Slightly Disappointing
Devious Whims promised an edgy, taboo stepbrother-stepsister dynamic that I was genuinely excited to dive into—but unfortunately, it didn’t deliver the punch I was hoping for.
After reading Deceitful Dreams, I was intrigued by the author’s bold approach to unconventional relationships and morally gray characters—the kind of “I’ll kill for you” intensity that makes dark romance so addictive. So naturally, I had high hopes for this one.
While the author is upfront about Devious Whims being driven primarily by its sexual content, even that aspect felt surprisingly underwhelming. The chemistry fell flat, the tension was minimal, and the overall execution just lacked the depth or danger that made their previous work so compelling.
It’s not a terrible read, but compared to what I know this author can deliver, it was disappointingly average.
Click to reveal spoiler
Devon killed someone to protect his stepsister, Cami—and spent ten years in prison for it. Their relationship was never innocent, and even a decade behind bars didn’t stop the late-night calls filled with sexual tension and unresolved emotions.
The real tension begins when Devon is released and moves in with Cami… who is now married. She never told her husband, Mike, about Devon or the nature of their past, and now her dangerously attractive stepbrother is living under their roof.
Devon’s jealousy and anger are palpable, but here’s where I struggled a bit—he knew Cami was married before agreeing to live with them, so his outrage feels somewhat misplaced. Still, his emotional baggage is understandable. Prison changed him deeply: emotional intimacy is off the table, trust is hard to come by, and the weight of the murder still haunts him. Watching him try to process all of that, while seeing the only person he ever truly connected with now belong to someone else, was heartbreaking.
This story has a lot of emotional intensity and darkness, which I appreciated. But at times, the characters’ choices felt inconsistent, and the setup asked for a bit more suspension of disbelief than I was willing to give. Still, Devon's inner turmoil is the standout—raw, real, and tragic.
Cami frustrated me throughout the entire book. She spends so much time talking about how she’s been preparing for this—planning to leave Mike for Devon, dreaming about having children with him—but when the moment finally comes, she backs down. The result? An emotionally exhausting environment for everyone under that roof.
Eventually, they decide to try a “shared” relationship because Cami claims to love both Mike and Devon and can’t bear the consequences of choosing. In theory, a polyamorous dynamic could be fascinating—if it were written with nuance. But here, it wasn’t.
Mike ends up feeling like Cami’s emotional support system—someone to cuddle and provide domestic normalcy—while Devon is reduced to a sexual outlet and a means to fulfill her fantasies of motherhood. The imbalance was stark and painful.
My heart genuinely broke for Devon. I know I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: even after everything is supposedly “resolved,” he still feels like an outsider. He doesn’t join the family for game nights. He barely steps into the nursery. Despite giving up so much, he never quite finds his place—and that lingering loneliness really stayed with me.
There was potential here, but it needed more emotional depth, better character development, and a relationship dynamic that felt genuinely equal—not convenient.
Overall, I did enjoy a few of the steamier scenes—there were moments that definitely delivered on heat. But when it came to story and character development, things felt disappointingly surface-level.
If you're specifically looking for a messy, taboo stepbrother–stepsister–husband dynamic, this book does offer that. Just don’t expect a lot of emotional complexity or layered storytelling. The premise had potential, but the execution fell flat.
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