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ehmannky's review against another edition
4.0
An overall satisfying end to the Serpent & Dove trilogy. I felt a little frustrated with the fact that Mahurin apparently couldn't keep the romantic conflict going without either Lou or Reid being either possessed or having their mind erased for a hot second , but other than that I had a good time. I loved the fact that all of the characters really and truly got to deal with the grief of losing Ansel.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder, Death, Death of parent, Child death, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Sexism
theespressoedition's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
This review does contain spoilers, but I won't be hiding them because they'll be throughout - hence this warning.
Oof. This was an interesting end to this series. If you've read my reviews for the previous two, then you already know that this is not even close to my favorite series. I had a tough time with Serpent & Dove, primarily because the narrator of the audiobook really ruined the experience. I thought Blood & Honey would redeem it and that could possibly be one of my least favorite books of all time. Gods & Monsters was the final chance and... well, you can see my rating.
I will state right now that this was leaps and bounds better than Blood & Honey. But there were just so many things I disliked about it as well. It was really, really slow for the first 2/3 of the book. There were exciting moments, to be sure, but nothing that really made my heart race or keep my attention plastered to the page. The entire time that Nicholina was possessing Lou, I thought that she would lose her memories. That's what it was leading to - especially when she forgot Ansel and Beau while talking to the crowd of lost souls in her mind. Instead, she comes to with The Maiden's power and all her memories and within moments of that occurring, Reid loses all of his memories?! It was at this moment that if I was any other reader, I probably would've DNF'd. However, I kept going because this had to get better, right?
We go right back to the vibes from the first book: severe enemies-to-lovers. Reid absolutely loathes Lou again and wants to kill her for being a witch. Eventually, it's his lust for her that begins to redeem his memories and helps him see the "gold threads" again. Let me repeat that: sex helps him get his witchy powers back. Excuse me? That was the most anticlimactic and frustrating way for him to have that breakthrough.
Also, there was hardly any final battle. Beau lights Lou on fire, Claud kind of took over with his tree god thing, and Coco's mom dies (that entire scene is so gruesome that I was actually nauseous). There are several holes in the story that bother me now and I'll forget about later because I just don't care that much.
The only redeeming parts of this book were when Ansel showed up. Yes, yes, I know he's dead. He should never have died in the first place though and his character is really the only one I ever liked, so his appearances helped a little bit. Finding out at the beginning that he was the spectral dog - and the way he helps Lou beat Nicholina - was really sweet. The final chapter being his perspective of Reid and Lou's official wedding was also sweet. If only he was ALIVE.
Big sigh. This series just isn't it for me. A grand total of 2-stars for the whole trilogy.
Oof. This was an interesting end to this series. If you've read my reviews for the previous two, then you already know that this is not even close to my favorite series. I had a tough time with Serpent & Dove, primarily because the narrator of the audiobook really ruined the experience. I thought Blood & Honey would redeem it and that could possibly be one of my least favorite books of all time. Gods & Monsters was the final chance and... well, you can see my rating.
I will state right now that this was leaps and bounds better than Blood & Honey. But there were just so many things I disliked about it as well. It was really, really slow for the first 2/3 of the book. There were exciting moments, to be sure, but nothing that really made my heart race or keep my attention plastered to the page. The entire time that Nicholina was possessing Lou, I thought that she would lose her memories. That's what it was leading to - especially when she forgot Ansel and Beau while talking to the crowd of lost souls in her mind. Instead, she comes to with The Maiden's power and all her memories and within moments of that occurring, Reid loses all of his memories?! It was at this moment that if I was any other reader, I probably would've DNF'd. However, I kept going because this had to get better, right?
We go right back to the vibes from the first book: severe enemies-to-lovers. Reid absolutely loathes Lou again and wants to kill her for being a witch. Eventually, it's his lust for her that begins to redeem his memories and helps him see the "gold threads" again. Let me repeat that: sex helps him get his witchy powers back. Excuse me? That was the most anticlimactic and frustrating way for him to have that breakthrough.
Also, there was hardly any final battle. Beau lights Lou on fire, Claud kind of took over with his tree god thing, and Coco's mom dies (that entire scene is so gruesome that I was actually nauseous). There are several holes in the story that bother me now and I'll forget about later because I just don't care that much.
The only redeeming parts of this book were when Ansel showed up. Yes, yes, I know he's dead. He should never have died in the first place though and his character is really the only one I ever liked, so his appearances helped a little bit. Finding out at the beginning that he was the spectral dog - and the way he helps Lou beat Nicholina - was really sweet. The final chapter being his perspective of Reid and Lou's official wedding was also sweet. If only he was ALIVE.
Big sigh. This series just isn't it for me. A grand total of 2-stars for the whole trilogy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Blood, Murder, and Death
Moderate: Cannibalism, Cursing, Emotional abuse, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Grief
khloereads86's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Violence
Moderate: War, Death of parent, Death, and Murder
Minor: Child death
powellki's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Cannibalism, Child death, Confinement, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Slavery, Stalking, Violence, and War
Moderate: Abandonment, Alcoholism, Animal death, Child death, Cursing, Death, Gaslighting, and Grief
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