Tenderly, I Am Devoured by. Lyndall Clipstone | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice: 🌶️

Title: Tenderly, I Am Devoured

Author: Lyndall Clipstone

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 304

Publication Date: 7/1/25

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

Categories: Gothic, Romance, Fantasy, Young Adult, LGBT+

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Henry Holt and Co. (BYR) for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Perfect for fans of Saltburn, For the Wolf, and House of Hollow, Tenderly, I Am Devoured is a moody, monstrously Gothic romantasy in which a young woman must bind herself to a dangerous chthonic demon with the help of the son of a rival family to save her family’s legacy―and herself―from ruin.

Expelled from her prestigious boarding school following a violent incident, eighteen-year-old Lacrimosa Arriscane returns home in disgrace to discover her family on the point of financial ruin. Desperate to save them, she accepts a marriage of convenience… to Therion, the chthonic god worshipped by Lark’s isolated coastal hometown.

But when her betrothal goes horribly wrong, Lark begins to vanish from the mortal realm. Her only hope is to seek help from Alastair Felimath: the brilliant, arrogant boy who was her first heartbreak, and his alluring older sister, Camille. As the trio delve into the folklore of gods, Lark falls under the spell of the Felimath siblings.

Ensnared by a fervent romance, they perform a bacchanalia with hopes the hedonistic ritual will repair the connection between Lark and her bridegroom. Instead, they draw the ire of something much darker, which seeks to destroy Therion―and Lark as well.

Content Warning: mentions of physical abuse, violence

+ I am always intrigued by the books this author writes. My favorite part of this book is the setting and the atmosphere. It has gothic vibes, a house by the sea, rituals and worshipping Gods. And there is this theme of 3’s which I found interesting also. This story is written like a fever dream.

+ The romance is messy but filled with yearning and very mild heat, nothing graphic. Lark is friends with her neighbors, two siblings, Alistair and Camille. They are friends for a time until they grow apart. But they eventually reunite, Alistair and Lark having more issues to work through but she gets into a relationship with both of them. I thought it would get complicated but it is definitely the type of relationship where everyone in the party was okay with it so I respected that.

+ I really liked the storyline about the God Therion and Lark having to marry him to help her family’s salt mines become profitable again. It remind me of the story of Hades and Persephone but with a different twist that included Alistair.

~ I felt like Lark fell for people too fast, like for Damson at boarding school. She was needy but also needed by everyone it seems: Alistair, Camille, and Therion. I felt her connection to Alistair, but Camille? Not really except for the physical connection they had with each other.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, this one was okay- it’s a quick read and written like a fever dream. I love the coastal, gothic atmosphere and how they worship their God, Therion. I loved all the LGBT romance representation in the story and that it was very accepted in this world but I didn’t love the polyamory between Lark and the siblings only because I felt she had more of a connection and history to Alistair, but I guess at least it didn’t ruin the friendship. And because it’s written like a fever dream at some points I was wondering what was going on. Though some things didn’t work for me, I think young adult gothic romance readers will enjoy this dark, gothic romance story.