Debts and Diamonds: A Dark Reverse Harem Romance: 1 (The Deana-Dhe Duet)

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Cyn is easy to root for, filled with quiet strength. Everyone underestimates the mute girl, and she uses that to her advantage. I enjoyed the power play between them. Narratively, this story felt night and day to the first in the duet- as book 1 really situated us in the history and past, leaned heavy on the origins and the turbulent intrapersonal issues between Cyn and the Deana-Dhe. The friction, the tension existed primarily between them- they were the antagonists in each other’s stories…until, well, they weren’t. The emotional energy was immersively volatile and desperate, the angst choking. But book 2 takes a different turn- a external antagonist and a heart-wrenching situation divide our quad-ruple (is that a thing?!), but their SOULS are no longer divided. Despite the horrific situation Cyn finds herself, this second book is heart bleedingly romantic- part rescue mission, part the best groveling ever. The Deana-Dhe have to save our girl, but since they do, they have a lot of making up to do for all the years of damage they themselves inflicted- and HOLY MOLY do they deliver some swoony alpha grovel. The first part of this story is all action and tragedy, and the second is richly relationally immersive. The emotional story is full of adrenaline and then just heaviness. SO MUCH HEAVINESS. There’s a horror and melancholy that permeates their progression, but one that morphs and twists into hesitant healing, cathartic trust, and and most of all, hopeful. Bea weaves an unexpectedly diverse emotional tapestry, but oh my it is so fulfilling. My heart felt so swollen with FEELING for these characters that I thought it might stop beating. Holy Mother of Dark Granulation. This is the one to read. Don’t get me wrong, everyone else is great in this shared universe, but this is the crème de la crème.

On the one hand you had Cyn trying to survive the terrible ordeal that she finds herself in at the hands of Skull Brotherhood, waiting to be rescued by Deana-Dhe. I already loved Cyn from the first book but this cemented her as my favorite heroine ever! She is so brave and selfless. Not overly bold and brash but quite and calm and underestimated by most. She is grace personified and a pure light that couldn't be snuffed out in even the darkest of conditions. She was a quiet and calm character that so often goes unnoticed and I was happy to see that type of personality represented. There was also the case of appearances being made by her family members, which brought forth some revelations bringing more to the story from what was revealed, filling in some missing pieces when it came to Cyn’s life story. Yet it worked well since it played in keeping us in suspense at times from the build up that kept us hanging on. Particularly when it came to the mystic element that was included, considering the part it played with having connections to Cyn and Arden due to the special gifts they possessed. A deep, dark, and wild emotional rollercoaster! I love Bea’s books—always. No matter what she writes, I’ll read it. The way she’s been able to create such an incredible world with so many overlapping stories just blows my mind. I LOVE seeing the crossovers, and while we don’t see the Breakers in this book, Beast, Grim, Christy, and the Masks are all present and accounted for.The HEA in this book was hard won and astonishing. Then to top that baby off with a primal chase scene… I’m done! 🫠🔥 I absolutely loved seeing Beast a bit. He seemed playful in this duet, but still his super deadly self. I enjoyed seeing The Mask and Christy too. I can’t wait to see where Bea takes this world next.

Debts and Diamonds” not only highlights the financial struggles faced by individuals but also sheds light on the diamond industry itself. It discusses the impact of the secondary market for diamonds, where individuals sell their jewelry to pawnshops or online platforms, and how this affects the overall value and perception of diamonds. The world can be an ugly place- fictional or otherwise, and these characters are no stranger to it. In fact, some have contributed to it. What I’ve always found so compelling about Bea’s writing is how she never shies away from that architecture- building worlds and stories that embrace not only the grey all around us but the grey within. Pain, trauma, despair, hopelessness- it’s as much a part of our humanity as breathing. But though it all the light is ALWAYS love. Love heals, love inspires, love fulfills, love hopes. And love can transform- take the worst of us and help us find the best, EVEN in the darkness. Even in the pain. And the Deana-dhe are tragically beautiful reminder that destination can outweigh the journey, that LOVE is stronger than the worst we can face- and it’s always worth the fight. It’s worth LIVING for. And if we LIVE with love…well, Cras es noster…Tomorrow is ours. Cyn a skilled witch/scientist/alchemist of the modern times, and she can create almost anything from plants. She also doesn’t speak since she was 4. Narration was good again. Nothing more to say, same small criticisms but the emotion in this one was more intense than the others. With the different baddies and the aftermath of their chaos and destruction, the confrontation with new characters, the deaths, etc. So an emotional rollercoaster, but the narrators did a fab job bringing the characters to life in my head while I listened, I felt like I was in the studio, their home, Pen’s old family home, the bar, etc. The narration just helped prove this could be an incredible TV show and how the readers would eat every word up haha.The Deana-Dhe transition beautifully into leading anti-heroes. Bea somehow maintains their air of mystery and menacing aura while also humanizing them. She gives them substance, differentiates each, and layers dimension on dimension. They are certainly worthy of a full story- easily stepping out of the shadows. But Cyn is the star- I loved how Bea gives her a quiet and vulnerable strength. She’s clever, gently coercive, and enchanting. And her muteness adds an interesting layer to her connection to the men, empowering her allure and protecting her secrets. I pretty much love anything this author writes. She really takes the time to delve into her characters, in to this shared world so many are interconnected with. I love all the cameos/mentions, it must be exhausting trying to keep all of the characters and timeline in mind when writing new romances in the world. Kudos to her! I’ll be honest, Academy of Stardom is one of my favorite RH series....that said, all the books that Bea Paige has put out since then have been not bad, but just okay. So, I was pleasantly surprised this was very enjoyable. It’s definitely the best thing she’s written since Finale. However that doesn’t mean it wasn’t without its fault because there was, since there were issues to be had with the book for me.

Seeing as he was my favourite it had me wishing their would’ve been a few more chapters from him, not only because he didn’t see to get as many as the others.

One thing to add is just like with Their Obsessionduet, Bea had me falling hard for one in particular that being Lorcan.

Some of the things they did to Cyn were downright awful but there were also so many sweet moments too mixed in. They were clearly fighting their attraction and connection with Cyn at every turn and failed more often than not and then would punish her to reset that boundary. Those moments were really hard to read especially the tree scene. I don't often like to bounce between the past and the present but I'm really grateful that Bea chose to splice the two together. For every chapter or event in the present that they experienced, we got to see the history that sparked that turmoil for them. I was very dubious about the book and still found it rather disappointing. Especially with how the Deana-dhe were presented in the Academy of Stardom series. Thanks so much, Bea for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. OMG, this book may be my favorite in Bea's overall series. It's so angsty, powerful, and the most amazing enemies to lovers I have ever read. I had to devour this book in one sitting. There is no shot I couldn't put it down! More guy on guy action overall than her and her harem. I’m not against the gog action, I love it when done well, but so much was made throughout book about how she was the key to them all and how their lust was all about her yet for many years they had sex together all the time and shared women together also just fine without her. 🤷🏼‍♀️As well as displaying angsty-ness with tensions running high in certain events and situations they were faced with. Cyn is absolutely incredible and so strong. I struggled with really liking the guys in the first book cause they did some messed up things to her over the years but to watch them come to terms with their love was absolutely breathtaking. The lengths they will go for her was unreal and I loved every minute of watching each relationship group along side them growing as a group too. And whew those spicy scenes were hot AF. The garden moment with Arden and then the 3 minute challenge in the room next to the guests was sooooo good. IYKYK. So good!! Having read the Academy of Stardom series, I couldn't wait to know the story of the Deana-dhe and their love story. Furthermore, it is important to note that diamonds do not hold their value as well as other investments. While they may be a girl’s best friend,