Scan barcode
freadomlibrary's review against another edition
4.0
This review was originally posted at https://freadomlibrary.wordpress.com/
Check out my series review here: https://freadomlibrary.wordpress.com/2016/06/06/series-review-scarlet-trilogy-by-a-c-gaughen/
Critically
Plot – 4 out of 5 stars
this one was slow most of the time, kind of boring, definitely more discreet strategy than action, there’s suspense, some drama, not as violent as the first two, features life, death, and the ending was kind of disappointing
Writing Style – 3.5 out of 5 stars
as the main character developed into something more polished so did the writing, definitely much better grammatically, easy to read, fast paced, detailed and descriptive, but not overdone or too graphic were I felt uncomfortable
Characters – 4 out of 5 stars
There’s been so much character development in this series that it actually astounds me. Scarlet is a different person from when she started. She’s now more mature and confident and strong. She spent so long hiding and confused and basically fighting for her life and now she found a different way to do that. She doesn’t need to use her knives to save herself and the people that count on her. She’s resilient and stubborn enough to make sure she’s strong enough to deal with anything that comes her way. Love her. Robin is just an all around good guy, which I like in this instance because it’s an accurate representation of the original character. He’s really sweet and protective and honest. He’s gotten his shit together and is working to be the best version of himself. He’s strong and determined and I loved their relationship. Also amazing strides with the side characters, there’s even some new ones that I fell in love with. But a thing I don’t enjoy in this series are the losses because they hurt like hell people and I don’t like it.
Emotionally
And then the third book was a little disappointing with the way it ended but I still enjoyed reading it.
The plot was slow which is weird for this series. We follow Scarlet first in prison, locked in there by her lovely Uncle, and we see her efforts to escape. When she finally manages to do that, we follow her transition of becoming a noblewoman and a wife and finally getting what she deserves. I’m used to this series being super action packed and graphic and violent and I expected this book to be the ultimate blow up. I thought there would be an epic sword fight battle or lots of little close encounters and crazy things going on but it wasn’t like that at all. It had a lot more themes dealing with strategy and court life and politics and how to use your connections to your advantage which while still interesting kind of knocked the momentum of the series off course. It became more of a slow burn toward the resolution and I wasn’t expecting it and wasn’t that excited about it either. The romance between the main characters took more of a spotlight. That was actually really sweet and kind about freaking time after two books but I would’ve liked more balance between the two types of plot styles. The ending really disappointed me. It finally came time for everything to pop off and things to go crazy and there wasn’t even a fight. Like how annoying. It was way too easily resolved specially after all the freaking drama of the first two books in this series. And I wanted the person that’s been talked about the entire time to freaking show up finally, and he didn’t! What a let down and so anticlimactic.
Scarlet is still freaking awesome. She’s learning to kick butt in other ways besides physical and she’s getting a hold of her noble duties and how to gain allies by being good and being honest about what is going on. I loved her growth throughout the entire series and how she slowly but surely became more comfortable with herself.
Robin is such a sweetie in this one! Since there’s more romance, there’s a lot more space to explore him as the romantic hero and that definitely happened. There are also two other little lovey doveys that I freaking loved them and they needed more screen time you guys!
Overall, I enjoyed this trilogy. It had a few problems and things that I wasn’t a fan of like the graphic content and the violence factor. I liked that even though it was a retelling it also had a very accurate historical fiction aspect. The main character’s arc was interesting, entertaining and well developed. The side characters were intriguing and I really liked them as well. I’m excited to see what more this author will come up with once the grammar is fixed with another character’s point of view.
Check out my series review here: https://freadomlibrary.wordpress.com/2016/06/06/series-review-scarlet-trilogy-by-a-c-gaughen/
Critically
Plot – 4 out of 5 stars
this one was slow most of the time, kind of boring, definitely more discreet strategy than action, there’s suspense, some drama, not as violent as the first two, features life, death, and the ending was kind of disappointing
Writing Style – 3.5 out of 5 stars
as the main character developed into something more polished so did the writing, definitely much better grammatically, easy to read, fast paced, detailed and descriptive, but not overdone or too graphic were I felt uncomfortable
Characters – 4 out of 5 stars
There’s been so much character development in this series that it actually astounds me. Scarlet is a different person from when she started. She’s now more mature and confident and strong. She spent so long hiding and confused and basically fighting for her life and now she found a different way to do that. She doesn’t need to use her knives to save herself and the people that count on her. She’s resilient and stubborn enough to make sure she’s strong enough to deal with anything that comes her way. Love her. Robin is just an all around good guy, which I like in this instance because it’s an accurate representation of the original character. He’s really sweet and protective and honest. He’s gotten his shit together and is working to be the best version of himself. He’s strong and determined and I loved their relationship. Also amazing strides with the side characters, there’s even some new ones that I fell in love with. But a thing I don’t enjoy in this series are the losses because they hurt like hell people and I don’t like it.
Emotionally
Spoiler
I was pleasantly surprised by my enjoyment of this series and how much I liked the stories but there were some things I didn’t particularly like.And then the third book was a little disappointing with the way it ended but I still enjoyed reading it.
The plot was slow which is weird for this series. We follow Scarlet first in prison, locked in there by her lovely Uncle, and we see her efforts to escape. When she finally manages to do that, we follow her transition of becoming a noblewoman and a wife and finally getting what she deserves. I’m used to this series being super action packed and graphic and violent and I expected this book to be the ultimate blow up. I thought there would be an epic sword fight battle or lots of little close encounters and crazy things going on but it wasn’t like that at all. It had a lot more themes dealing with strategy and court life and politics and how to use your connections to your advantage which while still interesting kind of knocked the momentum of the series off course. It became more of a slow burn toward the resolution and I wasn’t expecting it and wasn’t that excited about it either. The romance between the main characters took more of a spotlight. That was actually really sweet and kind about freaking time after two books but I would’ve liked more balance between the two types of plot styles. The ending really disappointed me. It finally came time for everything to pop off and things to go crazy and there wasn’t even a fight. Like how annoying. It was way too easily resolved specially after all the freaking drama of the first two books in this series. And I wanted the person that’s been talked about the entire time to freaking show up finally, and he didn’t! What a let down and so anticlimactic.
Scarlet is still freaking awesome. She’s learning to kick butt in other ways besides physical and she’s getting a hold of her noble duties and how to gain allies by being good and being honest about what is going on. I loved her growth throughout the entire series and how she slowly but surely became more comfortable with herself.
Robin is such a sweetie in this one! Since there’s more romance, there’s a lot more space to explore him as the romantic hero and that definitely happened. There are also two other little lovey doveys that I freaking loved them and they needed more screen time you guys!
Overall, I enjoyed this trilogy. It had a few problems and things that I wasn’t a fan of like the graphic content and the violence factor. I liked that even though it was a retelling it also had a very accurate historical fiction aspect. The main character’s arc was interesting, entertaining and well developed. The side characters were intriguing and I really liked them as well. I’m excited to see what more this author will come up with once the grammar is fixed with another character’s point of view.
foraging_pages's review
4.0
"But now I choose light and fire and love.
Now I choose freedom."
Yay for a satisfying conclusion to a rad series full of action, love, history, and knives!
Now I choose freedom."
Yay for a satisfying conclusion to a rad series full of action, love, history, and knives!
carsensegraves's review
3.0
I’m not going to lie and say I didn’t enjoy this trilogy, but the end??? I really just wasn’t as satisfied as I had wanted to be; I wanted more!
amybraunauthor's review against another edition
5.0
And this epic romantic fantasy comes to a close, and it was a sweeping one. While the romance between Scarlet and Rob was the core of the story, there was also adventure, excitement, passion, and thrills. I adored some of the new characters and definitely felt the tension near the end.
It was great to see all the characters reach their arcs, even though Scarlet and Rob were obsessed with each other. Seriously obsessed. Still, it's perfect for anyone looking to indulge in a YA romance with sweetness, heart, and innocence. I would love to see more stories with side characters like Winchester and Margaret, and of course, Eleanor.
There are a couple nitpicks I have. I felt like a certain romantic portion was dragged on way too long, and I also felt the very ending was a little rushed. It was a little odd to me, but I still had a great time reading this retelling and would recommend it to anyone looking for a sweeping, romantic read!
It was great to see all the characters reach their arcs, even though Scarlet and Rob were obsessed with each other. Seriously obsessed. Still, it's perfect for anyone looking to indulge in a YA romance with sweetness, heart, and innocence. I would love to see more stories with side characters like Winchester and Margaret, and of course, Eleanor.
There are a couple nitpicks I have. I felt like a certain romantic portion was dragged on way too long, and I also felt the very ending was a little rushed. It was a little odd to me, but I still had a great time reading this retelling and would recommend it to anyone looking for a sweeping, romantic read!
wellactjoally's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
5.0
Finally the culmination of the trilogy! Standing up for other women! Making friends! A heist! A magical tree wedding.
Talk about torture, abuse of power, threats, casual discussion of rape, gendered bullshit.
Talk about torture, abuse of power, threats, casual discussion of rape, gendered bullshit.
bmg20's review
2.0
I’ve been quite the black sheep when it comes to the series as a whole so I might as well go out with a bang. I did not like this one. At all. There wasn’t anything seriously wrong with it, however, it was extremely uneventful and didn’t go out with the bang and/or explosive finale that I was kind of hoping for this whole time. Throwing a wrench in the whole Robin Hood tale by transforming Marian into one of the gang was definitely cause for excitement but the story itself continued much on the same trodden path and inevitably failed to live up to its potential. So, let’s break down my issues with this installment.
THERE BE SPOILERS.
Scarlet continued to be problematic for me. I’ve gotten past her strange dialect, mostly because it’s not as prevalent considering Eleanor has “taught” her how to talk like a lady even though we all know she’s completely capable of it. She has to begin talking like a lady again because her father, King Richard has given her a bit of land thus making her Lady Huntington. The entirety of the story consists of Scarlet going all “oh woe is me” about nobody liking her. What? She acted as if people were constantly shooting spitballs at her or something. It felt very out of character considering she’s supposed to be some thieving badass yet she’s whining because nobody likes her. Get over yourself,Charlie Brown Scarlet.
And then there’s Robin Hood. So many issues here. First off, the whole PTSD plotline seems to have found its way under a rug or something because it’s never made an issue again. Even though they have many nights sleeping next to each other. Apparently, the “love can heal” message the author was going for in Lady Thief actually worked. Ha. Right. Then there’s the magic trick performed where Robin turns into a spectacular douchebag right before your very eyes! Sure, one of those douchebag moments ended up being a momentary lapse but DUDE.
First DB moment: I don’t know if you recall but when Scarlet was married to Gisbourne, Robin could barely even kiss her because *gasp* she’s married. You know, against her will. To a sadist. And then there was the subtle mentioning of her basically being no longer pure because of said marriage that took place against her will in order to save Robin’s life. But then in this installment, he changes his tune. All those awful things are never mentioned and he acts shocked that Scarlet is ready and willing to marry him. Well, if I was a douchebag like that I guess I’d be shocked anyone wanted to be with me too.
Second DB moment: Scarlet was gifted lands which essentially gave her more power than the other douchebag of this tale, Prince John. It comes in handy when he tries to re-kidnap her for the “crimes” she was already pardoned for. Scarlet keeps this bit of information from Rob until she has to, and why? Well, if you recall, Robin was Earl of Huntingdon before the lands were taken from him. So his lands are now Scarlet’s, not that it should matter… but it does! He has the audacity to actually be pissed about it like she alone stole his land from him. This fucking guy. Way to make her feel bad about something completely beyond her control.
I’ve spent so much time complaining about those two I actually forgot the major reason Lion Heart was my least favorite installment: Prince John. In Lady Thief, John was still relatively villain-y however in this installment he reverted to his animated version.
He became such a non-villain and every time he was in a scene I imagined a toddler throwing a tantrum that didn’t get his way about something. He was a spoiled brat and it was just ridiculous that he still managed to almost best Scarlet and Robin. Eleanor really needed to slap the shit out of that boy though.
Another small issue was the strange side stories going on that were seemingly thrown in there for filler since they lacked any sort of resolution. Please do not tell me there’s going to be a spin-off. And that “ending”! I’m convinced my ARC was missing the final chapter because what is up with that lackluster and completely inadequate end? I mean come on,Sean Connery King Richard didn’t even make an appearance! Boooooooooooooooo.
I received this book free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
THERE BE SPOILERS.
Scarlet continued to be problematic for me. I’ve gotten past her strange dialect, mostly because it’s not as prevalent considering Eleanor has “taught” her how to talk like a lady even though we all know she’s completely capable of it. She has to begin talking like a lady again because her father, King Richard has given her a bit of land thus making her Lady Huntington. The entirety of the story consists of Scarlet going all “oh woe is me” about nobody liking her. What? She acted as if people were constantly shooting spitballs at her or something. It felt very out of character considering she’s supposed to be some thieving badass yet she’s whining because nobody likes her. Get over yourself,
And then there’s Robin Hood. So many issues here. First off, the whole PTSD plotline seems to have found its way under a rug or something because it’s never made an issue again. Even though they have many nights sleeping next to each other. Apparently, the “love can heal” message the author was going for in Lady Thief actually worked. Ha. Right. Then there’s the magic trick performed where Robin turns into a spectacular douchebag right before your very eyes! Sure, one of those douchebag moments ended up being a momentary lapse but DUDE.
First DB moment: I don’t know if you recall but when Scarlet was married to Gisbourne, Robin could barely even kiss her because *gasp* she’s married. You know, against her will. To a sadist. And then there was the subtle mentioning of her basically being no longer pure because of said marriage that took place against her will in order to save Robin’s life. But then in this installment, he changes his tune. All those awful things are never mentioned and he acts shocked that Scarlet is ready and willing to marry him. Well, if I was a douchebag like that I guess I’d be shocked anyone wanted to be with me too.
Second DB moment: Scarlet was gifted lands which essentially gave her more power than the other douchebag of this tale, Prince John. It comes in handy when he tries to re-kidnap her for the “crimes” she was already pardoned for. Scarlet keeps this bit of information from Rob until she has to, and why? Well, if you recall, Robin was Earl of Huntingdon before the lands were taken from him. So his lands are now Scarlet’s, not that it should matter… but it does! He has the audacity to actually be pissed about it like she alone stole his land from him. This fucking guy. Way to make her feel bad about something completely beyond her control.
I’ve spent so much time complaining about those two I actually forgot the major reason Lion Heart was my least favorite installment: Prince John. In Lady Thief, John was still relatively villain-y however in this installment he reverted to his animated version.
He became such a non-villain and every time he was in a scene I imagined a toddler throwing a tantrum that didn’t get his way about something. He was a spoiled brat and it was just ridiculous that he still managed to almost best Scarlet and Robin. Eleanor really needed to slap the shit out of that boy though.
Another small issue was the strange side stories going on that were seemingly thrown in there for filler since they lacked any sort of resolution. Please do not tell me there’s going to be a spin-off. And that “ending”! I’m convinced my ARC was missing the final chapter because what is up with that lackluster and completely inadequate end? I mean come on,
I received this book free from the Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
janeeyre_914716's review
5.0
*crying inside* Oh man it's over over over and I still want to marry Robin Hood!! What an ending and that thing that happened to Rob.......let's just say I was dying haha. But this had a fantastic end and such a fun trilogy and became one of my new favorites Definitely a must read if you like these kinds of books/stories and HIGHLY come recommended:D
_camk_'s review
3.0
Overall, I think Lion heart was my lest favourite of the three books. Neither sequel lived up to the first book. The final book bored me somewhat as I got bored reading about . The story is itself was not bad, however, it was overall a disappointing ending to the series.
Spoiler
how often Scarlet and Rob kissed (much too often for a novel in my opinion)devonadelle's review
3.0
While I enjoyed reading this, I don't think it had as good of a flow as the other 2. There was a big conflict that was more than half-realized but we didn't see it fully resolved.