Review: Bad Things

Bad Things by Varian Krylov

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Buy this book and read it now! Ms. Krylov writes a masterful piece of line blurring non-consent. In Bad Things, Xavier possesses a hero complex. His inability to make the males who raped his sister pay for their crimes fester in him. He's a big guy who keeps his body in peak shape as well as his mind. When his sister is once again threatened due to her job, Xavier can't stand by and watch. Since he comes across as a dumb thug body builder, he easily slips into the shadier side of life to secretly help her out.

This story is truly about bad things. The bad things humans do for fun. People who have too much money and without moral can cause the worst things to happen. These are the people Xavier wants to help his sister take down but to do so, he too steps into the dark side. The question is, does the ends justify the means? From Xavier's perspective - yes. It is up to the reader to decide if they agree.

Ms. Krylov paints a depraved picture of a sinister human trafficking organization. The way this corporation sells their human product is quite ingenious. Whilst it's reprehensible, it's amazing clever. The details Ms. Krylov puts into this story make it multi-layered and rich. The bad things which happen hold a reader hostage by enticing them to flip page after page to see what will happen next. The criminals in this story are not stupid. They are also easily identifiable. What is difficult to decide is who is the good guy. Are there good guys?

The character building in this book is phenomenal. Xavier is a complex character with an intense and dangerous side. His dominance exudes from his pores and any submissive within his vicinity will become weak in the knees. His style of interrogation is erotic and oh so wrong. He imprisons a pawn and takes his sweet time sexually torturing and humiliating the boy. This right here is how dark erotica should be written and it's so exquisitely stimulating. Intellectually, the reader knows Xavier crosses several lines and he is bad. However, his dialog and actions generate a lustful feeling and flame the reader's arousal. In some ways Ms. Krylov perverts BDSM into a bad manner yet it doesn't feel BDSM hostile. The way she writes the kinky sex never crosses the line into BDSM attacking. It ends up being a fabulous BDSM dark fantasy. Many readers may wish to suffer under Xavier's cruel punishing yet pleasuring hands.

The erotic aspect to this story blends perfectly with the plot. The way the ending occurs is believable and works out just the way a reader would want. That is, the relationship between Xavier and his little fucktoy. The ending for the criminal is not satisfactory. Perhaps this is to leave it open for another book in this world. A reader can only hope. This book is highly recommended to m/m readers who want something dark and erotic.

*provided by BDSM Book Reviews



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