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pawtory's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I just finished listening to this book, it's free on the Audible plus catalogue and it was soooo damn good. I haven't listened to that many historical romances but I'd say this one was top tier. It seemed the author worked hard to make things feel authentic, but include the reader in a way it was easy to get into the setting even if you (like myself) have very little knowledge of vikings and monks in the 7th century. There is a dash of old-world magic but I didn't feel like it took away from the immersion (added to the book overall for me but I know some people don't like mixing magic into historical). Also the narrator was EXCELLENT! His nordic accent slipped into French sounding a bit at the beginning and I'm no expert on accents but other than that he did an amazing job.
It is enemies-to-lovers, hurt/comfort, has a good amount of angst, pretty high spice but also tenderness and great character development. My one qualm was how a mentally disabled character was handled. He wasn't treated badly and the language used for him was consistent with the setting but there is a "miracle" at the end where he basically hits his head (on a religious relic that they establish has miraculous capabilities) and is "cured" and it felt rather gross. I wish it hadn't happened bc it's the only thing that kept it from being a 5star read for me.
It is enemies-to-lovers, hurt/comfort, has a good amount of angst, pretty high spice but also tenderness and great character development. My one qualm was how a mentally disabled character was handled. He wasn't treated badly and the language used for him was consistent with the setting but there is a "miracle" at the end where he basically hits his head (on a religious relic that they establish has miraculous capabilities) and is "cured" and it felt rather gross. I wish it hadn't happened bc it's the only thing that kept it from being a 5star read for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Violence, and Suicide
Moderate: Grief, Homophobia, Medical content, and Ableism
Minor: Rape and Sexual assault
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