Reviews with content warning for Toxic relationship - Play of Passion

Reviews tagging 'Toxic relationship'

Play of Passion by Nalini Singh

4 reviews

rbradley923's review against another edition

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relaxing slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

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vivivi's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious fast-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

And we are back with the SnowDancers. What I like most about this is how nicely the romance is woven into the Psy problem in this book. Both Indigo and Drew are pretty high up in the command structure, so they are responsible for dealing with the problems — and the problems are balanced perfectly with the push and pull of their courtship.

There were some moments that made me go, Ooooohhh that hurt! and feel sorry for Drew, but the vulnerabilities in this book were just very precious.

AND. This next bit is just speculation, but Nikita

told Anthony that the "E gene tends to skip every other generation, which was true enough." (paraphrased)

But... Does that mean it's not technically accurate? Does it not actually skip every other generation? Is... Nikita a very very well hidden E of sorts?? Some secret ability that she hides??

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just_one_more_paige's review

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted fast-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? It's complicated

4.0

Back with my review for book nine, a quick turnaround after finishing the eighth because I was so excited to get back to changelings!

This is an internal SnowDancer pack romance, between one of the top lieutenants, Indigo, and Drew (the middle brother of the Riley-drew-Brenna family). Indigo is essential to the pack, one of Hawke’s most trusted wolves, and very high in pack hierarchy. Drew is an interesting case, younger and with a flair for the dramatic and a reputation as a ladies’ man, and also outside the typical pack ranking through his role as the tracker. Drew has decided that Indigo is the only one he wants, but has to learn to adjust his pursual due to her own dominance and position. Indigo has quite a few reservations about Drew’s seriousness, his being less dominant than her, and just the fact that she had certain perceptions of her mate that he doesn’t seem to fit. But this opposites-attract situation might be exactly what they each need.

Oh, I enjoyed this one. It was one of the more lighthearted overall installations, which I think we were due for. Drew is such a fun character – his antics are funny, but also do cover the heart of gold he has underneath. And though Indigo has seen a really toxic relationship between a dominant female and less dominant male ruin the love of someone close to her, and there is a closed-ness to her because of that that she has to overcome, it is still low key as far as trauma goes in this series. Getting to “watch” Drew pursue Indigo, mess up and apologize, antagonize and also be sincere, and seeing the way it slowly but surely opens up Indigo to the feelings and vulnerability she needs to accept the mating bond and learn how to deal with Drew in his non-traditional dominant situation, was just a good old-fashioned ~paranormal~ romance storyline. With, of course, a healthy dose of changeling heat and steamy scenes. I do love how openly and positively sex is talked about and practiced in their stories. Mmmmmm.

There was also quite a bit more information shared about the SnowDancer pack, the other members and the way they interact, and the alliance with DarkRiver from their perspective, than we have gotten before. (And some nice extra groundwork laid for the upcoming Hawke/Sienna story as well – squeeee.) As for the overarching plot with the upcoming confrontation with the Psy… now that the heat was turned out at the end of the last book, things are really starting to get more intense as far as external threats. There is a clear uptick in assassination/infiltration attempts by Psy into changeling land (clearly under direction from Shoshana and Henry), with some real violence and almost loss of life (let me just say, poor Drew always seems to be getting the short end of the stick as far as terrible injuries while jumping in to protect other people). But also, we’re starting to see real factions and agreements develop as things are coming more to a head – further changeling alliances, direct cooperation of certain Councilors with changeling packs (if you’ve gotten this far, who those Psy are is probably not a surprise), and an intro to the role Max will play as a mediator amongst them all.

A really good intensity break from some of the more traumatic stories we’ve had recently, moving the greater story along, but also giving the reader a bit of a release of breath. I had fun with Drew and Indigo and though their story won’t necessarily stick with me super long, in detail and impact, I needed it, sped through it and was totally entertained by it.

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now_booking's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

I liked this addition to the Psy-Changeling world. Yes, it wasn’t the exciting installment I would have liked featuring more intriguing Psy dynamics after the last book, and yes, I didn’t particularly get excited about a book featuring side characters Drew and Indigo, but the author wrote a book about being a strong, dominant woman in a leadership role and trying to figure out relationship dynamic with a younger potentially dominant man, in the midst of all the ongoing Psy-Changeling-Human drama in San Francisco. If I have any minor quibbles, it would be that this had some dubious consent aspects to it, but Indigo was a strong character able to handle herself and her desires so it was fine in the end. I’m intrigued by what’s to come in the next book.

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