the_nook_of_tomes's review
4.0
This was a short but sweet book in the demon trappers series. It was a 4 star read for me. I enjoyed the plot and change of scenery in this novella. The development of the grand masters and understanding just how few there are was compelling. I enjoyed how much Beck has grown up and how far he has come from the first book. Beck has been troubled and complicated for most of the series and it was good to see him settled and how maturely he handled the challenges presented in this novella. Riley continues to mature into a strong young woman who can overcome whatever challenge is thrown at her. I did like how Riley was faced with self doubt and how she found the inner strength to overcome this and realise that it was due to something more complex. The plot felt a bit rushed however that is always the case with such short novellas.
This book also contained two short stories, one for Beck set 3 years before the first book. I loved seeing a young novice apprentice Beck. Seeing the parallels between his apprentice days and Riley's shows how they are two peas in one pod!
Riley's short story was also a flashback story about her first solo trapping job. The girl can't catch a break with Biblio fiends! It took more of the comedic tones that subtely run through this series. Both short stories were fun little snippets into the protanganists' pasts.
This book also contained two short stories, one for Beck set 3 years before the first book. I loved seeing a young novice apprentice Beck. Seeing the parallels between his apprentice days and Riley's shows how they are two peas in one pod!
Riley's short story was also a flashback story about her first solo trapping job. The girl can't catch a break with Biblio fiends! It took more of the comedic tones that subtely run through this series. Both short stories were fun little snippets into the protanganists' pasts.
laurenraithel's review
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
kitvaria_sarene's review
3.0
While I really loved the three main books I read, this novella was quite a let down.
It was riddled with errors - missing words like "to" at least 20 times in the short novella. I wonder if it was even proofread - not even talking about an editor...
The word "guy" is used 58 times. It feels like every other sentence is "her guy" or something of the like.
Beck behaves like a real douchebag. If any man treated me like that, I would wish them good riddance.
The whole love story between the two felt completely off in this one - and I wanted to strangle them both, but especially Beck most of the way through. If ONE problem will have the whole relationship on unstable ground, it might not be meant to be...
Riley felt quite weak and like a damsel in distress... Instead of kicking ass herself she would most of the time sit around helpless and wait to be saved by her guy.
I really hope book 5 will be as good as the first ones again!
It was riddled with errors - missing words like "to" at least 20 times in the short novella. I wonder if it was even proofread - not even talking about an editor...
The word "guy" is used 58 times. It feels like every other sentence is "her guy" or something of the like.
Beck behaves like a real douchebag. If any man treated me like that, I would wish them good riddance.
The whole love story between the two felt completely off in this one - and I wanted to strangle them both, but especially Beck most of the way through. If ONE problem will have the whole relationship on unstable ground, it might not be meant to be...
Riley felt quite weak and like a damsel in distress... Instead of kicking ass herself she would most of the time sit around helpless and wait to be saved by her guy.
I really hope book 5 will be as good as the first ones again!
linedalbro's review
5.0
Demon Trapper, Riley Blackthorne frequently battles with Hell's minions. So when se travels to Scotland to meet up with her hunky boyfriend, and celebrate her eighteenth birthday, she's thrilled at the chance to leave Atlante and its troubles behind. Denver Beck, who has been studying for months to become a Grand Master - a rare and highly dengerous job - is just as eager to see his girl. He's anticipation a romantic reunion, keen to take their relationship to the next level. But Riley's twisted history with Hell has garnered unwelcome interest by people willing to use her for their own purposes. Trouble is brewing in the land of the heather, the kind that will drive a wedge between her and Beck, and prove the ultimate test of their love ... and their survival skills.
Spoilers ahead - så er du advaret!
Riley glæder sig til at gense Beck efter flere måneder hvor de har været adskilt. Selvom hun har travlt med at oplære nye dæmonfanger-lærlinge og skolen, savner hun alligevel sin kæreste helt vildt, men den romantiske start på turen, hvor Beck ville hente hende i lufthavnen, kommer skidt fra start. For Beck er der ikke til at hente hende i lufthavnen! Hun bliver i stedet hente af en anden dæmonfangere - eller det tror hun i hvert fald. Pludselig befinder hun sig i situation som kræver al hendes styrke og mod for at komme ud af i live.
Beck glæder sig også til at gense Riley, men han er pludselig blevet syg, så han kan ikke hente Riley i lufthavnen. Da han finder ud af at nogle har kidnappet hende i lufthavnen skynder han sig afsted for at finde hende. Han havde - ligesom Riley - håbet af få nogle dage uden dæmoner, blod og død, men desværre har skæbnen andre planer.
Riley klarer dog - som sædvanelig - sig selv, men det er ikke uden men. Pludselig er hun ekstra opmærksom på alt omkring hende, selv hendes tillid til Beck er ikke hvad den har været. Han forsøger at være støttende og forstående, men hun skubber ham væk og da han stiller det spørgsmål hun havde håbet på han ville stille, er hun pludselig i tvivl og siger nej. Dette frustrerer Beck mere end noget andet og han ved ikke om de kan komme tilbage efter det.
Som et sidste forsøg på at finde ud af hvad der er galt, tager Beck Riley med til det gods hvor han er ved at uddanne sig til Stor Mester. Her håber at de andre Stor Mestre kan hjælpe med til at løse gåden om Rileys pludselige adfærdsændring og da svaret endelig står klart for ham, er Riley igen i fare og denne gang kan hun risikere at miste livet, hvis ikke han når frem i tiden og selv hvis han gør, er Riley nødt til at finde sin indre styrke og turde gøre noget hun ikke havde troet var muligt.
Vil Beck få chance for at stille sit store spørgsmål én gang til - og hvad vil Riley svare hvis han gør?
Og en lille bonus info - vi får Beck at se i kilt i denne historie!! Oh yearh...
Riley cupped his face, inhaling his aftershave.
"I thought you were awesome before, but now you're just..."
She sighed. "You are sooo handsome, Den."
Denne lille novelle slutter på fineste vis fortællingen om Riley og Beck (jeg har dog hørt rygter om at der skulle komme mere....!!). Novellen er bygget op som de andre bøger, man skifter synspunkt mellem Riley og Beck og der er masser af aktion, drama og kærlighed. For nu troede vi som læsere jo lige at det hele bare skulle være godt, men nej, det kære par skal igennem endnu flere prøvelser for at få hinanden.
Det er virkelig hjerteskærende at læse hvordan både Riley og Beck reagerer da hun siger nej, og det knuste virkelig mit hjerte, for det hele var bare så smukt, men det skulle ikke være, og selvom de begge to prøver at håndtere det, lykkedes det ikke. De fornemmer begge to at noget er ændret og de frygter begge at det nu er for sent. Heldigvis finder de dog hinanden igen - jeg siger ikke hvordan og jeg siger heller ikke om Beck for chancen igen, for det skal I som læsere selv finde ud af.
Jeg elsker stadig denne serie og selvom jeg synes denne bog afrunder fortællingen godt, er jeg stadig ikke klar til at sige farvel til dem, så jeg håber meget på en efterfølger!
Til sidst i denne bog er der også to endnu korte fortællinger. Nemlig fortællingerne om hvordan Beck klarede sin første niveau 3 dæmon, som bestemt ikke var nogen nem opgave og fortællingen om hvordan Riley klarede sin første solo mission.
Spoilers ahead - så er du advaret!
Riley glæder sig til at gense Beck efter flere måneder hvor de har været adskilt. Selvom hun har travlt med at oplære nye dæmonfanger-lærlinge og skolen, savner hun alligevel sin kæreste helt vildt, men den romantiske start på turen, hvor Beck ville hente hende i lufthavnen, kommer skidt fra start. For Beck er der ikke til at hente hende i lufthavnen! Hun bliver i stedet hente af en anden dæmonfangere - eller det tror hun i hvert fald. Pludselig befinder hun sig i situation som kræver al hendes styrke og mod for at komme ud af i live.
Beck glæder sig også til at gense Riley, men han er pludselig blevet syg, så han kan ikke hente Riley i lufthavnen. Da han finder ud af at nogle har kidnappet hende i lufthavnen skynder han sig afsted for at finde hende. Han havde - ligesom Riley - håbet af få nogle dage uden dæmoner, blod og død, men desværre har skæbnen andre planer.
Riley klarer dog - som sædvanelig - sig selv, men det er ikke uden men. Pludselig er hun ekstra opmærksom på alt omkring hende, selv hendes tillid til Beck er ikke hvad den har været. Han forsøger at være støttende og forstående, men hun skubber ham væk og da han stiller det spørgsmål hun havde håbet på han ville stille, er hun pludselig i tvivl og siger nej. Dette frustrerer Beck mere end noget andet og han ved ikke om de kan komme tilbage efter det.
Som et sidste forsøg på at finde ud af hvad der er galt, tager Beck Riley med til det gods hvor han er ved at uddanne sig til Stor Mester. Her håber at de andre Stor Mestre kan hjælpe med til at løse gåden om Rileys pludselige adfærdsændring og da svaret endelig står klart for ham, er Riley igen i fare og denne gang kan hun risikere at miste livet, hvis ikke han når frem i tiden og selv hvis han gør, er Riley nødt til at finde sin indre styrke og turde gøre noget hun ikke havde troet var muligt.
Vil Beck få chance for at stille sit store spørgsmål én gang til - og hvad vil Riley svare hvis han gør?
Og en lille bonus info - vi får Beck at se i kilt i denne historie!! Oh yearh...
Riley cupped his face, inhaling his aftershave.
"I thought you were awesome before, but now you're just..."
She sighed. "You are sooo handsome, Den."
Denne lille novelle slutter på fineste vis fortællingen om Riley og Beck (jeg har dog hørt rygter om at der skulle komme mere....!!). Novellen er bygget op som de andre bøger, man skifter synspunkt mellem Riley og Beck og der er masser af aktion, drama og kærlighed. For nu troede vi som læsere jo lige at det hele bare skulle være godt, men nej, det kære par skal igennem endnu flere prøvelser for at få hinanden.
Det er virkelig hjerteskærende at læse hvordan både Riley og Beck reagerer da hun siger nej, og det knuste virkelig mit hjerte, for det hele var bare så smukt, men det skulle ikke være, og selvom de begge to prøver at håndtere det, lykkedes det ikke. De fornemmer begge to at noget er ændret og de frygter begge at det nu er for sent. Heldigvis finder de dog hinanden igen - jeg siger ikke hvordan og jeg siger heller ikke om Beck for chancen igen, for det skal I som læsere selv finde ud af.
Jeg elsker stadig denne serie og selvom jeg synes denne bog afrunder fortællingen godt, er jeg stadig ikke klar til at sige farvel til dem, så jeg håber meget på en efterfølger!
Til sidst i denne bog er der også to endnu korte fortællinger. Nemlig fortællingerne om hvordan Beck klarede sin første niveau 3 dæmon, som bestemt ikke var nogen nem opgave og fortællingen om hvordan Riley klarede sin første solo mission.
roseanswers's review
3.0
*
It's so sad to witness a series you are invested in, take a turn for the worse.
*sigh*
When i first started this series, i had very low expectations. I actually started reading the first book a little over a year ago, then DNF'ed it at like 10%. This isn't for me, i decided. Too complicated and not nearly as exciting as it sounded, but then i decided to pick it up again in August, and oh boy, was i in for a treat.
I won't go into anymore details. You can read my full review [b:Forsaken|8534899|Forsaken (The Demon Trappers, #1)|Jana Oliver|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1282919119s/8534899.jpg|13402207] (and [b:Forbidden|10308452|Forbidden (The Demon Trappers, #2)|Jana Oliver|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1307459509s/10308452.jpg|21902147], [b:Forgiven|11987465|Forgiven (The Demon Trappers, #3)|Jana Oliver|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1441311880s/11987465.jpg|21902173] and[b:Foretold|13487029|Foretold (The Demon Trappers, #4)|Jana Oliver|https://d.gr-assets.com/books/1333737125s/13487029.jpg|21902136]as well).
I guess it's difficult for an author to write novellas about our favorite characters. We wan't it to be true to the story, but still, a little munching never hurt.
So it's so disappointing when it goes the other way. This story was not nearly as good as the books, and i actually regret that i read it. The plot was strong, but lord, the characters were not at all like the ones in the book.
I was SO excited to read about Beck and Riley now that they had
Spoiler
FINALLY declared their love to each other. No more running around, ignoring each other and "trying to protect each other by not talking". I mean, JESUS, a girl only has so much patience.But sadly, this wasn't the case.
What annoys me a great deal is actually that the plot was really great. It had a lot of potential and could easily have stretched like 300-400 pages. Instead, the author chose to rush it and turn it into a 162-page ebook.
Jana, please.
Don't do that. You're a good author. You're stories are trustworthy and your characters are passionate and true. Don't rush that, just to write a short ebook to please your fans. Take your time. I'd rather wait a year for a great book than a few months for a rushed one.
And speaking of the characters,
Beck annoyed me. My sweet, precious Alabama boy annoyed the FUCK out of me in this story. He was moody, condescending and worst of all he didn't respect Riley when she told him
Spoiler
that she didn't want to marry him. I can write a book about that marriage proposal, but i choose to let it go. *deep breath*This is not Beck, just an imposter acting in this story, because the real Beck was somewhere on the Bahamas with Riley and, like, three hundred drinks.
Yep, that's it.
There's no reason to go into details about Riley as well. She was one dimensional, had no opinion and went from a serious girl to sobbing wreck.
Jana, you created the hilarious, butt-kicking girl that i loved in the last four books. What happened?
I have decided to forgive you. Everybody makes mistakes, and this book is simply just a step on the wrong floor. Let's just pretend this
Thanks!
*In the spirit of the Star Wars premiere, every gif in this review will be Star Wars-themed. No spoilers, i promise. I haven't even seen it yet.
claudia_marcela's review
2.0
Riley está camino a visitar a Beck en Escocia, pero las cosas no resultan como ella las soñó.
Estaba segura que este libro era necesario para ver la dinámica entre Beck y Riley ya que está confirmada su relación y están más fuertes que nunca... pero entonces la mitad del libro fue sobre secretos, desconfianza y corazones rotos. Aunque exista una "justificación" para todo el desastre emocional, no me pareció una buena trama.
Solo el principio y el final se enfocan en los asuntos de los demon trappers, pero se quedó muy desaprovechado todo el misticismo alrededor de los grandmasters.
Lectura entretenida y nada más.
El nivel de inglés necesario para entender el libro es intermedio.
Estaba segura que este libro era necesario para ver la dinámica entre Beck y Riley ya que está confirmada su relación y están más fuertes que nunca... pero entonces la mitad del libro fue sobre secretos, desconfianza y corazones rotos. Aunque exista una "justificación" para todo el desastre emocional, no me pareció una buena trama.
Solo el principio y el final se enfocan en los asuntos de los demon trappers, pero se quedó muy desaprovechado todo el misticismo alrededor de los grandmasters.
Lectura entretenida y nada más.
El nivel de inglés necesario para entender el libro es intermedio.
slc333's review
4.0
Really good for a short story but I recommend you read books 1 -4 first. So happy to see Riley & Beck moving forward in their relationship.
Spoiler
I was heartbroken that Denver's perfectly planned and romantic proposal was ruined, he put so much thought into making it perfect for Riley and she would have loved it if she was herselfSpoiler
kate2440's review
5.0
I have been a huge fan of The Demon Trapper series so when Jana Oliver mentioned about her putting up chapters to her new novella set after the last one I jumped at the chance to read it.
The cover I kind of like but I don't think it's in keeping with the rest of the series but I don't really mind as its still good.
I think that this one is even better than all the others in this series put together but then that might just be me being biased as I have always wanted Riley and Beck together and we see a lot of that in this one. There was so many twists and turns that I just didn't see coming and I loved every minute of them even if there was some heartbreak. I loved the action side of the story as it was just like the rest of the series. The only thing I hated was having to wait for the next chapter to be put up but that's just me being impatient to see what happens next.
We get to see new characters in this book as well as the two that we all know and love. Riley at the beginning was her same old self but then she seemed to have changed and not in a good way but then by the end we find out the reason behind this. With Beck we see a more stronger, intelligent and romantic side to him and I loved him even more which I didn't think was possible
Overall a great addition to the series and hopefully Jana will revisit them again in the future.
The cover I kind of like but I don't think it's in keeping with the rest of the series but I don't really mind as its still good.
I think that this one is even better than all the others in this series put together but then that might just be me being biased as I have always wanted Riley and Beck together and we see a lot of that in this one. There was so many twists and turns that I just didn't see coming and I loved every minute of them even if there was some heartbreak. I loved the action side of the story as it was just like the rest of the series. The only thing I hated was having to wait for the next chapter to be put up but that's just me being impatient to see what happens next.
We get to see new characters in this book as well as the two that we all know and love. Riley at the beginning was her same old self but then she seemed to have changed and not in a good way but then by the end we find out the reason behind this. With Beck we see a more stronger, intelligent and romantic side to him and I loved him even more which I didn't think was possible
Overall a great addition to the series and hopefully Jana will revisit them again in the future.
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