A review by paradoxically
Grimspace by Ann Aguirre
3.0
I've read Grimspace a couple of times already, and it's a good book. It has a solid main character, as well as an interesting and diverse cast that compliment Jax, and the story, well. It does take a little to get into--not because of Jax (or at least not for me), but mainly because of a few characters that just sort of grate on you and make you want to strangle them. Just a little bit. Um.
The beginning of the book is pretty bumpy. Jax comes off rather harshly, even after all that she has gone through. Very rough, very brash, and kind of broken in various ways. The other characters aren't much better. They rescued Jax from what is pretty much certain death, but they aren't really glad to do it. I think it just bothered me that they planned to use Jax--and for people who plan to use her, they don't really try to ease her into things, or even be all that pleasant to her (well, a few of them, anyway). Granted, they have their own reasons for being as they are, but it never failed to give me prickly, irritated feelings.
I like main characters best, always. It bugs me when people are crap to them without (to me) a really good reason for it. Or even then, aha. This contributes to huge amounts of my feelings towards the beginning of the book, while others would probably think everything is fine and dandy and they're just getting use to each other.
Still, the book does get better and things do smooth out to a much more enjoyable read. The romance is pretty typical alpha, inscrutable male meets and has endless little fights with the main character that ultimately culminate in love and so on. Not going to lie, I'm a sucker for this, so I don't mind the trope at all. The plot is a bit messy and it jumps around rather quickly. You kind of want the author to have a more narrowed focus; or at least have a focus that is a bit tighter than this execution.
The prose is very nice to read though. It's smooth, it's easy, I rather like the writing style. It just feels like the first book an author puts out. Which it is. Rough around the edges, but holds a lot of potential. Overall, a solid start to a series. 3 stars.
The beginning of the book is pretty bumpy. Jax comes off rather harshly, even after all that she has gone through. Very rough, very brash, and kind of broken in various ways. The other characters aren't much better. They rescued Jax from what is pretty much certain death, but they aren't really glad to do it. I think it just bothered me that they planned to use Jax--and for people who plan to use her, they don't really try to ease her into things, or even be all that pleasant to her (well, a few of them, anyway). Granted, they have their own reasons for being as they are, but it never failed to give me prickly, irritated feelings.
I like main characters best, always. It bugs me when people are crap to them without (to me) a really good reason for it. Or even then, aha. This contributes to huge amounts of my feelings towards the beginning of the book, while others would probably think everything is fine and dandy and they're just getting use to each other.
Still, the book does get better and things do smooth out to a much more enjoyable read. The romance is pretty typical alpha, inscrutable male meets and has endless little fights with the main character that ultimately culminate in love and so on. Not going to lie, I'm a sucker for this, so I don't mind the trope at all. The plot is a bit messy and it jumps around rather quickly. You kind of want the author to have a more narrowed focus; or at least have a focus that is a bit tighter than this execution.
The prose is very nice to read though. It's smooth, it's easy, I rather like the writing style. It just feels like the first book an author puts out. Which it is. Rough around the edges, but holds a lot of potential. Overall, a solid start to a series. 3 stars.