Killer Meet‑Cute
June is for Murder… but in a Sexy way, and we’re kicking things off with Butcher & Blackbird — a book where trauma bonding, murder competitions, and wildly questionable decisions somehow turn into the cutest romance you’ll read all year.
Book of the Week:
Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver
Book 1 in the Ruinous Love Trilogy
The Book
Butcher & Blackbird gives us Sloane and Rowan: two beautifully broken weirdos who should not work but somehow fit together like a lock and a very stabby key. Their friendship‑to‑lovers arc is messy, tender, and full of the kind of dark humor that makes you question your own moral compass. It’s a romance built on trauma, trust, and the world’s most unhinged annual tradition — and it’s impossible not to root for them.
Trigger Warnings
Eyeballs and eye sockets
Amateur surgery
Skin ornaments
Chainsaws, axes, knives, scalpels - a lot of sharp objects
Accidental cannibalism
Not-so-accidental cannibalism
Questionable use of a mummified corpse
Lobotomized man servant
Ill-advised use of kitchen implements
I’m sorry about the cookies and cream ice cream (I’m not really)
Detailed sex scenes which include (but are not limited to) cock warming, rough sex, praise kink, anal, adult toys, choking, spitting, dom/sub interactions, genital piercings
References to parental neglect and child abuse
Parental loss (not depicted - one parent murdered, one parent passed in child birth)
References to child sexual assault (not in detail)
It’s a book about serial killers, so there’s some generally messed-up murder and chaos
Ratings
Overall Rating: 5 Stars ⭐⭐ ⭐⭐⭐
Butcher & Blackbird hit that rare sweet spot where the dark, the tender, and the unhinged all coexist in perfect harmony. I laughed, I swooned, I questioned my morals, and I loved every second of it. This is the kind of book that reminds you why morally gray romance is elite.
Spice Level: 4 Flames 🔥🔥🔥🔥
The spice here is hot, playful, and just the right amount of kinky. Sloane’s piercings add an extra layer of fun, and Rowan is… very appreciative. What keeps this from hitting five flames is simply quantity — the scenes are fantastic, but they’re spaced out enough that the plot still takes the lead.
Quote of the Week
Rowan: I would kill for you, and I have. I would do it again, every damn day. I’d turn myself inside out for you. I would die for you. I don’t just like you, Sloane, and you f*cking know it.
Fan Casting
Sloane → Lucy Hale
Pretty, pierced, and perfectly chaotic - she’s the soft‑faced disaster girl who steals every scene.
Rowan → Aidan Turner
Dark‑haired, broad‑shouldered, and quietly intense - the pretty boy with a dangerous edge.
Listen Now
New episodes every Tuesday
Caution: Every episode contains spoilers.
Stay spicy!🔥
