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4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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:
Yes
The only thing that would make this book better is if it were gayer. But we can’t have it all can we
Overall though hugely enjoyable read! Great pacing and mix of high-intensity action and ~erotic scenes. I’m not usually a fan of alove triangle , but I’m really into this one—I feel like the character dynamics between the leads are really well developed with a layer of nuance compelling enough to keep it fresh.
Come for the guilty pleasure of aggressive heterosexuality, stay for the bloody brawls, high heat, and well-crafted character dynamics (and not just between the main pairing)
Overall though hugely enjoyable read! Great pacing and mix of high-intensity action and ~erotic scenes. I’m not usually a fan of a
Come for the guilty pleasure of aggressive heterosexuality, stay for the bloody brawls, high heat, and well-crafted character dynamics (and not just between the main pairing)
I couldn’t be bothered to finish the rest. I really disliked the love triangle in this book. It just rubbed me the wrong way.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
tense
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
adventurous
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
When I read the first book, I was kind of on the fence about it so I was kind of relying on this book to make or break the series for me. I did enjoy this second book a lot more than the first one so I do think I'm going to continue on with the series. I feel like overall, it's a decent fantasy series but I also feel like while there are things I really enjoy about it, there's also a lot that I don't really like and that kind of puts it below a lot of my favorite series. What i liked the most about the first book was Sabine and her ability to communicate with animals. I still really like Sabine and I liked how there was a lot of growth in her powers and that aspect of the book, I was really a fan of. Now, I wasn't the biggest fan of Wolf in the first book, I feel like compared to some of my favorite fictional romantic pairings, that Sabine and Wolf just can't compete. I do think that after Wolf's love confession to Sabine that he grew on me a bit but to be honest, I just don't find myself that invested in their romance which kind of brings the story down for me. I think it feels like Wolf is sending Sabine mixed signals between pushing her away for her own good but then later having sex with her at her engagement party to another man who happens to be someone Wolf is close to. I think I just found Wolf's character frustrating but I will say that I enjoyed the twist at the end between Rian and Wolf. I feel like Sabine's character is a highlight for me and I'm happy that I still liked her the same as I did in the first book. As long as I remember to check when the sequel comes out, I'll probably continue on with this series because I did feel like this one was better than the first one but I definitely wouldn't rank it high against some of my other favorite fantasy series.
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
It's not badly written, the author writes well enough and is able to craft characters and the plot well enough but it's the decisions she's making through characters that is making me distrustful of her intentions for them (or this genre in general). Like, what message is she trying to send? Is this just a wish fulfillment story or is it actually trying to be interesting and resonant?
I get it, the beast-like hero is a thing for many readers. It has its appeal but right now, this book has lost me on its romance entirely, which fuels the entire story. It's trying to convince me that their relationship is romantic and it's not. It's triggering. There are many beast-like MMCs (see Beauty and the Beast? lmao) who aren't gaslighting, boundary invading epitomes of toxic masculinity. Wolf isn't beast-like, there is nothing wild and innocent in his feelings, his mannerisms. Wolf is a fuckboy.
His depiction is a sublimation of all the things that men do to women who treat women as chattel. He doesn't just f*ck her and pine for her. He wants to OWN her. This is the glaring hole in Marceau's understanding of beast-men tropes. Animals are territorial but don't exert ownership, they don't "give away" their mates and they certainly don't intentionally gaslight people with emotional blackmail in order to mess with them psychologically. He strips Sabine of her agency constantly (constantly being in her space, even when she's trying to get away- trying to protect her by physically overwhelming her). He does not respect her boundaries, even when she is visibly distressed (wanting to jerk off to her sleeping form after he sneaks into her room? cringe). He uses her softness against her by gaslighting her (forcing her to admit that she thinks about Wolf when she's intimate with Rian after she gives into her feelings for Wolf? like no, bruh. AND THEN TELLING SABINE "I don't know how to love!!!!!" LOL.)
By the second time they were f*cking, I understood their relationship to be some sort of wish fulfillment fantasy and I had fully divested from this nonsense romance.
I have no qualms against cheating stories but somehow their romance is also sanctimonious all the same. This is the nail on the coffin. It's not an interesting story about two shitty people deserving each other, it's about them not taking accountability for their actions because they're pretty and hot or some sh*t. Sabine f*cking Wolf behind Rian's back is not an issue for me, but I just want her to come into it (literally and figuratively). I don't want sex scenes with her as the Virgin Mary, her being elevated into a goddess when she's literally no better than Wolf. Like, lets just have her fall to her own animal instincts and see how much better she gets as a character?
The reason why I continue reading is because of Rian. He is supposed to be an aspect of the trickster trope, but thus far, he's been forthcoming about his faults, he delivers on his promises and does not treat Sabine like chattel. He didn't even buy her, technically and I thought this was intention on Marceau's part, to even the power dynamics between Sabine and Rian. I keep reading because Marceau can seemingly address toxic behavior by making her characters "think" about it, but ultimately the decisions they make are unrelated to what they think, so my patience keeps thinning out with each f*ck session, every "Valveres are horrible people they deserve every horrible thing they get" and every other "oh shit Rian caught us" panic attack.
I know that books don't make money if their heroines are rogue actors but for me, the only way I can see myself enjoying this book is if Sabine doesn't end up with anybody and simply becomes some sort of forest entity. Depending on how I feel about Sabine x Wolf by the end of the book, I may or may not finish this series because I do not intend to put myself through anymore eye rolling at lengthy depictions of "beast man's" c0*k.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Sexual harassment
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Violence
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
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