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Grimm Brothers' Tattoo #1
Betrayal
Five years ago, I thought life was nothing short of a fairytale.
I had the love of my five mates and the future was looking so bright.
Five years ago, I was an idiot.
Now I know that life isn’t sunshine and rainbows.
Now I know that life is full of lies, darkness, and blood.
It only took my mates abandoning me without a word or a trace to open my eyes to the things I had previously ignored.
When you are a rejected mate, you learn pretty quickly how people actually feel about you.
It took me five years to track them down, and now that I have, they have a choice:
Break the bond, and finally set me free
Or
I’ll kill them, and hope I survive their deaths
I’m Delphina Grimm, my enemies call me Umbra
Betrayal is the first in a duet PNR/UF Reverse Harem romance. Not suitable for anyone under the age of 18 due to language, sexual situations, and violence. There is MM in this book which means swords will be crossing. There are things in here that people might find triggering.
I had the love of my five mates and the future was looking so bright.
Five years ago, I was an idiot.
Now I know that life isn’t sunshine and rainbows.
Now I know that life is full of lies, darkness, and blood.
It only took my mates abandoning me without a word or a trace to open my eyes to the things I had previously ignored.
When you are a rejected mate, you learn pretty quickly how people actually feel about you.
It took me five years to track them down, and now that I have, they have a choice:
Break the bond, and finally set me free
Or
I’ll kill them, and hope I survive their deaths
I’m Delphina Grimm, my enemies call me Umbra
Betrayal is the first in a duet PNR/UF Reverse Harem romance. Not suitable for anyone under the age of 18 due to language, sexual situations, and violence. There is MM in this book which means swords will be crossing. There are things in here that people might find triggering.
193 pages, ebook
First published February 17, 2021
826 people are currently reading
1330 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 225 reviews
January 12, 2022
I liked the world-building and starting the book with already rejected mates, but the overall story line and implementation was highly lacking. It often included irrational and unbelievable decisions that I really couldn't suspend my disbelief for for an enjoyable read. The characters were flat, not much backstory and personality were revealed, and there was a lot of telling of internal thoughts rather than showing to let the reader draw conclusions themselves. I started skimming heavily about 30% into the book. The following were just a few of the major plot holes I had issues with.
1. As revealed in a flashback, the mates left due to a single short warning from a mysterious elder That's it. One sentence repeated. It makes absolutely no sense to me at all. If they all took it more seriously, why not just break the bond when the FMC Delphina/Dell finally found them? Why even try to keep the bond? Their excuse was that they ran due to emotions and not logic.... It's been 5 years - really? Even after I finished the book, I still don't understand how their mate bond works other than they can voluntarily sever it, they feel some sort of tug near each other, and that they can feel each other cheat. How did they gain it? Is it special to some people?
2. What kind of tattoo shop were they trying to run with happy endings for each client? With asshole behavior like that, I didn't think most of them deserved to try to gain their old mate back, no matter the other mitigating factors revealed in the story. It was still never explained how they managed to afford a tattoo shop when it was hinted that they had thought about it when Dell was still with them. Additionally, the whole shop and emphasis of tattoos was pretty much thrown in the fire pit after Dell showed up. All the other scenes took place in their house or wherever Dell was. Not sure why it ended up as the series title with its lack of importance for the majority of the book. Sure, they all have tattoos except for Tag the witch... so?
3. Most of the book was taken over by the ex-mates introducing themselves to one by one and taking pictures and showing them off to the others once they got back home. It was such a weird unbelievable behavior that a single mom that broke off with her previous mates would be okay letting them play with her child and that the men would just decide that they'd visit her one by one. Dell is portrayed to be this new independent badass woman, but at the first sign of lust, she falls in bed with her ex-mates with barely a contrary thought.
4. I thought the concept of the lion shifter finally revealing that rather contrived. Right, he was over the course of years and no one noticed until BAM, it suddenly got 1000x worse when his ex-mate showed up in their lives again.
5. The men relieve their sexual tensions with each other, which leads to quite a few MM scenes, but the relationship dynamic is not there and while scenes are admittedly hot, they don't fit at all. They all seemed more of a brotherly bond rather than boyfriend bond.
6. Elder Briar decides to train her to be an assassin because of her heritage as a chameleon shifter witch. Going back to Dell, apparently she became the best assassin after training for only 6 months... which is rather unbelievable. She kept mentioning that she needed to keep her skills secret since no one knew who she was, but she also kept showing off these ninja skills and her martial warmups to her estranged mates when they came over to visit the kid??? If you're trying to keep a secret about your secret job... maybe don't use those skills that publicly? To add on, she ends up revealing her face to a few people during a job. One, you're a chameleon - hide better? Two, why not just wear a physical mask? /facepalm
7. Alpha Silas was screwed over by a packmate named Meg, and he ended up putting her in a cell while he gets due to Meg's actions. However, he decided to finally kill Meg the day after , and making a big deal about what a hard decision it was in his POV chapter.... wat. Why did you wait to kill Meg until now? Why not just kill her to begin with for the betrayal anyways? gah.
8. Dell decides to spontaneously adopt and bring directly home a after a job. Say what.... You have 5 year old child at home and nobody else should know what you do for a job. Please, make smarter decisions... Don't just be a bleeding heart. She declares that this new guy she only knew for a few hours was her perfect new bff.
9. If Dell could easily take care of a that visited her at the house, why would you send the other people out of the house and tell them to call your ex-mates, when it is quite obvious you'd be revealed as an assassin when they attempt to come and save you? And during the reveal, she just straight out dumps it as "oh, I'm Umbra btw - okay can we go to your house now?" No tension or dramatic reveal, just a plain info dump. Quite a letdown imo.
10. The POV chapters were completely unnecessary IMO and distracted from the main redemption plot. Who cares what the evil people were thinking... and is supposed to be added to Dell's mate harem of misfits?
All these issues combined into one story were way over the top and made the book a struggle to read for me. I don't plan on reading the second novel in the duet.
1. As revealed in a flashback, the mates left due to a single short warning from a mysterious elder That's it. One sentence repeated. It makes absolutely no sense to me at all. If they all took it more seriously, why not just break the bond when the FMC Delphina/Dell finally found them? Why even try to keep the bond? Their excuse was that they ran due to emotions and not logic.... It's been 5 years - really? Even after I finished the book, I still don't understand how their mate bond works other than they can voluntarily sever it, they feel some sort of tug near each other, and that they can feel each other cheat. How did they gain it? Is it special to some people?
2. What kind of tattoo shop were they trying to run with happy endings for each client? With asshole behavior like that, I didn't think most of them deserved to try to gain their old mate back, no matter the other mitigating factors revealed in the story. It was still never explained how they managed to afford a tattoo shop when it was hinted that they had thought about it when Dell was still with them. Additionally, the whole shop and emphasis of tattoos was pretty much thrown in the fire pit after Dell showed up. All the other scenes took place in their house or wherever Dell was. Not sure why it ended up as the series title with its lack of importance for the majority of the book. Sure, they all have tattoos except for Tag the witch... so?
3. Most of the book was taken over by the ex-mates introducing themselves to one by one and taking pictures and showing them off to the others once they got back home. It was such a weird unbelievable behavior that a single mom that broke off with her previous mates would be okay letting them play with her child and that the men would just decide that they'd visit her one by one. Dell is portrayed to be this new independent badass woman, but at the first sign of lust, she falls in bed with her ex-mates with barely a contrary thought.
4. I thought the concept of the lion shifter finally revealing that rather contrived. Right, he was over the course of years and no one noticed until BAM, it suddenly got 1000x worse when his ex-mate showed up in their lives again.
5. The men relieve their sexual tensions with each other, which leads to quite a few MM scenes, but the relationship dynamic is not there and while scenes are admittedly hot, they don't fit at all. They all seemed more of a brotherly bond rather than boyfriend bond.
6. Elder Briar decides to train her to be an assassin because of her heritage as a chameleon shifter witch. Going back to Dell, apparently she became the best assassin after training for only 6 months... which is rather unbelievable. She kept mentioning that she needed to keep her skills secret since no one knew who she was, but she also kept showing off these ninja skills and her martial warmups to her estranged mates when they came over to visit the kid??? If you're trying to keep a secret about your secret job... maybe don't use those skills that publicly? To add on, she ends up revealing her face to a few people during a job. One, you're a chameleon - hide better? Two, why not just wear a physical mask? /facepalm
7. Alpha Silas was screwed over by a packmate named Meg, and he ended up putting her in a cell while he gets due to Meg's actions. However, he decided to finally kill Meg the day after , and making a big deal about what a hard decision it was in his POV chapter.... wat. Why did you wait to kill Meg until now? Why not just kill her to begin with for the betrayal anyways? gah.
8. Dell decides to spontaneously adopt and bring directly home a after a job. Say what.... You have 5 year old child at home and nobody else should know what you do for a job. Please, make smarter decisions... Don't just be a bleeding heart. She declares that this new guy she only knew for a few hours was her perfect new bff.
9. If Dell could easily take care of a that visited her at the house, why would you send the other people out of the house and tell them to call your ex-mates, when it is quite obvious you'd be revealed as an assassin when they attempt to come and save you? And during the reveal, she just straight out dumps it as "oh, I'm Umbra btw - okay can we go to your house now?" No tension or dramatic reveal, just a plain info dump. Quite a letdown imo.
10. The POV chapters were completely unnecessary IMO and distracted from the main redemption plot. Who cares what the evil people were thinking... and is supposed to be added to Dell's mate harem of misfits?
All these issues combined into one story were way over the top and made the book a struggle to read for me. I don't plan on reading the second novel in the duet.
February 21, 2021
“From death comes regrowth”
-Delphina Grimm
Can't wait to read the next book
-Delphina Grimm
Can't wait to read the next book
June 9, 2021
I’m rewriting this because i have no idea what i was thinking when i first wrote this lol. This book was not for me. I definitely consider this cheating and it was painful.
Dell was cool, but I wish she had remained fierce a bit longer. They start showing back up, and she softens towards them immediately. I liked when River was the first to show up and she let him feel the pain that she’s felt all these years while they’ve been cheating on her. And yes, I do still think it’s cheating because they left her with no explanation. I would’ve appreciated it if she had questioned them on why they left right away, but she never does. And she lets them be around Max, which I probably wouldn’t have lol.
The reasoning behind why they left was intriguing, and I enjoyed that aspect of the plot with the mysterious ??? character. I only wish that the guys had thought about it for longer than 30 seconds before just up and leaving her. I wish their backstory had also been expanded upon. What have they been doing in the past five years? Where did they go after they left? How long did it take before they were screwing random girls? Why wouldn’t they even bother to keep an eye on Dell if they supposedly loved her so much?
The MM scenes were hot, I just felt like they were out of place in the timeline. I didn’t like that they were messing around with each other after spending the day with her or because they were sad because of her, meanwhile home girl hasn’t had any in five years. I would’ve liked it much better if the focus had been more on her reconciliation. (I would’ve also liked it if they had gotten a taste of their own medicine and felt the pain once or twice randomly throughout the years, but hey.)
Like I said, I wish there had been way more groveling. I don’t think they did any, tbh. Dell was too fierce to just fall into bed with them, mates or not. I felt like she became too open with them about her life too soon. I didn’t feel much remorse from all of them. Tag felt like the only one who deserved it.
Also, there is some grammar editing issues that i overlooked but this could’ve used.
Dell was cool, but I wish she had remained fierce a bit longer. They start showing back up, and she softens towards them immediately. I liked when River was the first to show up and she let him feel the pain that she’s felt all these years while they’ve been cheating on her. And yes, I do still think it’s cheating because they left her with no explanation. I would’ve appreciated it if she had questioned them on why they left right away, but she never does. And she lets them be around Max, which I probably wouldn’t have lol.
The reasoning behind why they left was intriguing, and I enjoyed that aspect of the plot with the mysterious ??? character. I only wish that the guys had thought about it for longer than 30 seconds before just up and leaving her. I wish their backstory had also been expanded upon. What have they been doing in the past five years? Where did they go after they left? How long did it take before they were screwing random girls? Why wouldn’t they even bother to keep an eye on Dell if they supposedly loved her so much?
The MM scenes were hot, I just felt like they were out of place in the timeline. I didn’t like that they were messing around with each other after spending the day with her or because they were sad because of her, meanwhile home girl hasn’t had any in five years. I would’ve liked it much better if the focus had been more on her reconciliation. (I would’ve also liked it if they had gotten a taste of their own medicine and felt the pain once or twice randomly throughout the years, but hey.)
Like I said, I wish there had been way more groveling. I don’t think they did any, tbh. Dell was too fierce to just fall into bed with them, mates or not. I felt like she became too open with them about her life too soon. I didn’t feel much remorse from all of them. Tag felt like the only one who deserved it.
Also, there is some grammar editing issues that i overlooked but this could’ve used.
July 8, 2022
This is so bad I don't even know how to start. So basically:
- The writing is HORRIBLE.
- The guys are also terrible. They cheat on her, she feels PHYSICAL PAIN everytime they fuck someone else.
- They fuck around and she's celibate because she just love them soooo much ~eye roll~.
- The h is weak and has betraying-body-syndrome. I think the author wanted the reader to see Delphine as a strong badass woman. Instead, I truly pity her. She didn't make them pay for what they did. Del's actions are basically: I hate them and want revenge > oh, they are sooo hot > push and pull then repeat.
- The reason they abandoned her is so ridiculous. Her mates are unfaithful, weak, and unworthy of their child's mother. Never reading this author again.
- The writing is HORRIBLE.
- The guys are also terrible. They cheat on her, she feels PHYSICAL PAIN everytime they fuck someone else.
- They fuck around and she's celibate because she just love them soooo much ~eye roll~.
- The h is weak and has betraying-body-syndrome. I think the author wanted the reader to see Delphine as a strong badass woman. Instead, I truly pity her. She didn't make them pay for what they did. Del's actions are basically: I hate them and want revenge > oh, they are sooo hot > push and pull then repeat.
- The reason they abandoned her is so ridiculous. Her mates are unfaithful, weak, and unworthy of their child's mother. Never reading this author again.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 16, 2021
Got as far as chapter 6.
My greatest pet peeve in books is couples/people who don't talk, don't communicate, just let assumptions grow, fester and manifest in anger.
Up until chapter 6, there have been at least 2 opportunities for one of the guys or Delphina to be like, dude, what went on 5 years ago? But does anyone do that? Nope. She is filled with righteous indignation and they are filled with guilt/shame, but nobody is willing to talk about it.
Like what is the point if none of them is willing to talk? Oh right, about half the book will be for nothing because I'm sure the plot hinges on this non-communication.
D.N.F!
My greatest pet peeve in books is couples/people who don't talk, don't communicate, just let assumptions grow, fester and manifest in anger.
Up until chapter 6, there have been at least 2 opportunities for one of the guys or Delphina to be like, dude, what went on 5 years ago? But does anyone do that? Nope. She is filled with righteous indignation and they are filled with guilt/shame, but nobody is willing to talk about it.
Like what is the point if none of them is willing to talk? Oh right, about half the book will be for nothing because I'm sure the plot hinges on this non-communication.
D.N.F!
March 4, 2021
Amazing start to the book.. I loved the strong introduction to the female and I had high hopes of her kicking her mates for leaving her and cheating on her. But once she confronted her cheating mates (5 years of sharp stabbing pain in her heart with 4 out of 5 mates cheating on her) and she just gave in bc she was overcome with lust.
Confusing concept of mates. One of the mates duying bc he got separated from his mate and they mate for life BUT he has 4 other mates. So why is he dying the minute she came there? And because they are all mates why don't the males feel cheating pains? The males are in a sexual relationship with each other but they also constantly screw humans in exchange for tattoo. They come off as manwhores... and honestly 5 years of feeling pain and she wouldn't even have sex with one person bc she respects them and their bond "nobody came close to them".... Makes no sense....wish she did it just to cause them the same pain.....
The males are way too weak!! 2 alpha males that just took a strangers word and decided to leave her so she doesn't die. Really haven't read about an alpha yet that would just tuck tail and run and this group has 2 Alpha's.....in her home she was attacked by few males and when her mates came to rescue her she was covered in blood bc she killed the intruders. One of her mates left bc he is too sensitive to blood. Ok really you won't even check to see that your mate was hurt ? You just got upset bc she killed to protect herself.
Confusing concept of mates. One of the mates duying bc he got separated from his mate and they mate for life BUT he has 4 other mates. So why is he dying the minute she came there? And because they are all mates why don't the males feel cheating pains? The males are in a sexual relationship with each other but they also constantly screw humans in exchange for tattoo. They come off as manwhores... and honestly 5 years of feeling pain and she wouldn't even have sex with one person bc she respects them and their bond "nobody came close to them".... Makes no sense....wish she did it just to cause them the same pain.....
The males are way too weak!! 2 alpha males that just took a strangers word and decided to leave her so she doesn't die. Really haven't read about an alpha yet that would just tuck tail and run and this group has 2 Alpha's.....in her home she was attacked by few males and when her mates came to rescue her she was covered in blood bc she killed the intruders. One of her mates left bc he is too sensitive to blood. Ok really you won't even check to see that your mate was hurt ? You just got upset bc she killed to protect herself.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
March 19, 2021
This author has a very interesting plot for this story.
Honestly, the story was great. I had a lot if issues with it though.
°°°°°°°Spoilers°°°°°°°
The FMC is abandoned with out a word by her mates. Five years later she tracks them down, after becoming an infamous assassin with her 5 yrs son. Who they happened to be the father of. Long story short she offers them a deal sever the mating bind or she kills them. They had been cheating for most of the time apart and Dell felt every single time one of them was with someone else. However she talked a big game and just kinda let them back in after a couple of days spending time with her son. Now I'm sorry but I'm not even close enough to being that forgiving. You cheat constantly for years after abandoning me I'm not letting you anywhere near me, much less my kid. However, like I said the actual story part was really interesting because she is really good at her job.
Honestly, the story was great. I had a lot if issues with it though.
°°°°°°°Spoilers°°°°°°°
The FMC is abandoned with out a word by her mates. Five years later she tracks them down, after becoming an infamous assassin with her 5 yrs son. Who they happened to be the father of. Long story short she offers them a deal sever the mating bind or she kills them. They had been cheating for most of the time apart and Dell felt every single time one of them was with someone else. However she talked a big game and just kinda let them back in after a couple of days spending time with her son. Now I'm sorry but I'm not even close enough to being that forgiving. You cheat constantly for years after abandoning me I'm not letting you anywhere near me, much less my kid. However, like I said the actual story part was really interesting because she is really good at her job.
March 11, 2021
......
since i’ll be making a blog soon this post won’t be too long.
i don’t think that this author actually cares ab writing in the sense that all they do is put out the first draft of every book they write.
i have (tried) read(ing) one of their earlier books & decided to give this one a try bc I assumed their writing would have gotten better. all I can say is I’m glad I have KU.
this book was a mess & whoever proofread this, if anyone even did, lied to the author. the author also lied to themselves.
this person should just have someone that can actually write, write for them bc the plots are actually interesting....& that’s it.
since i’ll be making a blog soon this post won’t be too long.
i don’t think that this author actually cares ab writing in the sense that all they do is put out the first draft of every book they write.
i have (tried) read(ing) one of their earlier books & decided to give this one a try bc I assumed their writing would have gotten better. all I can say is I’m glad I have KU.
this book was a mess & whoever proofread this, if anyone even did, lied to the author. the author also lied to themselves.
this person should just have someone that can actually write, write for them bc the plots are actually interesting....& that’s it.
February 20, 2021
Spoilers ahead
I really wanted to like this book. It starts out with the guys being manwhores but I pushed through it and unfortunately it didn't get better from there. The characters fell flat and the story was predictable and down right stupid at times (the reason they ran out on her). This is not a series I will continue to read.
I really wanted to like this book. It starts out with the guys being manwhores but I pushed through it and unfortunately it didn't get better from there. The characters fell flat and the story was predictable and down right stupid at times (the reason they ran out on her). This is not a series I will continue to read.
did-not-finish
September 16, 2022They were all a happy little harem. Bad guy told the guys if they didn't leave then he would kill her. The 4 men.. 4 shifter men got scared packed their bags and left her she came to an empty house after learning she was pretty and one snuck in a note that said pretty much sorry deuces. They didn't bother to break the bond she cried fell into super sadness but was trying to not die because of the baby and a man "found" her and took her in and started training her to focus past the pain that she was in constantly because the guys were not celibate and 1 guy only slept with another guy in harem. They thought it was a myth that your mate could feel you being with someone else. She almost put her car into a tree the first time from the pain. " the man" trained her to be this badass ass ass in and 5 years and 1 son later she finds the harem they had opened a tattoo parlor using her last name. She wants to break the bond. She shows up to parlor as soon as one guy was done with chick.. and you think she's all BA and tells them she wants to break the bond explained she knew every time they cheated. They felt bad.
Their son runs in and 1 guy realizes he is theirs the others don't. Because they wanna be mad at her thinking she cheated even tho they left her 🤦♀️ the nice one wants to meet kid, kisses booty a little let's them get to know him. And next thing ya know bam. She is sleeping with all of them. No real apology just we 4 big shifter men were scared so ran like chickens. they kill the bad man, who was the man who trainer her. And they live happily ever after.
Yes she was celibate, no they didn't grovel. The nice guy felt really bad and had puppy dog eyes.
Their son runs in and 1 guy realizes he is theirs the others don't. Because they wanna be mad at her thinking she cheated even tho they left her 🤦♀️ the nice one wants to meet kid, kisses booty a little let's them get to know him. And next thing ya know bam. She is sleeping with all of them. No real apology just we 4 big shifter men were scared so ran like chickens. they kill the bad man, who was the man who trainer her. And they live happily ever after.
Yes she was celibate, no they didn't grovel. The nice guy felt really bad and had puppy dog eyes.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 9, 2021
In short:
Her five mates abandon her (they have their so called reason!) & cheat on her causing her pain (coz' of their mate bond or whatever 🙄). The h raises their baby & becomes an assasin in five years. Her mates interestingly don't even try to get to know how she is doing in the five years separation & start their own tattoo business & sleep with their customers (all except one).
She decides to sever the mate bond or kill them after all these years & ends up forgiving them & worse sleeps with the cheaters.
Guess h being an assassin doesn't mean she is mentally/ emotionally strong enough.
Her five mates abandon her (they have their so called reason!) & cheat on her causing her pain (coz' of their mate bond or whatever 🙄). The h raises their baby & becomes an assasin in five years. Her mates interestingly don't even try to get to know how she is doing in the five years separation & start their own tattoo business & sleep with their customers (all except one).
She decides to sever the mate bond or kill them after all these years & ends up forgiving them & worse sleeps with the cheaters.
Guess h being an assassin doesn't mean she is mentally/ emotionally strong enough.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 30, 2022
Mates that betray
Delphina had several mates who left her supposedly to save her. She confronts them to have them break the bond. Eventually they find out she's an assassin now.
They want her back, I would think after the pain they put her through she would stay strong and make them earn her back. Apparently she is not that strong, which is disappointing.
Delphina had several mates who left her supposedly to save her. She confronts them to have them break the bond. Eventually they find out she's an assassin now.
They want her back, I would think after the pain they put her through she would stay strong and make them earn her back. Apparently she is not that strong, which is disappointing.
March 5, 2025
The book prologue opens to a sweet and bouncy FMC, Delphina (hybrid Chameleon/Witch) going to tell her mated pack of a year the good news. She’s pregnant!
She comes home to an empty house and a short note that says we don’t want this, we don’t want you and we don’t love you anymore, don’t look for us. –
Axel (Alpha Lion), Clayton (Alpha Wolf), Tag (Witch), River (Water Elemental), Dalton (Earth Elemental).
5 years goes by
The first chapter is one of her Alpha’s getting his d*ck sucked and internally monologuing on how all of them run a tattoo shop together and basically f*ck or get sucked by all their clients constantly. Apparently, them tattooing human women gets the women SO horny, they must stop and f*ck them halfway through their tattoos just to calm them down. Tag is the only one that will not sleep with anyone outside the pack but will sleep with the pack members (M/M).
A. The author says it is not cheating because they were separated but they were separated unwillingly. They’re freaking MATED. 4/5 of the “pack” cheat on the FMC for 3 years and even better, she feels pain every single time and they do this every single day.
So how is this NOT cheating?!?! Even better, you guessed it, the FMC “couldn’t” cheat on her pack. So what the fuck is this misogynistic bullshit? Even the mate that doesn't cheat still gets laid by his pack members. So the only one not having sex for 5 years is the FMC and she gets to feel like her heart is being stabbed every.single.time one of them steps out on her.
B. Packs apparently use the female’s last name so these cheating fuckers are calling themselves the Grimm Brother’s Tattoo shop- all while being separated from her and cheating on her.
Delphina shows up at their tattoo shop and tells them she wants the bond broken. They all freak the fuck out and cannot begin to fathom why. She tells them to break the bond or she’ll kill them one by one and they straight laugh at her.
She even internally dialogues on how she can smell the human's mouth scent and perfume on her mate’s dick. Gag.
Her 5 yo son Max walks in since he didn’t want to wait in the car; he’s advanced for his age. They all scream at her for cheating on them (for real?). She walks out. Tag tells them she could feel them all cheating on her and that Max looks just like Clayton and is a wolf pup. They're all shocked like whaaaa?
We also learn their “community” blames Dell for her pack leaving her. The whole town/community just assumes she did something to run her pack off so makes her a pariah. No one will even let their kids play with her son.
Again, these guys have a thriving business, get their dicks wet every single day multiple times a day and have for years and she’s living in a community that hates her, raising her son alone and hasn’t moved on. They left her. They LEFT HER. Why do authors think readers enjoy this shit?
The only person who would talk to Dell is Elder Briar. He offered to train her as a half shifter/witch assassin after her mates left her and that’s what she has become since her pack left. Her assassin name is Umbra.
Some of the guys feel guilty while the Alphas stick to their guns that they were right to leave her no matter what. We learn Briar Elder came to them and said he can't tell them when, why, how or who but they had to leave Dell or she'd die. They just 100% accept this, race around the house to pack and abandon her for 5 flipping years.
Then a bunch of M/M scenes happen. Like now that they know they can’t cheat outside the mate bond without it hurting Dell, we get to read about them cuddling and having sex with each other. Again, not that I mind M/M scenes but one of those books that makes you question why they even need a mate. She seems super unnecessary.
For a strong, heartbroken, independent deadly woman the author keeps saying she is, Dell is a real let down. She wants to kill them or break the bond but after that first confrontation, the guys start showing up one by one and she just lets them. They play with Max and tell her they love her and only her and she just sits there like a lump.
There’s zero fire or anger, just sad reluctant inner thoughts. She even lets them take photos all smiley and happy with her. Where’s the angst? They betrayal? The super dangerous assassin? It's been 5 years and she's just like oh welcome back you jerks!
In Chapter 9, Axel (the lion shifter) admits to Dalton he only slept with two other women before his lion would not let him and he is now dying because of the separation away from his mate. Dalton takes him to Dell who immediately goes skin to skin with him to save his life. Dalton kisses Dell who does nothing to push him away.
Axel wakes up the next morning and they fool around. Granted, she punches him but her character is super weak when it comes to these guys mates or not. It's been 24 hours and she's giving it up.
We also get a chapter from the unknown bad guy beside the scenes who finds out Delphina is with her mates and throws a shit fit about how “they” do not want her useless mates around and how “their” plan worked before to get rid of them so Delphina would become the perfect assassin.
Then there’s more M/M sex this time between the bad guy and his accomplice. The "bad guy" is also working with Elder Briar (duuuuh, the plot is so transparent).
Highly highly disappointing. Predictable bad guy, shallow weak MMC's and a weak AF FMC with zero backbone
She comes home to an empty house and a short note that says we don’t want this, we don’t want you and we don’t love you anymore, don’t look for us. –
Axel (Alpha Lion), Clayton (Alpha Wolf), Tag (Witch), River (Water Elemental), Dalton (Earth Elemental).
5 years goes by
The first chapter is one of her Alpha’s getting his d*ck sucked and internally monologuing on how all of them run a tattoo shop together and basically f*ck or get sucked by all their clients constantly. Apparently, them tattooing human women gets the women SO horny, they must stop and f*ck them halfway through their tattoos just to calm them down. Tag is the only one that will not sleep with anyone outside the pack but will sleep with the pack members (M/M).
A. The author says it is not cheating because they were separated but they were separated unwillingly. They’re freaking MATED. 4/5 of the “pack” cheat on the FMC for 3 years and even better, she feels pain every single time and they do this every single day.
So how is this NOT cheating?!?! Even better, you guessed it, the FMC “couldn’t” cheat on her pack. So what the fuck is this misogynistic bullshit? Even the mate that doesn't cheat still gets laid by his pack members. So the only one not having sex for 5 years is the FMC and she gets to feel like her heart is being stabbed every.single.time one of them steps out on her.
B. Packs apparently use the female’s last name so these cheating fuckers are calling themselves the Grimm Brother’s Tattoo shop- all while being separated from her and cheating on her.
Delphina shows up at their tattoo shop and tells them she wants the bond broken. They all freak the fuck out and cannot begin to fathom why. She tells them to break the bond or she’ll kill them one by one and they straight laugh at her.
She even internally dialogues on how she can smell the human's mouth scent and perfume on her mate’s dick. Gag.
Her 5 yo son Max walks in since he didn’t want to wait in the car; he’s advanced for his age. They all scream at her for cheating on them (for real?). She walks out. Tag tells them she could feel them all cheating on her and that Max looks just like Clayton and is a wolf pup. They're all shocked like whaaaa?
We also learn their “community” blames Dell for her pack leaving her. The whole town/community just assumes she did something to run her pack off so makes her a pariah. No one will even let their kids play with her son.
Again, these guys have a thriving business, get their dicks wet every single day multiple times a day and have for years and she’s living in a community that hates her, raising her son alone and hasn’t moved on. They left her. They LEFT HER. Why do authors think readers enjoy this shit?
The only person who would talk to Dell is Elder Briar. He offered to train her as a half shifter/witch assassin after her mates left her and that’s what she has become since her pack left. Her assassin name is Umbra.
Some of the guys feel guilty while the Alphas stick to their guns that they were right to leave her no matter what. We learn Briar Elder came to them and said he can't tell them when, why, how or who but they had to leave Dell or she'd die. They just 100% accept this, race around the house to pack and abandon her for 5 flipping years.
Then a bunch of M/M scenes happen. Like now that they know they can’t cheat outside the mate bond without it hurting Dell, we get to read about them cuddling and having sex with each other. Again, not that I mind M/M scenes but one of those books that makes you question why they even need a mate. She seems super unnecessary.
For a strong, heartbroken, independent deadly woman the author keeps saying she is, Dell is a real let down. She wants to kill them or break the bond but after that first confrontation, the guys start showing up one by one and she just lets them. They play with Max and tell her they love her and only her and she just sits there like a lump.
There’s zero fire or anger, just sad reluctant inner thoughts. She even lets them take photos all smiley and happy with her. Where’s the angst? They betrayal? The super dangerous assassin? It's been 5 years and she's just like oh welcome back you jerks!
In Chapter 9, Axel (the lion shifter) admits to Dalton he only slept with two other women before his lion would not let him and he is now dying because of the separation away from his mate. Dalton takes him to Dell who immediately goes skin to skin with him to save his life. Dalton kisses Dell who does nothing to push him away.
Axel wakes up the next morning and they fool around. Granted, she punches him but her character is super weak when it comes to these guys mates or not. It's been 24 hours and she's giving it up.
We also get a chapter from the unknown bad guy beside the scenes who finds out Delphina is with her mates and throws a shit fit about how “they” do not want her useless mates around and how “their” plan worked before to get rid of them so Delphina would become the perfect assassin.
Then there’s more M/M sex this time between the bad guy and his accomplice. The "bad guy" is also working with Elder Briar (duuuuh, the plot is so transparent).
Highly highly disappointing. Predictable bad guy, shallow weak MMC's and a weak AF FMC with zero backbone
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 4, 2021
I’m on the fence with this one moving between and 2 and 3 star. I’m gonna say 3 since I’m going to read the next one. Strong on the m/m and the guys aren’t too bad. I didn’t like how dramatic it was, this was another one that read loud. The kid was sweet and probably the only way for reconciliation.
The ??? was a pain and Alec having a POV didn’t really make sense to me until the end. The excuse was stupid and it was probably the worst part of the story for me. Miscommunication is a pet peeve of mine and this was just ugh. The fact that they were just dicking anyone when the bond was still there was also ugh. The only guys that deserve to be given a second chance was Tag and Axel. I do like the family vibe though and I’m curious enough to continue.
The ??? was a pain and Alec having a POV didn’t really make sense to me until the end. The excuse was stupid and it was probably the worst part of the story for me. Miscommunication is a pet peeve of mine and this was just ugh. The fact that they were just dicking anyone when the bond was still there was also ugh. The only guys that deserve to be given a second chance was Tag and Axel. I do like the family vibe though and I’m curious enough to continue.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 13, 2021
DNF...not a fan of the constant repetition at all. 60% of the way through and it was just annoying, and not for me, sorry!
March 18, 2024
There were so many things wrong with this book.
The FMC is abandoned by her mates and they go off fucking people left and right including each other. So they had each other. While the FMC had a whole bunch of no one.
She decides to end the bonds and when they see her they seem to realize hey she’s here and they want to fuck her so she should stay. WTF! They didn’t even bother to check on her once. She had to go to them for them to even realize that they wanted her back.
They left her because someone came to the house and told them too. WTF!!! Just fucking left!
The men are juvenile, self-centered, shallow, self-absorbed, whiny, assholes. I wanted the FMC to fucking break the bonds and find someone, anyone else.
The big bad is supposed to be this person you as the reader aren’t quite sure who it is. It’s as obvious as a frying pan to the head. There isn’t anything remotely intriguing or suspenseful about the character. In fact the big bad is basic. Supposedly this master manipulator, Uber powerful. Nope, he was simple, the plans were obvious and stupid.
This book really pissed me off. The men were fucking awful and the FMC just takes them back.
After writing this review and thinking about how awful this book is, I’m going to round down my score to a 1.
The FMC is abandoned by her mates and they go off fucking people left and right including each other. So they had each other. While the FMC had a whole bunch of no one.
She decides to end the bonds and when they see her they seem to realize hey she’s here and they want to fuck her so she should stay. WTF! They didn’t even bother to check on her once. She had to go to them for them to even realize that they wanted her back.
They left her because someone came to the house and told them too. WTF!!! Just fucking left!
The men are juvenile, self-centered, shallow, self-absorbed, whiny, assholes. I wanted the FMC to fucking break the bonds and find someone, anyone else.
The big bad is supposed to be this person you as the reader aren’t quite sure who it is. It’s as obvious as a frying pan to the head. There isn’t anything remotely intriguing or suspenseful about the character. In fact the big bad is basic. Supposedly this master manipulator, Uber powerful. Nope, he was simple, the plans were obvious and stupid.
This book really pissed me off. The men were fucking awful and the FMC just takes them back.
After writing this review and thinking about how awful this book is, I’m going to round down my score to a 1.
dnf
June 19, 2021DNF at 48%. I don’t think the rejected mates trope is my thing.
December 29, 2023
3.4⭐️⭐️⭐️
🌶🌶🌶2.5/3
I read this in one evening, and even tho I had issues with it ,I was still kept engaged throughout. Mostly because I'm here for the chaotic messy drama.
The betrayal in the beginning was good, I love when the fmc can feel pain through the bond when her mates are unfaithful...
However
1- there was really not enough grovelling or holding out on her end.
In fact their grovelling mostly consists of them each getting a fun day with her and the kid and then just moping afterwards. 😒
2- their whole reason for leaving her out of the blue.. was kinda lame... some rando authority figure just tells you you need to leave your mate and doesn't tell you why other than she will die, and you just do it ???? Like come on guys.
3- the fact that they offered " happy endings" to their female tattoo clients after MOST SESSIONS was gross. If you want to get laid go to a damn bar or whatever, don't bang your customers at your place of business in a supposed sterile environment 😳
But I am definitely going to read the next one because I'm interested enough to know what happens next
♡ Betrayal
♡ Cheating( kinda they are broken up I suppose) ~ that causes her pain
♡ Assassin fmc
♡Single Mom
♡ M/M ⚔️
💀💀💀
Standing there looking at these men, the men that I used to love more than my next breath, I wish that I felt something. But the only thing that I feel is the residual pain from their most recent betrayal.
💀💀💀
The pain I felt every day, I found out that meant my mates were finding sexual release with someone outside our mate family unit.
💀💀💀
“You mean to tell me every time we got our dicks wet Dell felt like a knife was going through her chest?” Clayton asks, and all I can do is nod.
💀💀💀
“You must have good support back in the community,” Tag says, bringing me out of my thoughts. “Actually, no. When you guys ran out of town like your asses were on fire, the community decided that I must have driven you to it.
💀💀💀
🌶🌶🌶2.5/3
I read this in one evening, and even tho I had issues with it ,I was still kept engaged throughout. Mostly because I'm here for the chaotic messy drama.
The betrayal in the beginning was good, I love when the fmc can feel pain through the bond when her mates are unfaithful...
However
1- there was really not enough grovelling or holding out on her end.
In fact their grovelling mostly consists of them each getting a fun day with her and the kid and then just moping afterwards. 😒
2- their whole reason for leaving her out of the blue.. was kinda lame... some rando authority figure just tells you you need to leave your mate and doesn't tell you why other than she will die, and you just do it ???? Like come on guys.
3- the fact that they offered " happy endings" to their female tattoo clients after MOST SESSIONS was gross. If you want to get laid go to a damn bar or whatever, don't bang your customers at your place of business in a supposed sterile environment 😳
But I am definitely going to read the next one because I'm interested enough to know what happens next
♡ Betrayal
♡ Cheating( kinda they are broken up I suppose) ~ that causes her pain
♡ Assassin fmc
♡Single Mom
♡ M/M ⚔️
💀💀💀
Standing there looking at these men, the men that I used to love more than my next breath, I wish that I felt something. But the only thing that I feel is the residual pain from their most recent betrayal.
💀💀💀
The pain I felt every day, I found out that meant my mates were finding sexual release with someone outside our mate family unit.
💀💀💀
“You mean to tell me every time we got our dicks wet Dell felt like a knife was going through her chest?” Clayton asks, and all I can do is nod.
💀💀💀
“You must have good support back in the community,” Tag says, bringing me out of my thoughts. “Actually, no. When you guys ran out of town like your asses were on fire, the community decided that I must have driven you to it.
💀💀💀
February 26, 2023
3 Stars
I would’ve given this a higher rating but I was promised good groveling and this was not it. No la dio para nada. But I really liked Dell, even though I’m disappointed in how easily she forgave the guys. The only two I kinda like are Tag and Axel 🤷♀️.
Anyways, I’ll read the next one because I’m curious as to what is gonna happen. If you expect groveling then don’t read this because, honestly, it lacks a lot in that part. Toodles!
I would’ve given this a higher rating but I was promised good groveling and this was not it. No la dio para nada. But I really liked Dell, even though I’m disappointed in how easily she forgave the guys. The only two I kinda like are Tag and Axel 🤷♀️.
Anyways, I’ll read the next one because I’m curious as to what is gonna happen. If you expect groveling then don’t read this because, honestly, it lacks a lot in that part. Toodles!
January 23, 2024
Not enough grovel. Period. The hurt they caused the fmc was so bad she wanted to kill them. And yet, she just forgave them.
And then the actual reason they took off and left her is so so fecking stupid it is absolutely unbelievable. 🤣 I just couldn’t believe the author made that lame ass reason.
RH w MM✅
Duet. Finished. ✅
Pregnancy off page but child from this RH group in story✅
OW w mc’s but not after they see her again✅
Kindle unlimited ✅
And then the actual reason they took off and left her is so so fecking stupid it is absolutely unbelievable. 🤣 I just couldn’t believe the author made that lame ass reason.
RH w MM✅
Duet. Finished. ✅
Pregnancy off page but child from this RH group in story✅
OW w mc’s but not after they see her again✅
Kindle unlimited ✅
January 11, 2025
Has a trigger, but I still read it.
Cheating is a trigger for me, but I still read it. The book is well written and takes you through so many emotions. One thing that I liked was how she was able to allow them to experience the pain of their betrayal. There is some groveling, but not nearly enough. Hopefully the second book makes up for that.
Cheating is a trigger for me, but I still read it. The book is well written and takes you through so many emotions. One thing that I liked was how she was able to allow them to experience the pain of their betrayal. There is some groveling, but not nearly enough. Hopefully the second book makes up for that.
July 20, 2021
despite some of the writing errors I actually enjoyed this. I read it straight through.
March 17, 2023
Dnf. Went in blind.
Mm action, RH , not for me 😑
Mm action, RH , not for me 😑
September 4, 2025
Honestly, I think this was just what I needed to get out of my reading slump.
February 17, 2021
Some grammatical errors, but nothing too bad. While I enjoyed the book, yet again, the FMC is betrayed by her mates and kinda let’s them get away with it. Yeah, she can make them feel the pain she felt, but I want them to have to fight to earn her back. She spent years dealing with the loss and betrayal, then in a matter of days she’s letting them back in, when they haven’t even had the decency to apologize or explain why they left her! I do enjoy this trope, I just would like the FMC to make them pay.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 21, 2021
Well that's one surefire way to ruin a really cool storyline. The amount of errors in this book are so off-putting. As an editor, just the sheer lack of commas made for some terribly built sentences. On top of which, the narrators (it switches POV throughout the story) all have the same problem of switching from speaking in past tense to present tense ... even within the same paragraph.
On numerous occasions, information we already know was repeated simply through use of a different POV. And while I understand its use, I hate "unknown" characters (like when a new chapter starts and the character is labeled "???"). Additionally, the prologue was an extremely odd way of giving us background on the characters (which I'll recap below).
With all that being said...what a shame! The actual story here is pretty cool.
General Gist, with spoilers:
Again, these are just my opinions, but I've read a lot of books and I RARELY give something a 2 star review. Such a shame, because I truly appreciate what the author was going for here.
--Rating - 2 stars - poor grammar and too many errors.
--Steam - 2 stars - if you're looking for steam, this isn't the book for you. The author tries to give a "shock" moment in the beginning, but the remaining scenes are few and not the focal point. They're bare and not fully realized.
--Storyline - 4 stars - I really and truly like the idea here. I almost wish the author would do a rewrite and team up with another author to give this book more depth and spice. The prologue itself should've been a whole book (describing how bonded they were and how they came to be bonded).
--Plot Twists - 2 stars - they aren't impactful
--Emotional Pull - 3 stars - I did tear up at one spot there somewhere in the middle
--Writing - 1 star - switching between past tense and present tense so often was confusing, the lack of use of commas was atrocious, and the manner in which narrates their individual chapters is all the same (bland and monotonous at times). There was no difference between how the characters spoke, which made the chapters blend. Also, I skimmed/skipped entire paragraphs and didn't miss anything (reading what should have been almost a 5 hour book, in about 2 hours).
--Denouement - 1 star - you end the book in some really mirky waters as far as knowing what the heck is going on.
--Cliffhanger? - Yes, but it's not jaw dropping and you probably have an idea that it's coming
--HEA? - yeah, I mean the story isn't finished, but they're definitely not in a bad place.
On numerous occasions, information we already know was repeated simply through use of a different POV. And while I understand its use, I hate "unknown" characters (like when a new chapter starts and the character is labeled "???"). Additionally, the prologue was an extremely odd way of giving us background on the characters (which I'll recap below).
With all that being said...what a shame! The actual story here is pretty cool.
General Gist, with spoilers:
Again, these are just my opinions, but I've read a lot of books and I RARELY give something a 2 star review. Such a shame, because I truly appreciate what the author was going for here.
--Rating - 2 stars - poor grammar and too many errors.
--Steam - 2 stars - if you're looking for steam, this isn't the book for you. The author tries to give a "shock" moment in the beginning, but the remaining scenes are few and not the focal point. They're bare and not fully realized.
--Storyline - 4 stars - I really and truly like the idea here. I almost wish the author would do a rewrite and team up with another author to give this book more depth and spice. The prologue itself should've been a whole book (describing how bonded they were and how they came to be bonded).
--Plot Twists - 2 stars - they aren't impactful
--Emotional Pull - 3 stars - I did tear up at one spot there somewhere in the middle
--Writing - 1 star - switching between past tense and present tense so often was confusing, the lack of use of commas was atrocious, and the manner in which narrates their individual chapters is all the same (bland and monotonous at times). There was no difference between how the characters spoke, which made the chapters blend. Also, I skimmed/skipped entire paragraphs and didn't miss anything (reading what should have been almost a 5 hour book, in about 2 hours).
--Denouement - 1 star - you end the book in some really mirky waters as far as knowing what the heck is going on.
--Cliffhanger? - Yes, but it's not jaw dropping and you probably have an idea that it's coming
--HEA? - yeah, I mean the story isn't finished, but they're definitely not in a bad place.
Read
May 26, 2021Not touching this with a barge poll!
4 out of the 5 “so called” mates cheat on her! What the ever loving fuck is that about!!
She remains celebrate but they screw humans for payment of tattoos....what author thinks this is romance and what women want to read it...ewwwwww!
4 out of the 5 “so called” mates cheat on her! What the ever loving fuck is that about!!
She remains celebrate but they screw humans for payment of tattoos....what author thinks this is romance and what women want to read it...ewwwwww!
May 14, 2021
Not much depth
So this got three stars because it didn't go into a lot of detail.None of where they were or was from. Describing very little in the world or people. I guess its like I'm told not shown🤷
The other thing is ,I like not having their cheating threw in my face except the first one. But we didn't get the feel of it . Like I said told . The only reason it bothered me was because they did leave for a stupid reason and they cheated without any thought at all ..other than I'm never seeing her again so I need to satisfy myself. Biggest thing was they really weren't remorseful😒 didn't get that vibe at all. Mostly just said man I hate it hurt her awww. Oh how sweet. Just decided for themself it was ok and they could just be in her life because she showed up ...right after one got done with getting sexualy paid from a client 😒 ... Then had the nerve to ask who's kid and be ....mad 💀💀💀
So double standards and getting tired of all these writers making the girls keep it in the pants but giving the guys excuses 🙋🙋🙋🙋
So I gave it three basically for keeping the cheating out of sight .( thank you writer ) but just made it way to easy for the guys and for her to just forgive them ..props would have been given if she had meet some new mates that hadn't treated her like dirt on a dime then cheated for years and just glossing over the knives in chest EVERY TIME they cheated ...years........
So I might read book two in the hopes that they pay ...but with the way writer wrote it I doubt it 😔
So this got three stars because it didn't go into a lot of detail.None of where they were or was from. Describing very little in the world or people. I guess its like I'm told not shown🤷
The other thing is ,I like not having their cheating threw in my face except the first one. But we didn't get the feel of it . Like I said told . The only reason it bothered me was because they did leave for a stupid reason and they cheated without any thought at all ..other than I'm never seeing her again so I need to satisfy myself. Biggest thing was they really weren't remorseful😒 didn't get that vibe at all. Mostly just said man I hate it hurt her awww. Oh how sweet. Just decided for themself it was ok and they could just be in her life because she showed up ...right after one got done with getting sexualy paid from a client 😒 ... Then had the nerve to ask who's kid and be ....mad 💀💀💀
So double standards and getting tired of all these writers making the girls keep it in the pants but giving the guys excuses 🙋🙋🙋🙋
So I gave it three basically for keeping the cheating out of sight .( thank you writer ) but just made it way to easy for the guys and for her to just forgive them ..props would have been given if she had meet some new mates that hadn't treated her like dirt on a dime then cheated for years and just glossing over the knives in chest EVERY TIME they cheated ...years........
So I might read book two in the hopes that they pay ...but with the way writer wrote it I doubt it 😔
October 8, 2021
Disappointed
I would have loved if she would have got revenge on her cheating mates and got her own new man and left them in her dust to be her bad ass self so much more then just getting back with them when they didn’t even really care about her enough to not cheat. Has potential but I was disappointed by the fact that she was supposedly this bad ass assassin but yet just forgot that the men who abandoned her for 5 years just because their so hot and she can’t say no to having sex with them
I would have loved if she would have got revenge on her cheating mates and got her own new man and left them in her dust to be her bad ass self so much more then just getting back with them when they didn’t even really care about her enough to not cheat. Has potential but I was disappointed by the fact that she was supposedly this bad ass assassin but yet just forgot that the men who abandoned her for 5 years just because their so hot and she can’t say no to having sex with them
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