Whispers in the Dark

       

Title: Whispers in the Dark

Series: Black Oasis #1

Author: Nikole Knight & Lily Mayne

Publisher: July 28, 2023

Pages: 336

Genre: LGBTQ Monster Romance

You never know what’s hiding under your bed…

At twenty-four, Cody has already lost hope of having a life of his own. All his time is spent playing nurse to a dying, spiteful step-father and maid to his bully half-brother. His only escapes are playing his favorite online fantasy game, Black Oasis, and talking to the strange, unearthly presence under his bed that may or may not actually exist.

But everything changes when his nightly visitor, who introduces himself as Nor, starts talking back.

As their connection deepens, Nor invites Cody into the surreal world existing just beyond his nightmares, filled with haughty demons, passion-killing pet bugs named Gef, and a dark landscape that is oddly familiar. With his sweet but monstrous companion by his side, Cody might finally gain the life of freedom and adventure that he’s always wanted.

Join Nor and Cody as they unearth the true meaning of hope, passion, and a love of endless depths that spans between worlds in Whispers in the Dark, the first book in Knight and Mayne’s co-authored queer, monster romance series, Black Oasis.

This book is dark. Like definitely review your content and trigger warnings before starting dark. Cody is doing his best with the hand he was dealt, and it was a ROUGH hand. His half-brother is abusive, his step-father is very ill and angry at Cody for daring to try to keep him as healthy as possible. His mother is like sleep-walking in and out of the apartment the four of them share. And her neglect is maybe my least favorite part of their family dynamic. Which is saying a lot because there is A LOT to hate about their family dynamics. 

Cody gets a few hours to enjoy himself, and he chooses to spend that time playing a MMORPG, Black Oasis. That is, until a sleep demon follows him out of his nightmares and into his bedroom. Under his bed, specifically. But it's strange, it's only since he started suspecting there's a monster under the bed that his horrific nightmares have stopped. 

Nor eventually acknowledges Cody's overtures, and they spend all of their time chatting and getting to know one another. Then Cody asks to show him his video game, and Nor explains that it looks like his home. Cody thinks this is an interesting coincidence until he asks Nor to bring him through his dreams to visit Nor's home world. It IS Black Oasis. The video game is nearly an exact replica of Nor's home, and that is SO INTERESTING. I hope we get more of this part of the story in subsequent books. 

While Nor and Cody get to know one another, they start to explore their mutual attraction. And things get SPICY very quickly. There are pulsating tails and a monster that can "fit wherever he wants." For a guy who hasn't had much experience before, Cody goes feral for Nor's touch, and vice versa. 

This was really good. The relationship between Nor and Cody is so cute. I love the idea of the monster under the bed being his protector from the nightmares (real and while sleeping) instead of his nightmare fuel. But the darker themes in the book are impossible to ignore and really hard to get past. The way that Cody's family treats him is a tragedy. I mean, the way they treat each other as well, but they can marinate in their hatefulness together. It's just sad that they brought Cody down with them. And again, his mother pissed me off more than anything. Which I'm still shocked about.

But I am looking forward to the next installment. The hints that were dropped were huge and I do hope we see Lau as the bumbling monster boyfriend in book 2!

Ratings

Stars: 4/5

Spice: 5/5