There Are No Saints (Sinners Duet, 1)
She knows he's no saint, but she has no idea she's dancing with the devil. Cole Blackwell values control. He's the hottest sculptor in San Franciscoโwealthy, successful, and respected. His only weakness is the dark impulse he carefully conceals. In truth, he's not just an artist: he's a predator, and the city is his hunting ground. Mara Eldritch is a nobody. Broke and damaged, she works three jobs while creating paintings no one will ever see. When a chance encounter throws Mara into Cole's path, her escape from certain death fascinates Cole. More than thatโit fixates him. He begins stalking her, discovering there's more to the struggling misfit than he would have guessed. She makes him feel things he never thought he could feel. Want things he thought he'd never want. He doesn't know if he should protect her at all costs or destroy her before she ruins him. He's losing control, breaking the rules that have kept his true nature hidden from the world. Mara knows he's dangerous, but Cole is the only person who's ever recognized her talent, and it leads her heart astray, straight into the dark. Cole can teach her to get what she wantsโฆbut what might this vicious killer want in return? Content warnings: serial killers, blood, dubious consent, graphic murder, graphic violence, mentions of child abuse, kidnapping, stalking, emotional abuse, self harm, sexual assault, alcoholism, torture.
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Book Accolades
Why You'll Love This
WOW. Just wow. Grippingly intense and rivetingly psychological, this story consumed me! Iโm both mesmerized and aghast- brilliant story telling from Sophie Lark! While I love so many of Larkโs story, I can without a doubt say this is her most creatively inspired piece to date. There Are Not Saints is one of the most interesting stories Iโve read in a while- a story of brilliant contrasts, one existentially bold and expertly told. Psychological thriller, dark suspense, gothic romance, angsty taboo? Everything and none of those- this story stands intrepidly on itโs own. And I can not stop thinking about it. The premise alone is enough to both titillate and chill. Two rival serial killers that have combined their love of the hunt with their artistic expression engaged in a captivating game of cat and mouse, a murderous one-upping feud. Both respected artists, both rich and powerful, one more base and primitive in his antics, the other more strategic and manipulative. And one is our hero. And our young, starving artistic ingenue finds herself the center of their games- at first a survivor, then an unwitting participant, and then suddenly grappling with her own inexplicable desire for the dark and control mercurial artist whose dark edge is clearly more than an artistic persona. Intrigued? You should be. Thereโs nothing like that- because Sophie Lark is going to make you delirious attracted to a cold, ruthless serial killer. Oh yes, itโs like The Fall meets You, and I was transfixed from the first word to the last. The story unfolds like dangerous seduction- an alluringly slow burn paired with the menacing edge of psychological intensity. Like the blade of a beautiful but bloody knife- something both marvelous and fearsome. Truly, Sophieโs best writing to date- vividly told, atmospherically brilliant, creatively unique, and expertly paced. But the characterization, this is where the story shines. What sets apart a true psychological thriller is just that- the psychology. The nexus of the pathos and logos that make a human mind tick- and tick in a way that isnโt quite normal but still accessible, reliable. And thatโs what makes Cole Blackwell such an effective hero. He exudes this Ted Bundy-esque detached charm- a charismatic sophistication paired with a compelling raw magnetism. Sophie so brilliantly constructs and deconstructs this character- gives him depth and nuance that seduces us, but challenges his own essence by inserting emotional chords that are unfamiliar to him. Heโs unpracticed in some aspects of feeling- it unsettles but awakens him. Possessive or obsessive, terrifying or enigmatic, sexy or menacing? I donโt care- Iโm here for it. And Sophie connects us to him as a character first intellectually, then entirely emotionally- a really brilliant way of evolving a character arc simply by the narrative duality to his point of view. You FEEL his evolution- as much as we also see it in his subtly evolving actions. And we are so wrapped in his mind- we can both recognize psychological โotherness,โ and it makes him all the more endearing. Is swooning over a serial killer a thing? And Mara is such an effective foil- she is a FORCE. Surprisingly given how unassuming she is- slight in stature, poor, unnoticeable and powerless, yet she becomes the lynchpin of this story, all because she refuses to let go of her incredibly unsatisfactory life- and then something beautiful happens, her life becomes extraordinary. Like her artistic media, Mara is a collage of pieces- a mosaic of interesting character traits and unexpected moments of character brilliance that made her equally as psychological fascinating as her serial killer beau. We only scratch the surface of her potential to live in the grey, but the glimmers we saw here make me incredibly excited to see just what sheโs capable of. Thereโs a wildness to her that I canโt stop being curious about. And their chemistry is just FASCINATING. Inexplicable, consuming, taboo, toxic- yet beautiful. So much so you even forget about the world around them- because really thatโs not what this is about. Itโs about the collision of darkness, love, and power- and how they can all find peace in the soul. โEvil men always want to justify what they doโฆ.they want to push you, and bend you, and break you until you snap. Until you do something youโd never thought youโd do. Until you canโt even recognize yourself.โ Be warned triggers abound. Did you not hear me say serial killer? Expect more than just the unsettling- expect the macabre in places. And Sophie dives into it with gleeful savagery. Normalizes it even- yet another brilliant stroke as we enter the mind of Cole. And itโs also filthy hot- kinky Sophie Lark is definitely my favorite. This is what happens when you step outside of the box- Sophieโs boldness pays off and then some. This is the kind of book that reminds me what I love reading- how words can be art, can challenge our hearts and minds. Brava. I can not wait to see how Sophie brings the story to close.
[๐]๐ค๐ฉ ๐๐ก๐ก ๐ค๐ ๐ช๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ฌ๐ฃ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐๐ ๐พ๐๐๐ง๐ข๐๐ฃ๐. ๐๐ค๐ข๐ ๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ก๐จ ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐ช๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ค๐ง๐๐๐จ ๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ก๐ก ๐๐ค๐ฌ๐ฃ๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ ๐ฃ๐๐๐๐ฉ๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐ค ๐จ๐ก๐๐ฎ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐๐๐ค๐ฃ . . . ๐๐๐๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ค๐ข๐ ๐ก๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ก๐จ ๐ง๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐จ๐ฉ๐ค๐ง๐๐๐จ ๐ค๐ ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐ฅ๐๐ฉ๐๐ฌ๐๐ฎ ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฌ๐ค๐ค๐๐จ . . . ๐ ๐ฉ๐ฌ๐๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ข๐๐ฃ๐จ๐๐ค๐ฃ ๐ฌ๐๐ฉ๐ ๐๐ก๐๐๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฃ๐๐ค๐ฌ๐จ ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ค๐ ๐๐ค๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ค๐ช๐ฃ๐๐จ . . . ๐๐๐๐ฉโ๐จ ๐ฌ๐๐๐ง๐ ๐ฌ๐ ๐ฌ๐๐ฃ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐๐ค. ๐๐ค ๐ข๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐๐ง ๐ฌ๐๐๐ฉ ๐ฌ๐ ๐ข๐๐๐๐ฉ ๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ฃ๐จ๐๐๐ . . . An absolutely addicting, didnโt want to put it down, suspense-filled read. Iโm not even going to synopsisize this one. (Iโm making it a word!) If you like Dark Romance which involves a serial unaliver falling hard in the most obsessive of ways, filled with suspense and hot chemistry, this is one to check out. Not going to lie, the morals in this one areโฆ๐, and yet, I couldnโt help rooting for this couple because ๐ฎ๐จ. So definitely check those TWs because there are definitely some gruesome scenes and some very โquestionableโ actions by our protagonistsโฆ As for me, as soon as I turned the last page, I immediately downloaded the next! What this book is giving: โ Dark Romance โ Dual POV โ Serial Unaliver + Struggling Artist โ Obsessive MMC โ Rival Serial Unaliver Nemesis โ Morally BLACK Rating: โญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธโญ๏ธ /5 ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธ๐ถ๏ธยฝ / 5
I've read this author before. It's always good reads, but i think this is one of the most exciting. It's definitely a page turner. Pay attention to the TW. There are probably a few of them. They don't bother me but they might you, so don't blame the author if you don't like it. If you're OK moving forward, you won't regret this book. The only bad thing is it's a cliffhanger. So I'm moving on for book 2.
I loved this book so much! They have so much chemistry, itโs amazing! Iโm already downloading the second one because I canโt get enough of them!
This book got me out of a massive book slump. It's one of my first 5 stars reads of the year. It kept me hooked from the very beginnig even though I'm not usually a fan of slow burn, but it was perfect here. So happy I found this duet, now on to the next one...
Characters: 5/5 Setting: 4.5/5 Writing: 5/5 Plot: 5/5 Steam: ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฅ/5 Overall: 5/5 โI do not love men: I love what devours them.โ I am obsessed with this book. Iโve been wanting to read one of Sophie Larkโs books forever (sheโs literally the reason I got KU, all the way back in September) and Iโm so glad I finally have. I canโt say for sure if starting with the Sinners Duet was the way to go because, of course, I havenโt read anything else. I can say for sure that this is one of the best dark romance books Iโve ever read. Letโs start off with the plot. I donโt want to spoil too much (though I will provide TWs at the end) but just know that this book is chaotic af and I wouldnโt have it any other way. Our protagonist, Mara, is amazing. I would die for her. She goes through it in this book and has for her whole life, as most DR heroines do, but sheโs able to get back up on her feet with Coleโs support. She has some truly iconic moments. I mean, she keeps a serial killer for company. Clearly, sheโs a badass. Said serial killer, Cole, is a character I was truly skeptical about. I went into this book wondering how Lark was going to make that work as a love interest, but she absolutely did. Iโm halfway through There Is No Devil right now and I can confirm that book 2 is just as dark, steamy, and impeccable. Trigger warnings from a review on StoryGraph. These are not listed anywhere in the book or on the authors website. BIG red flag. Graphic: Blood, Classism, Kidnapping, Cursing, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Gore, Sexual assault, Torture, Death, Emotional abuse, Schizophrenia/Psychosis, Injury/injury detail, Murder, Sexual content, Stalking, Violence, Body horror, and Bullying Moderate: Self harm, Abandonment, Misogyny, Child abuse, and Confinement Minor: Death of parent and Alcohol
This book has me booked after the first chapter. Loved it. So many twists and surprises. Looking forward to book two.
First time I felt I read a smart and intellectual plot.๐๐ And one of my first dark romance story wherein the heroine was a strong character. On second thought, stronger than the male character.!! ๐ Amazing story, i love it how Mara always retaliate and damn unapologetic. Unlike the other books wherein the female characters always gives in... Mara was somehow refreshingly new for me. Spice ๐๐๐๐๐/5 Plot ๐๐๐๐๐/5