Reviews with content warning for Rape - Queen of Myth and Monsters

The book is a mess. Maybe book 1 was the same and I was just in a different mood. Big reveals feel rushed/abrupt with basically no payoff, shoved in awkwardly between info dumps, flashbacks, and so many sex scenes. These two are ready to bang any time, even if it doesn't make sense at all, even if they were sad or at odds 30 seconds ago. Did Scarlett had a sex scene quota she needed to hit? I was saying "girl, seriously??" out loud. There are three or four chapters from Adrian's perspective that don't need to be. The magic system and the goddesses get more confusing rather than less, especially at the end.

Maybe there are some cool concepts in here but they're poorly executed, which for me sucked all the enjoyment out of the reading experience.

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ha_its_sarah's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

THAT ENDING!! Scarlett St. Clair, get your self over here and tell me happens next this INSTANT!

This story is so poignant, given the political climate. It's a story where women, especially those deemed more powerful than men are targeted. And it doesn't slap you in the face right out of the gate. Oh no, Ms.St. Clair draws you in, makes you fall in love with these characters, has you rooting for these characters, invested in their lives then BAM! The true motive for Ravena is revealed. And I can't say I disagree with her, or am mad about it.

Looking back I can see the signs that Ana is Ravena. And back when Isolde was Yesenia and was pregnant when she burned made me mad af. Among all the other things Drago did to her of course. So much was torn away from Yesenia, and the more Isolde remembers of her past and the more people target and underestimate her, I think the more unstoppable she will become. Isolde and Adrian are morally grey characters, but honestly I'd be okay if they became the villains.

I'm just not sure how the goddesses and Adrian play into Ravena's motivations and goals. Also what is the seed her Mom gave her? How did she see/visit her Mom?

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just_one_more_paige's review

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adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

I read King of Battle and Blood, the first book in the "Adrian X Isolde" series, just recently. And I was very into it. There was magic and battle and vampires and an enemies-to-lovers romance that went hard on the steamy front. So, I was pretty excited to see that the second book was already out. I was very interested in seeing where this story went next, after learning there was so much more history to the story of Adrian and Isolde than I'd originally thought.

Well, I was not quite as into this second book as I was the first one. The story and writing are fine, though a bit scattered, as St. Clair tries to address and move forward what feels like, perhaps, too many plot points. The steamy scenes, and there were, again, many, were still written really well (kudos to St. Clair again for that). I will say though, I got a little uncomfortable with the way the "fight and have sex" cycle didn't seem to get any better in this second book. I understand the need for that in the first, as enemies to lovers necessitates that vibe. But, now that Adrian and Isolde are clearly on the same side, if you will, I was frustrated that neither seemed willing to compromise or talk through any disagreements for real, they'd just yell at each other, unmoving, then sulk and feel guilty, then come back together later and have make-up sex without ever addressing the baseline issues, etc. It got tough to read. And even the reveal towards the end, about the way the goddess Dis is interfering with their relationship and Adrian's actions, was too little too late, IMO, to save my opinion of the couple's increasing unhealthy interactions. We'll see where things go in the next book (yes, I'm still going to read the next one and see where everything goes from here).

While St. Clair didn't really pull punches on the violence front in the first book, I felt like, in that case, it was still mostly in a way that empowered Isolde; I liked her as a bloodthirsty (encouraged by Adrian) heroine. In this novel, the violence gets...extreme. There is all the "normal" violence of a tyrant (think dramatic killing styles for "traitors" and mass killing to keep one's secrets, etc.). There is the magical beast violence (we get introduced to a number of canine/werewolf style magical animals in this installation, which feels a bit like an unnecessary nod to the "vampire and werewolf" trope, but they often exist together in folklore, so I guess I understand). And then there is violence against women, sexual and otherwise, that skirts the line of gratuitous. There is deep trauma from that type of violence rapant all over the plot and all the female characters, and I am not sure all of it was necessary to move the plot or character development forwards. I vaguely get the point(s) St. Clair is trying to make, about the inherent power of women, to face all that and find resiliency and strength anyways, to fight for themselves and each other, but it's just not quite done well enough. Really just, be careful and be ready for it before picking this book up.

While I am interested in the "let's conquer the world together" plans that Adrian and Isolde have, including how to regain her throne in Lara, and also free her mother's people, the part of the plot I wanted more about was the history of witches in Ravekka and Isolde's previous self and the rogue witch who stole The Book of Dis and what she planned to do with it. Well, I got the opposite here. I mean, the development was split between the two concepts, but the reveal about said rogue witch at the end left me...confused. Like, how was that the person behind it and how did they manage that reveal and what is their plan/goal? Just, really unclear. On the flipside, the conquering/invasion plans moved forward in a clear and understandable way. There was also *so much* backstabbing and betrayal; like, an unnecessary amount. It didn't feel dramatic, so much as trite, after it happened so many times.

So yes, Adrian and Isolde's characters were not as robust here as in the first book. They fell a little flat and into trope-like cycles, even though this second book should have been where they started to develop and grow together. There were some plot points I wished I'd understood more, and some that didn't feel necessary. And the experience of reading this got really intense at times. And yet, I am still for some reason wanting to find out what happens next. This series is just one of those easy, escapist, type reads, where I feel a little guilty about reading it (though I know I shouldn't), but go for it anyways, because sometimes that's exactly what you need as a reader. I recognize the red flags, but cannot help but cheer for a better ending for Adrian and Isolde, plus I'm a sucker for magic and vampires, so I'll be back when the third book is published.

“You do not have to have lived a hundred years, or even twenty. If your soul is tired, you will be tired.”

“Nothing is too long when it is goodbye.”

“I knew the truth of this world, and the only way to survive as a woman with power was to use it.”

“There is no comfort for this - not even in revenge - because trauma was a nightmare that clung to its victims with an iron fist.”

“You are the daughter of witches, as all women are [...] Magic is in our blood and bone; it is in the earth at our feet; it is in the very air we breathe.”

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