“Corrupt” by Penelope Douglas – An Audiobook Review
⭐ Rating: 3/5
Year Published: 2015
Genre: Dark Romance
Page Count: 518 (14.5 hr)
Narrators: Tatiana Sokolov & Jeremy York (Dual Narration)
Quick Summary
Corrupt is a dark, intense, and twisted romance that follows Rika as she gets caught in a dangerous game of revenge orchestrated by Michael and his group of elite, reckless friends. With themes of power, obsession, and betrayal, the book delivers a mix of psychological tension and steamy romance. While the premise is intriguing and the tension is well-crafted, certain execution choices made the experience less enjoyable—especially in the audiobook format.
What I Liked
A Dark, Twisty Premise: The revenge plot and psychological mind games kept the story compelling and unpredictable.
An Intense, Atmospheric Read: The story creates an immersive, almost cinematic feel, pulling you into its dark and dangerous world.
Potential for Future Books: Despite its flaws, I’m intrigued enough to continue the series, just in a different format.
What Didn’t Work for Me
The Male Audiobook Narrator: The narration completely ruined the experience for me. His voice for Rika was so cringeworthy that it constantly pulled me out of the story. This is definitely a series I’ll continue reading on Kindle instead of listening to**.**
Obnoxious Song References: One of my biggest pet peeves—constant song name-dropping that added nothing to the story. Instead of creating mood or atmosphere, it felt amateurish and forced. If a reader doesn’t know the song, it means nothing. If they do and dislike it, it can ruin the scene entirely. A much better approach would have been descriptive writing to show the type of music, rather than relying on name-dropping specific (and, in this case, questionable) songs.
Who Should Read This?
If you enjoy dark romance with revenge themes, high tension, and morally gray characters, Corrupt might be worth checking out. But if you’re considering the audiobook—maybe don’t.
Final Thoughts
While Corrupt has a strong premise and gripping tension, its audiobook narration and excessive song references took away from the experience. If you’re interested in this series, I’d recommend skipping the audiobook and going for the Kindle version instead. I’ll probably continue the series, but with cautious expectations.
