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4.08 AVERAGE
4.08 AVERAGE
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
🌶️🌶️
2.5 ✨
(Fair warning, I may have been a lil too harsh on this book. But I spoke my truth)
I’m not gonna say I Hate this book (bcs I didn’t that’s giving it too much emotion), but I’m tempted to just for the aesthetic. Anyway, I’d only read part of the guild series by Tate James before this, and I really enjoyed it. Especially the humor. Then I came back and read this, the start of the shadow grove universe. What happened, Tate? Why is the entire basis of this book the flimsiest plot of all time and why do half the things not make sense (an entire town was supposedly gentrified and reorganized within a year? After most of the places burned down in a riot? Sorry what? Authors will do a lot of mental gymnastics so their heroines remain 18)? And none of it is funny? Or even dark really?
Now you’re gonna tell me it’s a series and to wait for the rest of it to make this judgment, but as a lover of cliffhangery books, I maintain that this was a hot mess and failed to create the correct expectations. Also more or less nothing of import happens in the entire book other than the stälker storyline, and then in the last 5 minutes bam, drama. And it just ends in the middle of a scene? Of course the cliffy is gonna feel brutal if the stopping point is so abrupt.
Next, the characters. Madison Kate is a modern woman who owns her sexuality, Madison Kate is a badass, blah blah. What Madison Kate (first of all gods pls stop using that full name) actually is is a vibrating chihuahua. Angry and loud and bitey, but most of the time even she doesn’t know what she’s mad at or even if she’s mad or just horny. I support women being slutty and ragey, but it just wasn’t convincing when her entire personality is that rage and she barely half heartedly held on to it as soon as she saw one of her boy toys (living with her for some or other flimsy reason). Her only personalities are rage at the guys and then lust at the guys. And because she can only hold one thought in her head at a time, she fails at the rage as soon as she sees any of their hot bods. Just because she’s occasionally self aware does not mean she still isn’t a dumb bitch more often than not and it got old real quick. I also didn’t love the toxic friendship she had going with her only friend. Who’s clearly shady.
Speaking of boy toys, at least MK has some personality. Boy 1, 2, and 3 have zero personality. Oh wait, except working on their muscles in the gym and yes one of them plays piano or something so he’s slightly less ripped. We hear about their workouts constantly. They’re not Illyrians! Maybe work on some brain muscle every once in a while. No literally, she constantly refers to them using eye color and/or their hot bodies as descriptors. Please feel free to fact check. One of them is an MMA dude and one of them his trainer and the third also models with them for some unknown reason (6 packs deserve love too, not just 8) so you’ll say the bodies are relevant. Sure, but that’s their entire thing? Boring. Steele, the charming one, and healthy MGK aka Kody honestly could be the same person (except for hair and eyes ofc) and I could not care less. Actually they could be not in the book and I wouldn’t care. Archer D’Ath (pronounced death) is mildly more interesting but also like every other why choose guy has alpha protective anger issues but at least there’s some tension. Because the biggest problem with this book is for a 4 (5?) book series, there’s hardly any chemistry or tension between most of them and MK. Or at least I didn’t feel it. She saw, she lust, she fuck. So easy, so blah.
Apart from the thinner than MK’s tank tops plot, the writing feels shoddy too and very juvenile (which again, was not a problem I felt with guild so maybe it’s just growth). It’s obviously not YA but MK and the men too speak like teenagers and it annoyed me. The men are clearly keeping some mega secrets which is supposed to make the books more interesting as they go on. Same as MK, I must be a dumb bitch too who kinda wants to know what happens with Archer and her but idk if I have the fortitude for the rest of the series. I actually wish Zane was one of her guys which would at least add the kind of drama I love. Might continue on audio so I can ignore the writing irritants.
(Fair warning, I may have been a lil too harsh on this book. But I spoke my truth)
I’m not gonna say I Hate this book (bcs I didn’t that’s giving it too much emotion), but I’m tempted to just for the aesthetic. Anyway, I’d only read part of the guild series by Tate James before this, and I really enjoyed it. Especially the humor. Then I came back and read this, the start of the shadow grove universe. What happened, Tate? Why is the entire basis of this book the flimsiest plot of all time and why do half the things not make sense (an entire town was supposedly gentrified and reorganized within a year? After most of the places burned down in a riot? Sorry what? Authors will do a lot of mental gymnastics so their heroines remain 18)? And none of it is funny? Or even dark really?
Now you’re gonna tell me it’s a series and to wait for the rest of it to make this judgment, but as a lover of cliffhangery books, I maintain that this was a hot mess and failed to create the correct expectations. Also more or less nothing of import happens in the entire book other than the stälker storyline, and then in the last 5 minutes bam, drama. And it just ends in the middle of a scene? Of course the cliffy is gonna feel brutal if the stopping point is so abrupt.
Next, the characters. Madison Kate is a modern woman who owns her sexuality, Madison Kate is a badass, blah blah. What Madison Kate (first of all gods pls stop using that full name) actually is is a vibrating chihuahua. Angry and loud and bitey, but most of the time even she doesn’t know what she’s mad at or even if she’s mad or just horny. I support women being slutty and ragey, but it just wasn’t convincing when her entire personality is that rage and she barely half heartedly held on to it as soon as she saw one of her boy toys (living with her for some or other flimsy reason). Her only personalities are rage at the guys and then lust at the guys. And because she can only hold one thought in her head at a time, she fails at the rage as soon as she sees any of their hot bods. Just because she’s occasionally self aware does not mean she still isn’t a dumb bitch more often than not and it got old real quick. I also didn’t love the toxic friendship she had going with her only friend. Who’s clearly shady.
Speaking of boy toys, at least MK has some personality. Boy 1, 2, and 3 have zero personality. Oh wait, except working on their muscles in the gym and yes one of them plays piano or something so he’s slightly less ripped. We hear about their workouts constantly. They’re not Illyrians! Maybe work on some brain muscle every once in a while. No literally, she constantly refers to them using eye color and/or their hot bodies as descriptors. Please feel free to fact check. One of them is an MMA dude and one of them his trainer and the third also models with them for some unknown reason (6 packs deserve love too, not just 8) so you’ll say the bodies are relevant. Sure, but that’s their entire thing? Boring. Steele, the charming one, and healthy MGK aka Kody honestly could be the same person (except for hair and eyes ofc) and I could not care less. Actually they could be not in the book and I wouldn’t care. Archer D’Ath (pronounced death) is mildly more interesting but also like every other why choose guy has alpha protective anger issues but at least there’s some tension. Because the biggest problem with this book is for a 4 (5?) book series, there’s hardly any chemistry or tension between most of them and MK. Or at least I didn’t feel it. She saw, she lust, she fuck. So easy, so blah.
Apart from the thinner than MK’s tank tops plot, the writing feels shoddy too and very juvenile (which again, was not a problem I felt with guild so maybe it’s just growth). It’s obviously not YA but MK and the men too speak like teenagers and it annoyed me. The men are clearly keeping some mega secrets which is supposed to make the books more interesting as they go on. Same as MK, I must be a dumb bitch too who kinda wants to know what happens with Archer and her but idk if I have the fortitude for the rest of the series. I actually wish Zane was one of her guys which would at least add the kind of drama I love. Might continue on audio so I can ignore the writing irritants.
oh gosh I fell for the cover as well. I also failed to look at the categories- the ones on the RHS pdf the Goodreads green or I would have read the words reverse harem...my nightmare because I am
This book.. Just wow. Read it right now! Tomorrow the last book is coming out and after that a spin off wil come out as well.
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
“Knowledge is power, Princess Danvers," he said eventually, his voice rough with some undecipherable emotion, "but ignorance is bliss. You decide for yourself which one you prefer.”
Overall Rating:
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes