Stalked by the Kraken by Lillian Lark has been on my radar for a while now (as are many of her other books), and I’m so glad I finally got to read this one. This is a book filled with longing, patience, and courting, and I really enjoyed spending time with each of the protagonists. I can’t wait to read more in this world.
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Stalked by the Kraken (Monstrous Matches #1)
🥭🥭🥭🥭
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
(you can find my rating and spice system here)
POV & Tense: Dual POV, first person, present tense
Genre: Monster Romance
Tropes/Themes: Fated Mates, Witches, Kraken, Tentacles, Courting, Sex Magic, Sex Positivity, Mystery
Synopsis:
When kraken-shifter Gideon stakes out an antique shop in search of a stolen artifact, the last thing he expects is to fall in love. But when he sees Rose, his inner creature stirs and forcefully declares, “Mine.”
Rose, a matchmaking witch with the ability to see soul threads, is recovering from heartbreak. Determined to get her life back on track, she agrees to three nights only with the handsome Gideon. There’s no risk of rejection if she doesn’t open her heart…
I want nothing more than every single thing about you, Rose. I want you vulnerable to me.
~Gideon
My Review:
There is so much to love about Stalked by the Kraken. Gideon’s narrative drew me in right from the start. He’s immortal and therefore has seen a lot of things, and I found his inner monologue both fascinating and hilarious. Both characters are written very well with beautiful notes of introspection that deepen the storytelling. The secondary characters are just as compelling, and I’ve added their stories to my TBR.
I’m fascinated by the soft magic system, which is hinted at but not overly in-your-face. Rose’s family runs a bathhouse, and in exchange for the use of their private rooms, they gather the magic created during “heated acts” which they later sell. I love the idea of sex magic as currency, and the sex positivity throughout their establishment is a beautiful thing. I’m also curious about the politics among paranormals, which is hinted at just enough to go with the mystery (and I appreciate that the author kept things light and intriguing rather than bogging down the story with extraneous detail).
Stop trying to seduce me and show me that greedy beast you’ve been taunting me with.
~Rose
Rose’s heartbreak (her own match ended in failure), and how it led to her current predicament, was intriguing. Lark masterfully unravels the story bit by bit, keeping the reader on edge, yearning for more. I loved how as we get to know Rose better, we can truly see how perfect a match she and Gideon are, even if she can’t see it for herself. I loved how Rose isn’t a pushover. She’s feisty and stands her ground, establishing boundaries and standing by them (which, of course, makes Gideon have to work harder to win her favor).
Gideon’s courtship was so tender and loving, but at the same time, it’s refreshing to see that even immortal souls are far from perfect and can make mistakes / have lapses in judgment.
There will be no more losing control of the situation no matter how tempting the woman on top of me is. No matter how much my inner beast wants to steal her away and hoard her brightness.
~Gideon
There are many gorgeous spicy scenes scattered throughout (both with and without tentacles). If you want more, then sign up for Lark’s newsletter to get the spicy bonus epilogue.
I love reading the author’s notes at the end and finding out extra tidbits about the book. That this book was a happy accident—originally intended as a short story, but it got out of hand—is fabulous.
Stalked by the Kraken by Lillian Lark (Book 1 of Monstrous Matches)
Author Stalking (but not in a creepy way):
Lillian Lark is the author of many monster romance novels and novellas.
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~~If you like spicy books with tentacles, check out my SPICY TENTACLE REC LIST~~
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