The Nora Theory

Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver is a contemporary friends-to-lovers romance featuring two highly skilled serial killers who love to hunt other, much worse serial killers. It’s a perfect blend of twisty, dark, and oh-so-sexy.

Sloane and Rowan are both serial killers who specialize in tracking down and brutally murdering other serial killers. Really, they’re making the world a better place. She is known as the Orb Weaver, due to what she does with her victim’s eyes. He’s the Butcher, a fun play on his official profession as a chef and his brutal style of killing.

They meet serendipitously after tracking the same target and proceed to enter into an annual game to see who can identify, hunt, and kill a chosen target first. It’s Gruesome. Gory. Gross. Gorgeous. And oh so much fun.

Before I even turned the first page of this book, I was immediately intrigued by the trigger warnings, which were truly wild. I knew this was going to be an unhinged read, I was very excited about it. I love it when authors push boundaries, and Brynne Weaver absolutely delivered.

I will very likely think of this book every time I eat cookies and cream ice cream for the rest of my life, but the absolutely top-tier spice makes up for the trauma involved in the food-related portions of this story. And as gross as it was, it did still make me laugh.

Sloane and Rowan’s romance is definitely a slow burn, with lots of tension and build-up before these two give in to their feelings for each other. When they do, though, it’s all fire. As one might expect from two serial killers, they are more than a little kinky, much in the way of another favorite from this year, Ward Willing. While it’s never explicitly stated, Rowan is giving pleasure dom, and we all know that’s a favorite here on The Nora Theory.

Butcher & Blackbird is a short and sweet (but not actually sweet, romantic in a deeply dark way) read, that’s fast-paced and perfect for when you need a contemporary romance that’s fun and over-the-top. It’s disturbing and disgustingly dark, and I love it. This book is unabashedly twisted, and for all the dark and creepy readers out there, you will love it.

Spice 4.5

Writing: 4

Note: some of the links included here are Amazon Affiliate links, which means if you purchase through said links, The Nora Theory gets a cut.