Claimed by Darkness Review: A Romantasy That Claimed Me In Confusion

“He looks at me like if he exists somewhere in heaven, then I am every cloud and each star and all the tiny molecules that keep him in place there, preventing him from crashing down to Earth.” – Claimed by Darkness by S. R. Hartley

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As an unapologetic lover of romantasy, I saw this audiobook ARC and immediately knew I had to pick it up. Fated mates, morally gray characters, a dark world. I was sold. And bonus, I saw that this is Book 1 in the Broken Gods series which made it even more exciting. If I fall in love with this story, there is more to come!

Set in a dark, romantic atmosphere, Claimed by Darkness by S. R. Hartley should have been a perfect fit for me. Instead… I found myself not claimed by darkness, but claimed by confusion.

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Claimed By Darkness by S. R. Hartley Summary

Claimed by Darkness by S. R. Hartley follows Nora, whose life is completely upended after the murder of her parents, only to discover that their deaths are tied to a hidden world of celestial beings, demons, and ancient prophecy.

As she’s pulled deeper into this ancient, supernatural conflict, Nora learns she may be at the center of a long-standing battle between light and darkness. Along the way, she is caught between powerful forces and complicated relationships, including Kairos, a mysterious figure who has been protecting her from the shadows, and Erebus, her seemingly human boyfriend whose true nature is far more complicated than it appears.

As secrets unravel, Nora must try to figure out who she can trust, and what (or who) her fate truly is.

Claimed By Darkness by S. R. Hartley Review

I can’t believe I’m about to say this, as a lover of romantasy and hreally just any and all romance in general, the biggest challenge for me with this story was the romance. The story leans so heavily on the idea of “fated mates” which sure sounds great, but there is this constant back-and-forth over who Nora’s true fated mate actually is that literally gave me whiplash, and made me not believe in the idea of fated mates.

Between Erebus and Kairos, the lack of clarity made it difficult to feel emotionally invested in anyone. Instead of building tension or anticipation, it only created confusion, and I never felt fully connected to either relationship.

Moments that should have felt shocking or emotional (like the twist at the end) ended up feeling more disorienting than anything else.

Claimed By Darkness by S. R. Hartley Audiobook Review

I listened to this on audiobook, and while that may have contributed slightly to my confusion, I don’t think format was the main issue for me. From early on, I struggled to get a clear sense of the world and the characters, and how everything connected together.

New places, new names, new pieces of lore were introduced so fast and without enough grounding to make them really stick the way they all needed to. Even by the halfway point, I found myself still asking, “Who is this?” and “What is actually happening right now?”

I did appreciate the fact that this was a dual narration, which usually makes the romance feel more immersive. However, for this story, it didn’t have that effect at all. If anything, it made certain reveals feel more predictable rather than emotionally impactful.

Claimed By Darkness by S. R. Hartley Final Thoughts

I will say that the second half of the book became more entertaining, even if it didn’t become any clearer. There are interesting ideas here, and readers who enjoy darker fantasy romance with a focus on mystery and twists may still find something here to truly enjoy.

For me personally, the lack of clarity in both the world building and the relationships made it difficult to stay engaged. I finished the book still unsure about key elements of the story, how certain characters were connected, and ultimately feeling disconnected rather than invested.

Will I read the next installment in this Broken Gods series? Probably yes… That ending twist got me. I’ll probably go into the next book exactly the same way as this one: confused but too curious to stop.

⭐️⭐️ Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media for this ARC!