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siche_0325's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Moderate: Death and Domestic abuse
pitoufas_bookish_corner's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Ilryth was first presented as a mysterious and ruthless siren who'd given Victoria the chance at a "new life" for the duration of five years, then came to collect her when "it was time" Unnecessarily causing the passing of her whole crew. Then he flipped a 180 and became a soft — downright boring — supportive — albeit stubborn — "loving" partner, which partly — if not completely — fell flat, due to how rushed their relationship felt compared to the story's pacing.
Victoria chose to erase her marriage memories. I understood her wish to let go of pain and conserve joyful moments for last. But by doing so, everything that constituted her identity after severing bonds with her husband had ceased to exist — at least, for a while — As she regained them all later on, which imo, made the event all the more pointless. Why erase them in the first place? It didn't seem like she'd gained any semblance of personal growth or self-empowerment. Accepting her fate during and after her marriage, not really trying to find alternatives to her predicament.
The intimacy scenes between the two felt more like fillers to compensate for the lack of depth in their relationship. The development of their feelings for one another was unconvincing. Ilryth immediately offered himself as a sacrifice after Victoria had fulfilled her duty— knowing it took them months to prepare her and for her to cut ties with the mortal realm — which did not make sense. And neither did this quote: "We only existed as we were because we couldn't exist." 🤷🏻♀️
And what was the purpose of Kevin's appearance if a reunion with his children was not going to be delivered? His character literally served no purpose to the story, and should have emerged two books ago, where he belonged. The ending was all over the place, and the writing quality seemed to have decreased in this book, which was very disappointing.
Moderate: Bullying, Confinement, Death, Misogyny, and Gaslighting
Minor: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Grief
status_meh's review against another edition
- 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
3.5
But I just wasn't super into this book. It wasn't bad, and it's kind of hard to describe what exactly I didn't enjoy. I think that
I think the book had it's good sides. I think the characters are pretty likable, and the plot is pretty interesting. I just can't get over the
On a more lighthearted note, I think my biggest complaint, and what bummed me out the most, was that there was no mermaid sex. Like, I don't read books for the smut, it's not what I enjoy the most, but how are you going to have a monster/supernatural romance with a literal merman, and they only have sex when both in human form. That was kind of a huge disapointment. Mainly because one of my biggest questions going in was "how is this going to work physically? how do merfolk even reproduce?". So the whole
Overall, it definitely wasn't bad, I think it was good, just not my preference. I'm super excited for the last book in this series, I've already ordered a copy and will probably read it in October.
Moderate: Confinement, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Gaslighting, Abandonment, and Classism
Minor: Death, Sexism, and Alcohol
epicpseudonym's review against another edition
2.75
It does have some little hints regarding world building and other books in the series which were fun to spot and were the primary motivation I had for finishing the book.
Moderate: Death and Suicidal thoughts
As a content warning, I think this would not be a great book to read if someone is in a bad headspace concerning their life, though in the book the death is more sacrificial in nature. I was strongly reminded of Alzheimer's, chronic illness, and hospice.natkimbrough's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Moderate: Death and Toxic relationship
bangiebangs's review against another edition
- 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
3.75
The story is nice, and I liked that for a while I wasn't totally sure what was gonna happen... thought it might be a Tamlin-esque situation (we've been scarred by that one), so I took a while to really trust the couple. Really appreciated that this is a book that has no "fated mates" trope, and extra points for having to pregnancy trope (not even as a scare).
I did find Victoria a bit much, but she is reminiscent of your Feyres and Aelins, and I like neither. The level of self-sacrifice gets tedious to me. That said, it's a solid fantasy romance with great world-building and a super slow burn romance (but worth it!).
I probably won't re-read this, but do recommend (especially if you're wondering about the merman-human mechanics). CN for religious zeal, I found.
Graphic: Death, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, and Religious bigotry
lisashelves's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Death of parent