Bent, Not Broken by Ki Brightly and M.D. Gregory | Book Review
Turns out it’s a standalone with a sequel…lol. Didn’t know that going into my review. Read on!
There’s a particular flavor of MM romance I have to brace myself for: the one where a bi awakening swallows the whole book. The sexual identity crisis becomes the entire personality of the MC, and the romance, the plot, and the chemistry all wait politely in the wings while he spirals for 300 pages. The world is cruel. I get it. But I read romance to escape, and if the struggle isn’t adding to the tension or the relationship, I’d rather not.
Bent, Not Broken by Ki Brightly and M.D. Gregory doesn’t do that.
What It’s About:
Defense attorney Madden Polunin is the New Gothenburg PD’s least favorite person to see in a courtroom. He represents the Kings of Men MC, walks clients out of charges that should have stuck, and has a smile that makes cops want to throw their badges. Off the clock, he sticks to one night stands and zero strings.
Officer Evan Slater hates him on sight. Straitlaced, by-the-book, and very loudly straight. Then Madden ends up drugged after a night out, and Evan is the one who finds him. After that, neither of them can stop colliding.
Madden has bigger problems than a sexually confused cop with a chip on his shoulder. His serial killer father is locked up but still casting a long shadow. His work partner is cutting corners that could get him killed. And whatever this thing with Evan is, it isn’t going to stay simple.
Book Review
What Works:
Evan is a fuck boy through and through, and his bi awakening doesn’t slow him down. Madden is his first guy, sure, but when the opportunity is in front of him, Evan takes it. Even if the first time is intended as revenge for Madden being infuriatingly a lawyer. He sleeps with him, panics, tosses him out of the house in his underwear, then goes back after him. Then hides. Then Madden comes back for more. From that first scene you know something is different.
Is it a healthy start to a relationship? No. But it’s as good as these two are getting. Madden is no better at relationships than Evan is, which is what makes them kind of perfect for each other.
The chemistry is off the charts. The size difference earns its place. The hate sex is everything their situationship needed. And the fact that Madden is the lawyer representing the very motorcycle club Evan has been actively trying to put behind bars keeps the friction sharp well after the bedroom turns less hostile.
What got me about Madden and Evan specifically is what Madden gives Evan. After what happened with his father, Evan was essentially alone. His aunt only cared about her brother’s welfare, not her fifteen-year-old nephew’s. So having someone who only wants him, who shows up and stays, is a kind of steadiness Evan hasn’t had since he was a kid. Madden gives him that. And in return, Evan only wants Madden. The wealth, the family money, the connections are all inconsequential, which is what keeps Madden coming back.
What Didn’t Work
Honestly, not much. If I had to nitpick:
The ending wraps up earlier than I wanted. I would have enjoyed more chapters of them as a couple, that’s where their relationship evolved after Evan’s accident. We get glimpses in time jumps, which is fine, but I wanted their easy ways as a couple. I wanted to know if Evan’s nightmares ever stopped.
Madden’s family stays under-explored. We don’t delve much into Maddens relationship with his mother, his father is non existent though mentioned at the beginning.
And the handcuffs. There’s a whole conversation about playing with handcuffs that never happens. Missed opportunity, if you ask me.
Who Should Read This
If you love enemies to lovers and a bi awakening done right, this one is for you. If you have a soft spot for earnest law enforcement with daddy issues, also for you. And if you’ve read other Brightly and Gregory books from the New Gothenburg universe, Bent, Not Broken slots in nicely whether you’re starting here or adding to the pile.
The Verdict
⭐⭐⭐⭐ Bent, Not Broken gets 4 out of 5 stars. Great characters, excellent chemistry, and a relationship dynamic that earns its mess. I wouldn’t say no to a bonus epilogue for Madden and Evan. The reading order has this listed as a standalone, but I’ll be poking around the New Gothenburg universe for more.
Buy Bent, Not Broken on Amazon. It (and it’s sequel 😉) are also available on Kindle Unlimited.
Let’s Talk
Are you a bi awakening reader, or does the trope have to clear a bar before you’ll pick it up? Drop your favorite (or least favorite) bi awakening MM in the comments.
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