7 forking stars for Daggermouth! 🍴⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

My advice for this book is to go in blind. Just experience it. Yes there is hype, the hype is deserved, just enjoy it.

This a legit true true enemies to lovers. Like shot in the chest ready to kill you but also...

“Shadera.” A pause. “I want to kill you.” The cadence of his statement sent a shiver crawling down her spine. “If you do not leave right now, I’m going to kill you.”

and then at a totally different point...

“If you shoot me,” he said, his voice dropping, “it will only make me want to fuck you.”

This is me right now: 😲😲😲😲

Pick this up if you like:
🍴 Good books 😔

but also:
🩸 Forced marriage
🍴 TRUE enemies to lovers
🩸 Dystopian romance
🍴 Political intrigue
🩸 Female rage
🍴 Second chance romance (I mean, kinda...)

That ending was just 🤯🤯🤯 I preordered the ebook when HM Wolfe was trying to get to a 1000 copies sold prerelease and then it came out and there was so much hype I just put a pause on it. I am sorry, I should have read this sooner. I need book 2 now please, can someone speed up this process. Thank you.

Thank you to HM Wolfe and Pan Macmillan | Tor Bramble for sending me and ARC in exchange for an honest review.

“Beautiful things are often built on ugly foundations.”

I'm downright gagged for this book.

Shadera is the mercenary who's grown up in the slums. She's taken on the assignment to kill him. Greyson shackled to the laws as the heir of the president executing those who break those laws as it's illegal to love outside your ring. However his mask drops when she goes to kill him and now they're stuck in an arranged marriage to each other.

Like Lila a side character is so powerful (my bby girl) "Because I lack the power, the authority, the position. Because I am a woman in a system designed by men to keep power in their hands. Because every time I’ve tried to mitigate suffering, I’ve been reminded..." She's suffered so much and H.M Wolfe mirrors what the world is like in the world today with women being second best and oppressed by men.

Yes, it's got some triggering themes but It's a powerful story about rising up against the patriarchy and rich to make sure that the poor are taken care of as they're left starving and neglected. It's bound to make you feel rage, frustration and throw the book. Not to mention Greyson is forced to be the executioner against those who push against the rules.

It's dystopian and I'm obsessed with the tension and chemistry between Shadera and Greyson. Enemies to lovers with forced proximity. It's 100% relevant to today's times.

THIS IS A MUST READ FOR THE WORLD WE ARE LIVING IN AND NEEDS TO BE ON YOUR TBR

Did I finish this book? Or did it finish me? My brain chemistry has been officially altered.

This book has you experiencing every emotion possible—I’m not lying. I was laughing and giggling one minute, then crying and screaming the next. Every time I thought I knew what was coming next, I was thrown into a spiral of secrets, betrayals, and twists.

The anger I felt reading this book was real. The system is built on oppression. Women and marginalised people are treated as disposable and undeserving of basic needs, rights, and respect. What really got me is how familiar it felt; the line between this fictional world and our real one was uncomfortably thin. The attitudes, the need to control those in power, isn’t that far off from our real world.

THE CHARACTERS?!?! THE ROMANCE?!? I’m actually so obsessed and attached to them. Greyson and Shadera were everything they needed to be. Both morally grey. True enemies to lovers with an actual hatred for each other. The tension?!?! I was gagged. Both brought up on different sides of the border with different life experiences, yet both layered with trauma and victims of the system. Now, for Callum and Lira (my babies) - I actually love them so much. CALLUM THANE…THAT MAN HAD ME DOWN BAD. The yearning, the affection, their relationship was so authentic and wholesome. Lira was my favourite character; she has been through so much trauma and devastation. I cried for her (several times).

THE ENDING?!? I was actually having heart palpitations for the last couple of chapters. I was cheering and crying— I basically just crashed the f out.

Read it.

Oh my GOD. Book of the year so far!!!! I loved this SO much and cannot believe this was her indie release! No notes, all the stars. I need book two YESTERDAY!!!!!!!

I love dystopian so much and this didn’t disappoint. Absolutely loved this one and I’m sad we have to wait so long for a sequel but I know it will be worth the wait!

Loveeeeee the characters, loveeeee the plot. This was a winner

5⭐️ is not enough for this book. I’ve just read absolute dystopian perfection.

This is probably one of the easiest reviews I’ve ever had to write. Everything in this book worked for me and H.M Wolfe had me LITERALLY eating out of her hand with every page I turned and truly TRULY deserves every inch of success she is receiving from this release and more.

🗡️TRUE enemies to lovers
🫀Dark Dystopian societal masterpiece
🗡️ Badass FMC who ABSOLUTELY holds her own
🫀Forced political marriage
🗡️ALL the female RAGE
🫀Corrupt government ensuring only the elite thrive
🗡️ Multiple POV’s
🫀Why Choose for the reader 👀 (I was OBSESSED with EVERYONE)

This book had A LOT of hype to live up to when I started reading it - and it absolutely lives up to every inch and beyond. I was completely invested in every sentence of this chaotic wild ride and the side characters all hold up to the same standard as the main ones. I loved the multiple POV’s because as a reader you watched everything unfold from everyone’s perspective.

Now onto THAT ending. I didn’t know what to do with myself and wanted to immediately grab book 2. H.M’s entire world, plot lines and characters are taking up SO much space in my brain with multiple theories and just plain obsession that will have to tide me over until Python is released. See this review as my formal application to be a professional hype girl and talk about all things heart, daggermouth, python and beyond.

This is how a dystopian romance should be written. It is gritty, incredibly exciting towards the end and leaves you wanting more. It’s a story on how resistance, hope, love and optimism can exist in places you wouldn’t expect them to.

Without posting spoilers there are a couple of characters that grated on me, their smugness being the main reason but you are supposed to hate them, so it works brilliantly in the character building.

I’ve long had a need for a series to take my attention and stay with me for a long time like Fourth Wing has, and I believe I’ve now found this series. It is excellent.
I cannot wait for book 2 .

This book completely consumed my attention from the moment I started it. It’s the kind of story that pulls you through a whirlwind of emotions — one moment you’re smiling at a character interaction, and the next you’re shocked by a reveal you didn’t see coming. The plot constantly shifts and builds, layering secrets and betrayals in a way that kept me turning the pages late into the night.
One of the most powerful parts of the story is the world itself. The society within the book is harsh and deeply unfair, built on systems that benefit the powerful while others suffer. Watching the characters navigate that reality made the stakes feel incredibly real and added a lot of emotional weight to the story.
The characters were a huge highlight for me. They’re messy, complicated, and shaped by the difficult world they live in. Greyson and Shadera have a fiery dynamic that truly embodies enemies to lovers, full of tension and clashing perspectives. Meanwhile, Callum and Lira brought a softer, more heartfelt connection that added warmth and balance to the story. Their relationship felt genuine and emotionally grounded.
Overall, this was an intense, character-driven fantasy that kept surprising me and left a strong impression long after I finished. If you enjoy morally complex characters, layered relationships, and a story that isn’t afraid to explore darker themes, this is definitely one worth picking up.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC!
This was an instant five star read for me. I have not picked up a dystopian in a long time and wow this completely pulled me back in.

The plot twists were insane. Every time I thought I had things figured out it flipped again and just when I thought the twists were over there was more. I genuinely did not see any of it coming.

I also really loved the writing style and the switches between character POVs. It kept everything feeling fast paced and addictive.
That ending was absolutely wild. I need book two immediately.
If you love a true enemies to lovers dynamic with constant twists I 100 percent recommend this

This was phenomenal. Exactly what my heart needed. Perfect for those of us who grew up loving Hunger Games, Divergent and Shatter Me. I NEED the next book NOW!

Excuse me, but what the actual f*ck?!

Now this is how you do dystopia!!!! And enemies to lovers!!! I just loooooved this!!! ❣️🖤

The characters were amazing, the world building was immaculate, the pacing was just right, the character development was top shelf 👏🏼 👌🏻

I just can't find anything bad about it, to be honest. This has everything I love! From the dystopian setting, to the action, to the tension, to the death, to the plots,... just everything that I love!

I can already smell the movie deal 😌

Can't wait to read Python, that little teaser we got just was not enough 😫

Thank you so much Netgalley and Pan Macmillan publishing for this amazing ARC!!! This was a wild ride!! 🖤❤️

If you liked Silver Elite, but crave a bit more darkness to the storyline, this book is an absolute must read!

The complexity of each character was really engaging throughout. They are all morally grey… and I think this reflects the complex reality of their lives. Their complexity felt real and I enjoyed how the author peeled back the layers for each character gradually throughout the book.

I loved getting strong female characters who let their rage show… and this book absolutely gave me that.

The storyline itself was paced perfectly in my opinion. And the ending 🤯 I did not see that coming.

This book left me wanting more. I was gutted when the final chapter came, leaving me on a cliffhanger I was not ready to live with. I can’t wait to hear what happens to the two MCs in the next book… I just have to wait until 2027 for it 😭

Six. Stars.

Dystopian and actual enemies to lovers?? Complex characters, actual moral greyness.. Need I say more?! This is my second read, as I originally read the indie published version. Daggermouth was even more devastating the second time around. I truly can’t wait for Python!!

Wow-read of the year. This book was absolutely amazing! The hype is founded, the world building, character depth, emotion, important messages? It was all there in bucket loads and i loved every moment of this story. I cannot actually wait for python because i need more of it all.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 6/5
Drop everything and read this book. Thank me later.

Daggermouth is a hard-hitting dystopian with a sizzling slow-burn enemies to lovers romance running right through the heart of it. Multiple POVs, phenomenal side characters, emotional damage and a plot twist I did not see coming.

The writing is vivid. Each chapter is crafted to paint a clear scene with real emotion. No over-explaining, no repetitive internal dialogue filler. Just pure essence of what the story needs at every given moment. It screams film adaptation.

The villain is one of the most hateful I’ve encountered in a long time. The philosophy of “limited resources create dependence, dependence creates control” poses some genuinely interesting questions about politics and power.

And Greyson. I was broken for him by page 75. That’s the kind of writing that makes you feel before you’ve even had a chance to think.

If you love forbidden love, complex worlds and characters who get under your skin fast, this one is for you. ✨

Did this live up to the booktok hype?........ yes it did!!
This book was so good & deserves every bit of hype it gets. Its written in 3rd person which is not my favourite writing style but the story was that good I didn't even notice as I was that engrossed!
Im not going to say anything about the story as you need to experience it yourself apart from that ending was wild & not what I expected especially after the earlier twists, roll on next march for book 2 I can't wait to see where the story goes!

this is one of my favourite reads in a very long time. Its a multi POVs dark dystopian book with enemies to lovers, oppressed society, a true villain, fast paced plot and interesting characters.

HOLY I AM SHOOK! This book was so powerful & relevant & confronting!

Staring at a wall tbh I need time to recover before I post a review but here are some of my favourite quotes.

“No one survived the Heart unscathed. Not the princess in her tower, not the Executioner on his platform, and not the assassin in her cage.”

“Women are the backbone, the foundation, the immovable force that still does not falter when men stand on our spines to grab power. I am not fragile. The cracks in my soul aren’t broken places. They are veins cemented together with rage. And it will take more than the hands of men to kill my spirit, to break my will.”

She was beautiful, and he hated himself for thinking it. She was everything he was never allowed to be—wild and untamed chaos.

“If you shoot me,” he said, his voice dropping, “it will only make me want to fck you.”

This is one of my favourite books of 2026!
A dark dystopian, with a major romantic plot! Perfect.

This book has me hooked from the very first page and I read it in one sitting because I couldn’t put it down.
The direction this book takes was insane. The characters were amazing. The world building was fantastic. The romance was a little lust forward but I didn’t mind it because of how good the plot was.

Honestly this book is 5 stars for the plot alone, and everything else is just a bonus.

I need book 2 immediately!!

Side note: one thing I couldn’t get my head round was the logistics of the masks they wear. But hopefully that will be touched on in book 2 because I think a lot of people have had the same issue.

I have not been as obsessed with a book for literal years. As someone who grew up reading The Hunger Games, I’m enjoying seeing the dystopian genre grow up with me and combine with some of my favourite romance tropes.

Everybody should be reading this.

The easiest 5star read this year…

I have no words to describe what I have just read, 5 stars simply isn’t enough, Daggermouth is utterly brilliant. A dark, sexy dystopian novel like nothing else…

‘Blood would be spilled. The only question was whose.’

H.M Wolfe’s writing captured me from the start, the ideas and concepts intertwined in this book are genius. The way inner thoughts are just spilled onto the pages, inner monologues disguising as outside thoughts gives the reader a more intimate experience with the characters.

The book touches on important matters that makes the reader want to scream into the book, literally scream. The system that has been created in this book…everything is wrong, the way people are treated is wrong. It just proves when you have someone in power that only cares about themselves, no one else matters.

The tension in the book makes the reader feel mixed emotions, I have genuinely never been sat reading a book with my jaw dropped for so long, that’s all I’m saying.

“Beautiful things are often built on ugly foundations”

The characters… the world that has been created… yeah I’m never going to stop thinking about them. Shadera our FMC is fierce, she’s powerful, she’s loyal to her sector, no one stands in her way, until Greyson. Greyson, are you KIDDING? He’s not what people assume he is, he’s misunderstood and extremely morally grey. The relationship between Shadera and Greyson, obsessed, no comments. The slow burn was EVERYTHING. They are TRUE enemies to lovers and you don’t know what direction the book is going to go in. Callum and Lira? The YEARNING? The only way to describe their relationship is genuine, they are perfect.

The tropes were perfectly executed, forced marriage?, SOLD, slow burn?, SOLD, Enemies to lovers? SOLD

I have never wanted a second book so much.. I cannot wait for ‘Python’ to be released to find out what happens next…

Thank you to Pan Macmillan and Netgalley for the opportunity to read Daggermouth.