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kaiyakaiyo's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
fast-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
3.5
3.5 rounded down :(
this seemed so fun and sexy from the outside, but just didn’t deliver on pretty much anything it promised. the romance was sweet, and i liked the woods, hence the 3 stars, but the “eldritch” in question is really just squiggly dark magic. it’s literally just those lil evil shadows from kingdom hearts transported to something like a Witcher-verse. many of the characters and the magic system feel half-baked, and there’s very little beauty and the beast or red riding hood about this besides very heavyhanded throwaway bits. i enjoyed the romance (which is rare for me!) but nothing about this universe or the chars outside of red/eammon were very intriguing.
also you shouldn’t name a book “for the wolf” if there’s NO FUCKING WOLF 😭 he’s just a guy they ends up something like an Ent from LOTR in the least sexy way possible. extremely unsexy and not very ~dark~ at all. the darkest thing is the blood which frankly splashed around so much that i stopped being shocked by it.
The plot is incredibly rushed; two assassinations and a religious coup happen mostly off-page while Red mopes in the woods… would’ve liked a bit more of the how on that. Kiri was far too heavyhanded and outright weird for people to not have clocked her plotting. Neve was “raised for the throne” but can’t spot a pretty basic manipulation plot ..? ok. grief is one thing, flat-out stupidity is another. the guy in love with your sister so bad he’d shed blood on scary magic trees to bring her back is suddenly (figuratively) up your ass and you don’t immediately suspect foul play?????? your mom dies immediately after derailing a creepy nuns plans & you don’t think it’s weird until later????? cmon now
much of the non-red parts of the story felt half-baked, so I ended up extremely confused as to Neve’s motivations, Solmir’s general existence, and why Raffe just stood there while it all went down… maybe that’s what book two is for, but im not a fan of underexplaining so i have to purchase another installment.
This book could have focused entirely on red and eammon and been LOVELY, but it tried to stray too far into political intrigue and dark magic and just ended up jumbled. i already bought book two, so I’ll finish it, but im really not jazzed about having to spend more time with Neve or Solmir. I would’ve preferred a longer series with more time spent meandering through red’s narrative THEN coming back to the wider world instead of the rapid cuts to increasingly absurd throne shenanigans.
This book really shines in the sweetness between eammon & red; from the moment he meets her, he wants her to have choices, even if he thinks those choices should be “run in the other direction”. he’s kind of bumbling and awkward in a really hot way, and just generic enough that I could kinda imagine him as anyone (i chose a Henry Cavill lookalike). Red is a bit naive, and very brash, but she also won’t take his lone wolf bs and finds solutions without always needing him to help. She is an advocate for working together, which is so refreshing for a fantasy woman. She’s not some Chosen One, she chooses to help and sticks to it, while also trying to look out for her sister.
Surprisingly enough, I would’ve liked more spice! as much as I make fun of the terrible and unrealistic smut that abounds in published fantasy these days, the fade to blacks here kinda left me like… :/ what is the point in drawing on red riding hood if there’s no mauling but in a consensual, sexy way. no beast in the beauty. I wanted banging, I won’t lie. It didn’t have to be super graphic or more than once, but the build up felt like it fizzled to nothing…. marriage for convenience… Sharing a room… wearing his clothes…. All these heated gazes just to get a “she woke up sore” fade in… sigh. I feel like you can’t draw on sources that typically lean into monsterfucking and sexy predator/prey just to make the consummation so milquetoast
anyways, wouldn’t really recommend, but willing to give book 2 a chance. and shame on you to literally everyone recommending this book bc the marketing is NOT matching the book
this seemed so fun and sexy from the outside, but just didn’t deliver on pretty much anything it promised. the romance was sweet, and i liked the woods, hence the 3 stars, but the “eldritch” in question is really just squiggly dark magic. it’s literally just those lil evil shadows from kingdom hearts transported to something like a Witcher-verse. many of the characters and the magic system feel half-baked, and there’s very little beauty and the beast or red riding hood about this besides very heavyhanded throwaway bits. i enjoyed the romance (which is rare for me!) but nothing about this universe or the chars outside of red/eammon were very intriguing.
also you shouldn’t name a book “for the wolf” if there’s NO FUCKING WOLF 😭 he’s just a guy they ends up something like an Ent from LOTR in the least sexy way possible. extremely unsexy and not very ~dark~ at all. the darkest thing is the blood which frankly splashed around so much that i stopped being shocked by it.
The plot is incredibly rushed; two assassinations and a religious coup happen mostly off-page while Red mopes in the woods… would’ve liked a bit more of the how on that. Kiri was far too heavyhanded and outright weird for people to not have clocked her plotting. Neve was “raised for the throne” but can’t spot a pretty basic manipulation plot ..? ok. grief is one thing, flat-out stupidity is another. the guy in love with your sister so bad he’d shed blood on scary magic trees to bring her back is suddenly (figuratively) up your ass and you don’t immediately suspect foul play?????? your mom dies immediately after derailing a creepy nuns plans & you don’t think it’s weird until later????? cmon now
much of the non-red parts of the story felt half-baked, so I ended up extremely confused as to Neve’s motivations, Solmir’s general existence, and why Raffe just stood there while it all went down… maybe that’s what book two is for, but im not a fan of underexplaining so i have to purchase another installment.
This book could have focused entirely on red and eammon and been LOVELY, but it tried to stray too far into political intrigue and dark magic and just ended up jumbled. i already bought book two, so I’ll finish it, but im really not jazzed about having to spend more time with Neve or Solmir. I would’ve preferred a longer series with more time spent meandering through red’s narrative THEN coming back to the wider world instead of the rapid cuts to increasingly absurd throne shenanigans.
This book really shines in the sweetness between eammon & red; from the moment he meets her, he wants her to have choices, even if he thinks those choices should be “run in the other direction”. he’s kind of bumbling and awkward in a really hot way, and just generic enough that I could kinda imagine him as anyone (i chose a Henry Cavill lookalike). Red is a bit naive, and very brash, but she also won’t take his lone wolf bs and finds solutions without always needing him to help. She is an advocate for working together, which is so refreshing for a fantasy woman. She’s not some Chosen One, she chooses to help and sticks to it, while also trying to look out for her sister.
Surprisingly enough, I would’ve liked more spice! as much as I make fun of the terrible and unrealistic smut that abounds in published fantasy these days, the fade to blacks here kinda left me like… :/ what is the point in drawing on red riding hood if there’s no mauling but in a consensual, sexy way. no beast in the beauty. I wanted banging, I won’t lie. It didn’t have to be super graphic or more than once, but the build up felt like it fizzled to nothing…. marriage for convenience… Sharing a room… wearing his clothes…. All these heated gazes just to get a “she woke up sore” fade in… sigh. I feel like you can’t draw on sources that typically lean into monsterfucking and sexy predator/prey just to make the consummation so milquetoast
anyways, wouldn’t really recommend, but willing to give book 2 a chance. and shame on you to literally everyone recommending this book bc the marketing is NOT matching the book
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Forced institutionalization
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