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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
Wish I could just read these books and live in this world forever! Gaaaahhh why must they end?!
As always, KMM brought it. Dani was as badass as ever but she's evolving and growing...literally. She's not as reckless as she used to be but she's not as robotic and cold as her alter-personality, Jada, either.
Everybody thought the Song of Making would fix everything but it caused a whole set of new problems. The Fae are stronger and the old gods are awake. Neither are fond of humans but they hate each other more.
Mac and Barrons have left to deal with the Fae and Ryodan, along with the rest of The Nine have left too. Dani is left alone to keep her beloved Dublin safe.
This book had a different feel to it than the other books in the series. I think it was slowed down a bit to allow the reader to feel more and not be so disconnected from the characters. Not that I didn't connect but I've always felt they were a little too cold. I found myself crying in several spots of this book. I don't think any of the previous books made me so emotional. They mostly went too fast and had me more shocked than sad like when Mac ate Jo. Even though I really liked Jo,I was too shocked--and a lot grossed out--to be sad. Plus, there was a lot happening really fast so I wasn't able to mourn for more than a second before I had to move on to the next peril.
I'm excited to see where the story will go from here if it is going anywhere.
Everybody thought the Song of Making would fix everything but it caused a whole set of new problems. The Fae are stronger and the old gods are awake. Neither are fond of humans but they hate each other more.
Mac and Barrons have left to deal with the Fae and Ryodan, along with the rest of The Nine have left too. Dani is left alone to keep her beloved Dublin safe.
This book had a different feel to it than the other books in the series. I think it was slowed down a bit to allow the reader to feel more and not be so disconnected from the characters. Not that I didn't connect but I've always felt they were a little too cold. I found myself crying in several spots of this book. I don't think any of the previous books made me so emotional. They mostly went too fast and had me more shocked than sad like when Mac ate Jo. Even though I really liked Jo,I was too shocked--and a lot grossed out--to be sad. Plus, there was a lot happening really fast so I wasn't able to mourn for more than a second before I had to move on to the next peril.
I'm excited to see where the story will go from here if it is going anywhere.
Well this book definitely answers some of the questions about Dani and Ryodan.....finally. All the gangs still here. Through about ten percent of the book at least. I'm still mystified that the juggle back and forth between Mac and Dani is still a problem for most readers. I'm completely on the fence, I don't care either way. I'm glad the author finally got her momentum back and gave us a ending for Dani. Her war/love/hate/sexualness with Ryodan was getting exhausting. It was never about what they said but what they didn't say. I'm glad they finally got there HEA. Four stars of entertainment.
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
I've finished it in a day. I've done just that. Read for the entire day. I regret nothing.
Give me a Karen Marie Moning book and I'll devour it. Her writing is pristine. I mean, even if she wrote a story about mice and cheese I would have to put my hands on it. It's an almost guarantee that KMM's work is that good, it can transform charcoal in diamonds.
I needed this book. Sooo much.
It's Dani's story, the badass, Mac's sidekick that grew up, who feels abandoned by all her friends and struggles to make ends meet. It's the same postapocaliptic scenario that we left behind in the other books, but with a few more regulation and laws.
I can't say too much, without spoiling the other books in the series, but a lot is answered in here and we find some closure for Dani in the end. It almost made me cry, the end I mean.
OMG, you have to read it. Totally worth it. *÷*
Give me a Karen Marie Moning book and I'll devour it. Her writing is pristine. I mean, even if she wrote a story about mice and cheese I would have to put my hands on it. It's an almost guarantee that KMM's work is that good, it can transform charcoal in diamonds.
I needed this book. Sooo much.
It's Dani's story, the badass, Mac's sidekick that grew up, who feels abandoned by all her friends and struggles to make ends meet. It's the same postapocaliptic scenario that we left behind in the other books, but with a few more regulation and laws.
I can't say too much, without spoiling the other books in the series, but a lot is answered in here and we find some closure for Dani in the end. It almost made me cry, the end I mean.
OMG, you have to read it. Totally worth it. *÷*
Well. It could've been worse. But I'm left feeling empty and sad, damn.
-I don't want to just outright say it's a bad story, because I don't think that's true, I think most stories have value. But when I think back to the earlier books, this is not the story I wanted for Dani, and it breaks my heart. It feels like a betrayal of that girl.
-The Nine don't live up to the hype! There's so much to potentially explore. They're so mysterious, they're extremely attractive, we know nothing about some of them, Lor was pissed off about Jo at the end of the last book, etc, but when we really get to know more, like with Ryodan in this book, it's a disappointment. A deeper exploration of them does not yield anything interesting or compelling. It makes me even more sad that Dageus was changed. They're supposed to plan so far ahead, have all these resources, be so smart, and there was just none of that. Ryodan didn't feel like Ryodan from previous books.
When I started this series I was so in love I went back and reread all the Highlander books. (That's so many books, fuck, this is disappointing.) I was impressed by the long game, by how far she planned ahead, and that is really lacking. Especially with a character who is supposed to operate the same way.
-This book has pretty much always messed with consent, so that wasn't a surprise. (I continue to wonder, did the writing change or did I?) What bothered me this time was the ways in which the men don't have to take responsibility for things. In their own ways the men in these books have violated the women. Sometimes I appreciate how the narrative deals with that, but the past few books, not so much. I noticed it with Mac but it was even clearer this time with Dani. Like, these are supposed to be immortal beings with infinite patience and Ryodan is a big baby because Dani is grieving and that's messy and complex. She, still a young woman, has to accept responsibility for the state of their relationship? She has to come to this big realization? It's all her fault??? I can understand a character working that out for themselves, coming to that conclusion and justifying it, and that's why I was 'ehhh' on that with Mac. Now it's part of a pattern, something the author is continuing to choose to write. The women take all the blame for relationship issues, and these relationships don't feel balanced, they don't feel like equals. I feel like I'm still waiting for some sort of comeuppance somewhere.
-More broadly, I think Dani/Ryodan just jumped into their relationship in a way I don't understand. She was a kid, she grew up quick, he's immortal and waiting, but when they decide to go for it they just jump into pet names and complete honesty?? And maybe this is personal, but she still comes across as very childish when she speaks to him? It made me a cringe a bit, I love Dani and I didn't want her to come to him on unequal footing like that, even if the book claims he loves her. Maybe that's a personal fear of vulnerability. But I have to believe there's a middle ground somewhere where she's Dani but not Jada but still an adult woman he loves, and they're matched. It feels a bit patronizing, like he's indulging her. I was interested before, how'd you lose me here? It wasn't what I hoped for.
-The Big Bad is blah. There's not much of a plot beyond their romance, and it's sloppy. But we ran out of story and now we're just trying to bring in other mythology and see what else can work so there can be more books, oops.
-I guess in the end she made Shazam fit into the book, but was it worth it? Was it?
-I really feel awful, I started this series so long ago and this is what it's become. So I browsed other reviewers and I agree: It wasn't really sexy! That one scene where he licked her back > this book. And the conclusion does sort of invalidate the whole Dancer thing! And Lor not helping Dani when she was in big danger? Please.
I gotta figure out how to recover from this now. Ugh.
-I don't want to just outright say it's a bad story, because I don't think that's true, I think most stories have value. But when I think back to the earlier books, this is not the story I wanted for Dani, and it breaks my heart. It feels like a betrayal of that girl.
-The Nine don't live up to the hype! There's so much to potentially explore. They're so mysterious, they're extremely attractive, we know nothing about some of them, Lor was pissed off about Jo at the end of the last book, etc, but when we really get to know more, like with Ryodan in this book, it's a disappointment. A deeper exploration of them does not yield anything interesting or compelling. It makes me even more sad that Dageus was changed. They're supposed to plan so far ahead, have all these resources, be so smart, and there was just none of that. Ryodan didn't feel like Ryodan from previous books.
When I started this series I was so in love I went back and reread all the Highlander books. (That's so many books, fuck, this is disappointing.) I was impressed by the long game, by how far she planned ahead, and that is really lacking. Especially with a character who is supposed to operate the same way.
-This book has pretty much always messed with consent, so that wasn't a surprise. (I continue to wonder, did the writing change or did I?) What bothered me this time was the ways in which the men don't have to take responsibility for things. In their own ways the men in these books have violated the women. Sometimes I appreciate how the narrative deals with that, but the past few books, not so much. I noticed it with Mac but it was even clearer this time with Dani. Like, these are supposed to be immortal beings with infinite patience and Ryodan is a big baby because Dani is grieving and that's messy and complex. She, still a young woman, has to accept responsibility for the state of their relationship? She has to come to this big realization? It's all her fault
Spoiler
for not calling RyodanSpoiler
Fuck you for leaving and being a coward and not outright asking/telling her to come to you when she was ready. He could've done that, issuing a challenge like that could've worked.-More broadly, I think Dani/Ryodan just jumped into their relationship in a way I don't understand. She was a kid, she grew up quick, he's immortal and waiting, but when they decide to go for it they just jump into pet names and complete honesty?? And maybe this is personal, but she still comes across as very childish when she speaks to him? It made me a cringe a bit, I love Dani and I didn't want her to come to him on unequal footing like that, even if the book claims he loves her. Maybe that's a personal fear of vulnerability. But I have to believe there's a middle ground somewhere where she's Dani but not Jada but still an adult woman he loves, and they're matched. It feels a bit patronizing, like he's indulging her. I was interested before, how'd you lose me here? It wasn't what I hoped for.
-The Big Bad is blah. There's not much of a plot beyond their romance, and it's sloppy. But we ran out of story and now we're just trying to bring in other mythology and see what else can work so there can be more books, oops.
-I guess in the end she made Shazam fit into the book, but was it worth it? Was it?
-I really feel awful, I started this series so long ago and this is what it's become. So I browsed other reviewers and I agree: It wasn't really sexy! That one scene where he licked her back > this book. And the conclusion does sort of invalidate the whole Dancer thing!
Spoiler
She becomes immortal and, if she dies, will become a planet. There is no next release for her soul.I gotta figure out how to recover from this now. Ugh.
4 stars - It was great. I loved it.
The best book in the series since the original first five. Now that she’s more mature, it was lovely spending time inside Dani’s head.
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Favorite Quote: I learned young that moments of comedy during the horror show can be a life raft, enough to keep you bobbing in a violent, killing sea.
First Sentence: He wouldn’t have seen the shooting star if the woman in his bed hadn’t fallen asleep, overstaying her welcome, filling him with the restless desire for a solitary walk on the beach.
The best book in the series since the original first five. Now that she’s more mature, it was lovely spending time inside Dani’s head.
-------------------------------------------
Favorite Quote: I learned young that moments of comedy during the horror show can be a life raft, enough to keep you bobbing in a violent, killing sea.
First Sentence: He wouldn’t have seen the shooting star if the woman in his bed hadn’t fallen asleep, overstaying her welcome, filling him with the restless desire for a solitary walk on the beach.
After books and books of building up to a Ryodan and Dani relationship I ended this book with the word..... OOOOOOOOKAY