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adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was happy to see the story continued, but it didn’t quite live up to the first. It felt like a bridge between the first and whatever the finale will be with ‘Fearless’ - all about the romance, not so much the plot.
Taylor Swift’s ‘Dancing with our Hands Tied’ and ‘Castles Crumbling’ will have new layers now!
Spoilers incoming…
I kinda wish more happened in this book. The first one was so exciting and fast-paced with the Trials and balls and I expected a change since those are over, but so much of the plot was just switching who was who’s captive. First, Kai is hunting Paedyn through the slums/Scorches/Dor, catches her, then tries to bring her back to Ilya. Next, Paedyn’s friends save her, capture Kai, and bring them back to Dor. Then the underground fight master captures them both, forcing them to work together to escape and Kai chains Paedyn to him so he could try getting her back to Ilya again. This back-and-forth served its purpose in bringing back the banter and building their ‘I hate (how much I want) you’ chemistry with forced proximity and *pretend* intimacy to keep their identities hidden, but it felt like it dragged a bit with the constantly shifting captor/prisoner dynamic.
Memorable moments:
- The good ol’ ‘if he/she wanted to [kill you] he/she would’ trope 😜
- Gail is the MVP for the sticky buns in memory of Ava and the love and comfort she has given the princes their whole lives.
- “I used to welcome the idea of drowning in those blue eyes of hers. But now, seeing the distain she stares me down with, I realize that drowning alone wasn’t what I craved, but sinking together.”
- 🔥“If she is Shadow, then I am Flame… where I am, she is. Whether it’s in the flesh or in the fragments of my mind. And where there is a flame, there is always a shadow. She is my inevitable.” Cage fighting and then only one bed at the inn!
- “She feels anything but Ordinary. I’ve been taught my whole life that the likes of her would be the ruin of Elites, but I’ve never felt anything stronger.”
- “She’s unbearable, really. But not in the way that makes it any easier to look away. No, everything about her is a bold sort of beauty, like a rose proudly displaying its thorns. She’s alluring in the way that most deadly things are. It’s captivating.” 🥀
- Kai comforting her when she gets super claustrophobic tied up in the prison cell with him and the ENTIRE scene where they almost drown in the sewer but save each other.
- “I am reckless incarnate. Until the very end.” 🔥😘 Their kiss is regret and relief and “she tastes like a piece of the heaven I won’t be going to.”
- Paedyn’s ideal death - “I want an end like those I loved most. Stabbed through the chest with a smile on my face” so that she could feel what they felt and “feel like I’m with them one last time while I’m still alive.” 💔
- Kai saying Paedyn makes him think of what Ava could’ve been - “formidable. Recklessly bold. Powerful despite ability.”
- Paedyn thinking “my heart beats to be broken” by Kai and then he dances with her on his boots like her dad used to 🥹
- He saw her ‘O’ scar given by his dad. Pae: “Why won’t you fight me?” Kai: “Because the next time I lay a hand on you, I only ever want it to be in a caress.”
- “Say my name. Please” - “I want him to own my name and still beg when he says it.” 🔥
- Kai’s love confession! “If even a sliver of your soul longs for mine, I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to deserve it.”
That ending was still a slap-in-the-face twist 💍 despite being foreseeable from a mile away. Kai’s effort to save Paedyn in the poppy field was, as Jojo says, ‘Too Little Too Late’ and Pae marrying Kitt would be the worst way Kai could ever be punished for his misplaced sense of duty. I didn’t find Kitt’s POV very insightful or meaningful in this book, but will still eagerly await the final book to see what happens in this love/hate triangle. 🔻
P.S. Why is Calum - a leader of the Resistance - advising Kitt???
P.P.S. WHERE TF is Mak after introducing and developing him in ‘Powerful’?????
P.P.P.S. I am allllllll good on the word *pretend* and hope the 61 times it comes up is enough for a while.
Taylor Swift’s ‘Dancing with our Hands Tied’ and ‘Castles Crumbling’ will have new layers now!
Spoilers incoming…
I kinda wish more happened in this book. The first one was so exciting and fast-paced with the Trials and balls and I expected a change since those are over, but so much of the plot was just switching who was who’s captive. First, Kai is hunting Paedyn through the slums/Scorches/Dor, catches her, then tries to bring her back to Ilya. Next, Paedyn’s friends save her, capture Kai, and bring them back to Dor. Then the underground fight master captures them both, forcing them to work together to escape and Kai chains Paedyn to him so he could try getting her back to Ilya again. This back-and-forth served its purpose in bringing back the banter and building their ‘I hate (how much I want) you’ chemistry with forced proximity and *pretend* intimacy to keep their identities hidden, but it felt like it dragged a bit with the constantly shifting captor/prisoner dynamic.
Memorable moments:
- The good ol’ ‘if he/she wanted to [kill you] he/she would’ trope 😜
- Gail is the MVP for the sticky buns in memory of Ava and the love and comfort she has given the princes their whole lives.
- “I used to welcome the idea of drowning in those blue eyes of hers. But now, seeing the distain she stares me down with, I realize that drowning alone wasn’t what I craved, but sinking together.”
- 🔥“If she is Shadow, then I am Flame… where I am, she is. Whether it’s in the flesh or in the fragments of my mind. And where there is a flame, there is always a shadow. She is my inevitable.” Cage fighting and then only one bed at the inn!
- “She feels anything but Ordinary. I’ve been taught my whole life that the likes of her would be the ruin of Elites, but I’ve never felt anything stronger.”
- “She’s unbearable, really. But not in the way that makes it any easier to look away. No, everything about her is a bold sort of beauty, like a rose proudly displaying its thorns. She’s alluring in the way that most deadly things are. It’s captivating.” 🥀
- Kai comforting her when she gets super claustrophobic tied up in the prison cell with him and the ENTIRE scene where they almost drown in the sewer but save each other.
- “I am reckless incarnate. Until the very end.” 🔥😘 Their kiss is regret and relief and “she tastes like a piece of the heaven I won’t be going to.”
- Paedyn’s ideal death - “I want an end like those I loved most. Stabbed through the chest with a smile on my face” so that she could feel what they felt and “feel like I’m with them one last time while I’m still alive.” 💔
- Kai saying Paedyn makes him think of what Ava could’ve been - “formidable. Recklessly bold. Powerful despite ability.”
- Paedyn thinking “my heart beats to be broken” by Kai and then he dances with her on his boots like her dad used to 🥹
- He saw her ‘O’ scar given by his dad. Pae: “Why won’t you fight me?” Kai: “Because the next time I lay a hand on you, I only ever want it to be in a caress.”
- “Say my name. Please” - “I want him to own my name and still beg when he says it.” 🔥
- Kai’s love confession! “If even a sliver of your soul longs for mine, I’ll spend the rest of my life trying to deserve it.”
That ending was still a slap-in-the-face twist 💍 despite being foreseeable from a mile away. Kai’s effort to save Paedyn in the poppy field was, as Jojo says, ‘Too Little Too Late’ and Pae marrying Kitt would be the worst way Kai could ever be punished for his misplaced sense of duty. I didn’t find Kitt’s POV very insightful or meaningful in this book, but will still eagerly await the final book to see what happens in this love/hate triangle. 🔻
P.S. Why is Calum - a leader of the Resistance - advising Kitt???
P.P.S. WHERE TF is Mak after introducing and developing him in ‘Powerful’?????
P.P.P.S. I am allllllll good on the word *pretend* and hope the 61 times it comes up is enough for a while.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Murder
Moderate: Death of parent
adventurous
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book suffers from being a middle book of a trilogy super badly. The plot really drags and the back and forth with the MCs got very tedious and repetitive. Hopefully book 3 will turn this trilogy around and clear up the (very not surprise) cliffhanger.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, Death of parent, Injury/Injury detail
adventurous
emotional
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
This was the romantasy that I was promised. This was the enemies to lovers that I expected when I first cracked open Powerless. And this book made me love Kai. That's honestly all that I have to say.
JUST KIDDING! I loved every part of this book: The tenison, banter, action, and settings were perfect! I also liked how this tackled grief, mainly with how Pae cut her hair to get rid of the blood that not only stained the ends, but also stained her mind. Kai was also amazing in this book; his struggle between his duty and his desire was handled very well, to the point where if I hadn't read the little text on top of the Fearless cover, I wouldn't have figured out what he would do. Speaking of that, that ending was... well, let's just say that I want to murder Kitt in cold blood right now. Once again, I figured out that it was coming as I had read that text on the Fearless cover, but that doesn't make it any less heartbreaking! I will now be counting down the days until I get my copy of Fearless; 24 days left!
JUST KIDDING! I loved every part of this book: The tenison, banter, action, and settings were perfect! I also liked how this tackled grief, mainly with how Pae cut her hair to get rid of the blood that not only stained the ends, but also stained her mind. Kai was also amazing in this book; his struggle between his duty and his desire was handled very well, to the point where if I hadn't read the little text on top of the Fearless cover, I wouldn't have figured out what he would do. Speaking of that, that ending was... well, let's just say that I want to murder Kitt in cold blood right now. Once again, I figured out that it was coming as I had read that text on the Fearless cover, but that doesn't make it any less heartbreaking! I will now be counting down the days until I get my copy of Fearless; 24 days left!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Violence, Blood, Grief
Moderate: Terminal illness, Kidnapping
Minor: Abandonment
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence, Murder
Minor: Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Grief
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Murder
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: Violence, Abandonment
adventurous
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Blood
Moderate: Death
Minor: Death of parent
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
inspiring
relaxing
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Sexual content
This is one of the best books I’ve ever read! I read this book in literally two days! This has everything I was looking for, enemies to lovers, flirting, love triangle, mystery, hunger games, it was literally so good!
adventurous
emotional
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Loveable characters:
Yes
What it's about:
This book picks up where
Powerless left off. It is more character-focused than the first book. Tensions are high, and secrets are uncovered.
Characters have to decide who to trust and what to believe.
What I thought:
I loved this! The tension between Kai and Paedyn was amazing, and I loved their chemistry in this book. I also loved the vulnerability between them. I can't wait to see what happens in the next book.
> I loved this!
> the tension between Paedyn & Kai was 🔥
> I loved the vulnerability
> while I loved the fast-paced plot of book 1, I liked the character focus in this one
> that ending has me so anxious for the next book
🎧 Audiobook Thoughts: I loved all three narrators and appreciated having different narrators for each of the POVs.
⚠️ violence, confinement, panic attacks, and more.
🌶️ kissing
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Blood, Grief, Murder, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Cursing, Panic attacks/disorders, Fire/Fire injury
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
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:
N/A
I don't know how many times I've said this, but this is my favorite book/series of all time. The plot is CRAZY. But also not if you figured it out before. It has three pov's. Kai's, Paedyn's, and Kitt's. If you like hunger games, you'll like this series. Because it's almost like the same theme. But obviously completely different.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Violence, Blood, Kidnapping, Death of parent, Murder, Alcohol
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This felt more exciting than the previous book. The slow burn enemies to lovers romance heated up nicely
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Ableism, Death, Death of parent, Murder