E. S. Hutch

This book was fun but not the best read. It's definitely an adult novel, and there are a lot of warnings I would give to anyone planning to read it about dubious consent and rape. The writing has no real flaws, but it doesn't feel particularly well-written either. It's a fun book, a light read. I didn't particularly like any of the characters and while I found the overall premise of the plot interesting, my inability to care for the characters made me enjoy the story a bit less. I would only recommend it to someone who really enjoyed this genre of story as a guilty pleasure.… (more)

Robert Layton is dead killed by the same incubus that is now possessing up and coming young musician Caleb miller. Robert was once cop who had taken his own life instead of harming a young boy. Now that he has found the incubus's next host Caleb he can't help the growing feelings of love he has for him. He knows he must remain chaste even though it has been three years since he last had sex with anyone and Caleb is fighting his own feelings as well. He has fallen head over heels for the handsome Robert and keeping their hands off each other is the ultimate torture. When they finally do give in to their love it is Caleb's turn to make the ultimate sacrifice and take his own life. Now together forever in death they will continue to fight the demon they both hate. I was given this book to read in exchange for an honest review and I have to say I'm so glad I read it because this is one great hot paranormal romance.… (more)

Mark of the Incubus: Book 1 (Robert and Caleb) by E. S. Hutch

I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Mark of the Incubus had the potential to be a really interesting book. After reading the summary, I really wanted to like this book. It has a fun and interesting concept: demons are possessing people who then have sex with others (incubus, remember?) to infect them and the more sex they have, the more the demons take over. We have an older man who is trying to redeem himself by saving a younger man who has come to the attention of the incubus... But... By the end of the book I still didn't really know what was going on. The demons wanted revenge? Wanted to take over the world? Wanted to snack on the human race forever? Now, as the title reveals, this is meant to be the first in a series. However, this was not a short story and while there was lots of sexual tension, fighting off demons, and angsty "kiss me/no,the demon will get you" moments... I felt like the plot was a little thin and we made very little progress from beginning to end.

Aside from the thin plot-line, there ended up being a bit of an "ick" factor for me that doesn't happen very often. The book is called "Mark of the Incubus" because the incubus marks its victims - okay, makes sense. But, the way the mark was depicted in this story put me in mind of an STD. The mole gets bigger and bigger as the victim is consumed by the demon, eventually infecting his veins and blood vessels, etc. And then the next person is infected, etc.

I gave the book two stars because I thought the plot sounded interesting and was excited to read it, but Mark of the Incubus did not live up to the summary. Hopefully E.S. Hutch can work out some of the plot and imagery issues in a re-write or book 2. However, I think I will pass.… (more)