A review by blewballoon
Serpent & Dove by Shelby Mahurin

adventurous dark 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? Yes

4.5

Shout out to my friend Katelyn for recommending this, she was so right. What a fun ride! This is such a good example of YA Fantasy Romance tropes, edgy imagery, and angst done well. Is this high-brow literature? No. Are some elements ridiculous? Yes. This is a book best enjoyed if you can channel your teenage rebel brain and not take it too seriously. The book doesn't seem to take itself that seriously, either. It feels like if the author had to make a decision, they choose based on what seemed the most entertaining, and for my reading experience that was not a bad thing. The romantic leads were nicely matched with each other, clearly they both needed to grow, and their complimentary strengths and weaknesses would push each other to grow in the best directions. I thought the supporting characters were compelling as well. I had a blast listening to this audiobook. I rarely want to jump into a sequel when I finish the first book of a series, even if I liked it, but I actually do want to just keep reading this story. (TBD if I actually will though 😛)
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