This genuinely bored me to tears. It seems that any semblance of a plot had just vanished in this book, and it didn’t leave much in its|| 2.0 stars ||
This genuinely bored me to tears. It seems that any semblance of a plot had just vanished in this book, and it didn’t leave much in its wake. Without the presence of Caraval, all the magic and intrigue of this series just drained away… Instead of a climax, this finale mostly just felt like it dragged the story out into something it never should have been. It transformed the story into something unoriginal, uneventful and uninteresting. There were still a few twists and turns, but they all felt so anticlimactic and unimportant somehow; it just didn’t hit.
Other than the fact that there was little to no plot left here, the characters and romances gave me nothing of note either. Everyone and everything felt bland. The romances were so simple, meaningless, forced, and instant. It’s like… the book tries to convince me there is some sort of conflict going on between the couples, but both Scarlett and Tella do nothing but pine for their lovers who never really give them what they want. The girls don’t know how to stand on business and it makes them both seem really pathetic when they continue to pine for men who don’t know how to behave like true gentlemen who love them; Julian and Legend constantly abandon them or lie straight in their faces, but all is forgiven when the girls look at their handsome faces, leading them to once again turn into a giant puddle of love. Riiiight… It sucks too because Jacks was actually a lot more interesting, but Tella never gave him the time of day because she was obsessed with Legend for whatever reason, and Scarlett literally strung that poor count, Nicholas, along and destroyed his whole life, and for what?? She knew she wanted Julian. Why mess with the poor guy’s feelings like that? It’s just cruel.
Finally, the sister bond was also just as weak as ever. Tella and Scarlett have no chemistry or genuine love between them; they each seem like they view the other more like a nuisance they cannot get rid of than a true piece of their heart they love more than anything in the world. Meanwhile, the series continues to try to gaslight me into thinking these two care deeply for each other, but they just truly do not. Sorry not sorry…
Ohh, god, not another “please teach me how to touch a man, because I don’t know how to, and I feel like I can trust you to help my inex|| 2.0 stars ||
Ohh, god, not another “please teach me how to touch a man, because I don’t know how to, and I feel like I can trust you to help my inexperienced, fragile little self, so now we will basically be in a relationship for the entirety of the book, but I will still be in denial, ignore every single sign that points toward the truth, and basically treat you like my own personal sex toy until the very end when I finally realise that maybe the sex actually did mean something and I want to have that sex with you for the rest of my life” as if it is the most romantic thing ever.
Well, that was... boring. Didn't do anything for me. Aside from this book being yet another disturbing mixture of smut, violence, submi|| 2.0 stars ||
Well, that was... boring. Didn't do anything for me. Aside from this book being yet another disturbing mixture of smut, violence, submission, body-betraying-syndrome, and reluctant obsession we have come to know and NOT love from Rina Kent, it was genuinely also really boring. I honestly skimmed over so many pages here, because I simply could not be bothered, and I knew nothing was happening anyway other than sex or cringy lines about owning someone, threatening people, or trying to sound edgy or menacing while secretly coming off as nothing other than a pathetic tool. Although this wasn't the worst I've read of Rina Kent, it was still very lackluster, slightly disturbing, and I certainly couldn't find it in myself to care about any of it.
Also, side note: I read God of Fury first, which honestly made Lan seem really protective over Bran, and so, naturally, I was insanely disappointed with Lan and Bran’s relationship in this book; Lan didn’t seem to give a damn about Bran for even a second, whereas God of Fury truly made me believe he saw him as his “other half”, that he only acted like a dick to “get his attention”, that he “loves him unconditionally”, the he is “the one person who matters”, that he comes up with silly schemes to “force him to spend time with him”, and that he would literally “stab himself if that would help him breathe better”. This was not what I saw here; Lan genuinely didn’t spend a single thought thinking or caring about Bran, and I honestly feel cheated because of that. Does this mean his affection towards Bran was all a mask, since his inner monologue does not reflect that care at all? That’s really depressing, to be honest. Especially since their bond was the sole reason I even wanted to read Lan’s book, and then, when I do, I don’t even get to see any love or affection from him towards his twin whatsoever… What a waste of time.
Okay, so this really did start out super cute and fun in the first half, but I completely lost interest during the second part of the b|| 1.5 stars ||
Okay, so this really did start out super cute and fun in the first half, but I completely lost interest during the second part of the book.
I really loved when Brad was being completely oblivious to his feelings while Joey was half-way in love with him already, especially since their dynamic was really sweet and endearing with plenty of longing and a touch of angst as well.
However, when Brad recognized his feelings at about the halfway mark, everything became way too mushy with far too much sex. There was basically nothing going on anymore other than smut or love-bombing. No angst, no drama, no longing, and no plot. There were also no possibilites for development in the relationship left either, since they were already completely in love to the maximum levels, and so nothing changed for the entirety of the book.
After a certain point, it was all just smut, smut, smut, and more smut with pages upon pages about how attractive the other person was or how sweet they found each other. It was cute the first time, but after the 100th repetition, I was slowly starting to die of boredom....more
Honestly, I don’t think this book should have ever existed. It’s not so much that this book on its own was terrible, but more so that || 2.5 stars ||
Honestly, I don’t think this book should have ever existed. It’s not so much that this book on its own was terrible, but more so that it ruins the magic of the first book.
Not only did I feel like I was reading about two completely different people than the Wes and Liz I had gotten to know and love, but their connection and dynamic was also entirely dissimilar. I just struggled to reconcile my previous idea of this couple with what I was reading here, and I never really got a satisfying conclusion out of that. They weren’t the same, and that just feels like a major disservice to the original book in which people fell in love with these two.
Moreover, it just feels a little depressing to know that a couple we were all rooting for fell apart so easily and painfully. I never would have thought Wes would be able to hurt Liz so thoroughly, yet it turns out he could, and he did. And for two whole years?? He didn’t miss her enough to get her back during all thay time, but now I’m supposed to believe he is suddenly desperate to be with her again? If his love was truly that insurmountable, he wouldn’t have been able to stay away for so long. Simply put, these actions seriously made me rethink and question how good of a couple they really were, since they broke up way too soon and with far too much ease.
Lastly, I just kind of hate how much Liz changed because of what happened. She was such a uniquely authentic person, and it just feels wrong for her to become someone entirely new due to a broken heart, no matter how big the hurt must have been. I guess I just expected Liz to have a stronger and more cemented personality than that, so that’s disappointing.
’Better Than the Movies’ duology: 1. Better Than the Movies - 4.0 stars 2. Nothing Like the Movies - 2.5 stars
It's official. Rina Kent should only ever be allowed to write MM and be forced to stay away from MF until the end of times.
Although the|| 4.0 stars ||
It's official. Rina Kent should only ever be allowed to write MM and be forced to stay away from MF until the end of times.
Although there is still a clear 'alpha' in this relationship, they're nevertheless completely equal (in a way the women in her books never are): Kayden never acts like he is superior in any way just because he is stronger and more dominant, and so he never treats Gareth like shit or like he owns him more than the other way around (which sounds like the bare minimum, I know, but please tell that to the dark romance genre nowadays, because this is more rare than you would like to think).
Instead, they both give as good as the other gets; they're both insanely jealous, possessive and obsessive, yet there's also that softer dynamic there in which Kayden wants to shelter and take care of Gareth.
They do have a very disturbing interaction at the very beginning of the book, but I'm going to shelve that situation under something called a 'misunderstanding', since I know Kayden never would have done what he did if he hadn't thought Gareth was planning to do that very same thing to someone else, as it was merely meant to be a ‘taste of your own medicine’ kind of thing. So, since it was all based on false assumptions and no actual drive to do harm, I was luckily able to ignore it and pretend it hadn’t happened (because yes, I did feel like I needed to ignore the existence of this situation in order to enjoy the book, since those entire circumstances were anything but romantic and should, in my opinion, never have even been included in a romance story).
Anyway, after they got over their initial animosity, they turned into a really cute couple that I genuinely felt was perfect for each other; Gareth went from being a little (or a lot) psycho to feeling more emotions than he ever though he would be capable of, turning him into a clingy, mushy, and (damn-near) adorable guy, who could switch between being a fiery spitfire (or perhaps lunatic would be a better word) to a docile little kitten at the drop of a hat. His never-ending mood swings and attitude problems were quite endearing to me, no matter how weird that might sound. Kayden, as well, turned into so much more than he ever thought he could be; he went from having a grumpy, icy cold exterior to feeling care and affection in a way he never had before. He wanted to own and love on Gareth until the end of time, and was never really shy to let him know that. Whereas Gareth fought their connection at the start, Kayden was ready to fight for them and persuade Gareth to let him in from the get-go.
They each brought out the best in each other, and when put together, they were honestly an electric combination that couldn't help but make me smile and swoon quite a lot!
The book follows Elliot and Knight, two people at opposite ends of an internet debate about a serial killer who lived and died over 200|| 2.5 stars ||
The book follows Elliot and Knight, two people at opposite ends of an internet debate about a serial killer who lived and died over 200 years ago. Elliot is obsessed with the killer and thinks he was severely misunderstood; he beliefs that the killer had good reasons for murdering his victims, and that he was simply lonely and abused by those he tried to love, and he admires him for taking control into his own hands, and fighting back against those who wronged him. Knight, on the other hand, is very passionate about putting the truth about this killer out there, because he is a descendant of the killer's last victim. Of course, Elliot is entirely misguided in his delusions about this serial killer, but his reasons for feeling this way are very sad and, in a way, almost understandable. He has so many issues and he has been abused all his life, so he wants to look up to someone who he beliefs fought for himself and against those who hurt him. I did get it, because I really did feel very sorry for this messed-up, lonely, sad, and abused young man. I know for a fact he never would have felt this way if only a single person would have shown him love in his life.
Obviously, the set-up for these two characters sounds like it couldn't possible work out. A delusional guy who is in love with a serial killer and a history fanatic who wants to purify his descendant's name? They are at opposite ends of the spectrum, and Knight truly hates Elliot when he only knows about him from the internet. However, when they meet, Knight soon finds out that the guy behind the mask is a vulnerable man who is in desperate need of love and care. He sees that his misguided ideas are not based on a sick or sadistic mind, but on loneliness and vulnerability, and that's why he quickly realises he wants better for him. He wants to make him feel cared for, and hopes he can heal him that way. However, Knight also has issues of his own, as he is incapable of commitment, so when they grow closer and closer, and Elliot wants more, Knight is not sure he can give that to him, therefore making Elliot feel like he isn't enough after all, leading Elliot back to his love for the killer, who, he finds out, just so happens to be living as a ghost in the basement of his old home.
Honestly, this book had a lot of potential, because it had a unique premise and a lot of hurt/comfort, but it was just too much sex and too much of the same being repeated over and over again. I did see growth in these guys as individuals, but I also wanted to see more progression in their relationship; why did they fall in love, really? Was it just because Knight wanted to take care of someone, and because Elliot was hard-wired to fall for anyone who would give him even the slightest bit of attention? I just wanted more depth, and not constant sex or drawn-out descriptions of things I didn't care about. The execution was simply lacking for me: It was too weird, smutty, dragged out, and repetitive.
'Kings of Hell MC' series: 1. Laurent and the Beast - 3.0 stars 2. My Dark Knight - 2.5 stars
Jacob might truly be the most perfect man I have ever encountered in any of the hundreds of romance books I have read over the years. T|| 4.5 stars ||
Jacob might truly be the most perfect man I have ever encountered in any of the hundreds of romance books I have read over the years. The way he fully, undoubtedly loved Briana with the whole of his heart was the most beautiful thing in the world. You could really tell how much this woman meant to him in the way she became the very fabric of his entire being while also seeing how he appreciated and cherised every little thing about her.
I didn’t take one second with her for granted. I swore to myself I never would. Being able to hold her while we watched a movie or come up behind her to hug her while she drank her coffee or put a hand on her thigh under a table—it was all a gift. A privilege. And I vowed to always honor that.
Jacob was a very soft, selfless, gentle, and caring man with a severe case of social anxiety, and somehow Briana was able to read him like no one else ever had, thus becoming such a safe space for him that her mere presence eventually quieted all the noise and fear for him.
I decided right then and there that my job was going to be to quiet it all down. I would be a buffer. An emotional support person. I would throw myself over him like a bulletproof vest. Wrap him up in my protection.
He became well and truly happy and content, solely because of her, and he never forgot it; he showed her every single day how much she meant to him. He was like a golden retriever and cinnamon roll wrapped into one, who always showed his love through acts of service (which is the best kind of love language, if you ask me).
It was just the two of us, alone together, showing up. Because that’s what love does. It shows up.
He also said and did the most romantic things, and every single bit of it genuinely made my heart flutter uncontrolably and made all the butterflies come to life in my stomach. I mean, the letters? the flowers? the journal? the reluctant taco bell? the newly bought sofa? the cupcakes? the kidney donation for her brother? the little touches? the password change? the billion dollar question? the warm washcloth? the google history? him sitting in the rain for three hours just to be able to have phone service for her? him facing his anxieties to chase her and fight for her? I mean, oh my my god, I just... cannot. Every time I read about this man, I genuinely could not keep that giant grin or those giant heart-eyes off my face for the life of me, even if I had wanted to. I just melted. The whole time. He was a dream come true.
Jacob made me feel safe. He was like a living lullaby. A softly spoken word. The smell of coffee and toast in the morning or a cozy fleece blanket. The rain pattering on the roof on a day where you don’t have to go anywhere or do anything.
And because of how much I loved and adored this man, it genuinely made me feel so thoroughly happy to see him find his perfect match, and that is exactly what he found with Briana. The way she always understood and accepted him, while never failing to protect and cherish him made my heart feel so full. They truly found perfection in each other, and were exactly what the other needed.
I would jump in front of a bus for this man. Take a bullet. Fight a mob. I would defend him to the death, kill someone for so much as looking at him wrong. I wanted to go back in time and punch myself in the face for causing him even a moment of unhappiness.
And, okay, I’m sure my immense hype for this perfect man makes this all sound like an insanely sugary sweet book, but it does also have its bits of angst and doubt and miscommunication. It all started with a fake dating scheme, and Briana and Jacob both had their own reasons to assume the other did not want to progress their relationship into anything real, despite them both being head-over-heels in love and already having the best, most well-balanced dynamic in the world, which obviously did lead to a lot of heartfelt pining from both of them.
If she’d said yes to that date, I would have poured everything into it. I would have treated that opportunity like a once-in-a-lifetime gift. It would have been precious to me, the chance. I never would have worked harder for anything in my life than I would the tiny possibility of convincing her to consider me an option.
All of their interactions felt so genuine, as you could tell they were truly getting to know each other and were liking every little bit they got to see, but there was also this constant state of pining between them, since they thought their love wasn’t mutual. They constantly thought the other only saw it as a friendship, each for their own (non-existent) reason, and thus, there was that never-ending fear for both of them that that enormous feeling of warmth, safety, understanding and happiness that they got in each other’s precense would eventually have to go away. And, of course, the idea of that was enough to break both of their hearts… And I fully understand, because if I could possibly be lucky enough to have a love like theirs, but then be forced to think it might not last forever… I’d throw myself into a ditch and do nothing but cry and cry until I’d literally die of dehydration. Having this type of love is the dream. And it’s a dream I imagine you’d desperately want to hold onto once you’ve had it.
I was destined to love her up close and then eventually from a distance, and she’d never know it or love me back.
All in all, this book felt like the warmest hug with the most precious human beings for whom I wanted nothing but the absolute best. This book simply made me feel so much giddiness and happiness. It was beautiful.
“I’m sorry someone made you feel like it’s hard to love you.”
P.S. I just wanted to put this little bit of life advice out here that one of the characters said in this book, because it cracked me up so bad, but I also kind of believe it to be true: “You want to be happy? Marry an ugly rich man who loves you more than you love him.” Something to think about, ladies....more
Honestly, I found this to be quite an unsatisfying read due to the complete lack of closure or understanding that is reached within the|| 3.0 stars ||
Honestly, I found this to be quite an unsatisfying read due to the complete lack of closure or understanding that is reached within the story. It simply sets up the premise of an interesting idea, but then fails to actually do anything with it.
That said, I did feel intrigued and even entertained while reading this (albeit not to any great extent), so I can’t complain too much, but I just don’t like that it didn’t lead to anything. It purposefully stays vague and open-ended, which didn’t quite do it for me.
I understand that this is exactly what the author wanted to achieve, and although I do love to have a lot of questions while reading a story, I personally prefer to have at least gotten answers to some of them at the end of it. It just kind of feels like a non-story now. A beginning with no end. A thought with no conclusion.
The thing that still makes this story work well as a whole, though, is the fact that the way it is written feels a lot more interesting than the story actually is. Its tense and gloomy atmosphere gives all of this quite an important air to it, like you’re reading something meaningful or insightful. Thus, even though the story really doesn’t say much of anything, the writing makes it so that you feel like you did read something of note....more
I can see why some people enjoyed this, but it simply did nothing for me. I mean, it wasn’t bad, it was just kind of boring.
They’re en|| 2.0 stars ||
I can see why some people enjoyed this, but it simply did nothing for me. I mean, it wasn’t bad, it was just kind of boring.
They’re enemies for quite a bit, which was probably the best part, but even then, I wasn’t really feeling the chemistry or tension between them. However, when they ditched the hostility and actually got together, it unfortunately got even worse. At that point, they simply became way too corny and almost sickeningly sweet, even though it still didn’t feel like they were all in.
It’s difficult to explain, but I was kind of constantly waiting for the other shoe to drop here; for them to either have some real angst or some intense love, but… I don’t know, it was just kind of giving me the same vibes the whole way through. And, unfortunately, those vibes were not working for me at any given moment....more
This started out surprisingly good, but it quite quickly turned into smut, smut, and more smut. Sure, there was also a LOT of melodrama|| 2.0 stars ||
This started out surprisingly good, but it quite quickly turned into smut, smut, and more smut. Sure, there was also a LOT of melodramatics and over-the-top love bombing during all that smut, but that certainly wasn’t any better. I truly got so bored of it after a while that I couldn’t help but start skimming. I was just over it. It was simply too dragged out, too repetitive, too over-dramatic, too sugary, and too smutty. It had 100 times too much angst, especially since the angst never led to any real conflict between them two; they were always so forgiving, always love-bombing. It was angst that led to nowhere but crying and love confessions.
And honestly, I felt so disappointed with how this turned out because I was really into it during the first 30% or so… I mean, really though, who on earth decided it would be a good idea to make this book 700 pages long? It had no business being over 400 pages maximum....more
Genuine question: If he truly desired her so much, why didn’t he just ask her to marry him from the get go? Like, the disrespect of him|| 2.0 stars ||
Genuine question: If he truly desired her so much, why didn’t he just ask her to marry him from the get go? Like, the disrespect of him continuously offering for her to be his mistress got on my damn nerves, but it was also just so silly, since he knew he could have had her through marriage, if only he asked. She would have said yes. So what was the point of him pining after her in such a useless and stupid way, only ever talking about a mistress position instead of simply offering marriage? It really reinforced my idea that they only had lust between them, not love.
And then, when at the halfway point of the book they do, in fact, marry (because apparently he was capable of that after all… shocker), I wasn’t sure what I was even still reading this for. It should have basically been the end. The game was over. They were together. They were happy. They were settling down, finding a place together. It was an epilogue that lasted forever.
I’m not sure what to say; I actually wasn’t really into the romance in this book, but there were other parts I did like well enough.
I t|| 2.5 stars ||
I’m not sure what to say; I actually wasn’t really into the romance in this book, but there were other parts I did like well enough.
I think the main reason the romance wasn’t working for me was because their relationship was honestly a little too lust-focused. With the couples in the first two books I could really feel the emotional connection and support, whereas with Kai and Miller I felt like their supposed connection was rather forced and mostly based on their mutual sexual attraction. There was no real chemistry or depth.
Actually, the best part about this book were the family bonds. Miller and her adoptive dad, Monty, but also baby Max with literally everyone around him (even an entire team of testosterone-filled athletes) had my heart melting a bit. The found family vibes were what kept me somewhat invested throughout this book when the romance felt so lacking and boring. I mean, for example, when Max called Miller “mama”? Yea, I’m not going to lie, that had me near to damn tears. Seeing that little boy love her so much, and her being split in two over it because she’s supposed to leave at the end of the summer? Absolutely heartbreaking.
“Mmm…Mama.” Miller’s face falls. “What did you say?” “Mama.” Max grins, so proud of himself for saying a name I now realize he’s been trying to say for weeks. “Mama! Mama!” Miller’s head whips in my direction. She’s on the brink of an emotional meltdown while holding my son, who is looking at her as if every missing puzzle piece in his life has been put back together. He settles himself back on her chest, quietly repeating the word over and over again while Miller rocks him and cries her fucking eyes out. And I watch her heart break from the doorway while mine breaks for both me and my son.
All that said, I have to come to the conclusion that although there were some things about this book that worked for me, the overall result just wasn’t hitting the way I wanted it to. The romance felt so bland and unconvincing, I couldn’t find it in me to truly ever become invested in this book. I felt kind of bored most of the time.
Just like the first book, I really liked these characters and I actually loved them together, but it just felt too long.
Ryan and Indy || 3.0 stars ||
Just like the first book, I really liked these characters and I actually loved them together, but it just felt too long.
Ryan and Indy are both extremely likable and loveable people, who truly deserve to be loved and find happiness. Seeing people like that finally get exactly what they have secretly always wanted never fails to be sweet and heartwarming, but I can’t honestly say that this book really stood out for me. It was endearing and definitely swoon-worthy at times, but I wasn’t exactly reading this with a belly full of butterflies or eyes filled with hearts in them; it was cute, but that’s about it.
The most important thing, though, is that these books are just too long. When the story starts to drag and get repetitive like this, it slowly makes you loose a bit of interest in the couple, and eventually the spark you were feeling between them fades a bit as well. It’s a shame, because some good editing could have made me feel a lot more invested in this book, I’m sure of it.
'Windy City' series: 1. Mile High - 3.0 stars 2. The Right Move - 3.0 stars 3. Caught Up - 2.5 stars...more
Holy Hell.. This book genuinely frustrated me to no end. I kind of despised everything about it, even though it had the potential to be|| 1.5 stars ||
Holy Hell.. This book genuinely frustrated me to no end. I kind of despised everything about it, even though it had the potential to be everything I love. I mean, taking this plot and set-up at face value, I thought I was going to really like it. However, the actual book itself managed to execute everything so horribly and so annoyingly, that there was no way I could even enjoy it.
I think what bothered me most about this book were the characters and their absolute lack of a connection. Both of the love interests had an unlikable personality to begin with, but sometimes it’s possible for two arseholes to still create some chemistry. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case in this situation. All these two had was a long history and even that history does not get explored at all. There weren’t any loving or sweet moments between them. Why and if these two even really liked each other? Who the Hell knows. I would grow pretty damn sick of the other person if I were either of them. After all, Blue was such an undeciding dumbass, while Kelly was so incredibly entitled and demanding. So much so, I don't think there is even one moment where Kelly is in a mood other than angry or cranky.
Their whole story was honestly just boring. I found myself pushing to read further just to be done with it. There were also absolutely no stand-out moments: not a single one. It was bad from start to finish. I am just glad to be done with it, and I have absolutely zero intentions of ever reading the sequel.
Merged review:
|| 1.5 stars ||
Holy Hell.. This book genuinely frustrated me to no end. I kind of despised everything about it, even though it had the potential to be everything I love. I mean, taking this plot and set-up at face value, I thought I was going to really like it. However, the actual book itself managed to execute everything so horribly and so annoyingly, that there was no way I could even enjoy it.
I think what bothered me most about this book were the characters and their absolute lack of a connection. Both of the love interests had an unlikable personality to begin with, but sometimes it’s possible for two arseholes to still create some chemistry. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case in this situation. All these two had was a long history and even that history does not get explored at all. There weren’t any loving or sweet moments between them. Why and if these two even really liked each other? Who the Hell knows. I would grow pretty damn sick of the other person if I were either of them. After all, Blue was such an undeciding dumbass, while Kelly was so incredibly entitled and demanding. So much so, I don't think there is even one moment where Kelly is in a mood other than angry or cranky.
Their whole story was honestly just boring. I found myself pushing to read further just to be done with it. There were also absolutely no stand-out moments: not a single one. It was bad from start to finish. I am just glad to be done with it, and I have absolutely zero intentions of ever reading the sequel....more
This was so darn cute. It follows Lady Patience and Mr. Woodsworth in their unconventional journey towards love, and it really put a sm|| 4.0 stars ||
This was so darn cute. It follows Lady Patience and Mr. Woodsworth in their unconventional journey towards love, and it really put a smile on my face the whole way through.
It’s a story of hidden identity, as these two meet when Lady Patience arrives at Mr. Woodsworth’s home under the guise of looking for work as a maid. She has always been a happy and carefree kind of woman, but after having been berated by her older brother for not understanding the hardships of life, she decides she will leave her titles behind for a month and pretend to be a regular woman of unnoble birth who no one will have any qualms about putting to some hard work. She believes this is what will make her understand what real life is like.
However, Patience soon realises that the most important task in that house should be to bring joy and laughter to the serious, stoic, and generally unhappy Mr. Woodsworth. He is a gentle and kind employer to her from the beginning who she believes is truly deserving of her help at finding love, and they come up with a hairbrained scheme that will involve Patience having to pretend to be a Lady (oh, the irony) to achieve that. During all of this scheming they, of course, spend a lot of time together, but the bulk of it is spend during Patience’s tasks as a maid in which Mr. Woodsworth is nothing but patient and kind in explaining everything to her. She is entirely ignorant, yet this man does not berate her for it even once, even though he knows nothing of her noble birth and you would certainly expect a maid to know how to start a fire or properly clean a table.
It doesn’t take long for these two to form a tentative but beautiful friendship that slowly turns into more. Yet, both remain in denail about this for a while due to neither of them thinking that a romance between them could ever work, as both believe their stations to be insurmountably disparaging… Which is what leaves them to answer these questions for themselves: Can Lady Patience somehow set aside her duty to marry a Lord if it means marrying the man she loves instead? And can Mr. Woodsworth let his passion take over from his sense (for once) and let himself pursue a woman he thinks is only a maid if it means he would finally be able to find happiness in life?
I think the reason this novel worked so very well for me was because of how supremely likable both main characters were. Although you could somewhat describe their dynamic to resemble that of grumpy/sunshine, I wouldn’t want to go that far because of how gentle and sweet he is to her from the very beginning. He was extremely serious, but not necessarily grumpy. Honestly, he was just such a good guy, and she was such a charming and shining girl; which meant that all of their scenes together were just lovely and so fun to read about....more
Oh god, what a ride! The twists and turns, the shocking reveals, the persistent suspense… It all had me in a constant chokehold! I don’|| 4.5 stars ||
Oh god, what a ride! The twists and turns, the shocking reveals, the persistent suspense… It all had me in a constant chokehold! I don’t want to go into the specifics of the plot since I feel like it would give too much away, but I can honestly say I was insanely engrossed with this entire book! The narration flowed so easily while the story itself was mind-blowing enough to keep me on my toes throughout! This book definitely had me in its grip from beginning to end.
Quite honestly, I was bored out of my mind. I started to drift off so often, I simply couldn’t help but skim the hell out of this book.
T|| 1.0 star ||
Quite honestly, I was bored out of my mind. I started to drift off so often, I simply couldn’t help but skim the hell out of this book.
This book was the definition of “telling, not showing”. I was told from the very beginning that these two have been in love with each other for years, but I was never actually shown what that looked like or why they fell in love. They are constantly waxing poetry about how much they care about each other, but I didn’t get to see an actual connection. It was very superficial, and there was zero development. Everything stayed the same from beginning to end, and I couldn’t care any less.
It was even worse because they were so over-the-top and intense with their emotions and declarations, yet it all felt so fake and forced to me. Their entire love story simply fell flat, and was almost a bit ridiculous. Besides, when they finally got together, all they did was have (weird, domineering) sex, which really hammered home how lust-focused, rather than meaningful, their attraction towards one another had been the whole time.
Anyway, long story short, I literally read this whole thing with a scowl and the occasional eye-roll or raised eyebrow, which is clearly not the vibe you want to have when it comes to a romance book.
Does this book have an actual plot? No. No, it does not. This was pure character-building and nothing else. The full 750 pages are fill|| 3.5 stars ||
Does this book have an actual plot? No. No, it does not. This was pure character-building and nothing else. The full 750 pages are filled with training, training and more training. You’d think that would be incredibly dull, wouldn’t you? Well, somehow it wasn’t. Somehow I started to care deeply about Nesta and I was invested in seeing every single little step of her becoming stronger and happier. I liked watching her journey into becoming a warrior, but most of all, her healing journey into starting to love and accept herself for who she is.
“Forgiveness is not that easy.” “Forgiveness is something we also grant ourselves. And I can talk to you until these mountains crumble around us, but if you don’t wish to be forgiven, if you don’t want to stop feeling this way … it won’t happen.” He cupped her cheek, calluses scraping across her overheated skin. “You don’t need to become some impossible ideal. You don’t need to become sweet and simpering. You can give everyone that I Will Slay My Enemies look — which is my favorite look, by the way. You can keep that sharpness I like so much, that boldness and fearlessness. I don’t want you to ever lose those things, to cage yourself.” “But I still don’t know how to fix myself.” “There’s nothing broken to be fixed,” he said fiercely. “You are helping yourself. Healing the parts of you that hurt too much — and perhaps hurt others, too.”
When it came to the romance between Cassian and Nesta I’m having mixed feelings. It’s weird because I truly loved both of them individually, but I didn’t really love them that much together. I mean, I did love how patient and forgiving Cassian could be with her, especially when he kept reaching out, time and time again, and never stopped caring for her so deeply. However, I would have definitely preferred more emotional affection from them throughout the book instead of having all their interactions result in sex. There was simply way too much smut. The extreme amount of smut was the biggest difference from any other SJM books I have read, and it was not a good change for me.
I also know there are people who have complained about all the other side characters in this book and blame them for how they have supposedly treated Nesta badly, but I found almost all of them to be incredibly understandable in their actions. Furthermore, I actually think the development and forgiveness she found with some of them to be a really beautiful part of her journey.
Anyway, first of all, whoever is complaining about Feyre is actually insane, because she never did anything bad to Nesta, even though she would have been justified to do so after all Nesta said and did to her over the years. But no, Feyre always remained supportive and kind to her, despite Nesta pushing her away in a harsh and cold manner. I genuinely thought it was so nice to see Feyre never give up on her, which, in turn, made Nesta realise how grateful she is to have her as a sister and also how much she truly loves her. Seeing their sister bond heal after all that time was really lovely.
Stroking Feyre’s cold hand, Nesta spoke into the timeless, frozen room, “You loved me when no one else would. You never stopped. Even when I didn’t deserve it, you loved me, and fought for me, and …” Nesta looked at Feyre’s face, Death a breath away from claiming it. She didn’t stop the tears that ran down her cheeks as she squeezed Feyre’s slender hand tighter. “I love you, Feyre.” She had never said the words aloud. To anyone. “I love you,” Nesta whispered again. “I love you.”
There’s also not a single bad thing that could be said about Azriel. He never judged Nesta or tried to punish her in any way. Instead, he continually offered his silent support and allegiance while being surprisingly sweet and gentle to her. Mor, as well, never actually did anything bad to Nesta. She wasn't particularly warm or loving, but I don't think she needed to be. Now, Rhys was harsh, I agree, but he also never actually did anything bad to Nesta. He judged her, yes, but why shouldn’t he, based on her actions and attitude? Besides, his protectiveness and love for Feyre made any dislike he had towards Nesta completely valid for me; I would lash out as well towards those who hurt the ones I love, and he actually did that surprisingly little.
The only characters I genuinely had an issue with, though, were Amren and Elain. Amren was cruel and mean for no reason, and it actually pissed me off so much. Amren’s immense ego and narcissism were definitely bugging me here and for her to drop Nesta so quickly because of one little thing she said was just awful. With that, she showed that she is not someone who truly has your back or who you can count in. Meanwhile, Elain was even worse. She was ungrateful and truly had no justification for her disdain towards her sister. Elain is actually the only person in the world who has no right to blame Nesta for anything, yet she treated Nesta the worst. She had no right to be so mean and dismissive to her when Nesta had always done anything for her, always stood by her side and defended her, willing to give up everything for her. Thus, for Elain to now be so cold and unloving towards Nesta when Nesta finally needed her most is unforgivable. Elain should have been there for her; should have shown more patience and understanding towards someone who was always her number one supporter. It made Elain appear very unsympathetic, disloyal and compassionless. And it was actually kind of satisfying to see Nesta realise how flawed her sister was.
Nesta glanced up the stairs past Feyre. Elain had again opted to remain in her room when Nesta was present, which was just fine. Absolutely, utterly fine. Elain could make her own choices. And had chosen to thoroughly shut the door on Nesta. Even as she fully embraced Feyre and her world. Nesta’s chest tightened, but she refused to think of it, acknowledge it. Elain was like a dog, loyal to whatever master kept her fed and in comfort.
Also, I’m not sure if this is an unpopular opinion or not but I personally like the Valkyries more than the Inner Circle. Their friendship seemed a lot more genuine and less toxic to me. The Inner Circle always appeared to be bound through obligation and guilt more often than not, while the Valkyries truly bonded through common interests, shared experiences, love and genuine care. Gwyn and Emerie were the exact friends that Nesta deserved and needed, and Nesta was the best friend to them out of anyone in this whole series was to anyone.
Her friends regarded her curiously, and Nesta swallowed. “Let me make a wish for all of us,” she explained, gathering the three charms. A small gift — for the friends who had become like sisters. A chosen family. Like the one Feyre had found for herself. Nesta squeezed the charms in her palm, closing her eyes, and said: “I wish for us to have the courage to go out into the world when we are ready, but to always be able to find our way back to each other. No matter what.”
Also, it might sound insane but my favourite “character” in this whole book was the House of Wind! I swear, they were so supportive, precious and sweet! They were seriously the best kind of friend a girl can have <3 The only one who rivals the House’s spot for being my favourite would be Azriel. There’s something so insanely endearing and precious about him. He’s so broody and aloof, but also so sweet and gentle at the same time. His shy and thoughtful nature really made me love him so much. Oddly enough, I also really like Eris. There’s something so mysterious and interesting about him.
All in all, I think this was an engaging book despite the lack of plot and I think that’s solely due to Nesta being a complex and intriguing character all on her own.
Did I really just read a whole book about a guy falling in love at first sight with some beautiful girl he knows nothing about, becomin|| 2.5 stars ||
Did I really just read a whole book about a guy falling in love at first sight with some beautiful girl he knows nothing about, becoming completely (and creepily) obsessed with her, only for him to reluctantly realise that her normal-looking best friend actually has a quite charming personality, so he might just marry her instead? Wow, how romantic…
Honestly, I just felt bad for Lucy. Especially since she was such a kind girl. Gregory was a good guy too, albeit kind of an idiot, but I truly believed he did not deserve her if he wasn’t even going to appreciate her during most of the book. I’m not even kidding, this was what most of his (decidedly unflattering and passionless) inner monologue about her was like:
Lucy Abernathy would never inspire poetry, but she would make a very fine friend.
Or
She was Lucy, for heaven’s sake. She was quite wonderful, in quite a number of ways, but she wasn’t the sort men lost their heads over.
Also, I got so insanely annoyed over all of the ridiculous obsessing that every single person seemed to do over Lucy’s best friend, Hermione. There wasn’t a page that went by where I wasn’t reminded how beautiful she was or how many men were foolishly in love with her. I mean, I know it wasn’t really her fault, but I’d go crazy with a best friend like that. I don’t know how Lucy was able to stand it. Constantly being overlooked by everyone and permanently living in someone else’s shadow isn’t fun…
Anyway, last but not least, now that I have finished this entire series, I want to voice a general complaint I have had about almost all of the books (with this one certainly not being an exception): Why, on earth, does this author continually choose to make her heroines so unattractive? I know I’m not speaking for everyone, but I personally find it incredibly off-putting when the hero constantly remarks how plain or unremarkable the heroine looks, while she just goes on and on about how handsome he is… She doesn’t have to be the most beautiful person alive, but jeez, at least try to even the playing field a little! The way it was now, the couples’ dynamics always seemed super off with the hero having the upper-hand and the heroine always appearing more lucky to have him than the other way around. I prefer it to be more equal, and if not, I want it to be the heroine who is out of the hero’s league. That way, he will at least truly worship her completely, and not have him reluctantly admit he might enjoy her company well enough to marry her, while she’s been swooning after him like a lovesick fool from the beginning, which is exactly what happened in a lot of these books…