Death didn't make him honest. It made him patient
The house on Wisteria Street has been available to rent for years. The price is suspiciously low. The reviews mention the warmth, the atmosphere, the way it feels lived in without being used.
Nobody mentions the ghost.
Tariq Al-Amin was a crime boss, a shadow operator, and the most dangerous man in Sable Creek before they shot him three times at his own table and wrote cardiac failure on the death record like that was going to be the end of it.
It was not the end of it.
He has been in that house for a hundred and thirteen years. Watching. Planning. Lying. Arranging everything down to the pocket watch on the mantle - warm when it should be cold, placed somewhere she would find it, moved every time she put it down.
Zara Washington came for a consulting job. She stayed because by the time she understood what the pocket watch was doing to her the boundary between his world and hers had already closed and the amber lamp was burning and he was in the doorway in his dead man's suit and he was not sorry. He was never going to be sorry.
Explicit dark paranormal romance. Possessive manipulative love interest. Southern gothic horror atmosphere. No happy ending. One sitting read.
Borrowed Haunting - standalone novella. Book One of Loved by Something Wicked. Live on Amazon and KU now. 🖤
#horrorromance #paranormalromance #darkromance #booktok #booksoflemon8
Having read several dark paranormal romance novellas, I can say "Borrowed Haunting" stands out with its unique blend of suspense, supernatural elements, and intense emotional dynamics. The concept of Tariq Al-Amin, a murder victim who remains a patient and manipulative ghost within the house on Wisteria Street, adds a compelling layer to the story. His presence through objects like the warm pocket watch creates an unsettling atmosphere that pulls readers deeper into the narrative. For fans of gothic and Southern-inspired horror, the setting of Sable Creek enriches the mood, blending the eerie and melancholic. The story’s exploration of possessiveness and obsession offers a dark twist on the romance genre, challenging typical tropes with its complex characters and morally ambiguous relationships. What I particularly appreciated is how the novella does not shy away from explicit themes and the darker sides of love, making it a gripping one-sitting read. It’s also noteworthy how the novella addresses the boundary between life and death, blurring them through the protagonist Zara Washington’s experience as she becomes entangled in Tariq’s haunting influence. If you enjoy stories where the supernatural meets raw human emotion, and where the past still controls the present, "Borrowed Haunting" delivers. It’s a perfect pick for those who love their romance with a heavy dose of dark, paranormal suspense and no sugar-coated happy endings.
