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bonriki's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Violence
Moderate: Miscarriage, Pregnancy, and Dysphoria
Minor: Homophobia
ezwolf's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
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? It's complicated
5.0
Dami is a demon who has been able to experience humanity for the first time and now has a limited amount of time before they turn fully back into a demon. In order to remain human, permanently, they have to undo all of the deals they made. Silas' family is cursed to die for stealing pirate treasure and the deal he made with Dami means he can't die, or at least, stay dead. The deal with Silas is the last one Dami has to end in order to be human forever. But Dami and Silas have to make one more deal first.
The Wicked Bargain was one of my favorite books I read last year so I was very excited to read this. This is also the second book by Gabe Cole Novoa that I absolutely loved this year, Most Ardently: A Pride and Prejudice Remix being the first. I am a huge fan of angst with a happy ending and this is definitely that.
Dami and Silas' progression from reluctant allies to friends to love interests was also fun to read about. I was a little thrown off by the introduction of Marisol so far in to the book, but it worked well and Marisol was a great addition. Her and Dami's friendship was sweet and I liked that they were able to be so relatable for each other.
Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
The Wicked Bargain was one of my favorite books I read last year so I was very excited to read this. This is also the second book by Gabe Cole Novoa that I absolutely loved this year, Most Ardently: A Pride and Prejudice Remix being the first. I am a huge fan of angst with a happy ending and this is definitely that.
Dami and Silas' progression from reluctant allies to friends to love interests was also fun to read about. I was a little thrown off by the introduction of Marisol so far in to the book, but it worked well and Marisol was a great addition. Her and Dami's friendship was sweet and I liked that they were able to be so relatable for each other.
Thank you to NetGalley for making this available in exchange for an honest review!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Gun violence, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, and Dysphoria
Minor: Infertility, Sexual content, Transphobia, and Pregnancy
booksthatburn's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
tense
medium-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
5.0
*I received a free review copy in exchange for an honest review of this book.
THE DIABLO'S CURSE is set chronologically after THE WICKED BARGAIN, and contains a few brief references to it early on, but it can function as a stand-alone book. While some of Dami's situation was explained in the previous book, the only thing someone would need to know from that is that El Diablo was killed there, and this is about Dami dealing with the results. This means that someone could pick up this book and have a good time without having read THE WICKED BARGAIN, but I do recommend starting with the first book, for both enjoyment and continuity. Dami is an excellent character, and I enjoyed getting their point of view after having seen them through another character in the first book. This time the perspective swaps between Dami in the present day, Silas in the present day, and some interludes from Dami's past working for El Diablo.
In the course of trying to break Silas's curse so that Dami can cancel their deal and become human, Dami and Silas travel to a magical island where the weather is too tropical for the latitude and everything is trying to kill them. They meet Marisol, who joins up with them to try and find the treasure so they can get off the island. I like the setup, and the worldbuilding is very cohesive. The rapport between the three of them is fun in the face of the dire circumstances, and the mix of antagonists is enough to be an impediment but not so much as to overshadow the deathly effects of the real killer: Silas's curse.
It has a storyline which is almost entirely self contained, save that Dami is making moves based on El Diablo being dead, something which took place in THE WICKED BARGAIN. This means that almost everything important is both introduced and resolved here, save for that. This is unlikely to be the last book, but if it is this is a satisfying enough ending that I have closure. I hope there are more, this has the possibility to be a great series of loosely or tightly interconnected books, and I'd happily read more with any mix of these characters.
THE DIABLO'S CURSE is set chronologically after THE WICKED BARGAIN, and contains a few brief references to it early on, but it can function as a stand-alone book. While some of Dami's situation was explained in the previous book, the only thing someone would need to know from that is that El Diablo was killed there, and this is about Dami dealing with the results. This means that someone could pick up this book and have a good time without having read THE WICKED BARGAIN, but I do recommend starting with the first book, for both enjoyment and continuity. Dami is an excellent character, and I enjoyed getting their point of view after having seen them through another character in the first book. This time the perspective swaps between Dami in the present day, Silas in the present day, and some interludes from Dami's past working for El Diablo.
In the course of trying to break Silas's curse so that Dami can cancel their deal and become human, Dami and Silas travel to a magical island where the weather is too tropical for the latitude and everything is trying to kill them. They meet Marisol, who joins up with them to try and find the treasure so they can get off the island. I like the setup, and the worldbuilding is very cohesive. The rapport between the three of them is fun in the face of the dire circumstances, and the mix of antagonists is enough to be an impediment but not so much as to overshadow the deathly effects of the real killer: Silas's curse.
It has a storyline which is almost entirely self contained, save that Dami is making moves based on El Diablo being dead, something which took place in THE WICKED BARGAIN. This means that almost everything important is both introduced and resolved here, save for that. This is unlikely to be the last book, but if it is this is a satisfying enough ending that I have closure. I hope there are more, this has the possibility to be a great series of loosely or tightly interconnected books, and I'd happily read more with any mix of these characters.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Murder
Moderate: Gun violence, Violence, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Excrement, Vomit, and Pregnancy
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