Even If It Hurts
Coastal Elite, Book 1
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Narrateur(s):
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Theo Sinclair
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Allie Shae
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Auteur(s):
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Sam Mariano
À propos de cet audio
A psychopath and his prey.
A dangerous, toxic, and utterly destructive love story....
He could have been my hero. He saved my life that night, a beautiful dark angel slicing through my fear and the water, dragging me from its deadly clutches. He should have been my hero. I thought maybe he was.
Villains aren’t supposed to win, and good should always conquer evil, but in the elite coastal town I live in, the only purpose a label has is letting you know what something—or someone—costs. Good, bad—it’s all relative, and it hardly matters. Baymont, California, is a land of beautiful villains and happy ever afters that are just out of reach.
Especially for me.
Until Dare moves the world beneath my feet, and even though I’m afraid to trust it—to trust him—boy, am I tempted. In more ways than one. Being with Dare is scary, but being without him is impossible. He makes it impossible.
Dare’s no hero, that much is clear, but maybe... Maybe he’s mine.
This story contains triggers and is intended only for a mature, adult audience. See the opening author's note for more explicit warnings, but know this is a very dangerous relationship with a very dark hero.
©2022 Sam Mariano (P)2023 Sam Mariano5 stars
This story begins with Aubrey, a senior in high school on the poor side of the story and struggling through life. She works part-time to have health care as her mom is dying with cancer. Easily coasting through life unseen until a run-in with Anae at her part-time job puts her square on the bullseye for the top queen bully. Anae feeling slighted takes the petty road and begins to hatch a plan to pay Aubrey's 'lack of respect' in kind.
Then fate--or bad luck--however you would consider it, she arrives to a school party. Orchestrated by Anae, Aubrey is put in the crosshairs with an encounter with a tomboy female and ends up in a pool for a near drowning. Thus enters Dare and he saves her from drowning. But don't get it wrong, he isn't a good guy. Dare is Anae's boyfriend and that moment is where a scheme to inflict revenge is hatched by Anae by using Dare. Though to be clear, that man cannot be used. He went willingly because he wanted that female.
Dare is hands down the most manipulative MMC I have EVER read. I ate that up and left no crumbs. He was eloquent in how he puppeteered our sweet little Aubrey. He enjoyed it so much that Dare kept her for his own while mastering the chess board of the story like a pro.
Sam Mariano writes morally black men like its dessert and I cannot love this enough.
Also - the Audio for this is utterly chef's kiss!! Duet style and a must listen.
Duet Narration - Highly Recommend
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Heat Level: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Tear Drops: 💧
📚EBOOK📚 & 🎧AUDIO 🎧
Even If It Hurts is the kind of dark romance that reminds me exactly why I keep coming back to Sam Mariano when I need something unhinged. I needed a pick for my bingo, asked ChatGPT for ideas, and this one was an easy yes—I already know this author doesn’t do safe, redeemable heroes. Her men are red flags with legs, and Dare? He’s not a “morally gray” bad boy. He’s a full-on psychopath. Before anything else: read the trigger warnings. This story is absolutely not for everyone, and it doesn’t pretend to be.
Dare isn’t misunderstood, damaged, or secretly soft—he’s obsessive, manipulative, and born the way he is. There’s no fixing him, no “love will change him” fantasy here, and honestly, I appreciated that brutal honesty. His fixation on Aubrey is intense and disturbing, but in that deeply twisted dark-romance way that keeps you glued to the page. He “takes care” of her, loves her in his own warped way, and doesn’t mean to hurt her… which somehow makes it worse. Add in somnophilia (yes, I know—problematic, unhealthy, wildly unhinged… and yet 👀 I can’t deny I enjoy reading it), and this book firmly plants itself in the “don’t judge me” corner of my shelf.
Aubrey, on the other hand, is your average high school girl who’s been dealt an absolutely brutal hand in life. She’s working herself to exhaustion just to survive, and then she crosses paths with the wrong sociopath. I’ll be honest—she’s a bit of a doormat. Too sweet, too forgiving, and sometimes frustratingly passive, but given everything she’s been through, it also… makes sense. Their dynamic is dangerous, unhealthy, and compelling in a way that made me question why I was enjoying it so much—until I landed on the obvious answer: the author’s talent. Sam Mariano knows exactly how to pull you into a story you probably shouldn’t love… and make you love it anyway.
The duet narration by Theo Sinclair and Allie Shae was fantastic and added an extra layer of intensity to Dare’s voice and Aubrey’s vulnerability. It absolutely enhanced the experience and made the obsession feel even more immersive. I enjoyed it enough that I’ll definitely continue with the Coastal Elite series.
Favorite quote:
“Unfortunately, I’ve already decided you’re mine, and you being afraid of me won’t change that.”
Dark, disturbing, and addictive—this one hurt in all the ways it promised to… and I still couldn’t look away 🖤
When the Villain Chooses You
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