Why I picked up this book:

This is another one of those books where I was strolling around Twitter and saw a shout out for ARC readers. Dark, sex and stabby things? Why yes… please sign me up right now. I received a free copy of this story from Pen and Kink Publishing in exchange for an honest review.

This review may contain spoilers.

INKarnate (INKomplete #1)
	When Emily begins an apprenticeship at the renowned tattoo studio Inkomplete, she didn’t realise she was stepping into a world very different from her middle-class upbringing. But not everybody is happy about her dipping her toe into new waters. Famous tattoo artist, Matt Jones, knows she doesn’t belong. What’s he got against her, and how far will he go to drive her away?

    

What I loved:

I honestly enjoyed the heck out of this short story. It’s a fast read, the pacing is strong, and from the first page I connected right to Emily’s plight. She’s a fish out of water in a strange, new world, but when survival’s on the line, you’ll do anything to keep going.

Matt’s character was wonderful! I’m a fan of brooding men, and he came right off the page as I want you, don’t look at me. His strong, protective persona clashed perfectly with Emily’s sass, and I’d love to see another story of this world through his eyes.

Areas needing a touch of refinement:

The sex scene was fun and steamy, but it felt a tiny bit rushed. There’s some sporadic words missing here and there, and I didn’t get a lot of sensory detail from Emily. I would have loved to feel more of what the experience was like inside her body, how her mind moved through the space from good girl to I need more while Matt teased her with his touch. I wanted more fleshing out (pun!) and immersion into their intimacy.

Overall:

I read this story in a few hours and enjoyed the heck out of it. If you’re searching for a quick pick-me-up for the afternoon, or a nice palate cleanser book, this is definitely the one. It should be noted there’s some mild kink, so this is definitely for readers who don’t mind some dirty belting. As for me, I can’t wait to dig in to the rest of the series. 🙂

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