Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - Monster of the Week

Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

Monster of the Week by F.T. Lukens

9 reviews

ravenk28's review against another edition

funny lighthearted 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? No

4.75

Absolutely loved this book more so than the first but that’s was just because we got to see more of Bridger’s found family.

This is a lighthearted coming of age book with adventures, mystery and a lot of runny.

This book follows Bridge after walking into the world of monsters, magic and everything in between. He’s in his last semester of high school and is struggling with school, work and the sudden appearance of a “monster hunter”.

It was such a fun read I would definitely be reading this again as the found family trope in this book is superb. Especially Bridge chosen dad Pavel *chefs kiss*

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cj13's review

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adventurous emotional funny lighthearted 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

4.5

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stacyaj's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted fast-paced

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

4.0

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princexbee's review

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

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

4.0

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ophycore's review against another edition

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adventurous funny lighthearted 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

4.5

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chaoticnostalgia's review against another edition

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adventurous lighthearted 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

4.0

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myriam's review against another edition

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adventurous funny fast-paced

5.0

Just as fun as the first one.

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aromarrie's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny medium-paced

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

5.0

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wardenred's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted mysterious fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

"Is it a dragon? Please, let it be a dragon!"
"I don't know how many times I have to tell you, Astrid. Dragons aren't native to Michigan."
"Neither is the Bladenboro Beast, but I have a specific memory of kicking its ass."

I really liked the first book in the series. The sequel was admittedly somewhat underwhelming. I still enjoyed reading about Bridger and his quirky magical found family, but this part of his journey didn't compel me that much. The myth-related plot had an interesting premise that's right there in the blurb: the host of a cryptid-related tv show is coming to the MC's hometown, and the MC has to stop her from learning the truth about the actual cryptids dwelling here. However, the execution was a bit... all over the place. The stakes appeared high enough, and then they weren't, and then Pavel spent 2/3 books discouraging Bridger from taking any action and gently berates him when Bridger does take action, and then Pavel is the one who messes things up, and then the stakes are suddenly high again, and what is even happening here?

Honestly, at some point I just started being a lot more invested in the non-supernatural parts of the plot. The storyline with Bridger's father was painful, but interesting; I wish they had more than 2.5 scenes together before the final confrontation. Bridger and Leo were as cute together here as they'd been in book 1. I loved the importance they both placed on consent and how they were able to talk honestly to each other. Their prom date was the epitome of cuteness, really. Astrid grew on me compared to book 1, and I already liked her. Bridger's relationship with his mother was really heartwarming, especially now that he no longer had any reason to fear losing her acceptance.

So all in all, this is a pretty fun YA novel set in an inventive (sub)urban fantasy world, with a loveable cast of characters, a bisexual disaster protagonist with anxiety who ends up in a safe, self-affirming place, a cute mlm relationship, unicorn poop (you heard that right), and growing up. If I didn't have the first book in The Rules series to compare it to, I'd rate it higher. But I do remember the first book, and how much I loved it, and sadly Monster of the Week falls flat compared to it.

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