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destinynichole11's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders, Vomit, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Car accident, Death, Kidnapping, Grief, Addiction, Blood, Medical content, Body horror, Medical trauma, Pedophilia, Alcohol, Body shaming, Deadnaming, Gun violence, Cannibalism, Child death, Confinement, Death of parent, Mental illness, Rape, Trafficking, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Eating disorder, Hate crime, Mass/school shootings, Sexual violence, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Stalking, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Toxic relationship, Gore, Murder, and Violence
bekahzabel's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
Let me just start with a trigger warning: if you can’t go for NCN, dubious consent, or talk about child trafficking and terrible terrible situations involving children. Do NOT pick this one up. It’s deranged, it’s twisted, it’s pitch black, not morally grey.
With that being said, from start to finish this had me completely enraptured. Did I question my morals, kinks, and sanity? Absolutely. Do I want a boyfriend like Zade Meadows in real life? Hell no. But did I get a big thrill out of reading this roller coaster of a novel? YES. I’m absolutely going to continue. I loved the vigilante robin hood type role Zade plays. Adeline & Daya’s friendship was another highlight for me. That fun house of mirrors scene????? HOLY HANNAH MONTANA. For pure entertainment and vibes, this bad rider is getting 5 stars from me.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️//🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Graphic: Mental illness, Murder, Sexual assault, Torture, Body horror, Grief, Pedophilia, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Child death, Gore, Bullying, Blood, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gun violence, Rape, and Stalking
alyciajstewart's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
All of that being said, I think the author did an exceptional job of creating a morally gray character. Zade is not someone you want to like, but in the end you do start rooting for him because his cause is so just. Addie is the perfect heroin for this type of romance novel. She enjoys being scared and I think is a little bit twisted. Honestly, the novel wouldn't work if she wasn't just a little bit insane. The banter between the two leads is top tier and the spice is definitely high.
I think that this book is a great way for people to explore a darker side of romance without actually putting themselves in danger. I think it's okay to enjoy reading about things that we wouldn't be okay with in real life. I am eagerly anticipating the second book in the duology.
Graphic: Death, Child death, Sexual harassment, Domestic abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Sexual violence, Stalking, Toxic relationship, Gaslighting, Gore, Sexism, Body horror, Cannibalism, Confinement, Grief, Child abuse, Classism, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Torture, Drug use, Blood, Car accident, Physical abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Trafficking, Violence, Addiction, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Pedophilia, and Rape
acaroline's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Kidnapping, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Grief, Trafficking, Violence, Child abuse, Car accident, Sexual content, Torture, and Stalking
kyrstin_p1989's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Gun violence, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Stalking, Torture, Murder, Blood, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Infidelity, Trafficking, Violence, Death, Sexual assault, Injury/Injury detail, Mass/school shootings, Child death, Kidnapping, Classism, Confinement, and Rape
azileotulp's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
I really liked how long it took for the real smut to actually start. I'm honestly not a big fan of smut in general, so I liked that it didn't start until about one-third of the way in. It really ramped up after that point, but I didn't mind. Like I said, I'm not a fan of it in general, but I don't let that reflect my ratings because it's something I've come to expect.
I also loved the mystery throughout the novel with Adeline trying to find Gigi's killer. I did guess it, but it took quite a long time for me to realize. The use of Gigi's diary pages between chapters was also a really nice touch.
And how can I talk about why I love this book without talking about "the shadow?" (I'll call him Z for the rest of the review just in case anyone considers revealing his actual name a spoiler.) This man is a whole comedian. I lived for his POV. I loved seeing him come face-to-face with pedophiles and absolutely obliterating them in his mind. Just a very sassy, funny little guy. I feel like under most circumstances I would dislike how much of a hypocrite he was (a rapist who hates rapists?), but the fact that he acknowledged his own hypocrisy and just didn't care was such a power move and kind of hilarious to me.
Of course, I loved Adeline too. Her conflicting feelings of desire and hatred of Z were really interesting to me, and I liked the parallel between her own feelings for Z and Gigi's feelings for her stalker. Even without Z, I appreciate her as a character in her own right. She's funny, sassy, and strong. Even if I preferred the shadow chapters a bit, I definitely enjoyed her chapters too.
I honestly would love to give this book a slightly higher rating because I absolutely adored it. The only reason I didn't give it a 5 was that it could honestly be a bit cringeworthy at times, specifically when it came to some of Z's dialogue. I wish I could give examples, but I don't have the book with me (borrowed it from a friend). I just know that as I read some of his dialogue, I had to put the book down and take a breath. It didn't happen often enough that it destroyed his character for me, but it was often enough that it brought down the book overall just a bit. Other than that, I have literally no other complaints. I feel like a lot of the hate comes from people thinking that it "glamorizes" things like sexual assault and stalking, but I never really got that feeling? I don't believe you're expected to read the story and conclude that Z would be a good person in real life. The warning at the beginning of the book literally describes his actions towards Adeline as non-con/dub-con. The things that happen in this book are pretty common fantasies for women (fantasy as in things that we don't actually want to happen in real life) and we shouldn't be ashamed of that.
I can't recommend this book enough. I've started the second one and I am loving it so far, and I'm definitely hoping I'll be able to give it 5 stars.
Graphic: Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Murder, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Violence, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Car accident, Child abuse, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Stalking, Torture, Blood, Body horror, Gore, Cannibalism, Child death, Cursing, Pedophilia, Sexism, Death, Misogyny, Rape, and Slavery
Moderate: Alcohol, Classism, and Infidelity
Minor: Grief, Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Death of parent
navikris's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Abandonment, Body horror, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Mental illness, Rape, Drug use, Vomit, Torture, Trafficking, Misogyny, Murder, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Violence, Addiction, Blood, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Death, Death of parent, Self harm, Sexual assault, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Drug abuse, Cursing, Alcoholism, Emotional abuse, Religious bigotry, Child death, Domestic abuse, Grief, Infidelity, Gun violence, Gore, Slavery, and Car accident
darcynewton's review against another edition
- 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
4.75
If you're reading this review i'm going to assume you have a basic understanding of the book because let's be honest here... what dark romance readers haven't heard of Haunting Adeline? Exactly
When I went into this book i'd tried not to research it on booktok as I wanted the book experience without a swayed opinion. This is something I highly recommend doing as it allowed me to enjoy the true content of the book without knowing any spoilers and I think it just made it that little bit better. Admittedly any spoilers put onto TikTok would probably be removed due to inappropriate content so there isn't really much you can research on this book, but anyway, don't.
Yes Zade may be a little effed up, however I still can't help falling in love with him... and I sort of wouldn't mind having my own sexy stalker to throw my life into the air... is that bad? Probably, but hey if you're reading this then you probably got something a little loose up there too so you can't really judge me.
The only true warning I can give is, even if you're into dark erotic scenes, some parts of this book do get deathly dark *literally*. Me and my sister very much read the same books however we have an ever so slightly different reaction to gruesome details and this is one I know she would not enjoy. So please understand the sheer depth of what you are about to read. It is graphic and it is very easy to visualise.
One piece of information I do need to give on Hunting Adeline is that it is substantially darker and sad reading the... situation?... thats going on. If you do plan on reading Hunting Adeline I strongly suggest you read the duet back to back with as little break in-between as possible, it makes the second book slightly less dark, not much, but slightly.
Overall this book was fabulous and I really did enjoy reading it, especially chapter 30 ;).
I've recommended it to numerous friends even though I think that's a slightly cruel thing to do but I really hope more people can love this book how I did.
If you've made it to the end of this review, do send me a friend request as I love connecting with people who are just as mentally messed as me.
Graphic: Stalking, Forced institutionalization, Hate crime, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Blood, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Body horror, Body shaming, Bullying, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Domestic abuse, Gore, Drug abuse, Grief, Gun violence, Incest, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Slavery, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Murder, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, and Violence
jareadforfilth's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
The constant back and forth between Adeline and her stalker got old pretty fast and
This book is honestly high camp in a lot of ways but I don’t think it was trying to be. It’s super melodramatic in a way that honestly reminded me a lot of anime. Zade as a character is just like, so extreme physically and personality-wise that it just became kind of laughable. Like the book kind of feels like something your h*rny suppressed friend in high school would write lol
To end on a positive note after this mild evisceration, the spice is pretty hot and when it hits it hits for sure! Otherwise it’s just kinda like ok whatever 😂 also the cliffhanger is fun and seems to bode much better for the plot in book 2 than book 1. That said, and I’m so torn about it, I *intend* on reading the second because y’all are all so hype, but we’ll see because this was just not it
Graphic: Blood, Kidnapping, Murder, Gore, Grief, Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Child death, Death, Gun violence, Infidelity, Misogyny, Pedophilia, Sexual content, Violence, Trafficking, and Body horror
Moderate: Alcohol and Car accident
rensmagiclibrary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Graphic: Fatphobia, Gore, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Cursing, Domestic abuse, Pedophilia, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Gaslighting, Slavery, Trafficking, Classism, Grief, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual violence, Stalking, Violence, Alcoholism, Blood, Child death, Emotional abuse, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Torture, Body horror, Death, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship