This review contains mild spoilers for Butcher & Blackbird. Please check trigger warnings before reading - reader discretion is advised.
TikTok... I am sorry for repeatedly bashing you in previous reviews, I should have believed you on this one. I had a blast and a half reading this book - for being a dark romance, it was incredibly humorous, and I was constantly dropping my jaw at how insane yet perfect Sloane and Rowan were throughout the entire book. While I am still traumatized from The Fine Print by Lauren Asher, it was an utter shock to be faced with another male lead named Rowan Kane - from page one, I replaced him with Cooper from Trap (2024).
The trigger warning list in the beginning in this book was how I knew it would be one of my favorite reads of the year - if it's the length of a laundry list, it is right up my alley. Honestly, the mention of Country Roads should have been a trigger in of itself - that song haunts me wherever I go, and I cannot seem to escape it, even in fiction. Sloane and Rowan are hilarious in their own unique ways, and it was great watching them push each other's buttons as the story went on. Even at their first meeting, when Rowan is hollering "I'm such a huge fan," to Sloane and fan-girling over her hard, I knew readers would be in for a treat.
I loved the friendship dynamic between Sloane and Lark - you could tell that Sloane needed that outside support to keep her from slipping, and while Rowan was a great outlet for that part of her, Lark provided a different level of structure for her. Watching serial killers be the voice of reason for one another was certainly an experience, but the author was able to really allow them to be vulnerable without creating any clichés. Lark smacks sense into Sloane while still being protective of her, and I can only imagine how she will be in her own installment of this trilogy.
The side characters added dimension to Rowan and Sloane's characterization without overshadowing their plot, and had me excited for when they showed up on the page -- too often in dark romances, the side characters are there to cause issues or try to talk the main characters out of things. It was refreshing to see that it was the opposite in this case, and I definitely look forward to seeing how all of their stories play out in the future. Lark was such a great asset for Sloane, and Rowan's brothers and acquaintances added to their story in a natural way.
I am so obsessed with Rowan and Sloane as a couple - their dynamic is so difference compared to anything else that I have read, and this particular trope is something that I have not come across before. Sloane keeping the fact that one of the men they were after was a cannibal from Rowan and did not bring it up until after Rowan literally ate the food he cooked truly describes their relationship. Her reading out the ingredients to the cookies and cream ice cream was literally the cherry on top, and reminded me so much of Hannibal and Will from NBC's Hannibal. The way Rowan kept a table permanently reserved for Sloane at his restaurant was too cute, and their banter continued to be great through the entire book.
Sloane was really out here humbling Rowan at every chance she got, and I was cheering her on the entire time. I loved that being serial killers was low-key their side hustle, and Rowan maintains being a whole chef -- even going as far as to send Rowan orzo and other food items to make sure that she was eating. As a lover of orzo, I would have married him right there on the spot. Rowan and Sloane are so unserious with one another, it is actually comical -- the entire "lo-bot-o-my," "you love me?" scene had me cackling so hard, and the way that Sloane was about to be on her last straw with Rowan made it even better.
This is probably the most fun I have ever had while reading a dark romance in a long time, and The Ritual by Shantel Tessier is the closest in similarity regarding comedy. I will definitely be continuing on with this trilogy, and cannot wait to see what Lark has in store for us as a leading lady.
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