Toxic, Turbulent, and fuckin' Tasty with a Capital T.
YOU'RE TELLING MEEE THAT THIS IS A DEBUT NOVEL!?!?!
FUCKIN- [image] [image]
This is a work of fucToxic, Turbulent, and fuckin' Tasty with a Capital T.
YOU'RE TELLING MEEE THAT THIS IS A DEBUT NOVEL!?!?!
FUCKIN- [image] [image]
This is a work of fucking art and honestly, probably one of the best debut novels I've EVER read. THE FIRST PANCAKE RULE DOES NOT APPLY HERE.
Not only is the writing just stunning on its own, but the characters, the plot elements, the little details, even just the way the story unfolds - EVERYTHING is so unique and refreshing and different and frankly, I could go on and on and on about the things I loved about it.
I FUCKING LOVE ALEK AND IAN WITH MY ENTIRE HEART AND SOUL. If you look up "codependency" in the dictionary, their relationship should be the first example you see and y'all already know how I feel about codependent relationships. [image]
And this isn't any of that sweet, soft, subtle codependency that mentally stable people claim to enjoy, no, no, no, no, this is more akin to something like [image] AND I WOULDN'T CHANGE A SINGLE LETTER OF IT. FUCKING AMAZING. It's deliciously toxic (at least at first) because they're human and they're flawed and imperfect but they're perfectly imperfect TOGETHER and it's so beautiful and so sweet and just GO FUCKING READ IT, it's phenomenal....more
Not to be dramatic (narrator: she couldn't remember the last time she wasn't dramatic), but if Lee McCormick asked me to slit my throat so they could Not to be dramatic (narrator: she couldn't remember the last time she wasn't dramatic), but if Lee McCormick asked me to slit my throat so they could use my blood as ink for their next book, I would strongly consider it.
HNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGHHHH. Jesus, Mary, and Joseph - this one did things to me. Things I should probably run past a licensed psychiatrist. Like, should I probably unpack the fact that my immediate reaction to a serial killer dicing up a guy because he had the audacity to touch the killer's love interest (possession? obsession?) be "Awww, that's so sweet!"? Most likely. But I've been raw-doggin' life for 30 years so...
But why am I talking about homicidal codependency as my preferred love language instead of this GLORIOUS. ASS. BOOK!?!
I'd call it a guilty pleasure but there's ZERO guilt and ALL the pleasure. Jonah and Levi really ticked all the right boxes for me (and then some). There's touch-him-and-die and then there's so-much-as-look-in-his-direction-and-you'll-wish-you-were-born-without-eyes.
I LOOOOOVE the way the story hits the ground running and it's a fucking ALL OUT SPRINT to the finish line the whole way through. Jonah is just the cutest most adorablest murderous psychopath I ever did see & Levi is a brilliant, beautiful BRAT and I love him with my whole heart.
The set up for the plot and the way everything played out was perfection. Better yet, it was even more than I expected. Cause here's the thing - I am my own worst nightmare when it comes to plot twists; most of the time I guess the plot twist WELL before it's revealed (or even hinted at in some cases). But this time?! Even AS THE PLOT TWIST WAS UNFOLDING I was like "Wait, literally what is happening right now and where the FUCK is this going!?" Levi's confusion was my confusion and I haven't had that feeling in a loooooong time. I ate that shit up.
AND ALL THE LITTLE THINGS!? Levi's relationship with his dad (MYYY HEAAARRTTTT ...more
All hurt, no comfort. Jk, there's comfort but goodness, there's a lotta hurt to get through first.
If you came here for sexy-fun-times, look elsewhere.All hurt, no comfort. Jk, there's comfort but goodness, there's a lotta hurt to get through first.
If you came here for sexy-fun-times, look elsewhere. This book is about trauma and healing. (okay, fine, a smidge of spiciness but it's spiciness painted in the shade morally-grey) It's emotional and sad but also so, so, sooo sweet because it's also about finding unconventional love in the darkest of circumstances.
Dakota and Allister's characters were written beautifully! I'm so glad that it's dual POV because getting both of their inner thoughts and seeing how they viewed the other and how their relationship developed was so charming.
If you're a fan of hurt/comfort and you want a book that is essentially just hurt/comfort from cover to cover, this is the book for you. But for the love of god, check your triggers....more
WHEN can I sit naked in front of a cozy fire eating Pad Thai cooked by a man absolutely obsessed with me to the point of enthusiastically slaying sleiWHEN can I sit naked in front of a cozy fire eating Pad Thai cooked by a man absolutely obsessed with me to the point of enthusiastically slaying sleighing (cause christmas) my enemies, huh? WHEN IS IT MY TURN!?
This book was a fuckin' hoot. Not to mention hot. A hot hoot. A hot holiday hoot. (Enough with the alliteration, Sarah, we get it) I am really starting to love rom-com dark romances where horrific things are happening but the vibes are either nonchalant or downright hysterical. More books like this in my life, please. (drop a rec if you know of anything similar)
Seriously, the juxtaposition of Rowan being absolutely horror-struck (at least at first) and Saint's unruffled golden-retriever-murder-boyfriend-I-brought-you-this-dead-guys-head-why-are-you-screaming demeanor is my new obsession. Who needs Saint Nick when you have Saint's DICK. (Yeah, I'm pretty proud of that one)
Were there plot holes aplenty and scenes that didn't quite make sense (*cough* cookie scene *cough*)? Sure, I guess. But I had a great fucking time and the sex scenes were hotter than a steaming cup of spiced cocoa.
Three words, babe: Blood as lube. Yeah, I fuck with that heavy.
This was such a great time but I sooo wish it was a full-fledged novel; it has so muchThree words, babe: Blood as lube. Yeah, I fuck with that heavy.
This was such a great time but I sooo wish it was a full-fledged novel; it has so much potential! Even so, there's just enough backstory to get invested in the characters and I loved Seb & Tate - especially Tate's lifelong obsession with Sebastian that eclipses any moral compass he could have. Sebastian is his moral compass. Toxic? Absolutely. We love to see it.
Sidenote: I really like when authors create vampires in modern novels have attributes found in older folklore; having to claw out of a grave, bursting into a colony of bats, being completely nocturnal, etc. - sooo much better than glittering in the sunlight, if you ask me.
Also, sex scenes were hot & I am pro dick-biting. Don't @ me....more
Green Flag: Characters with a clinical psych diagnosis.
Ah, it feels so good to be back in ChaniLand and she did not disappoint.
We got glimpses of RinGreen Flag: Characters with a clinical psych diagnosis.
Ah, it feels so good to be back in ChaniLand and she did not disappoint.
We got glimpses of Rin, Sila, & Kel back in Echo but lemme tell ya - that wasn't even the tippy tip of the iceberg. I'm so glad that we're following the same story and timeline but with different characters! It was so much fun to find the little easter eggs of what was concurrently happening in Echo with Rabbit and Baikal as this story progressed.
And boy, did it progress. I'm fucking obsessed with Rin & Kel's dynamic and really, everything about them. Even their physical attributes! Kel's fucking corset vests!? Jesus christ on a cracker - that was hot. Rin & Sila's heterochromia, Kel's eye, even the tiny detail of Sila's earring - I said this in my last review but I liiiive for the little things. Some might say it's overkill but, for me, it paints a vivid picture of these characters in my mind's eye and I wouldn't change a thing.
Speaking of overkill - there was a lot less murder in this one and a lot more drama but with a character like Kelevra (who is drama incarnate), it's perfectly acceptable. Fuck it, we love the drama. Besides, I'm predicting that Sila's book will satisfy any homicidal cravings we may be left with.
But you know what there was plenty of? FUCKING HOTTER THAN HELL SEX. Where the FUCK do I order a G-Tester 450? Don't ask, just read it. ...more
Everything Chani has been putting out in the past year has become my new favorite flavor of book. It's liI never met a trigger warning I didn't like.
Everything Chani has been putting out in the past year has become my new favorite flavor of book. It's like when you walk into an ice cream shop and there's all these crazy new flavors but your eyes keep glancing back to your tried-and-true. You know you're gonna get it. You may ask for samples to flirt with some of the other flavors but come on, be real, you know what your heart really wants. For me, that's apparently literally anything that this woman writes. (Coincidentally, my actual tried-and-true ice cream flavor is mint chocolate chip - I implore you to read the book and find out why I would even bring that up; you won't regret it.)
Rabbit, a musician who plays a beautifully unique instrument called a beiska, catches the eye of Baikal, the planet's mafia prince and a wolf if I've ever seen one. The hunt begins before our little bunny even knows he's being pursued and by the time he catches on, it's far too late as the wolf chases him around the tree and straight down into his sweet little rabbit hole.
There is so. much. to the story - tons of tiny little details that I'm stupidly obsessed with: the gorgeous elements of the beiska, the planetary relationship between Imperials and the mafia, Baikal and his dad, the history of Shouts, the glowing trees, even the fucking school uniforms. I could quite literally go on and on about the attention to detail that Chani puts into all of her books and EVERYTHING is just fucking *chef's kiss*.
Idk who the real devil is, Baikal or Chani Lynn fuckin' Feener, cause listen, I would unquestionably sell my soul to her for nothing in exchange other than for her to continue writing these deliciously dark books. While not as dark as previous books, it still left me happily sated (yet inexplicably starving for more)....more
What a stunning conclusion to this fabulous duet - I am SO SAD that it's over! If I thought the first book packed a punchMurder, but make it adorable.
What a stunning conclusion to this fabulous duet - I am SO SAD that it's over! If I thought the first book packed a punch, this sequel just drop-kicked me in the fucking throat. I hope the bruise lasts for weeks.
We get so much more depth to Roan and Sasha as characters and so much happens!! I literally don't even know what plot point to focus on because it's ALL GOOD. Just back-to-back amazingness; not a dull moment to be had.
But, basically:
Roan: Ugh, fuck that guy. Sasha: Want me to murder him? Roan: You can't just murder people for no reason! Sasha: What if I just murder him a little?
WHY ARE THEY SO FUCKING CUTE I CAN'T STAND THEM. UGH, THERE ARE JUST NO WORDS. I love it, love it, love it. Will definitely be rereading these very soon....more
In which a sweet but naive prince gets double-dicked-down by a dragon.
There were quite a few little surprises in this book that I wasn't expecting. WhIn which a sweet but naive prince gets double-dicked-down by a dragon.
There were quite a few little surprises in this book that I wasn't expecting. What I did expect was lots of dragon smut; the authors definitely delivered on that front. It was hot. What I didn't expect were some surprisingly sweet scenes and a couple of really dark scenes.
As far as the dark scenes go (please read the TWs if that's your jam), they caught me off guard just a bit. I didn't mind them all that much because I actually like some darkness but the abruptness of them had me literally saying "well damn" out loud to myself. And it nearly made the story feel disjointed because none of the really bad stuff had to happen, it was just darkness for darkness' sake. Again, I personally don't mind it, but other people might. You've been warned.
Still, I enjoyed the plot a lot more than I anticipated! Probably because there was just more plot than I expected, period. I thought this was going to be PWP but there's a decent amount actual storyline. The only thing that I didn't particularly like was how the entire plot relied so heavily on Larkin being adorably/annoyingly naive. This poor sweet idiot gets himself into so much trouble.
I loved Jade. He's the silliest most ridiculous dragon that there ever was. I loved how he didn't give a fuck about anything and then suddenly all he gave a fuck about was Larkin. Even though it's super non/dub-con in the beginning, they're stinkin' adorable together by the end.
You know how sometimes you read a book and just wish you got that liiittle bit more? Adara Wolf clearly knowThe cherry on top of this glorious series.
You know how sometimes you read a book and just wish you got that liiittle bit more? Adara Wolf clearly knows how to give the people what they want, because this is that little bit more.
This is basically back-to-back short snippets that amount to a veritable kink encyclopedia...a kinkclopedia, if you will. Figging, caning, double penetration, pony play, human furniture, somnophilia - you name it, it's probably in here.
We also get to see scenes that were referenced to in the previous books + different POVs - not just Alex & Tracht, which was such a fun little treat (I was especially delighted by Jeremy & Kai's section).
I am truly so sad that the series is over but one, I'm just being greedy because I think we got way more than most authors ever give, and two, I am absolutely coming back to reread the entire series in the very near future. ...more
What others find disconcerting apparently has me giggling like a schoolgirl in the middle of the night.
The way that I LAUGHED in this one!! Tracht on What others find disconcerting apparently has me giggling like a schoolgirl in the middle of the night.
The way that I LAUGHED in this one!! Tracht on drugs + Alex unleashing his inner "HULK SMASH" is my new favorite thing. Second only to Tracht trying to fight his obvious sentimentality and Alex's obliviousness to the fact. I love them, your honor....more
In which we have hurt/comfort but the comfort is more hurt.
After the first book, I would have sold my soul to get Tracht's POV and I guess I don't havIn which we have hurt/comfort but the comfort is more hurt.
After the first book, I would have sold my soul to get Tracht's POV and I guess I don't have to cause ADARA HAS DELIVERED UNTO US THE GLORIOUSLY FUCKED UP THOUGHTS OF JOHANNES TRACHT.
Tracht doesn't give a fuck about anything but Alex and I don't give a fuck about anything but them....more
This book is fucked up and apparently, so am I, cause I would lick the words off the floor if that was the only way to consume it.
[image]
My taste in bThis book is fucked up and apparently, so am I, cause I would lick the words off the floor if that was the only way to consume it.
[image]
My taste in books is just getting more and more depraved. Tracht is a manipulative asshole with the cunning of a fox and Alex is an emotionally stunted rabid bunny rabbit.
Are they good people? Absolutely the fuck not.
Am I infatuated with them regardless? You better believe it.
These characters are not "likable" in any traditional sense. And forget morally grey - this is the moral equivalent of a black hole. Any moral objections I could possibly raise are sucked in and obliterated; crushed into a spacetime singularity with no hope of escape.
I love that we have Parsons as a character to represent a more typical "good guy" mindset or "vanilla" as Tracht would call it. Having his perspective in the storyline makes all the icky stuff even more deliciously icky. His yuck is my yum.
And how very yummy it is. *smirks in sadist*...more
I'm not usually one to do this, but for me, my true rating on this first book is actually going to be contingent on the second book. Hear me out...
WhiI'm not usually one to do this, but for me, my true rating on this first book is actually going to be contingent on the second book. Hear me out...
While I do think it's only fair to rate and review a book as it stands on its own, there's something about the way this is written that makes me reluctant to choose between two different paths. Because this doesn't feel like a fully-fledged novel - it's more like a prelude to something bigger? Almost like this was just one long prologue? If that truly is the case, I'm surprisingly not mad about it. Because that would mean that this first book in the series was just to name the players and set the stage.
The players, of course, being Haden and Percy. I really like them as characters - clearly, this book is heavily written from Percy's POV so there are about a million unanswered questions about Haden. There's also a million more questions about Haden's world in relation to Percy's. I'm very familiar with Omegaverse so I really liked the way the dynamics were set up, but again, SO. MANY. QUESTIONS.
SO HERE'S THE THING. If, and only if, I was right in my assumption that this book serves to be more of a precursor to a bigger picture - I'm in. Totally on board. (my current rating reflects this assumption)
BUT if I'm wrong? If the second book just brings about even more questions without answering any of the ones from the first? If it feels just as floaty and mysterious and lacks the building blocks for the emotional investment that the reader so clearly needs? Then, shit, that's just edging minus the fun ending, a.k.a. torture.
I sincerely hope that I'm right. Because as of now, Haden is a just a shadow (albeit a fucking sexy one); more an idea of a character than an actual presence in the story. We need the man behind the mask and the story behind the man so I'm going to put my trust in Fae and hope that she delivers.
With that being said, I really do love this set up. Not to mention the sex - good lord, it was hot. Which, I can totally see why some people are gonna be mad because instead of going from 0 to 100 - it's almost the complete reverse. That's why the edging is so torturous because we're given a taste of what it could be like right in the beginning and then we're abruptly cut off. But, again, if my gut instincts are right (please please please with a cherry on top let me be right), that's literally the whole point.
If you're the kind of reader who needs answers now now now, I'd steer clear of this one - at least until more of the story has been written. But if you don't mind (or even crave) a little edging now and again......more
This book has a violent chokehold on me and all I can do is beg for it to squeeze tighter.
I am absolutely floored. Shadow Yor, a.k.a. Shade, is an intThis book has a violent chokehold on me and all I can do is beg for it to squeeze tighter.
I am absolutely floored. Shadow Yor, a.k.a. Shade, is an interplanetary detective with a loose hold on his empathic powers and an even weaker hold on his self-deprecating tendencies. Following the meager breadcrumbs left behind in a string of murders has him falling right into the alluring clutches of Apollo - a charming art reporter that just happens to moonlight as a psychopathic serial killer. I am dangerously enamored with flawed characters, so when these two living embodiments of a psychiatrist's wet dream come together? Holy-fucking-shit.
This book feels like a love letter to every sick, depraved, and filthy hidden desire I've ever had and I'm not afraid to admit it. What can I say, I like my romances how I like my coffee - dark, bitter, and strong enough to get my blood pumping. And this is just to my taste; there's a perfect balance of darkness and sweetness in this story. But listen, this is not traditional sweetness. It's not gentle touches and honeyed words; it's a white-knuckled grip - possessive and manipulative and fucked up. If that's not your jam, move right along. If it is: hi, let's be friends.
This is the second book I've read by Chani Lynn Feener (the first was also amazing) and after this delectable masterpiece, it most certainly will not be the last. I have been unquestionably conditioned - if Chani is ringing the bell, you better believe that I am salivating on command.
Thank you to BookSirens for the advanced readers copy. All thoughts are my own....more
There are no words. I don't know how to possibly articulate how painfully raw yet intensely beautiful the emotions in thisBUT I LOVE THEM, YOUR HONOR.
There are no words. I don't know how to possibly articulate how painfully raw yet intensely beautiful the emotions in this book are. I can enjoy a book like any other, but it takes a lot for me to feel so profoundly consumed by the words on a page that I feel like reality has been flipped on its head.
This duet hits a spot in my soul that I damn near forgot existed. If Follow the River was a wound being ripped open, After Rain Falls is the painstaking process of healing.
Yeah, this is a short ass review but what can I say; the more I love a book, the less I have to say about it. If I could give it 6 stars, I would.