Review: Devil of Dublin by BB Easton

This Dark Romance hits deep with an innocent childhood friendship that evolves into a cinematic race for a new beginning, and ends up leaving a mark (or three).

Genre: Romance

Tropes: Dark Romance, Dark Mafia, Soulmarks, Supernatural, Fae, Childhood Friends, Irish Countryside

(Devil of Dublin doesn't neatly fit into some of these tropes, but I'm listing some that qualify a mention.)

Rating: Explicit

Warnings: Graphic Violence, Abuse, Rape

Content Warning: This book deals with dark themes and situations. The author has a warning in the book and a more detailed description of the content warnings on their website [ here ].

Darby comes to Ireland when she is eight for her grandmother’s funeral and meets a mute boy in the woods who may or may not be a fairy. Over a handful of summers, she and Kellen share a bond formed through kindness and pain, cemented in the depths of the lush forest where they first met. When Darby stops visiting Ireland after the death of her mother, things take a terrible turn for both Darby and Kellen, who she eventually believes to be dead. When she returns years later for her grandfather’s funeral, she ends up on a dangerous journey with Kellen that unravels their past, their traumas, and the nature of the bond that they share.

This is not a typical romance, or even a typical dark romance, although I haven’t read as many stories in that particular genre. Devil of Dublin almost has a magical realism to it, especially when it begins the story from the point of view of an eight-year-old Darby wandering into the Irish woods looking for faeries. There is an innocence and idealism to the first quarter of the book, even as it slowly peels back layers to scratch the surface of the abuse and pain suffered by young Kellen, as well as hinting at the inappropriate — potentially dangerous — men in Darby’s life. The backdrop of the lush Irish forest, the lough (Irish lake), and the legends that exist there, create an undercurrent of earthy almost-real folklore, a shadow of the supernatural in the periphery of the story.

When it cuts to eight years later, the story picks up with a twenty-year-old Darby, and the hints of legends briefly show up in full force, creating a traumatic, thrilling set of moments that culminate in some of the darkest, yet most satisfying parts of the book. Then the story shifts to the more cinematic, action-packed journey that plays out like a Jack Ryan thriller, with guns and car chases and breaking and entering. In between those moments, as Darby and Kellen reconnect, the nature of their traumas slowly reveals itself as they stumble through physical and emotional expressions of their love.

While there are some steamy moments, a lot of them cause the characters to relive some form of their past trauma. As far as trauma goes, this is up there on a scale of about five Law & Order: SVU episodes without the fade to black editing out explicit horrors. Because of the traumatic experiences of the main characters, this book is definitely not for everyone. However, it is the deep pain and the real-world implication of where that trauma starts that truly left a mark on me. The author writes a note at the end of the novel explaining the inspiration behind their story choices, and as a student of Irish history and someone raised in the Catholic Church, it resonated with me.

I almost can't put into words how I feel about this book, except to say that it left a mark—or rather—three. On my left hand ring finger.

Mild spoilers ahead!

The author did an excellent job immersing me in the setting and utilizing the young point-of-view chapters to create a deep bond between Darby, Kellen, and the setting. When the plot shifts to the characters on the run—from not only the criminal underworld but their own lives—the book becomes a real page-turner rife with action, sexual tension, and inner turmoil that develops the characters as broken, traumatized adults.

The ending is in no way a happily ever after, however, it is a satisfying place to leave the characters knowing they will continue to heal from their pasts. To reiterate my Thoughts, the steamy scenes are often used to give insight into trauma and end up not feeling so steamy in the end.

Overall Rating: 4.5/5

Author BB Easton's site Amazon (Available on Kindle Unlimited!)

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