ashreads10k's review against another edition
4.0
When I first read Swoon, the book that precedes Swear, Nina Malkin hadn't planned on writing a sequel. So when Swear was announced, I was eager and excited, and did a lot of fan girlish squeeing. :D I have to say that Swear definitely lived up to my expectations.
For the a good portion of the beginning, Sin isn't there physically, but his presence in Dice's life--and her dreams--is unmistakable. But Dice is also getting close to a boy named Tosh, a member of the band Bruise Blue that Dice is the lead singer in. When Tosh and Dice get too close, the jealousy causes Sin to manifest, and, as ever, he brings chaos in his wake.
This was as good sequel to Swoon, although I liked Swoon better. I felt like the plot took a while to pick up, and the ending was a little anti-climactic. I enjoyed reading it, but one of my biggest peeves with Swear is that the paranormal elements seem kinda random. In Swoon, we know Dice is psychic. But in Swear, her powers become something more witchy, and then later on, the Roman gods just pop in out of nowhere. I wish there was a more definite mythology to it.
Sin is still a total sex god. Even though he's a douche sometimes, he's just way too irresistible. And in Swear, he's actually making an effort to be a good man, and to have a relationship with Dice. But that all gets complicated when an old acquaintance of Sin's comes back into the picture, and is determined to have him.
I still love Nina Malkin's writing style. I know some people aren't too fond of it, but I love her vivid and almost poetic way of writing. It gives the story a different edge to it.
If you're a die-hard fan of Swoon, then definitely pick up Swear. There's more Sin goodness to sigh contentedly over. But if you weren't too fond of Swoon, then you might not like Swear. Maybe give it a shot. 4 out of 5 stars.
For the a good portion of the beginning, Sin isn't there physically, but his presence in Dice's life--and her dreams--is unmistakable. But Dice is also getting close to a boy named Tosh, a member of the band Bruise Blue that Dice is the lead singer in. When Tosh and Dice get too close, the jealousy causes Sin to manifest, and, as ever, he brings chaos in his wake.
This was as good sequel to Swoon, although I liked Swoon better. I felt like the plot took a while to pick up, and the ending was a little anti-climactic. I enjoyed reading it, but one of my biggest peeves with Swear is that the paranormal elements seem kinda random. In Swoon, we know Dice is psychic. But in Swear, her powers become something more witchy, and then later on, the Roman gods just pop in out of nowhere. I wish there was a more definite mythology to it.
Sin is still a total sex god. Even though he's a douche sometimes, he's just way too irresistible. And in Swear, he's actually making an effort to be a good man, and to have a relationship with Dice. But that all gets complicated when an old acquaintance of Sin's comes back into the picture, and is determined to have him.
I still love Nina Malkin's writing style. I know some people aren't too fond of it, but I love her vivid and almost poetic way of writing. It gives the story a different edge to it.
If you're a die-hard fan of Swoon, then definitely pick up Swear. There's more Sin goodness to sigh contentedly over. But if you weren't too fond of Swoon, then you might not like Swear. Maybe give it a shot. 4 out of 5 stars.
bigdreamsandwildthings's review against another edition
4.0
I remember loving Swoon, so I really hoped Swear would live up to the standards I had. In most ways, it did; some characters that were added I found very annoying, but others were fun and it did bring back the fun atmosphere of the original. So, not as good as Swoon, but I'd still recommend it.
tiaeli02's review against another edition
2.0
Did. Not. Like. At. All.....The only reason I give this book 2 stars is because I physically cannot bear to give a book 1....I am disappointed, as I really enjoyed Swoon and when I bought this (truthfully a LONG time ago) I had high hopes for it. What a let down. The writing is disjointed and jumps all over the place and I think that 70-some odd pages in is more than enough to grab my attention. It did not. Humph. I really don't like abandoning a book, and it's rare that I do, but there was no hope for it. Too bad.
bibliophile_booklover's review against another edition
5.0
Well... I LOVED IT OF COURSE. i kept getting pissed of at antonia because she wouldn't go away. pardon my french( fucking bitch). anyway the thing i didn't like was how antonia ended. i'm happy dice and sin are together but i wanted my dramatics for it. still i recommend this book and the series to read.
madamemidazolam's review against another edition
2.0
I thought the whole talking to animals thing at the end was pointless.
Look out Eliza Thornberry! You have some competition!
Look out Eliza Thornberry! You have some competition!
beth_dawkins's review against another edition
3.0
The summer before Dice and her friends go to college Crane goes missing. His brother believes that it has something to do with the house. Dice hesitates to get into anything magic or other-worldly after Sin’s disappearance. Marsh, Crane’s girlfriend, and Dice’s best friend soon convince Dice to look at all the options. Looking into things brings ghosts back, and a world of trouble for Dice.
The first novel Swoon caught my eye because of its provocative nature. The truth is that teens are confronted with sex and drugs. It happens, and in these books it happens with rich kids too. These books do not go in to detail, but I am glad that these issues are there. It doesn’t fabricate the urges of the youth, but says yes, Dice wants Sin. That is one thing I have always liked about these novels.
I enjoy the nature of the book, and the scenery, but sometimes scenes are a little confusing. Dice can gush about one topic or another, but while she is gushing something very important will happen, and I will be thrown out. This happens more than once and left me a little confused, and not feeling any suspense for the scene.
Tosh is a new character introduced into the mix. He helps put together a band with Dice at the forefront. I loved how the music related with the story. It also bonded the characters closer to one another. The only thing that drove me nuts was how much Dice didn’t worry about Crane, instead all her worries were about Sin.
This novel has more ghosts in it than it ever did. One of those is the problem, Antonia. Antonia is a character that I felt pity for, but at the same time more than a little annoyance. She is a bad guy who doesn’t really know she is bad, which is for me, the best kind. Everything for Antonia is very tragic, and reminds me of a twisted tragic romance.
The story slowed a little for me towards the middle, but then picks up as does the music. There are some great scenes, but it doesn’t change the fact, that like Swoon I felt distanced from the characters. I don’t know if this is because I am not a teen, or due to the characters themselves. The story is neat, and I loved the ending, which I felt was worth it, but I want more out of these books. I want to feel something more from the characters, I am just not getting.
The story is neat, and it played out in a way I didn’t suspect. The paranormal in these books is where the novel shines for me, and it has definitely grown since Swoon. I believe that teens will enjoy it, but I don’t think it’s a book for everyone. It does make references to drugs and sex, but not in ways that I believe are crude, and it has actually toned down since the last novel. All-in-all I look forward to the future of these books.
The first novel Swoon caught my eye because of its provocative nature. The truth is that teens are confronted with sex and drugs. It happens, and in these books it happens with rich kids too. These books do not go in to detail, but I am glad that these issues are there. It doesn’t fabricate the urges of the youth, but says yes, Dice wants Sin. That is one thing I have always liked about these novels.
I enjoy the nature of the book, and the scenery, but sometimes scenes are a little confusing. Dice can gush about one topic or another, but while she is gushing something very important will happen, and I will be thrown out. This happens more than once and left me a little confused, and not feeling any suspense for the scene.
Tosh is a new character introduced into the mix. He helps put together a band with Dice at the forefront. I loved how the music related with the story. It also bonded the characters closer to one another. The only thing that drove me nuts was how much Dice didn’t worry about Crane, instead all her worries were about Sin.
This novel has more ghosts in it than it ever did. One of those is the problem, Antonia. Antonia is a character that I felt pity for, but at the same time more than a little annoyance. She is a bad guy who doesn’t really know she is bad, which is for me, the best kind. Everything for Antonia is very tragic, and reminds me of a twisted tragic romance.
The story slowed a little for me towards the middle, but then picks up as does the music. There are some great scenes, but it doesn’t change the fact, that like Swoon I felt distanced from the characters. I don’t know if this is because I am not a teen, or due to the characters themselves. The story is neat, and I loved the ending, which I felt was worth it, but I want more out of these books. I want to feel something more from the characters, I am just not getting.
The story is neat, and it played out in a way I didn’t suspect. The paranormal in these books is where the novel shines for me, and it has definitely grown since Swoon. I believe that teens will enjoy it, but I don’t think it’s a book for everyone. It does make references to drugs and sex, but not in ways that I believe are crude, and it has actually toned down since the last novel. All-in-all I look forward to the future of these books.
cocktailsandbooks1's review against another edition
1.0
I will admit, I didn't read the first book in the series, but I don't think that would have made a difference (other than maybe not reading this one).
Dice has spent the last six months missing the boy who stole her heart. She's not sure where he is or if he's coming back, but at times she can still feel him...especially when she's throwing herself into music. She dreams about him and the blue bruise he left on the inside of her thigh is still a tender reminder of him. But the disappearance of her best friend's boyfriend gives her something else to focus on.
While Dice and her friend's worry over the disappearance of Marsh's boyfriend, Dice finds herself the object of Tosh's interest. She can't discount her feelings for Sin, but he's not there so she figures she has to move on. Suddenly, with one kiss from Tosh, Dice's love life becomes a lot more complicated, as Sin reappears and is quite upset with Ms. Dice.
Dice soon enlists Sin to help her figure out where Crane is (since it's been determined that he was kidnapped by the ghosts in the house). The problem is, that causes Sin to become involved with a ghost from him past in hopes that Crane will be brought back to them.
To me, this story was a jumbled mess. I get that it was written for teenagers and at times, teenagers ramble and carry on but knowing teenagers act that way and having a story written like that was painful. Maybe if Pen has passed cig-a-weed to me, I would have had no problem following the flow of this book.
I'm pretty sure, that if it was discovered that some freaky ghost kidnapped my brother, friend, boyfriend (pick whichever one of those would apply) I would be seriously mad and out to get a little revenge. I certainly wouldn't be inviting the specter to come live with me or take her wedding dress shopping or any of the other things the "gang" did.
I'm also positive that had Sin been the love of my life, I certainly wouldn't go along with the little romance he had to have with the ghost (I can't even remember her name, isn't that sad??) in order to try and save Crane. It was all just a little too bizarre for me.
Too flightly, jumbled and nonsensical for me.
Dice has spent the last six months missing the boy who stole her heart. She's not sure where he is or if he's coming back, but at times she can still feel him...especially when she's throwing herself into music. She dreams about him and the blue bruise he left on the inside of her thigh is still a tender reminder of him. But the disappearance of her best friend's boyfriend gives her something else to focus on.
While Dice and her friend's worry over the disappearance of Marsh's boyfriend, Dice finds herself the object of Tosh's interest. She can't discount her feelings for Sin, but he's not there so she figures she has to move on. Suddenly, with one kiss from Tosh, Dice's love life becomes a lot more complicated, as Sin reappears and is quite upset with Ms. Dice.
Dice soon enlists Sin to help her figure out where Crane is (since it's been determined that he was kidnapped by the ghosts in the house). The problem is, that causes Sin to become involved with a ghost from him past in hopes that Crane will be brought back to them.
To me, this story was a jumbled mess. I get that it was written for teenagers and at times, teenagers ramble and carry on but knowing teenagers act that way and having a story written like that was painful. Maybe if Pen has passed cig-a-weed to me, I would have had no problem following the flow of this book.
I'm pretty sure, that if it was discovered that some freaky ghost kidnapped my brother, friend, boyfriend (pick whichever one of those would apply) I would be seriously mad and out to get a little revenge. I certainly wouldn't be inviting the specter to come live with me or take her wedding dress shopping or any of the other things the "gang" did.
I'm also positive that had Sin been the love of my life, I certainly wouldn't go along with the little romance he had to have with the ghost (I can't even remember her name, isn't that sad??) in order to try and save Crane. It was all just a little too bizarre for me.
Too flightly, jumbled and nonsensical for me.
freadomlibrary's review against another edition
2.0
Check out my series review here: https://freadomlibrary.wordpress.com/2016/06/10/series-review-swoon-duology-by-nina-malkin/
Critically
Plot – 2 out of 5 stars
I was so bored the entire time, it’s super drawn out, slow, just plain weird, uncomfortably graphic, flat, there’s a lot of plot holes, it deals with ghosts, goddesses and just inappropriate themes
Writing Style – 3 out of 5 stars
really long and dragged out, scattered and confusing, simple, descriptive, really strange and weird, lost the intensity, boring
Characters – 2 out of 5 stars
Yeah, this part of the book didn’t improve at all from the first book. Dice was still immature, still naive. Kind of meek and quiet. She’s trying to have a “normal” life after what happened in the first book which just puts her in a state of denial because her life isn’t normal and that’s just what she has to deal with. Her thought process was just annoying and I was bored. By her, by the story, and by the side characters. Sin was just bleh now. All the mystery and enigma of him is gone and he’s just another bland character. He’s rude and kind of sexist to be honest. He’s still manipulative but the mystery of it and the intriguing aspect is gone and I was bored out of my mind. The romance is completely unbelievable. I didn’t like it in the first book, it felt super unfounded and insta love like. So since the basis of this book is to reunite them, I wasn’t at all interested. And the new side characters introduced were bland and unnecessary and it dragged the plot on too long for no real reason.
Emotionally
I didn’t realize that this series could get worse or that I could be more disappointed, I was wrong. The first book has nothing on the clusterfuck that this one is.
The plot is boring, just plain boring. We follow Dice, six months after losing her virginity to Sin followed by his disappearance from her life. She’s trying her best to have a normal life, ignoring her abilities but that doesn’t really work out for her. The whole point of this book was to give the two main characters a happily ever after. Since I didn’t really care for the romance at all in the first book because it was awfully developed, that made this book long, boring and completely pointless. There’s so many crazy things that happen that I don’t really understand what the whole point of it is. A new ghost was introduced to create problems and tension. She kidnaps people and tears apart the romance and I just didn’t understand why it was necessary. Then she comes back to life to cause my problems. And then the main character has like a dream or a vision or something really freaking weird where she encounters a bunch of goddesses where they like grant her powers or help her accept her creepy powers. I still don’t even know what the hell that meant or what the point of it was. And then there was this part about a band. A group of the characters got together and made a band and played some gigs and I just don’t know. All these things mixed together and nothing really connected. And the worst part is that after all the trouble they went through did nothing to the ending! They ended up doing nothing at all to fix the situation in the end!
Dice was just plain boring. There’s nothing wrong with her, she actually kind of manages to get some of her shit together but only becomes she wants to be with Sin and I don’t think that’ s a good motivation to do anything. Just to be with a guy? Who died a bunch of years ago and possessed your cousin and killed some people? Like, come on. The new side characters were just convenient to have, so no one was left alone and things ended with a bow wrapped around it and I was not a fan.
Overall, I didn’t enjoy this series as much as I wanted to or as much as I expected to. The first book was okay, even if a little far fetched. The characters were bland and the romance wasn’t believable but the story was interesting. The second book was a waste. There was no need for it in the series, or to make it as long as it was. It was boring and pointless. I wouldn’t recommend this series.
Critically
Plot – 2 out of 5 stars
I was so bored the entire time, it’s super drawn out, slow, just plain weird, uncomfortably graphic, flat, there’s a lot of plot holes, it deals with ghosts, goddesses and just inappropriate themes
Writing Style – 3 out of 5 stars
really long and dragged out, scattered and confusing, simple, descriptive, really strange and weird, lost the intensity, boring
Characters – 2 out of 5 stars
Yeah, this part of the book didn’t improve at all from the first book. Dice was still immature, still naive. Kind of meek and quiet. She’s trying to have a “normal” life after what happened in the first book which just puts her in a state of denial because her life isn’t normal and that’s just what she has to deal with. Her thought process was just annoying and I was bored. By her, by the story, and by the side characters. Sin was just bleh now. All the mystery and enigma of him is gone and he’s just another bland character. He’s rude and kind of sexist to be honest. He’s still manipulative but the mystery of it and the intriguing aspect is gone and I was bored out of my mind. The romance is completely unbelievable. I didn’t like it in the first book, it felt super unfounded and insta love like. So since the basis of this book is to reunite them, I wasn’t at all interested. And the new side characters introduced were bland and unnecessary and it dragged the plot on too long for no real reason.
Emotionally
Spoiler
I was extremely and completely disappointed by this duology. I was excited to reread the first book but it wasn’t what I remembered and the second book didn’t help matters.I didn’t realize that this series could get worse or that I could be more disappointed, I was wrong. The first book has nothing on the clusterfuck that this one is.
The plot is boring, just plain boring. We follow Dice, six months after losing her virginity to Sin followed by his disappearance from her life. She’s trying her best to have a normal life, ignoring her abilities but that doesn’t really work out for her. The whole point of this book was to give the two main characters a happily ever after. Since I didn’t really care for the romance at all in the first book because it was awfully developed, that made this book long, boring and completely pointless. There’s so many crazy things that happen that I don’t really understand what the whole point of it is. A new ghost was introduced to create problems and tension. She kidnaps people and tears apart the romance and I just didn’t understand why it was necessary. Then she comes back to life to cause my problems. And then the main character has like a dream or a vision or something really freaking weird where she encounters a bunch of goddesses where they like grant her powers or help her accept her creepy powers. I still don’t even know what the hell that meant or what the point of it was. And then there was this part about a band. A group of the characters got together and made a band and played some gigs and I just don’t know. All these things mixed together and nothing really connected. And the worst part is that after all the trouble they went through did nothing to the ending! They ended up doing nothing at all to fix the situation in the end!
Dice was just plain boring. There’s nothing wrong with her, she actually kind of manages to get some of her shit together but only becomes she wants to be with Sin and I don’t think that’ s a good motivation to do anything. Just to be with a guy? Who died a bunch of years ago and possessed your cousin and killed some people? Like, come on. The new side characters were just convenient to have, so no one was left alone and things ended with a bow wrapped around it and I was not a fan.
Overall, I didn’t enjoy this series as much as I wanted to or as much as I expected to. The first book was okay, even if a little far fetched. The characters were bland and the romance wasn’t believable but the story was interesting. The second book was a waste. There was no need for it in the series, or to make it as long as it was. It was boring and pointless. I wouldn’t recommend this series.
pegahe's review against another edition
2.0
*Mini-review, just for Goodreads. This was written on my phone so U apologize for any mistakes.*
I seem to be rating books pretty low these days, at least compared to even six months ago. that's because my standards have changed. A 3 star book must be a book that I liked. A two star book is a book that I didn't like, but also didn't hate.
My thoughts on Swear can be summed up in one sentence: it just wasn't right for me.
The writing I couldn't get into at all. I often reread several scenes in the beginning because I thought I missed something. By the end I gave up. The writing style isn't to my tastes. It distracted me from the scenes so that the book had terrible flow, plus I just couldn't believe it. The language was super casual at times, resembling what I'd hear at school, and then all of a sudden these big words would be put in, completely confusing me. How does someone near my age talk like that? I've been told to have a good vocabulary just because I said "the deceased" instead of "the dead dude." I appreciate a good vocabulary (seriously, I memorize some words just cause they sound cool) but due to previous experiences, I wasn't buying Dice's.
That was another issue. Not buying into the plot. The end ended up perfect. After all this time spent bemoaning the villain, and how she's so strong it's impossible to stop her we get that as an ending? I'm not satisfied. I feel like there is actual substance in the story line and it might be quite interesting if I bothered to dig deep and stuff. But I'm a lazy reader who just finished exam week. Entertainment is all I really want.
On to the characters... I'll just talk about Sin and Dice, starting with Sin.
(Completely random, but I did my math exam a few days ago and couldn't stop reading "Sin" as Sine. Which isn't a very delicious name.)
I remember liking Sin at some point in Swoon. I remember wishing for Sin to show up to being some flavour to Swear. I don't remember being so bored with him. He was so contrary and... well, Dice always says how he always gives in to impulse. But then we see stuff like he resists the urge to slap/run away from someone. And you always saw him being so good, so why the heck does she call him a demon? He flirts with everyone and Dice doesn't care at all. Except he cares when she flirts. I didn't buy into the love either. Or the fact that he's so charismatic. It's practically shoved down the reader's throat all the ways Sin is amazing, but there doesn't seem to be enough evidence to prove that. He didn't attract me so I missed out on the whole desparity in the situation.
Dice herself isn't the kind of character I like. She's sassy, but I can't stand her attitude sometimes. Like the fact that she often makes jokes about the native "Swoonies" and feels better for being different that way. Stuff like that always manages to annoy the heck out of me, even if it happens only once or twice. Being is awesome, but you.should own it. Not feel in any way superior to everyone else because you're so different and special. Rant aside, I realize what an annoying nitpicky reader I was while reading Swear, so I'll wrap up this paragraph and say I never connected with Dice, nor did I particularly like her.
If I didn't like so much stuff, why was this book not a DNF? I'm not entirely sure. I constantly thought about putting it down when I realized it would never appeal to me. But then I'd look at the stunning cover, or I'd be interested in some examples of Sin's charms. Something would make me continue. I think if this is your kind of book, you'll love it. Really, if you really liked Swoon, be sure to read Swear. If you were a meh on Swoon like me, you might also feel blah about Swear so I'm not sure I recommend reading it.
There's nothing I hated about the book, but I also didn't think it was executed very well either. All in all,my lesson learned is to put a paper bag over the cover of the book I'm reading so it doesn't influence me to read something I'm not interested in. And that I probably won't read the sequel because this was not my kind of read. 2 stars.
**
(That was the longest mini review I've ever done. I guess I have a lot to say about books that don't appeal to me :p )
I seem to be rating books pretty low these days, at least compared to even six months ago. that's because my standards have changed. A 3 star book must be a book that I liked. A two star book is a book that I didn't like, but also didn't hate.
My thoughts on Swear can be summed up in one sentence: it just wasn't right for me.
The writing I couldn't get into at all. I often reread several scenes in the beginning because I thought I missed something. By the end I gave up. The writing style isn't to my tastes. It distracted me from the scenes so that the book had terrible flow, plus I just couldn't believe it. The language was super casual at times, resembling what I'd hear at school, and then all of a sudden these big words would be put in, completely confusing me. How does someone near my age talk like that? I've been told to have a good vocabulary just because I said "the deceased" instead of "the dead dude." I appreciate a good vocabulary (seriously, I memorize some words just cause they sound cool) but due to previous experiences, I wasn't buying Dice's.
That was another issue. Not buying into the plot. The end ended up perfect. After all this time spent bemoaning the villain, and how she's so strong it's impossible to stop her we get that as an ending? I'm not satisfied. I feel like there is actual substance in the story line and it might be quite interesting if I bothered to dig deep and stuff. But I'm a lazy reader who just finished exam week. Entertainment is all I really want.
On to the characters... I'll just talk about Sin and Dice, starting with Sin.
(Completely random, but I did my math exam a few days ago and couldn't stop reading "Sin" as Sine. Which isn't a very delicious name.)
I remember liking Sin at some point in Swoon. I remember wishing for Sin to show up to being some flavour to Swear. I don't remember being so bored with him. He was so contrary and... well, Dice always says how he always gives in to impulse. But then we see stuff like he resists the urge to slap/run away from someone. And you always saw him being so good, so why the heck does she call him a demon? He flirts with everyone and Dice doesn't care at all. Except he cares when she flirts. I didn't buy into the love either. Or the fact that he's so charismatic. It's practically shoved down the reader's throat all the ways Sin is amazing, but there doesn't seem to be enough evidence to prove that. He didn't attract me so I missed out on the whole desparity in the situation.
Dice herself isn't the kind of character I like. She's sassy, but I can't stand her attitude sometimes. Like the fact that she often makes jokes about the native "Swoonies" and feels better for being different that way. Stuff like that always manages to annoy the heck out of me, even if it happens only once or twice. Being is awesome, but you.should own it. Not feel in any way superior to everyone else because you're so different and special. Rant aside, I realize what an annoying nitpicky reader I was while reading Swear, so I'll wrap up this paragraph and say I never connected with Dice, nor did I particularly like her.
If I didn't like so much stuff, why was this book not a DNF? I'm not entirely sure. I constantly thought about putting it down when I realized it would never appeal to me. But then I'd look at the stunning cover, or I'd be interested in some examples of Sin's charms. Something would make me continue. I think if this is your kind of book, you'll love it. Really, if you really liked Swoon, be sure to read Swear. If you were a meh on Swoon like me, you might also feel blah about Swear so I'm not sure I recommend reading it.
There's nothing I hated about the book, but I also didn't think it was executed very well either. All in all,my lesson learned is to put a paper bag over the cover of the book I'm reading so it doesn't influence me to read something I'm not interested in. And that I probably won't read the sequel because this was not my kind of read. 2 stars.
**
(That was the longest mini review I've ever done. I guess I have a lot to say about books that don't appeal to me :p )