I trusted Malakai Harris all my life. I never thought he would stab me in the back the way he did.
Kai has taken everything from me. My freedom, my friends, my father. The only thing left for him to take is my sanity, but I won't hand it over. My only saving grace is his posse, those he has scared into following him.
Dax Porter
Nico Mendez
Rowe Kade
Knox Ward
They care about me, but they know they can't save me from Kai. How long can I keep myself and them alive?
Make Her Bleed is the first book in the Bound By Blood series. This book is a dark why-choose romance with a long list of content warning available on the author's website. This book is best read going in blind, but if you need them, the content warning are available.
You want dark , twisted , sick , taboo why choose ? Yup pooks this is the book for you once you get past the dumbass of an fmc like the way she irritated me so many times I wanted to put the book down and just dnf🙃 . The men made this worth it even tho they are very questionable as well .
DNF Quit @ 40% in Utterly unlikable fmc!!! I found Aria to be an annoying, idiotic twunt! Up until I stopped reading, it just had poor acting vibes. I didn't care for any of the characters.
I’m… not exactly sure what I just read. When Zepphora says this book has almost all the triggers, she wasn’t kidding. Make Her Bleed is dark AF. There wasn’t a single trigger that bothered me (there is probably something wrong with me or I’m just twisted) but the lack of relationship building did.
Aria is a seventeen year old girl who doesn’t date. She doesn’t want relationships, she just wants sex. There is absolutely nothing wrong with that, except for the fact that her best guy friend slash sex buddy can’t handle it. He feels rebuffed when she reiterates her no dating, no kissing rules. This sets everything else into motion.
Kai is Aria’s dad’s best friend who helped raise her until she was 12. He’s a straight up psychopath. I don’t see any redeeming qualities in him. Then, there are the football jocks he coaches: Knox, Rowe, Dax, and Nico. Outside of Knox and Rowe spending some time with Aria, there is zero relationship building. In fact, I felt like there was zero character building. We learn a little bit about their backgrounds, but that’s it. I didn’t feel any chemistry between Aria and the guys.
When I first started reading, it seemed like this was going to be an enemies-to-lovers/bully romance. Except it turned out to be just a bully romance where Kai is certifiably obsessed. Romance is even a stretch. He does unspeakable and deplorable things to Aria. The boys do, too, but under his guidance and no where near the severity as Kai. It killed me that Aria started off as this strong character, but then she took what was done to her and just… forgave? No groveling, no nothing. Her body heated up in their presence and bam: I forgive you. I can’t even.
The ending? It’s a cliffhanger. Kai’s actions the night before Aria’s birthday was a big WTF moment. I don’t understand the purpose and it seemed to go against what he’s said and thought. The steam is spicy and the book was well written, but I don’t think I’ll read the next one.
Don’t get me wrong, this book made me feel extremely icky, and at no point was I routing for kai and aria, but the other boys were actually so sweet and the mystery surrounding the past and Kai’s end goal was intriguing enough that it made it worth it for me personally, plus it was such a quick read and I can’t lie I couldn’t put it down
This book was an emotional roller coaster that I’m pretty sure I enjoyed. I think I need therapy. 😂 Kai is something else… I wouldn’t even know how to describe the things this man does to Aria. I’m pretty sure I wasn’t supposed to enjoy them as much as I did.
This is a dark book. Mind your trigger warnings. It’s dark spicy 🌶️, you’ll need therapy for the lady bit tingles it gives you… and the guilt for it! 😂
This one is for my dark, unhinged, pitch black romance lovers.. not for the faint of heart.
Ok so I had to take a minute to process this before writing a review. This book was not dark. This book was pitch black with absolutely no cracks for the light to come through. I love dark romance but this was just pure trauma based Stockholm erotica. Don’t get me wrong. I flew through these pages. It was very well written. The suspenseful plot and spice is what kept me reading. However, there is not a single thing I enjoyed about the mmc. Typically you would describe a character like Kai as an antihero. But antihero is too nice. This man was an awful human being. The abuse, the trauma, the pain, he literally almost killed Aria (fmc). His goal was to break her. And damn if he didn’t. I don’t see a single bit of redemption in store for Kai. This book is number one of a series and ends on a cliffhanger. So after all that, would I recommend this book? Yes. That being said, please make sure to check triggers because this book is definitely not for everyone. Would I read it again? No. But I will definitely be reading the rest of the series to see how this plays out. So all in all. I enjoyed the book. But I also REALLY like twisted and fucked up shit. So, read at your own discretion!!
Oh my gosh go read this it is so good. My first 5 star of 2023 I can not wait for the next one. Please read triggers but if you like den of vipers you will like this.
Make Her Bleed by Zepphora is dark and twisted, friends to captive/ bully romance. Aria and her father move to a new town for her dad's job as a football coach. She's excited to be near her Uncle Kai that helped raise her. When she turns down dating a boy on the team that she's f#cking. He goes to the coach to take the blood oath to seek vengeance. Little does he know Kai will enact a plan to destroy Aria. Aria's father is forced to stand aside as Kai and the team members r@pe her during school. Kai has her father's blood from the oath and everyone knows Kai will use it to set them up for a heinous crime leading to life in prison. Kai's influence is far reaching, leaving no one safe. When Aria tries to make a run for it she's in an accident, making it easy for Kai to kidnap her and hold her captive. As Aria slowly begins to break, the other boys become her rock. With Kai intent on both destroying her and making her want him things escalate quickly. When secrets begin to surface there's no telling who will be left standing and who will fall.
There is a lot to unpack in this book. Kia is totally unhinged and takes things too far, nearly killing Aria in the process. How she's still alive I don't know. I love the guys in this book. They are probably not terrible people, but Kai lures them in with promises of protection and aid until he has them, then they have to fall in line. However they all do what they can to mitigate Kai's punishments and torture and not just for Aria. I'm not sure how I feel about Aria. She's 17 so I try to think how a mind that young would work. I'm sure she'd be easy to manipulate and brainwash. However I can't help thinking, girl he's going to kill you and everyone else, so do what you must. I really can't figure out why no one tries to kill Kai…sh!t poison his cookies! I do appreciate the love Aria has and how she always looks for the good and how forgiving she is but IRL she would most likely be dead.
I give this book 4 out of 5 stars. I loved the darkness but there are times it's too much. As for the drug use too it's a bit much and unrealistic. I am really enjoying the plot and all the secrets and twists. I feel like we're slowly being fed the truth behind what made Kai the way he is, cold and unfeeling. If you have triggers check the CW but heads up this boom has just about every trigger there is. When I say this book is dark, depraved, and taboo I'm not exaggerating. Aria is 17 so need I say more? There is age-gap, family ties(kinda), and big alpha ownership dominance vibes. If you like dark, depraved, taboo, age-gap romance with multiple men this is for you. If you enjoy stories with more baggage and reveals than you can imagine then drop this book on the top of your TBR pile!
*I received an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) of Make Her Bleed in exchange for an honest review.*
I, I don’t quite know what I read other than dark romance is one hundred percent the theme of Make Her Bleed (MHB). Dark romance is always a deliciously decadent theme to dive into and savor and Make Her Bleed is no exception to the Dark Romance genre. There are quite a few triggers so make sure you go into Make Her Bleed with an understanding of what you can and cannot handle or what you choose not to read about.
If Why Choose is your jam, then you’ll also love this story. If dark romance, bully romance, and reverse harem romance with a psychotic and obsessed male are your jam then this is definitely your story.
I really enjoyed how this story has good spice, but my issue will always be instant or almost instant spicy scenes. I need to have more than a story that immediately jumps into smut. I did enjoy this story, but I needed something a little more at the same time and that is why my review is only 4 stars instead of 5.
This story is one for those who need something that wakes up that darkness inside. Aria our Female Main Character (FMC) is a strong lead who doesn’t want anything other than physical satisfaction but instead finds dangerous, dark men who, in turn, make her life a little darker as well.
Again, please check your trigger warnings because this is a DARK book and knowing your limits are important when it comes to dark romance.
Possible TW, Tropes, and Genres #WhyChoose (#ReverseHarem), #Taboo, #DarkRomance, #Kidnapping, High School, Sexual Assault, Physical Assault, Age Gap, #Bully Romance, Drug Usage, Death of a Parent, Sex Worker, MF, MMF, MM, Group Sex, Incest, Sodomy, #DubCon, Blood Play, Necrophilia, Forced Drug Usage, No Condoms, Implantation of a Tracking Device, Knife Play, Alcohol, Restricted Food/Water, Football, Sports, New Adult,
I really had NO idea what I was walking into, when I took this ARC on Book Sprout.
Zepphora makes absofuckinglutely terrible (as in they are bad people) characters that you hate with every fiber of your being. And then, they also make characters that you hate to love.
This really is one of those books, that you HAVE to check the TWs beforehand, and be ready for kinda no holds bar. When I read the TWs, one of them stood out the most, and I wanted to know how this would happen in this story.
Thankfully, the necrophilia was a small piece, of the story. It was told from the perspective of the person forced to perform the act.
There are elements of why choose in this story, but do not expect that this will have a HEA. This ends on a cliffhanger of fucking death.
The FMC is kidnapped, tortured, ends up falling for a few of her tortures (why choose), and then we are left with a wtf, how dare you leave it this way… Ending.
Would I recommend this? To certain people yes. I would make sure that they understand what they were getting into with all the triggers though. This book is definitely not for everyone.
4/5 stats -Destynnee
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
The writing was good, but this book needs a lot of development, specifically around the relationships that Aria has with the boys (which is superficial, at best) and Aria herself. Her character development is ZERO, and her constant “I can change him attitude” is annoying. I understand that the author probably wanted her to see the best in people, even Kai, but he did too much to come back from without some SERIOUS change and groveling, if at all.
The mystery side of the story kept me reading, because that was good, but I don’t understand how she wants Kai and is ready to forgive so quick.
Everything with him is a lie… but maybe that’s the point.
Also… there were a few mistakes in the book that detracted from the story.
It was 5 guys that attacked her, or 4? At the beginningish of the book she points out six total, including Kai, but only 5 including Kai consistently show up in the book. Also, there is no fallout from her being in the car accident, and whoever hit her is never explained, other than that the person was trying to kill her father, not her.. huh? The only person that potentially wants him dead is Kai, so was it Kai?
(The whole situation around the accident and her healing was confusing at best)
What step of C-4 is she on? Her dad told Rowe she had 3 steps to go, but others say 4… so, which is it?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
I finished this book in 5 HOURS! I COULD NOT put this thing down! 😩🔥 This is a dark romance. Giant emphasis on the dark, so let’s chat about it. 😉
This story follows Aria who is the daughter of a high school football coach who gets a new job as assistant coach to his long time friend Kai. Aria angers one of the football players by saying she doesn’t date and ends up the new target of Kai. However Kai has always had his sights set on Aria.. Kai has been obsessed with her for a long time. Aria gets child napped by Kai to fulfill a very thought out and lengthy revenge plan that the football player wanted enacted on her. This is a 10 step plan made to break and destroy her. However Aria is strong willed AF and is a complete bad a$$ and takes everything he dishes at her. This book ends on a cliff hanger. 🥴
This book contains the following: why choose, age gap, hand necklaces, SA, 🔪play, 🩸play. PLEASE see the extensive list of TW’s for this book prior to reading as I just listed a few.
This book is extremely dark and made me cry twice. My dark heart does not cry much so there is that.
This is the first book i've read by this author and it's really DARK and really TWISTED. I went in blind but i do really recommend reading the trigger warnings.
The book is about Aria, a seventeen year old girl who lives with her father and they move to a new town for her fathers work. There she is greeted by her uncle Kai and the boys who train under kai and her father. She is a strong girl but after what happens to her she loses herself which is understandable with everything that happens to her. Because it is really dark. I don't wanna spoil to much.
I have a love/hate relationship with uncle Kai, i don't know what to think of him. One minute i like him the next i hate him with every fiber in my bones. The other boys make the sweetness of the book, i really like them. The only thing i can't understand is why is she forgiving them all so fast..... I can understand a girl wanting to be loved and taking what she can, how she can but the things they did to her are really dark. She doesn't have a minute of rest or something. The book is really fast paced in that aspect.
It also ends on a cliffhanger which drives me crazy and i want to know more. :D
Listen, I love dark. Okay. The darker the better. But this book, just wasn't it. Yes, it is dark but there is no growth in any of the characters, and half of what Aria does just doesn't make sense. Aria makes some very questionable decisions... especially after she got out of the hospital and went right back after the MFC, the office scene right after leaving the hospital. That just didn't sit right with me honestly... A lot of what she did just didn't sit right with me, a lot of the times she made me so mad. And I didn't even finish it, I just couldn't. I could already see where it was going. I got about 60% through it, and went back and read some of the review and it turned out a lot of people felt the same way I did...
Again, it is a dark book, with a lot of trigger warnings, but just know. There is no character growth, and I feel like Aria went backwards in her character growth. And you don't really know much about any of the other males; they are just kind of there even though it's listed as a "why choose" it mainly just Kia.
Let me start by saying I loved this book. I was completely wrapped up in this book the entire time I read it. It was written beautifully, it was descriptive and held a perfect pace throughout the book. The characters were all complex, had their own things to deal with and secrets to hold.
Second, the story is gut wrenching, had me wanting to cry and made me realize I’m apparently a sadist for continuing to read even though I knew it was going to emotionally scar me.
There is so much that happens to this poor girl, that I can’t even begin to describe and if I tried I’m pretty sure I would get banned on this site.
If you are sensitive towards any sort of triggers, this will not be a book for you. I’m even not close to kidding. Check the trigger warnings thoroughly before you start this.
This book was one dark twisted mindblowing read😱 my mind is still trying to wrap around everything that took place. Oh dear lord the secrets one after the other it was like one lie after another. Aria and her dad have moved back to his home town as he's the new assistant coach for the high school team. The bad thing is Aria doesn't know the danger she's going to find herself in. I went into this book after reading the blurb so I didn't know what to expect. Well let's just say it was one wild ride after another. It does end on a cliffhanger, but don't let that stop you this book was so freaking good. I couldnt put it down the whole time. Now I have to wait for the next book to find out what's happening next.
🚫There are so many triggers in here you need to read them before reading🚫
this book is sick and not in a good way. I enjoyed it as well as was disgusted by it 🤷🏻♀️
idk if i’ll continue the series and that’s only because of Aria … she’s dumb as fuck ! it’s not even her falling in love with all the guys who did her bad .. as in really bad … she’s simply the dumbest FMC i’ve ever seen. She’s annoying and i hate her. She should decide what she wants.
And only MMC i liked was KAI ( Sue me ) … others were just .. mehhh !!!
There were so many plot twists coming.. one after another.. i got a headache while keeping up with them 💀💀
I honestly don’t know what ratings this book deserves!
wtf did i just read 🤷🏻♀️ i mean i did see the the tws but this is dark … beyond dark !!!
This is my first review ever! Don't come at me. It had so much potential- RH, forced proximity, Taboo, Kink, MMFMM and more. Perhaps I should of checked- because I didn't think I had any triggers left. The Pipe scene was unhinged, what happened afterwards, was unnecessarily violent, and the fucking Stockholm syndrome that the FMC experienced immediately afterwards?! I cried, I felt sick and disgusted for her. Kudos? to the author because I felt her raw pain. Did I devour this book? Umm Fuck yes! Were there certain aspects of romance that I loved? Of course, but does she experience them? Will I recommend this to my DR friends? No. However, I did look to see if the sequel was out..
Make Her Bleed is a dark why choose. Make sure to check the trigger warning.
I have literally no words.
Aria is 17 and the daughter of the football coach. She doesn't do relationships, just sex. Things get out of control when the guys she has been sleeping with (and her best friend) wants more and she turns him down.
Enter Kai, Arias dad's best friend, Knox, Rowe, Dax and Nico. These guys are dark dirty and depraved and Kai has been obsessed with Aria for awhile. He sees this as his chance to enact his plan.
I loved this book, this was my first book by Zepphora, and she now has me as a forever fan. This is a super Dark, Spicy,Taboo,Whychoose Romance.The MMC Kai I would say is a anti-hero, he does some horrible things to the FMC, it almost made me sick.So make sure to check the Trigger Warnings. I did love the other guys, they and the FMC are still in Highschool, and the FMC is underage intill almost the end of the book. I’m obsessed with Zepphoras writing style, she had me fully immersed in this book, that I read it in one night. The author does recommend going into this book blind and I also recommend it too. Go read this book it’s so good!
It’s not even the triggers. Aria is a fucking moron. She hates someone in one page and it’s never going to forgive them so you can turn the page and she loves them again, even Kai.
When she kept saying that Kai was good, I wanted to throw up. Girl, he put a pipe up your ass, don’t be an idiot. I had to put the book down several times because of how stupid this character was.
I don’t mind dark but I do mind stupid fucking characters and she was one of the worst characters I’ve ever read. Just thinking about it makes me want to turn back time and not read this book. Specially because it ends in a cliffhanger that I will not be reading, I can’t take another book of stupidity from Aria.
What in the Stockholm syndrome did I just read. I’m seriously confused about what I just read. She was throwing I love you’s out after, what… a week or two? After spending literally a moment with each of the boys? And are we supposed to like Kai or hate him? Y’all are telling me - the grown ass man makes it his mission to screw a 17 year olds life for no reason? And then she just goes back to loving him? I’m so confused man, seriously. But, the thing that throws her *almost almost* over the edge, is when he screws her bestfriend and forgets her birthday. Confusing wtf. What in the wattpad. Make it make sense come on, how do they come up with this stuff.
First of, grab a drink you made need it to work through the emotions and questions you may have by the time you get to the end of this book. I love how deep and thick this plot line runs, there are so many questions on who the good guy really is, is there even a good guy? I love how strong and independent Aria is and how she knows what she wants and it not afraid to declare it. Kai however doesn't agree with Aria's plans and has some plans of his own, some of which include the use of four of Aria's classmates. This is a story for the wicked and I am here for it!
❗️❗️I CANNOT STRESS ENOUGH, IF YOU HAVE ANY TRIGGERS AT ALL, CHECK THE TRIGGER WARNINGS. IF YOU DON’T HAVE ANY, GO IN BLIND❗️❗️
This piece is EXTREMELY dark but exquisitely executed! So many twists and turns. I NEED ANSWERS!! Knox and Rowe are my new book boyfriends. By far one of my darkest reads ever!
So I am a fan of dark romance and this book is ranked in the top 3 darkest I’ve ever read. Be prepared before going in because if there is something that triggers you, it’s gonna be in this book!! This is the definition of a dark bully why choose if I’ve ever seen one. Kai is the MMC and has so many issues they couldn’t all be named. Aria is our FMC and she is one tough girl, which she has to be in order to survive this world! I haven’t read anything by this author in the past but I will definitely by in line to grab book 2.
So this may be one of the most dark trigger containing books I have read this year. Aria is so freaking strong no matter what horrifying things she is put through by Kai. The ending made my heart hurt and that freaking cliffhanger man! Like what the heck, I needed more! 🚩 ABSOLUTELY CHECK THE TRIGGER WARNINGS IF YOU CAN NOT HANDLE CERTAIN CONTENT. I AM NOT KIDDING. This is DARK, DARK with many, MANY triggering scenes that you may not like 🚩
That is all I am going to say about the book. If you are strong enough and mentally stable, read this book. It is worth it.
When Zepphora says this book has all the triggers, that wasn’t a lie. None of them bothered me, but should be reviewed before reading. I enjoyed this book. The spice was written well, and top notch. The story line hooked me, I was perpetually on the edge of my seat for what would come next. I feel like there is so much to uncover with this multilayer story - like an onion every peel revealed something new… if you like dark romance and why choose, give this book a spin. Note: it does end on a cliffhanger.
Wow if the first word that comes to mind. This is a very dark read with lots of triggers, but man didn't bother me at all! Kai has been in Aria's life for as long as she can remember. She loved him like an Uncle. Until she couldn't stand him! He tried to take everything from her, but she was strong and determined he wouldn't take it all. His team tried to keep her safe but things just got worse for them all. There are tons of pasts that come up and you learn a lot about all of the characters. I couldn't put this down, I had to know it all.