Book Review: Haunting Adeline

Haunting Adeline by H.D. Carlton has been on my tbr for quite a while and I finally read it! Before I get into the book, if you’re unfamiliar with the book I highly suggest you check trigger warnings as it is a very dark romance.

Some photos I put together for the aesthetic.

Haunting Adeline is the first book in the Cat & Mouse Duet. Without giving too much away, it is a dual POV dark romance that follows Adeline Reilly, a writer, and Zade Meadows, who runs Z – a secret company that hacks and takes down corrupt rich people and human trafficking rings, pedophiles etc.

Adeline recently moved in to Parsons Manor, a large gothic estate on a cliff that has been in her family for a long time. She inherited it from her late grandmother who also grew up in the house. The house is creepy, but Adeline loves that. One evening when she is at a book signing in a local bookstore, Zade walks by and sees her. It is love or obsession at first sight. Zade begins stalking Adeline and leaving her roses and messages. Addie is freaked out and on top of that she found her great grandmother’s journal with creepy entries about having a stalker and then eventually falling in love with her stalker. Oh yeah and her great grandmother was murdered! Eventually Addie and Zade actually interact instead of him just watching her and leaving her messages and Addie is really conflicted. She doesn’t like that Zade forcefully initiates contact or sexual acts, but she also actually really likes it so she questions how messed up she is.

The novel shows Zade fully owning up to the fact that he’s a hypocrite and morally grey since he’s stalking Adeline but also is a vigilante and brings down traffickers. Zade is completely in love with Addie and is waiting for Adeline to realize she loves him too. Addie, as mentioned before, is conflicted but eventually can’t deny her attraction and pull towards Zade. While she deals with her conflicting emotions she’s also trying to solve her great grandmother’s murder.

The novel ends on a cliffhanger and picks up right where it leaves off in the second book in the duet, Hunting Adeline.

I loved the book, but again check the trigger warnings! I am a fan of dark romance and I knew ahead of time what would be in the book so I was fully prepared. The only thing I didn’t love about the book was the creepy things that would happen at the house that make it seem haunted. And the haunted fair for Halloween was weird too but that stuff freaks me out in general!