Scan barcode
whateveryoneelseisreading's review against another edition
3.0
I received an ARC of this book thanks to NetGalley and publisher Head of Zeus in exchange for an honest review.
I cannot believe there is a new House of Night book in 2020. When I saw this was on NetGalley, I was HYPED. I read every single one of these books back in the day in all of their glorious insanity. This series is the absolute definition of guilty pleasure and I didn't realise how much I missed being baffled by it.
So Loved is the first in a new trilogy, set one year after the first 12 books. Zoey is now turning 18 (that's right, everything happened to her before she was 18!) and things are not quite right with the universe. EITHER universe.
Oh yes that's right, there are parallel worlds in this. And zombies! And a whole bunch of other insane plot elements I wouldn't dare spoil. All of the expected characters are here and even a few unexpected ones. If you enjoyed the previous House of Night books then this is much of the same and it continues the story well. It was a very entertaining read and I couldn't put it down. Do I think these books are great examples of quality writing? Honestly no. But I'm never bored reading them and that's worth something.
Sadly it would not be fair to mention some of the explicit negatives. Pop culture references are toned down massively from the first series but there are 5 on the very first page which is a LOT in quick succession. There is also a fair amount of questionable content, both in terms of jokes and actual patterns that show up. The black girl must keep talking about how sassy and black she is (I am not black myself but this stood out as a yikes to me), calling herself 'brown sugar'. Two lesbians discuss about magically making straight girls lesbians and it's implied they took advantage of that. Damien is a gay guy who is revealed later to have depression and, presumably as a result, he cries. A lot. Like every time he shows up. Male characters crying is 100% fine but when the gay guy is the only one who cries, this has unfortunate implications attached.
All in all, this is a solid continuation of the series. Is it perfect? No, but none of them were ever perfect. Did I enjoy reading it? Absolutely. For better or for worse, these books hold a morbid fascination for me and I will definitely be carrying on with this new series.
Overall Rating: 3.5/5 stars
I cannot believe there is a new House of Night book in 2020. When I saw this was on NetGalley, I was HYPED. I read every single one of these books back in the day in all of their glorious insanity. This series is the absolute definition of guilty pleasure and I didn't realise how much I missed being baffled by it.
So Loved is the first in a new trilogy, set one year after the first 12 books. Zoey is now turning 18 (that's right, everything happened to her before she was 18!) and things are not quite right with the universe. EITHER universe.
Oh yes that's right, there are parallel worlds in this. And zombies! And a whole bunch of other insane plot elements I wouldn't dare spoil. All of the expected characters are here and even a few unexpected ones. If you enjoyed the previous House of Night books then this is much of the same and it continues the story well. It was a very entertaining read and I couldn't put it down. Do I think these books are great examples of quality writing? Honestly no. But I'm never bored reading them and that's worth something.
Sadly it would not be fair to mention some of the explicit negatives. Pop culture references are toned down massively from the first series but there are 5 on the very first page which is a LOT in quick succession. There is also a fair amount of questionable content, both in terms of jokes and actual patterns that show up. The black girl must keep talking about how sassy and black she is (I am not black myself but this stood out as a yikes to me), calling herself 'brown sugar'. Two lesbians discuss about magically making straight girls lesbians and it's implied they took advantage of that. Damien is a gay guy who is revealed later to have depression and, presumably as a result, he cries. A lot. Like every time he shows up. Male characters crying is 100% fine but when the gay guy is the only one who cries, this has unfortunate implications attached.
All in all, this is a solid continuation of the series. Is it perfect? No, but none of them were ever perfect. Did I enjoy reading it? Absolutely. For better or for worse, these books hold a morbid fascination for me and I will definitely be carrying on with this new series.
Overall Rating: 3.5/5 stars
elisweets's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
sad
tense
fast-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
3.75
I really enjoyed this update to the HoN series. I do appreciate the lack of repitition in this one compared to the original series. Everytime Grandma Redbird says Uwetsiageya, we don't need to hear it's the Cherokee word for daughter lol.
This novel did feel a tiny bit rushed... Like it felt too fast paced, and too out there (even for this series) but definitely left me interested in what else will happen
This novel did feel a tiny bit rushed... Like it felt too fast paced, and too out there (even for this series) but definitely left me interested in what else will happen
scientist_reading_world's review against another edition
3.0
It is always good to comeback to the House of Night world but this book leaves the felling of closing the story more than opening for a new story. the closer for damien learning more about his past and the close for Aphrodite was very good. Now let see what P.C and Kristin Cast will give us in the next 3 books
morganschmidt55's review against another edition
4.0
“You have no reason to show shame. Sometimes our spirit weeps. When it does you must work at comforting it, and then healing it.”
I'm not sure how I feel about this book. I was genuinely so confused the entire time and yet enjoyed it? Why did we need an. It will be interesting to see where the Casts take this new spin-off series.
I'm not sure how I feel about this book. I was genuinely so confused the entire time and yet enjoyed it? Why did we need an
Spoiler
alternate universe with the same characters and flesh-eating Vampyres? I may never know. What I do know is that I love Other Jack and Damian getting back together, but I hate that I know Heath is going to make a come-back (can we seriously just LEAVE HEATH BE and appreciate how wonderful Stark is?).nikkifantasea's review against another edition
5.0
As the title of this book would suggest, I absolutely loved it all! Strengthening my love for old characters and sprouting love for new ones as well.
emily_claire11's review against another edition
This was my favorite series as a teen and I bought this book several years ago thinking I would enjoy the nostalgia of it, but it was too cringey and I didn't want to taint my experience of the series as I enjoyed it in my teen years. I'm sure it's a fun book but I couldn't put myself through it. Especially with the "awesomesauce" drops in the same sentence lol
paperheartsink's review against another edition
3.0
Loved is the first book in a new trilogy in the House of Night series. I haven’t read any of the other books and so it took a few chapters to get into the story and familiarise myself with the characters. I would recommend having read at least some of the other books before reading this as there are so many references to what happens in the earlier books that I found it quite confusing.
It was a fast paced read with lots of action and banter. The characters did feel a little young for their age at times. (Or perhaps I’m just a bit too old to enjoy the writing style) At times the dialogue was cringe-y and felt quite disjointed. It was obvious that the book was written by two different people. One minute the language was very modern with lots of slang and the next it was old fashioned.
I did enjoy the interesting take on vampires and magic and I liked the importance of friendship as a theme throughout the book. The ‘Nerd Herd’ were a tight knit group and knew each other very well, which was nice, but because the relationship building between them has already been done, I found I just couldn’t connect with the characters like I wanted to.
Actual rating 2.5 stars
Many thanks to Head of Zeus for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.
It was a fast paced read with lots of action and banter. The characters did feel a little young for their age at times. (Or perhaps I’m just a bit too old to enjoy the writing style) At times the dialogue was cringe-y and felt quite disjointed. It was obvious that the book was written by two different people. One minute the language was very modern with lots of slang and the next it was old fashioned.
I did enjoy the interesting take on vampires and magic and I liked the importance of friendship as a theme throughout the book. The ‘Nerd Herd’ were a tight knit group and knew each other very well, which was nice, but because the relationship building between them has already been done, I found I just couldn’t connect with the characters like I wanted to.
Actual rating 2.5 stars
Many thanks to Head of Zeus for the review copy in exchange for an honest review.
justrosaelena's review against another edition
5.0
It felt great reading about the nerd heard again. Zoey and her friends encounter a new problem after a year from being Neferet-free. Readers find out about how each of the characters have changed within the year. I am extremely proud of Aphrodite's development. P.C. and Kristen cast picked things up right where their last HON adventure ended, so there is no confusion if you have read every HON novel.
booksushi's review against another edition
3.0
i very much enjoyed this book. nice continuation of the series, looking forward to seeing more character development, but was disappointed to see how Zoey is still clinging for Heath. I thought she would have matured and put that behind her.....