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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
Love everything about this series, except waiting for the next book!!
4.5 stars
I love this series so much (and not just because it takes place in the city of my beloved Cubbies). I love how Chloe Neill is able to mix humor in with the more serious plotlines. I also enjoy how I feel emotionally connected to many of the characters, to the point where I either want to hug them or smack them based on how they're acting.
Merit has her hands full in this installment, having to deal with everything from. My attention was caught from chapter one (actually, it was caught on the page before that, which included a quote from Ethan, and Merit's inspirational contribution was "I like bacon"). All I wanted to do was keep reading. I'm so happy the next book comes out later this year!
I love this series so much (and not just because it takes place in the city of my beloved Cubbies). I love how Chloe Neill is able to mix humor in with the more serious plotlines. I also enjoy how I feel emotionally connected to many of the characters, to the point where I either want to hug them or smack them based on how they're acting.
Merit has her hands full in this installment, having to deal with everything from
Spoiler
the GP being, shall we say, difficult in the way they handle Cadogan's departure, a serial killer on the loose, Lacey back in town and wreaking havoc on Mer's relationship with Ethan, and an upcoming RG initiation.
Now that Cadogan House has decided to leave the GP, they have to deal with the reality of that decision. In addition to that drama, a vampire serial killer seems to be striking against vampires within the city and it's up to Merit and her friends to catch the murderer since they're not going to get much help from the human police.
There are definitely some good things about House Rules. The big one is that the relationships (particularly between Merit and Ethan and Mallory) seem to be taking strides towards healing. This was good to see because it's one of the biggest things I've disliked about the last several books. I really wanted the series to go back to the "good-ol-days" where the threat against them isn't from within but outside their band of friends while keeping the core group working together. House Rules definitely accomplishes this and I was really happy about that.
Now I hate to sound like a negative-Nelly, but despite that the conflict in this one was a bit boring. Neill does seem to be setting up some bigger conflicts for future books, but within this book I found the conflict to be a little low-key and slow-paced.
I hate to say it, but I wonder if the story feeling a little boring is because Merit and Ethan are fairly happy in this one. There is some relationship conflict, but it wasn't anything huge. I almost wish Neill would've dragged their initial banter and flirting phase out a few more books than she did because it was a fun element to the story.
Even so, I'm still not ready to let this series go and I feel like it's building up to come back stronger once the characters have completely healed from the last several books. I still really enjoy the world and Merit and the other characters in the series. So I'll still be sticking around for a little while, but I hope this series picks back up again because it's just not as fun as it used to be.
There are definitely some good things about House Rules. The big one is that the relationships (particularly between Merit and Ethan and Mallory) seem to be taking strides towards healing. This was good to see because it's one of the biggest things I've disliked about the last several books. I really wanted the series to go back to the "good-ol-days" where the threat against them isn't from within but outside their band of friends while keeping the core group working together. House Rules definitely accomplishes this and I was really happy about that.
Now I hate to sound like a negative-Nelly, but despite that the conflict in this one was a bit boring. Neill does seem to be setting up some bigger conflicts for future books, but within this book I found the conflict to be a little low-key and slow-paced.
I hate to say it, but I wonder if the story feeling a little boring is because Merit and Ethan are fairly happy in this one. There is some relationship conflict, but it wasn't anything huge. I almost wish Neill would've dragged their initial banter and flirting phase out a few more books than she did because it was a fun element to the story.
Even so, I'm still not ready to let this series go and I feel like it's building up to come back stronger once the characters have completely healed from the last several books. I still really enjoy the world and Merit and the other characters in the series. So I'll still be sticking around for a little while, but I hope this series picks back up again because it's just not as fun as it used to be.
adventurous
emotional
funny
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Really strong in a lot of ways, including the romantic side (I'm petty, I loved the Lacey scene). I liked that a lot of the plot strands throughout the series have coalesced into an integrated narrative. I thought the mystery itself had a good twist but dropped the ball slightly on the villain's motivation and final behavior - it veered too much into cartoon villainry for me. Also I'm tired of ending reviews this way but good god Mallory is the worst, I long for her to be less of a character.
This was a fantastic read. Thank you SJ for recommending this book series to me. I know many people do not like this series, but for me, it is one of my favourites. The characters are awesome. Merit is a great main character. She is really feisty. The book was funny. I especially loved Ethan and Merit. It was so palpable. I enjoyed every minute of this book. The ending was amazing. I hope it continues into the next book, Biting Cold. This is a must read. Overall, an amazing read.
Chloe Neill did it again, she was able to woo me with her books once again. however this one wasn't as exciting as the others, but it was more deep than the others between, the relationship with merit and Ethan, the partnership between merit and Jonah. and the stuff going on the with the house and the GR.
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated