Yours. Always.: My Bloody Valentine

by Becca Lynne

San Diego, 1992.

Days before Valentine’s Day, a young woman is found posed like a valentine—pink roses, perfume, and a note that I choose you. Detective Darius Jackson and his partner Ray Vega uncover a killer driven not by hate, but by obsession. Each murder mirrors a girl who died fourteen years earlier—and each “valentine” brings the killer closer to finishing a romantic ritual meant to rewrite the past. When anonymous flowers begin arriving at the kindergarten classroom of Darius’s wife, Juliet, the case turns personal. As the killer’s fixation shifts from memory to reality, Darius must race against time to stop the final valentine from being claimed. A dark, emotional thriller about love, grief, and the terrifying cost of obsession.

62 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 3, 2026

About the author

Becca Lynne is a 30something year old, neurospicy, chronically ill, queer, mother of 4 living her best life in rural Southern California. By day she is a virtual English tutor and by night she is mother, author, and cozy game streamer and content creator. Along side her sister, Becca Lynne also owns a homemade witchy and mythological candle shop called Lore of the Pomegranate.

Reviews

[Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

ARC Review

I love a good thriller/mystery and this hit a spot for me. It's short at 66 pages but it packs a lot in.

This story is set in 1992 days before Valentine's Day. There's a killer on the loose leaving flowers and notes.

It goes a step further for Detective Jackson when his wife is involved.

Pick up this story and see what happens.

[Jenna Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you love the world of "The Fifth Lock" or pacing of "The Final Carol," then Becca Lynne’s new Valentine’s short story, "Yours. Always.," is about to become your next obsession. Picking up a few years after the events of The Final Carol, this story continues Darius’s journey as part of the SDPD, yet it works perfectly as a standalone crime-scene thriller with a dark, romantic twist. I love Darius and Juliet and how they balance each other! The tension builds so wonderfully that by the time I hit those final chapters, my heart was racing and I couldn't put my Kindle down. It is a must-read for anyone who craves thrill sprinkled with the power of love, and, of course, that signature side helping of deliciously unhealthy obsession that Lynne writes so well. I cannot wait until the next installment of Darius's story!

Thank you Becca Lynne for the ARC copy!

[Soha Amer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yours Always: My Bloody Valentine blends romance with darkness, obsession, and emotional intensity. Becca Lynne leans into the raw, messy side of love, where feelings aren’t always soft — they’re consuming, complicated, and sometimes dangerous.

The chemistry between the characters is charged from the start, creating a relationship that feels magnetic but layered with tension. The story explores vulnerability, possessiveness, and emotional scars, making it more than just a love story — it’s about how deeply people can affect each other, for better or worse.

Fast-paced, emotionally heavy, and full of dramatic moments, this book will appeal to readers who enjoy intense romance with an edge.

[Tehmeena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Content Warnings; Psychological mind games, m*rders, dark and unhealthy obsession...

~I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.~

Tropes;
➴💌𝑪𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝑵𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒍𝒂
➴🩸𝑬𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒚 1990𝒔 𝑺𝒆𝒕𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈
➴💌𝑽𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒆'𝒔 𝑫𝒂𝒚 𝑽𝒊𝒃𝒆𝒔
➴🩸𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑴𝑴𝑪
➴💌𝑰𝒏𝒏𝒐𝒄𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑭𝑴𝑪
➴🩸𝑫𝒆𝒕𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒌
➴💌𝑯𝒊𝒈𝒉 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔
➴🩸𝑷𝒊𝒏𝒌 𝑹𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒔
➴💌𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒌 𝑶𝒃𝒔𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏
➴🩸𝑩𝒐𝒖𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 & 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒆𝒏𝒕
➴💌𝑨𝒏𝒐𝒏𝒚𝒎𝒐𝒖𝒔 𝑵𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒔
➴🩸𝑴𝒊𝒏𝒅 𝑮𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒔
➴💌𝑪𝒉𝒐𝒔𝒆𝒏 𝑽𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒔
➴🩸𝑵𝒐 𝑪𝒍𝒊𝒇𝒇-𝑯𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓
➴💌𝑯𝑭𝑵

♡𝐇𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐩𝐢𝐞𝐜𝐞 - 𝒎𝒚 𝐉𝐮𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐭 - 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐢𝐦.
𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐞'𝐬 𝐚𝐛𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐬.♡


Three days before Valentine's Day, Darius and his partner, Ray, discover a woman on the beach. She's posed beautifully, not breathing, and with a pink rose on her chest. A chilling note left behind. But before they can even unravel that mystery, a bunch of pink roses are sent to Darius' wife. Now there's more at stake... and he's a target. As the bodies keep piling up, with his constant eye on his wife to protect, so do the stakes. Will they be able to solve this case... and get out alive?

I'm hooked from the first chapter! What a brilliant, chilling, and intriguing story. The plot is well written for it being under 70 pages, and I must say, that's a talent in itself. The writing style is wonderful, isn't choppy, and each chapter transitions with the mystery to the end with the plot-twist that I didn't really expect. The atmosphere is eerie and mysterious, and it will get your heartbeat pumping. Riveting novel!

Darius and Juliet are so amazing together. I love their relationship and how strong they are as a couple. Their chemistry and romantic connection are wonderfully shown and do compliment each other quite well. He's the protective MMC we appreciate. Juliet's is dragged into such a scary position - actually insane and terrifying.

Who thought crime is a genre I'll actually enjoy? But I'm so pleased I gave this one a chance. What a gem! If you like a fast-paced crime novel that will keep you on your toes, which throws you in a world wind of twists, tension, with a splash of toxic obsession and romance, then this one is for you.

I think I do need some coffee after this read.

Out of Fives;
➴🩸𝑪𝒐𝒗𝒆𝒓:✨✨✨✨✨
➴💌𝑹𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒆:🌹🌹🌹
➴🩸𝑶𝒃𝒔𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏:💌💌💌💌💌
➴💌𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔:🖤🖤🖤🖤
➴🩸𝑫𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓:⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️⚠️
➴💌𝑨𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏:💥💥💥💥
➴🩸𝑴𝒚𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒚:🔎🔎🔎🔎🔎
➴💌𝑬𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆:💀💀💀💀💀
➴🩸𝑫𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅:🚨🚨🚨🚨🚨
➴💌𝑻𝒆𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏:⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️⁉️
➴🩸𝑯𝒐𝒑𝒆:🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️🕊️
➴💌𝑪𝒐𝒇𝒇𝒆𝒆:☕☕☕☕☕
➴🩸𝑱𝒖𝒍𝒊𝒆𝒕 𝑭𝑴𝑪:🩷🩷🩷🩷🩷
➴💌𝑫𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒖𝒔 𝑴𝑴𝑪:🤎🤎🤎🤎🤎
➴🩸𝑷𝒍𝒐𝒕𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒆:🎬🎬🎬🎬🎬
➴💌𝑷𝒂𝒄𝒊𝒏𝒈:⌛⏳⌛⏳⌛
➴🩸𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒓 𝑫𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒍𝒐𝒑𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕:🏆🏆🏆🏆🏆
➴💌𝑾𝒐𝒓𝒍𝒅 𝑩𝒖𝒊𝒍𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈:🌏🌎🌍🌏🌎
➴🩸𝑩𝒐𝒐𝒌 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒆𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒅: 𝒆𝑨𝑹𝑪/𝑲𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒍𝒆.
➴💌𝑺𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔: 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅𝒂𝒍𝒐𝒏𝒆.
➴🩸𝑷𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒔: 66.
➴💌𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒔: 9 (𝒊𝒏𝒄𝒍𝒖𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑬𝒑𝒊𝒍𝒐𝒈𝒖𝒆).
➴🩸𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: 𝑭𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝑪𝒓𝒊𝒎𝒆, 𝑻𝒉𝒓𝒊𝒍𝒍𝒆𝒓.
➴💌𝑬𝒙𝒑𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒆𝒅 𝑷𝒖𝒃𝒍𝒊𝒄𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 3 𝑭𝒆𝒃𝒓𝒖𝒂𝒓𝒚 2026.
➴🩸𝑾𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝑰 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒎𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒅: 𝒀𝒆𝒔.
➴💌𝑶𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒂𝒍𝒍 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒓 𝑹𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈:⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[T || · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yours. Always is set in San Diego, 1992.

Days before Valentine’s Day, a young woman is found posed like a valentine—pink roses, perfume, and a note that I choose you. Detective Darius Jackson and his partner Ray Vega uncover a killer driven not by hate, but by obsession. Each murder mirrors a girl who died fourteen years earlier—and each “valentine” brings the killer closer to finishing a romantic ritual meant to rewrite the past. When anonymous flowers begin arriving at the kindergarten classroom of Darius’s wife, Juliet, the case turns personal. As the killer’s fixation shifts from memory to reality, Darius must race against time to stop the final valentine from being claimed. A dark, emotional thriller about love, grief, and the terrifying cost of obsession.
---
My Review:
This is a short story of 62 pages, focused around Darius Jackson & his wife Juleit, alongside the ever trusty Ray Vega!!
All characters within this short story, are all featured in Becca's main novel The Fifth Lock!!! One thing I LOVE about Becca is how interlinks all her Short Stories to characters from her main novel!! I love it, as it gives you deep insight to all the characters from all sides!!!

The scene opens with Darius & Ray on the a scene of a young lady, who was placed in a particular way and not just dumped! Placed with care, and just dumped carelessly. Which kicks up their investigation!!!

I cannot give much more away than that or it'll be full of spoilers. But i can vouch. It is worth the read!!! One thing I can say tho is, Becca i adored the page divider images, it was the perfect fit for this story ❤️🌹.. I also love and appriciate the work that went into the front cover its now my 2nd fave cover from all your books/novella/short stories - aswell as the graphics inside the story!!!

Although this story was short and I read it quickly. It is full of SO much turmoil, emotion, conflict and miscommunications. As always, there is a mental health aspect within Beccas books. The twist was CRAY CRAY. I LOVED it.

As always, the depictions of scenes, sounds and all that in-between, is done amazingly! I cannot praise how descriptive Becca is to aid the reader as best she can in what she sees in her mind for her stories!

I cannot recommend Becca, her books as a whole & this ARC enough. This book will be available for pre order AND also available on KU, upon release in time for Valentine’s Day.

Tysm to Becca for as always having me in her Detective Unit as a Permanent ARC Reader/Cheerleader 🌹❤️

[Ashlee Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always love reading anything from Becca! She knows how to weave suspense into the story, but not so much that you need to change your undies after.

Yours, Always is a short story that follows Detective Jackson. I won't say who he is investigating or what, because I don't want to spoil this amazing, edge of your seat, story! I will just say that it is nice to get more of Detective Jackson as he solves crimes and loves his beautiful wife! As always, Becca makes this story move so smoothly that Michael Jackson has competition (cuz smooth criminal is as close to smooth as he gets). This story was well paced and had enough suspense to keep me sucked in, but not so much that I left feeling mentally contaminated. I highly recommend this shirt story and all of Becca's other stories and books! She is such an amazing author and knows how to keep you intrigued and feel all the feels!

[Astera · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yours, Always had me on the edge of my seat from start to finish!

Becca Lynne knows how to write a good thriller, her writing is captivating and you can’t help but get completely immersed in the story.

This is the perfect dark Valentine’s Day short story with suspense. I really love this story’s play on obsession while also having the true love of Darius and his wife Juliette

My favorite thing about Becca Lynne’s books is that always some beautiful lesson in each one. This story’s lesson was exquisite! I already can’t wait for her next release!

My favorite quote from the book.
“I see how easily shapes form when no one challenges the hand drawing them. And how quickly they collapse when someone finally does”

Thank you Becca Lynne for allowing me to be one of your ARC readers!

[Brooke · Rating 4 out of 5]

thank you to the author for the eARC!!

this book was the perfect short form mystery!! i wanted to curl up in front of the fire place with a blanket and tea and read this in an entire sitting.

i haven’t read any more from this author, but i am now convinced because this writing was so beautiful to read. the plot was structured beautifully, where even though it’s a shorter story, there was a clear beginning, middle and end. i really fell in love with Darius in the short time i spent with him, and knew his motivations well as a character.

if i read the other books in the series, i think this would be a five star read definitely!

overall, a really good mystery and quick read.

[Chloe ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a fun book and I'm all here for valentine's and thriller vibes!

- I love the first page, the hook was amazing and the overall story was easy to follow and surely entertaining
- It's a short easy book to read to get to your reading goal 😏
- It has a beautiful writing style
- I love the mites scattered around in the book, and the interior was gorgeous.

If you're looking for a short story with some spooky vibes and pair it with love, this is for you!

[Annette Cates · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first met Darius in "The Final Carol" and really liked his character. When I was given the chance to he an ARC reader for a story about Darius himself, I jumped on it. I thought this was a really good book and felt the love he has for his wife. I think Darius is a good detective and hardworking husband. I hope to see more of Darius in the future.

* I received a copy of "Yours. Always." as an ARC copy.

[Kaylee Goral · Rating 4 out of 5]

ARC:
"'You drew a heart across the city with their blood and decided the last point was hers.'"

This was a quick, easy, but very interesting read. I wish it dived a little more in depth to the investigation and the killers motives. But, I enjoyed it and definitely would recommend it to anyone who enjoys crime related reads. I didn't see part of the ending coming. I also enjoyed the Valentine's tie in. Great read over all.

[Terri Lyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Detective Jackson and Vega are back and are tasked with solving more homicides, this time, they may be a little too close to home. Yours. Always is a fast pace read that will keep you wanting more. Becca Lynne has a way of writing that makes you continue to the end - there is no way you will guess who the killer is until the end and even then it may have you wanting more.

[Printessan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review of advance copy received from Author

It may be short, but it’s packed with content and a truly thrilling read that kept me hooked from start to finish. The pace is fast, the story intense, and I constantly wanted to know what would happen next. Perfect if you enjoy bloody thrillers with twists and a Valentine vibe.

Thank you so much Becca for letting me be a part of your team.♥️🌺

[BARBARA · Rating 4 out of 5]

Looking for a quick Valentine's day thriller? This little novella was jam packed with the case of who did it from the very beginning. As little as this book is, it's filled with murder, mystery, stalking and love all in one! The details used to make the story really entwine with Valentine's Day are great! I really enjoyed this out of the ordinary Valentine's Day novella! 

[Cindy Palmer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short, quick, thriller that is done fantastically well. Detective Jackson is looking for a killer who's leaving flowers and notes. He's just working a case until his wife gets involved. Then all bets are off he has to solve this case and protect his wife.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would definitely recommend this as a quick read. It's deep and simple at the same time. Beautiful work from Becca Lynne.
From page 1, it's amazingly wrote. Detective and his wife.

[Amanda Elizabeth Myers · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good stalker book always hits the spot and this was no different. It was short but had everything needed to complete the story. I enjoyed it and will definitely read more by the author.

[Sarah Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a page turner but it needed a little bit more length to really do the story justice. I liked the concept a lot but needed a little more context to make it more enjoyable.

[Naito Diamond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Yours. Always. is a atmospheric short detective story that questions what love really means—and how obsession can twist it into something terrifying. The premise is chillingly clever: would you feel flattered if someone painted you a heart for Valentine’s Day? What if the canvas was your town—and the paint was the places where bodies were left?

This story leans into the unsettling psychology of obsession rather than shock value. The killer’s mindset is disturbing in its sincerity, and watching Detective Darius unravel yet another case is deeply satisfying. There’s something especially effective about the contrast between the romantic symbolism and the brutality beneath it.

This is the kind of detective story that keeps your brain engaged without demanding too much time. Perfect for a chilly evening read—or as a darker Valentine’s Day treat for mystery lovers.

[Alicia Abbott · Rating 4 out of 5]

Review: ❤️❤️❤️❤️
You guys know I’m a total holiday girl, so when I was scrolling Threads and saw the author looking for ARC readers, I signed up immediately.

Holiday read ✔️
Valentine’s Day ✔️
Thriller ✔️
Murderer on the loose ✔️

This is a quick read, but perfect if you’re craving more murder and less romance this Valentine’s season. 🔪🥀💔

[Rachel Browning · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Yours. Always.: My Bloody Valentine” by Becca Lynne is a suspenseful, dark thriller that grips you from the first page and refuses to let go. This was a super quick read, but the tension never lets up, I couldn’t put it down. Twisted, intense, and perfectly paced, it delivers that creeping unease that keeps you turning pages. A great pick if you love dark thrillers.