Lights Out by Navessa Allen

Dark Romcom. First standalone in a related series.

Note: Pay attention to trigger warnings! This post contains affiliate links.

In my ongoing quest to see if the most hyped books live up to their reputations, I picked up Lights Out by Navessa Allen. This one had been compared to Butcher and Blackbird, which I adored, so I had high hopes. I’m not usually a dark romance reader—I lean toward books that make me laugh—but this one does both! If this is the start of a trend, count me in, because I freaking loved it!

“I didn’t want him morally grey. I wanted someone with a soul as black as night. Someone who would burn the world down for me and not lose a single minute of sleep over it.”

Aly is an overworked trauma nurse who decompresses by scrolling through social media thirst traps. (Masked thirst traps, no less—who knew that could be so hot?) One masked hottie with a knife catches her attention, and she becomes a little obsessed, commenting on his videos about her fantasies of him breaking into her place and waiting for her—knife and all.

“This man is always coming onto my FYP and never on me, and that is a tragedy.”

Josh has his own reasons for hiding behind a mask. For him, being with a woman while wearing one is the ultimate fantasy. Lucky for him, he can make a living out of his kink. When he discovers that the woman he’s crushed on and (yes) stalked is the same one who comments on his videos, he jumps at the chance to fulfill her fantasies.

“I was going to torment the fuck out of this woman, and it was going to be so much fun.”

Their chemistry is electric. The banter is sharp, hilarious, and somehow tender at the same time. And Josh treating Aly’s cat like their child? Possibly my favorite part. Who knew a crazy stalker could be such a cinnamon roll?

“And when he smiled and those dimples appeared? It triggered ovulation. You couldn’t convince me otherwise. Not after the way I stood there staring at him while my ovaries donned their warpaint and started metaphorically chucking eggs at the man.”

The first half of the book was pure gold—a 5-star read for sure. However, once the mafia subplot stepped in, the story lost some of its spark, dropping my rating of the second half to 4 stars.

“How did he know me so well already? Oh, right. The stalking.”

Likes:

Made me laugh and smile the whole time, no matter how depraved the characters were.
Great banter.
I loved the cat and how Josh immediately adopted it as his son.
Some very HOT sexy scenes.
Josh was a cinnamon roll stalker.
He was fiercely protective.
The knife scene? Unforgettable! lol
They are mature adults.

Dislikes:

The second half of the book, where the mafia stepped in, wasn’t as strong as the first half.

The Down & Dirty:

I love when a book lives up to the hype! Lights Out by Navessa Allen did just that. This darkly funny romance novel was everything I hoped it would be: funny, sexy, kinky, playful, and exciting with great chemistry. I can’t wait to read the next book in the series, Caught Up, when it releases in June.