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thenaptimewriter's review
2.0
This was my first Kierstan Fay romance and though I enjoyed parts of it, I was left disappointed overall.
Analia has been a slave for hundreds of years, her body abused and exploited by her captor. She has no idea who her family is or what happened to them, or even what she is. Thanks to a little bit of help and her own gifts, she escapes onto a merchant ship captained by a demon named Sebastian. Sebastian isnât happy to discover his stowawayâespecially since he distrusts women to begin withâbut his mission prohibits him from stopping to kick her off the ship. That and his unparalleled attraction to her.
Is Analia ready to enter into a serious relationship? And will she be able to learn the secrets of her past?
The world-building in The Demonâs Possession is interesting and I appreciated how Analia doesnât just fall into a permanent relationship with Sebastian though their attraction toward each other is apparent. Sheâs a strong woman, and the way the main characters all care for one another is heartwarming. Get ready for some sexy scenes, too, because this book has them in spades.
But I felt like some of the dynamics between characters and some of their actions are predictable, and in at least one of those scenes the language gets really stilted. I definitely did not enjoy a couple of questionable jokes/comments made (for example, one of Sebastianâs thoughts comes across as homophobic). Finally, Sebastian doesnât respect Analiaâs privacy when sheâs first rescued and that really bothered me, as did his confusion over how a âbeautifulâ woman could be a slave.
CW: abuse, off page sexual assault, attempted rape, victim of drugging, desire to commit suicide & suicide attempt (though the hero sets it up as a test of sorts and doesnât intend for her to actually die).
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for my complimentary ARC. All opinions provided are my own.
Analia has been a slave for hundreds of years, her body abused and exploited by her captor. She has no idea who her family is or what happened to them, or even what she is. Thanks to a little bit of help and her own gifts, she escapes onto a merchant ship captained by a demon named Sebastian. Sebastian isnât happy to discover his stowawayâespecially since he distrusts women to begin withâbut his mission prohibits him from stopping to kick her off the ship. That and his unparalleled attraction to her.
Is Analia ready to enter into a serious relationship? And will she be able to learn the secrets of her past?
The world-building in The Demonâs Possession is interesting and I appreciated how Analia doesnât just fall into a permanent relationship with Sebastian though their attraction toward each other is apparent. Sheâs a strong woman, and the way the main characters all care for one another is heartwarming. Get ready for some sexy scenes, too, because this book has them in spades.
But I felt like some of the dynamics between characters and some of their actions are predictable, and in at least one of those scenes the language gets really stilted. I definitely did not enjoy a couple of questionable jokes/comments made (for example, one of Sebastianâs thoughts comes across as homophobic). Finally, Sebastian doesnât respect Analiaâs privacy when sheâs first rescued and that really bothered me, as did his confusion over how a âbeautifulâ woman could be a slave.
CW: abuse, off page sexual assault, attempted rape, victim of drugging, desire to commit suicide & suicide attempt (though the hero sets it up as a test of sorts and doesnât intend for her to actually die).
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for my complimentary ARC. All opinions provided are my own.
sexysciuridae's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
alatedbibliophile's review against another edition
4.0
This is the first book of this authorâs that Iâve read, but I can guarantee it wonât be my last. Up until about three months or so ago, I steered clear from anything that had âsci-fiâ in the description because it wasnât my âthingââor at least, I thought it wasnâtâbut I took a chance on a Ruby Dixon novel and Iâve been devouring any sci-fi romance I could find since. When the opportunity arose to get a copy of this book to read, I jumped on it. Iâm so glad I did.
Analia has spent her entire life in captivity being abused and misused by her captor. She doesnât remember being shown any kindness in all her life and when the opportunity arises to escape, she jumps at it. Little does she realize, her life is about to change tremendously.
She stows away on a merchant ship with the hopes of escaping her terrible life. Once on board, while sheâs hiding pretty much in plain sight, she discovers that the Marada has no intention of stoppingânot for several months, at least. Hungry, scared, feeling alone but determined, Analia decides she would rather face certain death than return to her evil captor. Once her decision has been firmly made, she lies in waitâeither for freedom or for death. When she finds herself face to face with the captain of the ship sheâs taken refuge on, she discovers feelings sheâs never had before ⌠but will he prove to be just as bad as the other men sheâs come into contact with before?
Sebastian is a demonâand in this book, itâs meant literally. Heâs one of just a few survivors of his race and heâs become bitter and jaded from past experience and the treatment heâs received throughout his lifetime. Demons are viewed as volatile, despicable, vile beings who are treated as the monsters others claim they are.
Sebastian also refuses to fall in love. Heâs seen exactly what loving and being mated to someone has done to his brother, who is nothing but a shell of who he once was after being betrayed by his own mate. Sebastian has no desire to be hurt in the same way; it was bad enough feeling his own betrayal with someone he wasnât in love with.
Everything changes when Sebastian first lays eyes on Analia. Though sheâs dirty and smelly and can barely keep her eyes open, Sebastian is inexplicably drawn to her. The feeling is mutual and Analia doesnât know what to do with these newfound emotions and physical stirrings. To say they drive each other crazy is quite the understatementâin more ways than one.
Without giving too much away, their relationship progresses and I greatly enjoyed the way Ms. Fay developed these characters and their emotions. They donât fall for each other overnight and the tension thatâs felt throughout the story is so beautifully written; I could feel the emotions these characters were dealing with as I read every page. Iâm normally pretty strict about reading books that are the first person POV, but it honestly didnât matter for me when reading this book because it was just that good.
This story was full of passion, romance, a determined and goal-oriented heroine, an alpha male, and it even had some humor thrown in for good measure. I enjoyed it and will more than likely be reading the rest of the series as Iâm dying to know what happens with the other characters đ
I will say, though, if you have any triggers, be aware that there are some slightly graphic details about abuse in this story that could potentially be upsetting.
If this book sounds like your thing, I highly recommend it!
- Alated Bibliophile
Analia has spent her entire life in captivity being abused and misused by her captor. She doesnât remember being shown any kindness in all her life and when the opportunity arises to escape, she jumps at it. Little does she realize, her life is about to change tremendously.
She stows away on a merchant ship with the hopes of escaping her terrible life. Once on board, while sheâs hiding pretty much in plain sight, she discovers that the Marada has no intention of stoppingânot for several months, at least. Hungry, scared, feeling alone but determined, Analia decides she would rather face certain death than return to her evil captor. Once her decision has been firmly made, she lies in waitâeither for freedom or for death. When she finds herself face to face with the captain of the ship sheâs taken refuge on, she discovers feelings sheâs never had before ⌠but will he prove to be just as bad as the other men sheâs come into contact with before?
Sebastian is a demonâand in this book, itâs meant literally. Heâs one of just a few survivors of his race and heâs become bitter and jaded from past experience and the treatment heâs received throughout his lifetime. Demons are viewed as volatile, despicable, vile beings who are treated as the monsters others claim they are.
Sebastian also refuses to fall in love. Heâs seen exactly what loving and being mated to someone has done to his brother, who is nothing but a shell of who he once was after being betrayed by his own mate. Sebastian has no desire to be hurt in the same way; it was bad enough feeling his own betrayal with someone he wasnât in love with.
Everything changes when Sebastian first lays eyes on Analia. Though sheâs dirty and smelly and can barely keep her eyes open, Sebastian is inexplicably drawn to her. The feeling is mutual and Analia doesnât know what to do with these newfound emotions and physical stirrings. To say they drive each other crazy is quite the understatementâin more ways than one.
Without giving too much away, their relationship progresses and I greatly enjoyed the way Ms. Fay developed these characters and their emotions. They donât fall for each other overnight and the tension thatâs felt throughout the story is so beautifully written; I could feel the emotions these characters were dealing with as I read every page. Iâm normally pretty strict about reading books that are the first person POV, but it honestly didnât matter for me when reading this book because it was just that good.
This story was full of passion, romance, a determined and goal-oriented heroine, an alpha male, and it even had some humor thrown in for good measure. I enjoyed it and will more than likely be reading the rest of the series as Iâm dying to know what happens with the other characters đ
I will say, though, if you have any triggers, be aware that there are some slightly graphic details about abuse in this story that could potentially be upsetting.
If this book sounds like your thing, I highly recommend it!
- Alated Bibliophile
beckbot's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
kims_book_korner's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoyed this book. The pacing was on point so I didn't feel as if the book was dragging or rushed. I really enjoyed the author's writing style. It was a great start to the series and or trilogy and I cannot wait to read the next book in the series. I may have just found a new author!
The plot and character development was also engaging. You start off the story with Anya a slave and attempting to escape on the first available ship. Sebastian is a Demon captain of the ship she stole away on. Watching him overcoming his past and accepting her on his ship and what she ends up meaning to him was wonderful to see and experience. I would say this novel was both character and plot driven.
The paranormal elements added to the story. What power or powers does Anya possess. Can she control them or will they control her? These were questions that I explored as the story progressed. The way the author ended the book, the reader is left guessing about the answers to these questions.
The plot and character development was also engaging. You start off the story with Anya a slave and attempting to escape on the first available ship. Sebastian is a Demon captain of the ship she stole away on. Watching him overcoming his past and accepting her on his ship and what she ends up meaning to him was wonderful to see and experience. I would say this novel was both character and plot driven.
The paranormal elements added to the story. What power or powers does Anya possess. Can she control them or will they control her? These were questions that I explored as the story progressed. The way the author ended the book, the reader is left guessing about the answers to these questions.
ricki_reads's review against another edition
2.0
The Demon's Possession by Kiersten Fay is a part romance, part science fiction, part paranormal story about Sebastian, the captain of a merchant ship and Analia, a slave. In a bid for freedom from slavery, Analia stows aboard Sebastian's ship, bring danger, and love, to the Marada.
The story is full of uniqueness that is often missing from romance particularity. The author is able to pull together elements from several different genre's and blend them in a way that not just works, but feels natural. However, the story lacks some key pieces that would have made it truly great. The largest oversight is the lack of sufficient world building. With a story as unique as this, the reader needs more atmosphere to really get a full picture of the setting. Without this, the reader feels on the fringes of the story, such as an outsider looking in, rather than a participant.
There are several moments throughout the story that should come with trigger warnings - slavery, rape, physical and mental abuse.
Lastly, I had issues with several of the events in the story lacking reasoning. Each character attempts to act in the way that they see best but on several occasions, the reasoning being those choices is so absurd that it takes away from the story.
The story is full of uniqueness that is often missing from romance particularity. The author is able to pull together elements from several different genre's and blend them in a way that not just works, but feels natural. However, the story lacks some key pieces that would have made it truly great. The largest oversight is the lack of sufficient world building. With a story as unique as this, the reader needs more atmosphere to really get a full picture of the setting. Without this, the reader feels on the fringes of the story, such as an outsider looking in, rather than a participant.
There are several moments throughout the story that should come with trigger warnings - slavery, rape, physical and mental abuse.
Lastly, I had issues with several of the events in the story lacking reasoning. Each character attempts to act in the way that they see best but on several occasions, the reasoning being those choices is so absurd that it takes away from the story.
storytellersbymarlou's review against another edition
2.0
This book was provided to me by Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Hmmm, I don't know what to think of this book. It definitely kept me curious, enough so that I finished the book. I didn't really feel like I should DNF it, but I also knew I wasn't going to give this book a high rating...
Writing style: I love Fay's writing. I wouldn't even have picked up this book if her name wasn't on the cover. This book was less wel written than her Creatures of Darkness series, but still very enjoyable.
Characters: I don't know what it is with Fay's characters, but I always love them. They're so complicated and different and aaah. Anya barely knows anything of the world because she's been isolated most of her life, but with the help of Bastian she becomes surer of herself. She's still fumbling about though, which is great because most of the time the main character becomes super powerful and talented within 300 pages... Anya is very realistic. I can't wait to see more of Cale and Sonya and Marik... Those demons are hella interesting.
Story: I was intrigued by Anya's backstory (or lack thereof) and that definitely kept me going. But eventually the story started to drag and it was only Bastian does this, Anya reacts, Anya does this, Bastian reacts, oh now they're having sex, and again, and again. Towards the end it started to get a little more interesting, but then all the exciting parts were rushed through and I didn't get to enjoy them.
So I'm not quite sure yet what to rate this book as I was somehow compelled to keep reading... I'll leave my rating at 2,5 stars, I have read better books which I've rated 3 stats and I've read much worse books that I've rated two stars so this is the proper balance.
Hmmm, I don't know what to think of this book. It definitely kept me curious, enough so that I finished the book. I didn't really feel like I should DNF it, but I also knew I wasn't going to give this book a high rating...
Writing style: I love Fay's writing. I wouldn't even have picked up this book if her name wasn't on the cover. This book was less wel written than her Creatures of Darkness series, but still very enjoyable.
Characters: I don't know what it is with Fay's characters, but I always love them. They're so complicated and different and aaah. Anya barely knows anything of the world because she's been isolated most of her life, but with the help of Bastian she becomes surer of herself. She's still fumbling about though, which is great because most of the time the main character becomes super powerful and talented within 300 pages... Anya is very realistic. I can't wait to see more of Cale and Sonya and Marik... Those demons are hella interesting.
Story: I was intrigued by Anya's backstory (or lack thereof) and that definitely kept me going. But eventually the story started to drag and it was only Bastian does this, Anya reacts, Anya does this, Bastian reacts, oh now they're having sex, and again, and again. Towards the end it started to get a little more interesting, but then all the exciting parts were rushed through and I didn't get to enjoy them.
So I'm not quite sure yet what to rate this book as I was somehow compelled to keep reading... I'll leave my rating at 2,5 stars, I have read better books which I've rated 3 stats and I've read much worse books that I've rated two stars so this is the proper balance.
bookwifereviews's review against another edition
4.0
4.5 stars. I had a hard time rating this book. I wanted to give it 5 stars but that would have been just a little bit of a lie. It was so freaking long. The first half was kind of slow and it was really just about a girl learning about how to move on from a horrible life And then theres a little bit of her and her demon falling in love and then in the last 25% of the book we find out who she is. I just think that the there is soo much information pushed into the last quarter. I wish it was sprinkled in throughout instead of all at the end.
I loved the book though. I loved the world and the characters and I am excited to see where the series goes!
I loved the book though. I loved the world and the characters and I am excited to see where the series goes!
kindleandcrochet's review against another edition
3.0
I recieved a free digital copy of the book from the publishers via Netgallg in exhchange for an honest review. All opinions expressed ar eny own and given freely.
I really enjoyed this book. Despite the fact i thought it was going to be another space smut fest... I was an actual story with a plot and character development and everything.
Whilst the writing seemed to lack a certain something, and some spelling/word mistakes ot was fun and engaging and I'd really like to read the jext oje to see where the overall plot goes from here... Obviously its going to be Mariks mate next - iean the whole reason for any of it happening.
Having never experienced anything like any of the characters it made it hard to sympathise with them but i could definitely empathise with them.
However the fact that Analia has been basically completely isolated for a couple of centuries i find it hard to believe she would take so well to being aeound such large groups of people immediately... And there's no self confidence issues - exept for with Sebastian - considering she's been a slave amd isolated... Neither of these make sense for the main character.
The book seemed huge whilst also being really quick... And slow... It's taken me a few days to read it - but honestly I'm glad that there was actually a big picture storyline and a smaller personal one. However there were mindane times that seemed to last for pages and pages and yet the action is generally over in just a couple... Which i find disappointing
I will definitely look out for book 2 in the series in the future
I really enjoyed this book. Despite the fact i thought it was going to be another space smut fest... I was an actual story with a plot and character development and everything.
Whilst the writing seemed to lack a certain something, and some spelling/word mistakes ot was fun and engaging and I'd really like to read the jext oje to see where the overall plot goes from here... Obviously its going to be Mariks mate next - iean the whole reason for any of it happening.
Having never experienced anything like any of the characters it made it hard to sympathise with them but i could definitely empathise with them.
However the fact that Analia has been basically completely isolated for a couple of centuries i find it hard to believe she would take so well to being aeound such large groups of people immediately... And there's no self confidence issues - exept for with Sebastian - considering she's been a slave amd isolated... Neither of these make sense for the main character.
The book seemed huge whilst also being really quick... And slow... It's taken me a few days to read it - but honestly I'm glad that there was actually a big picture storyline and a smaller personal one. However there were mindane times that seemed to last for pages and pages and yet the action is generally over in just a couple... Which i find disappointing
I will definitely look out for book 2 in the series in the future