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jneverland's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Confinement, Gore, Homophobia, Self harm, Torture, Violence, Blood, Murder, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Animal death
notpresent22's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I loved this book. A really fun read that brought me out of a reading slump. The characters are fun and lovable even though they’re a little bit messed up. They are also sexy (which is great in this kind of book). The plot is good and engaging throughout, though I will say some of the world building and magic was a little bit shallow in places - however I don’t think it needed to be overly complex for this kind of book.
The sex scenes were sexy and fun and definitely evoked the correct kind of response in me. I will say however they were extremely idealistic and there were some moments I wished were described in more details (it felt in a couple places like the author had finished and wanted to move on). But I thoroughly enjoyed them overall.
My biggest qualm with this book is not getting to see the feast at the end, it took away some of the catharsis (also wouldn’t have minded seeing the fuckfest that would have followed).
Did I enjoy this book? Hell Yes I did.
Will I be reading the sequel? I am aware that the sequels to this book don’t follow Jak and Marius however I enjoyed the writing and world enough that yes I do think I will be picking up the next book.
The sex scenes were sexy and fun and definitely evoked the correct kind of response in me. I will say however they were extremely idealistic and there were some moments I wished were described in more details (it felt in a couple places like the author had finished and wanted to move on). But I thoroughly enjoyed them overall.
My biggest qualm with this book is not getting to see the feast at the end, it took away some of the catharsis (also wouldn’t have minded seeing the fuckfest that would have followed).
Did I enjoy this book? Hell Yes I did.
Will I be reading the sequel? I am aware that the sequels to this book don’t follow Jak and Marius however I enjoyed the writing and world enough that yes I do think I will be picking up the next book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Self harm, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, Cannibalism, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Body horror, Cursing, and Kidnapping
Minor: Abandonment
20sidedbi's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Blood, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
prophecyerised's review
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
The only thing I'm gonna say about it is this: go to page 207 (if you have paperback) and read Marius with Count Cholula's voice. It will live rent free in your brain forever. Ah. Ah. Ah.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Emotional abuse, and Sexual content
Moderate: Blood
azrieldds's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
It was cute I think
I like the pace at which the story progressed and the satisfying ending ngl
Fuck Jak's mum man fr
Horrible
Would've been a cool plot twist if she was the original woman
But yeah
Wouldn't reread but a nice one time read
I like the pace at which the story progressed and the satisfying ending ngl
Fuck Jak's mum man fr
Horrible
Would've been a cool plot twist if she was the original woman
But yeah
Wouldn't reread but a nice one time read
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death of parent and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
palm's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
***REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS***
A little disappointed with this read, I’m not going to lie. There were a lot of grammatical mistakes, especially in the first chapters of the book, and it honestly made the book a little cumbersome to read. I had to pause to read sentences multiple times to try understanding what the author was trying to say. There were also a couple times in the book where, for some reason, the author would mention something that “happened” some lines prior… except that they actually did not. This book really made me feel like I was almost being gaslit because Jak says “oh yes this happened” while im 100% sure I do not remember anything of the sort. It truly had me questioning if I was even reading properly or if I skipped lines. I literally would go back and read things again to make sure I did not miss anything, and of course, I did not miss anything and it was another writing mistake. This could, again, be attributed to possible grammatical mistakes, but I think that its more likely that the author wanted to include a scene where *blank* thing happened, and either forgot to add it or it was edited out. In case of the latter, the lines that hint at deleted scenes should have been edited out as well.
!Spoilers Ahead!
Putting language aside, the relationship between the two characters was a little mediocre; also, while reading, I had my own theories about Jak and his mother, especially since Jak’s existence was played up to be this massive mystery that Jak himself was awfully persistent to know about, but once everything was revealed, it was a little disappointing. I kept waiting until the end of the book to see if, perhaps, there was something more, especially when Jak’s mother appeared towards the end of the book. His mother, especially, was supposed to be this powerful mysterious figure, and I was really expecting something more out of her, but her death came quite quickly. Her character in the duration of the book changed somewhat drastically; we know that Jak dislikes her and how he hears her voice of disapproval often, but the difference between how she acted in the first scene where we were introduced to her, to the second (or even first) scrying was quite jarring. I expected it to be a bit more insidious, but she was just throwing insults at her son almost out of nowhere. I would’ve been okay with it had her character been explored a bit more and there was enough time given for her to reach that “tipping point,” where she finally has had enough and unleashes her anger, but there was none of that. It was just her changing at the flip of a switch from the ritual to the scrying.
What really bothered me was how everything fell through in the last quarter of the book. Everything. One of the turning points of the book was when Jak realized that Marius essentially still had human empathy and Jak believed himself to be the monster that walked into the castle. This was further developed when Marius showed Jak his library full of stories that he wrote for each one of his Claims, because he hated himself for killing them, although it was out of his control. The same could be said for Jak; there was a scene with Victorya where Jak said she couldn’t possibly know what it was like to have to kill somebody, having to do something so cruel, yet being entrusted with that mission. So clearly, the running theme here is that both characters, simply put, do not wish to kill nor harm others. Yet, in the final bits of the book when Jak is turned into a vampire, suddenly, both him and Marius lose all morality and it is okay for them both to feed on villagers? As long as it was not Katharine, that is, since she was off-limits. It was not clarified whether or not these people would die while Jak was feeding, and it leaves room for misinterpretation; to at least leave SOME form of consistency with both Marius and Jak, it could have been cleared up that, maybe, they would perhaps NOT kill anyone while feeding. The whole chapter was just focused on Jak and his thirst and his need for blood. This is actually what bothered me the most, the whole story hinges on the fact that although Marius is a vampire beast-like creature, he still retains humanity in himself, but as soon as Jak turns, it seems like they became two completely different characters than the ones we were introduced to, and it cheapens the entire narrative.
Also, I could not help but note Victorya’s (and the other spirits’) disappearance towards the end of the book. The last I remember of her was the conversation she had with Jak while Katharine was missing, but after that, nothing. Whether they are still tethered to the house or not, I have no clue, but little things like this could have been wrapped up more nicely.
While reading, I was going to give this book a 3 or 3.5 star rating, but the last quarter of the book truly disappointed and frustrated me so much that I felt like I had wasted time getting to know these characters. Of course, from the beginning to the end of every book, characters should develop and change, but in this book the last quarter literally changed the core of every character (except Katharine), and honestly, at this point, it makes me wonder whether the writer even knew their own characters or not.
A little disappointed with this read, I’m not going to lie. There were a lot of grammatical mistakes, especially in the first chapters of the book, and it honestly made the book a little cumbersome to read. I had to pause to read sentences multiple times to try understanding what the author was trying to say. There were also a couple times in the book where, for some reason, the author would mention something that “happened” some lines prior… except that they actually did not. This book really made me feel like I was almost being gaslit because Jak says “oh yes this happened” while im 100% sure I do not remember anything of the sort. It truly had me questioning if I was even reading properly or if I skipped lines. I literally would go back and read things again to make sure I did not miss anything, and of course, I did not miss anything and it was another writing mistake. This could, again, be attributed to possible grammatical mistakes, but I think that its more likely that the author wanted to include a scene where *blank* thing happened, and either forgot to add it or it was edited out. In case of the latter, the lines that hint at deleted scenes should have been edited out as well.
!Spoilers Ahead!
Putting language aside, the relationship between the two characters was a little mediocre; also, while reading, I had my own theories about Jak and his mother, especially since Jak’s existence was played up to be this massive mystery that Jak himself was awfully persistent to know about, but once everything was revealed, it was a little disappointing. I kept waiting until the end of the book to see if, perhaps, there was something more, especially when Jak’s mother appeared towards the end of the book. His mother, especially, was supposed to be this powerful mysterious figure, and I was really expecting something more out of her, but her death came quite quickly. Her character in the duration of the book changed somewhat drastically; we know that Jak dislikes her and how he hears her voice of disapproval often, but the difference between how she acted in the first scene where we were introduced to her, to the second (or even first) scrying was quite jarring. I expected it to be a bit more insidious, but she was just throwing insults at her son almost out of nowhere. I would’ve been okay with it had her character been explored a bit more and there was enough time given for her to reach that “tipping point,” where she finally has had enough and unleashes her anger, but there was none of that. It was just her changing at the flip of a switch from the ritual to the scrying.
What really bothered me was how everything fell through in the last quarter of the book. Everything. One of the turning points of the book was when Jak realized that Marius essentially still had human empathy and Jak believed himself to be the monster that walked into the castle. This was further developed when Marius showed Jak his library full of stories that he wrote for each one of his Claims, because he hated himself for killing them, although it was out of his control. The same could be said for Jak; there was a scene with Victorya where Jak said she couldn’t possibly know what it was like to have to kill somebody, having to do something so cruel, yet being entrusted with that mission. So clearly, the running theme here is that both characters, simply put, do not wish to kill nor harm others. Yet, in the final bits of the book when Jak is turned into a vampire, suddenly, both him and Marius lose all morality and it is okay for them both to feed on villagers? As long as it was not Katharine, that is, since she was off-limits. It was not clarified whether or not these people would die while Jak was feeding, and it leaves room for misinterpretation; to at least leave SOME form of consistency with both Marius and Jak, it could have been cleared up that, maybe, they would perhaps NOT kill anyone while feeding. The whole chapter was just focused on Jak and his thirst and his need for blood. This is actually what bothered me the most, the whole story hinges on the fact that although Marius is a vampire beast-like creature, he still retains humanity in himself, but as soon as Jak turns, it seems like they became two completely different characters than the ones we were introduced to, and it cheapens the entire narrative.
Also, I could not help but note Victorya’s (and the other spirits’) disappearance towards the end of the book. The last I remember of her was the conversation she had with Jak while Katharine was missing, but after that, nothing. Whether they are still tethered to the house or not, I have no clue, but little things like this could have been wrapped up more nicely.
While reading, I was going to give this book a 3 or 3.5 star rating, but the last quarter of the book truly disappointed and frustrated me so much that I felt like I had wasted time getting to know these characters. Of course, from the beginning to the end of every book, characters should develop and change, but in this book the last quarter literally changed the core of every character (except Katharine), and honestly, at this point, it makes me wonder whether the writer even knew their own characters or not.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Emotional abuse, Gore, Homophobia, Infidelity, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
diana_raquel's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
“Grief is a silent assassin, lurking in the dark of one’s soul, ready to cloak any light in shadow.”
Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorite fairy tales. So, I'm always looking for retellings of this fairy tale. However, I can seem to find one retelling that I truly love. A Court of Thorns and Roses was marked as a Beauty and the Beast retelling but I'm still waiting for someone to explain to me how that trainwreck of a book is a retelling. So I was a little reticent when I discover this book. But I decided to read it!
I really liked this book. It is not what I expected from a retelling, but it is a solid book. As a retelling, I think that it falls a little too short (but, at least, it can be considered as a retelling). As a story, it is a solid and well-developed story. The characters are interesting and well-written. The plot twists happen at the right time and are completely unexpected.
Overall, it's a solid story that I recommend if you're looking for retellings that can be their own story.
Beauty and the Beast is one of my favorite fairy tales. So, I'm always looking for retellings of this fairy tale. However, I can seem to find one retelling that I truly love. A Court of Thorns and Roses was marked as a Beauty and the Beast retelling but I'm still waiting for someone to explain to me how that trainwreck of a book is a retelling. So I was a little reticent when I discover this book. But I decided to read it!
I really liked this book. It is not what I expected from a retelling, but it is a solid book. As a retelling, I think that it falls a little too short (but, at least, it can be considered as a retelling). As a story, it is a solid and well-developed story. The characters are interesting and well-written. The plot twists happen at the right time and are completely unexpected.
Overall, it's a solid story that I recommend if you're looking for retellings that can be their own story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gore, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Child death, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, and Abandonment
redheadorganist's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Gore, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexual content, Blood, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
sabinehunter's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Confinement, Death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and Injury/Injury detail
apersonfromflorida's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, and Blood
Moderate: Confinement, Emotional abuse, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Grief