Playing with Fyre

Fyre & Ashes #1

by Logan Fox

Healing was my obsession... until *she* walked into my classroom.

Fyre
Charlotte Ash is bright, young, traumatized, and my newest Art Therapy student.

I’ve taught many people how to conquer their demons through art. But Charlotte’s demons threaten to consume us both.

From the moment we lock eyes, I can't stop watching her, can’t get her out of my head. She haunts my dreams and awakens my most depraved desires.

I'm addicted to her darkness. I crave her pain.

And I want her in the worst way.

I know I'm a monster, but I can't bear to stay in the shadows anymore.

I need her by my side. Forever.

But what if my sweet Charlotte can't give me all I demand?

What if, instead of healing her, I leave her broken... just like me?

Playing with Fyre is the first book in the Fyre & Ashes series, a dark stalker romance. This book contains material some may find triggering, such as sexual violence, swearing, blood and mature themes.

Genres: Dark Romance, Dark, Romance, Novella, Contemporary, Amazon, Smut

102 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 31, 2021

About the author

Logan Fox writes deliciously dark and twisted romance with damaged anti-heroes and kick-ass heroines.

Subscribe to her newsletter by heading over to her website at https://authorloganfox.com.

Reviews

[Ꮗ€♫◗☿ ❤️ ilikebooksbest.com ❤️ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Crazy Stalker Love!



The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💋💋💋💋
Heat/Steam: 🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
Story/Plot: 📙📕📗📘📔
World building: 🌎🌏🌍🌎🌏
Character development: 👨🏻👱🏻‍♀‍🧔🏻👩🏻👱🏼‍

The heroine: Charlotte Ash - She suffered intense trauma and was told by her therapist to try the Art Therapy course at the local college. She has a growing crush on her professor despite what happened to her in the past.

The Hero(es): Professor Gideon Frye - he teaches and Art Therapy Class and has a dark past. He is a psycho most assuredly but a handsome one and he has an all consuming obsession with Charlotte.

The Story: Charlotte is scared and traumatized and is trying her best to work through her issues. Though she is taking antidepressants and needs sleeping pills to get a nights sleep without nightmares. However, in place of the nightmares she has been having passionate dreams of her professor.



As the story goes on we find out how much of a stalker Gideon really is, but also how Charlotte can’t seem to resist him. I love stalker romance, and I really liked this book, but have to admit that this is a bit disturbing. Though he is acting as a professor it is Art Therapy and he has both psychology and art degrees so for him to be so deviant is a bit weird. Not to mention stalking and scaring a trauma victim.

But like I said, I love stalker/obsession books and this was a good one. I also love books about sociopaths and psychopaths that fall in love and Gideon Frye is all that and more. This is a pretty short story and was originally in the Stalk*ers anthology. However, three more chapters were added to this one. I can’t wait till Under Fyre (book 2).

I voluntarily read & reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts & opinions are my own.

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[MPT · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Twisted Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (review is for both books)

Playing with Fyre and Under Fyre was all types of crazy!
Warning ⚠️ Spoilers up head….

This story is Dark, Twisted, suspenseful, steamy and disturbing and I loved it All!



I haven’t read anything by Logan Fox so I was going into this blind. I have to say I was impressed with her writing…
Heads up: Quite a few Tiggers in both books.


Wow!! Professor Gideon Fyre takes stalking to a whole new level. He’s domineering and a bit psychotic, but hey who doesn’t like a man a little bit on the cra cra side…right?. Well maybe the accurate description of Professor Fyre would be Serial Killer, but again who’s taken notes…right? You’ll either love him or hate him…
me tho…. I LOVED him! He doesn’t sugar coat his craziness and his hot af! 🔥

Charlotte Ash on the other hand has me baffled… I’m still trying to figure her out. She suffers from the trauma of being kidnapped years ago and is trying her best to avoid every and anything that happened to her, but when Gideon kidnaps Charlotte and starts exposure therapy on her he shows Charlotte more of his crazy side and does some disturbing shit to her, so I’m a little confused if she likes him or fears him? I’m getting mixed feelings.. I’m thinking she’s going to be as crazy as he is by the end of the series…lol

Like in book one there is a scene where he breaks into her apartment and sexual assaults her to the point she pisses herself and then he eats her out, but then in the next chapter she acts as if this was normal... Yea, because most sane guys will eat you out after you pissed yourself…

These type of things happen throughout both books, so I’m still unsure whether she’s as fucked up as he is?

Another incident was where he restraints her (and not in a romantic way either) and she begs him not to (go through the back door) if you catch my drift, but doesn’t listen to anything she has to say and again she acts if this is normal behavior too…um okay..
but when she finds out how many people he’s killed…. Now this….freaks the fuck out of her…..



Say what? So him kidnapping you, stalking you, humiliating you, violating you, demeaning you…..doesn’t freak you out, but him killing people does….🤔 lol



Anyhow, this series definitely has me on my toes and is taking me on one hell of a crazy ride…..

Both books end with cliffhangers, so I will continue this review as soon as Book three Catching Fyre comes out.

I have a feeling book three is going to open up all types of Fuckery! I can’t Wait to Read it!

Oh BTW I just love Arrow! 🥰

[Helen Power · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a deliciously dark romance. It’s pretty twisted, which I enjoyed, but I couldn’t really give it more stars. I know it’s the first in a series, but it’s so short that I felt a little cheated. Beyond that, we aren’t given the chance to really delve into the hero or heroine beyond a surface level. That said, I enjoyed the writing and the characters are intriguing, so I will likely be checking out the next book.

[Kavya · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm shocked with the five star ratings here because even though I love a Stalker romance, there is a difference with it actually being romance and just complete psychotic. The H is not at all sane and it's not romance.

[Kate V · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 Dark and Twisted Stars!

This is the first book in the Fyre & Ashes series and is about Professor Gideon Fyre and Charlotte Ash. Gideon is a psychologist and uses art therapy to help victims of severe trauma and abuse. Charlotte suffered a traumatic event and is now one of Gideon's students. As soon as Charlotte walks into his classroom Gideon becomes obsessed with her and decides he will heal her and make her his.

Charlotte is attracted to Gideon and hates herself for the attraction. He chases away the darkness and makes her crave things she can't process. Both of these characters are broken...but somehow when they're together, the broken pieces of their souls match up. Can Gideon help heal Charlotte? Will Charlotte understand and accept who Gideon is?

Gideon is obsessive, possessive, quite screwed up (lol), protective, dirty and has a past that I got no answers about. I was completely surprised at the turn this story took with him. Charlotte is such a shattered character but I think her inner strength is going to come through with Gideon.

This ends on a cliffhanger and I was left totally confused and intrigued. This was a dark read...much darker than I am used to reading and some elements made me uncomfortable but the writing is really good. This story sucked me in and had me questioning everything. Gideon and Charlotte's chemistry is so hot I thought my Kindle would catch on fire. I was morbidly fascinated with this whole story.

Why 4 stars? I wish it had been longer and I wish some questions surrounding Gideon had been answered. However, maybe those will be answered in the next book. Overall, if you like suspenseful dark romance with some dirty moments then I would suggest this story.




Triggers: Sexual violence, kidnapping, blood, suicide talk, drugs, violence, stalking

[Kelly_Reads_Books · Rating 5 out of 5]

Playing with Fyre grabbed me from the first page and kept me captured until the end.
Professor Fyre is teaching art to students who have been through something traumatic or are going through some crisis. He is teaching them to share what they are feeling through different art mediums and expressions. Charlotte is in his class, but she is stuck in her past.
I was so mesmerized by the story that I read it in one sitting, I couldn't put it down!

[Debs · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't like this story. The teacher preyed on his student even though she was a damaged soul. He knew she found him attractive and he used that to break into her home and deduce her. She thought she was delusional due to the anti-depressants she was on, but then found out it was real. She told him that he had crossed the line, and he had!

[Cécile Smits · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Fyre & Ashes series has been in my library for a while now,and i knew i wanted to take my time with it.
To give it the attention it deserves,inhale every emotion that screams at me from the pages.
Playing with Fyre was a véry good start…..meeting Charlotte and Gideon,getting to know them a little,makes me hungry for more.
She’s been through hell,and the therapy she’s already had,hasn’t helped her….not really.
She hopes attending professor Fyre’s art therapy class will help her to get where she wants to be.
Only,the man isn’t what she expected….at all!
For starters,he’s younger than she thought.
Then,he’s also too damn attractive,too well built,and she can’t help but fantasise about him.
Even with everything that happened to her….
But if she could see inside his head,she’d see the predator lurking…
The one that wants to own her,devour her,and never let her go.
Even though he’s read her dossier,even though he sees her trauma.
Or maybe because of it….because he’s convinced he can rebuild her into a new woman.
Because he’s convinced he’s the only one that sees the real Charlotte,and he’s the man to bring her out.
But first he needs to rid the world of the reason she suffers.
And then there’s nothing to stop him from…..
Leaving me with a cliffhanger that has me going straight to Under Fyre.

[˚₊‧꒰ა vruxreads ໒꒱ ‧₊˚ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Professor Gideon Fyre teaches an art class for PTSD victims. Charlotte is taking the class to help deal with her trauma. She is attracted to Fyre. He is obsessed with her and stalks her.

But I felt something was missing, I couldn't connect to the characters, it was a very quick read, but I won't read the next book right away, maybe in future.

➜ smut - 🌶️🌶️🌶️/5

📍 No cheating, no OW drama

[Sherry Fundin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Healing was my obsession… until *she* walked into my classroom.

I must confess, I love a good villain as much or more than a good hero. I find them fascinating. Both characters Fyre and Charlotte Ash have tragic pasts, but once Charlotte is in Fyre’s sights…I love that she fought him, regardless of the attraction. She knew it was wrong as he forced himself upon her. There are many triggers, so…if you don’t like diving into the depths of depravity in an erotic thriller that has no boundaries, step aside. This isn’t for you.

[Bex (Beckie Bookworm) · Rating 3 out of 5]

This for me was just OK, though I did like the premise and that was what initially drew me to this one as I do so love a good old stalker romance. This is the first book in a trilogy and centres around Charlotte a girl who suffered and survived a horrendous ordeal at the hands of a monster. Attending an art therapy class as a way to deal with her trauma brings Charlotte to the attention of another predator her Art professor Gideon Fyre. He instantly develops a fixation on his student and it’s not long before this obsession is taking over every aspect of his life as Charlotte becomes the centre of Gideon’s world.

This was told in dual POV which is my favourite It deals with some dark themes and I believe this first book has the least triggers and it’s definitely going to escalate further as the story progresses. This is of decent novella length and I mostly enjoyed it with some minor issues. I just wasn’t sold on the connection between Charlotte and Gideon it just felt slightly underdeveloped but maybe the short length impacted this a tad. It also had some continuity issues and I did get turned around slightly as the flow at times felt somewhat disjointed. The writing itself was fine but I don’t think I’ll be continuing on I’m just not that invested in the characters so unfortunately this is the end of the road for me.



Reviewed By Beckie Bookworm
https://www.facebook.com/beckiebookworm/
www.beckiebookworm.com

[Emma · Rating 1 out of 5]

I do not understand the 5 stars. I LOVE dark romances. All of the trigger warnings were like music to my ears. But not only is this not written well, it feels like half the book is missing. I read this book in 40 minutes. It felt like those recap segments you get on Netflix when you're starting the next season of a show. I do think it deserves at least one star for concept and dual POVs, but I didn't get a lady boner even once reading this.

[Maud Feijt · Rating 1 out of 5]

… Look, I love a dark stalker romance. And I like my fictional men morally grey as much as the next girl. But this MMC has zero redeemable qualities and was downright psychotic. Yikes.

[Poppy || Monster Lover · Rating 3 out of 5]

still on the fence

This book took dark stalker to a new level for me. I understand that I’m probably not the target audience since I’m not big on pain, so I rated based on the writing. The story flowed pretty well and the characters had some depth to them, although their backstories weren’t explained beyond broad strokes. Maybe future books have more information, but without an explanation of Fyre’s past, it’s hard to invest in him as a character.

Spice: 3/5

Triggers: all of the triggers

[Elaine Lucky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Professor/Student dual POV. Charlotte is a damaged shell of her former self in an art therapy class and Fyre is her professor that's a sick depraved stalker obsessed with her. He will stop at nothing to have her including breaking in her home while she's asleep. The things he does to her has Charlotte questioning her already frail sanity flipping between disgust, fear, & lust. Not my type of book & I found the repeated non-con off putting especially while drugged. The story was well written and ends in a cliff hanger but I'm not interested enough to read the next book

[Athena Que Será, Será · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tags: age-gaaap, damaged-broken_heroine, dark-romance, forced-seduction-dubcon-noncon, obsession, older-hero-younger-heroine, om_drama, psychos-in-love, rape-survivor, read, rich-hero-poor-heroine, stalker, suicide_alert-selfharm, teacher-student_romance

[Catherine · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmmmm.

I think I see what themes are trying to be explored, but it didn’t quite work for me! And that’s okay!

Please check the trigger warnings!

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dark and twisted

Not sure hoe much Charlotte can deal with before she has a psychotic break. Professor Fyre is a twisted individual. It ends when he kidnaps her after killing another evil person. Ends in a cliffhanger with no current ending.

[Sunny · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yeah, no.

[Kamryn · Rating 1 out of 5]

How the fuck does this have a 3.8???

[♥ I’d Rather Be Reading ♥ · Rating 3 out of 5]

- FMC: Charlotte
- MMC: Fyre
- POVs Included: Dual POVs (Charlotte, Fyre)

-----------------------------------
-----------------------------------
SUMMARY: (SPOILER WARNING)

Charlotte has been through some traumatic stuff in her life. Which is one reason she is taking art therapy classes.

But her professor -- Gideon Fyre -- has become rather obsessed with her. And he's taken it upon himself to start stalking her. Now he has plans to keep her for himself...for forever.

-----------------------------------
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REVIEW:

Interesting dark-ish stalker story. Not the darkest I've read, but still pretty interesting.

It is rather short and so there isn't much build up going on. Because of the shorter length, I do feel like some of the scenes are cut or jump to the next scene way too early. Like when she kisses Gideon and then the next scene cuts to like two days later. We don't even get to see the aftermath of that choice. Or after her suicide attempt when Gideon finds her on the floor. We cut out of many scenes like this way too soon. It made the book shorter, but also took away from building up the story properly.

Fyre definitely has that crazy stalker je ne sais quoi thing going for him and I'm curious about him. I would like more backstory about him though, so I hope we get that in the next book.

Charlotte is a little all over the place and confused. She wants him sometimes but also doesn't. We will see where she lands on that front in the next book (hopefully lol).

Overall it's a decent story for how short it is. Leaves off with a cliffhanger so I'll be reading on to see what happens next.

[Elise Theel · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh my god what!?

1) I couldn’t put my kindle down
2) I was not expecting that ending!

I devoured every page and looking forward to reading the next book!

[Raquel · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is not a kink or dark romance book, these are ✨crimes✨

[an6ra · Rating 3 out of 5]

Quite boring. Didn't stick out to me.

[The Romantic Rush Blog · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a dark and delicious little novella- the PERFECT tease for the upcoming series.

Logan dives into this taboo novella fast and curious- as therapist/art therapy professor Gideon finds himself captivated by student Charlotte. His interest quickly turns into a dark obsession- one where Gideon crosses all kinds of lines to protect his sweet Charlotte. Charlotte is also intrigued, but she's also healing from the traumas she suffered- and crossing paths with Gideon awakens something in here she wasn't quite expecting.

For such a short novella, Logan sure packs a lot in- establishing an intense, but twisted chemistry between these two and laying the groundwork for some more character nuances we've yet to fully unpack. If you have triggers, this definitely won't be for you. There's a toxic beauty to the nature of their relationship, the perfect balance of disturbing and intriguing. We can already see glimmers that Gideon's latent depravity might be the perfect balm to unleash Charlotte from our brokenness- but just as that story starts to begin, our novella ends. Needless to say, you'll definitely be craving the rest of this story. I'm all in for just where this will lead- and I have a feeling its going to be even darker and more titillating. Can't wait to read more!

[Hanan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ms. Fox delivers a well written edge of your seat story.
A mix of taboo, dark, stalker and lust make it a thrilling suspenseful read.
Gideon Fyre is an intriguing character.
While reading the book he had my mind all over the place.
Is he the hero or the danger?
Is he the healer or the predator?
Fyre is the sexy eye catching man but he’s also the type that will make your hair stand on end.
He’s the gorgeous guy that gives off bad vibes and screams stay away.
And your mind flashing a neon sign saying “be aware danger”.
Charlotte is a victim of a horrific crime.
She’s filled with fear and frightens easily.
Charlotte is trying to cope as best as she can.
One way is by attending an art therapy class.
With each class she takes her feelings become jumbled for her teacher Fyre.
A mixture of longing and lust with a healthy dose of weariness.
This story was most definitely a page turn.
Most definitely dark and most definitely has me wanting more!

[Cheryl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Playing With Fyre by Logan Fox is the dark, disturbing story of obsession, despair, fear, escape, surrender, and recovery (maybe?). Whatever it is….it is incredibly addictive, creepy, and mesmerizing….It follows Fyre and Charlotte. He’s a therapist and she’s in his class. But, there are things she doesn’t know…dark things…and things she is trying to escape…that no one knows.
.
OMG!!!!! This story was so freaking good!!!!! I STILL don’t really know anything about these two and their relationship. There is a pretty major cliffhanger….and another book to come in this series!!! I AM HOOKED!!!!!!! But, OF COURSE I AM!!!! This is LOGAN FOX!!!!!!

I am volunteering to leave a review for an Advance Reader Copy of this book.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[ReadonReader · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gideon Fyre has an obsession, and it comes in the form of a student of his, Charlotte Ash. Gideon teaches art therapy and most of his students are struggling with traumas they’ve endured. Charlotte has suffered and is very distant with other people, but she is attracted to her professor. They shouldn’t see what this is, but Gideon can’t help it, he’s entranced. They may be toxic for each other but together they can help heal each other. I can’t wait to read more of their story!!

[Terry Babb · Rating 5 out of 5]

OMG, blown away by this deeply dark taboo but oh so compelling page turner...
I swear my pulse elevated & I got a frontal lobe tension headache though I felt no stress or anxiety. I'm not one to detail the story itself but if you like edgy stories that you can't put down for a second & it takes you on a journey that is far away from your "normal" comfort zone then this is for you. Looking forward to book 2. I received an arc & this is my honest & voluntary review.

[Hazel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fyre will burn you. Fyre will save you.

The way Professor Fyre behaves is totally hot, irresistable, like a force of nature. I absolutely agree with what he did in those 7hrs. I'm hoping Charlotte will agree when she calms down.
Gideon Fyre reminded me a lot of Dexter (books not the watered down TV series)
I must read more of this.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.