Corrupt (Devil's Night)

Dreams might be a heart’s desire, but nightmares are its obsession in the first novel of a dark romance series from New York Times bestselling author Penelope Douglas.
 
Erika Fane’s boyfriend's older brother is handsome, strong, and completely terrifying. The star of his college's basketball team gone pro, he's more concerned with the dirt on his shoe than he is with her. But she saw him. She heard him. The things that he did, and the deeds that he hid...
 
For years, Erika bit her nails, unable to look away. Now, she’s in college, but she hasn’t stopped watching him. He’s bad and the things she’s seen aren’t content to stay in her head anymore.
 
Because he's finally noticed her.
 
But Michael Crist knows the hold he has on Rika, how much she fears him. She looks down when he enters the room and stills when he’s close. He knows she thinks only of him. When Michael’s brother leaves for the military, leaving Rika alone and unprotected, he knows the opportunity is too good to be true. 

Three years ago she put Michael’s friends in prison, and now they’re free.  

Every last one of her nightmares is about to come true.

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Published Nov 7, 2023

516 pages

Average rating: 7.37

322 RATINGS

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Community Reviews

What Bookclubbers are saying about this book

✨ Summarized by Bookclubs AI

Readers say *Corrupt (Devil’s Night)* by Penelope Douglas delivers her signature tension and dark edges, making it a gripping read with intense romanc...

Trisha.shaw
Jul 08, 2024
10/10 stars
Absolutely loved this read and definitely fell for Michael 😍
random_wolfe
Jan 02, 2026
6/10 stars
Okay, let's start with the writing. I have two issues:
1. Why doesn't the author understand how to correctly put verbs in past-tense?
2. Why isn't someone proofreading and making corrections? Surely that's someone's job? If not, I will volunteer as tribute
Jazzymade
Dec 20, 2025
7/10 stars
100% bad boy vibes but still gives you a run for your money when trying to connect the dots and push to get to the next book.
Farrah Lokey
Dec 15, 2025
8/10 stars
While it’s not my favorite Penelope Douglas, it’s definitely memorable.

Erika is stuck in a relationship that’s easier to say yes to than to keep disappointing people by saying no. I was firmly Team Kai—he just needed to be loved and truly seen, and I've got my finger's crossed for a "why choose" future. 
I was shocked at how quickly everyone believed she’d leaked the video without ever confronting her. And then there’s Michael… who actually kills his brother… and the family is just sort of okay with it?

It had the signature Douglas tension and dark edges, but I don’t think it’s one I’ll re-read. Still, I’m in it for the long haul—I want to finish the series before Devil’s Night.
Courtasaurus Rex
Mar 22, 2025
8/10 stars
Dark romance is a slight understatement for this BOOK. Again, this is a BOOK. I'm not sure why people need to compare their real relationships to BOOKS.

Do these characters need therapy? Probably. Did this stop me from reading this in every spare second I had? Absolutely not.

To the people saying Rika has no personality- she saves herself from harm several times, she has a whole self-image story with her scar, and she overcomes parental loss and absent parent. We get this despite this book being dark erotica and split between sex and plot.

I immediately dove into book 2.

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