Review of “God of Malice” by Rina Kent

---

"God of Malice" by Rina Kent is the first contemporary dark romance book in an interconnected series. The story is set in a U.K. college with rivalries between various mafia groups. After a tragedy, Glyndon finds herself at the edge of a cliff but is interrupted by Killian Carson. Killian is a predator disguised in charm, savage, and instantly obsessed with Glyndon. With her now at the center of his world, Glyndon’s life will never be the same.

---

Let’s get into it! As always, I start my reviews with trigger warnings. This book contains consensual non-consent, dubious consent, suicide/ideation, graphic violence, mental illness, an intense virginity kink, and explicit sexual content. If any of this is a trigger for you, please reconsider reading.

First and foremost, I’ve been trying to put this review into words for about a week, and I feel as though I have nothing to say. I’ve gone through this review about five times, and it still feels blah. It felt unnecessary for this book to be almost 600 pages long, as a lot of the content wasn’t memorable. This book could have been condensed to about 300 pages and likely would have been much better. I couldn't stand some of the side characters and often found myself rolling my eyes or cringing. At various points, I was physically recoiling at some of the dialogue.

Killian is unlikable in the beginning and borders on creepy. Whether this is intentional, I am unsure, but it makes the first part of the book unsettling. He has antisocial personality disorder, and I do enjoy the take Rina Kent took on someone with his particular disorder. He is part of The Heathens, and his character can be quite brutal at times. Glyndon is a somewhat likable female character and has a personality, which is always appreciated. I found it strange that her brothers called her princess but was happy to see their dynamic described and grow as the story progressed. I enjoyed that she had a purpose to find out what happened to her friend, and it wasn’t dropped the moment she started really falling for Killian. I do wish Rina Kent would’ve added more concerning Glyndon’s investigation, considering she had almost 600 pages to do so.

Now, time for the explicit content. The author goes heavy on the dubious consent after Glyndon and Killian’s first sexual encounter. Additionally, our female main character is a virgin, and the kink goes HARD. Rina Kent goes so hard on this dubious consent and virginity kink that I almost had to put the book down forever. However, I persevered and was met with some great smut further on. Absolute chef's kiss to the nine open-door scenes.

Ultimately, with major criticisms aside, I did enjoy the plot, and I was invested in figuring out what happened to Glyndon’s friend. I enjoyed her relationship with Killian, and I was happy to see a female main character maintaining her individuality after finding a man. The story itself was entertaining, but I have read better. Even though I am disappointed with the first book, I enjoyed it enough to start the second one in the series. With all that being said, I would recommend "God of Malice" to those who enjoy contemporary dual-perspective dark romances.

---

Ratings:

3/5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

5/5 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️

---

If you enjoyed this review please make sure to check us out on Instagram @goodbadandspicy!