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itsgalactic's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-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
5.0
While often don’t like when the main couple fuck after just meeting, Katee Robert crafted two emotionally constipated people who would believably have sex right away rather than talking to each other about their attraction. I mean that positively as the character growth from each of our main characters during this smutty adventure was wonderfully done. I also appreciate the casual queerness of Thane and some of side characters. spoilers and trigger warning for abortion. I also very much appreciated that while Catalina does get pregnant towards the end of the book when she did not want to due to her trauma. Thane also completely supports her decision and it is treated as a necessary for her mental health and wellbeing. The epilogue also doesn’t show her as being a mother in the future which I appreciated with the lore where it would be beneficial for Thane and Catalina to have a child but he puts her needs in this matter first.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Abortion
Minor: Emotional abuse, Abandonment, Fatphobia, and Confinement
stuffandwhatnot's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
This was a whole lot of book packed down into a novella-sized package. Human Catalina takes the demon's bargain and ends up committing to seven years with the tentacliest-tentacle man in tentacle town. She's been emotionally abused her whole life by her mother and has never had success with relationships before. She's a prickly cactus with a soft fragile center. Kraken Thane lost his husband years ago and has never truly worked through his grief, and he has no interest in starting anything with the human he's stuck with. He's cold and stern and insensitive until his protective streak is activated.
As with the previous book, I thought they jumped right to the boinking rather quickly, given their respective emotional states. I could have done with a full-length slower burn, myself.
As with the previous book, I thought they jumped right to the boinking rather quickly, given their respective emotional states. I could have done with a full-length slower burn, myself.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief and Abortion
Moderate: Emotional abuse
mariakureads's review against another edition
challenging
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I wanted to like this one. I really did – I mean the premise sounded promising plus Kraken MC why not right? – but there was enough here that left a sour taste in my mouth.
Thane is cold and distant in a way that leaves him almost nonchalant and unfeeling towards others and slightly self absorbed in his own pain that he's blind to the rest around him which might not be a problem except he's just signed a deal to take a human bride for the next 7 years, which honestly he's not wanting.
Whereas our human MC, Catalina, signed the deal to get away from her world and all the bad with it, I'm thinking in hopes of something better. She has a lot of issues, one being that she's so used to being verbally, mentally and possibly physically abused that she can't tell when she is being hurt thus harmed and in violation of their contract because it's so "normal" to her.
I tried but honestly Thane doesn't recognize his maltreatment until more than 3/4ths of the way in and by then I really couldn't see or understand how aside from the contract keeping them together, why, and this is a short read, they would be together? She has so many different self issues aside from being a survivor of abuse to stay in a relationship with a man who neglected her time and time again and added on to the damage.
I loved The Dragon's Bride and am curious to see how the others play out, hoping that the other protagonists get better treatment than Catalina did.
Thane is cold and distant in a way that leaves him almost nonchalant and unfeeling towards others and slightly self absorbed in his own pain that he's blind to the rest around him which might not be a problem except he's just signed a deal to take a human bride for the next 7 years, which honestly he's not wanting.
Whereas our human MC, Catalina, signed the deal to get away from her world and all the bad with it, I'm thinking in hopes of something better. She has a lot of issues, one being that she's so used to being verbally, mentally and possibly physically abused that she can't tell when she is being hurt thus harmed and in violation of their contract because it's so "normal" to her.
I tried but honestly Thane doesn't recognize his maltreatment until more than 3/4ths of the way in and by then I really couldn't see or understand how aside from the contract keeping them together, why, and this is a short read, they would be together? She has so many different self issues aside from being a survivor of abuse to stay in a relationship with a man who neglected her time and time again and added on to the damage.
I loved The Dragon's Bride and am curious to see how the others play out, hoping that the other protagonists get better treatment than Catalina did.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Grief, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Confinement, Death, and Body shaming
myinvinciblesummer's review against another edition
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Sexual content, Abandonment, and Abortion
Moderate: Child abuse and Emotional abuse
addanumlaut's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
i preferred sol and briar to this couple, but thane was super cute in his own way.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Emotional abuse
fadeddpages's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion, Pregnancy, and Sexual content
Minor: Emotional abuse
bridiea's review against another edition
1.0
Genuinely awful. The ‘love interest’ outright abuses and neglects her and is still openly deeply in love with his dead husband… what??? There is absolutely no reason these people would even be having sex never mind deciding they were in love with each other Also - an entire chapter devoted to her having a magical abortion because he ‘didn’t think’ about contraception - HUH??????
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion and Emotional abuse
cardaisy's review against another edition
I was having a lot of fun for the first like 25% and then I slowly realised I was not having fun anymore
I had high hopes for this book especially since I really enjoyed the first in the series, but this straight up sucked for me. The MMC was neglectful and abusive and the FMC put up with it because of past abuse and seeing his actions as normal and to be expected
Also maybe this is just me reading it wrong, but the CWs at the start of the book really made it seem like abuse/neglect was all in the past (like in the first book) and not literally a key plot point. I guess this is supposed to be a dark romance? Maybe?? I just feel like that was not what was on the tin, especially since at the beginning of this book (just like in the first book) there is SUCH a heavy emphasis on the fact that no harm will come to the FMC
I had high hopes for this book especially since I really enjoyed the first in the series, but this straight up sucked for me. The MMC was neglectful and abusive and the FMC put up with it because of past abuse and seeing his actions as normal and to be expected
Also maybe this is just me reading it wrong, but the CWs at the start of the book really made it seem like abuse/neglect was all in the past (like in the first book) and not literally a key plot point. I guess this is supposed to be a dark romance? Maybe?? I just feel like that was not what was on the tin, especially since at the beginning of this book (just like in the first book) there is SUCH a heavy emphasis on the fact that no harm will come to the FMC
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Abandonment
emmagrace's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.75
as much as I appreciate that this was a romance between two people who didn't want kids and still don't want kids by the end of the story, that was pretty much the only thing I liked. the main guy/kraken was so terrible to her and the justification is just that she's used to being treated poorly?? I was not a fan, especially not when weighing this against the previous book which was so much better in every aspect.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Abortion, Emotional abuse, Grief, Body shaming, and Child abuse
harveyjoy53's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Grief, and Abandonment
Moderate: Bullying, Body shaming, Emotional abuse, Abortion, and Pregnancy
Minor: Death and Toxic relationship