4/5
Darkest Desires
I went into this book thinking I had picked up a fun spicy novella. What I got was spicy love story that gave me all the feels, and I am not mad about it.
Club Fray, 1
Enota, a fruit bat shifter, mans the front desk at Fray for the club’s Halloween Trick-or-Freak party. By the time midnight rocks around, Enota is bored out of her mind rating costumes and drunks when the bouncers push a non-shifter in with a wink. Freaking out that they will undo all the work Rafe has done to protect the shifter community, Enota whisks the strange man away to the only remaining dungeon until she can work out how not to expose the community and get back to her job.
Mace recognizes Enota’s fear at the whipping post and proposes a game of trust and dare to pass their hours. A spanking bench demo turns hot and steamy, but Mace has more than one secret up his costumed sleeve ... a secret Enota will have to ask for before her time is up.
Be Warned: BDSM, sex toys
Excerpt:
A footstep.
And another.
Each one measured, precise, and unhurried. As if he were at leisure to take his time and play with every second before he touched me.
My body thrummed with need. A second whimper escaped my mouth as he stopped beside me.
Not touching, just silence. Looking. Watching.
I arched my back, pressing my pelvis into the bench.
A sharp smacking sound ripped a shocked cry from my lips, but there was no sting on my exposed skin.
He’d struck the edge of the bench. “Don’t move, little mouse.”
I wrinkled my nose. “I hate mice.” The words managed to come out clear despite my heart hammering away inside my chest. “You scared me,” I accused him.
Mace stepped around to the front of the bench. I opened my eyes from where I lay with my head on one side and stared straight ahead at his crotch.
A very solid and bulging crotch.
The black, stretchy material enhanced the shape of him. I opened my lips and licked them, wishing I could press my mouth to his groin and kiss him through his pants.
A strangled sound above me brought me back.
“Christ, Enota. Looking at a man like that is dangerous.” His voice was rough with undisguised need.
I smiled and looked up at him through my lashes without raising my head. “Saying things like that might get you a girl you weren’t planning on.”
His gaze darkened, glazing with lust. “Can I touch your legs?”
“Yes.” I didn’t bother to flirt any longer. We’d moved past that.
“Thank you.” His measured footsteps resumed, this time adding a light caress as he worked his way from my thighs down to my ankles. He circled my calf with one hand, encompassing it easily. “Can I take your boots off?”
I nodded and felt the sharp sting of his fingers as he flicked my thigh.
“Words, little hardcore girl.”
“I’ve never been called that before.” I’d been called a lot of things, but never that.
“You don’t crave it? Your body says you do.” He stroked his fingers along my legs, soothing where he’d flicked me, working my boots with his other hand until my feet were bare and my shoes clattered to the floor.
“I—” I swallowed as his fingers dug into my feet, massaging them. I sank against the padded support, letting the maelstrom of emotion and sensation he evoked wash over me. “Define hardcore.”
“Hard fucking, deep throating, flogging, gags, clamps, more than one partner at once.” His fingertips trailed the inside of my thighs until I ached.
“Ohhh,” I moaned and gushed again, a vein of hot molten desire pooling at the center of my pussy, swelling my lips though he hadn’t touched me there yet.
“When was the last time you were with a man and a woman together?”
“Never,” I whispered.
“And more than one man?” Light circles began around my ass. He flipped my short skirt up, exposing me in full.
I buried my face in the padding, panting as he traced the curve of my ass, played with the top of my tailbone, right over my asshole. “Maybe—maybe a year ago.” My voice caught between a moan and a cry.
Desire built in me, and I couldn’t think.
“Liar.” He smacked one palm down and then the other.
Then his hands disappeared.
I cried out, more from his disappearance than from his accusation. “You’re right. It was … two years or so ago. Before.”
Before had been my benchmark. I refused to recognize what had happened in this room, and yet here I was again, being touched by a man I had started to trust.
I didn’t want to remember how bad that worked out the last time I tried it. Tears welled and broke, tracing my cheeks in cooling wetness, and I could breathe.
“Enota?” Warm palms cupped my cheeks, lifting my chin to him as he knelt before me, though I hadn’t noticed him move. “I hurt you.”
“No, you didn’t.”
“I smacked you.”
“Yes, but the hurt happened long ago. At the—at the—”
Mace stayed silent, watching. Waiting, as he had before. Letting me get there on my own. “Beautiful,” he murmured, tracing my tears, but not pushing me. Just being there. Listening.
I sucked in a long breath, forcing my neck into the uncomfortable position of looking at him. His steady gaze soothed me. “I was whipped at the post. By my … master. I called him Sir but he wasn’t. Not what I know now that I work here. I know what a good Dom is supposed to be, but I hadn’t found one yet. Not someone who likes me as I am.”
Who accepted me.
Mace repeated the single word. “Hadn’t.” He leaned forward until his nose pressed against mine. “You said hadn’t, Enota.”
“Oh.” I let it percolate in my brain while he watched me. “Oh! Oh, fuck. I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean to be so presumptuous. That’s not—”
“Shh.” He kissed the tip of my nose, then my forehead. “You weren’t.”
And that was it. He straightened and stepped away.
I swallowed back fear. A different sort that shouldn’t have arisen, but it did. I wanted Mace, I wanted this thing between us, if only for one short night.
“Please, Mace.”
“Hmm?”
“I liked you touching me.”
“I liked that too.” His voice came out guarded, where it hadn’t been before.
I swallowed and tried again. “I liked you spanking me. And the foot thing.”
“All right. Would you like more?” He returned to the front and knelt by my face. “Enota, honey. Look at me. Deep breath. May I use the restraints?”
More tears ran free as I stared at him. A furrow dipped between his brows as though he expected me to say no. But this was a night for madness, and I rode its high on a midnight-dark wave.
“Yes, please.”
- Series:
- /series-club-fray/
Product Reviews
5/5
Darkest Desires
Enota is a receptionist at a shifter club called Fray. When the bouncers push a human into the club with nothing but a grin, it’s up to her to keep the clubs secret. The room she takes him to to hide him terrifies her. I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.
5/5
The Bat and The Man in Black
Enota has had a horrible play experience and she hasn’t played since. Mace comes into a shifter-run BDSM club on Halloween party night. When Enota sees Mace at her reception desk at the club, she thinks he shouldn’t be there, so she escorts him to the dungeon. Then, they accidentally get locked in together. I loved how well Enota and Max’s meshed once “introductions” concluded. A quick read, one with plenty of steam and a happily ever after.
4/5
Great Series Starter
Raven Hush has set the bar high with this series starter. The characters were endearing, while the story line was engaging and kept me reading. I can't wait to see what happens next.
5/5
Rough and sweet , possessive and fair.
What an amazing and hot surprise! This is a new author for me and I am fascinated by this reading, short, concise, hot but with an undertone of sweetness and true feelings. Mace is amazing, so dominant and protective, just what Enota needed and craved for. The scenes between them are hot and deep. I loved it!
5/5
Healing His Little Bat
I loved this story of Enota and Mace. Enota has had an abusive Dom. Mace ends up at the club and Enota knows that he's human. Somehow they get locked into room three which holds horrible memories for Enota but Mace is amazing with her in that room. Mace starts the healing process which Enota needs in order to move on. He is so gentle and loving with her and she finds everything that she is looking for in Mace's arms. It has so much erotic steam in the story. I love that they got their HEA>.
3/5
Dirty and fun
This short story was dirty and fun. I’m not familiar with the Club Fray world, but I don’t think you need to be to gobble up this Halloween tale. Enota has been burned by previous Doms and is taking a break from the scene while still working at the front desk. This particular club is filled with shifters of different varieties. That’s why when a human named Mace walks in, she immediately tries to hide him away in one of the rooms. After gettin him there, she inadvertently locks them both in. Through a bit of conversation, a tour, and sharing, they end up together in the most intimate of ways. This story resolves in a HEA for both and some smiles all around (and sexy times).
4/5
Paranormal surprise romance
Not what I was expecting when I read the book’s description, but in the best way possible. Turning a scared shifter to a happy submissive to move past her trauma was done very well. I really enjoyed the way the story played out including the unexpected HEA.
4/5
Man what a spicy read!!
Man what a spicy read!! Darkest Desires was a very short, fast paced novella that jumped right into the action. It was a perfect steamy tale that I needed for the Halloween season! I enjoyed the shifter aspect to the story and that there is a night club dedicated just to them and their deepest desires. One of the best things in this novella was that although it was a dom/sub type story, the MC Mace made it very clear that he WANTED the female lead Enota to trust him. He was very conscious to her wants and needs and the consent was there throughout the entire book. The one lacking piece for me was how short it was. I wanted to know the back stories on both of our characters and I would have loved to see more between their relationship and the shifter world! Thank you to NetGalley and Evernight Publishing for the ARC! I’m providing this honest review in exchange for getting an early e-copy of this book.
4/5
A a fun read
Enota is a fruit bat shifter and works at a bdsm club at the front desk. This night there's a big Halloween party going on in the club for the shifters so when a human man walks into the club, she freaks out for a second and wants to keep him safe until she can get him out unnoticed so she takes him into one of the rooms. But it's not just any room, it has all kinds of equipment that you would expect to find in a bdsm club and it's her least favorite room. In fact she tries to stay as far from this room as she can because of what happened to her in there in the past. Enota has been searching for the right Dom for her and one of the Dom's at the club has offered to help her find someone for her but she doesn't think she's going to be able to find someone she can trust because of what happened to her in the past with a Dom that took things too far. When Enota realizes that she just accidentally locked herself in the room with the human, Mace she's not sure what to think about her situation until he proposes a game to pass the time. Turns out that Mace makes her feel safe even though he's human. Although this was a quick read, it was so much fun. it had just enough back story and just enough of a small scene between these two to make for a fun read. Disclosure: I received a copy of this book via NetGalley but all thoughts and opinions are my own.
4/5
Fruit bat shifter sub/human Dom, short erotic romance
Enota, the female fruit bat shifter lead, is a submissive who has been damaged by an abuser pretending to be a Dom. She was saved and educated and none works at the front desk of a BDSM club but she hasn’t trusted herself to choose a new Dom; she’s asked the club owner to do that for her. At their masquerade, she sees a human, Mace, the male lead, being let in. Wanting to protect him, she takes him to a lockable room but it’s the room she was abused in. Then the lock sets and she’s trapped. Mace needs to convince her she’s both physically and sexually safe with him… This short story is dual POV, and really well written, given the triggering nature of the content. I found it a bit fast moving, for the content that it covered, with Enota a bit too accommodating. I appreciated the combination of gentleness and persistence in Mace, as well as his push for Enota to take chances but her choice of chance. I enjoyed Enota’s evolving comfort in a place that was good for her. I enjoyed the setting and hope to read more, hopefully longer, stories in this world.
5/5
Liked the slow reveal mystery
I usually don’t review the book synopsis right before reading so that I don’t know what to expect next. However, in this case, that was a mistake because without that context the beginning few pages were confusing. This book was written in my favorite form, with alternate chapters written from the different character’s point of view. I think this reveals more information for the reader by allowing them to see into their thoughts. I also especially enjoyed the mystery element to it where facts were slowly revealed to the reader which changed what seemed obvious in the beginning of the book.
5/5
Darkest Desires, great
The first book in the Club Fray series. Human Mace a Dom and damaged fruit bat shifter Enota's story is a well written story that held my interest. This is a new Author to me and it looks like this is her debut story. I will be looking for more by her. I received a copy of this book via Evernight and am voluntarily leaving a review.
4/5
Darkest Desires!
This is a Halloween steamy read about Enota and Mace. The story is short and quick with a BDSM theme. Enota is a sugar bat shifter that works at the BDSM shifter club Fray. She had a previous nightmare with another dom and since then has not played. When Rafe, a human enters, the club she thinks he is in the wrong place. He does not want to leave but she does not want him to find out about the shifters. She escorts him to a room to lock him in but a turn of events happens. She is locked in with him and it is where her personal horror show happened. This is such a good read from beginning to end. He is so perfect for the scarred little bat. I enjoyed how their story developed and the loving care. Such a good one!
4/5
Um, yes please!
Darkest Desires is quite the spicy little Halloween story I needed! This was a fast-paced, VERY short novella that reels you in from the first couple of pages! Sexy BDSM, Halloween costume party, some supernatural shifters and a tenderness to the Dom side of things… um, yes please! This spicy little story revolves around Enota, a bat shifter, and Mace, a human and a lovely little club called Fray on Halloween night. When Mace walks into to the shifters club looking mighty fine, Enota whisks him away to be hidden since he is not supposed to be there. The room she takes him too gives her some bad memories from past experiences and they become trapped inside. Then begins the fun. I love that this is told from two points of view, both Enota’s and Mace’s. Enota deals with trust issues and trying to find her perfect Dominant and Mace is ruggedly handsome with a sense of true caring for his Submissive. The writing was well done. To be able to shift from one personality to the other in terms of a BDSM partnership was perfectly laid out. My only complaint was that this story could’ve been so much more in depth. But besides that I really enjoyed this one. I would definitely recommend to anyone looking for a very quick but fun, sexy little BDSM read and I would be interested in reading any others written by Raven Hush as well. Thank you to NetGalley and Evernight Publishing for the ARC! I’m providing this honest review in exchange for getting an early e-copy of this book. Pub Date is October 14, 2022.
5/5
Paranormal Insta Love
When Enota spots a human in the shifter BDSM club she knows nothing good will come out of it. So she sidetracks him into a private room to keep him safe but Mace has other ideas and he’s been asked by someone close to her to help her.
4/5
Darkest Desires
This a steamy short Halloween themed story. It takes place during a shifter club on Halloween night. Enota is looking for a dom because she had a bad experience. In the meantime she's been working in her friends club. This night she finds a human trying to get in the club. Enota plans to lock him in a room so he won't get hurt by the other shifters. That is not what happens. They both get locked in the room. Enota has to work through her past troubled experience. Mace, the human was sent there by her friend. Mace has a proposition for Enota. This is a short steamy book.
5/5
BDSM shifter
Darkest desires is a fast-pace, short story, that held me captivated from the beginning. Enota, a fruit bat shifter, had a traumatic past experience that has hindered her ability to find a lover she can truly trust. She reaches out to Rafe, the owner of a BDSM shifter club, in hopes of finding her forever Dom. In return, she works the receptionist desk of the club, while hoping the Shifter Dom of her dreams will walk through the door. On the busiest night of the year, Mace, a human, walks into the club looking for a good time. He immediately catches Enota’s eye, as humans were not allowed in. Now Enota has to make a decision, let him walk through the club and hope for the best, or save him from the horrors awaiting, by revisiting a horror of her own. The connection between Enota and Mace seems non-existent at first. Enota is too busy trying to figure out what to do that she doesn’t even consider the Dom of her dreams could be standing right in front of her. Mace, on the other hand, is not your typical Dom. He plays the role well but also shows a side where he wants his submissive to trust him. I did really enjoy this story. The spice was slow burning but totally worth it. “Good Girl” is always a phrase that catches my attention and holds it. I do wish the shifter portion was explained in a little more detail. This is my first book with a fruit bat shifter so I would have loved to learn more about that aspect of her life. All in all, I absolutely recommend this story and can’t wait to read more from the author.
5/5
Paranormal Insta Love
When Enota spots a human in the shifter BDSM club she knows nothing good will come out of it. So she sidetracks him into a private room to keep him safe but Mace has other ideas and he’s been asked by someone close to her to help her.
5/5
Loved the bat
This was a good book, a caring gentleman who knows where to please a lady. Understanding what bothers her and lovingly avoids them
