Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver
Published: August 15, 2023
A friends-to-lovers dark romantic comedy full of murder, chaos, and spice, unlike anything you’ve read before.
Every serial killer needs a friend.
Every game must have a winner.
When a chance encounter sparks an unlikely bond between rival murderers Sloane and Rowan, the two find something elusive—the friendship of a like-minded, pitch-black soul. From small town West Virginia to upscale California, from downtown Boston to rural Texas, the two hunters collide in an annual game of blood and suffering, one that pits them against the most dangerous monsters in the country. But as their friendship develops into something more, the restless ghosts left in their wake are only a few steps behind, ready to claim more than just their newfound love. Can Rowan and Sloane dig themselves out of a game of graves? Or have they finally met their match?
Butcher & Blackbird is the first book in the Ruinous Love Dark Romance trilogy of interconnected stand-alone dark romantic comedies. This dual POV novel ends on a HEA.
***Butcher & Blackbird is a DARK ROMANCE intended for an adult audience – please see Brynne’s website for a comprehensive list of CWs***
THIS HAS NO BUSINESS BEING THIS GOOD. This came out of NOWHERE. I am baffled at how fast I read this, I literally couldn’t stop. I had my husband driving me to the gym just so I could read as much of this as I could in a day. This is probably my favorite dark romance out there. Hands down. I really do suggest you read the FULL CWs on her website though, I didn’t, and there was a tiny bit of stuff I wasn’t really into but didn’t fully deter me away, which is why I didn’t give it a full 5 stars WHICH IS MY OWN FAULT OK!?
I think Rowan Kane might be my new favorite MMC. I have to say his absolute adoration for Sloane just was something I couldn’t get enough of. Just all in 1000% and it never waivered. I couldn’t stop loving him. He ticked all the boxes. ✔️Golden Retriever Energy ✔️Tall, Dark and Handsome ✔️Tattooed ✔️Successful Chef ✔️Irish Bostonian ✔️Insanely Committed – WHAT MORE COULD YOU WANT?!
Sloane was absolutely great too, I loved her being so smart, calculated, and she had some smart humor/wit going on. I really enjoyed her overall as a FMC, but it was a little hard to love her as much as I did Rowan. But the two of them together, *chefs kiss*. He brought out so much in her, and they were just perfect together.
And I think it was all so successful because a majority of the book was the build up to it all, and you could really feel it between the two of them. I kept going because I needed to know if they were finally going to take the leap each and every time, and when they finally did, JEEZ was it satisfying. And the fact that this book focused a lot on the friendship before the full relationship and sexual relationship, it just made it that much better.
I’m beyond happy I picked this up, this is definitely one of my favorite reads of the year. And I wasn’t expecting it at all which is why I’m so thrilled with it. I cannot wait to read the next book which follows Lachlan and Lark.
Rating: 4.75/5 Stars
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