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2.88 AVERAGE
2.88 AVERAGE
adventurous
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
medium-paced
I really wanted to like this book because the plot sounded fun and I love a good enemies to lovers, but it was just kind of boring. The mood shift between the horror parts and the romance parts were jarring and didn't naturally glow into each other. I also just didn't feel like there was a good reason for the characters to start liking each other. I guess forced proximity, but I just didn't buy it. I also didn't like how the FMC assaulted the MMC right at the beginning. She left a scare on him and I'm supposed to believe that they're now in love??? And the motivation for the ghost just seemed like it wasn't fully thought out and didn't have a good resolution
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
What better way to fall in love than by running through the halls of a haunted house together? I have been absolutely sleeping on the horrormance subgenre, which combines—you guessed it!—horror and romance. At first glance, you might think these genres are complete opposites and wouldn’t blend well. But when you think about it some more, it makes sense: Both horror and romance are about putting characters in extreme situations to explore particular emotions at their heights. If I Stopped Haunting You, a debut horrormance by Colby Wilkens, has completely sold me on the genre combo!
See my full review:
https://www.thegothiclibrary.com/if-i-stopped-haunting-you-horromance/
See my full review:
https://www.thegothiclibrary.com/if-i-stopped-haunting-you-horromance/
It's a great premise: two rival horror writers with a conflicted past, end up at the same writing retreat in a haunted castle, when sparks fly between them. Interesting plot point that both are Native American writers focusing on indigenous characters in their works, and their differing experiences as authors definitely fuels their interpersonal conflict. Dual POV enemies-to-lovers story with elements of romance, horror, and mystery. But for me it just never clicked. The characters weren't very sympathetic or likeable. I found it hard to invest in their outcomes in the beginning, and that struggle continued as I got further in. As the book went on, I grew farther away from the fmc and some of her behaviors towards the end of the book felt self-serving and callous. Actually, the actions of both main characters frustrated me during events towards the end of the book. I think there was promise to this story, but it felt unevenly written. Almost like the book wasn't sure what kind of narrative it wanted to be and the plot got spread a little too thin in trying to cover multiple angles well. It also takes a while to get moving and dragged during the first 25-30 percent of the story. Thankfully things started moving more quickly in the second half of the book. This is a debut novel by this author so hopefully these are just growing pains for her. I do like that the main characters evolved to be supportive rather than adversarial. Thank you to NetGalley for providing an ARC of this story in exchange for my honest review.
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
The FMC is awful, rude, and abusive to those around her. I really didn't like how she threw a book at Neil's head in the beginning of the book and that she made him bleed. I feel like the characters weren't well fleshed out, the whole book just felt kind of rushed. Some of the spooky parts were kind of good but nothing worth remembering.
One of the main things I liked about this book was that Pen and Neil were both Native American authors and I like how it showed some of the struggles that Native writers can face in the publishing industry. This all feels cheapened now after everything that has come out about the author and how she faked coming from indigenous heritage. Overall it was very disappointing. I hope that something can come from all of this controversy and we can get some good books by actual indigenous voices.
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martins Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review
One of the main things I liked about this book was that Pen and Neil were both Native American authors and I like how it showed some of the struggles that Native writers can face in the publishing industry. This all feels cheapened now after everything that has come out about the author and how she faked coming from indigenous heritage. Overall it was very disappointing. I hope that something can come from all of this controversy and we can get some good books by actual indigenous voices.
Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martins Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review
This book did a lot of things right
*Rivals to lovers
*ghost stories come to life
*Steamy scenes
*Mystery subplot
*PNR story with actual paranormal elements
*Native American rep
*queer rep
There were a lot of really swoony moments and the enemies to lovers always hits BUT unfortunately there were some red flags as well.
The relationship went from hate to love a little *too* fast. And Pen was a walking red flag all on her own. Manipulative, victimizing and borderline abusive I almost wants to scream at Neil that he deserved better. I can't help but this if the gender roles were swapped we would be calling Neil every name in the book and questioning why Pen would degrade herself to be with him. The ending makes it up to use with some character growth and the subplots in the story shining bright but the romance was unfortunately not my favorite part and this is a romance book so for those reasons it affected my overall rating.
Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC in exchange for my honest review
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes