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starswirly's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
thedailykaylee's review
5.0
Conclusion
Final book in this paranormal, bully RH romance series. Super slow burn series with only a few steamy scenes.
This series has a dang good plot. There were so many twists and turns and I found my mouth hanging open in shock multiple times. I never knew what was going to happen next and the suspense kept me on the edge of my seat. I FLEW through this series because I was hooked.
The author did such a good job with her writing that you could literally feel the characters every emotion. Hell, you even eventually feel sorry/root for the bullies by the end of the series.
I REALLY enjoyed the paranormal aspect of the series but I wasn’t crazy that we went from godliness to aliens. That kind of threw me a little bit but definitely did NOT ruin this series for me.
There are a few editing errors but not so much that it makes it hard to read.
Overall, I really feel like this was an excellent series and this book was an awesome conclusion. The author definitely found a new fan in me.
Final book in this paranormal, bully RH romance series. Super slow burn series with only a few steamy scenes.
This series has a dang good plot. There were so many twists and turns and I found my mouth hanging open in shock multiple times. I never knew what was going to happen next and the suspense kept me on the edge of my seat. I FLEW through this series because I was hooked.
The author did such a good job with her writing that you could literally feel the characters every emotion. Hell, you even eventually feel sorry/root for the bullies by the end of the series.
I REALLY enjoyed the paranormal aspect of the series but I wasn’t crazy that we went from godliness to aliens. That kind of threw me a little bit but definitely did NOT ruin this series for me.
There are a few editing errors but not so much that it makes it hard to read.
Overall, I really feel like this was an excellent series and this book was an awesome conclusion. The author definitely found a new fan in me.
kellyyoungbl's review
3.0
3 stars
Disappointing ending to an otherwise great series. I know HP Lovecraft was her inspiration for this, but sheesh this final book got way too weird. And for 4 books, there was really not that much relationship development
Disappointing ending to an otherwise great series. I know HP Lovecraft was her inspiration for this, but sheesh this final book got way too weird. And for 4 books, there was really not that much relationship development
inge_oortwijn's review
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
kylieandersen's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
erikawastaken's review against another edition
3.0
I don’t know how I feel at the end of this series.
The good:
I have always enjoyed gothic horror and am excited to see the same themes and ideas in modern stories. Also, I appreciate a “bully” romance where there is a reason for the bullying/animosity, yet you can actually understand why it happened and how the heroine could forgive everyone.
I liked the incorporation of Salem and witchcraft. It was a heart blend with the Lovecraftian horror and helped explain the whys.
The meh:
The romance was kind of just blah for me. Like, I never really felt there was anything between the main characters. The guys were fleshed out as the series progressed, but I never really understood why they were so swept up in Hazel or her in them. It made the HEA feel a bit forced, as it often felt like their feelings were situational.
The pacing in the series, and especially this book, was off. Certain things were resolved too quickly, and then other parts just dragged.
The bad:
One thing that makes gothic horror so amazing is the descriptions and mood setting. This series missed that. Outside of the fact, Ayaz smelled like rose and honey, this series just never really did a good job of setting the scene and painting a picture for us. My go-to example of how lacking this is the fact our first uniform description is 50 pages into the second book.
The other clear example is the confusion over Hazel’s race. In book one, there is one line nearly at the end where she refers to her “dark skin,” and in this book, she refers to her hair as “kinky,” but that’s it. While I appreciate not wanting to go into an in-depth description of her skin tone and saving us from a skin color to food/coffee analogy, it always felt like Hazel was stripped of her Blackness, which feels inauthentic and hollow.
Overall the handling of race in this novel is problematic - either the author wrote a poorly developed BIPOC character and defaulted to stereotypes, or she wrote a white girl with dreads that uses some pretty problematic language. It was like the author wanted to infuse race and class into this story but approached it from the “I don’t see color” point of view. A sensitivity reader would have helped this series significantly.
The good:
I have always enjoyed gothic horror and am excited to see the same themes and ideas in modern stories. Also, I appreciate a “bully” romance where there is a reason for the bullying/animosity, yet you can actually understand why it happened and how the heroine could forgive everyone.
I liked the incorporation of Salem and witchcraft. It was a heart blend with the Lovecraftian horror and helped explain the whys.
The meh:
The romance was kind of just blah for me. Like, I never really felt there was anything between the main characters. The guys were fleshed out as the series progressed, but I never really understood why they were so swept up in Hazel or her in them. It made the HEA feel a bit forced, as it often felt like their feelings were situational.
The pacing in the series, and especially this book, was off. Certain things were resolved too quickly, and then other parts just dragged.
The bad:
One thing that makes gothic horror so amazing is the descriptions and mood setting. This series missed that. Outside of the fact, Ayaz smelled like rose and honey, this series just never really did a good job of setting the scene and painting a picture for us. My go-to example of how lacking this is the fact our first uniform description is 50 pages into the second book.
The other clear example is the confusion over Hazel’s race. In book one, there is one line nearly at the end where she refers to her “dark skin,” and in this book, she refers to her hair as “kinky,” but that’s it. While I appreciate not wanting to go into an in-depth description of her skin tone and saving us from a skin color to food/coffee analogy, it always felt like Hazel was stripped of her Blackness, which feels inauthentic and hollow.
Overall the handling of race in this novel is problematic - either the author wrote a poorly developed BIPOC character and defaulted to stereotypes, or she wrote a white girl with dreads that uses some pretty problematic language. It was like the author wanted to infuse race and class into this story but approached it from the “I don’t see color” point of view. A sensitivity reader would have helped this series significantly.
daisybox's review against another edition
3.0
I liked the story, I really like Hazel. I warmed up to the guys after the first book, but I couldn't stand the others bullies and I didn't like how they all turned nice at the end.
I didn't like Loretta's character development either. It's like a switch had be turned on her and no. Her turning her back to her friends wasn't ok.
I really liked Greg and Andre! And Zerha!
NGL I would have loved if if the story stayed in the witchy universe. The whole alien thing was weird.
I absolutely HATED how Ayaz was described.
I didn't like Loretta's character development either. It's like a switch had be turned on her and no. Her turning her back to her friends wasn't ok.
I really liked Greg and Andre! And Zerha!
NGL I would have loved if if the story stayed in the witchy universe. The whole alien thing was weird.
I absolutely HATED how Ayaz was described.
daisybox's review
3.0
I liked the story, I really like Hazel. I warmed up to the guys after the first book, but I couldn't stand the others bullies and I didn't like how they all turned nice at the end.
I didn't like Loretta's character development either. It's like a switch had be turned on her and no. Her turning her back to her friends wasn't ok.
I really liked Greg and Andre! And Zerha!
NGL I would have loved if if the story stayed in the witchy universe. The whole alien thing was weird.
I absolutely HATED how Ayaz was described.
I didn't like Loretta's character development either. It's like a switch had be turned on her and no. Her turning her back to her friends wasn't ok.
I really liked Greg and Andre! And Zerha!
NGL I would have loved if if the story stayed in the witchy universe. The whole alien thing was weird.
I absolutely HATED how Ayaz was described.