Reviews with content warning for Emotional abuse - Pestilence

A very fun book that I had a blast reading. The change in relationship between Sarah and Pestilence from enemies to 👀 happened kind of suddenly. It isn't the BEST written, but is a good time and leaves me wanting to read the rest of the series!

Content Warnings

mattiedancer's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Writing: 3.75⭐️/5

Alright, so the writing is serviceable, and honestly better than I was expecting. That being said, the main character’s internal dialogue often felt a bit contrived – forced to be a bit sassier, a bit quippier than felt natural. However, it wasn’t bad, just a bit contrived at moments. And, on the more positive end, the writing is fast-paced and resonant, letting you absorb the plot quickly and easily. It takes talent to write with such smoothness, and I enjoyed reading it.

Characters: 4⭐️/5

Again, our main character, Sara, started out feeling like a cookie-cutter “badass” main character. As the novel progressed, though, she started to grow and I thoroughly ended up enjoying reading about her and through her perspective. I liked Pestilence a lot. The mixture of his naivety with his inability to forgive Sara seemed true to him. I enjoyed the slow reveal that he didn’t like his job, and I thoroughly enjoyed watching him slowly become more and more human.

Plot: 4.25⭐️/5

Again, I don’t think I was expecting too much from this novel’s plot, and it pushed those expectations so very far. Part of my joy with the plot might be heavily attached to the fact that I didn’t expect too much, but, regardless, I loved it. I was a bit hooked from the start, when Sara explained her and her friend’s half-baked plan to kill Pestilence. And I was extra hooked the moment Pestilence felt fear at her mortal well-being.

Who Should Read This Book?

Fans of ACOTAR and dystopian societies
Someone looking for a romance with an intriguing plot
Those who like fantasy/apocalyptic novels that centre on romance
Readers who like (or don’t mind) a bit of spice, but not just spice.

Content Warnings?

Death, murder, illness, terminal illness, murder, sexual content, physical abuse, emotional abuse, kidnapping, fire, fire injury, gore, blood, injury, injury detail, gun violence, violence, animal death, torture, grief, body horror, pandemic/epidemic

Post-Reading Rating: 5⭐️/5

Addicted.

Final Rating: 4.25⭐️/5

Content Warnings

twinklepuff's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

ruckystarnes's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional sad tense fast-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

5.0

Content Warnings

plsnotanotherdamselindistress's review against another edition

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emotional

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

This was...something.

The logic, the romance...it sas something.
Surprisingly this book was not poorly written, but definitely not what I expected and lacking in the plot department.
Him

murdering masses and children

before her eyes and her slowly falling in love with him while he continues to do that felt -let's call it- *not really relatable*.
I thought this book would be mostly about monster smecks but actually the romance was the main storyline.
Spice: max. 2/5

Only reason this gained 1 star in the rating was because it actually made me cry...surprisingly...

Content Warnings

kat1105's review

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adventurous dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

the_bookworm_rabbit's review against another edition

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medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

I was really disappointed with this book. The initial premise was so interesting, and I was so excited to see how the romance was going to play out, but instead, I found myself literally shouting my disgust at my Kindle.

Sara, at least at a couple of points in the story, seems like a badass firefighter with her head screwed on right. Unfortunately, that is not the case as she seems to be content with forgiving Pestilence for abusing her in some of the worst ways possible just because he's attractive.

As someone who enjoys a dark romance, I have found that there's a fine line between having a love interest whom you can understand the protagonist falling for, and someone who is basically unredeemable. The mental and physical abuse Sara is put through is vile, yet somehow she still falls for Pestilence just because he shows a few moments of regret (which is a common abuse strategy).

This was not the book for me.

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