I’m sure I’m not the only one, but I do have some deep-seated emotional attachment to Katee Robert’s Dark Olympus series. I can still remember listening to the first book in the series in my car while I was driving to my college classes that were an hour and a half away. Now, I have graduated, worked two separate post-grad jobs, and I am still DEVOURING these books. I wouldn’t want it any other way. I picked this one up right after finishing “Dark Restraint”, which I still enjoyed but felt it had a lackluster plot. HOWEVER, “Sweet Obsession” had plot for DAYS and a sizzling romance that kept me nice and toasty. Once you grab this one, you will not want to put it down (nor will you). Not to mention, it will have you scratching at the door for the final two of this series, both of which will ABSOLUTELY knock it out of the park, I have no doubts.

This book starts right where the last one left off and the author did a great job of reminding you where that is. There wasn’t an info dump, and the way it was set up made it feel like a very natural part of the story. I was impressed with how well the writing brought me right back to where we were in a story I haven’t read for several months.

The writing was great, if not fantastic. Sometimes with these kinds of stories you tend to get plot or characters over writing, but it never felt like this was the case. The writing didn’t bring me out of the story at any point, and it was good enough that I noticed that it was good.

Poseidon had a lot of repetitive thoughts, but it made sense within the story. He feels guilty and is fighting the relationship hard, so it made sense for him to have the same thoughts over and over. Despite the fact that it made sense, it was still kind of annoying.

As with all of Katee’s books, there are trigger warnings in the front. This one has a similar TW to the last one, but it felt considerably less icky to me in this book. It might have been that it was between two men instead of a man and woman. It might have been that it felt like Icarus had more control or was more conscious of what he was doing than Ariadne had or did. It might have been the difference between how Poseidon and Minotaur acted. I’m not sure, but I remember that I felt considerably less comfortable with it in the last book than I did in this one.

Overall, I’m still enjoying the books in this series for the most part. I like when there’s world-building in the background from book to book that we’re following. It does feel like this one should wrap up soon, though, or we’ll likely get to the point where we’re stretching out the story just to publish more books. I feel like we’re working up to a conclusion, and I hope that’s true.

This book, though, did a little skip over some major world-building at the end. It was a little jarring, but I assume that storyline will be covered in another book with much greater detail which the author didn’t want to spoil. I feel like it still gave you some info about it, which I’m not actually sure I wanted at this point.

I definitely enjoyed this novel more than the last few, and I hope that trend continues.

Well, Katee Robert has done it again! This story was beautiful, heartbreaking, and a perfect transition into what I think will be the next phase of the Dark Olympus story. The way she took two completely different characters, with completely different flaws, and effortlessly brought them together was a stroke of pure genius. They each had their own wounds to heal and allowed a terrible situation to turn into something beautiful and full of love. I loved the vulnerability both Icarus and Poseidon showed, and the ending had my gut twisting in knots until the very end. I simply can not wait for the next chapter in this story.

An enjoyable read that followed on nicely from the last book. Interesting (if a little heavy) plot line and I loved that we got to know more of the background of the characters however the romance and spice lacked a little for me.

First of all thank you to Sourcebooks Casablanca for this ARC!

Where do I start? This one didn’t do it for me like the other books in this serie have so far. I know the plot of Dark Olympus is moving quick, but this entire book only took a few days and there are speaking of being in love? Nope, not on board with that. Roberts did try to build some tension before the first intimate scene, but instead of feeling like a slow burn, it just made everything up until that moment feel stretched out and dragged on unnecessarily.

The worst part for me was how the plot behind the smut - that has been built up throughout the previous book - has basically not developed much. I’ve been reading about Circe’s potential attack for two books now, and not only did it never happen, but there was also no other significant development to justify the delay.

And then Icarus... His sudden realisation that maybe he can be a good person, despite never really trying before, felt more like a shallow plot device than real character development. But I suppose that’s to be expected when the book only gives you a few days with these characters.

To be fair, some of the previous books didn’t span months or years either, but they still managed to make you feel like you’d lived through that time with the characters. This one, however, felt rushed and underdeveloped.

My will to finish this book was for all the wrong reasons and I hope the next book gets me into it again. I gave it 2 stars, but honestly, it’s more like 1.5 stars rounded up.

My gods I love this series and this is no exception Katee Robert could write a menu and I’d read it immediately. Greek Gods and spice always a win

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for an e-ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This book didn’t dazzle me as much as I was hoping it would. Which is unfortunate because I really loved the pairing. The plot just felt more like a filler than anything else.

This book begins where the last one left off. Ariadne and the Minotaur have sailed off, leaving Icarus in the hands of Poseidon. Immediately after arriving to Poseidon’s idea of a prison cell, a luxurious bedroom, Icarus starts to get an idea of the man that Poseidon is. He’s a man that would be easy to seduce. And when Icarus finds a submissive man lurking underneath Poseidon’s bulky exterior, all bets are off, for both of them.

As I said before, the romance is great. Icarus and Poseidon fit together really well and I love the dynamic they have. It’s one of the most caring right off the bat I would say. The sex and kink negotiation is also really well written and very positive overall.

The plot is where this book gets a little iffy. The issue is that this book is obviously filling in the plot until we get to the next two books in the series, which I can only imagine will be very plot heavy given the players involved. While this book does have action and contributes to the final plot, it honestly feels like nothing happens. Throughout the course of the book, there are basically squabbles between the Thirteen and between Hera, Zeus, and Poseidon. Beyond that, the overarching plot doesn’t advance much. With my current knowledge, this book doesn’t really have to exist.

And don’t get me wrong! I’m glad it does, and I really did enjoy it, but it’s hard to ignore the lack of plot.

So yes, overall, I really did enjoy this book and it’s probably one of my favorite pairings. I just wish that the plot itself was more centric to Poseidon and Icarus.

I loved the dynamic between Poseidon and Icarus in Sweet Obsession! The vulnerability they shared, the soft side of Poseidon, and the sexual tension you could cut with a knife—all of it was just fantastic. Watching Icarus come into his own under the safety and protection of Poseidon was so satisfying, and in turn, seeing Poseidon find a way to ease the weight on his shoulders through Icarus made their connection even more powerful. After the last book, I wasn’t sure if I would pick this one up, but I am so glad I did! Katee Robert absolutely delivered with this one.

Sweet Obsession Honest ARC Review

Icarus might not have flown too close to the sun yet he fell into Poseidon’s hands. With Olympus on the edge of destruction, Poseidon was irresistible, leading Icarus’ lockdown to become a bit challenging.

This story picks up where Dark Restraint ends. Icarus is to be held accountable for his father’s attempt to bring Olympus down. Until this novel in the series, Poseidon has been a bit of a mystery.
Here, we begin to see how Poseidon differs from the thirteen.

Of course, Icarus will go to any length to overcome an obstacle like Olympus and being held by Poseidon…. Including seduction. Cheers to a little (safe) kink and plenty of steam! Seriously, this was hot! I really enjoyed it!

With complexity of character, plenty of plot twists and turns and a bit of spice, Sweet Obsession is definitely one for your TBR!!

I adore Katee Robert and this series. I am so glad I read this!

Thank you for sharing this ARC with me.

I loved loved loved this book. Read it in less than 24 hours once I opened it and I'd been dying for months to read it. This pairing of characters was truly inspiring and Robert out did themselves with this book. The dynamic was one I hadn't seen between two m/m characters in an age if ever. I couldn't shut up to everyone in my life about it for the past week. The wax scene was inspired. The character tropes were delicious and the heat level was just right. The character voices were distinct enough and the suspense of the plot unfolding was perfect. As an aside, for the Finnick Odair fans out there, it felt like Icarus' character was inspired by Finnick which I found delightful even if it's only in my head. Icarus and Poseidon was an inspired pairing and Robert did the vision justice. The characters were particularly well rounded! And gosh was the resolution just right. Perfect book. Gimme 14 of em.

Of course I loved this book! This book pick up where book 7 Dark Restraint left off. So this series really should be read in order. The spice is spicing in this book, which is typical Katee fashion. She could write stereo instructions & I would read it!

Warning! While this doesn't contain spoilers for Sweet Obsession, it does contain spoilers for all the books that came before.

This book was yummy! Here are two characters who've been on the outskirts of all that's going on in Olympus. We had a very dramatic end to the previous book which left Icarus as Poseidon's captive. In mythology, these men have no connection, so I couldn't wait to see what Katee was cooking up for us.

I swoon for a big ginger man. Poseidon has been an outlier when it comes to the machinations of the thirteen. As a legacy title, he doesn't have to fight for his position. He's been content being the best leader he can for his people, and his specific role in the city. As war looms ahead, he knows that the fighting will fall to him and his first. He feels the gravity of the situation with Circe. She's literally waiting in the water to attack.

Icarus is an outsider in Olympus. He's been a disappointment to his father his whole life. Not a fighter, he collected "info" through carnal means. Using his looks and his charm to build up files on all important parties in Aeaea. He worked in Dark Restraint to save Ariadne. His sister was the only person he cared about, and he's now lost her. He knows he has few cards to play here in Olympus and has no idea how he will survive this. Since it's what he's used before, he hopes to seduce Poseidon in order the get his protection.

These two men have been deeply hurt by authority figures in their past. If I have one complaint, literally only one, it's that we don't get as much of Poseidon's history as I wish we did. They have worked their whole lives to both live up to and eschew the expectations that were put upon them. They understand that deep hurt they both had, and it helped them understand each other.

This book did a great job balancing the many threads that have been spinning around with the bigger story, and the intimate relationship building between Icarus and Poseidon. This is setting up for the final two books in the series. We have to start weaving these threads together. This book set those things in motion without feeling spread thin.

This. Was. So. Hot. Okay, got that out of the way. Poseidon and Icarus have incredible chemistry. Neither was expecting it. Icarus because he thought he'd be in control of his seduction, and Poseidon because he understands that as a captor the power dynamics are inherently uneven. I don't want to spoil the kink surprise, but there is kink with a capital K in this book. Katee gave us wonderful conversations and negotiation. Like most of her books, the kink reflects the relationship they are building. It enhances the story.

This book felt complete, while also setting up the final two books in this world. If you've been following this series, I believe you'll be just as satisfied as I was by it.

One of the more fast paced books of the series. Loved loved loved the Icarus and Psoiden! Interested to see how everything wraps up for Olympus and all the families.

Sweet Obsession is a fantastic addition to the Dark Olympus series. It moves the overarching plot forward in significant ways while delivering an emotional and satisfying romance between two unlikely allies. With Olympus teetering on collapse and new alliances forming, it feels like we’re nearing the endgame for this series—and I can’t wait to see how it all unfolds. While I would have loved a bit more spice between Poseidon and Icarus, the rich storytelling and character development more than make up for it. If you’re a fan of modern mythology retellings with high stakes and complex relationships, this book—and this series—is a must-read.

In the eighth installment in the Dark Olympus series, Robert writes the love story of Poseidon and Icarus. After the dramatic conclusion of *Dark Restraint*, Icarus finds himself trapped in a city on the brink of war and the hostage of the ruthless Poseidon. As tensions rise and deadly enemies close in, their undeniable chemistry ignites into a passionate affair—but both know this can never be forever. With copious dramatic tension and Robert's signature spice, these two characters must find a way through the political intrigue to find their future together.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I received a copy of this book from NetGalley and am voluntarily leaving this review. All opinions are my own.

This is book 8 of Katee Robert’s Dark Olympus series, which definitely holds a special place in my heart as Neon Gods got me back into reading in 2022. I vividly remember seeing somewhere that Katee described this as, “No, I didn’t write Astarion BG3 fanfic on purpose it just turned out that way,” and ill be honest, that made me so excited because I had just finished BG3, and damn did that sound fantastic. It was a concept I had never known I wanted, but it was now something I needed more than anything. So I have been excited about this book since then, and that was in September, so I have had some time to sit in that excitement. This book is everything I had hoped it would be. I am in love with Icarus from the myth alone, but this version of him is wonderful in so many ways. I had never once thought of pairing Icarus and Poseidon, but even outside of this retelling, it makes so much sense, and I am so grateful that Katee decided to write this book. The dynamic between them is just wonderful, and I loved every second of reading it. It was not the dynamic I thought they would have, and I am so grateful it wasn't. I love a character like Poseidon, where they hold the weight of the world on their shoulders and just want a second of peace. I mentioned how much I loved how Icarus grows throughout the book and how his inner monologue changes, but with Poseidon, it is just as beautiful. I adore the way Katee writes an inner monologue because they write about loving someone beautifully, but they also write inner conflict so beautifully. I also love that this book has a negotiation scene before they engage in kink. I feel like it is so rare to see a negotiation within romance novels. I also believe it says something about an author when I think their writing is beautiful, even when writing a scene about whether using a flogger or a cane is okay. I just loved this book so much, that's all.

While I love any Greek retellings—and this one doesn’t fall short— I felt meh about it. Granted, I haven’t read the whole series in order so it may affect my rating, but I felt this couple was too forced. The “big guy” pet name was a bit overdone and the banter wasn’t giving. It was like … for lack of a better word, too try hard and “oh poor traumatized guys”. The spice and kink was great and didn’t overshadow the plot but I’ll admit I was more into the plot (with the war and siege and all that) and wanted more of THAT. Was nice how, at the end, Icarus found his purpose but didn’t like that Poseidon didn’t.

This book was amazing the characters and the plot twist I wasn’t expecting I loved it alli hate because this is the last book in the series I’m so hurt

Loved this book! Not normally one for insta love but this book changed my mind! Loved their dynamic, the spice was perfect, not overwhelming or taking away from the plot & I absolutely loved their ending. Definitely would recommend!

I've not been reading Dark Olympus in order. I've been jumping around a bit, and I do feel like that effected my rating here. I was confused at the start of the book about Icarus and Poseidon's history and current motivations. It felt like the book jumped right in and started where the pervious one had left off. I did enjoy how Poseidon really saw Icarus beneath the facade he'd cultivated.