As expected, it was completely unhinged, with Dr Winters’ experiments crossing every line into inappropriate, but Cole wasn’t so easily defeated. It becomes clear early on that someone isn’t telling the truth, with the Dr leaving a lot out of her reports, but as the truth is finally revealed, readers will be left with even more questions.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I am still really unsure what I just read. Like, I don't know what just happened... I enjoyed it, but I am confused. This book is not any sort of romance. It's not even romance adjacent; it's thriller mixed with psychedelic horror. The story follows a man who was incarcerated for numerous crimes and thinks he will have a nicer time in a psychiatric facility rather than prison. However, for some reason, the asylum in question seems to have allowed Harley Quinn to practice medicine again, and she is top dog here.
The spice in this book is more of a plot device, twisting into the fabric of Cole's mind, slowly pulling him over the edge. This book is a crazy, twisted look into what happens when the inmates are allowed to take over. Dr Winters looked at Dr Mengele and thought, " Hold my beer". This story will have you asking all kinds of questions. It will give you no answers, but you will enjoy the journey.
The spice in this book is more of a plot device, twisting into the fabric of Cole's mind, slowly pulling him over the edge. This book is a crazy, twisted look into what happens when the inmates are allowed to take over. Dr Winters looked at Dr Mengele and thought, " Hold my beer". This story will have you asking all kinds of questions. It will give you no answers, but you will enjoy the journey.
November 8, 2026
Sybil really knows how to take something twisted and make it impossible to look away!
I loved the dark, unsettling atmosphere surrounding Briarwood and the psychological tension at the hear of this story. Dr. Olivia Winters is such an intriguing character, especially with the way the tables turn and she's suddenly the one being examined. There's something about two complicated people trying to get inside each other's heads that makes this so addictive.
What stands out to me is the idea of figuring out who will break first. It's messy, twisted, and definitely not your typical romance. I love when a dark romance makes you question the characters' motives and keeps you wondering who's really in control.
If you enjoy morally questionable characters, psychological mind games, and dark romances, this is one to check out!
Please remember to check your TW before reading this book!!!!
I loved the dark, unsettling atmosphere surrounding Briarwood and the psychological tension at the hear of this story. Dr. Olivia Winters is such an intriguing character, especially with the way the tables turn and she's suddenly the one being examined. There's something about two complicated people trying to get inside each other's heads that makes this so addictive.
What stands out to me is the idea of figuring out who will break first. It's messy, twisted, and definitely not your typical romance. I love when a dark romance makes you question the characters' motives and keeps you wondering who's really in control.
If you enjoy morally questionable characters, psychological mind games, and dark romances, this is one to check out!
Please remember to check your TW before reading this book!!!!
November 9, 2026
They call Dr. Olivia Winters the Nutcracker because she has a talent for getting inside her patients’ heads and figuring out exactly what makes them tick—or cracking them completely in the process. That alone was enough to get my attention. Give me a questionable doctor, a sanatorium, psychological mind games, and absolutely NO idea who I should trust, and I’m happily walking straight into Briarwood.
Olivia was fascinating because she is accustomed to being the one in control. She observes, analyzes, and pulls people apart piece by piece. But this time, the roles are reversed. Suddenly SHE is the one under the microscope, and watching that power dynamic shift made everything feel wonderfully tense and unpredictable.
What I really enjoyed was never feeling completely certain about anyone. Everybody feels at least a little suspicious, motives are questionable at best, and every time you think you’ve figured out what is happening, another little piece makes you reconsider everything. Apparently Briarwood’s admission paperwork should simply read: Trust no one. Especially the doctors. For real though!
For a novella, Nutcracker packs a surprising amount of psychological darkness into its pages. There’s manipulation, trauma, obsession, morally questionable behavior, and a dark romance simmering underneath all the mind games. Definitely check the trigger warnings before admitting yourself to this particular sanatorium.
Nutcracker was dark, twisted, clever, and deliciously unhinged. Sybil Knight took the idea of figuring out what makes someone “crack” and turned it into one big psychological game of chicken. The only question is who breaks first—and sweet baby Hekate, I would NOT volunteer to find out. Ok, maybe I would. LOL!
Thanks to Sybil Knight for gifting me an eARC of Nutcracker. I am leaving this review voluntarily. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Olivia was fascinating because she is accustomed to being the one in control. She observes, analyzes, and pulls people apart piece by piece. But this time, the roles are reversed. Suddenly SHE is the one under the microscope, and watching that power dynamic shift made everything feel wonderfully tense and unpredictable.
What I really enjoyed was never feeling completely certain about anyone. Everybody feels at least a little suspicious, motives are questionable at best, and every time you think you’ve figured out what is happening, another little piece makes you reconsider everything. Apparently Briarwood’s admission paperwork should simply read: Trust no one. Especially the doctors. For real though!
For a novella, Nutcracker packs a surprising amount of psychological darkness into its pages. There’s manipulation, trauma, obsession, morally questionable behavior, and a dark romance simmering underneath all the mind games. Definitely check the trigger warnings before admitting yourself to this particular sanatorium.
Nutcracker was dark, twisted, clever, and deliciously unhinged. Sybil Knight took the idea of figuring out what makes someone “crack” and turned it into one big psychological game of chicken. The only question is who breaks first—and sweet baby Hekate, I would NOT volunteer to find out. Ok, maybe I would. LOL!
Thanks to Sybil Knight for gifting me an eARC of Nutcracker. I am leaving this review voluntarily. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
November 8, 2026
This is my first book from this author and you get pulled right in. Cole Morgan is a 25 year old prisoner who was remanded to Rockford heights penitentiary. He was caught on the way to the Mexican border, leaving bodies and carnage along the way. He pulls the old crazy card and gets transferred to Briarwood Asylum.
There he meets Dr Olivia Winters. She's also known as the nutcracker for her penchant in breaking her patients. She's the ultimate detached ice queen doctor overseeing her rather unusual treatment protocol. She's no young naive thing, she's calculating and ruthless in her pursuit of her experimentation and treatment goals. She's developing new medication to deal with the criminally insane.
Their interactions are charged and full of tension. Each one trying to manipulate the scenario. The dual POV gives you insight into them both and you end up not quite sure who's the darker one. Treatment is hands on😉, the medication has a certain sterile side effect and that must be thoroughly veted.
Reality is out the window and this twisty tale will have you questioning everything. Obviously, I finished this in one short setting. I couldn't wait to see who would win. I will be going back and reading more from this author.
Tropes and Triggers: angsty, banter, captor vs captive, doctor, dual POV, epistolary/ journal entry, forced proximity, good boy, ice queen,praise kink, reverse age gap, tension, unreliable narrator
I was given an advanced copy and this is my honest review.
There he meets Dr Olivia Winters. She's also known as the nutcracker for her penchant in breaking her patients. She's the ultimate detached ice queen doctor overseeing her rather unusual treatment protocol. She's no young naive thing, she's calculating and ruthless in her pursuit of her experimentation and treatment goals. She's developing new medication to deal with the criminally insane.
Their interactions are charged and full of tension. Each one trying to manipulate the scenario. The dual POV gives you insight into them both and you end up not quite sure who's the darker one. Treatment is hands on😉, the medication has a certain sterile side effect and that must be thoroughly veted.
Reality is out the window and this twisty tale will have you questioning everything. Obviously, I finished this in one short setting. I couldn't wait to see who would win. I will be going back and reading more from this author.
Tropes and Triggers: angsty, banter, captor vs captive, doctor, dual POV, epistolary/ journal entry, forced proximity, good boy, ice queen,praise kink, reverse age gap, tension, unreliable narrator
I was given an advanced copy and this is my honest review.
Review of advance copy received from Author
What an absolute head trip!
Cerebral, thrilling, deliciously dark, and utterly unsettling, Nutcracker is a standalone novella set within the interconnected Briarwood universe that will have you questioning EVERYTHING.
What's real? What's fabricated? What's a hallucination? What are you even supposed to believe? The lines between reality and delusion are so beautifully blurred that you're never quite sure where you stand. And somehow, it all works brilliantly.
Our MMC is a walking red flag who will have you questioning your own moral compass, yet somehow you can't help but root for him as he navigates the horrors of Briarwood and the complexities of Dr. Olivia Winters.
And Dr. Winters? Intellectual, cunning, calculated, and completely fucked up. What a fascinatingly diabolical character!
Briarwood itself is a nightmare. Grotesque, frightening, and vividly atmospheric, the sanitarium feels like a character all its own.
Sybil Knight has crafted a twisted little psychological nightmare that challenges your perceptions, plays with your sanity, and leaves you questioning everything you thought you understood.
I finished this novella completely dumbfounded, in the absolute best way possible.
Dark, deranged, and brilliantly unsettling.
Cerebral, thrilling, deliciously dark, and utterly unsettling, Nutcracker is a standalone novella set within the interconnected Briarwood universe that will have you questioning EVERYTHING.
What's real? What's fabricated? What's a hallucination? What are you even supposed to believe? The lines between reality and delusion are so beautifully blurred that you're never quite sure where you stand. And somehow, it all works brilliantly.
Our MMC is a walking red flag who will have you questioning your own moral compass, yet somehow you can't help but root for him as he navigates the horrors of Briarwood and the complexities of Dr. Olivia Winters.
And Dr. Winters? Intellectual, cunning, calculated, and completely fucked up. What a fascinatingly diabolical character!
Briarwood itself is a nightmare. Grotesque, frightening, and vividly atmospheric, the sanitarium feels like a character all its own.
Sybil Knight has crafted a twisted little psychological nightmare that challenges your perceptions, plays with your sanity, and leaves you questioning everything you thought you understood.
I finished this novella completely dumbfounded, in the absolute best way possible.
Dark, deranged, and brilliantly unsettling.
November 7, 2026
Nutcracker was the kind of novella that burrowed under my skin and refused to let go. Every chapter had me questioning what was real, what wasn't, and whether I had any grasp on reality at all inside the walls of Briarwood. The MMC has very few, if any, redeeming qualities, yet somehow I still found myself feeling sorry for him. And honestly? The FMC felt like she should have been a patient there too.
Dark, unsettling, and wonderfully warped, this story kept me awake far later than intended because I needed to know where it was going. Short, sharp, and deliciously twisted, Nutcracker is definately a mind bender. I would say it is more a medical thriller/horror with a sprinkling of smut rather than a dark romance.
Thank you to the author for the ARC. My review is left willingliy, and represents my own views.
Dark, unsettling, and wonderfully warped, this story kept me awake far later than intended because I needed to know where it was going. Short, sharp, and deliciously twisted, Nutcracker is definately a mind bender. I would say it is more a medical thriller/horror with a sprinkling of smut rather than a dark romance.
Thank you to the author for the ARC. My review is left willingliy, and represents my own views.
Review of advance copy received from Author
Another Sybil Knight book, once again, she just gets it so right! I honestly don't think I'll ever get tired of the wonderfully dysfunctional characters this woman creates.
This is a patient x psychiatrist, reverse age gap, MF dark romance novella set in an asylum. Dr Winters and Cole’s story is dark, deliciously unhinged, oh so spicy, sprinkled with those perfectly timed humorous moments I’ve come to love so much about Sybil’s writing.
Although this is an interconnected standalone, I can highly recommend reading Skin, Lamb & Bells from The Renegade series first. Trust me, getting to know these beautifully broken, perfectly distributed characters makes the experience even better.
Sybil, you write it, I’ll read it. No questions asked.
#ifyouwriteitiwillreadit
This is a patient x psychiatrist, reverse age gap, MF dark romance novella set in an asylum. Dr Winters and Cole’s story is dark, deliciously unhinged, oh so spicy, sprinkled with those perfectly timed humorous moments I’ve come to love so much about Sybil’s writing.
Although this is an interconnected standalone, I can highly recommend reading Skin, Lamb & Bells from The Renegade series first. Trust me, getting to know these beautifully broken, perfectly distributed characters makes the experience even better.
Sybil, you write it, I’ll read it. No questions asked.
#ifyouwriteitiwillreadit
Review of advance copy received from Author
Another unhinged read from a comfort author. I’m not sure many people would describe Sybil Knight that way, since her writing can be triggering for some readers, but it’s always a wild ride whenever I get to read something new from her.
We have the same lovable but mentally unstable characters, a crazy-as-hell institution, and a side order of prescribed psych meds that never seem to do what they say on the bottle.
The spice is always done right, and this novella was the perfect little top-up to a series I can’t wait to read more of.
I don’t want to say too much and give anything away, but if you love the Renegades series, this one is a must-read.
If you haven’t started the series but enjoy darker reads, check the trigger warnings first—especially if you’re new to the genre. Otherwise, this is definitely a series to add to your TBR!
We have the same lovable but mentally unstable characters, a crazy-as-hell institution, and a side order of prescribed psych meds that never seem to do what they say on the bottle.
The spice is always done right, and this novella was the perfect little top-up to a series I can’t wait to read more of.
I don’t want to say too much and give anything away, but if you love the Renegades series, this one is a must-read.
If you haven’t started the series but enjoy darker reads, check the trigger warnings first—especially if you’re new to the genre. Otherwise, this is definitely a series to add to your TBR!
November 8, 2026
Briarwood makes everyone a bit crazy
What the.... Buckle up buttercup. If you have read any if the Briarwood books you know the ride is always wild and never what you expect it to be.
Dr. Winters is twisted woman who is referred to as the nutcracker. Cole or patient 857 discovers very quickly that nothing at Briarwood is how it appears and your memories can't be trusted.
This is dark, twisted, spicy and will leave you wondering if events are real or hallucinations.
This book is all psychological and will have you questioning every interaction just like Cole does.
Will you come out of Briarwood or will you be the next patient?
What the.... Buckle up buttercup. If you have read any if the Briarwood books you know the ride is always wild and never what you expect it to be.
Dr. Winters is twisted woman who is referred to as the nutcracker. Cole or patient 857 discovers very quickly that nothing at Briarwood is how it appears and your memories can't be trusted.
This is dark, twisted, spicy and will leave you wondering if events are real or hallucinations.
This book is all psychological and will have you questioning every interaction just like Cole does.
Will you come out of Briarwood or will you be the next patient?
November 5, 2026
What a wild mental ride! Dr. Winters is absolutely the one to send you on a head trip! But don’t be fooled- Cole or Patient 857 can do that on his own too! You don’t know what to believe. Is dark, it’s twisted, it’s spicy, sexy, and just completely insane. I loved it! It definitely takes you on a wild ride. What you believe is right, could be left- and what’s left could be upside down. Insanity in the absolute most delicious of ways. “Gotta be careful, locking yourself in a room with a dangerous criminal, never know what he’s capable of.” - like YESSSSS🔥🔥
Review of advance copy received from Author
God, I must be broken because I can never get enough of the Briarwood Sanitarium universe - they’re always the perfect balance of completely unhinged & spicy.
Personally, I loveee an unreliable narrator and boy this one left me asking more questions by the minute! Sybil Knight is my favorite author for absolute mind-fuck stories! Good news all is cleared up at the end, but it was such a fun ride getting there.
M/F
Psych patient x Psychiatrist
Unreliable narrator
Spicy moments
Morally black character(s?)
Interconnected world that can ABSOLUTELY be enjoyed as a standalone
Personally, I loveee an unreliable narrator and boy this one left me asking more questions by the minute! Sybil Knight is my favorite author for absolute mind-fuck stories! Good news all is cleared up at the end, but it was such a fun ride getting there.
M/F
Psych patient x Psychiatrist
Unreliable narrator
Spicy moments
Morally black character(s?)
Interconnected world that can ABSOLUTELY be enjoyed as a standalone
November 6, 2026
This is my second book by this author the first one hurt my heart and left me emotionally drained this one I’m scratching my head going huh? LOL this was such a quick read but also makes your mind wonder what was true what happened and why LOL
The doctor she seems like she’s maybe off her meds LOL poor Cole went through so much but I’m pretty sure he liked 80% of it LOL if you really think about what happened you’re wondering what she did to make him go looney LOL
The doctor she seems like she’s maybe off her meds LOL poor Cole went through so much but I’m pretty sure he liked 80% of it LOL if you really think about what happened you’re wondering what she did to make him go looney LOL
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 3, 2026
FOR REAL WHAT DID I JUST READ?!?! 🤯🤷♀️ Sybil Knight. How dare you shatter my brain with this ARC read? Being so for real, this is an insane read.
What’s the status of Jimmy?
Did Cole actually escape?
Are Cole (Patient #857) & Dr. Winters still testing meds?
Dr. Winters - WHO ARE YOU?!?
A true fuck around and find out type storyline and I’m here for it.
What’s the status of Jimmy?
Did Cole actually escape?
Are Cole (Patient #857) & Dr. Winters still testing meds?
Dr. Winters - WHO ARE YOU?!?
A true fuck around and find out type storyline and I’m here for it.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Author
I genuinely cannot get enough of Sybil's writing and the Briarwood universe. Every single book Sybil has written has EATEN and this one is no different. This story is dark and depraved and honestly pushes some boundaries which only fueled me to finish it quicker. One of the last things said by our FMC left me speechless and I'm still thinking about it.
November 9, 2026
ARC REVIEW
This was a wild and interesting ride lol I was so hooked. I read this in one sitting. I loved that I couldn’t predict what was going to happen.
Cole is an inmate serving life and is sent to Briarwood Sanitorium. Dr. Olivia Winters is the attending physician who is in control of Cole’s care. Cole is given a daily dosage of drugs and Dr. Winters monitors his progress through a series of interviews. Things heat up between the two of them quickly….. or is that part of the drugs?
This was a wild and interesting ride lol I was so hooked. I read this in one sitting. I loved that I couldn’t predict what was going to happen.
Cole is an inmate serving life and is sent to Briarwood Sanitorium. Dr. Olivia Winters is the attending physician who is in control of Cole’s care. Cole is given a daily dosage of drugs and Dr. Winters monitors his progress through a series of interviews. Things heat up between the two of them quickly….. or is that part of the drugs?
November 1, 2026
If you’ve read the previous books in the Briarwood Sanitorium series, you know this one is going to make your brain go WTF did I just read 🤭 AND if you haven’t where the heck have you been??
Sybil has the uncanny knack of drawing you into her characters world, as f^*keD up as it may be you just have to keep reading. She then throws a proverbial ‘ratchet’ into the mix and you find yourself re-working what you’ve just read. I loved reading the narrative from Cole’s POV, and Doctor Winters records listed like a diagnosis sheet whilst not giving the reader too much to feast upon. To summarise; I may be as crazy as the characters because I didn’t want this story to end and kudos to Sybil for ensuring my brain is 🤯 Also, a nod to the gift he made her and how…see now you’re intrigued!
Spicy spice | Forced drugging | Graphic Injuries | Medical Gore, Torture and Experimentation | Non Con/Dub Con/CNC | Reverse Age Gap | “Good Boy” kink …..
Sybil has the uncanny knack of drawing you into her characters world, as f^*keD up as it may be you just have to keep reading. She then throws a proverbial ‘ratchet’ into the mix and you find yourself re-working what you’ve just read. I loved reading the narrative from Cole’s POV, and Doctor Winters records listed like a diagnosis sheet whilst not giving the reader too much to feast upon. To summarise; I may be as crazy as the characters because I didn’t want this story to end and kudos to Sybil for ensuring my brain is 🤯 Also, a nod to the gift he made her and how…see now you’re intrigued!
Spicy spice | Forced drugging | Graphic Injuries | Medical Gore, Torture and Experimentation | Non Con/Dub Con/CNC | Reverse Age Gap | “Good Boy” kink …..
Review of advance copy received from Author
Oh my God SYBIL!!!!!!! You had me going for awhile and it was spicy! Then you dropped a HUGE bomb....who said you could do that?! Lol I am absolutely lost and need more! This whole world has me spinning
November 8, 2026
This one messed with my head a little. Every time I thought I had it semi sussed it change directions.
Poor Cole, Dr. Winters really is doing a number on him in more ways than one and I really don't know if its a good or bad thing that as the reader I started questioning if Jimmy was real or not.
Poor Cole, Dr. Winters really is doing a number on him in more ways than one and I really don't know if its a good or bad thing that as the reader I started questioning if Jimmy was real or not.
Review of advance copy received from Author
10 ⭐️ as per usual, ARC READ
review incoming ✨
review incoming ✨
November 6, 2026
CONTENT WARNINGS; Please check your triggers!
Tropes;
•💉𝑫𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝑷𝑶𝑽𝒔
•💊𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒌 𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆
•💉𝑷𝒔𝒚𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒙 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕
•💊𝑪𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒙 𝑪𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒐𝒓
•💉𝑷𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝒚𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒄𝒔
•💊𝑴𝒂𝒅 𝑫𝒐𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓 𝑽𝒊𝒃𝒆𝒔
•💉𝑪𝒖𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 & 𝑼𝒏𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝑭𝑴𝑪
•💊𝑩𝒐𝒏𝒌𝒆𝒓𝒔 & 𝑾𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒚 𝑴𝑴𝑪
•💉𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 & 𝑭𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒚 𝑩𝒍𝒖𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈
•💊𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒌 𝑭𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔
•💉𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒙𝒊𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒚
•💊𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆 𝑨𝒈𝒆 𝑮𝒂𝒑
•💉𝑼𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔
•💊𝑯𝒆'𝒔 𝑯𝒆𝒓 𝑺3𝒙 𝑫𝒐𝒍𝒍
•💉"𝑮𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝑩𝒐𝒚"/"𝑴𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒚"
•💊𝑯𝒆'𝒔 𝒂 𝑹𝒆𝒅 𝑭𝒍𝒂𝒈
•💉𝑺𝒉𝒆'𝒔 𝑨 𝑩𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑹𝒆𝒅 𝑭𝒍𝒂𝒈
•💊𝑪𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒇-𝑯𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 (𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒂)
•💉𝑵𝒐 𝑯𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝑬𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈
Now, I haven't read "The Renegades Series" that this book is a spin-off of, but I've added it to my TBR. Because this was such a great little novella! I'm in.
𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙽𝚞𝚝𝚌𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚛.
𝚂𝚑𝚎’𝚜 𝚊 𝚋𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚏𝚕𝚊𝚐 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚐𝚎𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚏𝚏 𝚘𝚗 𝚙𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚢, 𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚜 𝚑𝚒𝚖 𝚊𝚜 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝚝𝚘𝚢. 𝚄𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚜𝚔 𝚜𝚑𝚎’𝚜...
𝚄𝙽𝙷𝙸𝙽𝙶𝙴𝙳.
Olivia is our doctor, FMC, and known as "The Nutcracker/Quack" by everyone else in Briarwood Sanitorium. She does what she needs to get the desired results even if that means treating our MMC like the s*x doll he is. She's a no-nonsense kind of character that on surface level appears to have no feelings, just a professional facade, but once you get to remove the layers you see how equally messed up, if not more, she actually is. I like her. The scene when her barcode tattoo doesn't apparently exist has me baffled: talk about mind games. And she doesn't take BS from no-one. She's calls the shots, controls the narrative and gets what she wants. As her personality unravels, so do I b-tch, because WHO is this woman? Dr. Winters, aka our unhinged FMC, is bonkers. I need to know how she even gets to this stage. What exactly is her backstory? A fascinating character nonetheless.
•𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒔𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆. 𝑯𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒚 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚.•
𝙷𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚝 #857. 𝚆𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚢 & 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚜𝚊𝚗𝚎.
𝙷𝚎’𝚜 𝚊 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚋𝚘𝚢 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚍𝚘𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚛 𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚗 𝚑𝚒𝚖 𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚟𝚎𝚜 𝚑𝚒𝚖...
𝙳𝙴𝚁𝙰𝙽𝙶𝙴𝙳.
Cole, or patient #857, is our MMC and likes to be chaotic growing up an unstable environment. His character is crazy, twisted in a way that makes you want to know about him more. Sharp-witted, partially sane, and cheeky! The poor guy basically gets used/ab*sed, but... he's quite into it. However, the scene with him talking on the phone with his mother, where he... ahem, losing control? Yeah. I'm not sure if that was even real but I was hella curious about his childhood by then. Cole you psycho! The FMC wasn't helping in the moment but she isn't right in the head either, and we discover he loves some "good boy" praise. Other than that "the f-ck" moment, his personality is at times, dare I say... endearing when he shows strong concern for Jimmy's welfare. Because same. Anyways he wasn't crazy first but I think he is now.
•“𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 #857. 𝑰 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒐. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒊𝒕 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏.”
“𝑵𝒐…” 𝑰 𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏. “𝒀𝒐𝒖’𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆 𝒅𝒓*𝒈𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚’𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒎𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒅.”
“𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒍, 𝒂 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉 𝒔𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒚. 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆. 𝑾𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒎𝒆𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓?”
“𝑵𝒐… 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒇*𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒄𝒆𝒍𝒍. 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒔 𝒚’𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒉 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍. 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒅𝒐 𝑰 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒇 𝒏𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅?”
“𝑺𝒊𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏. 𝑵𝒐𝒘.”•
Briarwood, the correctional institute, is in itself such a dark and dismal place. The atmosphere feels very unnerving, cursed and grim. There aren't too many characters in this book, which works very well because it doesn't feel like there's too much happening. The plot moves steady-to-fast pretty quickly and keeps the reader on their toes - I mean, it certainly did me. The ending is something I never expect! It's deranged, absolutely filthy, and dark. Nurse Jensen is a side character, she's just there. What even happened to poor Jimmy?! Even I'm confused! The spice is well written and it flows through the flows good. I wouldn't say there's any romance aspect, but palpable heat within the forced proximity, tension and suspense makes up for it. Along with the incredible debauchery. I loved every second of it, albeit, did take a couple breaks to process some scenes.
If you like an FMC is not a damsel-in-distress and treats the MMC as her personal toy, makes him question his sanity and experiments on him without his knowledge, then this one is for you.
ﾒ૦ﾒ૦💋
Out of Fives;
•💊𝐂𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫:✨✨✨✨✨
•💉𝐁𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬:🦋🦋🦋
•💊𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬:💀💀💀💀💀
•💉𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞:🥀🥀
•💊𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞:🔥🔥🔥🔥
•💉𝐃𝐞𝐛𝐚𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐲:🍿🍿🍿🍿🍿
•💊𝐅𝐚𝐬𝐭-𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧:❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥
•💉𝐓𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧:💋💋💋💋💋
•💊𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞:🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️
•💉𝐀𝐧𝐱𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐲:❤️🩹❤️🩹❤️🩹
•💊𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲:⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️
•💉𝐎𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐅𝐌𝐂:🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷
•💊𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 857/𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐌𝐌𝐂:🩶🩶🩶🩶🩶
•💉𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞:📝📝📝📝📝
•💊𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠:⏳⌛⏳⌛⏳
•💉𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭:🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
•💊𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:🌏🌎🌍🌏🌎
•💉𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐝: 𝐞𝐀𝐑𝐂/𝐞𝐩𝐮𝐛.
•💊𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬: 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞. 𝐏𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬: 169.
•💉𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬: 41 (𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫).
•💊𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤, 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚, 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞.
•💉𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: 7𝐭𝐡 𝐍𝐨𝐯, 2026.
•💊𝐖𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝: 𝐘𝐞𝐬.
•💉𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thank you to Sybil Knight for an advanced copy of this book. I'm leaving a voluntary review.
Tropes;
•💉𝑫𝒖𝒂𝒍 𝑷𝑶𝑽𝒔
•💊𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒌 𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆
•💉𝑷𝒔𝒚𝒄𝒉𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒕 𝒙 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕
•💊𝑪𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒙 𝑪𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒐𝒓
•💉𝑷𝒐𝒘𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝒚𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒄𝒔
•💊𝑴𝒂𝒅 𝑫𝒐𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓 𝑽𝒊𝒃𝒆𝒔
•💉𝑪𝒖𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 & 𝑼𝒏𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝑭𝑴𝑪
•💊𝑩𝒐𝒏𝒌𝒆𝒓𝒔 & 𝑾𝒊𝒕𝒕𝒚 𝑴𝑴𝑪
•💉𝑹𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚 & 𝑭𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒚 𝑩𝒍𝒖𝒓𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈
•💊𝑾𝒉𝒆𝒏 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒔𝒌 𝑭𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒔
•💉𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒄𝒆𝒅 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒙𝒊𝒎𝒊𝒕𝒚
•💊𝑹𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆 𝑨𝒈𝒆 𝑮𝒂𝒑
•💉𝑼𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝑭𝒐𝒓 𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒔
•💊𝑯𝒆'𝒔 𝑯𝒆𝒓 𝑺3𝒙 𝑫𝒐𝒍𝒍
•💉"𝑮𝒐𝒐𝒅 𝑩𝒐𝒚"/"𝑴𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒚"
•💊𝑯𝒆'𝒔 𝒂 𝑹𝒆𝒅 𝑭𝒍𝒂𝒈
•💉𝑺𝒉𝒆'𝒔 𝑨 𝑩𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑹𝒆𝒅 𝑭𝒍𝒂𝒈
•💊𝑪𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒇-𝑯𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 (𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒂)
•💉𝑵𝒐 𝑯𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝑬𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈
Now, I haven't read "The Renegades Series" that this book is a spin-off of, but I've added it to my TBR. Because this was such a great little novella! I'm in.
𝚃𝚑𝚎𝚢 𝚌𝚊𝚕𝚕 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝙽𝚞𝚝𝚌𝚛𝚊𝚌𝚔𝚎𝚛.
𝚂𝚑𝚎’𝚜 𝚊 𝚋𝚞𝚛𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚛𝚎𝚍 𝚏𝚕𝚊𝚐 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚐𝚎𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚏𝚏 𝚘𝚗 𝚙𝚘𝚠𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚕𝚊𝚢, 𝚞𝚜𝚎𝚜 𝚑𝚒𝚖 𝚊𝚜 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗𝚊𝚕 𝚝𝚘𝚢. 𝚄𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚊𝚜𝚔 𝚜𝚑𝚎’𝚜...
𝚄𝙽𝙷𝙸𝙽𝙶𝙴𝙳.
Olivia is our doctor, FMC, and known as "The Nutcracker/Quack" by everyone else in Briarwood Sanitorium. She does what she needs to get the desired results even if that means treating our MMC like the s*x doll he is. She's a no-nonsense kind of character that on surface level appears to have no feelings, just a professional facade, but once you get to remove the layers you see how equally messed up, if not more, she actually is. I like her. The scene when her barcode tattoo doesn't apparently exist has me baffled: talk about mind games. And she doesn't take BS from no-one. She's calls the shots, controls the narrative and gets what she wants. As her personality unravels, so do I b-tch, because WHO is this woman? Dr. Winters, aka our unhinged FMC, is bonkers. I need to know how she even gets to this stage. What exactly is her backstory? A fascinating character nonetheless.
•𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒆𝒙𝒕𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒍𝒚 𝒔𝒖𝒈𝒈𝒆𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒃𝒍𝒆. 𝑯𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒖𝒏𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒊𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒂𝒕𝒆 𝒇𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒂𝒔𝒚 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒚.•
𝙷𝚎 𝚒𝚜 𝚙𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚎𝚗𝚝 #857. 𝚆𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚢 & 𝚙𝚊𝚛𝚝𝚒𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚜𝚊𝚗𝚎.
𝙷𝚎’𝚜 𝚊 𝚐𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚋𝚘𝚢 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚍𝚘𝚌𝚝𝚘𝚛 𝚎𝚡𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚒𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜 𝚘𝚗 𝚑𝚒𝚖 𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚎𝚜𝚜𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚟𝚎𝚜 𝚑𝚒𝚖...
𝙳𝙴𝚁𝙰𝙽𝙶𝙴𝙳.
Cole, or patient #857, is our MMC and likes to be chaotic growing up an unstable environment. His character is crazy, twisted in a way that makes you want to know about him more. Sharp-witted, partially sane, and cheeky! The poor guy basically gets used/ab*sed, but... he's quite into it. However, the scene with him talking on the phone with his mother, where he... ahem, losing control? Yeah. I'm not sure if that was even real but I was hella curious about his childhood by then. Cole you psycho! The FMC wasn't helping in the moment but she isn't right in the head either, and we discover he loves some "good boy" praise. Other than that "the f-ck" moment, his personality is at times, dare I say... endearing when he shows strong concern for Jimmy's welfare. Because same. Anyways he wasn't crazy first but I think he is now.
•“𝑰 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒆𝒍𝒑 𝒚𝒐𝒖, 𝑷𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒕 #857. 𝑰 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒍𝒚 𝒅𝒐. 𝑩𝒖𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒎𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒐 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕, 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒊𝒕 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏.”
“𝑵𝒐…” 𝑰 𝒑𝒐𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝒂𝒏 𝒂𝒄𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒂𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒚 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒆𝒓 𝒅𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏. “𝒀𝒐𝒖’𝒗𝒆 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒇𝒆𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆 𝒅𝒓*𝒈𝒔. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚’𝒓𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒎𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒅.”
“𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒂 𝒄𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒍 𝒕𝒓𝒊𝒂𝒍, 𝒂 𝒓𝒆𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉 𝒔𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒚. 𝒀𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒊𝒑𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒘𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒅𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒇𝒆𝒓𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆. 𝑾𝒆 𝒅𝒊𝒔𝒄𝒖𝒔𝒔𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒏 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒎𝒆𝒆𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈, 𝒓𝒆𝒎𝒆𝒎𝒃𝒆𝒓?”
“𝑵𝒐… 𝒀𝒐𝒖 𝒇*𝒄𝒌𝒆𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒎𝒚 𝒄𝒆𝒍𝒍. 𝑰 𝒅𝒊𝒅𝒏’𝒕 𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒍 𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒕𝒐𝒍𝒅 𝒎𝒆 𝒊𝒕 𝒘𝒂𝒔 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒔 𝒚’𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒔𝒐𝒓𝒕 𝒐𝒇 𝒎𝒂𝒍𝒆 𝒃𝒊𝒓𝒕𝒉 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍. 𝑯𝒐𝒘 𝒅𝒐 𝑰 𝒌𝒏𝒐𝒘 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒇 𝒏𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒆𝒏𝒆𝒅?”
“𝑺𝒊𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒘𝒏. 𝑵𝒐𝒘.”•
Briarwood, the correctional institute, is in itself such a dark and dismal place. The atmosphere feels very unnerving, cursed and grim. There aren't too many characters in this book, which works very well because it doesn't feel like there's too much happening. The plot moves steady-to-fast pretty quickly and keeps the reader on their toes - I mean, it certainly did me. The ending is something I never expect! It's deranged, absolutely filthy, and dark. Nurse Jensen is a side character, she's just there. What even happened to poor Jimmy?! Even I'm confused! The spice is well written and it flows through the flows good. I wouldn't say there's any romance aspect, but palpable heat within the forced proximity, tension and suspense makes up for it. Along with the incredible debauchery. I loved every second of it, albeit, did take a couple breaks to process some scenes.
If you like an FMC is not a damsel-in-distress and treats the MMC as her personal toy, makes him question his sanity and experiments on him without his knowledge, then this one is for you.
ﾒ૦ﾒ૦💋
Out of Fives;
•💊𝐂𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫:✨✨✨✨✨
•💉𝐁𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐬:🦋🦋🦋
•💊𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬:💀💀💀💀💀
•💉𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞:🥀🥀
•💊𝐒𝐩𝐢𝐜𝐞:🔥🔥🔥🔥
•💉𝐃𝐞𝐛𝐚𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐲:🍿🍿🍿🍿🍿
•💊𝐅𝐚𝐬𝐭-𝐁𝐮𝐫𝐧:❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥❤️🔥
•💉𝐓𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧:💋💋💋💋💋
•💊𝐒𝐮𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐞:🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️🕯️
•💉𝐀𝐧𝐱𝐢𝐞𝐭𝐲:❤️🩹❤️🩹❤️🩹
•💊𝐂𝐡𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐲:⚡️⚡️⚡️⚡️
•💉𝐎𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐚 𝐅𝐌𝐂:🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷
•💊𝐏𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 857/𝐂𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐌𝐌𝐂:🩶🩶🩶🩶🩶
•💉𝐏𝐥𝐨𝐭𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐞:📝📝📝📝📝
•💊𝐏𝐚𝐜𝐢𝐧𝐠:⏳⌛⏳⌛⏳
•💉𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐃𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭:🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
•💊𝐖𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠:🌏🌎🌍🌏🌎
•💉𝐁𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐝: 𝐞𝐀𝐑𝐂/𝐞𝐩𝐮𝐛.
•💊𝐒𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬: 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐞. 𝐏𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬: 169.
•💉𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬: 41 (𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐮𝐬 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫).
•💊𝐆𝐞𝐧𝐫𝐞: 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤, 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐚, 𝐃𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞.
•💉𝐄𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐏𝐮𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: 7𝐭𝐡 𝐍𝐨𝐯, 2026.
•💊𝐖𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈 𝐑𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝: 𝐘𝐞𝐬.
•💉𝐎𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫 𝐑𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Thank you to Sybil Knight for an advanced copy of this book. I'm leaving a voluntary review.
November 6, 2026
My first visit to the Briarwood Institute...
What to expect from this read:
Humiliation K!nk
Patient x Doctor
Reverse Age Gap
Forced Proximity
Thank you to Sybil Knight for allowing me to adv this read!
‼️ SPOILERS AHEAD ‼️
First and foremost..
Please check your triggers folks, if you're not like me who goes balls to the wind without any fear of any triggers, then I suggest you check them out before doing so. If you're in fact much like me and like a little adrenaline in life, get to it. You're gonna love this one!
Nutcracker
By about chapter 30, I was sat reading and questioning everything. It's so well written that you feel as if you're the one wondering all these things that Cole is.
The fact that the author is able to broach certain subjects without fear and it actually being done well, a massive round of applause to SK. Sometimes you read books and it feels like trigger lists have just been written out and then they throw them into the plot with no sense at all. That thankfully is not the case with Nutcracker. It’s all part of the plot and all makes sense.
Thoroughly enjoyed Nutcracker and the writing style, the twists and THAT ending! It was easy to read, a pretty quick novella - could be done in one sitting. I need to go back through the authors collection and read the rest of the standalones available and prepare for future Briarwood releases!
I'm in absolute love with the cover, its definitely a book I want to get as a shelf trophy! Special Edition even maybe? Hint hint SK ;)
Just also taken a looksy on the authors profile and can see there are 3 other novella's after this one so I'll be patiently waiting for those to release!
Favourite Quote?
Solid ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating from me, plot kept me intrigued and I’d say a splash of spice so about 🌶️🌶️ which is absolutely fine, sometimes we don't need everything to be about the spice!
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This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 7, 2026
**Review of an advance copy received from the author.**
Briarwood Sanitorium... definitely not your typical place to go looking for a little mental health treatment.
Cole is transferred from prison to Briarwood, where he becomes the patient of Dr. Olivia Winters. What seems like an opportunity for a fresh start quickly takes a much darker turn. As Cole undergoes treatment, strange things begin happening, and the longer he stays at Briarwood, the more difficult it becomes to distinguish what's actually happening from what might be happening inside his own mind.
One thing I particularly enjoyed was the way the story slowly builds its tension and unsettling atmosphere. Between the strange encounters, questionable interactions, and little details sprinkled throughout, I found myself constantly trying to connect the dots and figure out what was really going on. But as the story progresses, things take an even darker turn. By the time I reached the end, I was left questioning just about everything. The lines between reality, illusion, and delusion become so blurred that you're left wondering what was real, what wasn't, and whether you could trust anything you thought you knew.
Now, let's talk about the characters. Cole is certainly not winning any awards for being a walking green flag. He's dark, dangerous, and morally questionable, but somehow I still found myself invested in his character and rooting for him despite knowing he's far from innocent.
And then there's Dr. Olivia Winters. This woman is a whole different level of disturbing. Intelligent, composed, calculating, and seemingly always one step ahead. I found her character incredibly fascinating, especially as you begin questioning just how much control she really has over the people around her. There's something particularly intriguing about a character who can make you question their intentions at every turn.
Coming from a social work background, I found the dynamics between Cole and Dr. Winters especially interesting. The relationship between a mental health professional and their patient should be grounded in trust, safety, ethical boundaries, and respect. Briarwood presents a much darker side of that dynamic, exploring what happens when professional authority and the vulnerability of patients become part of something much more sinister. Needless to say, my social work brain was working overtime!
And can we talk about Briarwood itself? The setting deserves just as much attention as the characters. It's grotesque, eerie, and deeply unsettling. I loved how the author created an atmosphere that made the sanitarium feel like more than just the backdrop of the story. It almost felt like Briarwood had a personality of its own, with secrets lurking behind every corner.
Briarwood Sanitorium... definitely not your typical place to go looking for a little mental health treatment.
Cole is transferred from prison to Briarwood, where he becomes the patient of Dr. Olivia Winters. What seems like an opportunity for a fresh start quickly takes a much darker turn. As Cole undergoes treatment, strange things begin happening, and the longer he stays at Briarwood, the more difficult it becomes to distinguish what's actually happening from what might be happening inside his own mind.
One thing I particularly enjoyed was the way the story slowly builds its tension and unsettling atmosphere. Between the strange encounters, questionable interactions, and little details sprinkled throughout, I found myself constantly trying to connect the dots and figure out what was really going on. But as the story progresses, things take an even darker turn. By the time I reached the end, I was left questioning just about everything. The lines between reality, illusion, and delusion become so blurred that you're left wondering what was real, what wasn't, and whether you could trust anything you thought you knew.
Now, let's talk about the characters. Cole is certainly not winning any awards for being a walking green flag. He's dark, dangerous, and morally questionable, but somehow I still found myself invested in his character and rooting for him despite knowing he's far from innocent.
And then there's Dr. Olivia Winters. This woman is a whole different level of disturbing. Intelligent, composed, calculating, and seemingly always one step ahead. I found her character incredibly fascinating, especially as you begin questioning just how much control she really has over the people around her. There's something particularly intriguing about a character who can make you question their intentions at every turn.
Coming from a social work background, I found the dynamics between Cole and Dr. Winters especially interesting. The relationship between a mental health professional and their patient should be grounded in trust, safety, ethical boundaries, and respect. Briarwood presents a much darker side of that dynamic, exploring what happens when professional authority and the vulnerability of patients become part of something much more sinister. Needless to say, my social work brain was working overtime!
And can we talk about Briarwood itself? The setting deserves just as much attention as the characters. It's grotesque, eerie, and deeply unsettling. I loved how the author created an atmosphere that made the sanitarium feel like more than just the backdrop of the story. It almost felt like Briarwood had a personality of its own, with secrets lurking behind every corner.
November 6, 2026
ARC Review:
If you are looking for a deeply unsettling psychological thriller to mess with your brain, Sybil just delivered it in some grand fashion.
This book was a masterclass in pitch-black psychological horror. Cole Morgan thought he found the perfect loophole to avoid prison time and score some drugs until the plans go wrong.
He falls into the paws of Doctor Olivia Winters, the Nutracracker, and begins a terrifying game of cat and mouse. Cole becomes Doctor Winter's lab rat in a series of extreme, highly unethical experiments.
Cole Morgan really thought he was clever, but in front of the absolutely ruthless and sadistic Doctor Winter, that was a big mistake.
Sybil has done a phenomenal job in portraying the descent of Cole into insanity. The guy ended up talking to a rabbit and making a friend in the nuthouse.
This book will make you question your own sanity until you are no longer sure what is real and what is hallucination. You probably will need to see a psychiatrist yourself if you can trust any after reading the book.
The twist at the end showed how a simple mistake, a simple slip, can shatter a grand plan.
If you find highly questionable spice delicious and trigger-warning a menu, this is definitely for you.
Thanks to Sybil for the opportunity to review this.
Tropes in the Book
• overall sexually explicit and violent content. • degradation and humiliation • inappropriate doctor/patient relations • overall sexually explicit and violent content • Good Boy kink • voyerism • mental health rep
---
Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ .5
Spice: 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️
If you are looking for a deeply unsettling psychological thriller to mess with your brain, Sybil just delivered it in some grand fashion.
This book was a masterclass in pitch-black psychological horror. Cole Morgan thought he found the perfect loophole to avoid prison time and score some drugs until the plans go wrong.
He falls into the paws of Doctor Olivia Winters, the Nutracracker, and begins a terrifying game of cat and mouse. Cole becomes Doctor Winter's lab rat in a series of extreme, highly unethical experiments.
Cole Morgan really thought he was clever, but in front of the absolutely ruthless and sadistic Doctor Winter, that was a big mistake.
Sybil has done a phenomenal job in portraying the descent of Cole into insanity. The guy ended up talking to a rabbit and making a friend in the nuthouse.
This book will make you question your own sanity until you are no longer sure what is real and what is hallucination. You probably will need to see a psychiatrist yourself if you can trust any after reading the book.
The twist at the end showed how a simple mistake, a simple slip, can shatter a grand plan.
If you find highly questionable spice delicious and trigger-warning a menu, this is definitely for you.
Thanks to Sybil for the opportunity to review this.
Tropes in the Book
• overall sexually explicit and violent content. • degradation and humiliation • inappropriate doctor/patient relations • overall sexually explicit and violent content • Good Boy kink • voyerism • mental health rep
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Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐ .5
Spice: 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️ 🌶️
Review of advance copy received from Author
This was so fucked up. 😅 I think my eyeballs were popping out of my head with that ending...confused AF for a little bit but then slowly giving into the delusions and chaos alongside Cole, apparently. 🤣🫠
Every time I step into Briarwood Sanitarium, I know I'm in for a ride. And even though this was novella length, it's so easy to immerse yourself in the madness. You honestly don't have to read anything before this book. I mean, it's cool if you do but if you just want to sample the author's writing... you'll quickly come to see why she's one of my favorite authors.
So our MMC, Cole, is an unreliable narrator...and for good reason. He's a criminal, self professed SK and claims to have worked his way into the classification of mentally ill patient in order to stay out of a jail cell. But, dare I say, he's met his match in Dr Winters.
I sware, trying to peel the layers off of Cole had me feeling like I was the crazy one. 😂😭 I found myself saying "do I believe him? Is he REALLY seeing this shit?!" 👀 Now I truly understand the depths of psychosis. Trust me when I say, you'll be wrong in your assumptions but that's all I'll say.
I kinda feel filthy for the way I let Cole get under my skin. I kinda...really... like it though. 🤷♀️🫠
The doctor? IDK dude .. you'll just have to meet her for yourself and form your own damned opinion. 🤪
What I will say is the spice was kicking. I would classify it more as horror erotica rather than dark romance. On that note, I will say, I'd be the first to run for a follow-up story featuring these two. Whole heartedly, I would eat that shit up.
Darkness level 🌒
Spice level 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
BDSM
Captive x captor
Dr x patient
Asylum setting
Forced proximity
Unreliable narrator
Morally grey characters
Serial killer MMC
Mental illness
Dub-con
Horror erotica MF
Novella
Every time I step into Briarwood Sanitarium, I know I'm in for a ride. And even though this was novella length, it's so easy to immerse yourself in the madness. You honestly don't have to read anything before this book. I mean, it's cool if you do but if you just want to sample the author's writing... you'll quickly come to see why she's one of my favorite authors.
So our MMC, Cole, is an unreliable narrator...and for good reason. He's a criminal, self professed SK and claims to have worked his way into the classification of mentally ill patient in order to stay out of a jail cell. But, dare I say, he's met his match in Dr Winters.
I sware, trying to peel the layers off of Cole had me feeling like I was the crazy one. 😂😭 I found myself saying "do I believe him? Is he REALLY seeing this shit?!" 👀 Now I truly understand the depths of psychosis. Trust me when I say, you'll be wrong in your assumptions but that's all I'll say.
I kinda feel filthy for the way I let Cole get under my skin. I kinda...really... like it though. 🤷♀️🫠
The doctor? IDK dude .. you'll just have to meet her for yourself and form your own damned opinion. 🤪
What I will say is the spice was kicking. I would classify it more as horror erotica rather than dark romance. On that note, I will say, I'd be the first to run for a follow-up story featuring these two. Whole heartedly, I would eat that shit up.
Darkness level 🌒
Spice level 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
BDSM
Captive x captor
Dr x patient
Asylum setting
Forced proximity
Unreliable narrator
Morally grey characters
Serial killer MMC
Mental illness
Dub-con
Horror erotica MF
Novella
November 9, 2026
This wasn't exactly my cup of tea.
Did I like it? Not really.
Was it addicting and somewhat disgustingly bingeable? Yes.
Do I wish the characters were different? Also yes.
Characters are what drive a story. They should be relatable in some capacity and become something better along the way, or at the very least just DIFFERENT. Dr. Winters is a sadist, fem-dom, and uses her patients as lab rats. To what end? Unknown. Caleb Morgan is indifferent and has no ambition whatsoever. Neither character has an overarching plot line other than "wing it" and "f*ck it" on a daily basis. This is not relatable storytelling. I was honestly bored and slightly sickened throughout the read.(Perhaps experimentation isn't my preferred trope.)
I appreciated Dr. Winters' limited POV. All we get are her clinical notes, which of course are going to differ from the actual events taking place in the lab (AKA: Briarwood Sanitorium). It adds to her detached and apathetic manner. Don't think she's a professional; she screws Caleb when he's unconscious and drugged. She has a clear humiliation k!nk and thinks it's fun to play with her "good boy." EW.
What I don't understand is Caleb's lack of escape, especially since the only reason he was caught by police was because he was fleeing to Mexico. It just doesn't fit with his overall character. Dr. Winters has given him no indication that he's anything more than a lab rat to her, so why does he stay? I feel like it's incredibly reliant on the reader's buy-in on insta-lust, the immediate attraction they both felt. Except I don't think it's attraction for Dr. Winters as much as it is a sadistic power trip.
I think if you're into extreme humiliation and BD$M, then yeah you might like it. Not for me though.
Did I like it? Not really.
Was it addicting and somewhat disgustingly bingeable? Yes.
Do I wish the characters were different? Also yes.
Characters are what drive a story. They should be relatable in some capacity and become something better along the way, or at the very least just DIFFERENT. Dr. Winters is a sadist, fem-dom, and uses her patients as lab rats. To what end? Unknown. Caleb Morgan is indifferent and has no ambition whatsoever. Neither character has an overarching plot line other than "wing it" and "f*ck it" on a daily basis. This is not relatable storytelling. I was honestly bored and slightly sickened throughout the read.
I appreciated Dr. Winters' limited POV. All we get are her clinical notes, which of course are going to differ from the actual events taking place in the lab (AKA: Briarwood Sanitorium). It adds to her detached and apathetic manner. Don't think she's a professional; she screws Caleb when he's unconscious and drugged. She has a clear humiliation k!nk and thinks it's fun to play with her "good boy." EW.
What I don't understand is Caleb's lack of escape, especially since the only reason he was caught by police was because he was fleeing to Mexico. It just doesn't fit with his overall character. Dr. Winters has given him no indication that he's anything more than a lab rat to her, so why does he stay? I feel like it's incredibly reliant on the reader's buy-in on insta-lust, the immediate attraction they both felt. Except I don't think it's attraction for Dr. Winters as much as it is a sadistic power trip.
I think if you're into extreme humiliation and BD$M, then yeah you might like it. Not for me though.
November 10, 2026
So I want to start by saying if you haven't gotten your hands on a copy and read NUTCRACKER by Sybil Knight you honesty don't know what your missing in the lines of a deranged off the wall FMC. Doc Winters has quickly become a top FMC when it comes to deranged.
Now as you can see with most my books I read, I love a good dark twisted story to scratch my own twisted mind. Sybil always comes in hot and scratches that itch for me. Her stories have a thing of pulling you in and keeping you sitting on the edge of your seat.
“Secrets are secrets until you share them with someone else,”
Again in this book she hooked me with the dedication.. "To anyone who’s ever dreamed about finding a hot tattooed felon, locking him up, and using him like a human sex doll. Also to anyone who has ever dreamed about being that human sex doll… This one’s for you." I mean really?!
The chemistry and intensity between Cole and Doc were like fire and ice. Each one loved to be in control which set the fire for the other, but don't let that fool you because this is a far cry from a romance. This is dark, the kinks are on point and will leave you gasping, you'll not only question the morals of the characters but you as a reader.
That ending I was not ready for, and dare I say I need a part 2 although this is a standalone. So if like myself you love questionable doctors, meds that will have you questioning everything, a mental asylum, psychological mind games, and absolutely NO idea who to trust, buckle up and join us at Briarwood Sanitorium.
"You could sense evil in someone. Smell it on their skin, and this woman was the closest thing to evil I’d seen in a long time."
Now as you can see with most my books I read, I love a good dark twisted story to scratch my own twisted mind. Sybil always comes in hot and scratches that itch for me. Her stories have a thing of pulling you in and keeping you sitting on the edge of your seat.
“Secrets are secrets until you share them with someone else,”
Again in this book she hooked me with the dedication.. "To anyone who’s ever dreamed about finding a hot tattooed felon, locking him up, and using him like a human sex doll. Also to anyone who has ever dreamed about being that human sex doll… This one’s for you." I mean really?!
The chemistry and intensity between Cole and Doc were like fire and ice. Each one loved to be in control which set the fire for the other, but don't let that fool you because this is a far cry from a romance. This is dark, the kinks are on point and will leave you gasping, you'll not only question the morals of the characters but you as a reader.
That ending I was not ready for, and dare I say I need a part 2 although this is a standalone. So if like myself you love questionable doctors, meds that will have you questioning everything, a mental asylum, psychological mind games, and absolutely NO idea who to trust, buckle up and join us at Briarwood Sanitorium.
"You could sense evil in someone. Smell it on their skin, and this woman was the closest thing to evil I’d seen in a long time."
Review of advance copy received from Author
Cole's crazy, Dr. Winters is crazy, and by the end of this book, I'm freaking crazy! haha
They call her the Nutcracker because that's exactly what she does! Dr. Winters makes the rest look like amateurs when it comes to torture and experiments. While this leans more toward psychological than gore, it's definitely horror. I absolutely love Sybil's work, as I said I'm now crazy also.
Dr. Winters is as cold as they come. This woman has zero empathy. Which only fuels her experiments. When you don't care about the lab rat, it's easy to go beyond normal experimentation and rocket into territories most of us couldn't fathom. Her high intelligence, lack of remorse, and thirst for knowledge make her a very dangerous woman. I love that for her! It's always nice when the woman gets to be the villain for a change.
Cole, poor Cole. He went into the nuthouse semi-sane and left bat-shat crazy! I mean, he didn't have it so bad. He did get a lot of spicy time. However, being that the roles are reversed and it's a man being abused, I think that makes it more acceptable to most. Since that's pretty much what men are after anyway. He almost seems like a willing participant, but it does highlight the type of abuse that went on in these facilities. He's got a witty, fun personality that you can't help but fall in love with. In the end, he got the short end of the stick.
For such a short novella, this truly was a mid-twist! I'm still not sure which parts were reality and which parts were hallucination. This is all in the best ways, of course! Sybil truly has the amazing talent of taking you on a fantastic ride that makes you question your own sanity!
They call her the Nutcracker because that's exactly what she does! Dr. Winters makes the rest look like amateurs when it comes to torture and experiments. While this leans more toward psychological than gore, it's definitely horror. I absolutely love Sybil's work, as I said I'm now crazy also.
Dr. Winters is as cold as they come. This woman has zero empathy. Which only fuels her experiments. When you don't care about the lab rat, it's easy to go beyond normal experimentation and rocket into territories most of us couldn't fathom. Her high intelligence, lack of remorse, and thirst for knowledge make her a very dangerous woman. I love that for her! It's always nice when the woman gets to be the villain for a change.
Cole, poor Cole. He went into the nuthouse semi-sane and left bat-shat crazy! I mean, he didn't have it so bad. He did get a lot of spicy time. However, being that the roles are reversed and it's a man being abused, I think that makes it more acceptable to most. Since that's pretty much what men are after anyway. He almost seems like a willing participant, but it does highlight the type of abuse that went on in these facilities. He's got a witty, fun personality that you can't help but fall in love with. In the end, he got the short end of the stick.
For such a short novella, this truly was a mid-twist! I'm still not sure which parts were reality and which parts were hallucination. This is all in the best ways, of course! Sybil truly has the amazing talent of taking you on a fantastic ride that makes you question your own sanity!
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