I Was Born Ruined

Death by Daybreak MC #1

by C.M. Stunich

What sort of girl loves sin like I do?
What sort of person thrives in it?

I'm the princess to a dirty throne of motorcycles and madness, daughter of the president of the Death by Daybreak Motorcycle Club. My father's four closest officers—men dressed in blood and death and sin—they're my honor guard, cloaked in leather vests and tattoos. Only, there's nothing honorable about them at all.

They're all wrong for me.
Every motorcycle club has its old ladies.
These guys … they share one.
They share me.

***I WAS BORN RUINED is a 90,000 word new adult, reverse harem, motorcycle club romance with one daring, bada** leading lady, her four sexy outlaws, and a romantic suspense plot. Contains cursing, violence, and sexual situations.

Genres: Dark, Dark Romance, Romance, Contemporary, Why Choose, New Adult, Crime

374 pages, Kindle Edition

First published March 19, 2019

About the author

C.M. Stunich is a self-admitted bibliophile with a love for exotic teas and a whole host of characters who live full time inside the strange, swirling vortex of her thoughts. Some folks might call this crazy, but Caitlin Morgan doesn't mind - especially considering she has to write biographies in the third person. Oh, and half the host of characters in her head are searing hot bad boys with dirty mouths and skillful hands (among other things). If being crazy means hanging out with them everyday, C.M. has decided to have herself committed.

She hates tapioca pudding, loves to binge on cheesy horror movies, and is a slave to many cats. When she's not vacuuming fur off of her couch, C.M. can be found with her nose buried in a book or her eyes glued to a computer screen. She's the author of over thirty novels - romance, new adult, fantasy, and young adult included. Please, come and join her inside her crazy. There's a heck of a lot to do there.

Oh, and Caitlin loves to chat (incessantly), so feel free to e-mail her, send her a Facebook message, or put up smoke signals. She's already looking forward to it.

Stalk me, please!
www.cmstunich.com
www.facebook.com/cmstunichauthor
www.twitter.com/CMStunich

I'm also on Goodreads, Spotify, Google +, Instagram, and Pinterest.

Reviews

[★Me Myshelf and I★ · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF @ 47%

I’d love to say that no animals were harmed in the making of this novel

But that would be a big fat lie



I recently read a different book which was marketed to be a “horror”. Ghost and haunted house and the norm. Well that book didn’t leave me afraid to climb the stairs in the dark but this book will give me nightmares. This review is based on the 47% I managed to read. Maybe not fair but I’m entitled to my opinion on the bit I did read.
I can tell it’s gonna be unpopular given the already rave 5 star reviews. Let me start then by saying that Stunich is a good writer. There were no editing problems or spelling mistakes and it was easy to follow. The only part I had a problem with was the entire content.

I thought I enjoyed a dark read, I’ve read plenty of them. Damaged, tortured heroines, kidnaps gangs etc etc but turns out I need my hero’s to be redeemable and actually save the girl. I need hope for a happy ending and this had neither.
Not a single MC had a single redeemable quality. Unless you count being hot and tattooed as a good quality which I don’t. Certainly standing back and watching a gun be pressed to her head and giving her coke at the tender age of 16 does not endear me to them.

“Her” is Gidget. The one who is born ruined.



Yes I certainly do blame the parents. This is one massive advertisement for how not to raise your kids. Shocking I tell you. Shocking how this girl was raised. This is a world where law enforcement and social services do not exist.
"Once, when I was five, I wandered off into the forest during a game of hide-and-seek with my sisters. I stumbled upon the cutest wood cabin … and my father dragging a body out the back door.""
There was no end to the depravity and I would feel sorry for her if she wasn’t so damn frustrating. If she’d actually make up her mind whether she wants to kill these guys or do the horizontal tango.
"His blue eyes slide down to mine and catch me. Breath hitches, pulse thunders, heart pounds. I'm standing here wanting him at the same moment I'm wishing I could take a blade and plunge it through his chest."
The back and forth did my head in



I hate you. I hate you not. I hate you. Let me kiss you. I hate you. Here’s my soul please crush it.

The biggest issue aside from all of the above and aforementioned animal cruelty (that wasn't a joke btw) was the age gap. It wasn’t enough darkness just to have that as a father. Nooooo we have to have an underage minor involved with 4 men in their 30s/late 20s. AND to have the foursome not in the present tense of age 17 coming 18, but 2 years earlier at 16!!

Yea. If this is dark and I sound like a party pooper then give me a nightcap and call me granny because I want no part of it

Unless someone can tell me (and I genuinely mean this) that
A) Grey turns out to be the real love interest
B) She burns the whole club house to the ground or
C) She shoots her father in the head
I might consider picking up this again.
Anything else would not be a HEA

[Jeanny · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF 43% I skipped ahead & it ends in a cliffhanger. The h is traumatized for good reason. Otherwise, she’s a typical 17 year old rebellious teenager. The guys are in their mid thirties but they act just as young. The love hate relationship is angst filled drama ridden nonsense. I had high hopes but this gets a big FUCK NO from me.

Trigger ⚠️ emotional abuse, physical abuse, & continuous animal abuse. I couldn’t continue to reading this 📖. I’ll likely to have nightmares about dogs being kicked, stabbed, bloody messes, & losing limbs to abusive assholes. They use the dog as a whipping boy & I can’t deal with that. I’d rehome the fucking dog. Keeping it is a cruelty in itself.

I wish I would’ve stayed away from this book. While on the topic of keeping my distance... Dearest author, after this disaster, with the exception of The Seven Mates of Zara Wolf series I think it’s over between us. It’s just better this way. That series seems to have been the only one I fell for. Sadly, it’s been abandoned.

[Namera [The Literary Invertebrate] · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, WOW.

I didn't like Stunich's last major RH series, the Alice in Underland one, but this was just spectacular. It was dark and well-written and had me completely gripped from start to finish. The heroine got a bit repetitive at times - like bro, I get it, you were born ruined/in shadows/to demons etc - but I forgave her, because I really liked her.

I cannot wait to read the sequel! Honestly, Stunich has really found her niche in the dark RH genre.

[Blog] - [Bookstagram]

[Darlene I read WAY to many books]

I can handle alot of dark things in books.. i can handle assholes and annoying Heroines and manhoes some abuse and torture..... but i can't read any story with 30-year-olds having sex with an underage girl who is 16 and a virgin!!!

And not just 1 guy no no 4 of them.. if she was over 18 i wouldn't have cared really to much...the relationships with the guys are not healthy.. they aren't even putting her first they put the club before her.. to me i hate that i need my hero's to do that.. heck they didn't eve stop the father form pointing a gun to her head and pulling the trigger.. even if it was empty.. what type of bs is that... they let her father and brother treat her like shit.. what big strong men.. they don't deserve her... ALSO what pissed me off is the animal abuse to this dog!! being kicked, stabbed being abused..it since its Heroines dog im sorry why would you do that to a dog!!

After that i just stopped and skimmed to the end.. and found out its a cliffhanger...

yeah i won't be reading book 2

Recommended- No
cover-⭐⭐⭐⭐

Reverse Herm, Angst, drama, slight secondary chara,

Abuse emotional and physical
Push/pull
ANIMAL ABUSE
Sexual abuse

[Amara · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fine line between hate and love

As much as I hated this book, I also loved it. There's so much going on and it all boils down to bad decisions. Every single one of them continuously makes bad decisions. Why?

And why are they loyal to Cat? Just because he is president? Has to be more than that. And when will these 4 stand up to him for Gidget? I know it's bound to happen. Or maybe he gets taken out by the mafia...something needs to happen.

Those guys: Sin, Beast, Crown, and Rainger.
They have issues. She was 16 barely, I think. But yeah, when I was 16 I thought I was grown too. The age differences won't mean much in a couple of years though, at least that's what I am telling myself.

Beast- ex MMA fighter
Crown- ex cop
Rainger- love hate thing going with the FMC
Sin- youngest and probably the most tragic so far, but who really knows?

Cat is a terrible father. I guess there are worse though. The mother maybe is trying to be better, but seems like the FMC isn't that forgiving to her parents. They don't really deserve it though, do they? Do any of them?

Major spoiler and speculation below....







So, if the mafia has Gidget now, will that be enough to get the 4 to save her from both the mafia and Cat? There has to be some sort of pivotal point where maybe Cat sends them to kill her before she can say anything that can hurt the club and sends the guys to handle it, right? And will they decide to work together, because it seems like they all sorta in some way want her or something. Early on, one of them said to her that when she turned 18, it might get crazy... Maybe they all were already creeping on her...Geesh this book!

I have to read the rest of this series. I can't resist.

[Tiara · Rating 1 out of 5]

Nope nope nope

I forced myself to finish this book because I started it but wow...I should have given up on it. None of these characters have redeeming qualities. I LOVE MC novels but this one was twisted. This was not a reverse harem it was four grown behind men taking advantage of a child. Her parents were awful...her brother is awful. The best character in the book was her dog and he’s probably going to die in the next book along with her one decent friend. Honestly I’m surprised the book didn’t just end with her killing herself that’s how terrible her life was. Four grown men who just couldn’t resist a 14/15 year old girl...REALLY! How does that not make you a total pedo? Oh yea “we live in a different world” nope nope nope...just no!

[Yaiza · Rating 1 out of 5]

NOPE. Not gonna finish it. I really like RH stories but this one is way out of line. Four grown ass men with one 17-year-old?

NO.

BIG FUCK NO.

When somebody writes s*** like this, they should be banned from writing ever again. I really dig forbidden romances but the harem is almost twice her age and showing interest in her when she is only 9.

I’m done with this author.

I really don’t understand how is people giving five stars to this thing. Iwish i could give it a 0.

[BokaniSak*BookWhore · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 "Beast is holding it down" stars****

so, after reading quite a number of reviews we can safely say this is a very contencious subject matter..this book ie.. some very sensitive issues covered herein would i say?


the plot
Gidget is the heroine. 17 years old. born into a MC club that does what you would expect from an outlaw MC club. yes, drugs, sex, killing, whore-ism etc. Parents are shit cause they dont protect their kids from these things and openly do it in front of them. basically, i think the author gave us raw footage of what a real outlaw club is about. she (Gidge) obviously has a few loose screws upstairs (how can she not when she grew up around these sadistic bastards though?)

the heroine
she's 17 years old.. i really don't like kiddy stories (or books that try to make kids sound grown. she acted like a damn spoilt brat some of the times, i honestly had 20% positivity for her up until around 65%. she is like an acquired taste.. you gotta keep feeding to like her..

hero's
honestly, i loved me some beast. he's my type of book boyfy.. quiet, strong alpha with strong presence. i think he loves her but maybe male pride? after finding out she f'd 3 of his buddies on the same night..i'm sure that held him back from acting on any feelings. but he definitely showed signs of being invested in that. i also dont like heroine whores but i made an exception for Gidge cause she will end up with all 4 guys i'm sure..

Overall
my major issue was that things got hot and heavy with Gidget when she was only 16 (and you would think 15 cause the story is told when she is 17 and accounts for the sex as happening 2 years ago). that was definitely a major no for me. and it was less of the age thing but more of the fact that she came across as spoilt, immature and i really dont see the basis for grown ass 30-something year old men to even want something real from her.. therefore, this fits in with the whole realistic vibe. i've read so many MC club books that romanticise MC clubs.. my knowledge of these outlaws is limited to "Son's of Anarchy" and the way i see it, Stunich was right on point. in real terms, its disgusting that one of the hero's gave her heroine at 15 years 16 years. its also sickening that she had sex with 4 men on the same night (thank God it wasn't at the same time although that's a scene i'm looking forward to nonetheless), which still is a bit of a hard-one to digest given she was a virgin prior to this:



otherwise, people complaining about animal cruelty, okay... how come yall didnt complain when Grey Wolfe had a gun to his head and they were ready to kill this innocent 18 year old boy? or even when Gidget was pounded on by Gaz:


FUN FACT: Dogs are considered a delicacy in China, Vietnam, Switserland, South Korea and many other countries

i still love my Spaniel, his name is Mojo, so all you dog lover's better take a step back before coming for me cause i'm one of you too:


I digress much, but ANYWAYS...
i loved me some Beast.. i think he is a prince charming in wolf's clothing.. watch this space, i think he will declare his love in a big way.
Crown takes second place, there is something about him.
the other 2 are just meh.. although Grainger is an asshole for giving Gidget coke at only 16. BUT AGAIN that's the kind of thing i expect a real outlaw to do. he isnt going to fall in love just after 1 sexual encounter.. and i'm sure age aint nothing but a number to them (at least she was legal).

so the first 30% of the book i was literally like:


then, from 31% to like ending


honestly, there is so much drama.. i'm so curious how this RH will be developed.. how they will all ultimately agree to share with no jealousy or possessiveness. i want to see Gidget save her damn self.. i dont want her to rely on the dudes. i want her to show how strong and mature she is and can be.. and finally, i want to see her put a gun to Cat's head, and pull that damn trigger:

[Vanessa · Rating 1 out of 5]

I’ve read some of her other stuff, and loved it. This, not so much. What’s with all the comparisons and metaphors? They’re just fillers, write an actual story.
Do they like her, want her, despise her? Honestly, it was drivel and I don’t know if I’ll wait for the next one. Who knows, it might not come out. She has so many unfinished series that it’s ridiculous.
Also, what Italian mobster is named Ivan? Really? And does Mafia have to be noted every time? I can be called the mob too, that actually sounds more plausible than Mafia. It’s like a first time rookie was writing this.
I feel bad for leaving such a low review, because like I said I’ve read some of her older stuff and loved it. Oh well can’t win ‘em all.

[Debbie · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF 42%

Way too much animal abuse in this book. I’m disappointed because I love this authors writing, but I won’t read page after page of animal abuse. Fictional or not it’s messed up!

I don’t recommend this if that kind of thing in books pisses you off.

[~Jennifer~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not a romantic RH!

I repeat, there is no romance, what there is is tuns of triggers. Am I saying I didn’t enjoy this read, HELL NO! What I’m saying is don’t start this thinking it’s dark, but with underlined romantic gestures. I’m not one to leave long reviews, but if I were I would have a lot to say about this book. What I will tell you is I could see a seventeen year old born into a life like that doing all those things. This book is some ways is incredible sad, but also addicting!

[Blendy]

I suppose I should say some things first...

1. C.M. Stunich is a fantastic writer. Her ability to weave a story is not in question. I can totally pick up a Stunich book knowing that it will be well written and well thought out.

2. Stunich is great with providing "warnings" and "trigger" cautions. Much like a Surgeon General cautioning against cigarettes, Stunich's warnings can be found stamped all over her works. Seriously, if you pick up one of her books expecting light and fluffy, then I'm totally going to question why you are even allowed to communicate with the public and your ability to function as a basic human.

Okay. With that out of the way. I feel like I need to address the big, fucking HUGE, bright-ass neon glowing elephant in the room concerning this book. And, subsequently, why I did not finish nor rate it.

Here it is--prudish or not--, I could not get behind the idea that the MC was 17 and her "harem" was in their 30's. ACTUALLY...I could not get behind the fact that our MC was 15 when she had her first "sexual encounters" with her "harem" while they were in their 30's. UMMMMMMM....Gross! NO! That is NOT sexy to me. Even worse? The "harem" was watching her with "hunger" in their eyes when was she was younger than even 15! I'm soooo sorry. BUT HELL NO.

Look, I get it. I was a young girl once too. However, MEN in their 30's did NOT start appealing to me until I was in my early to mid twenties. And, thinking about a guy in his 30's who is "checking out with hunger" a teen girl who is younger than 15---well that fucking grosses me out.

Obviously, I heeded the warnings before heading into this book--you know, the "dark, not typical, angsts" type shit--but, I did not know that damn near pedophilia was a theme. Had I known...I would have steered clear of this.

Again...it is NOT the author, writing style, nor execution that turned me away from this book. It was my own personal beliefs and what I find to be sexy or not.

I'm sure that MANY people will love this, but I really wish that I had been given a head's up to the age difference between the MC and her harem before I picked this one up.

[Jordy · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF. Unfortunately, this was the first time I was unable to finish a book by this author. I've read my share of dark stories that include certain triggers. Sadly, I was unable to connect with these characters nor can I handle reading books with any type of abuse towards animals. Maybe the story will get better, however, I just don't have the mental energy to continue:(

[Lydia · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF

I waited a long time for this book to come out, but it turned out to be a big disappointment. All the guys had no redeeming qualities and the age thing was so wrong. They watched this girl get abused and didn’t do anything.

Lastly, the poor dog. It is so sickining to hear about a dog being constantly abused. He was just trying to protect his master.

[Beca ☾ · Rating 3 out of 5]

So… where to start with this one? Did I love it? Definitely not. But I liked it enough to finish it… and I will likely be reading the next one.
The subject matter is dark, but I’d expect nothing less from a book about a MC. Overall, there is just A LOT going on, with way too many bad decisions made by all involved.

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not a reverse harem!

If the reverse harem genre brought you here walk away fast because you won’t get that in this book. Also if you manage to read the whole book you are left with a cliff hanger.

[Nat Smithy · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF at 15%
This was painful to get into being that it didn't flow for me. It was choppy and all over the place.

[Cristina]

Note to self: 4 guys and 1 underage girl.

[Autumn Miller ~ autumnbookreads · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 Stars

[jenn *mother of dragon & snake* · Rating 3 out of 5]

okayyyy.... i have no idea how to feel about this book. i think it could have been something great or at least good enough to make me want MOREEE.

BUT. but. i feel like the age of this girl just throws me off. and of course the goddamn teenage angst from mufking hell.

why couldn't she be 18?

i just -



i'll still take a stab at the men tho. cause *french kiss* yusss.

can i just pretend she's 18? 19 even?

i'm just here for my boys.

[Ana Stasia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dnf @ 42%
I honestly don't know how I even made this far... I mean,MC books are usually a little messed up but this one was MESSED UP AFFFF. The girl is friggin underage for fucks sake!!! She slept with 4 guys,the youngest of whom was 21 at the time, and the rest were in their thirties, when she herself was FIFTEEN!!!! This is sooo messed up... How is this glorified into a romance book? This should be firmly in abuse category...Not even gonna touch on all the other bullshit that goes on in the book. The only reason that I can think of as to how I made it this far is that the writing style was pretty good.

[Cassandra Doon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Was Born Ruined is the first book in the gritty and intense Death by Daybreak series, and I couldn't get enough of it. With its reverse harem dynamic, age gap romance, and content warnings for dark themes, this book is not for the faint of heart. The story centers around a strong-willed protagonist, Gidge, whose sharp tongue and fearless attitude often lands her in hot water with a group of rough bikers. But she holds her own and proves to be an amazing character. What sets I Was Born Ruined apart from other similar romances is its unique blend of intense violence, trauma, and angsty moments that kept me on the edge of my seat throughout. And the chemistry between Gidge and her love interests - Crown, Grainger, Beast, and Sin - is undeniably electric, filled with power dynamics and simmering animosity that only adds to the tension and excitement of the story.

[Sharon Mariampillai · Rating 5 out of 5]

Actual Rating: 4.5

This was an incredible read. The story follows Gidget, a 17-year-old senior who is the daughter of President of the Death by Daybreak Motorcycle Club and the men of the MC. I thought Gidget was a fantastic character. I thought she was broken yet clever. She was also very snarky and a girl who does what she wants. I don’t know how I feel about the guys, but I wonder how the story will continue. Also, I am looking forward to seeing what happens to Gidget after that ending. Overall, an amazing read.

[amber · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book gave me such a headache I have to comment on it. I really wanted to like it. I refuse to DNF books but damn was this one tempting.

1. She was 16 and slept with much older men, brushed off by rationalizing that she’s an old soul, has never been innocent, born ruined a sinner blah blah blah, still a freshly turned 16 year old who also kissed and almost had sex at 15 with a 20 something year old, I don’t remember his age and don’t care, way too old either way.
Sinner, ruined soul and all, she’s still a kid. This book would be so much more readable if she were of age. Not much, with all the prose, but I’d be less disgusted by all the love interests.

2. They’re 30 something hot men who could have any woman they want yet choose to lust after a kid. Such ick.

3. Repetition. So much fucking drilling in the reader’s head that she’s born ruined, dressed in sin, all the other eye-rolling clichéd phrases that made me want to shake her. Also I just could not take her name seriously. Gidget. I have to laugh, sorry to everyone with that name but it’s so far from a bad-ass wannabe punk sexy biker, almost any other name would have made this all the more bearable.

4. Another repetition was how whiny the h was. Understandably so, with all the awfulness of her entire life, and with no real support from any H’s, I still couldn’t stand her. Or any of them.

5. The random sex scenes weren’t a turn on, especially with the constant reminder that the much older men look down on her and hate themselves for wanting her, giant boners and all. She also hates them but constantly throws herself at them.

6. The constant secrets and miscommunication wasn’t making this story mysterious and enticing, it made it irritating.

Just. I’m wondering if I read the wrong copy, I can’t wrap my head around people reading this and liking it.
I was thinking of reading the author’s other highly recommended RH series but this definitely is putting me off from them.

[Puna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Where to start with this book......

I have been waiting for this book for a very long time. I knew I would love it if CM Stunich came out with a RH MC Life book and voila here it is. I've been stalking, begging, and pleading for this book since there was a whisper of this project. So when we finally got the final release date, I was BEYOND excited.

I loved it, I read it within hours of it publishing. Who needs sleep anyways? I wanted more and more. I love Gidget she is awesome. I can't wait for the next one, I'm hoping the next two come popping out within the next couple of months. That could make me super happy.

But, this may have just been me, I expected the story to start with the relationship developed and whole. In the blurb when I read, "they share me" I thought, 'oh she must already be in a relationship with all of them and she is their old lady, patched and everything' this is not the case. They are barely in any type of affectionate relationship. They are purely lust at this point. I hope that in the next book they start developing into more. I don't want to spoil too much but basically they all are in either in denial or with other people and have no plans on doing anything with commitment. Once I realized how very new this relationship is, I got over it and still enjoyed the book. CM Stunich is one of my favorite authors and I enjoy every single word on my Kindle.

Overall: 4.5/5

[M.N. Hill · Rating 1 out of 5]

I do not like giving bad reviews but...

I do not for the life of me understand why authors put down something they do not know about. What if, I don't know, people talk smack about gang raping teenage girl because in most states that's what happened. Or how crap it is humanize the mafia and motorcycle gangs. Or suggest that the author did little to no research and just based the book off of SOA.... Don't speak on mumble rap when you know nothing about mumble rap. But I may be bias and it rubbed me the wrong way.

[Evelyn Swift (Featherbrained Books) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow.

Was not expecting this to be so good and so very dark!

Warning/trigger for drug usage, animal abuse, physical abuse, and the MC is seventeen and having sex with grown men (I believe they're all in their early 30's?).

Really cannot wait to read the rest of this series! I am Dressed in Sin doesn't have a release date yet :(

[TARA BALTIMORE · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disturbing - Statutory rape is entertainment??? No!

I couldn’t get past the statutory rape. Seriously, this ‘romance’ started when she was 15, traumatized and grieving! How is this even a story that anyone can read without cringing??? I couldn’t do it. This is my first book by this author and I can’t say I’ll ever read another.

[Robbin Brooks · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not for me

I couldn't even finish this one. The writing is on point, and the storyline is unique, but the age difference is just not my cup of tea. She's a vulnerable and traumatized 15/16 child mixed up with bikers in their 30s. Even ageing to 17 in present day in the book isn't much better. I don't care how old "life" made her - this one just makes me cringe.

[Lauren · Rating 1 out of 5]

DNF 48% underaged 15 sex loses virginity to men twice her age #hardpass animal abuse also #hardpass. I have read dark and gritty but underaged is just a trigger for me and this book does not put that in the warning.