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ladybug12793's review against another edition
mysterious
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.5
Disappointing
Reading this was like pulling teeth. Where the first book was fast-paced and fun, this one dragged on. Nothing happens except for a bunch of filler until the last 15% of the book with ridiculous plot twists.
I don’t even want to get into the “love triangle” with the wet blanket brothers. Absolutely no chemistry between any of them. Again, like the first book, I felt no emotional connection towards these characters.
Since this book was so underwhelming, I don’t think I will continue on in the series.
0 🌶️
* please disregard grammatical errors due to voice texting
Reading this was like pulling teeth. Where the first book was fast-paced and fun, this one dragged on. Nothing happens except for a bunch of filler until the last 15% of the book with ridiculous plot twists.
I don’t even want to get into the “love triangle” with the wet blanket brothers. Absolutely no chemistry between any of them. Again, like the first book, I felt no emotional connection towards these characters.
Since this book was so underwhelming, I don’t think I will continue on in the series.
0 🌶️
* please disregard grammatical errors due to voice texting
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Murder, and Fire/Fire injury
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Cursing and Infidelity
Cursing- A**hole is said like 2-3 times. That’s it.traciereads's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Kidnapping
Moderate: Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Violence, Medical content, Grief, Stalking, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction, Child death, Cursing, Drug abuse, Death of parent, and Pregnancy
troixreads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death and Grief
Minor: Child death, Cursing, Kidnapping, and Alcohol
karlin0336's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
1st Reread: 5 Stars ~ This series is even better upon rereads. Knowing what I now do from later books made all the twists and turns that much more exciting. I can't wait to reread the other books, and I can't wait for The Grandest Game to be released next month!
Original Review: 4.5 Stars ~ I loved this book even more than the first one! It wasted no time in diving into another mystery, and this one was full of romance, backstory, action, and heart-wrenching moments. There were so many unexpected twists and turns--- I was left eagerly burning through pages. I don't generally finish books this fast and am not usually this motivated to finish. I LOVE this series. I LOVE the characters. I LOVE the story. Most of all, I'm glad I took "a very risky gamble" in trying something outside of my comfort genre. I can't wait to see how this series concludes in The Final Gambit.
The two love interests are both great. Jameson is quickly growing on me as a character and Grayson has been my favorite character in the series ever since his debut in book 1. I hope they both find love and happiness in their own way!
Hoping book three won't disappoint!
Original Review: 4.5 Stars ~ I loved this book even more than the first one! It wasted no time in diving into another mystery, and this one was full of romance, backstory, action, and heart-wrenching moments. There were so many unexpected twists and turns--- I was left eagerly burning through pages. I don't generally finish books this fast and am not usually this motivated to finish. I LOVE this series. I LOVE the characters. I LOVE the story. Most of all, I'm glad I took "a very risky gamble" in trying something outside of my comfort genre. I can't wait to see how this series concludes in The Final Gambit.
The two love interests are both great. Jameson is quickly growing on me as a character and Grayson has been my favorite character in the series ever since his debut in book 1. I hope they both find love and happiness in their own way!
Hoping book three won't disappoint!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Infidelity, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Cursing
torturedreadersdept's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment
Minor: Addiction, Body horror, Cursing, Death, Drug abuse, Gun violence, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Dementia, Kidnapping, Grief, Stalking, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
araiapapaya's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Death of parent
Minor: Cursing, Violence, Kidnapping, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail
witchwritingfanfics's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I'm oh so very confused. This book was marvellous and all but what the hell was going on in the last 100 pages. Avery gets bombed, put into a coma, gets technically kidnapped from a hospital, survives whatever was actually wrong, then once she's fully healed, she actually gets kidnapped, nearly shot at yet again and still uncovers the mystery and saves the day all in a week. A week. I need whatever drug she was taking because jesus christ, she can't catch a damn break. This girl was just trying to live her life and now she's hella traumatise. What the hell! I enjoyed this book more than the last. I like that Jameson and Greyson were more bearable this time. Last book I thought they had the personality of a wet paper towel. Anyway, good book, 4 stars, keep it up Jennifer!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Addiction, Cursing, Gun violence, Medical content, Kidnapping, Stalking, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, and Medical trauma
There's also a few mentions of amnesia and talking with the dead throughout.khucc's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Grief, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Bullying and Cursing
rusty_spurs's review against another edition
mysterious
fast-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.5
The amount of times I rolled my eyes while reading this book...
Plot
I really enjoyed the plot of the first book so I was happy to see I enjoyed this one almost as much. The story moved along quickly but I began to get tired of the plot twists because that's all that held this book together for me.
Characters
I find that the side characters are more favorable in my eyes than the main ones. Avery, the main character, irks me for a few reasons.
1. She obsessed over the guys.
2. She's dramatic.
3. The whole book is her being selfish; going against security measures and doing the opposite of whatever is advised. She's not the strong, independent woman I think she was intended to embody - she's the annoying girl who's trying too hard to prove her independence.
The Hawthorne brothers are easy to tell apart but Grayson and Jameson sometimes flow into one. No wonder Avery had a tough time deciding between the two. The writer has created these seemingly perfect guys but it's not one bit realistic. I wish readers were given characters that seemed human. And I know that the author points that out - the Hawthorne brothers aren't human. Yet I can't help but
Relationships
Going on a rant about how much I hate the romance in this series would profit no one but me so I'll sum up my frustration with a few sentences. This books reads like it was meant for a lovesick thirteen-year-old. The guys in this are written to be attractive in everything they do. They breathe and Avery can't help but drool. The romance is so cheesy and unrealistic it kills me. I know it's YA fiction but COME ON!
Overall, I don't hate this book but it's not something I will reread or recommend to most people. I'm planning on trying out the third book because the plot is interesting enough to keep me going though.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Cursing
There is a lot of cheesy flirting in this book. One scene has some steamy kissing but nothing past that. There's also a lot of talk about people sleeping around.unicorngirl's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
So much happened in the last 30-50 pages! It was still so good, but why couldn't there be more incidents? Some scenes needed a little bit of action. It dragged a little. One of the things that kept me going was the romance between Avery and Jameson. I know that Grayson and Avery "think similarly", but Avery and Jameson have more chemistry, even if Grayson and Avery help each other work on things personally. Because it dragged, it was still good, but not as good as the first book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Medical content, Kidnapping, Stalking, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Bullying and Cursing
Trigger Warnings: Mention of parent death, Mention of child death, mentions of threats/death threats