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k_cao_xai's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
It’s going to be a while before I find another story this good.
Character Impressions:
Aurora
Aurora’s going up on my list of top ten lesbian protagonists. I love the impact she has on people, her selfless nature, and her willingness to help others even when she has her own schedule to keep. I adore goody two-shoe characters when there’s a reason for their altruistic behavior and not written just because the author wants you to like them. Noon did an excellent job with Aurora’s characterization and personality.
I love her banter with Evie, her will to protect her friends, and most of all, I love how unapologetic she is about wanting Evie even though she knows she shouldn’t get attached to her. She’s humble, protective, and loyal. There were two occasions when she made me cry and want to hug her. She deserves the world.
Evangeline “Evie” Aquilar
Evie is complicated. There are things I love about her and things that made me wonder, “Why’d you do that?” I guess that contributes to how well rounded she is because she’s definitely not a one-note naïve innocent princess. She’s observant, persistent, sarcastic but a bit inconsiderate about people’s feelings sometimes, which I chalk to her living among her people for most of her life so she doesn't know how to treat someone outside her group.
Aurora’s reason for not wanting to be with Evie makes complete sense. Evie’s reason for wanting to sleep with Aurora despite that reason? Not so much.Yeah, she’s afraid of what her people will think of her being with Aurora, but dammit Evie, when a woman tells you she wants you for life, you don’t say, “We can fuck but let’s just be friends.”
She makes up for this though and I love her dynamic with Aurora. They belong together.
Aurora’s going up on my list of top ten lesbian protagonists. I love the impact she has on people, her selfless nature, and her willingness to help others even when she has her own schedule to keep. I adore goody two-shoe characters when there’s a reason for their altruistic behavior and not written just because the author wants you to like them. Noon did an excellent job with Aurora’s characterization and personality.
I love her banter with Evie, her will to protect her friends, and most of all, I love how unapologetic she is about wanting Evie even though she knows she shouldn’t get attached to her. She’s humble, protective, and loyal. There were two occasions when she made me cry and want to hug her. She deserves the world.
Evangeline “Evie” Aquilar
Evie is complicated. There are things I love about her and things that made me wonder, “Why’d you do that?” I guess that contributes to how well rounded she is because she’s definitely not a one-note naïve innocent princess. She’s observant, persistent, sarcastic but a bit inconsiderate about people’s feelings sometimes, which I chalk to her living among her people for most of her life so she doesn't know how to treat someone outside her group.
Aurora’s reason for not wanting to be with Evie makes complete sense. Evie’s reason for wanting to sleep with Aurora despite that reason? Not so much.
She makes up for this though and I love her dynamic with Aurora. They belong together.
Minor Characters:
This is probably the first story I’ve read in a long while where every minor character has their own personality, motive, and lives. They have things going on and exist before the two heroines meet them. I absolutely love that. It makes the world feel lived in. Off the top of my head, I can name Lucky, Selene, Yutu, Raven, Marcus, Lord Agustus, Oriana, Lady Adeline, and Valen. There are more and each one is their own character.
Oriana is MVP sister of the year. Lady Adeline is the world’s #1 Okayest Mom; she’s not the best but she tries in her own way. Valen derserves #1 Dad of the Universe Award.
Oriana is MVP sister of the year. Lady Adeline is the world’s #1 Okayest Mom; she’s not the best but she tries in her own way. Valen derserves #1 Dad of the Universe Award.
Story Impressions:
It’s a fantasy with lesbian beast shifters. I came in expecting protective women who were territorial and wanted to claim mates. I got what I was expecting and enjoyed every minute of it.
I found the chemistry between Aurora and Evie to be believable and sweet. Because most of the story is traveling, I liked that their time together wasn’t just trauma bonding but actually getting to know one another, so it didn’t bother me they were ready to jump each other’s bones after a few days.
I only have one gripe about the story.I don’t think the villainous character who was the source of Aurora’s tragic past got enough karma. This is not a criticism of the story. I just wanted to revel in seeing the terror and regret in his eyes, hear him beg and scream for his life, when he had to face the woman he once thought was a helpless child. He destroyed her world and I was desperately waiting for the moment he got his comeuppance. I was highly disappointed I didn’t witness it firsthand. Does that sound sinister? Sure, but he was a despicable person who deserved it.
But other than that, the story was solid. The worldbuilding was great when it was interwoven into the narrative, a little less so when it was put in dialogue as expository information, however, when it was good, it made the world feel alive.
The author also knows how to show emotions but there were many times when it was told. Jaws clenching in anger, laughing until the smile reaches one’s eyes, those were all great when shown. It was a little harder to believe an emotion when a character simply stated it. Like I said however, when it’s shown, it’s phenomenal.
I found the chemistry between Aurora and Evie to be believable and sweet. Because most of the story is traveling, I liked that their time together wasn’t just trauma bonding but actually getting to know one another, so it didn’t bother me they were ready to jump each other’s bones after a few days.
I only have one gripe about the story.
But other than that, the story was solid. The worldbuilding was great when it was interwoven into the narrative, a little less so when it was put in dialogue as expository information, however, when it was good, it made the world feel alive.
The author also knows how to show emotions but there were many times when it was told. Jaws clenching in anger, laughing until the smile reaches one’s eyes, those were all great when shown. It was a little harder to believe an emotion when a character simply stated it. Like I said however, when it’s shown, it’s phenomenal.
Highlights:
- Highlight 1: The audiobook. Is it a surprise anymore how good Abby Craden is?
- Highlight 2: Main characters are together for 95% of the story.
- Highlight 3: That first declaration of love.
- Highlight 4: The sex scenes were steaming hot when they were on the page.
- Highlight 5: Protective mother threatening potential girlfriend not to break her daughter’s heart.
- Highlight 6: Lucky. Thank you for your service in attacking Evie so I could witness Aurora’s unnecessarily glorious healing method.
- Highlight 7: You’re-drunk-but-I-won’t-take-advantage-of-you scene.
- Highlight 8: Too-cold-let’s-use-our-body-heat-to-warm-up scene.
- Highlight 9: Supportive little sister.
- Highlight 10: Overly protective girlfriend-who-isn’t-my-girlfriend-yet.
- Highlight 11: Strong, confident women who break down and cry due to heartache are my weakness.
- Highlight 12: Lover-got-captured-gotta-rescue-her scene.
- Highlight 13: Lovely book cover.
My Personal Tags About the Book:
- Competent protagonists
- Narrative cohesion
- Territorial lesbians
- Possessive lesbians
- Beast shifter/winged shifter pairing
- Coming to the rescue
- Explicit sex scenes
- Only the love interest can calm her beast
- Happily-ever-after
- TW:
SA on a main character when she was a minor and attempted SA on a main character. This came out of nowhere, why did no one warn me?
Tangent:
TRIGGER WARNING
This is not part of the review. Just something I had to get off my chest and doesn’t affect my rating or thoughts about the book in any way.
I had to put the book down for a few days because the mental images conjured by this reveal hurt me down to my soul. When I found the courage to pick up the book again, it was Evie who went through an attempted r*pe not long after it was revealed what happened to Aurora. So again, I had to put the book down for another day.
I understand this is dark fantasy. I understand “dark” means the less pretty side of humanity will be explored, but it should be explored, as in done to make the reader think on the whys, purpose, or what it means for humans to act in such a manor. I don’t think it should be used as shock factor or glossed over as something that simply happened in a character’s past.
It’s a cruel world, yes, but it’s cruel because we know when the world is beautiful alongside the cruelty it can be contrasted from.
So if something as sensitive as r*pe is in the story, whether mentioned or on the page, then the healing process should be as well. The recovery, the survival, the will to continue and have peace should be as well. Why write only one side of the coin and not the other?
In a way, I have to contradict myself. I understand the traumatic event no longer holds power over Aurora because look at what a strong woman she grew up to be. And Evie had a moment to realize what would had happened to her had it not been stopped. But again, if something like SA is shown and not implied, then recovering from it should also be shown and not implied.
I know things like this can happen without rhyme or reason. The perpetrator can get away and no justice or recovery may be achieved in real life, but in fiction, it’s something the author is consciously choosing to put in the story. Whether it’s to point out how dark their world is or to condemn a heinous act, there is also a choice to write the characters overcoming it.
An author doesn’t have control over how a reader reacts to themes or events that take place in their book, so it doesn’t make sense to gatekeep what can and can’t be in a story. But if something as sensitive as r*pe and gang r*pe is in the story, please at least add trigger warnings beneath the book blurb, after the acknowledgements, or somewhere so the reader knows what to expect. I want to love books and recommend them, not be traumatized by them.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse and Rape
brookeadell's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Exceptional!! Loved this!! A debut novel????
The world building is incredible and vivid but not overdone, Noon sprinkles it in as you go so you’re not slogging through chapters of world building.
It is a friends to lovers slow burn (I guess you could say enemies to lovers in the sense of “our people are enemies” but I never felt animosity between Evie and Aurora and they aren’t ones to follow the status quo). The book moves at a pretty slow pace, Noon gives a lot of time for dialogue in each scene, which really built out the characters and their dynamics.
A lot of queer fantasy books write their dominant characters as very possessive and controlling, Noon managed to very eloquently write a dominant and possessive character, but without the toxic pieces. She writes characters that care about consent and respect boundaries in a way that doesn’t feel inauthentic.
The spice was so well written and I was surprised by how explicit Noon was able to make the scenes without using super vulgar language.
The only downside is the grammar, if you’re a stickler for it, you’ll struggle. It needed 100 more commas and page breaks often went forgotten when changing scenes, I would start reading the next paragraph and think “oh okay, moving on.” That being said, Noon did such an excellent job with this debut novel, I fell in love with these characters and the grammar didn’t seem worth knocking a star off.
Overall, highly recommend.
The world building is incredible and vivid but not overdone, Noon sprinkles it in as you go so you’re not slogging through chapters of world building.
It is a friends to lovers slow burn (I guess you could say enemies to lovers in the sense of “our people are enemies” but I never felt animosity between Evie and Aurora and they aren’t ones to follow the status quo). The book moves at a pretty slow pace, Noon gives a lot of time for dialogue in each scene, which really built out the characters and their dynamics.
A lot of queer fantasy books write their dominant characters as very possessive and controlling, Noon managed to very eloquently write a dominant and possessive character, but without the toxic pieces. She writes characters that care about consent and respect boundaries in a way that doesn’t feel inauthentic.
The spice was so well written and I was surprised by how explicit Noon was able to make the scenes without using super vulgar language.
The only downside is the grammar, if you’re a stickler for it, you’ll struggle. It needed 100 more commas and page breaks often went forgotten when changing scenes, I would start reading the next paragraph and think “oh okay, moving on.” That being said, Noon did such an excellent job with this debut novel, I fell in love with these characters and the grammar didn’t seem worth knocking a star off.
Overall, highly recommend.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Confinement, Gore, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual harassment, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Rape
motaki's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- 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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Rape, Torture, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Body horror, Child abuse, Gore, Death of parent, and Injury/Injury detail
banrions's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
iiiiiii wanted to like this more than i actually did, unfortunetly. i listened to the audiobook version narrated by abby craden and she did a wonderful job, and i will check out more of her narrations because she is great at bringing a story to life. but the actual story for me kinda just rubbed me the wrong way on a couple of points that i never quite managed to get over, i think.
i rlly enjoyed the first half or so of the book!! (nearly 10 hours into the audio!!!) but once aurora and evie started getting closer and more in a relationship... the less i liked it. which, was a bummer. one reason was just like, personal preference, and aurora as a character didn't quite click for me. i rlly liked evie, but aurora just had a lot of qualities that just aren't rlly my cup of tea. and, look, i get that this is literally a world of beast/animal shifters, they are gonna have anamalistic qualities, and playing around with that a bit is fun! but if this was a cishet couple instead of two women, iiiii would have been livid reading it.
aurora has a lot of moments once the two of them are sleeping together that like... come across as really manipulative and rubbed me the wrong way. there were a lot of like "if you don't let me do X, then i'm gonna lose my mind/go crazy/not be able to control myself/my beast etc." annnnnd, yeah, this is a fictional world of beast shifters! i get it! i enjoy playing around with sort of fucked up dynamics as much as the next person, tbh, but smth abt the way this came across, with aurora getting, RLLY territorial/like not even giving evie time to like, deal with a situation herself, or tell a dude off for flirting on her own, without aurora coming in hot and crazy just started to get on my nerves the more it happened. a lot of the language felt super manipulative. like, if there had been ONE scene, where evie was like... "you know, i had that right? you could have just been my backup if i asked for you to" instead, then i would have gotten over it entierly. but that never happened.
this was, again, more of a personal thing and it might not have come across that way for everyone but it kept happening and it annoyed me.
however, iiiiii RLLY took issue with the way there was suddenly child sexual violence just shoehorned in for no fucking reason. for context, there isn't anything graphic or explicit in the text, it's a reference to something that happened years ago to a character, but it felt totally unecessary and added on to a situation that was ALREADY really violent and traumatic, and it just... pissed me off. i really think rape and sexual violence should only be included in stories for a REASON, this... brought no value to the story, it was just more violence, more truama, to be sure we know "hey, this character is so truamatized but they're so good, don't you love them?" idk. it was kind of the last straw, for me.
i realize i'm being pretty negative on a story that i gave three stars to, which, is my average, "hey i mostly liked this book!" rating, and the thing is... this is a long book! i listened to over 20 hours, i liked a lot of things in it! i think the worldbuilding was rlly cool. i think the concept of the shifters was awesome, i actually do rlly like a lot of the shifter/anamalstic themes, i liked evie and her family a lot! i thought the relationship with aurora and her mother was so complex and interesting and fucked up a little and RIGHT up my mother/daughter feelings alley. i just had issues with a lot of things surrounding aurora and her characterization and narrative. and... that's a bummer, but it's not the end of the world. i'll probably at least check out what else the author does in the future, but i'm not keeping a lookout or anything.
i rlly enjoyed the first half or so of the book!! (nearly 10 hours into the audio!!!) but once aurora and evie started getting closer and more in a relationship... the less i liked it. which, was a bummer. one reason was just like, personal preference, and aurora as a character didn't quite click for me. i rlly liked evie, but aurora just had a lot of qualities that just aren't rlly my cup of tea. and, look, i get that this is literally a world of beast/animal shifters, they are gonna have anamalistic qualities, and playing around with that a bit is fun! but if this was a cishet couple instead of two women, iiiii would have been livid reading it.
aurora has a lot of moments once the two of them are sleeping together that like... come across as really manipulative and rubbed me the wrong way. there were a lot of like "if you don't let me do X, then i'm gonna lose my mind/go crazy/not be able to control myself/my beast etc." annnnnd, yeah, this is a fictional world of beast shifters! i get it! i enjoy playing around with sort of fucked up dynamics as much as the next person, tbh, but smth abt the way this came across, with aurora getting, RLLY territorial/like not even giving evie time to like, deal with a situation herself, or tell a dude off for flirting on her own, without aurora coming in hot and crazy just started to get on my nerves the more it happened. a lot of the language felt super manipulative. like, if there had been ONE scene, where evie was like... "you know, i had that right? you could have just been my backup if i asked for you to" instead, then i would have gotten over it entierly. but that never happened.
Spoiler
i'm especially talking abt the scene in the cafe where the wolf shifter was flirting with evie, and aurora literally almost murdered him. like, i think because there was SO MUCH build up of aurora being self-concious abt ppl reacting to her beasts, the narrative couldn't have evie even ONCE be like... "can you chill, i got this?" and that (for me) did a disservice to their relationship and kept annoying me the more it happened.however, iiiiii RLLY took issue with the way there was suddenly child sexual violence just shoehorned in for no fucking reason. for context, there isn't anything graphic or explicit in the text, it's a reference to something that happened years ago to a character, but it felt totally unecessary and added on to a situation that was ALREADY really violent and traumatic, and it just... pissed me off.
Spoiler
like, what the fuck? aurora was already kidnapped, tortured, watched her father be murdered and tortured and you're like, you know what, and ALSO a bunch of grown men raped an 11 year old to lure her father into a trap. that's... so fucking unecessary.i realize i'm being pretty negative on a story that i gave three stars to, which, is my average, "hey i mostly liked this book!" rating, and the thing is... this is a long book! i listened to over 20 hours, i liked a lot of things in it! i think the worldbuilding was rlly cool. i think the concept of the shifters was awesome, i actually do rlly like a lot of the shifter/anamalstic themes, i liked evie and her family a lot! i thought the relationship with aurora and her mother was so complex and interesting and fucked up a little and RIGHT up my mother/daughter feelings alley. i just had issues with a lot of things surrounding aurora and her characterization and narrative. and... that's a bummer, but it's not the end of the world. i'll probably at least check out what else the author does in the future, but i'm not keeping a lookout or anything.
Content Warnings
Minor: Child abuse, Rape, and Sexual violence
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