A review by etymoye
One Dark Window by Rachel Gillig

adventurous dark mysterious tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

 This book took me a little while to get into, to the point where I almost DNF. The writing style is very dense and just very wordy, plus the world-building is kind of slow going. But once things started falling into place, it hooked me. 

I felt like the main romance between the two main characters, Elspeth and Ravyn, was just okay. I liked that Ravyn isn’t your stereotypical Alpha Male, but I also felt like we never quite got to know him that well, either. In my opinion, where this book really shines is world-building and storytelling. The atmosphere is really well done, very creepy and tense at times, and I loved the detail about magic being tied to cards. (Though they’re not the only source of magic, which is a major conflict in the book.) Definitely planning on reading book 2.

Safety Stats:
Ages:
Elspeth is 20, I didn’t catch Ravyn’s age.
Cheating:
None.
Other OM/OW:
There's brief mention of another character Elspeth kissed once three years ago. He's interested in courting her now, but she's not interested in him and shuts him down.
Separation:
Separated at the end of the book. Cliffhanger.
Triggers:
Mention of past death of a parent (Elspeth’s mother). Elspeth’s father is alive but a relatively deadbeat dad.
HEA/HFN?:
No, cliffhanger at the end of the book.
 
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