Blush & Bindings AFTER DARK
Blush & Bindings
After Dark
In Blush & Bindings After Dark we explore the darker side of the romance genre and dive hard and deep into the kinks that make us blush. These episodes definitely break down stigmas, and embrace the forbidden. We are lifting up those morally grey love stories and exploring those bindings that tie us up and together. We explore themes and tropes of dark romance, and get kinky with our kink connoisseur section that definitely earns us that Explicit (E) content label. These episodes are NSFW, so pop on those headphones and put the kids to bed for these episodes.
These After Dark episodes and this page discuss and present mature themes and sexually explicit content, they are meant for mature (18+) audiences.
Dark Romance
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What is Dark Romance?
Dark Romance is a subgenre that explores intense and complex relationships. These include elements of danger mixed with passion, morally grey or black characters, and sometimes extreme situations or traumas. These books explore the darker side of human nature.
Themes tend to be dark and for mature and adult audiences, depicting ‘taboo’ relationships relative to the mainstream romance subgenres, topics of abuse, violence, and obsession.
Darker or more kink heavy plot lines are often featured and usually include a long trigger/content warning list. Generally these romances are Open Door.
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Dark Romance Subgenres & Tropes
While many romance subgenres can feature books classified as dark romance, not every novel in these subgenres fall into that category. Some subgenres, like Stalker Romance, are firmly in the dark category, while others, like Motorcycle Club and Mafia Romance, can often swing toward the darker side depending on the story. Even subgenres like Sports Romance and College Romance have begun to include dark romance titles, but it’s important to remember that not all books in these categories are inherently dark.
Common tropes in this genre include: Touch Her and Die ☠️, OTT MMC(s), Possessive MMC(s), Morally Grey Characters, Mafia, Stalking, Kidnapping, Serial Killers, Anti-heros and villians as protagonists.
Kink Connoisseur
If you’ve ever caught yourself saying, “New Kink Unlocked” while reading, then this segment is for you. Each After Dark episode, we host a Kink Connoisseur segment where we highlight a specific kink featured in our After Dark book club pick, we chat about it, and offer additional TBR picks featuring this kink if you want to read more!
For those not familiar or unclear, a kink is simply a sexual preference beyond the ‘vanilla’ that does not necessarily fall into the realm of fetish.
It is important to note that kinks are not inherently dark and here at Blush & Bindings, we are breaking down stigmas surrounding these and opening the narrative for a healthy and consensual discussion. This segment features in our After Dark episodes to ensure we do not cross any boundaries with our listeners who are not interested in this type of content.
Also, just because you enjoy reading about any of these kinks, does not mean you want to act them out in the real world. And if you do want to bring these elements into the bedroom? More power to you, as long as any and all scenes are consensual and limits clearly communicated.
Consent is Kinky friends!
Trigger/Content Warnings
Here at Blush & Bindings, we strongly encourage readers to always check trigger/content warnings before jumping into a new book, though it may spoil some plot lines, it will ensure your mental health remains safe while exploring the literary world. We also encourage you to be mindful when recommending books to others and mention a book has trigger warnings or pass along the reminder to check them. This keeps our book lovers community safe and informed.
We will always provide content warnings in the show notes of our episodes and prior to our Book Club segment.
Dark Romance tends to have trigger/content warnings by default, and it is implied that every book recommended in the After Dark episodes and TBR may have content warnings and we ALWAYS suggest you check them.
Happy Reading and Stay Safe!
A trigger warning in a book is a statement that alerts readers that the book's content may be disturbing or upsetting. Trigger warnings are a type of content warning that are intended to help people with anxiety disorders or Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) avoid content that could cause intense psychological or physiological symptoms.
Trigger warnings can appear in a book's back jacket, on its digital detail page, or in an author's note. They allow readers to avoid content that could be harmful, help readers prevent revisiting past trauma, and keep your mental health safe.
Definition adapted from Writer unBoxed
Common Trigger/Content Warnings
These may include explicit descriptions within the storylines or mentions of it in the past. This is not a compete list.
Abuse, physical and emotional abuse/manipulation
Alcohol abuse
Animal cruelty
Body shaming
Cannibalism
Child abuse, parental neglect, pedophilia
Childhood emotional and physical abuse or neglect
Chronic physical pain
Claustrophobia
Domestic violence
Drug abuse
Explicit, detailed sexual content, sex scenes, kinks and behaviors that some readers might find triggering, including but not limited to: anal, adult toys, BDSM, bloody play, breath play, choking, cock warming, consensual non-consensual role (CNC) play, dubious consent (Dubcon), genital piercings, impact play, knife play, praise, unequal balance of experience/power, rough sex, spitting.
Explicit language, profanity
Grief/Loss - Death of a loved one, pervasive grief
Incest
Infertility and forced sterilization
Kidnapping/Abduction
Medical trauma / hospital settings
Panic attacks and undiagnosed PTSD, Untreated PTSD, including flashbacks
Parental neglect, child abuse, pedophilia
Pregnancy, pregnancy loss & infertility, child loss, miscarriages, and abortion
Physical violence including warfare fighting, killing, torture
Religious trauma, references to cults, including manipulation and degradation
Rituals involving cutting and blood
Self-harm, suicide or suicidal ideation
Photography by Cheeky Fox Photography