just_one_more_paige's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
The second to last book. This spur of the moment, vacation-inspired, three-month-long, paranormal romance binge is almost at its close.
We get another Arrow story in this fourteenth book. Our male MC is Aden, the Arrow leader and, up until now, very mysterious character. Although he has the loyalty of all the major Arrows, we don’t know a lot about him or his power individually (though it’s been hinted he’s more than he seems). And our female lead is Zaira, another Arrow, and one who we haven’t seen much of until now, other than knowing that she leads the compound where Arrows who managed to escape Ming’s “elimination” protocols are being hidden. This novel opens with Aden and Zaira being separately kidnapped and waking up disoriented, separated from the PsyNet, and chipped, in a remote bunker. As they work together to both escape and track down the perpetrators, they reveal an insidious and far-reaching conspiracy threatening the fragile peace the world has found in the wake of the fall of Silence. They must work to both lead the charge against that invisible external enemy, in addition to the internal threats to the Arrows themselves, as they try to overcome decades of conditioning against feelings and emotion, a fight that Aden and Zaira face between themselves as well.
This is clearly the first part in what I would call a dual episode finale, if it was a tv show. All the major characters we’ve been introduced throughout the series are starting to come together, as the barriers between and amongst species are starting to come down. And that budding cooperation and communication is put to an extreme test with a newly introduced destabilizing force – one that most of this book is dedicated to uncovering. I enjoyed seeing the ways these nascent connections managed to stand up against the threat – open communication is such a balm, in any situation. This was also much more a mystery/thriller than some of the other books, as a result of all the data gathering and sharing as the perpetrators were tracked. A different sort of vibe, but one that fit the moment in the series, developmentally, and allowed the space and opportunity for everyone to start coming together. Relatedly, the way the Aden works to bring species together to support the rehabilitation of the Arrows, emotionally/socially, is deeply satisfying and made my heart smile (and ache a bit). It was a great way to show that diverse groups can come together in harmonious ways, in addition to when they in danger/tragedy.
As for Aden and Zaira, I liked them for their past and their story and their vulnerabilities/needs, they were a wonderful pairing in so many ways. They showed how much the outwardly strong need their own support systems (the circumstances of their meeting, the growth of their relationships, and the weight of both of their “childhoods” are deeply painful to read, so content warning for quite a bit of child abuse) for healing and recovery, which was great. But in comparison to many of the other couples from previous books, they just weren’t a favorite. I think in part it was because, since they were both Arrows, the “thawing” period was more complex, and both were high up in the command structure, which made it hard for there to be too many sexy scenes. Plus, considering how much else was going on (and what all was being set up for the finale), there wasn’t a lot of room for it here either. Overall, this was such a macro story that the micro got less attention. And that totally made sense under the circumstances, and I was/am invested enough at this point to want to see how this series wraps up regardless, duh. But this wasn’t one that had my heart racing or my palms getting sweaty or anything.
This was definitely more of a set-up story than anything else, and as such was a bit all over. That being said, the pacing for the unfolding of the events was solid and the plot aspects did keep my attention. Plus, I really am totally here for the Arrows and their efforts for a better future for themselves – I’ve developed a major soft spot for them all – so I am glad we’re getting a full wrap-up and trajectory re-setting for them. Basically, this book did what it needed to and got me prepped, so I am ready for a full jump into the finale.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Addiction, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Suicide
now_booking's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
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
3.0
I am a huge fan of this series, especially the last few books. And I absolutely love Aden and related to Zaira’s possessiveness, but this to me dragged a little at times. I think the issue is that it was too many people’s story and it was ambitious in taking on themes of the change happening in society across Psy, Changeling, Human and other interests. There was so much world building and social order revising going on, that parts of this were kind of too all-over-the-place and unfocused for my taste. I think someone who loves the intricacies of great world building and context setting will probably enjoy this a lot more than I did. For me, it felt like EVERYONE was getting assassination attempts, everyone was a protagonist, everyone’s story was getting told and sometimes it felt like the essence of Aden and Zaira was lost. This author does a great ensemble cast romance but for me, this one was a little scattered and about too many things and too many people. I lacked an anchor and wasn’t as invested as I have been in recent books. I loved Zaira and Aden, but they often felt a little out of focus in this book. Whenever they were the focus, this book shown- in terms of their relationship, their willingness to be vulnerable and the sheer protective emotion Zaira had for Aden, this was perfection. But because this book was about so many things, the momentum of their relationship was often a little lost in all the voices and perspectives of the storytelling. I know there’s a joint ensemble-focus book coming up and after reading this one, I worry about how I’m going to like that. Still like this series though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Addiction, Blood, Child abuse, Confinement, Death, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Physical abuse, Torture, and Violence
Minor: Rape, Sexual assault, and Stalking
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