| Title | : | Butterflies \u0026 Vicious Lies (Fractured Rhymes, #1) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | - |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Kindle Edition |
| Number of Pages | : | 388 |
| Publication | : | Published January 13, 2023 |
Her betrayal blindsided me.
Posie had been my constant. My anchor. My calm. Until she wasn’t.
Now she’s my enemy.
Before I could even the score, she fled to the other side of the country where she thought she was safe from my wrath.
She was wrong.
It didn’t matter how far my butterfly flew, I always knew where she was. All I had to do was wait and prepare for her return.
After five years, Posie has flown back into town, and I have her cage waiting.
BUTTERFLIES & VICIOUS LIES is an enemies to lovers college romance and a complete standalone with a guaranteed HEA.
Author's Note: This book is intended for mature readers only. All trigger warnings and content warnings can be found at the beginning of the book.
Butterflies \u0026 Vicious Lies (Fractured Rhymes, #1) Reviews
-
After more than five years gone, Posie Davenport returns to Washington to attend Olympic Sound University. Accused of committing the ultimate betrayal, Rafferty Blackwell has been biding his time to exact his revenge against her. Yet despite the plans he’s made, upon seeing his Butterfly again, their chemistry is undeniable, their love still palpable.
However, love didn’t come easily for Raff and Posie’s betrayal left him destroyed, a shell of who he was before with a darkness consuming him. Conversely, Posie loves with an unmatched ferocity. It’s that devotion that led them to tragedy.
Posie and Raff’s love is gritty and painful, it will leave you raw. Their heartbreakingly beautiful story of is one of strength, sacrifice, and ultimately, forgiveness.
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️1/2
Burn: 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Darkness: 🖤
Heat: 🌶️
Range of Emotions: 🤔😤🥵😭😍
Ending: 💗 {HEA} 💕
POV: 👫🏻 {Dual}
🗂 Genre: Dark Romantic Suspense
✨ Tropes: Alphahole, College, Enemies-to-Lovers, Forced Proximity, Friends-to-Lovers, Manipulation, Miscommunication, Revenge, Rich AF, Second Chance, Tragic Past
💋 Kinks: Collar, Domination, Spit, Cum Jammer, Degradation, Exhibitionism
⚠️ Warning: The angst in this slow-burn will edge you to the point of combustion!
🚩 Safety Squad: Addiçtion, ChiId Abusę (Past, Mostly Off-Page), Dub-Con, Suiçidę (Past, Off-Page), UnaIivîng (Not Detailed), and other triggering elements. If you have any hesitation, check the warnings before diving in. Otherwise, blind is best!!
📣 Type: Butterflies & Vicious Lies is part of the Fractured Rhymes series, but can be read as a standalone.
🛑 Be Advised: My Goodreads shelves are … explicit in both senses. As such, they could be considered spoiler-y. -
Kayleigh King's best writing to date. Emotionally immersive, complex, raw and emotional- this is a story about a complicated and unbreakable love, the tenacity of the human spirit, the grounding that is the human heart's capacity to love, and second chances that are hard fought but worth the battle. And battle they do- this is not an easy love story, it's heart wrenching and devastating in places, but at it's core is optimism and home. Hope that our hearts will find its way to the one it belongs to, hope that we'll find something beautiful within our own brokenness. Within the darkness that dwells in us all. And that's just what Rafferty and Posie do- the chemistry, the tension, the young love drama! The emotional energy vibrates off the pages, the push-pull, the fine line between longing and toxicity, love and hate. It makes for a volatile and tangled romance, but one that is all about love in the end. One about selflessness, unconditional love, and sacrifice...a story about the hardest part of truly loving someone: forgiveness. But what an epic love they have- even if you'll shattered long the way. It's a love that only they can share, a love only they can find. A love that is truly their own.
Triggers: please take note of the warnings -
am I the only one who didn’t like this book?
First off the main MC was horrible and definitely need help. Cause the way he was treating Hosie for something she did to protect him and his brother made me sick. And then he sat there didn’t even try to heal and plotted “revenge” that was SA and drugged her ALL BECAUSE OF SOMETHING SHE HAD NO CONTROL OVER. and you wanna know the worst part? He only wanted to heal and forgive Posie after he had a conversation with his grandma??? where tf was she five-six years ago???? and although posie was one of the only tolerable characters in this book she was a complete dumbass for forgiving him so quickly. Posie, Paxton, Lark, Rome,and Zaydie were the only characters I tolerated and was the only reason I kept reading. Other than that this “dark romance” was complete shit. YOU DO NOT NEED TO HAVE THE MC SA AND DRUG THE FMC AND MAKING HER SUFFER FOR SHIT SHE HAD NO CONTROL OVER TO MAKE THIS BOOK A DARK ROMANCE.
⭐️/⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ -
4.5 stars
This was a really good one! Wow, my heart hurts. Gahhh
Full review to come! -
This was an emotionally gripping story, dealing with the loss of both a romantic relationship,and friendships between childhood friends.
The reader has to ask themselves a question:
Which will cost you the most...the weight of your silence, or the aftermath of speaking out against abuse?
Rafferty and Posie are childhood sweethearts, who by a tragic string of events are separated by a promise Posie was forced to break, in order to protect the person they both love most in the world. Unfortunately for her, being a savior, also means becoming the villain.
Her decision costs the young couple 6 years of separation,and heartache. Years in which Rafferty allows the root of bitterness to take hold of his life, resulting in a final confrontation that proves that love heals,and forgiveness ultimately means freedom.
This was a beautiful story.
I absolutely loved Posie, as she is such a refreshing female main character.
I admired her strength and fortitude,and the patience she was able to maintain throughout every confrontation and test.
Rafferty is such an alpha character,but he also had such a depth of emotion. He may have initially been quick to anger,but his love for his brother, his loyalty to his friends,and his immediate inclination to apologize when wrong, endeared him to me.
*I look forward to seeing more of these characters,as well as their comrades, Rome and Lark in a future installment. -
dnf sorry the male lead is insane
-
I loved this book. It was amazing. This book was a roller coaster of emotions. From feeling hatred towards Rafferty to feeling love and understanding for him. The suspense was a whole different thing.
Book Review:
What happens when you feel like your dreams are coming true but it comes with a risk? What happens when the risk is your long time best friend and his brother? What happens when you have done something so wrong that things can never go back how they were? What happens when you finally come across your fear? What do you think he has planned for you? What happens when the reason is so strong that you can't even beg for forgiveness? But, what happens when the truth is something more than what she has let him known?
Tropes & T/Ws:
>> Dark romance
>> College romance
>> Enemies to lovers
>> Revenge / Suspense
>> Possessive MMC / Jealousy
>> Death of parent
>> Bullying / Betrayal
>> Sp@nking / Collar
>> P!erced p**n
>> Best friend's brother
>> Degr@dation / Pr@ise
>> Marking / Biting
>> Chok!ng / Sw@llow
>> Sp!tting / Murder
>> Dub-con / Kidn@pping
>> Drug use / Rehab / Overdosing
>> Exhibitionism
>> Trauma / Second-chance
>> Physical and emotional abuse
>> Giving him BJ in inappropriate places
>> HEA
If you like college bully romance with a twisted suspense plot, do read this book. Also, be ready to face a roller coaster of emotions. -
Vicious Lies and Butterflies by Kayleigh King ☆☆☆☆☆
🦋'𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭'𝐬 𝐢𝐭. 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐝, 𝐁𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐥𝐲.'🦋
What an achingly beautiful and heartbreaking masterpiece this book was. Kayleigh really has outdone herself with this one!
Please read the TW's, you need to go into this book in the right frame of mind. Vicious Lies and Butterflies is just a stunning book about grief, acceptance, forgiveness and everlasting love.
I'm not going to say much as I don't want to spoil anything, and I truly believe you should go in blind with this. But when I tell you Rafferty and Posie are up there with some of my all time favourite characters I'm not lying.
The emotional rollercoaster I went on with this book, I had tears in my eyes in places, you're going to have to buckle up and get on the 'you're going to have to hate Raff before you love him' train.
I adored Posie and Paxtons friendship and literally one line in the epilogue, and it was full blown ugly tears! Thank you Kayleigh for my first 5☆ read of the year, these two broken broken boys and the sacrifices Posie made to save them are going to stay with me for such a long long time!
🦋'𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐦𝐲, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥.'🦋 -
Addictive, ott College Romance with Second Chance and bully vibes.
- What a crazy & dramatic read! -
Exactly the type of book I needed to binge in one sitting.
Butterflies & Vicious Lies kept me intrigued from start to finish, but did it check off all of my boxes? Kinda
Since this is a Second-Chance Romance where the MMC actively tries to make the FMC pay for what she did in the past, I do wish there would've been some groveling (or even an apology).
That would've made this from a good read to an "OMG, THIS IS SO GOOD" one.
🦋The MMC was a little unhinged, but maybe not always in a good way, haha. But I have a weakness for slightly toxic & obsessed Heros, and he definitely delivered on those parts.
🦋The FMC was okay, but not fully fleshed out. It felt more like watching the craziness happen through her eyes. She didn't do much and let things just happen (while, for a reason, it made me not overly fall in love with her).
I liked the beginning flashback scenes to their High School Years a lot! Honestly, I would've read that type of story on its own.
Some things were pretty underdeveloped, like the FMC’s friendship with the MMC’s brother. That was disappointing since it got mentioned repeatedly that these two were best friends (I wish we would've seen more of their friendship in the flashbacks).
But I honestly didn't mind for the rest since it wasn't integral to the story.
The book was also spicy, but it still kept that balance I am searching for these days.
🚨This book has some darker themes, so definitely check for your triggers!🚨
So overall, a fun oot story worth checking out and not my last book by this author!
⭐︎☆★☆⭐︎
🗂Genre: Dark Romance
📕Type: Standalone
🏷Tropes:
- Second Chance
- MMC taking revenge on the FMC
- Friends to lovers to enemies to lovers
- "I hate you, but I want you"
- Secrets & Betrayal
- College Setting
- MMC calls her Butterfly 🫠
🌶️Spice: medium/high (plot ~ spice)
⚠️Safety: No cheating, no omd/owd, trauma, child abuse mentioned (physical, sexual & emotional), suicide mentioned, drug & alcohol abuse, OD, car accident
📖Format: 1st person, dual POV -
This book took me on one big emotional ride. It was heartbreaking yet at the same time beautiful within its darkness.
I won't go into too many details because I truly believe you should read this book.
Over 5 years ago, Posie left the town due to tragic circumstances. From the start, we get a vogue idea of the events that happened, but you have a lingering feeling that there is so much more into the story.
Posie and Raff were high-school sweethearts, but after what happened, Raff was left heartbroken and betrayed by the person he loved. Slowly fueled by his anger, grief, and gilt, he orchestrated her return with a vicious plan for his revenge.
"𝙸'𝚖 𝚐𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚌𝚕𝚒𝚙 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚠𝚒𝚗𝚐𝚜 𝚊𝚗𝚍, 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚎𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚖𝚢 𝚌𝚒𝚐𝚊𝚛𝚎𝚝𝚝𝚎, 𝙸'𝚖 𝚐𝚘𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚞𝚛𝚗 𝚑𝚎𝚛 𝚞𝚗𝚝𝚒𝚕 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎'𝚜 𝚗𝚘𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚕𝚎𝚏𝚝 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚊𝚜𝚑."
You will hate him before you have a chance to understand his feelings and fall in love with his character. Posie not only left Raff but also her best friend Paxton. My soul was aching for him throughout the book.
I absolutely admired Posie's strength. After everything Raff was putting her through, she still didn't want to break one of the promises she made to him.
"𝙸𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚖𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝, 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞. 𝙸 𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚊𝚕𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝 𝚊𝚜 𝚖𝚞𝚌𝚑 𝚊𝚜 𝙸 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚖𝚢 𝚐𝚘𝚍, 𝚒𝚜 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚊 𝚍𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚕𝚢 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚋𝚒𝚗𝚊𝚝𝚒𝚘𝚗."
She loves with everything within her and will sacrifice her own happiness to protect people she loves.
There are so many raw emotions here to explore, so get ready, and please make sure to check TW before reading this story.
This book will be one I'll always remember! -
I enjoyed this Bully/Enemies, New Adult darkish romance story with several spice scenes from a new to me author.
I liked that the reason for the hate was meaningful and when revealed was emotional.
Looking forward to the other couples books.
Dual POV
It does have some dark themes (SA) so check triggers. -
♾️ Stars
4 🌶️
🦋 childhood friends to lovers to enemies to lovers
🦋alpha/possessive OTT MMC
🦋revenge plot
🦋second chance romance
This book was absolutely perfection. Emotionally captivating and I was hooked immediately. It’s only January and already I’ve found a book to beat for 2023, this book is EVERYTHING. Posie is one of my new favorite FMC; she’s strong, fierce and loyal. With Posie’s help Rafferty is able to heal and grow in spite of a lifetime of trauma and tragedy. Trust me, go in blind, let the story lead the way and don’t read too many reviews or opinions. Watch their story unfold. -
I had two profound reactions to this book. Holy f*cking sh*tballs and absolute devastation. There’s no other words to describe the way this book takes you on a journey of hate, love and protection.
The book starts as a bully romance, there’s no beating around the bush with this one, Rafferty is an absolute dickweed. The things he does to Posie, or makes her do should I say, are dreadful. That’s not to say none of them aren’t extremely freaking hot. Because make no mistake, this book is one big hot tamale!! Honestly I do not recommend reading in a public place, like I did, unless you want people to wonder what’s wrong with your flushed face!!
Rafferty is one of the most conflicted book boyfriends you’l ever meet. And I adored him, even at his worst. And the way Posie knows what he needs and gives him it without question, it did a number on me. His heart beats for Posie, but his hate overrules his heart and he is determined to seek his revenge in the girl that ruined his life. And we’re not talking a little petty misunderstanding here, we’re talking ruined his life.
But as the book continues and you get to know these two characters, ther darkness and their light,the truth pushes it’s way out and it is soul shattering. I mean it. Those last chapters are one big brutal blubfest.
Posie is as selfless as they come, and I don’t want to say too much about her because it will ruin how you read her, but she is just amazing. Amazing. And I don’t say that lightly, I’m a harsh critic when it comes to a female protagonist.
The friendships between the characters is tight, Lark is one of my favourite bestie side characters ever, and Rome takes loyalty to a new level. But it’s Paxton that steals the whole damn show. His journey throughout the book from ex best friend to his reckoning is something else - and he’s not even the hero of this book. But he kind of is.
If you can deal with some hard topics and some kinky scenes (some of which are a little on the degrading side - which I’m not normally a fan of, but absolutely loved them in this book!) then you need to add this to your tbr for this year!!
And now we wait patiently for Pax and Rome’s stories …. -
✨ Butterflies & Vicious Lies ✨
By @kayleighkingwrites
Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
I want to start by saying, this was my first by Kayleigh King and I was NOT disappointed.
This story took my heart and ran with it. I cried. I felt the pain. But I celebrated and I loved just the same.
Posie returns back home after a tragedy 6 years ago that took her best friend and love of her life away. Along with the only mother figure she ever knew. All because she betrayed them.
Rafferty is out for blood. He won’t rest until the woman he once loved is broken. Till she shares the pain that he and his family felt because of what she did.
The way that I instantly fell in love with these characters was magic. The secret of what posie had done kept me zoned in and unable to pull away. I thought I knew what it was but I was blown away once the secret came out. My heart felt like it was torn from my chest and stomped on.
All I can say is that I hope we hear more about these characters again. Especially Pax. He became someone I felt like I needed to protect too. I hope he gets his story soon.
Butterflies and Vicious Lies is an Enemy to lovers, second chance.
TW
Addiction
Overdose
Abuse
And more.
Please check the TW before starting this book. -
*TW listed below*
Tropes // enemies to lovers, second chance
I knew I was going to love it and I did! I wasn’t expecting it to be as much of an emotional roller coaster as it was. I read the triggers but still wasn’t prepared for the dark turn. Rafferty & Posie stole my heart😭🫶🏽 Rafferty tried so hard to convince himself that he hated her but deep down he loved her with all his heart. The enemies part was great but it was something about when they turned to lovers…
TW (as provided by the author at the beginning of the book) // drug and alcohol addiction, overdose, suicide, child abuse, sexual assault, questionable consent between MC’s, drugging, grief, car accident, parent suffering a stroke, strong language, and sexually explicit scenes. -
After having a quick glimpse of Rafferty in Golden Wings and Pretty Things I was excited to dive into all things Posie and Raff.
Posie kept Pax’s secret at such a large cost and doesn’t even hesitate to be there for him the moment he needs her. Even when she hates raff, she loved him. Raff was relentless, spiteful and cruel and very very hot.
I honestly struggled with this book, which is odd because by book standards it’s well written, has a good balance of spice and plot. But for me, there was something lacking. -
Spoiler free review!
❤ Thank you so much Kayleigh King, for gifting me an eArc in exchange for an honest review. ❤
Posie comes back to her hometown after five years of absence. We learn really fast that something happened in the past with Raff and Pax which forced Posie to move away. It's starts as kinda bully college romance, but it transforms into an emotional rollercoaster at around the middle, and I was positively surprised how the story continues. Raff is angry, he hates Posie with everything he has, and he wants her to feel as bad as he did all the years. Without saying too much, he makes her responsible for his mother's dead. He is using Posie and is forcing her to do stuff for him to hurt her. But what happened? Is Posie the bad guy in this story, or is she the victim?
I'm going to clip her wings and, like the end of my cigarette, I'm going to burn her until there's nothing left but ash. Bit by bit, she'll float away into nothingness, and I'll finally regain what she stole from me.
Posie who lost her place at Julliard to help her Aunt financially, who is caring for her father after an accident, is back in Washington, the state she never thought of coming back to. She is a professional dancer, and between classes she works in a studio and teaches kids in ballet. She tries to stay low, so Rafferty will not know that she is back.
Rafferty wow he is the equivalent of possessive and territorial alphahole. At his last year of college he finally got the chance of his revenge on Posie, all his plans to get her back to Washington worked. He is blind in rage and anger and can't see through all the lies and stories to see the truth. But if revenge and hurting Posie really what he needs to heal from his trauma? Is the proximity to her what he wants? And damn he's hot af 🥵🔥
"I'm not good at this, Butterfly. Emotions and feelings... They're not where I excel.
"I'm going to mess up. Just promise you'll be patient with me."
"I promise"
I really loved the way Kayleigh told the story. The Dual timeline made it easy to follow current situations with the knowledge of the past, as well it gave us some kind of mystery vibes. I was spinning a lot of stories in my head what might have occurred. The main plot was something I figured out earlier, but there were some surprise moments that hit my hard.
In this moment, I hate you. I hate you almost as much as I love you, and my god, is that a deadly combination.
Honorable things and moments to mention
- Astor and Indie cameo (
Golden Wings & Pretty Things)
- Sadie and Lark (I want a best friend like Lark 😍)
- Pax 🥺❤🙏
- The Seattle Art Museum scene 🔥🥵
Read if you like:
- standalone in a series
- promised HEA
- best-friends brother
- Dual POV / Dual Timeline
- Possessive and territorial MMC -
Thank you Author Kayleigh King For Providing Me With An eARC Of This Book.
“She was supposed to be the one person I could never hate. Instead, she’s become the one thing I despise the most.”
This book was nothing short of phenomenal. It’s one of my favorite books of this year. I loved the depth of the characters, the details in describing the scenes, the writing style that sucks you into the story keeping you on the edge of your seat trying to figure out what exactly happened, and let’s not forget the dialogue between the characters it was just amazing.
I knew from the moment I read the blurb that this book will be angsty as hell so guys prepare yourselves for the roller-coaster ride.
I loved Raff he was a very complex and questionable character let’s also add dark or morally grey. I loved getting into his head and looking at the story from his perspective. It was very entertaining to see him so hung up on\obsessed with Posie even when they were teenagers. His possessiveness and obsession with her made the story ten times better considering that he claimed to hate her. I loved reading about him finally falling for Posie again after denying his feelings for her. The transition between hate and love for him was so smooth you’d want to focus to see when it happens.
And Posie oh that girl deserves the world for what she had to do I just want to give her one big hug. This selfless girl was so sweet it brought tears to my eyes when I finally learned the whole story. I loved her relationship with Pax and Raff before things went downhill for them and it was very wholesome to see them finally together again. I loved how patient and forgiving she was with Raff even after all that he’d done to her she understood what he was going through and was patient with him and at times I wanted nothing more than for her to just hit him.
I loved the side characters, especially Rome and Lark and I want a story about them so bad. The spice in this book was chef’s kiss, hotter than hell itself. If you guys love angsty romance with dark themes then this book is for you it comes out on January 13th. Also, make sure to check TWs because this book has dark themes.
“I want to dominate her thoughts while she’s awake, but also while she sleeps. At any part of the day, I want to consume her.”
✨My Rating✨
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5
✨Type Of Book✨
📚Standalone📚
✨Tropes✨
- Childhood Lovers To Enemies Back To Lovers🔥
- Possessive MMC🔥
- Spice🔥
- Good Girl Kink🔥
- Voyeurism🔥
- Obsessed with her🔥
- Touch her and die🔥
- Dark Romance🔥
- College Romance🔥
- Second Chance At First Love🔥
- Morally Grey MMC🔥
✨Trigger Warnings✨
- Sexual Assault⚠️
- Drug and alcohol addiction⚠️
- Overdose⚠️
- Suicide⚠️
- Child Abuse⚠️
- Questionable consent between MC’s⚠️
- Drugging⚠️
- Car Accident⚠️
- Mental Health Issues⚠️
- Violence⚠️
- Grieving⚠️
- Murder⚠️ -
Genre: Dark, College, Bully Romance
Series Type: Standalone
Book Length: Novel
POV: Alternating Dual
Setting: A university in Washington
Male MC: Rafferty Wilde is a college student and comes from a very wealthy family. He has loved Posie since they were teenagers, but after a tragic event destroyed their lives he has grown into an angry, bitter and vengeful man that’s filled with rage towards her. Rafferty is around 23 and has dark hair and blue eyes.
Female MC: Posie Davenport is a dancer and college student. She was forced to leave Rafferty and her life behind for 6 years, during which she was crushed by the guilt and pain of what transpired when she was 16. Posie is around 22 and has light-brown hair and pale honey-colored eyes.
Endearment: Butterfly and Baby
Spice Level: Medium/High
Frequency of Spice: Medium
Angst Level: High
Cliffhanger: No
Epilogue: Yes
My Review: I loved this story so much. It was angsty, intense and deliciously spicy. Raff and Posie have a very painful past and their journey finding love again was full of nail-biting tension and hate-filled passion. Only a true love like theirs can create such immense heartbreak and I loved the healing process for both of them. Their story was a little sad, a little suspenseful and a whole lot of beautiful. I really enjoyed it. -
"𝙻𝚘𝚟𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚜𝚘𝚖𝚎𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚔𝚗𝚘𝚠 𝚒𝚜 𝚋𝚊𝚍 𝚏𝚘𝚛 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚒𝚜 𝚊 𝚜𝚙𝚎𝚌𝚒𝚊𝚕 𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚍 𝚘𝚏 𝚑𝚎𝚕𝚕."
Kayleigh King has done it again!
This woman has the habit to write in a way that completely draws me in, it’s almost poetic at times and makes me fall in love with the characters almost immediately.
I devoured this book like it didn’t have TW at all, which it does, this is a very emotionally intense book. So pls make sure you check them before reading this!
I loved Posie and Rafferty’s journey although it was borderline painful, I cared for them both and loved the fact that Kayleigh invested into the side characters as well. It all felt well esthablished! I’m not going into much detail because I highly recommend going in blind, and make sure you have a tissue box within reach because this might hurt. -
Quick read. Debating on giving 2 or 3 stars. Might change later.
I was excited for this couple like give me best friend’s brother to lovers to enemies to lovers anytime, because I was expecting great angst, grovelling, possessiveness here and there like it was supposed to give but it didn’t give what needed to be gave
The groveling was lacking
I was expecting the H to be ON HIS KNEES FOR FORGIVENESS ??? Where is ittttt ??? She was like omg imma protect you both until the end… as if the H didn’t almost choke her and stab her with his pocketknife, humiliated her, degraded her, drugged her for a bj, wasn’t celibate during separation, MEH.
I mean, the book wasn’t THAT bad, but it lacked potential. I’ll continue the series, but not very excited. -
I get the hype for Rafferty now. 🫠
IF YOU LIKE:
😈 Alphahole
🙌🏽 Friends to Lovers to Enemies to Lovers
😏 Forced Proximity
😠 Revenge
🥰 Second Chance
❤️🩹 Angsty and Emotional
❤️🔥 Slow Burn
🥵 Spitting
🫦 Breath Play (Hand Necklace Ch0king)
😍 Praise
😮💨 Degradation
🍆 Pierced 🍆
🫣 Mild Exhibitionism
While this book was HOT, it’s also incredibly emotional with some twists that pierce your soul. 😭 It’s heart-breaking, and the path to healing huuuuuurts. But wow wow wow! What a book! Hands down a favorite from 2023. 🙌🏽
Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️ -
Big No!!
-
Oh my god what a masterpiece.
I went through a whirlwind of emotions reading this book. I wanted to scream at and simultaneously hug Raff, that poor broken boy. He’s written like a character you should hate but it’s just absolutely impossible to do so. You’ll be mad at him but you’ll love love love our morally grey boy. Him and Pax had it rough and the twists and turns Kayleigh took to get to that ending all payed off.
I LOVE Posie, she was an interesting one because you know there’s some suspicious backstory there, I loved that she didn’t regret the decisions she made, and whilst she regretted the fall out she stood by her decision and when you see the reasons why you understand. I loved her strength and fire mixed with that broken vulnerability.
Now put them together and you have a fire burning so bright between two characters you expect nothing less than for their relationship to be explosive. Two characters that seem so wrong but oh so right for eachother at the same time. It was an INTENSE journey, they’re heated moments were all in and the tensions had me on the edge of my seat but when we finally got those softer moments and the parts where walls started to shatter it just hit me in my feels so hard. They might not have had the perfect journey but they are made for each other.
I loved the flashback chapters and the placement of them throughout the book. It gave just enough information each time to slowly build Posie at Raff’s story and the cause of their inevitable destruction. It was also a welcome reprieve sometimes from the heavy story and made an intense story line easier to get through which gave it a great balance that I loved! It meant you could have the angst and heartbreak without it being overwhelming.
These beautifully broken characters are everything. Their story is hard to read at times and it’s definitely a ‘it gets worse before it gets better situation’. Whilst you’ll have a rollercoaster of MANY mixed emotions reading this book it is 10/10 highly recommended. You can see the heart that went it or this and It was totally worth the wait. That ending was more than perfect and now I’m hoping SO MUCH that Paxton is getting a book because my baby deserves his happy ending, I want to give him the biggest hug. No one breaks my heart and puts it back together again better than Kayleigh King.
This is one to take the TW seriously for!!
As much as I loved it it does cover some heavy stuff so read them before you dive in!
That being said, it’s WORTH it if you can handle them -
"You can choose who you hate , but you can't choose who you love.... You're allowed to be happy . "
Butterflies and Vicious Lies is an emotional story full of heartbreak , betrayal , redemption and forgiveness . I was pulled in from the first page and couldn't put it down even though there were a moments when I needed just that . Because this story ripped my heart out and stomped it to the ground . This is a story for the brokenhearted , the ones that are left behind and those forced to leave in the name of love .
Raff and Posie's story is soul crushing , full of dark secrets , light and love above everything .
Posie is a strong , smart and kind , good to the bone ; selfless and protective of those she cares about and she rises above the occasion when it's needed . She's not spineless and weak , she's strong and her strength comes from her heart . Her love and loyalty knows no boundaries . And Paxton and Rafferty are lucky to have her on their side .
Raff is broken , dark and corrupted , drowned in his anger . And he needs someone to blame for all the bad things in his life and Posie is the villain in his story . I was wondering , for someone who is dealing with secrets and favors , how come that he missed the biggest secret that was in front of him for so long . Here and there he saw glimpses of what was happening but missed the big picture . He was set on his path of self destruction in order to save those he loved , but missed to see that they were on their destructive paths as well . If Posie and Raff were each others half and soul mate , Pax was the brother she choose to have and to save . And in doing so she lost her love and broke her own heart .
Kayleigh King has a wicked mind and from one point in the story I was expecting that plot twist that will turn everything upside down . And when that happened it was time for Rafferty to rise from his broken pieces like an avenging angel. And Posie was his calm in the storm . Posie is not loosing her light entering the dark side of Rafferty. They balance each other so well . And yes , Rafferty redeemed himself - you know he is not so good with his words but his actions speak volumes.
I loved Posie and Rafferty's story but I have to warn you that it will brake your heart and will put you through every emotion you can possibly feel. So please, read the trigger warnings before you start reading this book .
I received an ARC of this book by Give Me Books Promotions in an exchange of an honest review . -
“I hate you almost as much as I love you.”
Here I still sit, days later, still feeling and reeling over an unexpected but extraordinary romance that shook me to my core, penetrating everywhere. Author Kayleigh King created my kryptonite: a heartbreakingly beautiful coming-of-age, second-chance, dark romance that slays the soul. Oh did my soul shatter and soar! Butterflies and Vicious Lies bravely shows the beauty among the broken, the fierceness among the flaws, and the tangled truth in this tale full of torment and tension, but tenderness too. Each broken character broke off a piece of my heart that King mended in the most beautiful of ways.
Butterflies and Vicious Lies is a deliciously dangerous game of cat and mouse with a devastatingly handsome devil of a king, and a beautiful and bold queen whose past together is tangled truth laced with lies. I loved Posey and Rafferty, characters with rich history, spanning from childhood to lovers, who turn into enemies along the way. The line blurs between the predator and the prey … the player and the played and I was all here for it. And oh did I feel that fine, barely their line between love and hate full of fire and desire.
Rafferty, the all alpha anti-hero with his dirty mouth and protective persona, was my undoing. The heroine, Posie, gives as good as she gets with smarts, snark, and sensuality that keep Rafferty worshipping her in his own deviant way. I was pretty much shouting, “Girl power!” when realizing the magnitude of Posie’s strength. I could instantly feel the deep connection of these characters. Their chemistry blazes and burns, so energizing and enticing, a pulse that pounds the pages. Rafferty and Posie possessed every part of me.
Brimming with rich character history, intense emotion, delicious darkness, and combustible chemistry, Butterflies and Vicious Lies is the headiest of heart-felt highs. I loved this stunning, soulful story of sacrifice and second chances threaded with indestructible love. I burned and broke for this book that’s full of fire and feels: tragic yet beautiful … moving and meaningful … utterly breathtaking … and so unforgettable. Butterflies and Vicious Lies is everything, a top 2023 and lifetime romance with all the Cruel Intentions meets Sweet Home Alabama vibes.
“The truth is, I gave my heart away a long time ago. My whole heart. And I never really got it back.”—Sweet Home Alabama
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ beautifully broken, butterfly-fluttering stars
➡️
https://amzn.to/3Hdak3L
Reviewed on behalf of Bookalicious Babes Blog -
! pls pls pls read the TW - this book deals with some heavy stuff !
For most of this book I thought I was getting a delicious little bully-second-chance romance and Kayleigh King absolutely delivers on this front and then some. Her writing is beautiful, it's emotive and poetic in places. Her characters are so well established that it's easy to fall into their stories and forget where you are. This book slapped a leather butterfly-lock collar on my neck and completely consumed me. I could not put it down.
Rafferty is nothing less than an arsehole. You hate him, you wanna punch him in his pretty face but also lowkey wish he'd ask you to get on your knees for him. You understand (to some extent) why he is so angry and so intent on ruining Posie but the sexual tension, the angst, the build up and the chemistry was thick and hot and culminated in some v spicy scenes.
Posie is a strong, stubborn and tenacious FMC. She deals with Rafferty's misguided rage, his hatred and his actions but not because she's weak or because he intimidates her but because she is the opposite. She stands by what she did. Her morals are strong, her loyalty is impenetrable and the sacrifice she makes and the consequences she deals with are heartwarming and heartbreaking all at the same time.
I really really urge you to go into this blind like I did because Kayleigh King delivers so so much more than a hot spicy little bully romance. Butterflies and Vicious Lies is full of trauma and heartache, angst, anger and so much passion and love and loyalty. Rafferty and Posie's story is a fucking journey (for all parties involved) and it made me feel ALL the things.
The side characters were all important in Rafferty and Posie's story and every person felt like they were written there with a purpose and, again, felt well established. I'm excited to read more within this world and I also love love loved the little Daddy Astor cameo.
🦋 -
“𝚂𝚑𝚎 𝚠𝚊𝚜 𝚜𝚞𝚙𝚙𝚘𝚜𝚎𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚋𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚙𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚘𝚗 𝙸 𝚌𝚘𝚞𝚕𝚍 𝚗𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎, 𝚒𝚗𝚜𝚝𝚎𝚊𝚍 𝚜𝚑𝚎’𝚜 𝚋𝚎𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚘𝚗𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝙸 𝚍𝚎𝚜𝚙𝚒𝚜𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚎 𝚖𝚘𝚜𝚝.”
🦋 Friends to Enemies to Lovers
🤍 Revenge Plot
🦋 Jealous/Possessive & OTT Anti-Hero
🤍 Second Chance at First Love
🦋 Dark Themes
Oh wow! This book is just oh my! I don’t have enough words or emotions to describe how incredible this story is 🖤🤍
Kayleigh King has absolutely slayed this heart-wrenching, beautifully broken story. You will absolutely cry, be in love, be angry and be addicted to every single word. These characters that Kayleigh introduces to you will capture your heart and never let you go!
Rafferty and Posie are explosive, broken, powerful and exhilarating. You never know what you are going to get with them. Rafferty is full of hatred, revenge and so many emotions that even he doesn’t know how to decipher and when Posie is back in his life, he has plans for her but as we all know plans don’t always work out the way we planned them. Raff is dangerous, brooding, sexy, devilish and oh so drool worthy! Be ready for a wild roller coaster of emotions you will experience because of him!
Posie, well she is beautiful, strong and weak at the same time, selfless, broken and stubborn! Your heart will literally break for her and you will fall in love with her stubbornness and fiesty personality! Raff has met his match and i can’t wait for the fireworks to explode anytime these two are near each other 🔥🔥
Please read the trigger warnings that Kayleigh has posted in this book before you read it. This book is very dark, and has very dark themes and situations but if you can handle them you will not be disappointed in this story! Absolutely one of Kayleigh’s best works!! 🖤🤍🖤🤍 -
This book. Go & pre-order it now!! ♾️/5!!
𝚈𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚌𝚑𝚘𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎, 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚌𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚌𝚑𝚘𝚘𝚜𝚎 𝚠𝚑𝚘 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎.
Kayleigh tore my heart out, diced it up into little pieces, and then stomped on it. This wasnt a book I could devour, I had to stop a few times because I couldn’t read through tears. It hurt.
How to review without giving spoilers?? We start with a scene where Raff tells Posie he hates her. Fast foward a few years and she back in the same town as him, knowing he will never forgive her and he doesn’t forget.
“𝙳𝚒𝚍 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚛 𝚖𝚒𝚜𝚜 𝚖𝚎?”
“𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢 𝚍𝚊𝚢, 𝙱𝚞𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛𝚏𝚕𝚢. 𝙴𝚟𝚎𝚛𝚢. 𝙵𝚞𝚌𝚔𝚒𝚗𝚐. 𝙳𝚊𝚢, 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚒𝚝 𝚘𝚗𝚕𝚢 𝚖𝚊𝚍𝚎 𝚖𝚎 𝚑𝚊𝚝𝚎 𝚢𝚘𝚞 𝚖𝚘𝚛𝚎.”
Raff is full of rage and anger. He shared a secret with Posie and she didn’t keep it - which led to his whole world being blown up. She is to blame and he will make her pay. And he will make it hurt.
He is written like a bad guy but try as you might, you just cant hate him. I wanted to strangle him and yell at him but at the same time I wanted to hold him and hug him close to ease his pain. Hes so lost.
Posie, ‘Butterfly’, lost pretty much everything that night. But puts on a brave face and does her best with her situation. She is selfless and strong, even when she is hurting physically and mentally she never gives up.
There were so many scenes that stole my breath in this. It is filled with tension, torment, pain, pleasure, desire, secrets, scars and fear. It wasn’t an emotional rollercoaster. It was more like a kaleidoscope. My emotions were everywhere!! It was so powerful!
I loved the character development in this. Not only for the main characters but the side ones too. I ‘whooped’ for the little snippet we got of Daddy Astor and Indie. Id like to see more of Pax in the future.. or Lark & Rome!
