rachie877's review
3.0
Gave it a 3 because I feel a lot of the stuff included in this book will set the scene for the following books. But I felt there was SO much extra info that may be for other books’ foundations that sometimes it just felt unneeded for the story of Vork and Evie and took away from their focus. I did however like some of the unique characteristics of Ava Ross’s Crakarian world and their unique take on Sci-Fi romance. I will continue on with the next few books to see how these develop and how Ross’s writing develops before I make up my mind on the series.
bitchbane's review against another edition
2.75
well that was uneventful...
i just listened to this audiobook today but my mind is blank when i think of how it made me feel. i thought the premise was interesting but i've been on an alien romance binge so i wasn't going to read this one, but then teddy hamilton reeled me in. i just can't resist an audiobook narrated by teddy hamilton.
there were hints in this book of something that could be interesting. evie went to crakair because she was matched with an alien husband in a lottery. it's your typical alien brides plot, so there's nothing surprising there.
i don't really have much to say about the female mc, evie. she was... kinda bland? aside from longing for chocolate and vork, she didn't really do much.
vork was all work, manly honor, and evie. there were hints at his past, but for most of the book he didn't express much of a personality and that was disappointing. there were some moments it felt like he was a cardboard stand-in to facilitate the plot and that's all he was there for.
the best character in the book was by far vork's mom. she was overbearing in the way that only mothers can be and she only wanted what was best for her son. i couldn't get over the 'vorkie' nickname and her love for evie's cat, who was affectionately called a 'chat.'
the romance was very much insta-love and i found myself missing the build-up of falling in love, or at least the emotional connection and intimacy of being in love. i didn't feel any of that between evie and vork. their characters spoke of being in love, but there were no actions or words they said to one another that really expressed that.
something i did very much appreciate is how much effort and thought this author put into culture and language. usually alien romance is very reserved in the changes they make to the alien species. often times a curse word will be replaced and one or two things will be culturally different, but ava ross went all out. gestures meant different things, the way women showed happiness was different, customs (all the way down to bathing) were different. language structure, transportation, and government were all different. and it didn't feel like an info-dump when these things were being introduced.
i'd say that if you're going to pick up this book, the audiobook is a pretty good way to go. if you're interested in insta-love and lots of cool alien differences then this could be the right kind of book for you.
i just listened to this audiobook today but my mind is blank when i think of how it made me feel. i thought the premise was interesting but i've been on an alien romance binge so i wasn't going to read this one, but then teddy hamilton reeled me in. i just can't resist an audiobook narrated by teddy hamilton.
there were hints in this book of something that could be interesting. evie went to crakair because she was matched with an alien husband in a lottery. it's your typical alien brides plot, so there's nothing surprising there.
i don't really have much to say about the female mc, evie. she was... kinda bland? aside from longing for chocolate and vork, she didn't really do much.
vork was all work, manly honor, and evie. there were hints at his past, but for most of the book he didn't express much of a personality and that was disappointing. there were some moments it felt like he was a cardboard stand-in to facilitate the plot and that's all he was there for.
the best character in the book was by far vork's mom. she was overbearing in the way that only mothers can be and she only wanted what was best for her son. i couldn't get over the 'vorkie' nickname and her love for evie's cat, who was affectionately called a 'chat.'
the romance was very much insta-love and i found myself missing the build-up of falling in love, or at least the emotional connection and intimacy of being in love. i didn't feel any of that between evie and vork. their characters spoke of being in love, but there were no actions or words they said to one another that really expressed that.
something i did very much appreciate is how much effort and thought this author put into culture and language. usually alien romance is very reserved in the changes they make to the alien species. often times a curse word will be replaced and one or two things will be culturally different, but ava ross went all out. gestures meant different things, the way women showed happiness was different, customs (all the way down to bathing) were different. language structure, transportation, and government were all different. and it didn't feel like an info-dump when these things were being introduced.
i'd say that if you're going to pick up this book, the audiobook is a pretty good way to go. if you're interested in insta-love and lots of cool alien differences then this could be the right kind of book for you.
ramakn22's review against another edition
The two main characters didn't resonate with me at all. This is also the book where I found out the interfering but well meaning mother trope gives me the biggest of icks.
virago's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
3.75 stars. This was a short but sweet mail-order-bride novel. I very much enjoyed it. There was sweetness, spiciness, drama, and a very small amount of angst. The narration was great. Honestly, I could have gone for more. The story was complete, and there were no real plot holes that I recall, but it left me wanting. I suppose that's great on the writer's part as I will continue with the series.
8honeybuns's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.75
hopeamarsu's review
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
tiff_bb's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
offmyredcarpet's review
2.0
DNFd at chapter 9. Started off interesting but quickly descended into the author telling the reader everything instead of showing us. There is zero substance once the FMC arrives at the alien planet. She is dull and contributes little to the narrative. It reads like “a day in the life” but make it alien. Pages and pages of her cat…why? Pages and pages of internal dialogue…It’s sadly incredibly boring.