Hooked by Emily McIntire was one of the first introductions into dark romance. And what an introduction it was. Not only did I get a great story of revenge, but I learned I had a kink I didn’t realize I had. Cue the research side of me for safety in kink play. Note: Never ever try to replicate kinks in any romance book without first doing your research into safety measure that should be taken.
Hooked by Emily McIntire
Hooked by Emily McIntire is book 1 of the Never After series. The series focuses on re-imaginings of our favorite fairy tale stories. This first book is a re-imagining of Peter Pan and Hook. It is 312 pages and was published September 5th, 2021. It can be found on Kindle Unlimited, Amazon and the author’s website here.
Premise
After Peter burned James’ life to the ground, forcing him to rebuild it from the ashes left behind, James only wanted one thing, revenge. When Wendy, Peter’s sheltered daughter, arrives in his bar, he knows exactly how he’ll accomplish his task. Use the woman to get to Peter. However, between a traitor in his organization and seducing the daughter of his enemy he feels the need to protect her from the traitor.
Triggers
Triggers found in Hooked:
- Sexually explicit scenes, including Breath Play
- Torture, Murder, Physical Assault
- Kidnapping
My Thoughts
The Never After series was my first dive into the world of Emily McIntire. What drew me in was the idea that these loose re-imaginings spun the story to where the villain wins the love interest. I was still new to Dark Romance when I picked up this book, and a lot of my love for the genre started here.
“Just remember that whenever things feel bleak, all situations are temporary. It’s not your circumstance that determines your worth, it’s how you rise from the ashes after everything burns.” – Hooked by Emily McIntire
James for me was a major red flag, but as I read through the book that red started looking a whole lot of green to me. While I can’t remember if I read the book in one sitting, I wouldn’t be surprised if I had because I was reading 25-30 books a month at this point.
I was … hooked … on this book, and if I had put it down to sleep, I still stayed up way too late reading it.
Something to keep in mind, this book was rather plot heavy, so it wasn’t filled with spicy scenes. However, those scenes were quality. They were so well done and fit into the story with enough tension leading up to them that you could really feel the connection between the main characters.
Speaking of the characters, another draw for me was they way the two characters grew in their story. Wendy was mostly sheltered so to she had to step into her own throughout this book. Meanwhile James learned how to prioritize someone other than himself and the empire he was trying to save.
“You want to watch the world burn?” “Let me guess, you’ll set it on fire?” I ask. He chuckles, the sound vibrating through me and settling into my bones. “No, darling. I’ll hand you the match, and stand at your back, watching you become queen of the ashes.” – Hooked, by Emily McIntire
This is absolutely a dark romance but not only dark in the romance. The world that Emily built for this story is almost gritty as well. We’re diving into the underworld of society where criminals dwell. And James is dragging a sort of sweet innocence, a lit candle that is Wendy into it with him. With all of that you get plenty of twists throughout the book.
If you are looking for a dark romance that will keep you guessing and have you on the edge of your seat, this is absolutely a great book to read.
“Anything happens to her and there will be no corner of the earth that can hide you from me. Understand?” – Hooked, by Emily McIntire
Who Would Like Hooked?
Tropes in Hooked include:
- Age Gap
- Underworld Criminal Organizations
- Touch her and die
- Revenge plot
If you liked the Monsters and Muses series by Sav R. Miller, and the world vibes of Saint View Psychos series by Elle Thorpe, or Saint and Sinners series by Ruby Vincent, this will likely be a book you’d enjoy as well.
Check out my thoughts on the other books in the Never After series:
Have you read Hooked by Emily McIntire, or are you adding it to your TBR? Let me know in the comments below. I love interacting with other readers about books they loved.