Author: K. Loraine & Meg Anne

Series: The Mate Games: Apocalypse

First Published: 11 August 2025

“She might just kill me, and I think I would thank her for the experience.”  

I will start by saying that I was given an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Thank so much Meg and Kim for sending a copy my way!

This is a sequel; I will try and keep my review as spoiler free as possible but just be wary if you haven’t read first two books, Sin & Chaos.

I spent centuries avoiding romantic entanglements. Who wanted to be burdened by feelings? But then she happened and it didn’t matter what I wanted anymore.

Living with a succubus was never going to be easy but when we lose Merri to her demonic side the only way to bring her back is to give in. The one thing I’d spent so long trying not to do.

I’m pretty sure I coined the term workaholic. Plagues were what I lived for. Who could blame me? After my disastrous attempt at being a family man I locked myself away and focused on the only thing that truly mattered. Self-preservation. And if I happened to end the world in the process? Well, bully for me.

Now here I am with my entire life plan turned upon its head. I haven’t thought about my duty as a horseman in weeks. Instead, my mind is consumed with my hellcat.

She’s clawed her way past my defenses. All of our defenses.

Sin is already kneeling at her feet.

Chaos is well on his way.

Grim would be right there beside them if it wouldn’t kill her.

And me? I’m barely hanging on by a thread.

No matter how many times I tell myself I can resist, falling for her is a foregone conclusion. She’s the most powerful antigen I’ve ever come across, and I’m far from immune. Which should make it easy in the end.

Except I know how this story goes. There’s no such thing as happily ever after for the four horsemen. Merri was never ours to keep.

I adore everything about The Mate Games universe. It feels like coming home when I read a new Mate Games book, and Malice was a fantastic addition to the series. To no one’s surprise, I loved every second.

While the events in the previous book, Chaos, were wild, I feel like we kicked everything up a notch in Malice. The guys, thankfully, let Merri in on her role in the end of the world and why Lucifer is working overtime to capture her. This brings them closer together but also muddies their relationship as Merri only believes the horsemen are interested in her because they want to save the world. Unfortunately, these horsemen are a touch emotionally stunted. They have trouble even identifying their feelings, let alone trying to let Merri know they want her for more than their goal to save the world. At the end, Grim’s outburst made me want to slap him; his grovel better be incredible! We deserve it. And the ending? Oh my god! I knew! I knew! I can’t tell you what, but just know I knew it. But the way it ended there was so painful! I need to know what happens next.

My heart breaks for Merri. She’s struggling with her growing hunger and is keeping her distance from our horsemen, even though her camming sessions are not sustaining her. She’s scared to get too close to the guys, worried her developing powers are causing them to be drawn to her. Merri’s been abandoned and has accidentally harmed people. She’s not comfortable with her succubus abilities. But beneath it all, she’s yearning for someone to see her and love her. And not because she’s a succubus or because of how she can save the world.

We get to see more Malice in this book. I loved getting to see under his grumpy and stoic façade. Knowing what we do about his past relationship and how he could never see his son, I understand why he’s pushed everyone away. I just loved getting to see his softer side. Sin and Chaos are still head over heels obsessed with Merri. Sin is invested in their budding relationship, aware that he must learn to share if he wants to be with Merri. Where Chaos is struggling with sharing. There is a beautiful scene where Chaos finally opens up about his feelings with Merri that had me swooning. Grim is still sneaking around in the shadows, but Merri’s developing abilities help them form a connection without the fear of his touch killing her. He is still being incredibly stubborn. Grim is fixated on his role as Death, unable to perceive his potential happy ending.

The steam in here explodes as Operation Baby comes into full force. We get a truly perfect fuck-it scene, which leads to some excellent group stuff. Their chemistry is off the charts and left me needing to cool down at several points. The relationship is still developing slowly, with some bumps along the way as they all struggle to understand their own feelings and how to communicate them.

Operation PFFN allows us to see the global events of the unfolding apocalypse. All but one Prince of Hell has been unleashed, so Lucifer’s army is almost complete. All the players are lining up, ready for the final battle. I am interested in seeing how the horsemen will join forces with Operation PFFN. I feel it’s going to happen soon, especially with how this book ended. The horsemen need serious help. I just love these scenes as we get cameos of the characters from the previous series. It makes me want to reread them all.

The audiobooks are single-handedly the best way to consume this series. I am in awe of our incredible cast of narrators who’ve brought the characters to life. Here’s to Stella Hunter, Shane East, J.F. Harding, Jason Clarke, James Joseph, Teddy Hamilton and Christian Fox, whose talent has created an amazing immersive reading experience. I plan to revisit this entire series whenever I need a pick-me-up.

I am aware this review is vague and mostly just me gushing about the way I loved it, but I don’t want to spoil anything. Shout out to my queens, K. Loraine and Meg Anne, for another incredible release. Ladies, anything you write, I will read. And seriously, if you haven’t started The Mate Games books, what are you waiting for? These are my perfect brand of wild, why choose paranormal romance. I am dying for the final book, Grim, to be released. Let the countdown to the finale begin!