From the moment I picked up Phantom by HD Carlton, I had a hell of a time putting the book down. I needed to know about Genevieve and Ronaldo, their relationship, the stalking, and what became of them.
Phantom by HD Carlton
Phantom by HD Carlton is a Dark Period Romance set in the 1940s. It is a novella set in the Cat and Mouse universe but is a great standalone. It was published on January 4th, 2025 and is 367 pages. You can find the book on Amazon, Kindle Unlimited, and the author’s website here.
Premise
Genevieve thought she had as close as perfect to a life as she could, a good husband, a teenage daughter, and a house built straight from her dreams. That is until she realizes her husband wasn’t as good as she thought. He’d gambled their money, started coming home drunk, and the way he treated her became increasingly worrisome.
To make matters worse there was a man watching the manor, watching her. She should be terrified of the man, but instead she’s curious. Why was he here? What did he want?
He wanted her.
Triggers
Before I dive into the list of triggers, you should know this book is based in the 1940’s before women had the right to divorce their husbands, before women had the right to bank accounts, their bodies, and all of the things we take for granted today.
Triggers found in Phantom by HD Carlton include:
- Cheating (Not between MCs)
- Stalking
- Graphic violence, murder, gore.
- Domestic Violence and on-page rape (Not between MCs)
- Alcohol, gambling, addiction
- Infertility mention
- Sexually explicit scenes including degradation, breath play, and fear play
My Thoughts
We first find out about Genevieve in Haunting Adeline, where Adeline finds her great grandmother’s journal and begins reading it. Throughout the book we read journal entries that weirdly mimic the events taking place in Adeline’s own life.
Phantom is the story of Adeline’s great grandmother as it’s happening.
Taking place in the 1940s we read about how life actually was way back when. The characters often discuss World War II and how it’s affecting their lives. It added a layer realness to these characters.
However, diving into Genevieve and Ronaldo’s story, I was absolutely hooked. I loved every single second reading this story.
As I previously mentioned, there is cheating in this story, but not between the love interests. I also believe context matters to this story. Genevieve feels trapped in her marriage, because she is. It’s not just because of the daughter she shares with her husband but society itself did not look kindly upon a divorced woman, and it was extremely hard in the 40’s to not only obtain a divorce, as a woman, but to also support yourself.
Ronaldo is a mafia man, who after Genevieve’s husband, John, racked up debt, is spying on him to learn more information about him. Instantly he’s attracted to Genevieve and begins watching her. As he grows bolder and Genevieve takes notice of him the two spend several weeks staring at each other from a distance before they officially meet, and when they do it’s as if they were always meant for each other.
“He stares at me as if I’m a measly mouse caught beneath his paw and he hasn’t eaten in ages.” – Phantom by HD Carlton
HD Carlton does a fantastic job about giving us emotional but still kink-filled spice. She dives into kinks but through the sexually explicit scenes the emotions the characters feel practically jump off the page. The spice is extremely well done in Phantom.
“No, mia rosa, not even God can have you,” I growl. “You’re mine, and you will only pray to me.” – Phantom by HD Carlton
We see a lot of growth with both the characters. Genevieve figures out just how strong she is, and fights for what she wants in the best ways she can given the time and society she lives in.
Ronaldo goes from cold and hard, to soft for her too. He’s prepared to move past the gruesome tasks he would take on for his boss, simply to offer Genevieve a safer life.
“I call you my rose because for you, I would take all your pain so you would suffer none,” I tell her softly. “I would go through hell for you. Die for you. Do anything you asked. I love you, mia rosa. More than you will ever know.” – Phantom by HD Carlton
Angelo was interesting to me. A capo di tutti i capi the man showed a lot of kindness to his friend. We also get a glimpse from the hardened and powerful man on how the war was even affecting him and his family.
Being someone from Chicago, I know a lot of history surrounding the mafia in the 1940s. This book matched it closely. So if you are looking for old mafia, dark history type of vibe, I highly recommend giving this a read.
Who Would Like Phantom by HD Carlton?
Tropes found in Phantom by HD Carlton include:
- Mafia
- Stalker
- Based in the past
- Obsessive MMC
If you are a fan of Michelle Heard’s mafia serieses, Bloodied Hands by Adelaide Forrest, or Hooked by Emily McIntire, I highly recommend you give this a read. Additionally if you did love the Cat and Mouse duet, you will likely love reading this as well.
All of the Cat and Mouse reviews will appear below as I write them so make sure you check them out as well:
- Satan’s Affair
- Haunting Adeline and Hunting Adeline
- Where’s Molly?
Have you read Phantom by HD Carlton, or have you added it to your TBR? Let me know in the comments below. I love interacting with other readers about books I loved to read.