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yourbookishbff's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I was big mad at our male main character for a large part of this story! I do generally struggle with Beauty and the Beast retellings, because I'm a grudge-holder and beastly types are often hard for me to forgive, so it's saying a lot that I got there in the end and found the resolution to be both authentic and deeply romantic. Penelope's pain throughout was tough for me, though, because gosh she had already BEEN THROUGH IT in the last series, and I wanted her to have assurance of her value and agency earlier in this story. There are lovely epistolary elements to this that helped develop the childhood friendship for our main couple without using flashbacks or a dual timeline, and I LOVED these inclusions (even when they just spiraled me deeper into my anger at times!). I'm thoroughly enjoying the emotional journey I take in MacLean's romances, and I'm loving the gaming hell premise for this series!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Violence and Abandonment
Minor: Grief and Death of parent
angelfireeast24's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Misogyny, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Violence, Kidnapping, Grief, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Death of parent, Abandonment, and Alcohol
jeannine's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I think the amount of angst in this series before we get a satisfactory resolution is just too much for me. I happened to read the second book before this one and just circled back to read the opening story.
Penelope is solidly in spinster territory when her father adds land he acquired that used to belong to a neighbor to her dowry. The neighboring estate was first lost in a card game by a teenage Michael, who had been Penelope’s childhood friend. Michael left the area after losing the land, but returns when he hears he could have the land through marrying her.
Unfortunately, for about 275 pages of a 415 page book, Michael is despicable and Penelope is desperately trying to find some control and affection in her topsy-turvy life.
The last 100 pages or so are great. I think the first 300 could have been edited down so the cruelty and hurt was quite as tedious.
Penelope is solidly in spinster territory when her father adds land he acquired that used to belong to a neighbor to her dowry. The neighboring estate was first lost in a card game by a teenage Michael, who had been Penelope’s childhood friend. Michael left the area after losing the land, but returns when he hears he could have the land through marrying her.
Unfortunately, for about 275 pages of a 415 page book, Michael is despicable and Penelope is desperately trying to find some control and affection in her topsy-turvy life.
The last 100 pages or so are great. I think the first 300 could have been edited down so the cruelty and hurt was quite as tedious.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Grief, and Abandonment