In a dystopian future, gladiator-like games are fought to the death by captives for the entertainment of others. Marco has been trapped for 5 years and is close to being granted freedom, but a new participant from his homeland throws all his plans into disarray. How can Marco ensure his own survival and that of the man he is falling for?
From the blurb:
Welcome to Deathball
ROBIN
They ripped me from my home.
They put me in these chains.
And now they expect me to fight other men to the death for their entertainment.
Bruised, battered, enslaved, and then I meet him—Marco, the reigning champion with blood on his hands and secrets in his eyes. Terrifying, unpredictable, an impossible beauty in the barren wastelands, Marco's twice as vicious as the sport itself.
So why is he obsessed with me, training me harder than the other men, pushing me to my limits? And why does every brutal lesson only draw me closer to the one man I should fear most of all?
MARCO
Five years I've been their weapon. Five years of victory, of survival, of telling myself one more season, and I'll finally earn my freedom, make it home.
Then they bring me Robin—beautiful, golden-haired, obstinately fierce, and smelling like the sunshine of my homeland—and suddenly I'm fighting a war on two fronts. In the arena, I have to forge him into a killer. In the shadows, I'm falling for the rival who could destroy everything I've worked for.
Because the one man I'm desperate to protect is also the one I'm destined to murder in the arena, in front of thousands of cheering Deathball fans.
When they’ve taken everything, maybe love is the only rebellion left.
Deathball is a high-stakes, life or death, post-apocalyptic MM dark sports romance packed with blood, sweat, spice, and swoony, angsty, heart-wrenching love against all odds.
SNik's review:
First in series (Deathball). Post-apocalyptic. Adversarial. Captives. Dual POV. Heed content warnings.
Taken from his home and forced to be a participant in the deadly Deathball games, Robin wants to hate the beautiful captain Marco in charge of their training. What he finds is that Marco is from his same homeland and is seeking his own freedom, but also has a soft spot for Robin.
Surrounded by horrible circumstances, Marco and Robin struggle with their feelings as they come to grips with being prisoners, killing for entertainment and survival, and crushing any kind feelings they start to have for anyone that will eventually be an opponent. This is a long story and the back and forth between Marco and Robin was repetitive at times. However, once they were determined to be with each other and try and survive together their love story really ramped up and became a very emotional and heart wrenching tale. A compelling start to a new series which leaves things hanging for some characters that I assume will become MC’s in following stories. For fans of the Hunger Games and gladiator stories this book will be entertaining.
Angel's review:
I don't read a lot of dark romances typically, but this year I've been enjoying them a lot and this one was DARK y'all. This is not a sweet romance story by no means, it's brutal, dark, gritty, violent, and at times Marco and Birdie will make you question why they are even together in the first place. Especially when they keep trying to kill each other... But that's their love language.
The writing in this book was exceptional! Everything was described with immaculate details, and the story just flowed so smoothly. From the very first page I was hooked, I couldn't put this down, I didn't want to. I needed to know what would happen with Marco and Robin, if they would survive, or if they'd be killed.. Or if they ended up killing each other... I'm happy to report I was very happy with the ending! I think these two authors did a really great job with building this world and setting up the rest of this series for success. Especially because the way this book ended wrapped things up in a satisfying way for Robin, Marco, Esme, and Maria, but it still left us wondering about Evander and Cas. I think that was really smart how they did that because it builds interest that way, it makes us want to read the next book so that we can know what happens to them. At least it made ME feel that way, especially because I think there is definitely something brewing between Cas and Evander. And I honestly just loved Cas, he always tried to look on the bright side despite the horrible situation they were in and he always had Robin's back which I also loved seeing.
If any of this sounds remotely interesting to you, please give this a try, it is SO good! It's different, and dark, but it's still beautiful in its own gritty and brutal way.
Deathball is currently available as an e-book and can be read as part of your Kindle Unlimited Subscription
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