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ragefulred's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
emcgillivray's review against another edition
4.0
I've been in the worst reading slump, and I knew some Immortals After Dark would push me along. So here we are.
Josie (Supergirl) and her brother (cousin) Thadd (Superman) fled the destruction of their homeworld and ended up on Earth an unknowable time later without aging. She lost her memories, and he was a day old. Sweet Ruin doesn't pull punches when 11-year-old Josie is "murdered" by being shot in the face. She then "gives up" Thadd to be raised by the family, and we understand how Thadd ended up on the Order's island without knowing anything about himself.
Josie's ignorance of herself, her people, and the Lore, in general, gives readers another entry point and a way for Cole to "remind" them of her Lore without making it feel like a tedious rehash. Josie is emotional and brash, which means she's paired with Rune, who, due to trauma, has pushed every feeling out of his body. He may have 7,000+ years of knowledge and secrets, but he also understands so little of himself.
We only get a taste of the Møriør, and we'll see how I feel about them as I continue to read the last (so far) four books available in this series. It's hard to see an entire arc that has not happened. Or perhaps what little pieces of the story I will forget by the time they're up.
Because Josie and Rune's story was so self-contained, the "threat" of Rune as a Big Bad, as more powerful than other Immortals, felt a little weaker. He didn't feel as ominous as Lothaire once did. And frankly, Orion didn't either. Even if we did see the Møriør briefly in battle destroying Ice Demons.
I did like how the Wraiths failed on their mission to control the Valkeryies. When Josie and Run went up against Val Hall, I knew exactly how that piece would fall.
IAD LGBTQ+ Watch
We have another book where our hero is forced into sex work and later does it willingly. The text nonchalantly supports that some of these clients/abusers were men. However, most of the book focuses on the sex work he does (forced and willingly) for women and that he prefers women.
I appreciated how Cole showed Rune's preference for women. Rune is 7,000+ years old, and it would be silly to have his thousands of sexual experiences only with cis women. Rune's dark fey nature means his body fluids are deadly poisonous, so he cannot kiss anyone (and he has his demon seal, so no worries about sperm), and his first desire after kissing Josie is to go down on her and seems both an appreciation of her and of a cis woman's body.
While Cole does the emotional work to show how Rune wants to get out of sex work and shows people who seem happy in sex work (nymphs), I did dislike the narrative that Rune's sex work threatened his romantic relationship commitment to Josie, even if Josie's request from a boundary perspective was great. It's messy, and honestly, I have a hard time pinpointing exactly what didn't work for me beyond jealousy narratives are not something I, as a polyamorous person, understand. Perhaps it's the unweaved thread of Josie being the "savior" of sex workers before she meets Rune.
We don't see any other queer characters outside a brief appearance for the snark from my problematic bisexual King Lothaire.
Josie (Supergirl) and her brother (cousin) Thadd (Superman) fled the destruction of their homeworld and ended up on Earth an unknowable time later without aging. She lost her memories, and he was a day old. Sweet Ruin doesn't pull punches when 11-year-old Josie is "murdered" by being shot in the face. She then "gives up" Thadd to be raised by the family, and we understand how Thadd ended up on the Order's island without knowing anything about himself.
Josie's ignorance of herself, her people, and the Lore, in general, gives readers another entry point and a way for Cole to "remind" them of her Lore without making it feel like a tedious rehash. Josie is emotional and brash, which means she's paired with Rune, who, due to trauma, has pushed every feeling out of his body. He may have 7,000+ years of knowledge and secrets, but he also understands so little of himself.
We only get a taste of the Møriør, and we'll see how I feel about them as I continue to read the last (so far) four books available in this series. It's hard to see an entire arc that has not happened. Or perhaps what little pieces of the story I will forget by the time they're up.
Because Josie and Rune's story was so self-contained, the "threat" of Rune as a Big Bad, as more powerful than other Immortals, felt a little weaker. He didn't feel as ominous as Lothaire once did. And frankly, Orion didn't either. Even if we did see the Møriør briefly in battle destroying Ice Demons.
I did like how the Wraiths failed on their mission to control the Valkeryies. When Josie and Run went up against Val Hall, I knew exactly how that piece would fall.
IAD LGBTQ+ Watch
We have another book where our hero is forced into sex work and later does it willingly. The text nonchalantly supports that some of these clients/abusers were men. However, most of the book focuses on the sex work he does (forced and willingly) for women and that he prefers women.
I appreciated how Cole showed Rune's preference for women. Rune is 7,000+ years old, and it would be silly to have his thousands of sexual experiences only with cis women. Rune's dark fey nature means his body fluids are deadly poisonous, so he cannot kiss anyone (and he has his demon seal, so no worries about sperm), and his first desire after kissing Josie is to go down on her and seems both an appreciation of her and of a cis woman's body.
While Cole does the emotional work to show how Rune wants to get out of sex work and shows people who seem happy in sex work (nymphs), I did dislike the narrative that Rune's sex work threatened his romantic relationship commitment to Josie, even if Josie's request from a boundary perspective was great. It's messy, and honestly, I have a hard time pinpointing exactly what didn't work for me beyond jealousy narratives are not something I, as a polyamorous person, understand. Perhaps it's the unweaved thread of Josie being the "savior" of sex workers before she meets Rune.
We don't see any other queer characters outside a brief appearance for the snark from my problematic bisexual King Lothaire.
mystery_jem's review against another edition
3.0
An immortal assassin is caught between desire and duty...
A foundling raised in a world of humans
Growing up orphaned, Josephine didn’t know who or what she was—just that she was “bad,” an outcast with strange powers. Her baby brother Thaddeus was as perfect as she was flawed; protecting him became her entire life. The day he was taken away began Jo’s transition from an angry girl... to a would-be superhero... to an enchanting, ruthless villain.
It was great learning about Thaddeus and his backstory with his sister Jo. Rune, the Morior Archer, was kind of a dick. I loved Jo and all her spunk.
This book had WAY too much sex for my liking - on the cusp of soft porn, I mean really. The storyline was intriguing if you can get past all the happy humping.
A foundling raised in a world of humans
Growing up orphaned, Josephine didn’t know who or what she was—just that she was “bad,” an outcast with strange powers. Her baby brother Thaddeus was as perfect as she was flawed; protecting him became her entire life. The day he was taken away began Jo’s transition from an angry girl... to a would-be superhero... to an enchanting, ruthless villain.
It was great learning about Thaddeus and his backstory with his sister Jo. Rune, the Morior Archer, was kind of a dick. I loved Jo and all her spunk.
This book had WAY too much sex for my liking - on the cusp of soft porn, I mean really. The storyline was intriguing if you can get past all the happy humping.
genieoneil's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
sirdemalmanche's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
melissalivanos's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
nosaxophone's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
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
4.25