About the Book
Lights Out is a dark romance novel by Navessa Allen, the third book in her Into Darkness series, published in 2024. The series has built a substantial following on BookTok, and this entry continues in the same vein as its predecessors, explicit, tonally self-aware, and leaning hard into dark fantasy tropes.
The central characters are Aly, a trauma nurse who channels her stress into online fantasies about masked men, and Josh, who keeps a carefully guarded public life while running a very different kind of online presence at night. A drunken text from Aly sets off a chain of events that pulls both of them out of the digital world and into something considerably more complicated and dangerous.
The book sits squarely in the dark romance subgenre, expect content that includes explicit sexual material, morally ambiguous characters, and scenarios that deliberately push against conventional romantic narratives. This is the third book in the Into Darkness series, so readers who haven't started from the beginning may find the emotional weight of certain character dynamics harder to access, though the central romance between Aly and Josh is its own self-contained arc.
Narration & Audio Performance
Elena Wolfe narrates Lights Out, and she's a reasonable fit for this kind of material. Dark romance audiobooks live or die on the narrator's ability to handle tonal whiplash, these books tend to swing between explicit content, dry humor, and genuine emotional tension, sometimes within the same scene. Wolfe handles that range without making the transitions feel jarring.
Her pacing is deliberate, which suits the slower-burn sections well, though listeners who prefer a more energetic delivery may find it slightly flat during the book's lighter, comedic moments. Character voice differentiation between Aly and Josh is clear enough to track dual-perspective chapters without confusion, which matters in a book structured around two alternating points of view.
Production quality appears standard for a Quercus Books release, no notable issues reported with audio quality. If you haven't heard Wolfe narrate before and dark romance narration style matters to you, sampling the Audible preview is the most practical way to gauge fit before committing.
The Audible Verdict
The book's appeal is real if you're already in the Into Darkness readership, but the audio format's value depends almost entirely on whether Wolfe's narration style clicks for you. Dark romance is a subgenre where narrator fit is unusually important, the explicit and tonal range of this material means a mismatched narrator can genuinely undercut the experience. Sample the audio before spending a credit.
Listen on AudibleIs This Book a Good Fit for Audio?
Dark romance translates reasonably well to audio when the narrator can manage tone effectively. The genre's defining quality, characters who say and do things that would read as disturbing in another context but land as seductive or even funny here, requires controlled delivery. Too flat and the dark elements feel gratuitous; too performed and the humor deflates. Audio can work well when that balance is hit.
This specific book has a dual-perspective structure, alternating between Aly and Josh. Single-narrator audiobooks handling dual POV can sometimes feel undifferentiated, but this is a manageable format challenge rather than a dealbreaker. The bigger question for audio fit is whether you find it easier to process explicit romantic content by reading it or hearing it, that's a genuine personal preference split that affects how comfortable this listening experience will feel.
As a third book in a series, the audio version works best for existing fans who already have investment in this world. First-time listeners to the series may want to start from book one before arriving here.
Popular Listener Questions
Is this book part of a series? Do I need to read the others first?
Yes, Lights Out is the third book in Navessa Allen's Into Darkness series. The central romance between Aly and Josh is its own arc, but the world and supporting characters will carry more weight if you've listened to the earlier entries in the series.
How explicit is the content?
This is an adult dark romance with explicit sexual content. The series is known for leaning into dark fantasy scenarios rather than softening them, so this isn't a light or fade-to-black romance.
Is this a good starting point for Navessa Allen's work?
Not ideal. The Into Darkness series is better experienced from book one, and Allen's style and tone will make more sense with that foundation. If you want to sample her writing first, starting with the first book in the series is the more practical choice.
Who is the narrator and has she narrated other dark romance titles?
Elena Wolfe narrates this audiobook. If you're unfamiliar with her work, listening to the Audible sample is the most direct way to assess whether her delivery style suits you.
Similar Audiobooks
Into Darkness (Book 1, Into Darkness Series)
The logical starting point before Lights Out, introduces the world, tone, and character dynamics that carry through the series.
Haunting Adeline
One of the most prominent dark romance titles on BookTok, with a similar stalker-fantasy premise and explicit content. A comparable tonal experience.
Corrupt
Penelope Douglas's dark romance features morally complicated male leads and explicit content, a natural bridge for readers drawn to the Into Darkness series.
Twisted Games
Ana Huang's Twisted series shares the BookTok fanbase and similarly balances dark themes with humor and explicit romance.
Credence
Penelope Douglas again, known for pushing tonal and content boundaries in ways that appeal to the same readership as Navessa Allen's work.
Audiobook Details
| Title | Lights Out |
|---|---|
| Author | Navessa Allen |
| Narrator | Elena Wolfe |
| Genre | Dark Romance |
| Year | 2024 |
| Publisher | Quercus Books |
| Abridged | Unabridged |
| Cast | Single narrator |
| Author-narrated | No |
Ready to listen?
Lights Out is available on Audible, if you're already following the Into Darkness series, a free trial credit is a reasonable way to try the audio version without risk.
Open on Audible