Reviews

I didn’t manage to finish this on NYE so instead it’s my first read of the new year! This is definitely my least favourite of the four novellas in this series that I’ve read so far, probably more like a 3.5 stars? I feel like there was less focus on the relationships and more focus on a lot of plot dynamics with side characters who weren’t particularly close to the main character, thus we didn’t get as much of the usual breathtaking relationship dynamics I love so much. That being said, I hugely enjoyed the villain aspect. That’s all I’ll say to avoid giving away any spoilers.

Content warnings: blood and gore, violence, sexual content including bdsm themes, discussions around vulnerability and disassembly (done to a cyborg partner) during bdsm scene

Content Warnings

asterope's review

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dark mysterious tense

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No

3.0

This series is all about the vibes.

The main character Anoushka didn’t grab me - I mostly just found her relationships with her wives creepy. Honestly, I was rooting for the antagonist here. In a full length novel, I feel like Anoushka could have been more nuanced. But the writing of this series is too heavy to be anything other than novellas.

The plot and setting shine, like in the first instalment. The writing is less flowery and annoying, but the main character's dialogue made me cringe at times. I honestly can’t say I remember much from the first instalment, hence my vibes comment. I love this universe with all its intrigue, AI stuff, future tech etc, but the characters aren’t connecting with me. Still, happy to keep reading and absorbing all those delicious vibes.