Church: A Dark Bully Asylum Romance (The Boys of Chapel Crest Book 1) by K.G. Reuss
Blurb
The last time I spoke was eight years ago when my best friend tried to kill me. I never dreamed my silence would break with a scream.
Being sent to Chapel Crest after my new stepfather deemed me a heathen seemed like a blessing compared to staying with him and my mom. I was a mute demon in his eyes, and when the rod didn’t beat the evil out of me, he prayed Chapel Crest could.
I envisioned the religious academy would become my sanctuary. I was wrong. So very wrong. Chapel Crest was an asylum moonlighting as a religious school. It's where the meds take out the demons in your head or the punishments from the staff will.
If this place and its rules didn’t break me, Dante Church and his cult of bullies would.
They called themselves the Watchers. They were dark and ruthless—everything a girl like me should avoid. But maybe something was wrong with me because the thought of being on my knees for the four devils appeals to me.
Even if it meant I was praying for survival.
Going to Church took on a whole new meaning at Chapel Crest.
My Review
First, I just want to say when the author says trigger warnings she means all the trigger warnings you could possibly think of. This book might win the highest number of triggers I've ever read in one book.
In the prologue, at the age of 10, Sirena suffers some intense trauma when her best friend, Seth, tries to kill her because the voices inside his head tell him to. Fast forward about 7-8 years later, we see she now suffers from selective mutism and because of this she was never able to tell her story of what happened. She has a horrendous step-father that believes the devil is inside her and she can be cured by going to Chapel Crest. In a way Sirena is ok with this because it will be a reprieve from the physical and verbal abuse the step-father gives her when her mom and sister aren't around.
So she's shoved off to Chapel Crest where she meets Church, Stitches, Ashes and Sin. All of which have some type of metal illness/disorder. In fact, the majority of students here at Chapel Crest suffer from some type of metal illness/disorder that stems from some type of trauma in their lives. So when the author says that a character is crazy, they are legit crazy. When Church sees Sirena for the first time he immediately wants her. He actually thinks she might be the perfect fit for the 4 of them to share (yeah, reverse harem!) But then in walks Seth. Yup, the crazy best friend that tried to kill Sirena when they were 10. Well, he wants Sirena too. Church decides to make a bet with Seth that the first one to get her to scream wins her.
The book starts off intriguing but then starts to lose some of its appeal. At about 50%, the book starts to stall and it feels like nothing is happening. I'm starting to wonder if she's every going to talk or scream in this book. Church, Stitches, Ashes and Sin are suppose to be the kings who run the school. They have a lot of pull and power. However, I feel like the guys lose some of their king/alpha appeal because they're not just claiming her. The 4 are suppose to be at the top of this hierarchy, even above Seth, so why not just claim her?? Even with the stupid bet. Who's going to stop them? I wasn't feeling the powerful vibe with the guys. I also wasn't feeling it when Church was debating on keeping her for himself. Also, Sin is against Sirena from the beginning. He claims to not want her but it's really because he suffered a broken heart with his last relationship and doesn't want to do that again.
For those that know me, I love when reverse harems are cohesive from the beginning. If not, pretty close to it. Once they decide to go in, they go all in and there's no going back. That's what I'd like to see for the next book. I'd love to see their crazy, alpha/king, possessive and protective nature come out. Don't drag it out.
I was also hoping she was going to scream all 4 of their names at the end of the book, yes she finally screams, but just one of their names. I think it would be amazing if the next book picks up right where this one ends and she tags on the other 3 names. How powerful and undeniable would that be? I feel like they would have an immediate sense of claim to her. Then they can go all crazy on the people that have wronged her.
It's 3 stars because I think it still has potential. Let's see how the next one goes.