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3.47 AVERAGE
3.47 AVERAGE
3.5 stars for the story
5 stars for the audio
I needed more pining and romance
Loved the gothic feel though
5 stars for the audio
I needed more pining and romance
Loved the gothic feel though
I have a star chart in my gr bio that explains exactly what my ratings mean. a 1 star means, and i quote, “absolutely despised it. either DNFed or forced myself to finish out of spite.” and that sums up my feelings about this book pretty well.
starting off, emile’s voice was really interesting. i dive into the book with a good first impression and was easily able to keep up with whatever was going on. when Henri was first introduced, i adored him too. then his true colors were revealed and yeah he’s an abusive, narcissistic piece of shit. and his redemption arc? yeah that was bullshit. i didn’t trust it for a second. like yeah,
is emile naive, yes. is he an idiot, especially after he saw what happened to his aunt? no. so yeah that wasn’t well done, imo. then there’s bram. bram is a literal angel sent to earth. he deserves the world and was one of the few characters i actually liked. his voice was solid, his intentions clear and he wasn’t scared to stand up for someone he cared about.
so the book is chugging along and then, out of nowhere, the characters are taken to a remote ancient castle and that’s where you discover that (*was anyone really surprised at all*) SPOILER they’re werewolves not only that but even more shocking (he says sarcastically) their cure is the blood of innocent people. SPOILER. and then they try to get away and someone almost dies and blah blah blah. i was ready to rip this book up and burn it for entertainment at this point. and then it finished. and the abuser was suddenly nice and he and bram started getting along like magic. the end.
if you couldn’t tell, i found this absolutely terrible and i wouldn’t recommend it to my worst enemy. probably my LEAST favorite book of the year so far.
starting off, emile’s voice was really interesting. i dive into the book with a good first impression and was easily able to keep up with whatever was going on. when Henri was first introduced, i adored him too. then his true colors were revealed and yeah he’s an abusive, narcissistic piece of shit. and his redemption arc? yeah that was bullshit. i didn’t trust it for a second. like yeah,
is emile naive, yes. is he an idiot, especially after he saw what happened to his aunt? no. so yeah that wasn’t well done, imo. then there’s bram. bram is a literal angel sent to earth. he deserves the world and was one of the few characters i actually liked. his voice was solid, his intentions clear and he wasn’t scared to stand up for someone he cared about.
so the book is chugging along and then, out of nowhere, the characters are taken to a remote ancient castle and that’s where you discover that (*was anyone really surprised at all*) SPOILER they’re werewolves not only that but even more shocking (he says sarcastically) their cure is the blood of innocent people. SPOILER. and then they try to get away and someone almost dies and blah blah blah. i was ready to rip this book up and burn it for entertainment at this point. and then it finished. and the abuser was suddenly nice and he and bram started getting along like magic. the end.
if you couldn’t tell, i found this absolutely terrible and i wouldn’t recommend it to my worst enemy. probably my LEAST favorite book of the year so far.
adventurous
challenging
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
3.7
This is kind of a slow moving book, but it was interesting enough that I stuck with it. I’ll warn you right now, if you’re here for werewolves, you’re not seeing that till the last third of the book.
Truthfully? Henri was a jerk who wanted Emile as his valet because he was so certain that he’d see his great he was and would fall for him. Then, he wound up ratting Emile out to the aunt that he’d fled from to avoid either arranged marriage or an asylum stay. And Henri still wound up being the main love interest in this?? Ugh.
Bram, on the other hand, was very sweet and kind, and was unfortunately missing for about half of the book.
The biggest surprise and delightful outcome was the three of them winding up in a polycule. As soon as Henri admitted that Bram was the first boy he’d had feelings for, I thought “if this doesn’t end with polyamory, I’m going to be pretty mad!”
As I said before, it was a bit slowgoing for a while, with all of the supernatural matters shoved in the last third of the book and lots of arranged marriage talk taking up a good chunk of the middle. All in all, it was ok, but I don’t know that much of it will stick in my mind for long.
This is kind of a slow moving book, but it was interesting enough that I stuck with it. I’ll warn you right now, if you’re here for werewolves, you’re not seeing that till the last third of the book.
Truthfully? Henri was a jerk who wanted Emile as his valet because he was so certain that he’d see his great he was and would fall for him. Then, he wound up ratting Emile out to the aunt that he’d fled from to avoid either arranged marriage or an asylum stay. And Henri still wound up being the main love interest in this?? Ugh.
Bram, on the other hand, was very sweet and kind, and was unfortunately missing for about half of the book.
The biggest surprise and delightful outcome was the three of them winding up in a polycule. As soon as Henri admitted that Bram was the first boy he’d had feelings for, I thought “if this doesn’t end with polyamory, I’m going to be pretty mad!”
As I said before, it was a bit slowgoing for a while, with all of the supernatural matters shoved in the last third of the book and lots of arranged marriage talk taking up a good chunk of the middle. All in all, it was ok, but I don’t know that much of it will stick in my mind for long.
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Probably a 3.5 but Goodreads STILL refuses to allow half stars. Some of the pacing is off and sometimes the story is predictable, but it’s great fun, the characters become lovable, and there’s a nice mix of classic gothic romance with contemporary updates.
A queer YA retelling of The Mysteries of Udolpho.
adventurous
dark
inspiring
mysterious
sad
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:
Complicated
dark
emotional
mysterious
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
I was intrigued by the cover and the title, but honestly wasn't blown away. I did keep reading and wanted to know how it would all play out, but it just didn't hit like a must read. It was entertaining, scary, definitely good horror moments, just not a MUST read for me. Would recommend for horror YA readers!