Reviews

Lead Me Astray by Sondi Warner

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selbreenick's review

adventurous emotional hopeful fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? N/A
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

So I have thoughts.......

For starters I didn't know there was gonna be an age gap. Granted Aurie was on the verge of 20 but she was still 19 and with Zyr being 26.....idk man. Like at 21 I wouldn't and at 19 I def wouldn't have. I think the maturity difference showed but that could have been me.

(I don't think it was though cause they'd talk about Aurie's lack of experience and while it was probs from a "you haven't been with enough people" pov I couldn't help but remark that she was 19. Funnily enough when she asks Ravani and Mys to not treat her like a child that's exactly what they say to her.)

I wasn't crazy about some of the language surrounding Mys being intersex. Also it made the steamy scenes weird at times. They were more emotion driven which I was grateful for cause I don't care for lots of sex, but words like "manhood" snuck in and me personally? I think it's important to reevaluate how you think about genitals and the terminology used in general but esp when writing intersex characters.

Mys and Ravani had so much chemistry and were by far the most compelling part of the polycule for me which was unfortunate cause I picked this up for the polycule. Aurie fit in nicely I guess and maybe it could be the age thing that made it less convincing for me but yeah. I believed they all deeply cared about each other and were devoted to one another but romantically I wasn't as convinced by Aurie's role even though they like kissed and had sex n stuff.

Speaking of language I also didn't like the "savage" vs "civilized" bits of dialogue that would happen when talking about Ravani's wolf form and him going feral. Like I get we're talking about literal wolves and monsters but that language especially next to each other is so loaded. I recognize this is probs just a me thing.

The mystery was probably decent enough but I have to be honest around the big reveal I got bored and started skipping cause I just wanted to see the characters interact again 😭

These are just a few things I had commentary on but overall not bad but not great either especially w the pacing. I think the whole book could used some proper polishing. That said, I should be completely transparent and say I zoomed through it cause there was something about it that kept pulling me in regardless.

rjsreadingnook's review

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5.0

What happens when a ghost, a werewolf detective, and an Empath join forces to fight against an evil vampire?

They fall in love. Like I did, with Lead Me Astray by Sondi Warner.

Aurie (the ghost) played it safe her entire life… until she died. Then she finally started taking chances and living life like she never had before. It was really freeing to follow her arc. Her character grows so much, and she goes from being overly cautious to brave and powerful. She was such a joy to read...

(To read more of my review, visit https://www.rjsorrento.com/blog//book-review-lead-me-astray)

If you’re seeking a paranormal romance with positive queer rep, steamy love scenes, and a mystery that will keep you guessing, check out Lead Me Astray by Sondi Warner.

Note: I received an arc in exchange for an honest review.