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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
adventurous
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
mysterious
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:
No
adventurous
lighthearted
fast-paced
lighthearted
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
A short, light, no-spice romantic fantasy with hints of Bridgerton, a touch of fae curse, and charm to spare. This time, I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Mary Jane Wells, and, my goodness, was it fun. Ms. Wells’ narration is filled with heart and humor, and her voices for Our Heroes, Nickolas (a young nobleman tasked by his mother to find a good marriage match to restore the family fortunes) and Jules (a clever young woman dealing with the afore-mentioned fae curse, who pretends to be engaged to Nicholas in order to solve her own problems) are fantastic. She really helps the author’s wry humor (which I LOVE) shine.
The pacing is brisk and the fake-fiance-to-real-love plot is very, very sweet, if not unpredictable. There are more than a few “awww” moments and it’s cute as all get out. A great palate-cleanser for in-between darker books.
There are a few connections with the first book, Beyond the Filigree Wall, but you don’t have to remember much about that one to enjoy this one, and each could technically stand alone.
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
Loveable characters:
Yes
Tyckte verkligen om att den här boken var från Nicholas POV. Men även denna hade gärna fått ha mer worldbuilding och bakgrund.
lighthearted
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
adventurous
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Melissa Wright, I will never let your Just Okay novels go. I don’t know what you put in them, but I’m obsessed.
I really liked Jules and Nickolas as our leads. I think both were super interesting and had really solid and well considered conflict. If I have any issues, it’s more that the relationship for Jules and Nickolas felt rushed, despite how endearing it was. I would have liked more time to see them fall for each other and get to know each other. Especially considering where they’re at relationship-wise by the end of the book. Outside of that, however, they’re great. Nickolas is a super fun POV character and I love his relationship with Etta. Jules is really mysterious and I think her plot and foreshadowing was handled super well. I would have liked to see more of Nickolas’ friends that appeared earlier in the book, I really enjoyed them.
I also really enjoyed the continuation of the world building from book one. I wish we had seen more of it, despite the plot it didn’t feel as interwoven with the story in the way the world building of book one was. I think there could have been a lot more of the previous world building and even new aspects of it, worked into this book. Hopefully the third book with have more of it.
Romance aside, I do think the plot is a little lacking. It felt like a lot of it was a contrivance to make Wright’s plot continue as originally planned without proper consideration. There were some instances where the story would just throw something at me and I would have to pause and question why that happened or how characters set things up. It just took me out of the story.
Overall I had a lot of fun with the book, but I’m weirdly obsessed with all of Wright’s work. This isn’t going to be for everyone, but if you want a silly little read to just enjoy a simple romance then try it out!
I really liked Jules and Nickolas as our leads. I think both were super interesting and had really solid and well considered conflict. If I have any issues, it’s more that the relationship for Jules and Nickolas felt rushed, despite how endearing it was. I would have liked more time to see them fall for each other and get to know each other. Especially considering where they’re at relationship-wise by the end of the book. Outside of that, however, they’re great. Nickolas is a super fun POV character and I love his relationship with Etta. Jules is really mysterious and I think her plot and foreshadowing was handled super well. I would have liked to see more of Nickolas’ friends that appeared earlier in the book, I really enjoyed them.
I also really enjoyed the continuation of the world building from book one. I wish we had seen more of it, despite the plot it didn’t feel as interwoven with the story in the way the world building of book one was. I think there could have been a lot more of the previous world building and even new aspects of it, worked into this book. Hopefully the third book with have more of it.
Romance aside, I do think the plot is a little lacking. It felt like a lot of it was a contrivance to make Wright’s plot continue as originally planned without proper consideration. There were some instances where the story would just throw something at me and I would have to pause and question why that happened or how characters set things up. It just took me out of the story.
Overall I had a lot of fun with the book, but I’m weirdly obsessed with all of Wright’s work. This isn’t going to be for everyone, but if you want a silly little read to just enjoy a simple romance then try it out!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Kidnapping
adventurous
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Breezed through this in one sitting, it was a fine bit of fluff to fill the time. I didn’t feel particularly connected to the characters, but they weren’t unlikeable. Sweet little unoffensive romance, nothing groundbreaking.
fast-paced
this is the definition of short and sweet!
adventurous
funny
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No