Under Your Scars by Ariel N. Anderson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
“If you’re so concerned about my humanity, Elena, then reach into my soul and find it, because I’m not sure I have any left.”
Under Your Scars
According to the FBI, I was considered a serial murderer after three kills.
What do they call me after fifty-two?
They call me the Silencer.
One final bullet would have been all it took to stop me from taking another soul, and I would have been doing Meridian City a service by pulling that trigger.
An angel crying for help stopped me, and that night, I took three lives for her. Then three turned into eight. Then eight turned into twenty. Twenty turned into twenty-one. Twenty one turned into twenty-three.
Elena Young is the hero in my story, but I’m the villain in hers.
And this is the kind of story where the villain gets the girl, even if it kills her.
Danger Has Never Looked This Good
The following ratings are out of 5:
Romance: 💙💛💚💜🖤
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Chemistry: 🧪🧪🧪🧪🧪
Story/Plot: 📕📗📘📙
World building: 🌏🌍🌎🌏
Character development: 😋🙂😁😎
Narrator(s): 🎙🎙🎙🎙🎙
Narration type: Duet Narration
Character Backgrounds and Plot Summary
Elena Young is trying to build a life for herself in Meridian City while working at Reeves Enterprises, but her situation changes dramatically after she encounters the city’s infamous Silencer. He is a masked serial killer who targets criminals, and when Elena is attacked in an alley, he kills the men threatening her instead of hurting her. What really hooked me was how quickly Christian becomes fascinated with her. Christian Reeves is not just the mysterious man behind the red mask. He is also the billionaire CEO of Reeves Enterprises, the richest man in the world, and Elena’s boss’s boss. I loved the contrast between these two sides of him, especially when Christian steps in after Elena’s horrible boss mistreats her.
I also loved that Christian’s attraction to Elena isn’t some slow realization. He is immediately captivated by her, and his protective instincts kick in almost as quickly. There is something fascinating about watching Elena interact with Christian without realizing that the man she is drawn to during the day is the same dangerous man she has encountered at night.
I did have a hard time with some of Elena’s decisions, particularly when she takes the bartending job at the Hellfire Lounge. She is warned that women favored by the owner sometimes disappear, yet she keeps going back because she desperately needs the money. I understood why she felt trapped financially, but I still found myself wanting to yell at her to get out of there. Unfortunately, that decision eventually puts her in an incredibly dangerous situation.
One of the biggest turning points for me is when Elena discovers Christian’s secret. The realization that the billionaire CEO she has been falling for is the same man behind the mask completely changes their relationship. From there, the story becomes much darker, dealing with trauma, betrayal, violence, and the consequences of loving someone who has done terrible things. The book ultimately takes their relationship somewhere I absolutely was not emotionally prepared for, and this is definitely not a traditional happily-ever-after romance.
Highlights and Limitations
The biggest highlight for me was Christian himself. I have always had a weakness for the morally dark character who goes after people who prey on others, and the Silencer fit that particular obsession perfectly. I enjoyed the scenes where his terrifying reputation collided with the surprisingly vulnerable Christian Elena gets to know.
I especially liked the way Christian’s obsession with Elena develops. He doesn’t simply see her as another person to protect. She becomes the person who gives him a reason to keep going. The fact that her presence affects his decision to live adds a much deeper emotional layer to their relationship.
The Hellfire Lounge storyline was difficult to listen to, but it also demonstrated just how protective Christian becomes. When he sees what has happened to Elena, his reaction is absolutely brutal. I found myself both horrified by the violence and completely invested in his determination to make the people responsible pay.
There were also moments where I wished Elena had made different choices. Her continued involvement with the bar bothered me because she had already been given enough warning signs to know something was seriously wrong. I understand the financial desperation behind her decisions, but as a reader I found it frustrating watching her walk deeper into a situation that was clearly dangerous until she is in so deep, she can’t walk away.
And I really want to emphasize that this is an emotionally brutal story. The sexual assault, violence, kidnapping, self-harm, suicidal thoughts, and other traumatic material are substantial parts of the book, not passing references. Both main characters are damaged, and it is not easy to hear some of their thoughts.
Narration
Joe Arden was fantastic as Christian. He manages to make the Silencer frightening and intense while still giving Christian moments of tenderness and vulnerability. That contrast was especially effective because Christian has such dramatically different sides to his personality.
Lee Daniels also did a wonderful job with Elena. I could hear the difference between her strength, fear, vulnerability, and the emotional devastation she experiences later in the story. Her performance made Elena’s reactions feel personal rather than simply moving the plot from one scene to another.
I particularly enjoyed having both narrators bring their characters to life rather than feeling like one narrator was simply reading the entire book. Other listeners have also specifically highlighted the performances from both narrators, with Joe Arden’s portrayal of Christian receiving especially strong praise.
Final Opinion
I liked this audiobook from the beginning, and the combination of billionaire CEO, masked vigilante, obsessive hero, and dark romance immediately worked for me. Christian was the biggest draw because there was something so compelling about watching the terrifying Silencer and the powerful billionaire exist within the same character.
What surprised me most was how far the story eventually moved away from the dark-romance fantasy I initially thought I was getting. This became something much more tragic and emotionally devastating. I was invested in Elena and Christian enough that some of the later events genuinely hurt.
This is not a light or comforting romance, and anyone picking it up should absolutely know that going in. The ending especially is heartbreaking, and the story makes some very painful choices rather than giving the easy resolution I wanted, though I was kind of glad this book didn’t have a standard HEA like we usually see in romance. It said that at the beginning, so I knew it might come to that, but I didn’t expect what happened. I finished the audiobook feeling emotionally wrung out, which is probably the strongest indication that these characters got under my skin.
For me, the combination of Christian’s dark vigilante persona, his immediate obsession with Elena, the mystery surrounding his identity, and the emotional intensity of their relationship made this a memorable listen. It definitely left me with feelings, and honestly, isn’t that exactly what I want from a dark romance?
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