Darling Venom by Parker S. Huntington

Rating: 4.5 stars Spice Level: 3 stars Genre: Contemporary Romance

Trigger Warnings: Suicide, Substance Abuse, Grief

Intro/hook:

Summary: Darling Venom follows the point of view of the main character, Charlotte (Charlie), as she navigates several harrowing life events that occur during her formative years. Darling Venom explores the grief and guilt that comes along with being a survivor. The story is told in three parts that span approximately ten years. The main story line is between Charlie and the main male character who happens to be her late best friend’s brother. Together they open up tender, unhealed wounds and begin the cathartic journey towards mending their broken hearts. The story has several tried and true tropes romance readers enjoy such as enemies-to-lovers, misunderstood villain, and forced proximity to name a few.

Lit Review: Huntington illustrates the messy and beautiful aftermath that is healing and learning to forgive not only others, but yourself. Huntington will make you laugh, cry, and ache all on the same page. Darling Venom is categorized as a romance, and that is a major subject of the story, but the deeper message is of grief, healing, and learning to trust again. Darling Venom will rip your heart out and put it back together in the most bewitching way.

Recommendation: Darling Venom is an emotional rollercoaster that you won’t want to get off of even after the last page. So, buckle up and ready yourself for your next Roman Empire.