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Snake Ops #1
Wild Silver and Lead
In a world undone by a terrifying virus, a fierce female survivor and a cruel military captain fight the living, the dead, and their lethal desire in this genre-shattering dark dystopian romance.
I survived ten years after the Raven virus turned the dead into monsters. Then elite soldier Slade Reece put a bullet through my chest.
I was searching for my family, torn from me in a raid, when the ruthless ex–Delta Force captain found me. He should have left me to die. Instead, he dragged me to his military base, where a lethal, classified armed force guards civilization in the frozen North. Outsiders are forbidden. Execution is the penalty.
Our chance encounter ignited an obsession he can’t control. His solution? Marriage―the only way to keep me alive. The my body for his protection, help finding my family for my vows.
I should hate him―I do―but hate turns to fire as he kills anyone who threatens me.
Falling for Slade is blurring everything I know about survival. But now his enemies have discovered my existence―and they’re hunting me. I must the family I’ve lost, or the devil who’s claimed me.
I survived ten years after the Raven virus turned the dead into monsters. Then elite soldier Slade Reece put a bullet through my chest.
I was searching for my family, torn from me in a raid, when the ruthless ex–Delta Force captain found me. He should have left me to die. Instead, he dragged me to his military base, where a lethal, classified armed force guards civilization in the frozen North. Outsiders are forbidden. Execution is the penalty.
Our chance encounter ignited an obsession he can’t control. His solution? Marriage―the only way to keep me alive. The my body for his protection, help finding my family for my vows.
I should hate him―I do―but hate turns to fire as he kills anyone who threatens me.
Falling for Slade is blurring everything I know about survival. But now his enemies have discovered my existence―and they’re hunting me. I must the family I’ve lost, or the devil who’s claimed me.
351 pages, Paperback
First published October 6, 2026
About the author
Lexie Axelson
9 books1,494 followersLexie Axelson is a Hispanic Author from South Texas. She is a military spouse currently residing on the East Coast. She loves to pen angsty, heartbreaking love stories. When she isn't reading a book, she loves to watch horror movies and travel with her family.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 415 reviews
Did Not Finish
August 18, 2026DNF 65%
I was very excited when I first heard about this book. A dystopian romance set in a zombie apocalypse? Sounds like a delicious premise, right? Unfortunately, while the idea is brilliant, the execution falls completely flat.
I tried, I really tried to like it. I kept reading with the hope that it would get better. Spoiler alert: it didn't.
For starters, the plot and the zombies are almost entirely absent. Instead of a thrilling dystopian survival story, the narrative focuses heavily on the FMC’s amnesia – who had an incredibly photographic memory, btw —and the romance. And unfortunately, it includes almost every trope I hate: insta-lust degradation combined with a virgin FMC. Ugh.
The turning point of their dynamic says it all: he literally shoots her, and her immediate reaction is to swoon over how handsome he is. Ew, no, girl. He's an asshole without the reason, who needs to check his head cuz his attitude isn't adequate.
The chemistry is non-existent. There isn't even a tiny spark between them, and their emotional progression makes zero sense. They somehow leap from “I hate you, you whore” (seriously, dude, get professional help) to “omg, he/she is the love of my life” in a split second. To make matters worse, the dialogue frequently gave me the ick. His attempts at dirty talk were particularly pathetic, cringey, and definitely not sexy.
As for the characters, the FMC is supposedly a "baddie," but in reality, she comes across as deeply naive and painfully easy to manipulate 😭. Meanwhile, the MMC isn't even morally gray—he's just a clown. I simply couldn't stand him; every phrase that came out of his mouth made me roll my eyes. People just do not talk like that.
Finally, the world-building leaves so many holes. I couldn't help but wonder why the Rebels and the Snakes actually hate each other, or what sparked their battles. I never got the answers, though perhaps they are buried somewhere in the remaining 35% that I will unfortunately never read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
I was very excited when I first heard about this book. A dystopian romance set in a zombie apocalypse? Sounds like a delicious premise, right? Unfortunately, while the idea is brilliant, the execution falls completely flat.
I tried, I really tried to like it. I kept reading with the hope that it would get better. Spoiler alert: it didn't.
For starters, the plot and the zombies are almost entirely absent. Instead of a thrilling dystopian survival story, the narrative focuses heavily on the FMC’s amnesia – who had an incredibly photographic memory, btw —and the romance. And unfortunately, it includes almost every trope I hate: insta-lust degradation combined with a virgin FMC. Ugh.
The turning point of their dynamic says it all: he literally shoots her, and her immediate reaction is to swoon over how handsome he is. Ew, no, girl. He's an asshole without the reason, who needs to check his head cuz his attitude isn't adequate.
The chemistry is non-existent. There isn't even a tiny spark between them, and their emotional progression makes zero sense. They somehow leap from “I hate you, you whore” (seriously, dude, get professional help) to “omg, he/she is the love of my life” in a split second. To make matters worse, the dialogue frequently gave me the ick. His attempts at dirty talk were particularly pathetic, cringey, and definitely not sexy.
As for the characters, the FMC is supposedly a "baddie," but in reality, she comes across as deeply naive and painfully easy to manipulate 😭. Meanwhile, the MMC isn't even morally gray—he's just a clown. I simply couldn't stand him; every phrase that came out of his mouth made me roll my eyes. People just do not talk like that.
Finally, the world-building leaves so many holes. I couldn't help but wonder why the Rebels and the Snakes actually hate each other, or what sparked their battles. I never got the answers, though perhaps they are buried somewhere in the remaining 35% that I will unfortunately never read.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
DNF at 57 %
In this fictional world, everything changed after the Raven virus. People started turning into zombies. When raiders attack the FMC’s house and her parents disappear, she separates from her brother so they can survive. But then she gets shot by the MMC and ends up in the walled-off city of Smoke Hollows Peak, where the Snake military unit has its base.
I enjoyed the book until about 45%. Scottie is still a virgin at 25, while Slade still can’t get over his wife, who died 10 years ago. But when he kisses Scottie for the first time, suddenly all he wants is her, and during their first time together, she turns into a porn star. There’s insta-love between the characters, no real depth, and I couldn’t keep reading because of the sex scenes. There are a lot of them, and they’re cringey and rough. I enjoy reading well-written erotica, but this wasn’t it.
However, I’ll be keeping an eye out for the author’s other books. I hope she writes something similar to Mariposa again.
Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
In this fictional world, everything changed after the Raven virus. People started turning into zombies. When raiders attack the FMC’s house and her parents disappear, she separates from her brother so they can survive. But then she gets shot by the MMC and ends up in the walled-off city of Smoke Hollows Peak, where the Snake military unit has its base.
I enjoyed the book until about 45%. Scottie is still a virgin at 25, while Slade still can’t get over his wife, who died 10 years ago. But when he kisses Scottie for the first time, suddenly all he wants is her, and during their first time together, she turns into a porn star. There’s insta-love between the characters, no real depth, and I couldn’t keep reading because of the sex scenes. There are a lot of them, and they’re cringey and rough. I enjoy reading well-written erotica, but this wasn’t it.
However, I’ll be keeping an eye out for the author’s other books. I hope she writes something similar to Mariposa again.
Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for the ARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This isn’t a romance novel. There’s nothing romantic about it and I don’t see how people with a grip on mental health and abuse could romanticize this story.
I’m not one to immediately discredit a story for being taboo, but there were multiple inconsistencies in this story that made it difficult to finish. I lost interest halfway through and got frustrated trying reflect on various scenes to piece together the gaping plot holes I encountered as I completed it.
Here are just a few of my issues with this story:
- the FMC is an abused, naive, and easily manipulated person. her character has serious inconsistencies and essentially survives multiple assassination attempts due to plot armor.
despite being trained by a military family, she is consistently compromised and receives multiple nearly fatal injuries that leave her extremely vulnerable. she seems to have little-to-no spatial awareness which is entirely inconsistent with her alleged strengths/training
she’s also put in unrealistic situations that she would not be able to navigate due to her unhealed injuries. she should have been in much more pain throughout the story and her tolerance for various encounters + her ability to rescue herself from tricky situations should have been near to nonexistent. even the nipple piercings—there’s no way those wouldn’t have been excruciating if someone’s ripping on them in the weeks after she gets them done (they take months to heal with good care) especially considering how much pain she was in when she got them. not to mention they would have gotten infected
her flawed memory is the main driver of this plot…and even that element doesn’t add up all things considered. I don’t see why she would be left to recover her past memories. I don’t see why so much of her story revolves around dreams, nightmares, and remembering what happened to her.
Both of the main characters are untrustworthy narrators and the story falls apart because of how flawed its foundation becomes as the plot unfolds.
- the MMC is supposed to be evil. that’s his whole gag and that alone is massively inconsistent with his flip-flopping demeanor / the peeks we get into his brain
Separately, the entire point of a lovable villain is that they’re redeemable or able to be forgiven because of progress…even if that’s limited to how they behave with their romantic partner.
slade (and numerous other residents in this novel) seems to have multiple personalities that are directly at conflict with each other. we are provided multiple chapters from his POV and see that he actually believes himself to be in love / to be making a genuine effort to care for the fmc / that he feels remorse for his actions and the things he has done / that he acts with good intentions. That doesn’t fit with the profile of a clinically diagnosed psychopath.
Those warm and fuzzy thoughts, plus their inspired actions (I.e. building a house based on what Scottie loves and what would make her happy) also don’t correlate with the behaviors and resulting actions the author crafts for his character.
As you approach the end of the book, you’re supposed to believe that Slade has premeditated every second of the story that has taken place: capturing scottie, getting her to fall in love, keeping her from her family, etc. You’re supposed to see that he is lying to Scottie and controlling her for his own gain. That he is using her to unlock new abilities for himself in their little military outpost. There is no way you see someone like that and think “what a lovable villain” for while you want to root…
Simultaneously casting him as a devoted, caring, falling-in-love character in all of the chapters that are written from his own POV doesn’t keep the reader guessing. It creates inconsistencies that are near impossible to explain away.
Slade is also supposed to be the one person who doesn’t need to heed any of the rules? Why then would he need to use Scottie to get a house…why would he break one rule to meet the requirements of another? None of it makes any sense.
Even thinking of his best friend King who is painted as someone who has limited awareness of her Scotties story and the relationship Slade has developed with her. Who is supposed to believe that Scottie makes Slade happy and that this is a serendipitous outcome he should encourage Slade to let himself to accept.
How is it that he is also aware of the larger plot? And is actively keeping Scottie away from her family too? He was also one of the people who let Scottie leave the Hollows, as an active guard on the gate she left through.
Why would they let Scottie get away twice if any of this was true?
The only explanation for the differences in the soldiers’ personalities would be that they are controlled with some sort of medical testing/experimentation that makes all of the citizens strangers to themselves. But there’s nothing that suggests this would be true at that wide of a scale.
Following the logic of this story is such a headache that I don’t even care to get the answers from the second installment of the series. Even the cliffhanger is once again reliant on plot armor as it places the FMC in a nearly impossible situation that should kill her. One that somehow took shape despite months of training with her perfect soldier husband and all the skills that would come with being a member of Snake Ops. It’s nonsensical.
Because this book is entirely unbelievable, it becomes disappointing and extremely unsexy. What could possibly be an appealing but dark taboo is rendered disgusting and sad. This is like reading the story ROOM and rooting for the captor from that book.
As the reader, you realize that you are watching someone be actively abused and manipulated and by the end of the book you see there is no positive spin for her. The possible outcomes are: death, birthing and mothering an unwanted child (Slade doesn’t want a kid and she now believes she can’t have a kid and has begun to rationalize that outcome for herself), surviving in an abusive community where various citizens want her dead, or escaping and living in a post apocalyptic wasteland on her own…
What’s the point of hinging so much of this on her finding her family only to completely kill that notion at the end? It’s just devastating if you really want to think about it.
I received this as an ARC, but I am writing this review without bias.
I’m not one to immediately discredit a story for being taboo, but there were multiple inconsistencies in this story that made it difficult to finish. I lost interest halfway through and got frustrated trying reflect on various scenes to piece together the gaping plot holes I encountered as I completed it.
Here are just a few of my issues with this story:
- the FMC is an abused, naive, and easily manipulated person. her character has serious inconsistencies and essentially survives multiple assassination attempts due to plot armor.
despite being trained by a military family, she is consistently compromised and receives multiple nearly fatal injuries that leave her extremely vulnerable. she seems to have little-to-no spatial awareness which is entirely inconsistent with her alleged strengths/training
she’s also put in unrealistic situations that she would not be able to navigate due to her unhealed injuries. she should have been in much more pain throughout the story and her tolerance for various encounters + her ability to rescue herself from tricky situations should have been near to nonexistent. even the nipple piercings—there’s no way those wouldn’t have been excruciating if someone’s ripping on them in the weeks after she gets them done (they take months to heal with good care) especially considering how much pain she was in when she got them. not to mention they would have gotten infected
her flawed memory is the main driver of this plot…and even that element doesn’t add up all things considered. I don’t see why she would be left to recover her past memories. I don’t see why so much of her story revolves around dreams, nightmares, and remembering what happened to her.
Both of the main characters are untrustworthy narrators and the story falls apart because of how flawed its foundation becomes as the plot unfolds.
- the MMC is supposed to be evil. that’s his whole gag and that alone is massively inconsistent with his flip-flopping demeanor / the peeks we get into his brain
Separately, the entire point of a lovable villain is that they’re redeemable or able to be forgiven because of progress…even if that’s limited to how they behave with their romantic partner.
slade (and numerous other residents in this novel) seems to have multiple personalities that are directly at conflict with each other. we are provided multiple chapters from his POV and see that he actually believes himself to be in love / to be making a genuine effort to care for the fmc / that he feels remorse for his actions and the things he has done / that he acts with good intentions. That doesn’t fit with the profile of a clinically diagnosed psychopath.
Those warm and fuzzy thoughts, plus their inspired actions (I.e. building a house based on what Scottie loves and what would make her happy) also don’t correlate with the behaviors and resulting actions the author crafts for his character.
As you approach the end of the book, you’re supposed to believe that Slade has premeditated every second of the story that has taken place: capturing scottie, getting her to fall in love, keeping her from her family, etc. You’re supposed to see that he is lying to Scottie and controlling her for his own gain. That he is using her to unlock new abilities for himself in their little military outpost. There is no way you see someone like that and think “what a lovable villain” for while you want to root…
Simultaneously casting him as a devoted, caring, falling-in-love character in all of the chapters that are written from his own POV doesn’t keep the reader guessing. It creates inconsistencies that are near impossible to explain away.
Slade is also supposed to be the one person who doesn’t need to heed any of the rules? Why then would he need to use Scottie to get a house…why would he break one rule to meet the requirements of another? None of it makes any sense.
Even thinking of his best friend King who is painted as someone who has limited awareness of her Scotties story and the relationship Slade has developed with her. Who is supposed to believe that Scottie makes Slade happy and that this is a serendipitous outcome he should encourage Slade to let himself to accept.
How is it that he is also aware of the larger plot? And is actively keeping Scottie away from her family too? He was also one of the people who let Scottie leave the Hollows, as an active guard on the gate she left through.
Why would they let Scottie get away twice if any of this was true?
The only explanation for the differences in the soldiers’ personalities would be that they are controlled with some sort of medical testing/experimentation that makes all of the citizens strangers to themselves. But there’s nothing that suggests this would be true at that wide of a scale.
Following the logic of this story is such a headache that I don’t even care to get the answers from the second installment of the series. Even the cliffhanger is once again reliant on plot armor as it places the FMC in a nearly impossible situation that should kill her. One that somehow took shape despite months of training with her perfect soldier husband and all the skills that would come with being a member of Snake Ops. It’s nonsensical.
Because this book is entirely unbelievable, it becomes disappointing and extremely unsexy. What could possibly be an appealing but dark taboo is rendered disgusting and sad. This is like reading the story ROOM and rooting for the captor from that book.
As the reader, you realize that you are watching someone be actively abused and manipulated and by the end of the book you see there is no positive spin for her. The possible outcomes are: death, birthing and mothering an unwanted child (Slade doesn’t want a kid and she now believes she can’t have a kid and has begun to rationalize that outcome for herself), surviving in an abusive community where various citizens want her dead, or escaping and living in a post apocalyptic wasteland on her own…
What’s the point of hinging so much of this on her finding her family only to completely kill that notion at the end? It’s just devastating if you really want to think about it.
I received this as an ARC, but I am writing this review without bias.
October 6, 2026
This book was not for me unfortunately and I hate saying that because it has a lot of elements I would love. I mean... we have a post-apocalyptic world with zombies and a possessive MMC in a uniform. Which is EVERYTHING I love.
However, the execution of the story just wasn't there for me. I struggled to keep my head in the story and was never able to connect to either Scottie or Slade. I felt the dynamic between the two was too undeveloped for my taste and never got the buildup I needed to fall for the characters. Not to mention, their entire relationship was this weird roller coaster and felt cringey to me at times. Lastly, for a post-apocalyptic world, everything in this world seems to be just fine which is in direct opposition from what I expected.
Moral of the story is, this book wasn't a book for me. I am sure others will enjoy it, but I don't know that I will continue the series despite the interesting cliffhanger.
However, the execution of the story just wasn't there for me. I struggled to keep my head in the story and was never able to connect to either Scottie or Slade. I felt the dynamic between the two was too undeveloped for my taste and never got the buildup I needed to fall for the characters. Not to mention, their entire relationship was this weird roller coaster and felt cringey to me at times. Lastly, for a post-apocalyptic world, everything in this world seems to be just fine which is in direct opposition from what I expected.
Moral of the story is, this book wasn't a book for me. I am sure others will enjoy it, but I don't know that I will continue the series despite the interesting cliffhanger.
June 28, 2026
Wild Silver and Lead is a mix of The Walking Dead, The Last of Us, and a whole lot of sex.
Slade and Scottie have undeniable chemistry. Slade has a mouth on him. So many of the things he was saying to Scottie throughout the book though just gave me the ick. Why is it cool to call a 25-year-old virgin a whore repeatedly?
I felt like I wanted to know more about the civilization in general. I feel like we are missing key details as readers and maybe that’s for a particular reason as this seems to be the first in the series. Also, who is Mary? I need to know more and the cliffhanger just pissed me off.
Slade and Scottie have undeniable chemistry. Slade has a mouth on him. So many of the things he was saying to Scottie throughout the book though just gave me the ick. Why is it cool to call a 25-year-old virgin a whore repeatedly?
I felt like I wanted to know more about the civilization in general. I feel like we are missing key details as readers and maybe that’s for a particular reason as this seems to be the first in the series. Also, who is Mary? I need to know more and the cliffhanger just pissed me off.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Many thanks to NetGalley, Montlake & the author Lexie Axelson for the ARC!
3.5⭐️
what an interesting fun read! I flew through this SO QUICK LMAO
also WHAT WAS THAT ENDING. i'm floored.
i typically don't reach for military genre but this mix of Dystopian, zombies (!!!!), and Resident Evil, the Walking Dead & The Last of Us kept me at the edge of my seat the whole time. also did I mention - Marriage of Convenience trope? SIGN ME TF UP.
as someone who enjoys watching apocalyptic movies, and reading dark romance, it was done right in a book form. the suspense elements caused lots of uneasiness while reading, alright.
this was undeniably a SPICY insta-lust time, and throwing in a toxic, possessive, morally grey MMC like Slade? I'm colorblind. I like how we got more from the side characters apart from Slade and Raven here as well, and added so much character to the plot!
Speaking of Slade and Raven, aHHhHh i really liked their banter, chemistry, and their tension was more of "will-they-won't-they" enemies to lovers situation.
Now onto the minor isses I had with this plot - in general, I still enjoyed the premise and the spice was great! I was hooked at the beginning but as the plot progressed, it started to fall off, largely because of the pacing. It was choppy in places and the timeline was a tad confusing to follow along, which made some of the plot points not make sense. On top of that, the last 20% was a bit too slow for my liking, though usually it's the other way around.
Lots of contradictions & repititions in terms of the inner monologues and overall relationship between the characters as well, so I was just a bit confused while I read. I also had a hard time following Slade's train of thought and motivation for his actions, and had a tad of whiplash from his constant mood swings, and now with his hidden agenda at the end...? Not sure what to feel about him.
I also feel the world building was an issue - we didn't get enough context/history of the virus, we only got a bit of an explanation about 70% into the book which confused me because that's suppsoedly the core of the plot. There was also potential for stronger character development but all these elements seemed to take a backseat to the smut - but hey, I'm not complaining because the spice was SPICING.
Overall, if you want a fast-paced, spicy, suspenseful time in a post-apocalyptic setting, you can give this a shot!!!
Publication Date: 6 Oct 2026
3.5⭐️
what an interesting fun read! I flew through this SO QUICK LMAO
also WHAT WAS THAT ENDING. i'm floored.
i typically don't reach for military genre but this mix of Dystopian, zombies (!!!!), and Resident Evil, the Walking Dead & The Last of Us kept me at the edge of my seat the whole time. also did I mention - Marriage of Convenience trope? SIGN ME TF UP.
as someone who enjoys watching apocalyptic movies, and reading dark romance, it was done right in a book form. the suspense elements caused lots of uneasiness while reading, alright.
this was undeniably a SPICY insta-lust time, and throwing in a toxic, possessive, morally grey MMC like Slade? I'm colorblind. I like how we got more from the side characters apart from Slade and Raven here as well, and added so much character to the plot!
Speaking of Slade and Raven, aHHhHh i really liked their banter, chemistry, and their tension was more of "will-they-won't-they" enemies to lovers situation.
Now onto the minor isses I had with this plot - in general, I still enjoyed the premise and the spice was great! I was hooked at the beginning but as the plot progressed, it started to fall off, largely because of the pacing. It was choppy in places and the timeline was a tad confusing to follow along, which made some of the plot points not make sense. On top of that, the last 20% was a bit too slow for my liking, though usually it's the other way around.
Lots of contradictions & repititions in terms of the inner monologues and overall relationship between the characters as well, so I was just a bit confused while I read. I also had a hard time following Slade's train of thought and motivation for his actions, and had a tad of whiplash from his constant mood swings, and now with his hidden agenda at the end...? Not sure what to feel about him.
I also feel the world building was an issue - we didn't get enough context/history of the virus, we only got a bit of an explanation about 70% into the book which confused me because that's suppsoedly the core of the plot. There was also potential for stronger character development but all these elements seemed to take a backseat to the smut - but hey, I'm not complaining because the spice was SPICING.
Overall, if you want a fast-paced, spicy, suspenseful time in a post-apocalyptic setting, you can give this a shot!!!
Publication Date: 6 Oct 2026
October 13, 2026
I realised early on that Wild Silver and Lead was not going to be my cup of tea.
The FMC read like every pick-me, Bella Swan-inspired main character, and I found her annoying almost immediately. But the MMC was even worse. I pictured Slade as some old, OLD cowboy chewing and spitting wherever he went, and unfortunately, I could not get that image out of my head.
The author also did two things that I absolutely loathe. First, the FMC is surrounded by people who revere the MMC and practically lord over him like he is some otherworldly god which I couldn't quite understand to be honest. Second, the FMC seems physically incapable of thinking about this man without going through the same repetitive internal monologue.
"Oh my God, those EMERALD eyes. They just do something to me. Oh, I hate him. My panties are getting wet just looking at him. But he shot me. Oh, my lust-addled brain just can't handle being around him. Oh, he's such a mean dude."
And genuinely, I cannot stand when a relationship is built almost entirely on the FMC being perpetually horny for a man she supposedly hates, while the emotionally stunted MMC refuses to reveal that he likes her until the plot decides it's finally time.
Aside from the lacklustre romance, which was the only reason I was here, I found the characters rather flat and the world didn't feel particularly well-built.
So, yeah. Unfortunately, I think this will be my first and last book by Lexie Axelson which is a shame because the cover is so pretty!
I received an advanced reading copy and advanced listening copy for free through the publisher & NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
The FMC read like every pick-me, Bella Swan-inspired main character, and I found her annoying almost immediately. But the MMC was even worse. I pictured Slade as some old, OLD cowboy chewing and spitting wherever he went, and unfortunately, I could not get that image out of my head.
The author also did two things that I absolutely loathe. First, the FMC is surrounded by people who revere the MMC and practically lord over him like he is some otherworldly god which I couldn't quite understand to be honest. Second, the FMC seems physically incapable of thinking about this man without going through the same repetitive internal monologue.
"Oh my God, those EMERALD eyes. They just do something to me. Oh, I hate him. My panties are getting wet just looking at him. But he shot me. Oh, my lust-addled brain just can't handle being around him. Oh, he's such a mean dude."
And genuinely, I cannot stand when a relationship is built almost entirely on the FMC being perpetually horny for a man she supposedly hates, while the emotionally stunted MMC refuses to reveal that he likes her until the plot decides it's finally time.
Aside from the lacklustre romance, which was the only reason I was here, I found the characters rather flat and the world didn't feel particularly well-built.
So, yeah. Unfortunately, I think this will be my first and last book by Lexie Axelson which is a shame because the cover is so pretty!
I received an advanced reading copy and advanced listening copy for free through the publisher & NetGalley, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
July 6, 2026
This review and more can be found on my Bookstagram & Booktok @ Ambeeandink!
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Montlake & Lexie Axelson for the review copy and exchange for an honest review!
TROPES:
🧟♂️Enemies-to-Lovers
💜Military MMC
🧟♂️Dystopian/Zombies
💜Age Gap
🧟♂️Dark Romance
💜Forced Proximity
2026 is suppose to be the healed version of me, but here I am drooling over a man as toxic as Slade like he doesn’t throw red flags right and left. I am a big fan of dystopian books, especially those after a zombie apocalypse. Though I did spend a good part of this book wanting more information and needing more, I can see how leaving readers in the dark and questioning left the cliffhanger of an ending as startling as it was. This is my first Lexie Axelson novel, but I do have faith that she is going to give us all of those answers as the series goes on. I really enjoyed our female main character, though she had moments where I questioned things she did or said I also took into account the brief history of her upbringing and how she could be in naïve a lot of things outside of her sheltered life. I do appreciate her growth and self discovery throughout the book and I am excited to see more as the series continues on. Slade, besides me drooling and his filthy mouth that had me blushing, has a tragic backstory that made certain behaviors of his understandable but I still have loads of questions regarding what is going on with him. Overall I did really enjoy Wild Silver and Lead and after that cliffhanger, I can’t wait to see what is in store next!
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Montlake & Lexie Axelson for the review copy and exchange for an honest review!
TROPES:
🧟♂️Enemies-to-Lovers
💜Military MMC
🧟♂️Dystopian/Zombies
💜Age Gap
🧟♂️Dark Romance
💜Forced Proximity
2026 is suppose to be the healed version of me, but here I am drooling over a man as toxic as Slade like he doesn’t throw red flags right and left. I am a big fan of dystopian books, especially those after a zombie apocalypse. Though I did spend a good part of this book wanting more information and needing more, I can see how leaving readers in the dark and questioning left the cliffhanger of an ending as startling as it was. This is my first Lexie Axelson novel, but I do have faith that she is going to give us all of those answers as the series goes on. I really enjoyed our female main character, though she had moments where I questioned things she did or said I also took into account the brief history of her upbringing and how she could be in naïve a lot of things outside of her sheltered life. I do appreciate her growth and self discovery throughout the book and I am excited to see more as the series continues on. Slade, besides me drooling and his filthy mouth that had me blushing, has a tragic backstory that made certain behaviors of his understandable but I still have loads of questions regarding what is going on with him. Overall I did really enjoy Wild Silver and Lead and after that cliffhanger, I can’t wait to see what is in store next!
October 4, 2026
Good premise, poor execution.
After a great read in Mariposa, I was really excited to read Axelson’s newest book but good god this fell flat. I have no idea what the plot of this book was. Just very disjointed and I don’t even know the who, what, why of this post apocalyptic world. Speaking of post apocalyptic, everyone seeks to be just fine. Multiple communities and groups of people are doing well.
These characters were bland and boring and I could not connect with anyone in this book. They were unlikable to me and I don’t know why they even liked each other. If a man shoots me in the chest and then taunts me about it, our potential relationship is over.
Thank you to NetGalley and Montlake for the advanced copy!
Read
July 5, 2026🩶 Wild Silver and Lead 🩶
📖 Bookish Thoughts
My full review will be shared closer to the publication date.
🩸What to Expect
• Dark Dystopian
• Military MMC
• Zombie Apocalypse
• Morally Gray Hero
• Touch Her and Die
• Forced Proximity
_ _ _
📅 Pub Date: October 6, 2026
Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for the advanced copy.
📖 Bookish Thoughts
My full review will be shared closer to the publication date.
🩸What to Expect
• Dark Dystopian
• Military MMC
• Zombie Apocalypse
• Morally Gray Hero
• Touch Her and Die
• Forced Proximity
_ _ _
📅 Pub Date: October 6, 2026
Thank you to Montlake and NetGalley for the advanced copy.
October 7, 2026
Wild Silver and Lead
4.5 stars
I was a huge fan of Mariposa by Lexie Axelson, so I was SOOO excited to read this one, and it absolutely did not disappoint! I couldn’t put it down and loved Scottie and Slade so much. Their dynamic was everything, and I’m already dying to read more from Snake Ops. And that ending?! I NEED MORE.
The dedication really said it all: “For those who can’t help but fall for the grumpy fictional villain and aren’t afraid to be chased in the dark.” 😂 Honestly, sign me up.
Tropes:
🧟♂️ Post-Apocalyptic & Zombies
🧟♂️ Dark Military Romance
🧟♂️ Enemies to Lovers
🧟♂️ Marriage of Convenience
🧟♂️ Alpha-Hole MMC
🧟♂️ Latina Baddie FMC
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Lexie Axelson for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!
4.5 stars
I was a huge fan of Mariposa by Lexie Axelson, so I was SOOO excited to read this one, and it absolutely did not disappoint! I couldn’t put it down and loved Scottie and Slade so much. Their dynamic was everything, and I’m already dying to read more from Snake Ops. And that ending?! I NEED MORE.
The dedication really said it all: “For those who can’t help but fall for the grumpy fictional villain and aren’t afraid to be chased in the dark.” 😂 Honestly, sign me up.
Tropes:
🧟♂️ Post-Apocalyptic & Zombies
🧟♂️ Dark Military Romance
🧟♂️ Enemies to Lovers
🧟♂️ Marriage of Convenience
🧟♂️ Alpha-Hole MMC
🧟♂️ Latina Baddie FMC
Thank you so much to NetGalley and Lexie Axelson for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review!
July 4, 2026
As a huge The Walking Dead fan, this book had me hooked from the beginning. I love a good zombie dystopian, and the survival aspect kept me turning the pages.
This was my first dystopian dark romance, and Slade definitely didn’t disappoint. He’s ruthless, protective, and will do whatever it takes to make Scottie his. Their chemistry, the action, and the nonstop tension made this such an addictive read.
Then Lexie hit me with that plot twist… followed by THAT cliffhanger.
I literally finished the book and just sat there staring at the wall trying to process what I had just read.
🖤 Dark dystopian romance
🧟♀️ Post-apocalyptic survival
🪖 Morally gray military MMC
🔥 “Touch her and die”
💍 Marriage of convenience
Thank you to Lexie Axelson and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. I’m leaving my review voluntarily, and all opinions are my own.
This was my first dystopian dark romance, and Slade definitely didn’t disappoint. He’s ruthless, protective, and will do whatever it takes to make Scottie his. Their chemistry, the action, and the nonstop tension made this such an addictive read.
Then Lexie hit me with that plot twist… followed by THAT cliffhanger.
I literally finished the book and just sat there staring at the wall trying to process what I had just read.
🖤 Dark dystopian romance
🧟♀️ Post-apocalyptic survival
🪖 Morally gray military MMC
🔥 “Touch her and die”
💍 Marriage of convenience
Thank you to Lexie Axelson and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC. I’m leaving my review voluntarily, and all opinions are my own.
July 9, 2026
I honestly hate to give an unreleased book a low rating. But ARCs are exchanged for honest reviews and that’s all I can give.
Tropes:
-Enemies To Lovers
-Dark Romance
-Military
- Forced Proximity
- Insta Lust
- Marriage of Convenience
- Zombies
Initially when I started this book I was hooked, walking dead vibes with military presence and a morally grey to pitch black MMC. Sign me up! Everything was there to write an incredible book and as far as the writing went, it isn’t bad, it flowed in parts and the world building worked for the most part.
Now I have to be honest, there were some vast inconsistencies here within the book, the FMC is alleged to have a photographic memory, and is only missing the night she got separated from her family. Yet she somehow forgot the whole ass entire man she was engaged to as she was given to him from her father.
Scottie should have died from an infection or at least gotten one. With the injuries she got (yes I know it’s fiction) no one’s healing and up and about so quickly. The girl gets stabbed and 16 hours later is dying her hair and having her nipples pierced, if there was another time jump Im sorry but it wasn’t clear.
There’s almost no chemistry between our MCs. Slade says he cannot fall in love, he doesn’t love her and it’s all a deal yet his actions and words say exactly the opposite. Scottie says she’s falling for him and yet keeps reminding him their marriage etc is all fake and for convenience. It’s flawed, I shouldn’t get to 80% and wonder if these people even like each other.
Scottie is also an inexperienced Virgin when she meets Slade, and the consistencies here are harrowing in my opinion. Our MC uses 3 fingers in our virgin FMC and not a peep about pain or dialogue, yet when they finally do the deed she’s in agony and says it hurts etc. All the while our MC knowing she’s never been kissed, never had sex, he still asks her dumb questions like “have you ever been f*caked against a wall” (im paraphrasing here) and obviously no..do you even know this girl?
It truly felt that the author felt the need to throw in as much sob story, drama and tropes she could possibly fit in. We had dead wife and child, a druggie abusive fiancé, an arranged marriage, lost family members, shot in the chest, stabbed and attempted SA, drowning in a lake. And this girl is supposed to be an elite sniper, well trained and a force to be reckoned with and yet she’s really a damsel for the most part. A target. We also need to address the fact Slade mentions that Scotties darkness is akin to his, yet Scottie can’t handle him torturing someone that held a gun to her head.
I genuinely really wanted to vibe well with this book. It has such promise and everything I was waiting and wanting for a new romance with zombies etc high stakes and morally grey mmc, and it just fell flat.
Tropes:
-Enemies To Lovers
-Dark Romance
-Military
- Forced Proximity
- Insta Lust
- Marriage of Convenience
- Zombies
Initially when I started this book I was hooked, walking dead vibes with military presence and a morally grey to pitch black MMC. Sign me up! Everything was there to write an incredible book and as far as the writing went, it isn’t bad, it flowed in parts and the world building worked for the most part.
Now I have to be honest, there were some vast inconsistencies here within the book, the FMC is alleged to have a photographic memory, and is only missing the night she got separated from her family. Yet she somehow forgot the whole ass entire man she was engaged to as she was given to him from her father.
Scottie should have died from an infection or at least gotten one. With the injuries she got (yes I know it’s fiction) no one’s healing and up and about so quickly. The girl gets stabbed and 16 hours later is dying her hair and having her nipples pierced, if there was another time jump Im sorry but it wasn’t clear.
There’s almost no chemistry between our MCs. Slade says he cannot fall in love, he doesn’t love her and it’s all a deal yet his actions and words say exactly the opposite. Scottie says she’s falling for him and yet keeps reminding him their marriage etc is all fake and for convenience. It’s flawed, I shouldn’t get to 80% and wonder if these people even like each other.
Scottie is also an inexperienced Virgin when she meets Slade, and the consistencies here are harrowing in my opinion. Our MC uses 3 fingers in our virgin FMC and not a peep about pain or dialogue, yet when they finally do the deed she’s in agony and says it hurts etc. All the while our MC knowing she’s never been kissed, never had sex, he still asks her dumb questions like “have you ever been f*caked against a wall” (im paraphrasing here) and obviously no..do you even know this girl?
It truly felt that the author felt the need to throw in as much sob story, drama and tropes she could possibly fit in. We had dead wife and child, a druggie abusive fiancé, an arranged marriage, lost family members, shot in the chest, stabbed and attempted SA, drowning in a lake. And this girl is supposed to be an elite sniper, well trained and a force to be reckoned with and yet she’s really a damsel for the most part. A target. We also need to address the fact Slade mentions that Scotties darkness is akin to his, yet Scottie can’t handle him torturing someone that held a gun to her head.
I genuinely really wanted to vibe well with this book. It has such promise and everything I was waiting and wanting for a new romance with zombies etc high stakes and morally grey mmc, and it just fell flat.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
✨Arc review✨
3.5⭐⭐⭐
3🌶️🌶️🌶️
Available now
Dystopian world and zombies? Yes please! Add in a marriage of convenience with a grumpy MMC and I was absolutely sat. Wild Silver and Lead is a mixture of The Walking Dead and The Last of Us followed with a whole lot of spice.🔥
Set in a world where the population is damn near wiped out due to the Raven Virus, where if infected you turn into a zombie. You have a latina baddie, Scottie Cuevas, who is searching for her parents and brother after being separated from them she gets accidently gets shot and taken to a compound. When she wakes up she meets Slade Reece, the grumpy ex Special Forces Captain, who is the person responsible for shooting her. Their chemistry is instant, and while she doesn't want to be there, she can't deny her feelings for Slade.
Slade is a possesive, toxic man but that did not stop my heart from pitter-pattering for him. The mouth on that man had my eyes bulging out at times, I may have liked his dirty talking a bit too much.😋I love a baddie FMC and Scottie was that chick, albeit she had her moments where she came across a bit naive, but I blame her parents for that. They had homegirl really secluded.
Overall I enjoyed the book and after that cliffhanger, I will be anxiously awaiting book 2. I can’t wait to see what happens next!
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Montlake & Lexie Axelson for the review copy and exchange for an honest review!
Tropes:
-Dark military romance
-Dystopian/zombies
-Alpha-hole MMC
-Latina baddie FMC
-Marriage of convenience
-Age gap
-Forced proximity
3.5⭐⭐⭐
3🌶️🌶️🌶️
Available now
Dystopian world and zombies? Yes please! Add in a marriage of convenience with a grumpy MMC and I was absolutely sat. Wild Silver and Lead is a mixture of The Walking Dead and The Last of Us followed with a whole lot of spice.🔥
Set in a world where the population is damn near wiped out due to the Raven Virus, where if infected you turn into a zombie. You have a latina baddie, Scottie Cuevas, who is searching for her parents and brother after being separated from them she gets accidently gets shot and taken to a compound. When she wakes up she meets Slade Reece, the grumpy ex Special Forces Captain, who is the person responsible for shooting her. Their chemistry is instant, and while she doesn't want to be there, she can't deny her feelings for Slade.
Slade is a possesive, toxic man but that did not stop my heart from pitter-pattering for him. The mouth on that man had my eyes bulging out at times, I may have liked his dirty talking a bit too much.😋I love a baddie FMC and Scottie was that chick, albeit she had her moments where she came across a bit naive, but I blame her parents for that. They had homegirl really secluded.
Overall I enjoyed the book and after that cliffhanger, I will be anxiously awaiting book 2. I can’t wait to see what happens next!
Thank you so much to NetGalley, Montlake & Lexie Axelson for the review copy and exchange for an honest review!
Tropes:
-Dark military romance
-Dystopian/zombies
-Alpha-hole MMC
-Latina baddie FMC
-Marriage of convenience
-Age gap
-Forced proximity
October 6, 2026
I am so interested where this series is going.
The plot points of the zombies and find the FMCs family, faded to the background a little because more immanent danger presented itself in the way of the rebels… which… wtf? The cliffhanger is brutal
The plot points of the zombies and find the FMCs family, faded to the background a little because more immanent danger presented itself in the way of the rebels… which… wtf? The cliffhanger is brutal
July 15, 2026
ARC ✨
Rating. 3.5 ish⭐️
This was a fast paced The Walking Dead Alexandria season sprinkled with The Last of Us (in aspects of the virus complexity) I enjoyed the fast burn, intense and to the point with lot’s of secrecy/confusion. You are constantly on your toes turning the page to see what happens next, making me want to stay up late reading. I will continue on in this series, it was very fun, and 100% up my alley.
With all the being said, I’m still trying to figure out what didn’t quite add up, making this not an automatic love. I found it was something in the sequence. Now, I’m not super analytical, overanalyzing the writing and components of a book but often times I would be a bit confused as to how we got from point A to point B or one thing happens transitioning to something else that didn’t make sense. This pulled me out of the story a bit, as I’d find myself re reading or questioning my memory of the scene I’d be reading, granted I know this is an ARC, so not fully edited (I KNOW) but a few pieces seemed not quite right, beyond edits. I feel like this would’ve helped the pacing (which i love that it was fast paced, stay with me now) but it felt x2 speed and things were flying past that I couldn’t grasp because it was boom boom boom, on to the next thing, back to this, then moving onto another. It sounds like i’m hating the fast pacing but this i would not change, which is why I say the sequence. (For lack of a better term because it’s not the plot, pacing, characters, nor depth, due to all the secrecy) This could be just in the ARC but i don’t know, i can’t put my finger fully on it, but know I will.
All in all this was a rollercoaster of emotions, only touching the surface on just how deep I think these characters will go. I look forward to seeing where the story goes as we are left on a tv show fade to black cliffhanger type.
Rating. 3.5 ish⭐️
This was a fast paced The Walking Dead Alexandria season sprinkled with The Last of Us (in aspects of the virus complexity) I enjoyed the fast burn, intense and to the point with lot’s of secrecy/confusion. You are constantly on your toes turning the page to see what happens next, making me want to stay up late reading. I will continue on in this series, it was very fun, and 100% up my alley.
With all the being said, I’m still trying to figure out what didn’t quite add up, making this not an automatic love. I found it was something in the sequence. Now, I’m not super analytical, overanalyzing the writing and components of a book but often times I would be a bit confused as to how we got from point A to point B or one thing happens transitioning to something else that didn’t make sense. This pulled me out of the story a bit, as I’d find myself re reading or questioning my memory of the scene I’d be reading, granted I know this is an ARC, so not fully edited (I KNOW) but a few pieces seemed not quite right, beyond edits. I feel like this would’ve helped the pacing (which i love that it was fast paced, stay with me now) but it felt x2 speed and things were flying past that I couldn’t grasp because it was boom boom boom, on to the next thing, back to this, then moving onto another. It sounds like i’m hating the fast pacing but this i would not change, which is why I say the sequence. (For lack of a better term because it’s not the plot, pacing, characters, nor depth, due to all the secrecy) This could be just in the ARC but i don’t know, i can’t put my finger fully on it, but know I will.
All in all this was a rollercoaster of emotions, only touching the surface on just how deep I think these characters will go. I look forward to seeing where the story goes as we are left on a tv show fade to black cliffhanger type.
October 3, 2026
🖤 “You don’t get to die on me, Scottie. We’ve only just begun.”
3⭐️ 3🌶️
I’m a SUCKER for a post apocalyptic world setting and this one had so many elements that pulled me in!!!
You’ve got zombies, different groups of survivors forming their own versions of government, military operations, advanced soldier training, hidden secrets, and repressed memories…
And at some point you start wondering if you should be more afraid of the zombies or the humans 👀
Here’s what I loved:
+ I loved the different groups, the survival aspect, and the uncertainty of who can actually be trusted
+ Slade is POSSESSIVE. This man is not afraid to kill anyone who touches her. He quite literally does
+ hidden secrets and repressed memories
+ military operations and training to become advanced soldiers for war
+ the spice oh my 🥵 If you like your men walking around with approximately 47 red flags attached to them Slade is your guy!!!!
+ Latina FMC who will go to the ends of the earth to find her family
Here’s where I struggled:
- this is a dark romance so yes… there’s going to be some darker themes but Slade the MMC took it a little too far for me in some scenes. He is still mourning the loss of his dead wife after 10 years of losing her and it just made me feel really heartbroken for Scottie the things be says to her
- I also struggled with the whiplash in their relationship. There were moments where their dynamic changed so drastically that it pulled me out of the story. I found myself feeling just as confused as Scottie was
- the math is not mathing with her injury recovery time
That said I am invested enough to continue
This is the first book in a series and it ends on a cliffhanger so I am interested to know what happens next
💕 You’ll enjoy this if you’re into:
🖤 post apocalyptic worlds
🖤 doing whatever it takes to survive
🖤 dark cowboy military captain
🖤 extremely possessive / morally gray MMCs
🖤 dark romance
🖤 first time/ inexperienced FMC
🖤 military operations
🖤 determined Latina FMC
🖤 found family
🖤 “For those who can’t help but fall for the grumpy fictional villain and aren’t afraid to be chased in the dark.”
3⭐️ 3🌶️
I’m a SUCKER for a post apocalyptic world setting and this one had so many elements that pulled me in!!!
You’ve got zombies, different groups of survivors forming their own versions of government, military operations, advanced soldier training, hidden secrets, and repressed memories…
And at some point you start wondering if you should be more afraid of the zombies or the humans 👀
Here’s what I loved:
+ I loved the different groups, the survival aspect, and the uncertainty of who can actually be trusted
+ Slade is POSSESSIVE. This man is not afraid to kill anyone who touches her. He quite literally does
+ hidden secrets and repressed memories
+ military operations and training to become advanced soldiers for war
+ the spice oh my 🥵 If you like your men walking around with approximately 47 red flags attached to them Slade is your guy!!!!
+ Latina FMC who will go to the ends of the earth to find her family
Here’s where I struggled:
- this is a dark romance so yes… there’s going to be some darker themes but Slade the MMC took it a little too far for me in some scenes. He is still mourning the loss of his dead wife after 10 years of losing her and it just made me feel really heartbroken for Scottie the things be says to her
- I also struggled with the whiplash in their relationship. There were moments where their dynamic changed so drastically that it pulled me out of the story. I found myself feeling just as confused as Scottie was
- the math is not mathing with her injury recovery time
That said I am invested enough to continue
This is the first book in a series and it ends on a cliffhanger so I am interested to know what happens next
💕 You’ll enjoy this if you’re into:
🖤 post apocalyptic worlds
🖤 doing whatever it takes to survive
🖤 dark cowboy military captain
🖤 extremely possessive / morally gray MMCs
🖤 dark romance
🖤 first time/ inexperienced FMC
🖤 military operations
🖤 determined Latina FMC
🖤 found family
🖤 “For those who can’t help but fall for the grumpy fictional villain and aren’t afraid to be chased in the dark.”
September 6, 2026
Dark, intense and super steamy, this was a dark romance read that kept me hooked from the get go and separated itself from other reads in the genre completely. If you’re a fan of the walking dead, the last of us and the new movie dog stars but seeking a spicy twist then this is for you.
Wild Silver and Lead takes place following a terrifying virus that left the world totally undone and as the reader we are introduced to Slade and Scottie who quickly go from enemies to lovers and back to enemies again. Throughout this book we see their relationship develop and while they do have incredible chemistry that is written in a way that makes me feel and believe it it must also be said that the dynamics of this relationship are flawed and Scottie is not for everyone. This is a man who is cold, harsh, ruthless and mean and every time I felt as though I was starting to warm up to him i found myself angry at and hating him all over again. Come the end of the book I wasn’t sure how i felt about his character and that was my main issue with the book. His sexism and comments towards Slade were uncomfortable to listen to and meant that even when we got to see a nicer version of him i wasn’t totally invested or backing them as a couple. Slade however, was a character i really enjoyed reading. She was strong and brave but also vulnerable and relatable, she’s a survivor through and through and it made her such an endearing character you found yourself totally rooting for. I would have read a book just on her and her journey in this new world.
The book overall was dark but fun. I couldn’t stop listening and the audio narration was excellent. I felt all of Slade’s emotions and could see her growth throughout this book but also how she stayed true to herself. I loved the walking dead vibes in this book and how developed the characters were. Come the end I wasn’t sure left wanting to read even more and massively anticipating what’s next. If you like a spicy read with a military vibes and a fan of post apocalyptic stories then this is perfect for you.
Wild Silver and Lead takes place following a terrifying virus that left the world totally undone and as the reader we are introduced to Slade and Scottie who quickly go from enemies to lovers and back to enemies again. Throughout this book we see their relationship develop and while they do have incredible chemistry that is written in a way that makes me feel and believe it it must also be said that the dynamics of this relationship are flawed and Scottie is not for everyone. This is a man who is cold, harsh, ruthless and mean and every time I felt as though I was starting to warm up to him i found myself angry at and hating him all over again. Come the end of the book I wasn’t sure how i felt about his character and that was my main issue with the book. His sexism and comments towards Slade were uncomfortable to listen to and meant that even when we got to see a nicer version of him i wasn’t totally invested or backing them as a couple. Slade however, was a character i really enjoyed reading. She was strong and brave but also vulnerable and relatable, she’s a survivor through and through and it made her such an endearing character you found yourself totally rooting for. I would have read a book just on her and her journey in this new world.
The book overall was dark but fun. I couldn’t stop listening and the audio narration was excellent. I felt all of Slade’s emotions and could see her growth throughout this book but also how she stayed true to herself. I loved the walking dead vibes in this book and how developed the characters were. Come the end I wasn’t sure left wanting to read even more and massively anticipating what’s next. If you like a spicy read with a military vibes and a fan of post apocalyptic stories then this is perfect for you.
September 29, 2026
2.5/5 ⭐️
2.5/5 🌶️
This book was surprisingly long for how little actually happened.
I enjoy dark romance. I enjoy spice. I am absolutely not someone who needs every romance to be plot-heavy or morally upright. But this somehow felt less like a dark romance and more like someone making fun of dark romance. There was almost no plot, an enormous amount of spice, and unfortunately most of that spice did absolutely nothing for me.
The two main characters also felt completely flat. Neither had much personality, neither had particularly redeeming qualities, and I never became invested in them individually or as a couple. By the end, I genuinely found myself wondering what had actually happened over the course of the book—and the answer was basically… not much.
My 2.5/5 rating is generous.
Janine Granda and Brandon Utah were both new-to-me narrators, and I thought they did a great job with the material they were given. I’d happily listen to either of them again.
And once again, for the audiobook publishers in the back: in this day and age, it takes very little additional effort to make a romance audiobook duet narration instead of dual narration. PLEASE. I am begging you.
2.5/5 🌶️
This book was surprisingly long for how little actually happened.
I enjoy dark romance. I enjoy spice. I am absolutely not someone who needs every romance to be plot-heavy or morally upright. But this somehow felt less like a dark romance and more like someone making fun of dark romance. There was almost no plot, an enormous amount of spice, and unfortunately most of that spice did absolutely nothing for me.
The two main characters also felt completely flat. Neither had much personality, neither had particularly redeeming qualities, and I never became invested in them individually or as a couple. By the end, I genuinely found myself wondering what had actually happened over the course of the book—and the answer was basically… not much.
My 2.5/5 rating is generous.
Janine Granda and Brandon Utah were both new-to-me narrators, and I thought they did a great job with the material they were given. I’d happily listen to either of them again.
And once again, for the audiobook publishers in the back: in this day and age, it takes very little additional effort to make a romance audiobook duet narration instead of dual narration. PLEASE. I am begging you.
October 9, 2026
this is hard to review.
I have so many mixed feelings about the mmc. I genuinely dont like him and im kinda hoping theres a twist in book 2 and hes not the mmc. She deserves better and in the end he was acting very suspicious and hiding things. The pacing felt off at times and too many tropes were packed into the story so quickly. I did like the idea of this and i would have to read book 2 when it comes out to find out more and give you my final thoughts. There are just too many questions unanswered at the moment.
I have so many mixed feelings about the mmc. I genuinely dont like him and im kinda hoping theres a twist in book 2 and hes not the mmc. She deserves better and in the end he was acting very suspicious and hiding things. The pacing felt off at times and too many tropes were packed into the story so quickly. I did like the idea of this and i would have to read book 2 when it comes out to find out more and give you my final thoughts. There are just too many questions unanswered at the moment.
June 24, 2026
first, i want to thank montlake and lexie axelson for the arc copy in exchange for an honest review. this book is set to release on october 6, 2026.
oh my god.
that’s it. that’s the review.
okay, not really, but genuinely that is the primary thought rattling around in my brain after finishing this book. the speed in which i devoured it needs to be studied. i saw this available as a read now, did a little research, and as a resident evil girlie i knew i needed this book the same way i need air to breathe.
the world building was absolutely immaculate. the setting? perfect. the flashbacks? perfect. the explanations behind the outbreak? PERFECT. every piece of information felt intentional and added another layer to the story. as someone who loves apocalyptic movies, books, and games, this was everything i could have wanted. i also loved that we got to know so much more than just slade and scottie. the supporting characters felt important and added so much life to the world.
and speaking of slade and scottie… your honor, i love them.
their banter, their chemistry, the tension, the constant will-they-won’t-they of it all had me completely hooked. they are soulmates in their own deeply fucked up apocalypse-coded way and i was eating up every second of it.
and then THAT ENDING.
i would like to formally file a lawsuit for emotional distress because what do you MEAN?! this book isn’t even out yet and somehow i already have to suffer waiting for the next one? absolutely criminal behavior. a crime against humanity, if you ask me. and by humanity, i mean me.
if you’re a fan of the last of us, resident evil, or the walking dead, please put this on your radar immediately. i had an absolute blast with this one and i already need the sequel in my hands.
oh my god.
that’s it. that’s the review.
okay, not really, but genuinely that is the primary thought rattling around in my brain after finishing this book. the speed in which i devoured it needs to be studied. i saw this available as a read now, did a little research, and as a resident evil girlie i knew i needed this book the same way i need air to breathe.
the world building was absolutely immaculate. the setting? perfect. the flashbacks? perfect. the explanations behind the outbreak? PERFECT. every piece of information felt intentional and added another layer to the story. as someone who loves apocalyptic movies, books, and games, this was everything i could have wanted. i also loved that we got to know so much more than just slade and scottie. the supporting characters felt important and added so much life to the world.
and speaking of slade and scottie… your honor, i love them.
their banter, their chemistry, the tension, the constant will-they-won’t-they of it all had me completely hooked. they are soulmates in their own deeply fucked up apocalypse-coded way and i was eating up every second of it.
and then THAT ENDING.
i would like to formally file a lawsuit for emotional distress because what do you MEAN?! this book isn’t even out yet and somehow i already have to suffer waiting for the next one? absolutely criminal behavior. a crime against humanity, if you ask me. and by humanity, i mean me.
if you’re a fan of the last of us, resident evil, or the walking dead, please put this on your radar immediately. i had an absolute blast with this one and i already need the sequel in my hands.
July 13, 2026
“𝑻𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒊𝒔𝒏'𝒕 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒓𝒐𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒄𝒔. 𝑰𝒕'𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒔𝒖𝒓𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒍. 𝑺𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔𝒏'𝒕 𝒈𝒆𝒕 𝒊𝒕” 🖤
This was a good read if you want a dystopian romance with a bunch of zombies.
It had its steamy moments, whilst giving us all the action and a dark storyline. The world that was created really set the tone of what was happening. Some parts of the story did get tiring and somehow slowed the story down, like when Scottie had to prove herself. Slade was definitely that MMC! I honestly loved Slade's gestures deep down. It also had me smiling towards the end. The cliffhanger is what’s leading me to book 2 because it was REALLY good! I’m intrigued to see what will happen next and the reasoning for it all because what’s really going on here????
Thank you montlake and netgalley and for this arc copy
𝑸𝒖𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒔:
“𝑫𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆. 𝑻𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔”
"𝑭𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒖𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚. 𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒃𝒆 𝒂 𝒔𝒖𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒔”
“𝑰𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓?" 𝑰 𝒏𝒐𝒅. "𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔?" "𝑭𝒂𝒍𝒍," 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒔𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒕."𝑾𝒉𝒚?" "𝑩𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒊𝒕'𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏”
“𝑰 𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍 𝒕𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕; 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍”
This was a good read if you want a dystopian romance with a bunch of zombies.
It had its steamy moments, whilst giving us all the action and a dark storyline. The world that was created really set the tone of what was happening. Some parts of the story did get tiring and somehow slowed the story down, like when Scottie had to prove herself. Slade was definitely that MMC! I honestly loved Slade's gestures deep down. It also had me smiling towards the end. The cliffhanger is what’s leading me to book 2 because it was REALLY good! I’m intrigued to see what will happen next and the reasoning for it all because what’s really going on here????
Thank you montlake and netgalley and for this arc copy
𝑸𝒖𝒐𝒕𝒆𝒔:
“𝑫𝒐𝒏'𝒕 𝒕𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒂𝒏𝒚𝒐𝒏𝒆. 𝑻𝒓𝒖𝒔𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒘𝒆𝒂𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔”
"𝑭𝒂𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒊𝒏 𝒉𝒖𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒊𝒕𝒚. 𝑬𝒗𝒆𝒏 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒓𝒌𝒏𝒆𝒔𝒔, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒘𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒃𝒆 𝒂 𝒔𝒖𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒓𝒊𝒔𝒆𝒔”
“𝑰𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒚𝒆𝒂𝒓?" 𝑰 𝒏𝒐𝒅. "𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕'𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔?" "𝑭𝒂𝒍𝒍," 𝒉𝒆 𝒔𝒂𝒚𝒔 𝒔𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒚 𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉𝒐𝒖𝒕 𝒎𝒊𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒂 𝒃𝒆𝒂𝒕."𝑾𝒉𝒚?" "𝑩𝒆𝒄𝒂𝒖𝒔𝒆 𝒊𝒕'𝒔 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒇𝒂𝒗𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒆 𝒔𝒆𝒂𝒔𝒐𝒏”
“𝑰 𝒌𝒆𝒆𝒑 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍 𝒕𝒐𝒏𝒊𝒈𝒉𝒕; 𝒔𝒉𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒌𝒆𝒔 𝒎𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒔𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒍”
July 4, 2026
Cliffhanger!!! 😱 I NEED Book 2 because I have so many questions!
This is only the second book I’ve read by Lexie Axelson, and after loving Mariposa, I had a feeling I’d love this one too—and I was right. I couldn’t put it down!
This story has everything I enjoy: dark romance, enemies to lovers, survival, and plenty of suspense. Scottie reminded me to trust your instincts and pay attention to the little details because those uneasy feelings are sometimes there for a reason.
I’m definitely rooting for Slade and Scottie, but that ending has me questioning Slade a little… 👀 And can we talk about how possessive he is?!
If you love dark, suspenseful romance with an ending that leaves you desperate for more, I definitely recommend this book. Lexie Axelson has officially become a must read author for me! 🖤📚
October 11, 2026
★★★☆☆ 3.25 stars
🎧Dual - Great performance by the narrators
A zombie apocalypse, a toxic military man, and a whole lot of questionable decisions. Apparently, this is my kind of entertainment. 😂🧟♀️
I went into Wild Silver and Lead wanting dystopian chaos, survival, secrets, and a morally questionable man who would have me questioning my own taste in fictional men. And, well… I certainly got some of that.
The premise has SO much potential. The post apocalyptic setting, the rival factions, the military element, the secrets, the trauma, the general sense that there’s a whole lot more going on beneath the surface… I was genuinely intrigued. But I also spent a fair amount of this book feeling like I was missing several chapters of information. 👀
And look, I am not opposed to a toxic MMC. But there’s a difference between being dark and complicated and just being an absolute arsehole. 😂
Slade has a filthy mouth, and while I can appreciate a well executed bit of dirty talk, some of his dialogue had me cringing rather than blushing. 🫣
The constant name calling, particularly repeatedly calling Scottie a whore when she’s a 25 year old virgin, got old VERY quickly. There were moments when I genuinely wanted someone to tell this man to shut up and sort himself out.
His backstory hints at deeper layers, and I can see the potential for understanding his behaviour as we learn more about him. But at this point, I’m not entirely sold.
And Scottie? I actually enjoyed seeing her navigate a world so different from the sheltered life she knew before. Her growth and self discovery were some of the more interesting aspects of the story, and I appreciated that her upbringing was taken into account when considering her naivety. That said, there were definitely moments when I questioned her decisions. The dynamic between these two also moved far too quickly for me. The lust is there, but I struggled to buy into the emotional progression, and some of their interactions left me wondering how exactly we got from A to B.
The world building was probably my biggest frustration.
I wanted MORE. More about the world after the apocalypse, more about the different factions, more about why the Rebels and the Snakes are at odds, and more about the people and systems shaping this new society. There are so many interesting threads introduced, but I often felt as though I was being given just enough information to be intrigued without enough to properly understand what was happening.
The ending certainly leaves you with questions, and while I can appreciate that a first book in a series doesn't need to explain absolutely everything, there's a difference between deliberately building mystery and leaving your reader feeling a little lost. I'm hoping the unanswered questions are intentional and that the next instalment gives us more substance to work with.
That cliffhanger, though? Rude. 😆
Ultimately, I think Wild Silver and Lead is a case of great potential, slightly messy execution. The ingredients for something I could really love are all here, but the pacing occasionally felt rushed, the romance needed more development, and the world building left me wanting considerably more depth. Some of the dialogue also pulled me out of the story when it should have been drawing me further in.
BUT, and this is important, this is only book one. There's clearly more to uncover, and I don't think it's entirely fair to judge every unanswered question or unresolved character thread before the series has had a chance to develop.
Am I completely sold on Slade? Absolutely not. Does Scottie deserve better? Currently, I'm leaning towards YES, GIRL, PLEASE RECONSIDER. 😂 Will I be picking up book two when it comes out? Probably, because despite my complaints, I'm curious enough to want answers.
Tropes: Enemies to lovers • Military MMC • Zombie apocalypse • Dystopian romance • Age gap • Forced proximity • Dark romance • Toxic MMC
**** Thank you to netgally for the ALC Copy of this book , this is my honest review***
🎧Dual - Great performance by the narrators
A zombie apocalypse, a toxic military man, and a whole lot of questionable decisions. Apparently, this is my kind of entertainment. 😂🧟♀️
I went into Wild Silver and Lead wanting dystopian chaos, survival, secrets, and a morally questionable man who would have me questioning my own taste in fictional men. And, well… I certainly got some of that.
The premise has SO much potential. The post apocalyptic setting, the rival factions, the military element, the secrets, the trauma, the general sense that there’s a whole lot more going on beneath the surface… I was genuinely intrigued. But I also spent a fair amount of this book feeling like I was missing several chapters of information. 👀
And look, I am not opposed to a toxic MMC. But there’s a difference between being dark and complicated and just being an absolute arsehole. 😂
Slade has a filthy mouth, and while I can appreciate a well executed bit of dirty talk, some of his dialogue had me cringing rather than blushing. 🫣
The constant name calling, particularly repeatedly calling Scottie a whore when she’s a 25 year old virgin, got old VERY quickly. There were moments when I genuinely wanted someone to tell this man to shut up and sort himself out.
His backstory hints at deeper layers, and I can see the potential for understanding his behaviour as we learn more about him. But at this point, I’m not entirely sold.
And Scottie? I actually enjoyed seeing her navigate a world so different from the sheltered life she knew before. Her growth and self discovery were some of the more interesting aspects of the story, and I appreciated that her upbringing was taken into account when considering her naivety. That said, there were definitely moments when I questioned her decisions. The dynamic between these two also moved far too quickly for me. The lust is there, but I struggled to buy into the emotional progression, and some of their interactions left me wondering how exactly we got from A to B.
The world building was probably my biggest frustration.
I wanted MORE. More about the world after the apocalypse, more about the different factions, more about why the Rebels and the Snakes are at odds, and more about the people and systems shaping this new society. There are so many interesting threads introduced, but I often felt as though I was being given just enough information to be intrigued without enough to properly understand what was happening.
The ending certainly leaves you with questions, and while I can appreciate that a first book in a series doesn't need to explain absolutely everything, there's a difference between deliberately building mystery and leaving your reader feeling a little lost. I'm hoping the unanswered questions are intentional and that the next instalment gives us more substance to work with.
That cliffhanger, though? Rude. 😆
Ultimately, I think Wild Silver and Lead is a case of great potential, slightly messy execution. The ingredients for something I could really love are all here, but the pacing occasionally felt rushed, the romance needed more development, and the world building left me wanting considerably more depth. Some of the dialogue also pulled me out of the story when it should have been drawing me further in.
BUT, and this is important, this is only book one. There's clearly more to uncover, and I don't think it's entirely fair to judge every unanswered question or unresolved character thread before the series has had a chance to develop.
Am I completely sold on Slade? Absolutely not. Does Scottie deserve better? Currently, I'm leaning towards YES, GIRL, PLEASE RECONSIDER. 😂 Will I be picking up book two when it comes out? Probably, because despite my complaints, I'm curious enough to want answers.
Tropes: Enemies to lovers • Military MMC • Zombie apocalypse • Dystopian romance • Age gap • Forced proximity • Dark romance • Toxic MMC
**** Thank you to netgally for the ALC Copy of this book , this is my honest review***
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
the idea of this book and the marketing drew me in like a moth to a flame, but the execution was absolutely not there for me. granted, i could only get through reading the first 30% of the book because i couldn’t force myself to read on, but i can’t imagine enjoying the last 70% because of how angry the first third made me.
the first couple chapters were interesting, and the fact that this is set in the apocalypse had my interest piqued, but the more i read, the more disappointed i became. scottie really started to irritate me because i found her to be so boring and underdeveloped. i truly cannot note anything specific about her aside that she’s looking for her family and she somehow “forgot she had asthma”. personally, i do not have asthma, but i genuinely can’t imagine forgetting something as serious as a medical condition, especially when it can be debilitating, but that’s just me. slade started off as the typical alphahole mmc that lexie is famous for writing, but something about him seemed a bit off to me. maybe it’s the way he was written and his dialogue, which felt very elementary and immature. we find out that he lost his wife about 10 chapters in, and this is where i had to dnf. they were getting hot and heavy and scottie accidentally brushes his wedding band (that he still wears) in the process, and he flat out calls her a whore unprovoked. now, i’m all for such degradation in sexual situations when it makes sense, but this was uncalled for and left a bad taste in my mouth. his inability to deal with his trauma and losing his wife gives him absolutely no right to call the woman HE kissed a whore. it’s just gross and disrespectful.
i’m so sad that i had to dnf this one because i was really looking forward to it, but i couldn’t force myself to read on, especially after the name-calling scene.
thank you to netgalley for the early copy!
⋆˙⟡ info ⋆˙⟡
ᰔ pages: 343
ᰔ pov: first person + dual (ish)
ᰔ position in duet: book 1
ᰔ release date: october 6
⋆˙⟡ tropes ⋆˙⟡
ᰔ insta lust
ᰔ forced proximity
ᰔ zombie apocalypse
ᰔ dark military romance
ᰔ marriage of convenience
the first couple chapters were interesting, and the fact that this is set in the apocalypse had my interest piqued, but the more i read, the more disappointed i became. scottie really started to irritate me because i found her to be so boring and underdeveloped. i truly cannot note anything specific about her aside that she’s looking for her family and she somehow “forgot she had asthma”. personally, i do not have asthma, but i genuinely can’t imagine forgetting something as serious as a medical condition, especially when it can be debilitating, but that’s just me. slade started off as the typical alphahole mmc that lexie is famous for writing, but something about him seemed a bit off to me. maybe it’s the way he was written and his dialogue, which felt very elementary and immature. we find out that he lost his wife about 10 chapters in, and this is where i had to dnf. they were getting hot and heavy and scottie accidentally brushes his wedding band (that he still wears) in the process, and he flat out calls her a whore unprovoked. now, i’m all for such degradation in sexual situations when it makes sense, but this was uncalled for and left a bad taste in my mouth. his inability to deal with his trauma and losing his wife gives him absolutely no right to call the woman HE kissed a whore. it’s just gross and disrespectful.
i’m so sad that i had to dnf this one because i was really looking forward to it, but i couldn’t force myself to read on, especially after the name-calling scene.
thank you to netgalley for the early copy!
⋆˙⟡ info ⋆˙⟡
ᰔ pages: 343
ᰔ pov: first person + dual (ish)
ᰔ position in duet: book 1
ᰔ release date: october 6
⋆˙⟡ tropes ⋆˙⟡
ᰔ insta lust
ᰔ forced proximity
ᰔ zombie apocalypse
ᰔ dark military romance
ᰔ marriage of convenience
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Review of advance copy received from Author
𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗦𝗶𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗥𝗲𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗗𝗮𝘆︱𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗟𝗲𝘅𝗶𝗲, 𝗠𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗕𝗿𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗣𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 #Gifted 𝗲𝗔𝗥𝗖 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗔𝗟𝗖 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗡𝗲𝘁𝗚𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘆!!!
Overall / Story / Audiobook Performance: All 5.0 stars
Narrators: Janine Granda and Brandon Utah who were INCREDIBLE. Highly recommend the audiobook!
𝗔𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝗻 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗱!
𝗠𝘆 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 💭
Very long-anticipated, this read delivered everything I love in Lexie’s work. Angst, spice, a morally gray MMC and a dark military romance set in a gritty, barren setting has me in a chokehold. The heavier topics Lexie navigated with grace, adding so much depth I love in her work. Congratulations to this beautiful author for this incredible start to the Snake Ops series! So thrilled to see what is to come! 🐍
Holy cliffhanger! I eat up anything Lexie writes and this is such a beautiful start to a new series, Snake Ops. I need to know what happens next!!!!
𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀:
💥 Strong FMC
💥 Secret Military Society
💥 Dark Military Romance
💥 Action
💥 Spice
💥 Enemies to Lovers
💥 Marriage of Convenience
💥 Alphahole MMC
💥 Lots of mystery
💥 Brutal ending
Reena's Booksta
Reena's BookTok
𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗦𝗶𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄
In a world undone by a terrifying virus, a fierce female survivor and a cruel military captain fight the living, the dead, and their lethal desire in this genre-shattering dark dystopian romance.
I survived ten years after the Raven virus turned the dead into monsters. Then elite soldier Slade Reece put a bullet through my chest.
I was searching for my family, torn from me in a raid, when the ruthless ex–Delta Force captain found me. He should have left me to die. Instead, he dragged me to his military base, where a lethal, classified armed force guards civilization in the frozen North. Outsiders are forbidden. Execution is the penalty.
Our chance encounter ignited an obsession he can’t control. His solution? Marriage—the only way to keep me alive. The my body for his protection, help finding my family for my vows.
I should hate him—I do—but hate turns to fire as he kills anyone who threatens me.
Falling for Slade is blurring everything I know about survival. But now his enemies have discovered my existence—and they’re hunting me. I must the family I’ve lost, or the devil who’s claimed me.
Overall / Story / Audiobook Performance: All 5.0 stars
Narrators: Janine Granda and Brandon Utah who were INCREDIBLE. Highly recommend the audiobook!
𝗔𝘃𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝗻 𝗞𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗹𝗲 𝗨𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶𝗼𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗹𝗱!
𝗠𝘆 𝗧𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀 💭
Very long-anticipated, this read delivered everything I love in Lexie’s work. Angst, spice, a morally gray MMC and a dark military romance set in a gritty, barren setting has me in a chokehold. The heavier topics Lexie navigated with grace, adding so much depth I love in her work. Congratulations to this beautiful author for this incredible start to the Snake Ops series! So thrilled to see what is to come! 🐍
Holy cliffhanger! I eat up anything Lexie writes and this is such a beautiful start to a new series, Snake Ops. I need to know what happens next!!!!
𝗧𝗿𝗼𝗽𝗲𝘀:
💥 Strong FMC
💥 Secret Military Society
💥 Dark Military Romance
💥 Action
💥 Spice
💥 Enemies to Lovers
💥 Marriage of Convenience
💥 Alphahole MMC
💥 Lots of mystery
💥 Brutal ending
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𝗪𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗦𝗶𝗹𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄
In a world undone by a terrifying virus, a fierce female survivor and a cruel military captain fight the living, the dead, and their lethal desire in this genre-shattering dark dystopian romance.
I survived ten years after the Raven virus turned the dead into monsters. Then elite soldier Slade Reece put a bullet through my chest.
I was searching for my family, torn from me in a raid, when the ruthless ex–Delta Force captain found me. He should have left me to die. Instead, he dragged me to his military base, where a lethal, classified armed force guards civilization in the frozen North. Outsiders are forbidden. Execution is the penalty.
Our chance encounter ignited an obsession he can’t control. His solution? Marriage—the only way to keep me alive. The my body for his protection, help finding my family for my vows.
I should hate him—I do—but hate turns to fire as he kills anyone who threatens me.
Falling for Slade is blurring everything I know about survival. But now his enemies have discovered my existence—and they’re hunting me. I must the family I’ve lost, or the devil who’s claimed me.
October 6, 2026
Thank you to Montlake for the e-ARC.
I tried! I gave a military romance author the benefit of the doubt but this was absolutely not for me. Wild Silver and Lead is a dark, dystopian romance with its main characters flailing through the enemies to lovers trope. There is no chemistry. There is no banter. There is no general understanding for the reader as to why these two are even enemies! Okay, so the MMC did shoot the FMC in the chest during one of the opening scenes but no clarification is provided as to WHY. And in truth that part is insane because almost every other plot element or inner thought is over explained and repeated ad nauseum.
Indeed, this is the kind of dark romance iteration that I cannot abide. What does that entail? Primarily, the pervasive use of violence against the female main character. Her body and her character are nothing more than a vehicle for pain and violence, and that gendered violence does nothing to advance her character growth or any plot elements. Scottie Cuevas, the FMC, is shot, stabbed, and sexually assaulted. Meanwhile, the MMC, Slade Reece, is hailed as the community protector and emotional martyr for putting his emotions and desires aside “for the good of the cause.” The cause in this instance being the elite Snake Ops military group operating in this dystopian small town. He’s the ideal soldier, which leads into how the military is depicted in this book.
The politics inherent in Wild Silver and Lead are entirely binary. There is only black or white. Pain or pleasure. Obedience or discord. Good or evil. Nuance does not exist. The military is good. It serves to protect our freedoms! They make the ultimate sacrifice for the greater good! Like I said, there is no nuance here. If you’re interested in propagating a pro-military agenda where we should “kneel for the cross and stand for the flag,” this is the book for you.
Frankly, the sex scenes made me dry up immediately.
I tried! I gave a military romance author the benefit of the doubt but this was absolutely not for me. Wild Silver and Lead is a dark, dystopian romance with its main characters flailing through the enemies to lovers trope. There is no chemistry. There is no banter. There is no general understanding for the reader as to why these two are even enemies! Okay, so the MMC did shoot the FMC in the chest during one of the opening scenes but no clarification is provided as to WHY. And in truth that part is insane because almost every other plot element or inner thought is over explained and repeated ad nauseum.
Indeed, this is the kind of dark romance iteration that I cannot abide. What does that entail? Primarily, the pervasive use of violence against the female main character. Her body and her character are nothing more than a vehicle for pain and violence, and that gendered violence does nothing to advance her character growth or any plot elements. Scottie Cuevas, the FMC, is shot, stabbed, and sexually assaulted. Meanwhile, the MMC, Slade Reece, is hailed as the community protector and emotional martyr for putting his emotions and desires aside “for the good of the cause.” The cause in this instance being the elite Snake Ops military group operating in this dystopian small town. He’s the ideal soldier, which leads into how the military is depicted in this book.
The politics inherent in Wild Silver and Lead are entirely binary. There is only black or white. Pain or pleasure. Obedience or discord. Good or evil. Nuance does not exist. The military is good. It serves to protect our freedoms! They make the ultimate sacrifice for the greater good! Like I said, there is no nuance here. If you’re interested in propagating a pro-military agenda where we should “kneel for the cross and stand for the flag,” this is the book for you.
Frankly, the sex scenes made me dry up immediately.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the ARC✨
This was super easy to read. The plot had me hooked immediately because I just love an MMC that’s mean for no reason
Slade accidentally shot Scottie while out hunting and brought her back to the settlement to let her heal. The rule is: no strangers allowed, so Scottie has to leave once the doctor clears her.
Slade becomes obsessed with her over the month she spends healing and decides well… I want to keep her, and the only way to do that is to claim her as a loved one. They aren’t blood relatives so there is no other way but … 💒 💍
This gave more The Last of Us vibes than dystopian.
It is book 1 in a new series and ends on a cliffhanger, so maybe we’ll get more dystopian vibes in the next book 👀, or maybe it's just zombie apocalypse vibes only. I'm not sure
Slade gave bully vibes and I was here for it - Not sure what that says about me - I also loved that we got an FMC that’s not helpless and in need of saving.
My only issue was Slade’s switch-up from Mr Emotionless to being head over heels in love. That part was a bit of whiplash. I feel like there’s more to that part of the story that we just haven’t seen yet so I will absolutely be back for book 2.
This was super easy to read. The plot had me hooked immediately because I just love an MMC that’s mean for no reason
Slade accidentally shot Scottie while out hunting and brought her back to the settlement to let her heal. The rule is: no strangers allowed, so Scottie has to leave once the doctor clears her.
Slade becomes obsessed with her over the month she spends healing and decides well… I want to keep her, and the only way to do that is to claim her as a loved one. They aren’t blood relatives so there is no other way but … 💒 💍
This gave more The Last of Us vibes than dystopian.
It is book 1 in a new series and ends on a cliffhanger, so maybe we’ll get more dystopian vibes in the next book 👀, or maybe it's just zombie apocalypse vibes only. I'm not sure
Slade gave bully vibes and I was here for it - Not sure what that says about me - I also loved that we got an FMC that’s not helpless and in need of saving.
My only issue was Slade’s switch-up from Mr Emotionless to being head over heels in love. That part was a bit of whiplash. I feel like there’s more to that part of the story that we just haven’t seen yet so I will absolutely be back for book 2.
October 4, 2026
✩4
✦What to Expect✦
•Strong FMC
•Secret military society •Dark military romance
•Action •Very spicy
•Enemies to lovers
•Marriage of convenience
•Mean grumpy alphahole MMC
•Lots of mystery
•Brutal ending
•Book 1 in a duet
✦Characters✦
•Scottie Cuevas
•Slade Reece
✦Fav Quotes✦
He started as my enemy, but now? He’s my lifeline.
“You are my fire. My present and future. My sanity. My Scottie. You revived me.”
Slade Reece sees me, and I want him to devour me until I haunt his soul.
I love fighting. I love making grown men cry when they underestimate me.
✦Thoughts✦
O.M.G!!!!!! THAT ENDING!!
I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS!
MY JAW IS ON THE GROUNDDDDD.
I NEED THE NEXT BOOK STAT!!
I throughly enjoyed these two so much & I this story had me hooked.
The back & forth between these two was soooooo good. I was living for their chemistry!!!!
•ARC Read•
✦ Bookish links to follow ✦
Bookstagram • Goodreads • BookBub • Storygraph • Fable
✦What to Expect✦
•Strong FMC
•Secret military society •Dark military romance
•Action •Very spicy
•Enemies to lovers
•Marriage of convenience
•Mean grumpy alphahole MMC
•Lots of mystery
•Brutal ending
•Book 1 in a duet
✦Characters✦
•Scottie Cuevas
•Slade Reece
✦Fav Quotes✦
He started as my enemy, but now? He’s my lifeline.
“You are my fire. My present and future. My sanity. My Scottie. You revived me.”
Slade Reece sees me, and I want him to devour me until I haunt his soul.
I love fighting. I love making grown men cry when they underestimate me.
✦Thoughts✦
O.M.G!!!!!! THAT ENDING!!
I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS!
MY JAW IS ON THE GROUNDDDDD.
I NEED THE NEXT BOOK STAT!!
I throughly enjoyed these two so much & I this story had me hooked.
The back & forth between these two was soooooo good. I was living for their chemistry!!!!
•ARC Read•
✦ Bookish links to follow ✦
Bookstagram • Goodreads • BookBub • Storygraph • Fable
October 8, 2026
I keep trying Lexie's books after falling in love with "Mariposa" in hopes I find my way back to loving her stories, I want to adore them so badly, but unfortunately, nothing has really done the trick since. While I was super excited regarding the premise of this one, I just feel like it fell so flat for me. Aside from the suspense which I enjoyed, the inconsistencies in the plot and the overall pacing were off and frankly a miss. I love a fast burn as much as the next gal but I was left feeling a bit confused. I wanted more from certain aspects and less from others leaving me feeling all over the place. The last 20% of the book comes at you like a freight train and the cliffhanger knocks you out and has you questioning literally everything and not in the best way. Cliffhangers are my villain origin story already, but this one, point blank, made me angry. Will I read the next installments out of spite for the cliffy? Probably. Other than that, I'm still waiting on the next Lexie book to take me by storm the way Mariposa did. 3/5 stars.
:: What to Expect ::
-Enemies-to-Lovers
-Morally Grey and Possessive MMC
-V!rgin Heroine
-Amnesia
-Military Romance
-Insta-lust
-Marriage of Convenience
-Dystopian/Zombies
-Touch her and ...
-Age Gap
-Dark Romance
-Forced Proximity
:: What to Expect ::
-Enemies-to-Lovers
-Morally Grey and Possessive MMC
-V!rgin Heroine
-Amnesia
-Military Romance
-Insta-lust
-Marriage of Convenience
-Dystopian/Zombies
-Touch her and ...
-Age Gap
-Dark Romance
-Forced Proximity
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