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rellimreads's review
3.0
Parts of this were really good and parts just held it back. I liked Cassidy & Elijah as characters, they weren’t too angst-ey, which was nice. Their relationship had a flow and as the reader I felt connected to them and invested in their HEA. It was sort of insta-Love, but so much of the writing concentrated on them getting to know each other that it didn’t feel unfounded.
What felt overwhelming as a reader was the huge cast of characters. This was bridging a previous series I hadn’t read and starting a new series. I guess if I’d read the previous one I would have felt more vested in all these tertiary characters, instead I found myself constantly trying to remember who they all were. Add in all the newbies needed to kick off the new series and it’s a formidable cast. I am inclined to continue though.
Oddly, the epilogue ended it on a poor note for me. Part of the charm of these MCs is that they are who they are and Cassidy became a completely different person in the epilogue. Instead of feeling triumphant or whatever the author may have been going for, it lacked authenticity. Suddenly becoming an extrovert is not a sign of “success” or “healing”.
What felt overwhelming as a reader was the huge cast of characters. This was bridging a previous series I hadn’t read and starting a new series. I guess if I’d read the previous one I would have felt more vested in all these tertiary characters, instead I found myself constantly trying to remember who they all were. Add in all the newbies needed to kick off the new series and it’s a formidable cast. I am inclined to continue though.
Oddly, the epilogue ended it on a poor note for me. Part of the charm of these MCs is that they are who they are and Cassidy became a completely different person in the epilogue. Instead of feeling triumphant or whatever the author may have been going for, it lacked authenticity. Suddenly becoming an extrovert is not a sign of “success” or “healing”.
annas_sweets_and_stories's review
5.0
I know this says book one (but it's really #24?) and all the summaries of both this spin off series and the firsts and forever, say you can read them as standalones, but I highly recommend you go in order. There's too many characters without each of their individual stories it can get jumbled and confusing fast. That being said, there something intense about a 20+ book series. There's so much development and growth and time passed and it's pretty fucking cool to see everything play out. Idk if I'd ever be able to reread this entire series in order again, but I know I'll be going back to a few of my favorites in the future.
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