Valentine's Slay

by Navessa Allen

Roses are red, violets are blue, Emma’s not dead, and her gravedigger’s hot too. This Valentine’s Day, love claws its way out of the grave in #1 New York Times bestselling author Navessa Allen’s steamy and hilariously dark rom-com.

Louisiana gravedigger Noah Evans’s Valentine’s night shift takes an unexpected turn when his high school crush starts screaming from her freshly dug grave. Whoever tried to bury Emma six feet under is in for a nasty surprise—they should have checked for a pulse because she’s got unfinished business, starting with the hot gravedigger who just saved her life. As they unearth a deadly family conspiracy, Noah and Emma discover that old flames burn even hotter the second time around—especially when someone’s trying to kill them.

Navessa Allen’s Valentine’s Slay is part of The Improbable Meet-Cute: Second Chances, stories for star-crossed lovers and hopeless romantics. They can be read or listened to in one sitting. Let’s do it again.

Genres: Romance, Novella, Audiobook, Dark Romance, Contemporary, Short Stories, Contemporary Romance

95 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 20, 2026

About the author

Navessa Allen lives on a 200-year-old farm in rural New England with her husband, their cats, and an assorted collection of farm animals.

To keep up with her latest projects, check out her Patreon Page or subscribe to her website.

Reviews

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had so much fun reading this, it was dark and entertaining and with such a great premise.
A murder conspiracy, an immediate connection, spicy time and some action, all mixed in with an emotional undertone, what more can you ask for!! 

Gravedigger Noah's nightshift takes a turn when he hears the voice of his high school crush screaming from six feet under.. Brought together by non-ideal circumstances, they're determined to get justice.. Their connection is one that's hard to ignore and after everything that happened why would they?

Noah was an amazing character, I loved his dark humour and how he made sure Emma knew just how wonderful she really is, especially after everything that she went through.
Emma was trapped in a toxic marriage that made her struggle with her self-image, so seeing her gain some of her confidence back was so special.
I really liked them together and how he helped her find justice for what's happened to her. That last chapter was so cute, I loved it so much!!

This was my favourite from the collection!! I love Navessa and the way she writes, so of course I enjoyed this. It was very well done for a novella, I would always want more, but we did get everything we needed.

*Thank you to Netgalley and to Amazon Original Stories for providing me with an ARC.*

[The Belladonna · Rating 2 out of 5]

“You okay over there?”
“No, I’ve put myself in time-out. Three minutes left.”


Meh. This was like a cheesy Hallmark Channel After Dark episode. lol

Happy Valentine's Day, Goodreads! 💗

[chantalsbookstuff · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the premise, but that steamy moment in Noah's bed (the first time), just put me off. But the rest was great.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

HAPPY VALENTINE'S or GALENTINE'S DAY, Y'ALL!! ❤️🩷❤️ I hope everyone has an amazing day today!! You deserve all the love in the world!! 💐💋💗

This novella was okay, but not considered a favorite. 😌 The plot was interesting enough, the romance was meh, the ending was sweet, and the characters weren't annoying or anything so that's always a plus. 👍🏼 I did find it a bit odd at how quickly the spice was thrown into the story, but hey, who am I to judge? We'll just say it was their deep attraction for each other and their "shared trauma" that brought them together (iykyk 😉). Overall, it was an entertaining read! 🩷

Overall Evaluation of The Series as a Whole:
I am honestly surprised that I ended up enjoying this series since I am way too practical, unromantic, and cynical of short romances (don't worry, I don't like that about myself either 😂😏). But I'm glad I did because not only did these novellas help me with my reading slump, but I genuinely had fun reading them for the week of Valentine's since it's one of my goals this year to read more seasonal books. I am a little sad the series is over, but that's just gives me a good excuse to start another one. 😊🫶🏼

❗️Content Warnings❗️
Death, murder, emotional abuse, violence, and blood.
Swearing: Yes
Spice: Yes (🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️/5)

[sil ✧ · Rating 3 out of 5]

☆ 3.00 ☆ ❝ a novella that promised a Valentine’s thrill but didn’t quite slay. ❞

Valentine’s Slay (Crime de São Valentim) is super short and reads very well, you can finish it in about an hour. It keeps you curious for a bit, but honestly, I could sleep and go a whole day without thinking about it.

The story felt way too fast-paced for me. Emma seemed mostly desperate, and there wasn’t enough time to develop a real connection or chemistry between the characters , it all felt forced. I think the plot could have been much more developed.

Bonus points for the cats and their names 🐾! But my life hasn’t changed after reading this, and it could have been so much better. Overall, a fun quick read if you just want background entertainment, but not memorable.

⊹ ࣪ ˖ ໒🎀𓂃⊹ 𝐩𝐫𝐞-𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝 ₊˚⋆
Loved the cover, also it's a small book!! Have been looking forward to read it as soon as I had it
<3

[seeraaa ♡ { semi-ia } · Rating 2 out of 5]

Valentine #6 🩷

This one had a darker and more different storyline, which really pulled me in at the beginning 🖤✨ But after that, I slowly lost interest and honestly just wanted to finish it just to get it done 😮‍💨

I didn’t feel any chemistry between the MCs — no spark, no emotions, nothing. Everything happened and developed way too fast. However, I did like the ending overall 🩷


♡₊˚ As for the series as a whole: It wasn’t bad for me. There were definitely some books I truly enjoyed, and overall, it’s a simple, short Valentine series about second chances 💌

I also noticed a pattern:
Books 1 & 2: characters meeting through emails, with their relationship developing into a real-life meeting 💻📧
Books 3 & 4: characters who acted together years ago and then reunited later 🎭✨
Books 5 & 6: FMCs in toxic relationships, while the MMCs had been crushing on them before, finally getting their second chance 🫠💔➡️💌

Overall, a cute and light series with a touch of darkness and mixed feelings, but nice for a quick Valentine read 🩷

𓂃 ࣪˖ 💐 𓈒࣪ ˖💌♡₊˚

[Kayla | Kayla Reads Smut · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly this one got an extra star for what could have been an interesting plot. But there was no chemistry. Just a girl who was buried alive and was so horny after she got out of the grave she fucked the grave digger. The title is misleading. Also the spice kind of gave me the ick. It was also a choice to make this one solely in the MMCs POV til the last chapter. Overall, this short story compilation was a flop for me and honestly was just background noise for my drive to and from work.

[aeryn rose · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️

I think this one is probably my favorite out of the 6 I read even if the rating doesn't show it. This book was thrilling and fun and spicy and all around extremely crazy. This is actually my first book by this author and if her books are as unhinged, or even more so, then I think I'd really enjoy this author's other books. The characters were okay and their chemistry wasn't the worst thing I've read, but I was not prepared for how crazy the spicy scene was. I'm pretty sure my jaw hit the floor and didn't come back up until the book was over.

It also had some cute moments, especially the ending I thought it was adorable. I think this set of valentines day novellas are perfect if you want something brainless and just fun and goofy and unrealistic cause I definitely had a decent time with this journey. They're almost all under 100 pages so it's super easy to kick back and binge a couple a day if you're interested. 🩷

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

𝓟𝓻𝓮-𝓡𝓮𝓪𝓭: 💌🩷

Okay this is the final in the series but also one of the higher rated ones so I'm holding out hope that this won't be as terrible as some of the others 😭

[ashlyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

i think this might be my favorite in the series! i have one book left so i don’t want to jinx it 🤞Navessa Allen does dark romance but keeps it funny, and this one had me hooked the entire time. for 95 pages it felt so full, actual plot, real tension and chemistry that hit immediately. short, dark, entertaining and just unhinged enough to be fun. i had such a good time with this one!

[Violet · Rating 4 out of 5]

•Dual POV
•Dark romance
•Revenge
•Novella

Valentine's Slay was the perfect mix of dark, quirky & spicy. This is my first time reading anything from this author & I look forward to digging into one of her full length novels!!

4/5⭐️
4/5🌶️

[Anila · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 2.5⭐️

Well, that was different but entertaining. Overall, I think only two of the novellas in this series were good and the others were just meh.

[SJARR ✨ · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been so excited for this collection to release, and it's finally here!
Naturally, I had to go for the creepy one first.

4.5 stars. Honestly? I thought this was great.
This is one of those rare times where I don't feel that something is missing from a short story.
It wasn't overly rushed or shallow, and I was genuinely interested it in.

The plot of this? I love.
Grave digger saves his buried-alive childhood crush. Yes.
It is giving halloween romance over Valentines day romance, which I am obsessed with.
(Petition for this same story, but I want Emma to be a zombie next time.) (please?)

I do think it was a bit too steamy for a book of it's length. (Some people will love this! It just isn't ever what I'm really focused on).
Not a big deal, I am taking .5 off for it, but still rounding up to 5 for how much I enjoyed the story as a whole.

[Emma.catherine · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Roses are red, violets are blue, Emma's not dead, and her gravedigger's hot too.’ 🌹

Can love claw its way out of the grave? ☠️

Noah Evans is doing the Valentine’s night shift as a gravedigger when he hears screaming from a freshly dug grave 😱 The grave belonging to his high school crush - Emma. As he works quickly to save Emma, buried 6 feet under, he is in for a surprise…she has unfinished business to attend to. Emma and Noah work to uncover a deadly family conspiracy, whilst reigniting old flames ❤️‍🔥 However, they better keep watch: someone is trying to kill them…😵

I changed my mind…THIS is my FAVOURITE from the series 🙈

Navessa knows how to deliver a dark romance, for sure! I am familiar with her work and she seems to have a knack for balancing out the darker elements with humour. Furthermore, Navessa also knows how to grab your attention from the first page. She doesn’t mess around with useless information, rather she jumps straight into the grit of the plot.

I instantly liked Noah’s character. He came across as both caring and strong almost immediately. I also loved the witty banter between him and Emma which seemed to connect them with ease. Emma’s character was also very likeable. Having been trapped in a toxic marriage, she had very little confidence and was terrified of almost everyone in town. Watching her grow in strength throughout the story was a sweet subplot to the romance ❤️‍🔥 Navessa concluded with a brilliant ending; bringing justice to all.

“I feel like I just died and came back to life again.” 😂

Overall, this is definitely one of the best short stories I have read. It had a strong plot and the depth of the characters was fantastic for such a short book. Finally, the very last chapter was just the cherry on top 🍒 I would happily read a series about these two.

"In the span of twelve months, my life had gone from misery to bliss, and it was all because of this man. He’d held me while I cried, driven me to my weekly therapy sessions, helped me rediscover myself and regain my confidence, and taught me what love really was." 🥰 💘 ✨

4.5 🌟🌟🌟🌟💫

[Val~ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I think Navessa Allen will be my new must read every time she publishes anything new!!! I love her books, they’re so fun! 🤩

[Genni · Rating 3 out of 5]

THIS IS OK… but IT DIDN’T SLAY….

3-3.5 ish ⭐️
Kindle unlimited with Duet style narration

Fun novella that started off with suspense and ended with some action. One very spicy open door scene that could be skipped if you wish and wouldn’t take away from the story.

What I liked? Kept my interest enough to finish this one through to the end. Complete story in just shy of 100 pages.

Would I recommend? Only if you were trying to fill a book quota. I prefer this author’s full length novels over this novella but that’s usually the case with me and the novella. It’s really far fetched, silly, over the top and some added spice that felt out of place.

Not a bad little story but not memorable.

[Alya ( 20 comments restriction ) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thoughts
Oh I ate this up!!! The premise, the beginning, everything was just perfection down to the last page! Hooked from the get-go, it had a bit of everything from murder conspiracy, action, spice and one of my favourite romances / connections from the collection! If you enjoy dark reads this is definitely for you! I highly recommend!

Plot Summary
What begins as a routine Valentine’s night shift for Louisiana gravedigger Noah Evans turns into a nightmare when he hears screams coming from a newly filled grave—belonging to his long-ago crush. Saving Emma is only the beginning, as the two are pulled into a dangerous mystery tied to her family’s secrets. With old feelings reigniting under deadly pressure, Noah and Emma must stay one step ahead of a hidden threat that isn’t finished with them yet.

My Bookstagram

[Sandra Castro · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rating: 2⭐⭐
Format: audiobook
Platform/app used: audiobookbay, utorrent, audify

Tropes:

• Second Chance / Old Flames Reignite;
• Trauma Bonding;
• Forced Proximity / Rescue;
• Romantic Suspense;
• Dark Humor / Macabre Setting;
• Steamy Romance.


Review:

"Valentine’s Slay" presents an intriguing concept from the start: the heroine is buried alive at the beginning of a Valentine's narrative, only to be rescued by her high school crush who’s now a gravedigger. This premise certainly piques interest on paper.

However, the execution leaves much to be desired. The story’s brief length results in a pacing that feels rushed, sacrificing depth in character development and emotional resonance.

A significant drawback is that the romantic connection between the main characters often feels hurried and superficial. Given the unusual setup and limited opportunity to delve into their backgrounds and motivations, this aspect suffers.

Moreover, while the book aims to mix steamy scenes with dark humor, the tonal shifts can feel jarring. The serious themes of attempted murder and entrapment don’t always mesh well with the comedic or spicy elements, making it hard to find a consistent tone.

In summary, although the idea is original, the storytelling and character development in "Valentine’s Slay" ultimately fall short of what I had hoped for.

[Vi · Rating 3 out of 5]

leu-se bem, entreteu, cumpriu o seu propósito

se quiserem um livro rápido para lerem dia 14, esta pode ser a vossa companhia

[Casey Reads &#x1f338; · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one was way better than the first one I read of this little series. I decided to read this one 2nd even though it’s book 6 of the Amazon series.

The main plot point that occurs in the beginning is very unrealistic, but idc I loved it. Very unique short story.

Also, be aware this short story is spicy. If you don’t enjoy spice, this might not be for you. It’s only really one scene, but since this is a short story it takes up a big part. I enjoyed it though.

Also enjoyed the ending. I think this would have been better as a full length book with everything going on or about 100 more pages as I felt I wanted more detail and more of this story!

[chroniclesofmariana ~ mariana nunes · Rating 4 out of 5]

ahhh adorei, e não sei o que é que isso diz sobre mim

[Abigail · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a short and fun read!! I wanted it to be a bit darker , but nonetheless I enjoyed it and it had a cute cheesy ending! I wish it was an actual book because I would have loved to see more of Noah and Emma!

[Sonia · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up This had the revenge plot I needed

Was it my favorite book?
No 🤣
Did it have my favorite narrators?
Nope 🤣 (but it was duet narration and I ALWAYS appreciate that 👏🏻)
Was it unbelievable in some parts?
Yeah 🤡 (and I also rolled my eyes 💀)
But man… did I devour it 💁🏻‍♀️.

Noah’s (32?) minding his business, lamenting the fact that the woman, Emma (32) he always wanted died and is buried in the graveyard that his family has been taken care of for generations ☹️ when he suddenly hears something…

Spirits? 😳

Um… Maybe… 🫠

Random people getting it on? 😬

Possibly 😅

But it’s coming from the grave that he just buried the girl that got away 😳…

And she’s not dead 😳.

She was buried, alive… by her husband…

Dun dun dun 👀

Emma knows what happened to her was NO accident, and she’s gonna get back at the man responsible 👏🏻
And Noah’s gonna help her 💁🏻‍♀️

Let the revenge comeuppance begin 😮‍💨

What I liked:
—the 🔥. Uffff. Save the best for last 🤣 this one get DIIIIIIIRTY 😉. It’s been many years coming 🤷🏻‍♀️ (bahahahah pun intended 🤡). I love how obsessed Noah is with making sure Emma is READY READY 🥵💦🫠🔥😉 cause he needs to fit 😮‍💨

—the fact that Noah always stood up to bullies ❤️

—the revenge 😈. Yaaaasss. I mean, it could’ve been
longer 🤷🏻‍♀️ been more drawn out 😈

—Emma doing what she had to do 💁🏻‍♀️

—the epilogue 🫶

—how obsessed Noah is with her body and mind

—Star-Crossed lovers comet ❤️

—her pursuing a criminal justice degree 🫶👏🏻🥹

What I didn’t like: SPOILERS
—why did Emma stay with her AHOLE of a hubby ? 🤦🏻‍♀️ they don’t have kids, so what’s the reason? 💁🏻‍♀️ sure. She has some health issues going on cause he was poisoning her, but geeeez Louise, he does NOT sound like a good person even before he tried killing her in so many ways 🤬

—it’s been over a year since she 🔥 had any??? Oh my gosh 🤦🏻‍♀️ not even with herself 😒🙄🤦🏻‍♀️ and what’s worse is…

—she’s never had anyone go down town?
Girl… GIIIIIIRL 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️ how many face palms does it take to get you to be smarter 🫠🫠😒. Good thing Noah is NOT a selfish lover 😉😮‍💨🔥

—her “hubby” needed to suffer longer 🤷🏻‍♀️. It was over WAAAAAY too quickly.

—I needed more bad things to happen to bad people 😑 like anyone that was his accomplice 🤬

—what happened to her family??? We don’t really get closure 🤷🏻‍♀️

—whyyyy didn’t Noah do more sooner 🤦🏻‍♀️. I will never understand more ugh

Overall, I enjoyed it

⚠️safety squad⚠️
-no cheating*/sharing/owd/omd*
-the h’s husband has been cheating on her and tried to kill her (threw her down the stairs, kept her in an coma, then buried her alive)
-violence/death
-the H helps the h get revenge 😮‍💨💁🏻‍♀️
-dirty talk
-condom/it’s been over a year for her and six months for him
-HEA/epilogue/one year later

[Witchy Book Girl · Rating 4 out of 5]

For someone like me who likes spooky morbid things- the hot grave digger really sold this for me. Happy Valentines Day 🖤

[Cristina Neves · Rating 5 out of 5]

Valentine's Day.
Louisiana, Thibodeaux Graveyard.

Noah Evans, a gravedigger, was ending his night shift when the moans started.
He was tired, just wanted to go home, and wasn't in the mood to chase a couple of lovers away.
Then a woman screams.
He runs as fast as he can and ends up at Emma Broadturn's grave.
The screams are coming from there.
He buried her today, at 32 years-old.
How could that be?
She died 2 days ago and was in a coma for 3 days!
But there's no doubt.
He diggs her out ever so careful and though she is scared, trembling, full of dirt, she's as beautiful as when he had a crush on her in high school.

She doesn't want him to call 911 so no one knows she's alive and he takes her to his home, where she tells him what she remembers and what lead her to the situation she's in.
A very toxic marriage with Beau that, she thinks, has been trying to to kill her for a long time.

Even in his house she doesn't want to be alone and it seems that Noah's crush developed into something bigger.
There's a dark humor banter between them, chemistry, spice, but also a tenderness she never experienced with Beau.
And it does help that Noah is a hot, attractive, hunk of a man.

She wants revenge, but will they be able to get the proofs they need before anyone finds out she's not dead?

The end is frenetic, scaring and wild.
And the "epilogue", Emma's Pov, is so beautiful!

My first from this author and I guess I now have two favorite books in this series!

[Andrea (andrea.bookster) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4/5

[Christi (christireadsalot) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars! Valentine’s Slay is part of the Amazon Originals Improbable Meet Cutes collection, so it is on Prime and KU read and listen. This one had such a wild premise that made me excited to dive in and it was a pretty fun ride!

Noah is a Louisiana gravedigger, his family has worked the graveyard for generations. Earlier in the day he lowered a coffin in the ground for the woman who was his high school crush. Now he’s working the night shift on Valentine’s Day and hears her voice coming from her grave asking for help and he’s pretty sure Emma has been buried alive! 👀

Wild, unhinged, dark humor, he helps her get revenge on her toxic husband, spicy, definitely a plot that grabs your attention immediately! The spice felt a little unbalanced in the story in regard to what just happened to her, but it’s an unhinged novella so I just accepted it as a fun ride.

[RLbooks (in and out) · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up

Gosh this was pure entertainment. Unrealistic as hell and I did.not.care. Noah (H) works in a graveyard and the story opens with him feeling emotional over the recent death of a former classmate. He’s working late on Valentine’s Day when his evening takes a hair-raising turn as he hears moans and screaming. Running to discover that said classmate, Emma (h), isn’t dead after all and Noah has to get her out of the grave.

Once Emma’s safe, Noah reluctantly catches her up on what her clearly dastardly husband did to bring them to this situation. Noah’s all caretaking and respectful sweetness, Emma’s literally waking up to truths and shifting quickly on her feet. There’s some great steaminess, and even better revenge, that keep the story moving quickly. Loved Noah and how Emma appreciated his finer qualities. The revenge element was well done imo and the epilogue a year later was adorable! I did wish that we could have time with them post-revenge and pre-epilogue because Emma was processing for most of the story and I didn’t get to enjoy her as much as her full self. What I saw of her in the epilogue, as she was continuing to heal, was wonderful though. I wish this had been a full-length book honestly.

Written in first person, dual POV. No ow/om drama (the husband is on page but only during the revenge part) and both are experienced. H had been celibate for a few months (after his last relationship ended amicably) and h had been celibate for a year (she had been having health problems and her husband was a tool).

Some tropes/themes:
☆ Former classmates
☆ FMC was in a toxic marriage to the town’s golden boy/jackass
☆ MMC has a creepy reputation but is the best guy
☆ He rescues and comforts her
☆ She catches up fast
☆ They genuinely admire each other (not just on the physical level, but that too)
☆ Noah’s a big dude…who also likes to eat…
☆ Some morbid elements and violence
☆ Justice
☆ HEA ending
☆ Epilogue wraps it all up
☆ Animal sidekicks in the epilogue

[Mai H. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Valentine's Day 2026 #7

[Stefani Tomova · Rating 4 out of 5]

4✨

I had a blast listening to this! It’s short, sweet, and hilarious-often in places where I probably shouldn't have been laughing

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I kinda sorta always love her writing style. Morbid and totally hot. This was a super fun quick read !!!