theintrovertsbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
medium-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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Cursing, Death of parent, Sexual content, Physical abuse, and Confinement
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Hate crime, Gore, Child death, Emotional abuse, Blood, Animal death, Alcohol, Grief, Abandonment, Violence, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Infidelity, Stalking, Misogyny, and Cannibalism
bzliz's review
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I’m kind of bummed about this one because so many people say it is better than book 2 but I don’t think that’s true unfortunately.
Lou starts this book possessed by Nicholina and it takes the crew a while to realize it and devise a plan to exorcise her from Lou’s body. They’re still on the hunt to eliminate Morgane too so they’ve got a lot on their plate. Célie joins up with the crew with some much-needed money and civility that eases their journey more than once. Just when Lou is freed from her possession, Reid protects her from her mother by making Morgane forget her at the cost of his own memories of her and they have to find a way to stop Morgane while Lou and Reid find their way back together.
Ultimately, way too much of the book ends up with Lou possessed or Reid with memory loss and I don’t think it helped the story. There’s enough going on without those back to back hurdles. We also could have cut the mermaid plot line completely. I really like Célie’s addition to the crew and her desire to be more than what she was born into. Jean Luc is generally less likable but his inclusion showed that it isn’t impossible to change for the better. The final battle was pure chaos and so many characters that I barely remembered kept popping up which made it hard to focus on what was actually happening.
I did have a teary moment during the epilogue because
Content warnings:
Blood, death, injury, violence (on page):
Fire/fire injury (on page):
Confinement (on page):
Death of parent (on page):
Sexual content (on page):
Grief (on page):
Alcohol (on page):
Cannibalism (off page):
Torture (off page):
Lou starts this book possessed by Nicholina and it takes the crew a while to realize it and devise a plan to exorcise her from Lou’s body. They’re still on the hunt to eliminate Morgane too so they’ve got a lot on their plate. Célie joins up with the crew with some much-needed money and civility that eases their journey more than once. Just when Lou is freed from her possession, Reid protects her from her mother by making Morgane forget her at the cost of his own memories of her and they have to find a way to stop Morgane while Lou and Reid find their way back together.
Ultimately, way too much of the book ends up with Lou possessed or Reid with memory loss and I don’t think it helped the story. There’s enough going on without those back to back hurdles. We also could have cut the mermaid plot line completely. I really like Célie’s addition to the crew and her desire to be more than what she was born into. Jean Luc is generally less likable but his inclusion showed that it isn’t impossible to change for the better. The final battle was pure chaos and so many characters that I barely remembered kept popping up which made it hard to focus on what was actually happening.
I did have a teary moment during the epilogue because
Spoiler
they saved a seat at the wedding for sweet baby Ansel and he got to see his friends be happy and healing and then he got to go be with his parents in the afterlife and it hurt my heart in the best way.Content warnings:
Blood, death, injury, violence (on page):
Spoiler
Lots of violence, injuries, etc because of the nature of the plot. Blood witches are involved so there is plenty of blood flowing.Fire/fire injury (on page):
Spoiler
Coco’s grief causes an unceasing hellfire that can’t be put out until she works through her grief. Lou and Reid are sentenced to burn to death and almost do but are rescued by their crew just in time.Confinement (on page):
Spoiler
Lou and Reid are kept in a cage following their failed attempt to infiltrate the city.Death of parent (on page):
Spoiler
Coco’s mother must die for her aunt to die; Morgane gets her comeuppance after a big speech about how she couldn’t really love Lou.Sexual content (on page):
Spoiler
Mostly fade to black scenes between Lou & Reid. Very mild.Grief (on page):
Spoiler
Everyone is still reeling from Ansel’s death but mostly Coco because her grief causes an unending hellfire that destroys parts of Cesarine.Alcohol (on page):
Spoiler
Scene of Lou, Reid, Jean Luc & Beau getting drunk together and playing truth or dare. They have hangovers after.Cannibalism (off page):
Spoiler
Discussion of La Voison and Nicholina eating human hearts.Torture (off page):
Spoiler
King Auguste definitely green-lights torture via rat even if it isn’t explicitly said.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Grief, Confinement, Death of parent, and Sexual content
Minor: Alcohol, Cannibalism, and Torture
queer_bookwyrm's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
4 ⭐ CW: Violence, descriptions of blood and gore, gruesome deaths, self harm, death of a parent, sexual content, cursing
"Hope isn't the sickness. It's the cure."
Gods & Monsters by Shelby Mahurin is the third and final installment of the Serpent & Dove Series. I'm glad to have finally finished this series, but I don't think overall it quite lived up to the hype. I found the whole middle of this to be quite slow and unnecessary, but the ending really picked up the rating for me. I think part of my problem with this is that I waited so long between reading Blood and Honey and this one, that I forgot most of what happened and who the characters were, so I wasn't in the same headspace when I read this one. Spoilers ahead.
As always, Beau is a treasure and Coco is fierce if in denial about her feelings for him. Célie was an unexpected favorite of mine in this book! She has a lot of development, and is very endearing. She even kind of grew on the rest of the group. She is delicate and strong and brave, all while being the perfect lady.
The last battle really save this for me. Having everyone we've met throughout the series in one place was nice. I think Lou's whole story is about self sacrifice. Isla says she isn't extraordinary, but no ordinary person takes pain onto themselves for others so they don't have to be in pain. It really showed a strength of character for Lou.
"Hope isn't the sickness. It's the cure."
Gods & Monsters by Shelby Mahurin is the third and final installment of the Serpent & Dove Series. I'm glad to have finally finished this series, but I don't think overall it quite lived up to the hype. I found the whole middle of this to be quite slow and unnecessary, but the ending really picked up the rating for me. I think part of my problem with this is that I waited so long between reading Blood and Honey and this one, that I forgot most of what happened and who the characters were, so I wasn't in the same headspace when I read this one. Spoilers ahead.
Spoiler
We pick up with Lou, Reid, Beau, and Coco after that nasty cliffhanger. Lou and Coco are heavily grieving as they also try to figure out how to kill Morgane. We find out that Nicholina, Queen of the Creeps, has possessed Lou, so the gang brings her to L'Eau Mélancolique to exorcise her. Nothing goes as expected of course, but they are saved by Angelica and The Oracle. In the process, Reid has pulled a thread that makes him and Lou's mother forget she exists. Reid trying to get his memory back and erasing all his character development is basically the whole middle of the book, which was kind of annoying.As always, Beau is a treasure and Coco is fierce if in denial about her feelings for him. Célie was an unexpected favorite of mine in this book! She has a lot of development, and is very endearing. She even kind of grew on the rest of the group. She is delicate and strong and brave, all while being the perfect lady.
The last battle really save this for me. Having everyone we've met throughout the series in one place was nice. I think Lou's whole story is about self sacrifice. Isla says she isn't extraordinary, but no ordinary person takes pain onto themselves for others so they don't have to be in pain. It really showed a strength of character for Lou.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Self harm, Sexual content, Death of parent, Death, Blood, and Gore
kat1105's review
dark
emotional
funny
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cannibalism, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Child death, Sexual content, Violence, Grief, Body horror, Child abuse, Cursing, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Classism, Death of parent, Murder, War, Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Kidnapping, Death, and Torture
taliatalksbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-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? No
4.5
Gods & Monsters by Shelby Mahurin was a lovely and fulfilling end to her Serpent & Dove series. I am 100% in love with these characters. All of them. There isn’t a single character I don’t like (that I’m not supposed to). I don’t want to give away anything since this is the finale, but it’s 100% worth the read. It’s fun, spicy, heartbreaking, and comedic. Truly a page-turner from start to finish. If you haven’t started this series, I’m begging you to go get a copy!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Death, Murder, Sexual content, and Violence
Minor: Blood and Child death
golden_like_dior's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
sad
medium-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
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Torture, Animal cruelty, Child death, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Genocide, Sexual content, Death, Death of parent, Terminal illness, Violence, War, Abandonment, Child abuse, Cursing, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, and Murder
taylor_annotates's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-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
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, Torture, Cursing, Death of parent, and Death
Moderate: Abandonment
pedanticangel's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
hopeful
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? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent
Moderate: Violence and Murder
Minor: Torture
holliesatchell's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
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? It's complicated
3.75
After reading the first two books in this series, I was unsure how to go into this one. The first one was amazing and I rated it 5/5, but the second one was more disappointing and got a lower rating from me. Because of this I started this book quite slowly, afraid that it wouldn't be good, but thankfully, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Yes, I admit that the first half(ish) was kind of all over the place - which truthfully, is the reason I rating this book 3.57/5 - but I believe the last half made up for it. After a rocky start, I devoured the last 300 pages of this book and now I don't know what to do with myself.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Gore, Grief, Murder, Sexual content, and Violence
Minor: Cannibalism, Child death, Death, and Death of parent
leedolee's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
tense
medium-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? It's complicated
4.0
This series has easily stolen a place in my heart and these characters will truly remain favorites of my mine.
The world, the magic, the action, the drama, the twists, the relationships, and the plot were outstanding! Yes, my least favorite trope was found in this book but I enjoyed the novel regardless.
Lou and Reid will be one of my favorite ships. Always.
The world, the magic, the action, the drama, the twists, the relationships, and the plot were outstanding! Yes, my least favorite trope was found in this book but I enjoyed the novel regardless.
Lou and Reid will be one of my favorite ships. Always.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Self harm, Sexual content, Torture, Violence, and War
Moderate: Alcohol