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A review by the_disreputable_dog
Lover Unbound by J.R. Ward
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
This book was okay. I found the premise of kidnapping to a romantic connection to be pretty shaky, and it didn't feel like they did much emotional bonding before they were a couple. I did enjoy the part of the story where V interacted with his mother, however. I'll also be interested to see what happens in nextbook because I like the way it was set up and it has been pretty interesting it feels that it's been set up over the course of a few books and I will be interested to see how it plays out.
I will say though, I was extremely unhappy with the way that the relationship between Butch and V was handled. I felt that it would have been a good match, and so as a reader it did feel somewhat like they were breaking up even though they never really got together. I did not like how Butch basically said 'no homo' when talking to V about it. I found it to be pretty ignorant, and I almost quit reading at that point. It's just such a backwards way to handle that issue. I remember being a kid at the time that would have been acceptable, and thinking then how bad it was, and it still is bad now, and people finally seem to understand that, but it's still a disappointment to see the equivalent to 'no homo' reflected in this book. I know that was the way that some men were handling homosexuality, but it didn't make it a good thing then, and it's still not a good thing. I had higher hopes for their pair than that.
I will say though, I was extremely unhappy with the way that the relationship between Butch and V was handled. I felt that it would have been a good match, and so as a reader it did feel somewhat like they were breaking up even though they never really got together. I did not like how Butch basically said 'no homo' when talking to V about it. I found it to be pretty ignorant, and I almost quit reading at that point. It's just such a backwards way to handle that issue. I remember being a kid at the time that would have been acceptable, and thinking then how bad it was, and it still is bad now, and people finally seem to understand that, but it's still a disappointment to see the equivalent to 'no homo' reflected in this book. I know that was the way that some men were handling homosexuality, but it didn't make it a good thing then, and it's still not a good thing. I had higher hopes for their pair than that.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Addiction, Death, Drug use, Gun violence, Medical content, and Kidnapping
Moderate: Child death, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, and Grief
Minor: Biphobia, Gun violence, Homophobia, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Torture, Medical content, Car accident, and Injury/Injury detail