This is my first book by this author. I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this book. The characters both had their own personalities, and I was curious to find out more about their backgrounds. There was also great tension between the characters! I'm looking forward to book 2 later this year! And I will definitely read more books by this author.

Thank you to Netgalley for this ARC!

Okay, I love love love everything about this book, apart from the ending. The cliffhanger didn't work for me, because it's one of my most hated ways a writer can supply an obstacle. So, because of this, I gave it 3 stars instead of the 5 it deserves.

This book is in duo POV and is told through Em and Cameron (aka Mori). Our girlie Em is instantly attracted to Cameron when she meets him. I loved their interactions and both their trauma and how they slowly grow together.

My only points of contention are that I would have loved for Em to stand a bit more on her own during the trials; it would have been lovely if we'd seen Em more in the thick of the action without the constant protection of Cam.And of course, the ending—I really did not enjoy the way it ended; it felt like a very cliché cliffhanger to end on.

Thank you, K.M. Moronova and NetGalley, for the ARC.

First and foremost, I’ve found my new favorite morally pitch black book boyfriend.

I really enjoyed this story line and I liked the tiny Easter Eggs we got for Leave Me Behind. I love the FMC, Emery. I like her rebellious and badass attitude. She also has a heart even though she’s surrounded by some of the craziest people alive.
As four our MMC, Cameron is probably one of my new favorite morally pitch black characters. The way he was written was done so well that I felt so much anger, sympathy, and despair when learning more about him. It made me feel like I was in Emery’s shoes for a second.

The landscape and visualization of scenery was also really well written. I liked how I could really visualize where they were, & what it possibly felt like in that scene based solely on descriptions.

Don’t get me started on the cliffhanger 😅
I’m already ready for My Blade, Your Back!

Sitting here screaming into the void that I need the next book, the way it ended?! Full crash out. The yearning between these two, the guilt that crushes Cam? The way Em just wants him to see she's not just another person to destroy him without remorse? Book 2 is going to be a wild ride and I'm ready to strap in and begin the assent. The banter had me kicking my feet and giggling the entire time, reading like a fiend. The spice?! Let's just say that no one quite hits the trifecta of spice, banter and yearning like THE Mrs. Moronova 👑 Thank you to Netgalley for the opportunity to ARC for this book, OBSESSED is an understatement!

𝐀𝐑𝐂 𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐊𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐞, 𝐌𝐲 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 5⭐️ | 3🌶️

Surviving Leave Me Behind was already a miracle… and then K.M.Moronova hits us with that final sentence in this book. Officially in my staring-at-the-wall era.

Cameron is lethal, unpredictable, and clinically insane, yet the Dark Forces still call him an asset. An experimental drug shattered his control, and now he’s back in the brutal Under Trials with one rule—don’t kill his new partner.

Emery escaped one death sentence only to land in another. Surviving the Trials is hard enough, but surviving Cameron might be harder. Beneath his violence lies a dangerous tenderness she can’t ignore.

Their bond is intoxicating and deadly and it might be the only thing keeping them alive.

-dark military romance
-reluctant allies to lovers
-dual pov
-deadly trials
-mental health / addiction rep
-💋 or 💀 each other

Now to figure out how I’m supposed to cope until book 2 drops.

𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐊𝐧𝐢𝐟𝐞, 𝐌𝐲 𝐇𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞𝐬 11/11/25!

WHAT. ARE YOU KIDDING ME. The gasp that flew out of my mouth at the last sentence. I had to go back and re-read it again. That was NOT how I was expecting it to go AT ALL. I’m sat and cannot wait for the second book of the Dark Forces Duet.

Let me just say, I did read Leave Me Behind, so I did have some knowledge on the Dark Forces world. However, Your Knife, My Heart was FAR superior than Leave Me Behind. I love the tension, yearning, more background knowledge on the dark forces.

Cameron has been on the dark forces for seven years, but he keeps killing his partners. Enter, Emery who is due to be his next partner and Cameron’s only objective is to NOT kill her during boot camp. I really enjoyed getting to see the dark forces boot camp along with the trials they face. Also, some of the friendships along with enemies they make. I truly had a blast reading.

Thank you Bloom Books for an e-arc!

This book is insanely good! Emery and Cameron are everything. A military dark romance where Cameron is initially convinced he is going to kill Emery. His only objective is not to kill her, but that seems like such a struggle. He is unhinged but turns out so sweet for her. Emery was amazing, her pink hair and fierce personality is incredible. I loved the trials aspect of it all. I cannot wait for the sequel!
Thank you to Netgalley and Sourcebooks for the opportunity to read this e-arc.

I am obsessed with Cameron and Emery!
Cameron, the DF’s cold, calculated lab rat is ruthless, merciless, and lethal… until he meets her. Sweet Emery turns his world upside down in ways he never saw coming.

That ending?!?! I need the next book in my hands immediately!

Some people are a dark mafia girlies, some are stalker romance girlies, I think I am a dark military romance girlie. This book was awesome. I love how messed up Cam and Em are and I really liked the trials to enter into the dark forces. I love K M Moronova’s other books and I cannot wait for book 2!

Everytime I read a new book of hers it becomes my new favorite. Leave Me Behind was the first book I read of hers and I think about it daily, so as soon as I saw she was coming out with more Dark Forces books I was over the moon.
Her male mmc’s are always written fabulously & Cameron held up to the standard. I love the whole concept of the Dark Forces and the trials and Cameron/Emery’s story exceeded my expectations.
I will be (not so) patiently waiting for book 2 & my hard copies to arrive🥹🫶🏼

Another one. Another HIGHLY addicting book by K. Constantly outdoing herself from every previous write. Leave Me Behind is a book that lives rent free in my head, so I was VERY excited when I seen there was going to be a spin-off. And dang.. I think this one was my favorite out of the two (and I LOVEEEE Bunny and Bones so that’s saying something.) This book sunk its teeth into me and I couldn’t stop reading, less than a day it took me to devour this one. Between the romance and the action packed in, it was hard to put down without thinking about it. I love the dark atmosphere that K writes in. Dark yet it sits.. relatable because are we all not a little broken at the core? This book is pitch black, dark. Watch the triggers. My jaw dropped in the first two pages, it dropped 100 times more, I giggled, I blushed, I laughed and I even shed tears (let’s be real is it a KM Moronova book if you don’t cry at least five times?)
Following a dual POV between Emery, a woman picked up from prison where she was serving time after being thrown under the bus by her family. The same family that had her doing h!tman jobs. Cameron, a seasoned Dark Forces soldier with a hell of a dark side and a k!ll first and don’t ever ask questions later type personality. Which also expands to his partners.. all of which he has murked, knowingly or in one of his “moments”.
Emery is probably one of my top five favorite FMCs now. A snarky, violent woman is my favorite type. But under that hard exterior that she was molded into, she has a caring nature. I loved watching the shift throughout the book.
Cameron is one of the most morally gray to the core (I know he’s good deep down, I just know it.), depraved and broken MMCs I’ve ever read in my entire life. I lost count of how many times I literally felt my heart fracture between his bouts of lucidity and manic. Between his soft spoken words and the sharp edges he protects himself with I fell in love with his character. Like.. he braids her hair for her and I CANNOT. 😭 The chemistry between these two was.. intense. It was crazy, it was beautiful. The banter was *chefs kiss*. I would 100% perish in a blaze of fire for these two.
The ending? I AM REELING. Straight to jail. Right away. Immediately. I need December to be here.. yesterday. 😭😭😭😭

I have read quite a few books by this author and generally have given most a positive review. I really enjoyed their fantasy books a lot and loved the writing style, which I found really suited the genre. I have to be honest and admit that the two contemporary books I read I did not enjoy as much, especially Leave Me Behind a standalone that is also the first book in this series, which I did not like at all. However, I did not want to give up on this series because not everyone likes the same books. When I saw the ARC was available, I decided to give it a try and keep an open mind. I am so glad that I did because it was outstanding.

I felt the connection between Cameron and Emerson from the beginning. I just really felt invested in their characters individually as well as their relationship. This investment made a huge difference because it made me care about everything else in the story as well, including the side characters, the plot, and what was going on behind the scenes. I really hope we get more information on both their backgrounds in the books, Emery's prior occupation, her family, and what happened to her mentor. I would also love to find out more about how Cameron became Mori.

After that ending, I cannot wait to read the next book and see where the story goes from here. I am enthralled and engaged and here for what is coming. So good!

What’s your name, love?”

a blond hottie who’s british and calls our fmc love??? i’m there

i had so much fun reading this, i skipped Leave Me Behind only because i heard it’s a love triangle and i absolutely despise those, but the military/underground dark forces training setting was too tempting to pass up this time. also the cover is stunningggg .

going into this, i wanted it to give divergent vibes ( don’t ask ), and it really did in some aspects. the relationship between Cameron and Emery wasn’t complicated nor messy, it was more honest than i expected with perfect pacing and obstacles. I loved our fmc Emery, i’m pretty sure we’ll get more on her background and family in book two which i’m dying for because she’s a baddie - i also like that we see her specialty with a gun but not really in more closer quarter attacks and that’s what Cam trains her for because it feels real and true to her story.

the entire premise, the forced proximity, the single bed, the trials - everything hit the spot for me! it was such an enjoyable read and oh my god how did i not know it ends in a cliffhanger!!!! the upcoming trope is one of my all-time favorites but it’s so easy to miss it’s mark 🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻🤞🏻

I can’t figure out if this is a 3.5 or a 4, so I’m going to put it at 4 for reviewing sites.

If there’s one thing about K.M. Moronova, it’s that she writes the most unique, unhinged and somehow beautiful dark military romance. I haven’t read anything quite like it, and I think she’s set a precedent with her maniacal characters and distinctive plot lines. These are what she does best.

Foremost, again, thank you for the opportunity to review an ARC. Having had this duet on preorder for a while now (and willing to pay an extortionate shipping fee!) I jumped at the opportunity to get an early look. Leave Me Behind is a book that lives rent free in my brain, and since this is in the same world, I had very high hopes for it.

I’m pleased to say that I really enjoyed this book and I smashed through it in less than 24 hours. These books to me are like a guilty pleasure read, and they’re perfect for reading while tucked up in the middle of the night. They’re not a typical read for me, but something about Moronova’s style draws me and keeps me hooked. I was invested right from the prologue and my attention didn’t waver once. Seriously, that prologue? My jaw literally dropped when I figured out what had happened. That was brilliant.

First of all, the pacing of this book was done very well. It didn’t feel rushed at all and everything seemed to progress naturally and effectively. I made note of poor pacing in a previous read, but I can honestly say this was a complete 180 and it worked really well. Even the smut wasn’t rushed. The relationship and character development of the MCs was really nicely done, and it kept me hooked and desperately turning pages to see more.

Now, no Dark Forces MMC can take the place of Bones, but Cameron was a very close second. Somehow, and I really do question myself sometimes, Moronova manages to create the most unhinged characters that somehow still elicit genuine empathy from me. Cameron is not someone I’d ever want to meet in real life, but I can honestly say that Moronova created this dark, violent man with such a depth that I wanted to give him a hug. The fact I felt sorry for this man and didn’t hold any of his bullshit against him? I need to take a long, hard look in the mirror but I really applaud Moronova for it.

As for our FMC, Emery, while she was the primary POV, I feel like we didn’t quite get as much depth to her as we did Cameron. Whether that’s emotionally or physically, I just think I was more enraptured by Cameron’s story than hers. I was also a little confused at her abilities and her qualifications (???) as a violent offender. Perhaps it’s that there wasn’t overly much of a deep dive into her, or that I didn’t get overly as fierce of a personality as I got from Cameron, but she seemed to more fade into the background in the violent scenes. I just didn’t get ‘ruthless family killer’ from her. Don’t get me wrong, I still liked her as an FMC, but I hope we get more depth and vulnerability in the next book.

One thing I would like to bring up, more so as a suggestion of something to be aware of, is the matter of inconsistencies. This probably won’t bother people like it bothered me, but there’s an emphasis on Emery’s hair being pink throughout the entire book. Considering Emery was in jail, moved to the DF camp for several weeks and was then in the wilderness, there’s absolutely no way her hair was still pink. At the very least, she’d have wicked regrowth. Is it that deep? No. But considering how many times (19) it was brought up, we’ve eventually got to address the fact that she couldn’t maintain that depth of colour, right?

Overall, this is what I love to see from Moronova. This little Dark Forces universe she has built is so depraved, cruel and dark, but also so unique, addictive and wonderful. Her characters are always so intriguing, her settings are absolutely unhinged but brilliantly done, and the romance is utter perfection. Especially after that damn cliffhanger, I can’t wait for book 2 😮‍💨

The cliffhanger is KILLING ME!!! I’m basically in love with this author at this point🫣 I stayed up so late to read as much as I could just to wake up and immediately start reading so when I say I couldn’t put it down I really couldn’t!

I thought leave me behind was perfect but em and cam? Yeah they are definitely my favorite now!

Always make sure you check your trigger warnings! This book does have a playlist and dual POV which I LOVED!!


Recommend if you like..
~ Dark military romance
~ deadly trials
~ Traumatized MCs


(I was given an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review)

This was an amazing book 1 in this series. The vibes are slightly different than LMB, but it's still amazing in its own right. I love these broken men, I love how their broken parts are what make them love the women so hard. Cam... he is so convinced he is irrevocably broken and dysfunctional that no one could love him. And Emery is the perfect match- she sees the beauty in broken things.

There is a sweet slow-burn that explodes once they get together. And that delicate dance between desire and self-hate that makes them doubt their connection is displayed well.

I had not read the blurb for My Blade, Your Back and didn't realize this would end in a CH. I am desperate to read the next book to see if she gets her memories back.

This is my first book that I read from this author and it won’t be the last. I was completely hooked. The story, the characters, the challenges, the betrayal and can’t forget about sexual tension. I’m so in love with Cam & Emery. This world has me wanting more. Definitely will be reading Leave Me Behind next. I didn’t know if I was going to enjoy this book but Omfg it was amazing. Once I started reading I didn’t want to stop. The ending, OMG why, it’s gonna be torture until the next book comes out. Truly a great read and now I have another author that I will always one click on.

Phenomenal. absolute masterpiece. I need the second book more then air!!!! this one will haunt me in all the right ways!!!!! if you loved Leave Me Behind then you will need this one injected into your soul immediately. infinity star read.🫀Cam & Em 🔪

Wow… just wow. If you loved leave me behind you will LOVE this series too. I went through many emotions reading this. Starting with oh yes they are going to hate eachother, now there is tension, to KICKING MY FEET and slapping my hand over my mouth, to being absolutely pissed off, and now crying with my heart heavy in my chest. The chills I got in the last chapter? Chefs kiss Mrs. Moronova. You did it again! 🥹

🌙Enemies to lovers
🌙Touch her and get your ass beat 🌝
🌙I hate you / Bully romance
🌙Past trauma
🌙I’m a monster

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

My favorite breed of MMC? A platinum blonde psychopath and Cameron didn’t dissapoint.

From the moment I opened this book, I couldn't put it down. I think that is the beauty of K.M Moronova's writing, it's relentless, addictive, and impossible to escape.

We learn about the Special Forces brutal selection process in this one. It's fascinating and I am desprate to see where this leads. I will be thinking about the cliffhanger for a few days.

🌶🌶🌶