Dark Hygge

by Penelope Douglas, reviewed by Lauren Kay

4.5

I am actually taken aback by the ways this book peeled back my skin and poked something ugly in me.

It is incredibly easy to write this book off as depraved smut (don’t get me wrong, it is both smutty and depraved) but I went into the book thinking it was just that. Just something embarrassing and blush-worthy to listen to while doing my long driving trips for the holidays.

But it’s a story about trauma, healing, and belonging. Our main character undergoes the hideous tragedy of her parents committing suicide, and she grapples with what, in this story, is a blatantly selfish act. It forces her to take a look at the ways she was forgotten about as a child, put away like a toy. By the circumstances of the story, she makes a somewhat consensual choice to go live with her only next of kin, a former step-brother of her father and his sons. Living out in the remote Colorado wilderness, each of these men also carry varying degrees of their own trauma/baggage. Turns out that sticking severely damaged people alone in the woods together for several months will result in them doing fucked up things to and with each other, who knew? /s.

Through her relationships with these men, the main character is working through a deep well of pain and self-hatred. She ultimately makes the decision to move forward, and it helps these other characters move forward as well. I hate that the taboo/over-the-top sexual aspects of this overshadow the meaningful parts of this story (cause it does), but it would be dishonest to say that it didn’t make me feel something, and that’s what writing and art is supposed to do right? Not sure when everyone decided that all the books we read should be a guide on how to live one’s life (if that’s how you feel, I suggest sticking to the bible).

I think what rubs people the wrong way is that there isn’t some cosmic punishment for all the depravity that happens between the characters, instead they just…heal. and move on. and somehow manage to have a happy ending, a very cozy heart-warming ending. I will admit that the main character’s affair with Jake being treated as water under the bridge requires me to suspend my disbelief quite a bit. Girlfriend needs heavy duty therapy just to analyze THAT. But again, it’s for the sake of telling the story of this character’s arc (and of course for the satisfaction of dark smutty romance readers everywhere).

I’m also not upset with who she ended up with at all. Who she ended up with was someone who could relate to her core wound: Being forgotten about. The other two options of course had their part in her healing and certainly treated her much better, but they were not kindred spirits in the same way. The MMC she ends up with is, once again, severely damaged and he acts accordingly. It’s an interesting story, not a guide on how to responsibly pick a life partner, everyone please release the death grip on your pearls. If you’re reading this book you should be past the age where the media you consume has an impact on the way your brain develops.

This book uses an outlandish smutty premise to tell a story about some very authentic things and it’s genuinely one of my favorite reads of the year. The perfect winter read for a girl who likes moody dark romances.