Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
3.5 with spoilers
I wish I could say I liked this as much as the first but that's simply not true.
What brought me to this series initially was the fact that Celine ran from home to start a new life, with the secret of a murder. That with the chemistry of Bastien's story and character made me really love this concept.
Then I grabbed the 2nd book and it didn't captivate me as much as I had hoped. Celine was no longer just a girl with a justified murder, she was an ethereal. And not just any fey, but the damn daughter of the QUEEN. I usually love books with high powers like this but in this situation I thought Celine was perfect as she was. She didn't need to be supernatural to be "special" to Bastien. Yes, it kinda makes sense for the story to continue that way but I was still disappointed nonetheless. As a comparison, it was like Crimes of Grindelwald calling Ezra Millers' character a Dumbledore. Like he was already an interesting character, he didn't need that legacy name added to it.
Anyway, I loved Emelie as the main villain behind everything and I'm looking forward to see how Michael's character evolves in the last book. My only hope for him is that he doesn't end up being the ultimate 3rd wheel and just goes on a self worth journey, if that makes sense. In general, I hope the final book makes the Celine reveal worth it.
I wish I could say I liked this as much as the first but that's simply not true.
What brought me to this series initially was the fact that Celine ran from home to start a new life, with the secret of a murder. That with the chemistry of Bastien's story and character made me really love this concept.
Then I grabbed the 2nd book and it didn't captivate me as much as I had hoped. Celine was no longer just a girl with a justified murder, she was an ethereal. And not just any fey, but the damn daughter of the QUEEN. I usually love books with high powers like this but in this situation I thought Celine was perfect as she was. She didn't need to be supernatural to be "special" to Bastien. Yes, it kinda makes sense for the story to continue that way but I was still disappointed nonetheless. As a comparison, it was like Crimes of Grindelwald calling Ezra Millers' character a Dumbledore. Like he was already an interesting character, he didn't need that legacy name added to it.
Anyway, I loved Emelie as the main villain behind everything and I'm looking forward to see how Michael's character evolves in the last book. My only hope for him is that he doesn't end up being the ultimate 3rd wheel and just goes on a self worth journey, if that makes sense. In general, I hope the final book makes the Celine reveal worth it.
Do you ever sit down with a story idea so vague, that all you know is the general feeling you’re trying to get across? Like you’re trying to match a plot to the aesthetic you have in your head. This book captured the power and mystique of the world it was trying to convey. I’m blown away by Ahdieh’s ability to pin down all the unsaid tones simply with the way she uses words.
The plot would be more enjoyable, I think, if I hadn’t previously encountered similar stories that were executed much worse. There have been many romance-in-the-midst-of-vampires-and-fey that have made me want to scream about the poor world building and character development. None of these problems plagued this book, but I still feel an echo of that frustration. I can’t decide if this is any fault of the book, or residual exasperation with ACOTAR and the like.
This vexes me quite a bit, because Sarah J Maas receives much more credit than Ahdieh and others. Much more capable writers fly under the radar. Ahdieh holds me in her clutches with her eloquent weaving of words and captivating characters. Yet, this series seems to be receiving no attention.
I also applaud her for her use of spacing, especially in terms of world building. She continues to be a pro at creating a rich world for her characters to inhabit. This is the second book in the series, and as such, I’m really glad she held back on many of the world building elements. Had she had squished them into the first installment (as many are apt to do) I would have been in over my head.
As is, I found this a wonderful read, especially the portions from Bastian’s point of view. Would recommend.
The plot would be more enjoyable, I think, if I hadn’t previously encountered similar stories that were executed much worse. There have been many romance-in-the-midst-of-vampires-and-fey that have made me want to scream about the poor world building and character development. None of these problems plagued this book, but I still feel an echo of that frustration. I can’t decide if this is any fault of the book, or residual exasperation with ACOTAR and the like.
This vexes me quite a bit, because Sarah J Maas receives much more credit than Ahdieh and others. Much more capable writers fly under the radar. Ahdieh holds me in her clutches with her eloquent weaving of words and captivating characters. Yet, this series seems to be receiving no attention.
I also applaud her for her use of spacing, especially in terms of world building. She continues to be a pro at creating a rich world for her characters to inhabit. This is the second book in the series, and as such, I’m really glad she held back on many of the world building elements. Had she had squished them into the first installment (as many are apt to do) I would have been in over my head.
As is, I found this a wonderful read, especially the portions from Bastian’s point of view. Would recommend.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
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
I took long breaks reading this book because I kept picking up other things, but I'm very glad I got to finish it. This sequel expands on the universe and adds other mythical creatures besides vampires to the mix. This is still mainly a vampire story focused mostly on Celine and Bastien. There are intermittent subplots involving some of the side characters, such as Pippa and Arjun. However, the main story was always directly tied to the subplots, so the story feels very focused.
The first half of the book has a slower pace. It is largely focused on the internal dialogue and deliberation Sebastien and Celine have individually. Celine struggles with the missing parts of her memory while Sebastien is coming to terms with what it means to now be the same type of monster that killed his mother. The second half has the characters being more active and traveling from one place to another (all with a purpose related to the plot, I might add). The conclusion of this installment is reasonably open ended. I'm looking forward to reading about Pippa and Arjun's story in the next book. I assume it's prot going to focus on the lore behind the fey and I'm looking forward to that.
The first half of the book has a slower pace. It is largely focused on the internal dialogue and deliberation Sebastien and Celine have individually. Celine struggles with the missing parts of her memory while Sebastien is coming to terms with what it means to now be the same type of monster that killed his mother. The second half has the characters being more active and traveling from one place to another (all with a purpose related to the plot, I might add). The conclusion of this installment is reasonably open ended. I'm looking forward to reading about Pippa and Arjun's story in the next book. I assume it's prot going to focus on the lore behind the fey and I'm looking forward to that.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
dark
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
adventurous
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is the second book of the series! The Damned is still quite atmospheric and beautifully written but it packs a lot more punch than its predecessor. The forbidden love somehow becomes more forbidden, the bloody feuds become bloodier and the magical creatures expand exponentially.
I loved The Wrath and the Dawn duology so much. The writing was lush and beautiful and I was so looking forward to her take on Vampires.
The first book was difficult to get into but I did enjoy it. New Orleans as it's own character was fascinating. However, this book undid everything the first book had done. Again it was extremely difficult to get into. I felt no connection to the characters and the triangle was so unnecessary.
I tried to hard to get through the book but at 55%, I had to quit. I usually give up long before this point but I love her writing and wanted to like this book.
I'm not giving it a star rating but I am very disappointed.
The first book was difficult to get into but I did enjoy it. New Orleans as it's own character was fascinating. However, this book undid everything the first book had done. Again it was extremely difficult to get into. I felt no connection to the characters and the triangle was so unnecessary.
I tried to hard to get through the book but at 55%, I had to quit. I usually give up long before this point but I love her writing and wanted to like this book.
I'm not giving it a star rating but I am very disappointed.
3 stars. This was better than book one but that's not really saying much honestly. I still don't know any of the damn characters names because I don't care but at least this one was way more action packed and interesting. There was a lot going on and I was invested in the plot for sure. Ahdieh's writing is gorgeous and I think she did a much better job with the pacing in this one because I feel like I flew through this. I'll read book three but this series isn't anything spectacular. They're fun for what they are though.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-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:
Yes
I didn’t really care for the first book but since I already owned book 2, wanted to see if it would get better.
I simply do not care about any of these characters
I simply do not care about any of these characters