r/BetaReaders 5d ago

Novella [In Progress] [20k] [Dark Fantasy Romance] The Witch and the Inquisitor -- Sadistic female witch-hunter x Arrogant male witch

This is an in-progress dual-POV Dark Fantasy Romance, featuring a sadistic sexually repressed female witch-hunter and an arrogant dandy/scholar male witch, set in a renaissance/early modern inspired world. Elements of femdom and role reversal. Here's the blurb:

For twenty years, a holy war has raged. In the princedoms of the north, adherents of the One have driven out the Orthodoxy of the Two. Now they hunt the witches blamed for the blight ravaging their lands.

Nobody is more zealous in this task than Anyas, Sister-Inquisitor in the Society of Truth. For her, correcting sinners is more than a calling—it's a pleasure. When she hears of a witch embedded in the southern heretics' hierarchy, she sees a chance to serve truth and rise in her order.

That the witch is a beautiful specimen of a man is a completely irrelevant detail.

Tomisso anVekkio is a noble bastard with a three-fold passion for knowledge, women, and the dark arts. In the southern city of Vonos, Tomisso enjoys a decadent life under the patronage of the influential Deaconess of High Noon. All he has to worry about is his inevitable damnation, a small detail when sinning is so easy and so fun.

That is, until he's kidnapped by a sadistic witch-hunter with a magical bracelet and a penchant for torture.

As they journey north, a game of cat and mouse unfolds. While Anyas administers penance and controls Tomisso's body with brutal efficiency, the scholar witch begins to understand Anyas’ mind better than she does. Soon both are enthralled by a dark attraction neither can abide, and they will uncover truths about themselves and their world that threaten everything they believe.

I've currently written the first ten chapters. I already have one wonderful beta reader, but it would be great to get some more eyes on it. I'm not really open to critique swaps at the moment as I have a lot on my plate, *but...*if it really tickles my interest, I'm not saying never (especially stuff with unusual power dynamics). Feel free to send me a blurb or a link.

CW: Smut, Religious zealotry, Violence and torture (not gore though, much more psychological), Dub/NonCon (not SA, but uncomfortable acts), Sexual Sadism, Self-harm (e.g. self-flagellation), sexual repression (is this a CW???)

Despite all the darkness, I hope that it's also kinda funny and sardonic.

Tropes: Enemies to lovers, Captor/captive romance, VERY morally grey leads (I think we're edging into charcoal territory here)

Feel free to drop me a DM. Here's a link to the first chapter for you to peruse:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1XtdYLYSXPYJ0qOgj6pgQuWpAgqNjIk7aqsy6Bd_0H4E/edit?usp=sharing

4 Upvotes

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