Page count: 172
Publisher: Katee Robert
Published on: October 11, 2022
Genres: Adult romance, paranormal
Format: eARC provided by KR through Patreon
Tropes: Grumpy/Sunshine, monster romance
TW/CW: Abuse/neglect (mental/emotional, parent to child, historical), spousal death (historical, non-graphic, off-page), explicit sex, vomit (non-graphic), pregnancy termination, incidental injuries for magical purposes, grief, body shaming (historical, referenced briefly)
Catalina only made her deal with the demon because she had nowhere else to go. The world has kicked her every chance it got, so she’s all too happy to leave the realm she knows behind. What’s the worst that could happen?
She doesn’t anticipate being auctioned away to a kraken.
Thane is cold and distant…but he’s not unkind. Isolated as they are, Catalina finds herself seeking his company again and again. And when she finally agrees to uphold her portion of the bargain?
That’s when things get really interesting.
But she only gave the demon seven years, and when the time is up, she’ll have no choice but to leave behind the kraken who’s stolen her heart and return to the world that doesn’t want her.
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Hello, my sweet peaches,
I didn’t think that I would love this sort of romance, but now I can’t get enough of them. Katee Robert has the key to my heart. She just writes romance so well and I’ve been absolutely obsessed with her work – especially this summer.
In April, my book club voted to read Katee Robert’s The Dragon’s Bride, the first book in the Deal with a Demon series, and we all loved it. It was such a fun read and we desperately wanted more.
The best thing about KR’s monster romances is that she takes an imposing creature and humanizes them. In The Kraken’s Sacrifice, Thane was the perfect mixture of sexy, soft, and grumpy. I loved his grumpy exterior. He was absolutely delightful. Once you get through his emotional walls, he shines. I adore him and he was a beautifully complex hero for this story.
Speaking of complexity – Catalina! What a firecracker. She is the sunshine half of the grumpy/sunshine trope and she also had an incredibly complex series of growth throughout the story. I was absolutely obsessed with her. Low key, I’m already planning on rereading during the release week (and it releases two days before my 25th bday, so that’s just fate).
In this book, Catalina is attempting to cope with the intense amounts of abuse she’s faced throughout her life. Thane is trying to cope with the loss of his husband. Together, their characters provide exactly what each needs to move on with their lives and be the best versions of themselves. I’m not saying that Thane has to just drop his husband, but he’s learning to live again. He’s learning to love and be vulnerable again. I found it to be beautiful.
I think what I loved the most about this book was that they weren’t together because they loved to sleep together. Their intimacy allowed them to be more vulnerable with each other, but it wasn’t what the book was based around. Rather, they had to learn to trust each other and to be friends before they allowed themselves to be their truest selves with one another. I also really loved that they won’t be having babies and that they don’t feel like their little family won’t be complete without adding another little person to the mix. KR’s representation was excellent and I loved how she handled the in-world pregnancy termination. I’m so glad she included that part.
This is definitely on my list of favorite books of 2022. I’m so eager for the next addition to the series and you’ll definitely see more reviews for KR’s other books.
Until then, happy reading!
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