Review: Counts of Eight by Brynn Ford

Title: Counts of Eight
Author: Brynn Ford
Series: The Four Families #1
Publication: May 31st 2020
Genre: Dark Romance
Purchase it on: Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Google Play | Kobo
Rating: 4/5★

All of my choices had been stripped from me except for one.

Dance or

Three years ago, I was taken, stolen away, far from the world I knew, far from civilization. I became a slave, forced to serve one of the four families with my talent.

I'd been abused, battered, tortured in isolation. My Master brought me men, partners for performance, but they failed to live up to the high standard of dance my Master required.

Until one day, he brought me a new man. A blonde-haired, green-eyed, dreamy new man who had no idea what was coming.

The men before him had disappeared. I presumed they were dead. I couldn't afford myself the luxury of hoping they'd made it out alive because that would give me hope that I might someday do the same.

Hope was a dangerous thing and this new man's spirit still thrummed with that electric spark of lightness. I would be the woman to strip that hope from him piece by tiny piece until he had none left. Only then could I control him, use him. Only then could I even consider the possibility of a predictable, complacent survival in this nightmare life.

And until that time came, I would make the only choice I was given the liberty of making.

Dance or die.

CONTENT WARNING
This book contains explicit sexual content, violence, and mature themes including scenes where consent is not sought or given. The author in no way condones such heinous acts, but rather seeks to immerse the reader in the true horror of the characters’ experience. This is your trigger warning - reader discretion is advised.

Oh my gosh, Counts of Eight was simply breathtaking. Most of you probably already know how much I love dark romance. It's one of my all time favorite genres, I just love it. When I learned about this new book in the genre but a new-to-me author a couple of weeks ago I immediately pre-ordered because it sounded right up my alley and I just had a feeling that I would really enjoy it. Now that I've read it I can happily say that the book exceeded my expectations because I loved it so much. I literally couldn't stop reading. And this is why I finished the book in only a day and am already dying for the sequel that comes in September.

As I mentioned before this is one of my favorite genres to read so I've read my fair share of dark romance books. And I've got to say that Count of Eight wasn't at all like I imagined it would be because of the story and especially the characters. I was very much happily surprised by this because it's something I want from any book in any genre. I'm not going to explain the plot because I think you can get a better sense of it from the synopsis and I'm scared to give too much away but wow it was so good, people, SO GOOD!

Anya, Ezra and Nikolai were the main characters. Anya, especially, was in the spotlight the most. I loved reading about her. In the story she's already the somewhat broken slave of Nikolai who obeys his every wish and command until Ezra arrived to be her newest dance partner. And Ezra? I adored him. Him and Anya were just perfection together. I loved their start, how they slowly grew closer and closer together and their chemistry as they danced. Just ugh, they gave me all the feels. Nikolai is kind of harder to explain. He's definitely a villain, a monster even at times, but every now and then there would be this brief glimpse where he wouldn't seem that bad, maybe even human. Although considering how the book ended I might have to rethink my statement there. He intrigued me though. 

Reading new authors is always a shot in the dark but I'm very glad I gave this book and author a shot. The writing was absolutely wonderful. There are a few quotes I saved because they were just too beautiful and fascinating not to save. I will share some of them below. The sex scenes were also very well-written and so damn hot. I was practically on fire. So I've got no complaints in that department either. At all.

When I read dark romance I ususally go for authors like Pepper Winters or Skye Warren but I think I can definitely add Brynn Ford now to that list as well. I loved Counts of Eight and I'm so very excited (and kinda terrified) for the sequel, Dance with Death. I can't wait to see what's next for these characters.

About the author:
Brynn Ford is an author of romance in all of its beautiful and sensually taboo forms. She is a lover of the dark, twisted, and playful and strives to bring the unmentionable aspects of passionate romance into her stories.

Brynn resides in the Midwest with her husband and sons, whom she expects will someday be embarrassed by their mom's books. When she isn't obsessively writing, you may find her binge watching favorite shows while eating far too much junk food or fanatically reading, always seeking to lose herself in the emotional roller coaster of a damn good story.

She is quite the idealist, despite her fascination with the wicked and warped aspects of humanity. Some of her stories may run out of words before a happily ever after, but she’s a firm believer that her characters continue to live on outside the pages in the minds of her readers. Stories don’t end just because there aren’t anymore pages to turn.
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