Breaker by A. K. Nevermore is a steamy, dark sci-fi romance that takes place in a skilfully depicted dystopian future. Sounds awesome, right? And it was! But before you jump to download this one, you’ll want to check the TW’s and also make sure the romance scenes are to your taste. So be sure to read on for the full review.
The Story
Reformed bad boy Flynn Scot is living in a rough-and-tumble cabin in the frigid dystopian wilderness outside the Source–a luxe, high-tech city where humans with telepathic talents are bred and sold as slaves to high-rolling corporate entities. Flynn’s dark sexual appetite has left a trail of disaster behind him, and since he’s turned a new leaf, he’s sworn off women. But when he rescues escaped Talent Kara from a snowstorm, Flynn’s resolve is put to the test.
Especially when the two are snowed in together with ONLY ONE BED.
Spoiler alert. Flynn and Kara fuck like bunnies, and their bedroom acrobatics result in a fated-mates style telepathic bond. Essentially, in their culture, they’re now married.
Committed to keeping Kara safe, Flynn takes his new wife and flees toward the North, where Talents live in freedom outside the Source’s control.
But not only are they being tracked by high-tech and Talented source operatives, they’re also headed straight for the dark past Flynn would rather keep hidden. And taking responsibility for the world he left behind may be the only thing that can save the North from destruction.
What I Enjoyed
My favourite thing about this book is the variety of unique character voices.
Flynn’s voice is *chef’s kiss*. It’s hard to beat well-written narration from a real shithead MMC. Kara’s good-girl voice is a perfect counterpoint to Flynn’s. And, while most romance novels are limited to the lovers’ POV’s, this one goes far beyond. We get scenes from several different bad guys’ POV’s, and scenes from several other players whose motives are mysterious, and who seem to be orchestrating Kara’s and Flynn’s movements as if they’re pawns in a much larger plot.
Each POV has a unique voice and reveals a different vantage point to the unique world.
And, speaking of the world, that’s the other thing I really like about Breaker–the cool world building that’s intricate but never info-dumpy. The world is super dark and dystopian, and there are unique cultures within it that operate in extremely different ways. Not only that, but the variety of supernatural powers the Talents posses and the interesting ways they use them are super cool. I appreciate how the author doesn’t tell us a lot of this information outright. Instead she lets us soak it up naturally through these diverse and intriguing POV’s.
Be prepared for some darkness, though. You’re going to be seeing through the eyes of some pretty bad dudes.
Which brings me to a few TW’s and notes about the content of the sex scenes.
TW’s
It’s probably telling that I’ve reserved an entire paragraph for trigger warnings with this one.
There’s a general darkness to how humans are treated as slaves here, more so than in your average sci-fi. There are several scenes where bad guy characters watch while people without much agency are forced to engage in violent sex, one in which the participants have been drugged. There’s also a scene where domestic violence takes place between side characters, and another side character scene with torture.
None of these scenes are graphic, but if you like your romance fluffy and free of injustice, this one is not for you.
Sex Scene Notes
There’s also some consensual violence in a few of the main couple’s sex scenes, and some primal chase play that takes place mostly off-page. The characters are loving towards each other and consent is clear. Also, the FMC has healing powers, so a few consensual bruises aren’t a big deal in the context of the story.
Overall Verdict
Overall my only complaint is that I was so caught up in the suspense that I kept getting annoyed at the characters for boinking. There were several moments where I wanted to yell, “You guys! Zip it up already. The bad guys are after you!”
If you’re into smut, you’re going to love this one, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised by the well-crafted characters and plot. If you’re not into smut but you enjoy dark sci-fi, you may want to give this one a shot. It’s got enough happening on a grander scale that it may appeal to adventurous readers of darker space opera, dystopian and cyberpunk. I enjoyed the read and I’ll definitely give Book 2 a shot.
What’s the smuttiest romance you’ve ever read? How about the darkest? Would you repeat the experience? I love to hear from readers so be sure to let me know your thoughts in the comments!
