I rounded down from a 3.5. This book has/had lots of potential. It’s a dark secret society at college, similar to The Ritual by Shantel Tessier but minus the 🌶️ kink scenes. But I feel like the book tried too hard to fit that similar vibe. The writing itself seemed a big underdeveloped and lacking in quality. . There were gaps in description and character development that left me scratching my head. I didn’t feel the connection to the characters.

It’s a touch her and die, he falls first type of “romance” but I didn’t feel the pull. I wasn’t drawn into wanting them to be together…I wasn’t rooting for them. I found myself not interested in their “relationship”development one bit. And the plot twist wasn’t a twist for me. The author has a good start but definitely needs some fine tuning and more growth as a writer. I don’t think I’d recommend this to friends.

SPOILERS



What rounded it down for me was towards the end of the book and the pregnancy trope. First, ya’ll are crazy young and barely know each other to “want to put a baby inside her” also it was super cringy in the mirror scene when he says to her::

“You’re not getting out of this, I’m impregnating you tonight.” As he unbuckled his pants. Yeah, no thanks, that’s a major mood killer right there.

Sits her in front of the mirror. “Look, watch me put a baby inside you. That’s it, take all my cum.” Gross, she’s a virgin for most of the book too and that’s not what I’d want to hear from the first dude that dicks me as a smart virgin college student from a guy that’s supposed to be “using” me to gain rank in his secret society.

I also didn’t feel a connection to the narrators. Corvin King is alright in this book, he’s great in other books, but he felt way old for the character but a lot of the cringe is because of the book itself which the narrators can’t control. However, the female narrator was annoying in the tone of voice she used the entire book. She’s supposed to be intelligent but she sounds like a ditz the whole time.

🌶️ 🌶️


Thank you to NetGalley and Victory editing for the eARC and eALC of the book.

The Prince of Power is the first book in the series and I cannot wait for the rest of the series. This is the first book I've read of Skyler Mason's, and now I can't wait to read more. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Corvin King and Rachel Leblang. They both did a phenomenal job.
This is the story of Ava, a pastor's daughter who is going to the elite college that Damian attends. Ava is strong-willed, innocent, and has strong morals. Damian is trying to ascend to the 400 and is ruthless. He needs a virgin sacrifice to ascend to Proctor. He sets his sights on Ava.
What ensues is a dark tale of growth and love. This story pulled me in and I couldn't stop listening to it. I highly recommend it!

I must be in my dark college romance era because I finished this audiobook in just two days. This was my first time reading Skyler Mason and listening to narrator Rachel Lablang, and I really enjoyed both. Rachel’s performance was strong and emotive, perfectly capturing the FMC’s journey.

But Corvin King? Easily a standout. His voice is smooth, commanding, and downright captivating! He might be my new favorite male narrator. I would honestly listen to him narrate just about anything.

The story itself had me hooked right away. A pastor’s daughter caught in the web of a dangerous and obsessive heir to a secret society? Yes, please. I loved how the FMC remained strong and refused to crumble under pressure. Damian was dark, controlling, and deeply conflicted…a perfect morally gray MMC.

With strong narration, addictive pacing, and a dynamic balance of tension and emotion, this book fully delivered. I couldn’t stop listening.

This book devoured me. Damian Cross is the ultimate dark, possessive anti-hero—and watching him unravel for the “good girl” was deliciously addictive. The tension? Unmatched. The power plays? Chef’s kiss. 😈✨

If you’re into secret societies, brutal games, and dark romance with obsessive vibes and enemies-to-lovers intensity, The Prince of Power will absolutely wreck you in the best way. I’m already counting down the days for book 2. 👀💋

⭐️⭐️⭐️.75
🌶️🌶️🌶️

WOW! What an amazing performance by Rachel Leeland & Corvin King. This two are like sweet & salty, jam on toast, cookies with milk 😅 basically what I’m saying is that these 2 are the best combo.

Damien is a killer in the streets and a freak in the sheets. How many letters in the word devoured, oh that’s right 8 🥵. Damien is so much more complex than we first presume and his character arc is brilliant. Ava’s influence and patience in understanding Damien made me think in ways I haven’t before. The time she took to truly see the person underneath what Damien was moulded into was inspiring and thought provoking in ways I didn’t see coming.

Ava being the good Christian girl that she made out to be during the first portion of this book made me wonder why she was quick to change her mind and imped on her own preferences regarding marital relations was kind of annoying at first but after hearing her explain the steps she took in her journey to get to that place made me see her in a new light.

This book was agonisingly beautiful in the best and worst way. And that’s how I like my book 😅

The spice was spicing and I expected nothing less than Skylar Mason. That ending 🤯🤯🤯 I’m so excited for the next book.

The narrators were a 10/10. No complaints there. However, I personally didn't LOVE the books and I guess it might be a me problem. The thibg that nagged me most was the mmc's obsession with the fmc's virginity. It gave me a major ick and disgusted me. But I loved how outspoken the fmc was. The writing was pretty good though.

This was very different from anything I've read before, it intrigued me from the start and kept my attention throughout the audiobook. This was dark academia with a secret society mixed with dark romance. I had both likes and dislikes, I didn't like the sacrifice element or multiple consorts however I really liked how obsessed the mmc was towards the fmc. The audiobook narration was in duet style which is my favourite kind

Thank you Netgalley for the ARC of this book. I really enjoyed this story. The audiobook voice actor for Damien was phenomenal. Good story with well developed characters. I would recommend this book for any dark romance conessuer.

ALC Review

I was fortunate enough to be able to listen to this ALC and it DID NOT disappoint. The duet narration was performed by the incredible Corvin King and Rachel Leblang. They both did such an amazing job in bringing out the emotions that the author writes. I was so immersed in the story.
The story was so good. It had tropes like secret society and dark academia that I really LOOOOVE.

The spice in this story is so good. It’s not too spicy, but the spice that is there is HOT and had me giggling like a schoolgirl when I was listening to it. Corvin King really embodies Damian and Rachel Leblang is perfect as Ava.

I haven’t felt this way about a book in a long time. I cannot wait for the second book which will include Hunter and Lucy. I cannot wait for their story.

Fave Quotes;
“But you can take it & I’ll be so proud of you afterwards”
“Precious Girl”

Thank you Netgalley and Skyler Manson for the chance to listen to this ALC! The book releases on July 5th 😊

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Let’s get one thing out of the way: Damian Cross is my new book boyfriend.
He’s dark, dangerous, morally questionable, and if loving him is wrong, I don’t want to be right. The man could ruin my life and I’d thank him. Twice.

I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of the audiobook (thank you @Skyler Mason , I owe you my sanity), and from the very first chapter, I knew I was in trouble — the good kind. The “this book will live rent-free in my brain and I’ll talk about it at inappropriate times” kind.

🔥 Spice? Piping hot. There are scenes in this book that made me clutch my headphones like they were pearls.
💀 Drama? Petty, powerful, and delicious. Damian could stare someone into a breakdown and I’d happily watch.
🎧 Narrators? Corvin King and Rachel Leblang absolutely ate. Their chemistry? Crackling. Corvin’s voice as Damian? Illegal in at least three countries.

The plot? Juicy. The vibes? Dark academia meets enemies-to-lovers with extra bite. The sexual tension? Enough to fog up my phone screen. And the heroine? ICONIC. She doesn’t just challenge Damian—she destroys his ego and makes him beg for more.

If you like your romance intense, spicy, and filled with power struggles, secrets, and sinful little smirks — this is your next obsession. The Prince of Power releases July 5th.

⸻

Final thoughts:
🔊 Listen with headphones
💋 Prepare for emotional damage
👑 Damian Cross owns me now

Send help. Or a sequel. Preferably both.

▪️secret society
▪️dark academia
▪️v!rgin FMC
▪️morally grey, OTT possessive MMC

Damien is prior and needs to pick a v!rgin sacrifice to gain his spot in their secret society at Ashford College. He chooses Rhett's childhood friend, Ava. Ava agrees to join society because of her curiosity.

The audiobook is narrated in duet by Corvin King and Rachel Leblang.

This was a great dark romance. It had a good mix of romance and story development. The author developed characters that you can feel for even when they do “bad” things. The battle between the old guard and new was well written and the turmoil and misdeeds that befall the main characters was interesting and made you want to know what was happening next.
The narrators did a fantastic job and fit the characters perfectly.

Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook arc, dual narration was just chef’s kiss. This book absolutely had me hook from the start I simply could not put it down. Would recommend to people who are fans of Rina Kent, and love romances were the bad boy gets the girls, with touch her 💀 vibes, he falls first and secret society.

ARC Review

-Dual POV
-Secret Society
-Good Girl x Bad Boy
-Touch Her and 💀
-He Falls First

Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spicy: 🌶️🌶️

This book was chef’s kiss👌🏻!! Once I started to listen to it I just couldn’t stop!
Totally recommend!!

I can’t wait for the next book to come out!!

This may be the book for you if you enjoy:
secret college society, good girl x bad boy, and a heroine who just can’t help trying to save everyone

I seen Corvin kings’ name and I KNEW I HAD TO LISTEN AND I DID NOT STOP

this is my first time reading Skylar and it definitely won’t be the last!

Thank you to the author and NETGALLEY for this ALC

It seem Damien is hiding a secret when there is death in the secret society he become the leader until the ceremony where he hs to take a v!gin and he ask one of the men that live there to get his friend Ava who made a promise not loose her virgnity until marriage and she think her friend brent is in danger she pledges and she knows she has made a mistake. While Damien is finding out who is Ava father and the mysterious surrounding him he gets to know Ava. Ava seem naive.and pure heart where Damien is rich and cold hearted but also has a caring pwrsonality
narrators Corvin King, Rachel Leblang so good love them.

Started this today and did NOT stop!! The female narrator sounded confused the majority of the time. Even reading the chapter numbers she read it like she was questioning if she was reading it correctly. Not a fan of her. The male narrator was chefs kiss! I loved Damian and Ava sooo much. Damian is super possessive and the definition of I’ll burn the world down for you. Ava was such a strong woman who didn’t take bs from anyone and I adored her bravery and how outspoken she is. Unfortunately I had already guessed that her dad was the Sacred Light. I had the thought when they said her dad traveled a lot but couldn’t find the records of it. I’m sure a lot of people won’t pick up on it which is going to be a fun surprise for them! Definitely enjoyed this and I do believe it’s going to do very well amongst romance readers.

If you like Rina Kent or Shantel Tessier, go ahead and add this one to your TBR because it has similar vibes. Dark college romance with secret society? Where do I sign up? *wink* I would say this one is potentially a slight shade lighter than Kent or Tessier, but not by much. I really enjoyed this one and I ended up liking Damian way more than I thought I would. This book is dark, spicy, and a little unhinged and I couldn't stop listening. The audiobook narrators, Corvin King and Rachel Leblang, do a wonderful job of bringing this story to life.

The ending had me clenching my teeth it was so tense. There were a couple of plot twists, one being very easy to pick up on pretty quickly into the book but it didn't take away from the story to me. This was an exciting, fast paced, enticing read.

Thank you NetGalley and Audio ARC provided by Victory Editing NetGalley Co-op for access to the ALC in exchange for an honest review.

I listened to the audiobook. It was duet narration performed by Corvin King and Rachel Leblang.
Corvin King never disappoints. He has the ability to bring all the emotions and personality of a character to life. His voice was perfect for Damian and he done an amazing job.
This is the first I’ve listened to anything by Rachael Leblang. She did an amazing job as well. Her voice fit the character and she was able to capture the personality and emotions of Ava really well.
Both the narrators voices complemented each other and they were able to keep my attention the entire time.

This story had me from start to finish. I loved it! It was fast paced, smutty goodness, with an interesting secret society, dangerous situations and plot twists. I did find some things predictable but, it didn’t ruin the story for me. It had all the things I love about a dark academia romance. I found the MFC in this refreshing. An Innocent church girl, sometimes in need of saving, yes. BUT, she wasn’t clueless or helpless. She was smart, talented, determined and able to figure things out including what she wanted. Ava was a great character! The MMC, Damian, was dark, morally grey, demanding, hotness with a sweet side that had my heart 🫠 He was protective of his little doll and definitely had the whole touch her and die vibe going on ☠️ And he falls first 🖤 The chemistry and banter between them was so good. I loved the characters and the side characters. You get to know Hunter and Lucy a tiny bit in this book and I’m so looking forward to the next book and their story! Maybe we will get a bit on how Damian and Ava are doing as well since this had an open ended HEA 🤞🏻

Thank you NetGalley, Skyler Mason and Victory Editing for the opportunity to listen to this ALC!

Oh wow wow wow this one was amazing! The narrators…phew that was hot! I love a duet style audio and this one knocked it out of the park! I loved how unhinged the mmc was!! I love dark academia aspects in books. It was dark, unhinged, spicy, and Damien is delish😍