Book Review: My Blade, Your Back by K.M. Moronova
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My Blade, Your Back by K.M. Moronova
Published: December 9, 2025
Series: Dark Forces #2
Genres: Adult // Romance, Contemporary
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️ (Explicit Open Door)
Quick Thoughts: I was pleasantly surprised by My Blade, Your Back. The pacing was great, the plot kept moving forward, and we finally got answers about Avery's past from the first book. My main complaint is that we're left with too many open questions for the ending to feel satisfying but I'll still continue reading K.M. Moronova's books as a palate cleanser between heavier fantasy reads.
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These are the trigger warnings listed by the author in the front of the book:
Physical violence
Explicit sex scenes
Morbid humor
Explicit gore
Death
Explicit language
Sexist behavior
War trauma/aspects of military missions
PTSD
Murder
Mentally unwell characters
Self-harm
Heavy substance abuse
Forced substance abuse
Abuse of corpses
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Memory Loss Trope
Multiple POVs
Military setting and operations
What is My Blade, Your Back about?
From fan-favorite author K.M. Moronova comes the second in this duology, a biting, suspenseful dark romance set inside an elite special ops squad.
Broken. Lost. Unforgiven.
One month after surviving the Under Trials, Emery Maves finds herself in a world she doesn't recognize—with a man whose cold eyes are haunted by secrets she can't remember. Stripped of her memories, Emery is tormented by dreams of danger, death, and deceit. The only constant is the lure of the experimental drug that shatters her mind but leaves her almost invincible—and the dangerous pull of the man called Mori.
Cameron Mortem is fighting a battle he thought he’d already lost. He knows letting Emery in could destroy them both, but her amnesia is a curse neither of them can outrun. Forced together on a high-stakes level black mission that goes disastrously wrong, they find themselves thrust deeply into the underworld of the black market with an unexpected foe.
But as old scars are torn open and hidden plots unravel, Emery discovers she’s more tangled in this world than she ever imagined. And Cameron will have to face the one person he fears most: himself.
Loyalties will be tested. Secrets will be weaponized. Their bond—once forged in blood—may be the only thing that can save them. If they don’t lose themselves first.
My Blade, Your Back Review
Note: This review is for the second book in the Dark Forces Duet by K.M. Moronova, so it might include spoilers for My Knife, Your Heart. If you’re interested in reading by review of the first book instead, you can find it here.
I was nervous about where this story would go after how Your Knife, My Heart ended. I'm not the biggest fan of the memory loss trope. In fact, I hate it. And one of my chief complaints about the first book was that the romance dominated the plot and it felt like we were going in circles, so I was really hoping for more action other than the romance.
What I liked
I was pleasantly surprised with the direction this book went in. The romance is still the central storyline, but we get a lot of action with characters and conflicts from the first book and finally get answers about Avery's past that were introduced previously. The pacing was also great. I was relieved that the memory loss didn't drag on from beginning to end, and even when Avery didn't have her memories, the plot was still moving forward around her and keeping me engaged.
On the romance front, Cameron and Avery's relationship was really sweet, though it's nothing to write home about. I loved seeing their development between the two books, and their romantic arc feels satisfying.
What I didn’t like
My main complaint is that we're left with too many open questions at the end. As far as I know, My Blade, Your Back is the conclusion of the Dark Forces Duet, but we're missing key context and backstory on a character who became the puppetmaster in this story. So while the plot was interesting, I have no idea why it ended the way it did, and overall, the plot didn't really make that much sense.
So, should you read My Blade, Your Back?
I'll continue reading K.M. Moronova's books, especially when I need a palate cleanser between my usual fantasy reads. Definitely recommend this series if you're looking for a quick, fun military romance!
Check out this review on Goodreads or Storygraph.
Happy reading!
Kim
My Blade, Your Back FAQs
Some of the answers may be spoilers if you haven’t read it already. Proceed with caution!
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Yes, My Blade, Your Back is the second book in the Dark Forces Duet by K.M. Moronova. The first book is Your Knife, My Heart.
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My Blade, Your Back is 4 🌶️ or explicit open door. That means readers are present for spice scenes and they are written in explicit detail.
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These are the spicy chapters in My Blade, Your Back:
Chapter 24
Chapter 26
Chapter 30
Chapter 45