Passing Through Purgatory: Passing Through Cafe #1

I read over 200 MM romances a year, and Passing Through Purgatory instantly stood out as something special. Nik Knight created one of the most imaginative and charming fantasy worlds I have stepped into in a long time. From the first page you are dropped into Purgatory alongside Oliver, a recently graduated human who ends up in the demon dimension after missing the train to a job interview in Hell’s Greed district. Instead of the corporate job he expected, Oliver finds himself working at a strange little coffee shop in the middle of Purgatory called The Passing Through Cafe. And honestly, it might be the best accident that ever happened to him. The worldbuilding here is fantastic. Every demon species feels unique, with their own quirks, personalities, languages, and even food culture. The cafe staff alone is an unforgettable cast of characters. Gem the fabulous spider demon, Rusty the pink raccoon like Pyclon, Zef the asexual mantadea drag performer, Toni the shark demon, Tad the toad demon, and more. Each character feels vibrant and distinct, and you quickly start to feel like part of the cafe’s chaotic found family. Then there is Liel. Liel is a gymnot demon lawyer from the Greed district with electric fingers, sharp teeth, and tentacle like hair. He is very much not human, which makes the relationship between him and Oliver even more interesting. Oliver being demi-sexual works beautifully with the story, because he connects with Liel for who he is rather than what…

This book is so random. Underneath a relatively angst-less plot, there is a huge cast of characters that are so hilariously insane. Plot wise not much happens. Boy meets boy, boy makes huge fool of himself, sweet and spicy relationship ensues. But there is no way to succinctly describe all the chaos that are the workers of the Passing Through Cafe. There are moments where clearly future plot points for later books are being set up and I’m not mad about it. These characters are so wildly interesting and ridiculous it only makes me happy to know what some of the future pairings might be. I’m definitely already awaiting something between Rusty and Gem, and between Zef and the veterinarian. Calling it now! This book is great if you want a unique pairing of MMCs, crazy humor, wild characters, and sweet romance. Some of the best scenes took place when the majority of characters were together. The entire part of the book that takes place in Oliver’s hometown should be read multiple times just for this reason. Looking forward to book 2! Tropes: Found Family, Demon/Human Pairing, Single POV, Meet Cute, Demons with no Boundaries Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3/5 Relationship: MM

The banter was on point. The sexual tension was great. There’s no cheating not even a hint. The 2 MC’s have a strong connection from the get go and it only gets stronger. There are so many funny points in this story I literally laughed or giggled like a maniac out loud multiple times lol. Sometimes I kinda wheezed with laughter I laughed so hard. This is now one of my all time favorite books. The romance was a little slow burn but honestly I feel like it was just right to feel authentic. Heat level a solid 3 or 4 out of 5. I mean, tentacles are hot, especially ones that have a suction mechanism at their tip lol. I REALLY hope there’s more in this series either with these 2 MC’s or with the side characters. The found family in this book was really heart warming and you get to know each of them pretty well. I hope each of them get’s their own story. This author is definitely an automatic read and follow for me. This is the best book I’ve read in a while. I’m probably going to buy it so I have it on standby to reread whenever I want. Seriously so good.

If you want something that will make you laugh, look no further! This book was tons of fun, and was equal parts hilarious and endearing. Oliver and Liel were the cutest couple. There were several interesting supporting characters that will appear in future installments of the series. I have to admit, Gem drove me a little insane. But I'm looking forward to getting to know all the characters better.

Oliver has graduated college and us having difficulty in finding a job. Somehow he winds up the only human working in a coffee shop in Purgatory. The characters are fun. I love Gem! Some parts are silly and laugh out loud, other parts are sweet. I really enjoyed Liel and Oliver. With different beings they do have different parts which makes it a little ummm, different? There's tentacles involved. This was a fun read, happy read for me.