Okay, the religious aspect in this one was a WEEEEEE bit too preachy... And it sort of niggled at me that Jackson was vehemently against talking to a pOkay, the religious aspect in this one was a WEEEEEE bit too preachy... And it sort of niggled at me that Jackson was vehemently against talking to a psychiatrist or some other type of head-doctor, while (reluctantly) jumping in feet first to talk to the rabbi. I don't know... Fun story and I LOVED seeing Ace and Sonny again, but yeah... It was a weird shift and focus in their personalities, for me. Also I would NOT classify this book and this whole series as stand-alones, since there are way too many intricate details involved, but then all of the repetitions of facts and who this and that character is, are quite annoying as a fan of the series.
Merged review:
Okay, the religious aspect in this one was a WEEEEEE bit too preachy... And it sort of niggled at me that Jackson was vehemently against talking to a psychiatrist or some other type of head-doctor, while (reluctantly) jumping in feet first to talk to the rabbi. I don't know... Fun story and I LOVED seeing Ace and Sonny again, but yeah... It was a weird shift and focus in their personalities, for me. Also I would NOT classify this book and this whole series as stand-alones, since there are way too many intricate details involved, but then all of the repetitions of facts and who this and that character is, are quite annoying as a fan of the series....more
Phew, 10 days... It took me 10 days to finish this book, and it ended up being a sort of BR with Chelsea, but maybe I should call it a support-group iPhew, 10 days... It took me 10 days to finish this book, and it ended up being a sort of BR with Chelsea, but maybe I should call it a support-group instead?! It's not that it was badly written, because it wasn't. It's not that the characters were annoying or douchebags, because they weren't. It's not that there was anything wrong with the world-building, because there wasn't. But this book took me 10 days to get through, where a book of this length would normally take me an evening. And I can't put my finger on the issues. Chelsea and I were talking about whether it was the world-building that was too... Much?! Too confusing?! Too vague?! And still I can't put my finger on it. [image]
Anywhose, Danny is a theology student, and he's also a dog shifter. His mum ran out of wolf-genes (??) which means that most of her cubs became dogs. So Danny becomes a big dog (voluntarily and during the full moon), but he lived most of his life in a wolf pack and Danny hated it. He was always the odd man out, and nobody understood his need for reading. He was always at the bottom *snicker* since the wolves have this ingrained idea that they are the TOP of the food chain. Danny then decided to go South (over Hadrian's wall) and leave the pack behind. He's studying and living his life, until the weather changes. One of the old prophecies of the pack talk about the winter of the wolf (or something like that), and it's like an apocalypse, where most humans will die, and only the wolves will be left.
Jack is the puppy Prince (hah, go Danny) and his twin Gregor and him have been fighting all of their lives for the top-post when their dad decides he's ready to hand over the reins. Gregor is chosen (even though Jack is older) and Jack leaves for the 'South' as well... Here he seeks out Danny, so they can make their own little pack. [image]
Then people start dying in the little snowed-in village, and Danny being a good guy wants to find out what's happening, while Jack who's not such a 'good' guy says: "leave the humans alone, we don't need them, and we'll be 'standing' in the end." There's a 'mystery' in this book and fights and blood and gore. There's the ex-girlfriend, that suddenly gets a POV, and becomes the damsel in distress. There's ONE smex scene, and a VERY abrupt ending....
UGH, if it wasn't for Chelsea I would have thrown in the towel, but it helped that we were two struggling with this, and a sort of we-will-finish-this-book-no-matter-the-cost-thing going on. I still can't say why it didn't work for me, it just never caught my attention AND held it. And the ending just pissed me off (view spoiler)[cliffy, so NO HFN/HEA and we need to read the next book to find out what happens. (hide spoiler)]! Fuck that shit! So yeah, this one goes out to Chelsea: Thanks girl, we made it, and now we need to find something much more entertaining! [image]
Merged review:
Phew, 10 days... It took me 10 days to finish this book, and it ended up being a sort of BR with Chelsea, but maybe I should call it a support-group instead?! It's not that it was badly written, because it wasn't. It's not that the characters were annoying or douchebags, because they weren't. It's not that there was anything wrong with the world-building, because there wasn't. But this book took me 10 days to get through, where a book of this length would normally take me an evening. And I can't put my finger on the issues. Chelsea and I were talking about whether it was the world-building that was too... Much?! Too confusing?! Too vague?! And still I can't put my finger on it. [image]
Anywhose, Danny is a theology student, and he's also a dog shifter. His mum ran out of wolf-genes (??) which means that most of her cubs became dogs. So Danny becomes a big dog (voluntarily and during the full moon), but he lived most of his life in a wolf pack and Danny hated it. He was always the odd man out, and nobody understood his need for reading. He was always at the bottom *snicker* since the wolves have this ingrained idea that they are the TOP of the food chain. Danny then decided to go South (over Hadrian's wall) and leave the pack behind. He's studying and living his life, until the weather changes. One of the old prophecies of the pack talk about the winter of the wolf (or something like that), and it's like an apocalypse, where most humans will die, and only the wolves will be left.
Jack is the puppy Prince (hah, go Danny) and his twin Gregor and him have been fighting all of their lives for the top-post when their dad decides he's ready to hand over the reins. Gregor is chosen (even though Jack is older) and Jack leaves for the 'South' as well... Here he seeks out Danny, so they can make their own little pack. [image]
Then people start dying in the little snowed-in village, and Danny being a good guy wants to find out what's happening, while Jack who's not such a 'good' guy says: "leave the humans alone, we don't need them, and we'll be 'standing' in the end." There's a 'mystery' in this book and fights and blood and gore. There's the ex-girlfriend, that suddenly gets a POV, and becomes the damsel in distress. There's ONE smex scene, and a VERY abrupt ending....
UGH, if it wasn't for Chelsea I would have thrown in the towel, but it helped that we were two struggling with this, and a sort of we-will-finish-this-book-no-matter-the-cost-thing going on. I still can't say why it didn't work for me, it just never caught my attention AND held it. And the ending just pissed me off (view spoiler)[cliffy, so NO HFN/HEA and we need to read the next book to find out what happens. (hide spoiler)]! Fuck that shit! So yeah, this one goes out to Chelsea: Thanks girl, we made it, and now we need to find something much more entertaining! [image]...more
I have to take one star off for the romance and the weird (and unforfilling) reunion of JX and Kit. I didn't like their assholish behaviour and there I have to take one star off for the romance and the weird (and unforfilling) reunion of JX and Kit. I didn't like their assholish behaviour and there were no excuses or grovelling for past hurts. I still enjoy the humour and the mystery and will read this again, but I think it lacks proper conversations.
Merged review:
I have to take one star off for the romance and the weird (and unforfilling) reunion of JX and Kit. I didn't like their assholish behaviour and there were no excuses or grovelling for past hurts. I still enjoy the humour and the mystery and will read this again, but I think it lacks proper conversations....more
Amy Lane is fast becoming one of my favorite MM-authors! And I think this book was FUN and beautiful and heartwarming!
The blurb pretty much explains Amy Lane is fast becoming one of my favorite MM-authors! And I think this book was FUN and beautiful and heartwarming!
The blurb pretty much explains the story, and except for Rusty's parents this story was just: LOVELY! It is worth mentioning that I have a 'thing' for clueless/oblivious characters and Rusty was just... Perfect in that sense. That boy needed a hug, a new family and more than one smack in the back of the head, but STILL... *sigh* THIS was an awesome feel-good christmas story, and it will be read again.
Merged review:
Amy Lane is fast becoming one of my favorite MM-authors! And I think this book was FUN and beautiful and heartwarming!
The blurb pretty much explains the story, and except for Rusty's parents this story was just: LOVELY! It is worth mentioning that I have a 'thing' for clueless/oblivious characters and Rusty was just... Perfect in that sense. That boy needed a hug, a new family and more than one smack in the back of the head, but STILL... *sigh* THIS was an awesome feel-good christmas story, and it will be read again....more
This series fell sort of flat for me at the end. The mystery and the subsequent ending was not very... Interesting for a mystery-book and the insta-lovThis series fell sort of flat for me at the end. The mystery and the subsequent ending was not very... Interesting for a mystery-book and the insta-love was getting around like it was the flu bug in a kindergarten. I don't know... I recommend the The Magpie Lord-series instead.
Merged review:
This series fell sort of flat for me at the end. The mystery and the subsequent ending was not very... Interesting for a mystery-book and the insta-love was getting around like it was the flu bug in a kindergarten. I don't know... I recommend the The Magpie Lord-series instead....more
It is no secret that I've enjoyed the 'Aberrant Magic'-series immensely! The first book was tough, yes, but it was REALLY clevBR with the lovely Beth<3
It is no secret that I've enjoyed the 'Aberrant Magic'-series immensely! The first book was tough, yes, but it was REALLY clever and Darren and Kavon were fucking, FANTASTIC MCs. Book 2 to 4 cemented it for me, and the humor and the worldbuilding and the skills/grit of the MCs and Bennu made me a big fan.
It was a surprise when I actually noticed that this book is not about Darren and Kavon. I'm not really upset though, since their relationship is definitely solid, and I thought it would be cool to see other people navigate in this really comprehensive world.
And yes, I would love more stories with these two, but I do see the point in introducing another couple after 4 books, again: because this world really is so comprehensive! They ARE solid, but let's be honest, sometimes it's nice to 'stop at the top' or take a break or whatever, so we won't get fed up with the 'same' stories again and again. [image] And let me just start by saying that I was a fan of Angel from the get-go! This dude had 'Streep-smarts' (seriously I have Sandy from The Queen & the Homo Jock King on the brain, and I kept calling it that, since it was SO damn accurate!) coming out his wazoo... He was funny, strong and self-aware in a way that we rarely see -IMO.
My biggest issue with him was his 'dilly-dallying', when he agreed to work for both the FBI and Luschese. We have a situation at one point, where Angel (view spoiler)[uses magic to torture a 50-year-old called Vin, who has brain damage, because Luschese asks him to. And you could argue that in the situation Angel couldn't do much, since he would be killed if he didn't do what he was asked. BUT Angel had the opportunity to help the FBI, and instead he kept telling himself he just needed to find an escape, while at the same time being more and more entangled in the mob-side of things. (hide spoiler)] If you have triggers of the violent kind, I think you should check the spoiler. But all in all, Angel won me over by being (mostly) smart and hardcore. [image] Matt was great in another way. His beliefs and idealism hit JUST the spot for me. It cannot be easy being the son of a mob-boss, when you don't believe in, or support any of that lifestyle. Matt was yet another character that was incredibly self-aware, which I really loved. *Edit: And as Beth pointed out to me: Matt going lawyer-crazy later on was kind of great! This dude had cojones!
The reason this was not a 5-star read for me, was the length of this book and some of the things skipped. Like Vin's reactions later on, and I would have loved to actually 'see' Angel's training with Rima (and Luschese?). But it wasn't part of the story and I missed that, since Angel's affinity for magic -supposedly- is something special. This book was around 170 pages and adding 25-30 pages describing -for example- the training would have cemented it for me. Especially because some things were perfectly described, while others were mentioned, but not used. It was this weird combiation of TOO much detail sometimes, and SUPERFICIAL story-telling at other times. The 'love-story' was another example of 'a tad too superficial' for me. I do not understand when Angel and Matt had time to fall in love (and WHY since they didn't really talk). And their smexy times happened at really weird times (especially towards the end). [image] My final rating hovers around 3-4 stars, and I'll leave it at 4 since this world is incredibly clever, but I did have some issues with the abovementioned things and the 'spoiler' that dragged it down for me.
Overall though, this was a very SOLID addition to the 'Abberant Magic'-series. I loved seeing Darren, Kavon and Bennu through someone else's eyes. And the next one (no matter the couple) will be a one-click buy for me!
Merged review:
BR with the lovely Beth<3
It is no secret that I've enjoyed the 'Aberrant Magic'-series immensely! The first book was tough, yes, but it was REALLY clever and Darren and Kavon were fucking, FANTASTIC MCs. Book 2 to 4 cemented it for me, and the humor and the worldbuilding and the skills/grit of the MCs and Bennu made me a big fan.
It was a surprise when I actually noticed that this book is not about Darren and Kavon. I'm not really upset though, since their relationship is definitely solid, and I thought it would be cool to see other people navigate in this really comprehensive world.
And yes, I would love more stories with these two, but I do see the point in introducing another couple after 4 books, again: because this world really is so comprehensive! They ARE solid, but let's be honest, sometimes it's nice to 'stop at the top' or take a break or whatever, so we won't get fed up with the 'same' stories again and again. [image] And let me just start by saying that I was a fan of Angel from the get-go! This dude had 'Streep-smarts' (seriously I have Sandy from The Queen & the Homo Jock King on the brain, and I kept calling it that, since it was SO damn accurate!) coming out his wazoo... He was funny, strong and self-aware in a way that we rarely see -IMO.
My biggest issue with him was his 'dilly-dallying', when he agreed to work for both the FBI and Luschese. We have a situation at one point, where Angel (view spoiler)[uses magic to torture a 50-year-old called Vin, who has brain damage, because Luschese asks him to. And you could argue that in the situation Angel couldn't do much, since he would be killed if he didn't do what he was asked. BUT Angel had the opportunity to help the FBI, and instead he kept telling himself he just needed to find an escape, while at the same time being more and more entangled in the mob-side of things. (hide spoiler)] If you have triggers of the violent kind, I think you should check the spoiler. But all in all, Angel won me over by being (mostly) smart and hardcore. [image] Matt was great in another way. His beliefs and idealism hit JUST the spot for me. It cannot be easy being the son of a mob-boss, when you don't believe in, or support any of that lifestyle. Matt was yet another character that was incredibly self-aware, which I really loved. *Edit: And as Beth pointed out to me: Matt going lawyer-crazy later on was kind of great! This dude had cojones!
The reason this was not a 5-star read for me, was the length of this book and some of the things skipped. Like Vin's reactions later on, and I would have loved to actually 'see' Angel's training with Rima (and Luschese?). But it wasn't part of the story and I missed that, since Angel's affinity for magic -supposedly- is something special. This book was around 170 pages and adding 25-30 pages describing -for example- the training would have cemented it for me. Especially because some things were perfectly described, while others were mentioned, but not used. It was this weird combiation of TOO much detail sometimes, and SUPERFICIAL story-telling at other times. The 'love-story' was another example of 'a tad too superficial' for me. I do not understand when Angel and Matt had time to fall in love (and WHY since they didn't really talk). And their smexy times happened at really weird times (especially towards the end). [image] My final rating hovers around 3-4 stars, and I'll leave it at 4 since this world is incredibly clever, but I did have some issues with the abovementioned things and the 'spoiler' that dragged it down for me.
Overall though, this was a very SOLID addition to the 'Abberant Magic'-series. I loved seeing Darren, Kavon and Bennu through someone else's eyes. And the next one (no matter the couple) will be a one-click buy for me!...more