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amy_in_the_city's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Murder, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Gore, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, Grief, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Child death and Fatphobia
rads_thereader's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
Let me begin by saying I have never disliked a book as much as this one. It came to a point where I seriously considered shelving it under 'dnf' even though I was almost done with it. Nevertheless, I soldiered through, hoping the ending might help redeem the story. Unfortunately, I couldn't have been more wrong.
The book's premise is quite intriguing as the plot revolves around an independent spice farmer who on a drunken walk home saves a demon’s life. What follows is an adventure to destroy an undead goddess and save the world. However, that is where the intrigue ends.
Upon embarking on this adventure, the protagonist and demon become romantic interests, which isn't surprising when you're journeying together for so long. What did bother me was how quickly and suddenly it happened. There was no build-up to it, nor was there any resistance between them falling in love and ending up together. The entire romance was quite anti-climactic and lacked chemistry. It lacked emotional intensity and seemed to be all about sex, which was rather distasteful.
The quest part of the story though interesting, lacked depth. The fantastical elements were underdeveloped and just brushed over which was a severely missed opportunity as a lot could have been done in terms of worldbuilding and character development. If the number of words and pages dedicated to the descriptive sex scenes were instead utilised to explain the mythical beings, the villain, and the high-stakes quest; this book really could have been an excellent piece of work.
All in all, this novel was rather unimpressive with its juvenile writing. It came highly recommended due to its premise but alas, didn't live up to the expectation.
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Confinement, Gore, Fire/Fire injury, and Alcohol
Minor: Body shaming, Vomit, and Grief
sarahsbooklife's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Death, Murder, and War
Minor: Child death, Grief, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
browneyesblue84's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Gore, Sexual content, and Alcohol
Minor: Grief
mari1532's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
After weeks of waiting, I was finally able to listen to this book through my local library.
Brief Summary: Cinnamon is a bit of a homebody. Well, she does love to go out with her best friend to the local tavern and to the market to sell her spices, but she is definitely, absolutely not someone seeking out adventure. However, one day after celebrating with her friend at the local festival she stumbles home drunk and accidentally rescues, Fallon....who just so happens to be a demon.
After Fallon makes his intention to kill an enemy that is not Cinnamon or her family clear, she is forced to agree to help him. As they set out on their adventure Cinnamon must grapple with her past and open herself up to new opportunities. However, what she doesn't expect is that by doing so she might also be opening her heart.
Thoughts: This book was WILD and I LOVED absolutely every single second of it. Lemming's writing was so entertaining and endearing. Cinnamon was everything I wanted in a main character. She was funny, introspective, kind, feisty, educated, and empowered. The way that she evolves throughout the book is so endearing. I also really loved how Lemming made her a real person. For example, when Cinnamon gets dirty on her adventures Lemming not only mentions that she bathes, but that Cinnamon is very unhappy with the current state of feeling gross. It's a little thing, but I find in adventure books things like that are often glossed over and it makes the characters in a book feel less human. This is just one way that Lemming's writing is so nuanced.
I also enjoyed all of the side characters that Cinnamon and Fallon meet throughout their adventure and Cinnamon's family back at home. Everyone had very distinct personalities and contributed something to the plot and friendship group. There were also quite a few instances where they provided some great comedic lines.
I did enjoy the relationship between Cinnamon and Fallon. It was sweet and entertaining. I do wish that we had spent just a little more time on the development of their relationship. There were a few times when it felt like things were being swept along due to the plot. The times when they were alone together were often steamy, but if there had been a smidge more in the emotional connection, I would not have been mad.
If you love fantasy romance novels or just romance novels I would highly recommend this book. It's heartwarming and entertaining
Graphic: Cursing, Death, Misogyny, Slavery, Toxic relationship, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
jalexpulliamkepler's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Graphic: Sexual content and Slavery
Moderate: Body horror, Cursing, Misogyny, Violence, Blood, Grief, and Alcohol
Minor: Rape
maxthedinosaur's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Gore, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Murder, Alcohol, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Bullying, Child death, Cursing, Fatphobia, Grief, and Religious bigotry
jourdanicus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I was drawn into this one by my current interest in D&D. I enjoyed the humor and the occasional anachronism. I can definitely relate to Cinnamon's complete lack of interest in adventure, but I'm glad she got dragged into it so I could live vicariously through her 😆
This could have been a 4 star read for me but I felt that maybe some editing for vocabulary could have helped. Some words were repeated from one sentence to another or even within the same sentence, which isn't a big deal but kinda breaks the immersion.
I also felt the story could have used a few more female/feminine characters. The ones who were included were great though.
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death, Violence, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Cursing, Rape, and Pregnancy
Content warnings are listed by the author at the beginning of the book which I really appreciated!cozyfantasyfaetay's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Graphic: Sexual content and Alcohol
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Gore, Violence, Blood, and War
Minor: Slavery, Vomit, and Grief
jaz_gets_literary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.75
Graphic: Death and Sexual content
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Grief and Alcohol