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2.88 AVERAGE
2.88 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-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
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Loved the cover and the premise of this one: literary enemies end up at the same writing retreat in a reportedly super haunted Scottish castle and a bunch of pants-off business ensues.
An enemies to lovers romcom + horror is pretty much my dream combo, but this unfortunately fell flat for me overall. I appreciated the commentary on the publishing industry and the additional roadblocks to publication faced by Native and other BIPOC authors, but the over-the-top rivalry between Neil and Penelope felt forced, and I found both of them to be pretty irritating. The ghost business started out fun but never became particularly spooky, and the explanation for the haunting was lackluster and the whole thing kind of fizzled out by the end.
All of that said, I would really like to read another book by Wilkens - she clearly has a ton of potential for unique storytelling and genre blending that I'd love to see developed further!
* thank you to St Martin's Press / Griffin for the NetGalley review copy. IF I STOPPED HAUNTING YOU publishes October 15, 2024.
An enemies to lovers romcom + horror is pretty much my dream combo, but this unfortunately fell flat for me overall. I appreciated the commentary on the publishing industry and the additional roadblocks to publication faced by Native and other BIPOC authors, but the over-the-top rivalry between Neil and Penelope felt forced, and I found both of them to be pretty irritating. The ghost business started out fun but never became particularly spooky, and the explanation for the haunting was lackluster and the whole thing kind of fizzled out by the end.
All of that said, I would really like to read another book by Wilkens - she clearly has a ton of potential for unique storytelling and genre blending that I'd love to see developed further!
* thank you to St Martin's Press / Griffin for the NetGalley review copy. IF I STOPPED HAUNTING YOU publishes October 15, 2024.
emotional
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
It had its high moments. I laughed quite a few times and found it amusing, but the overall book fell kinda flat for me. It really did have some great moments and suspense, but something about the writing (or maybe the plot line?) just didn't hit right for me.
Some good spicey scenes though.
Some good spicey scenes though.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Death, Sexual content, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Moderate: Racism, Grief, Cultural appropriation
Minor: Genocide, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Colonisation, War
2/5. ⭐⭐
Mk.
I went into this with absolutely high expectations, because romance and paranormal...horror..a retreat at a haunted Scottish mansion...how does none of that sound perfect? Unfortunately, it fell super flat for me. I think this is one of the only books that I only read a few pages, and had immediate distaste for the main characters....and it never got better.
Our FMC is simply toxic and whiny, and I truly could not stand her. The victim card is irritating to me, and I just didn't connect with either character. None of them.
The enemies to loves aspect didn't work for me either. We start off, quite literally in the first few pages, with the FMC physically assaulting the MMC, and the rest of the book is them being childish then magically becoming romantically involved. The romance just felt....lackluster. It was just sudden with nothing to back it up.
Also, this is not my idea of horror.
This had so much more potential, because the concept is such a great idea. Perhaps it just wasn't for me.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc!
Mk.
I went into this with absolutely high expectations, because romance and paranormal...horror..a retreat at a haunted Scottish mansion...how does none of that sound perfect? Unfortunately, it fell super flat for me. I think this is one of the only books that I only read a few pages, and had immediate distaste for the main characters....and it never got better.
Our FMC is simply toxic and whiny, and I truly could not stand her. The victim card is irritating to me, and I just didn't connect with either character. None of them.
The enemies to loves aspect didn't work for me either. We start off, quite literally in the first few pages, with the FMC physically assaulting the MMC, and the rest of the book is them being childish then magically becoming romantically involved. The romance just felt....lackluster. It was just sudden with nothing to back it up.
Also, this is not my idea of horror.
This had so much more potential, because the concept is such a great idea. Perhaps it just wasn't for me.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for this arc!
adventurous
dark
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
as a fan of both horror and romance, i was really looking forward to this one, and while i don't hate it, i fear it was simply giving nothing. to be fair i've read a lot of mid books that i still found quite enjoyable, but i was kinda dragging myself hrough this one. it did have a pretty exciting concept, i just think it was excuted rather poorly. the horror plot was anti-climactic and felt a bit cheap towards the end. maybe i shouldn't have expected much since this is primarily marketed as a romance, but i don't think it was wrong of me to want more considering the suspense of it all was built up decently, but it didn't really go anywhere exciting? and even with the romantic aspect of the story taking up more space, i still think neil and penelope's relationship felt a bit rushed and needed a little more development. great chemistry and smut though, i will say that. all in all, im quite disappointed but i dont regret giving it a chance. 2.75 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Body horror, Grief
Minor: Death, Racism, Terminal illness, Pregnancy, Colonisation, War, Injury/Injury detail
My review needs to come with a disclaimer: this is only the third or fourth contemporary romance novel I've read—I'm coming from a place of genre exploration. I mention this only because I see a lot of people saying this didn't land for them. I thought it was pretty damn fun.
Penelope and Neil are attending a writers' retreat in a spooky old (probably haunted) castle. But the isolated castle isn't the biggest problem—Pen and Neil are rival colleagues, and they haven't seen each other since their public blowout a few months prior. Since then, Pen hasn't written and Neil has been questioning his artistic integrity. A ghost might actually be the distraction they need.
Romance and horror are fraternal twin genres. No, I will not elaborate. Even still, I was skeptical about the marriage of the two in a single book (especially one with an on-trend cartoon cover). My misplaced concerns were met with delightful Indigenous and queer rep, witty banter, light spice, and some genuinely spooky moments. It might actually be genius to add some supernatural horror into a rom-com. Maybe this is actually something I need a lot more of in my life.
Penelope and Neil are attending a writers' retreat in a spooky old (probably haunted) castle. But the isolated castle isn't the biggest problem—Pen and Neil are rival colleagues, and they haven't seen each other since their public blowout a few months prior. Since then, Pen hasn't written and Neil has been questioning his artistic integrity. A ghost might actually be the distraction they need.
Romance and horror are fraternal twin genres. No, I will not elaborate. Even still, I was skeptical about the marriage of the two in a single book (especially one with an on-trend cartoon cover). My misplaced concerns were met with delightful Indigenous and queer rep, witty banter, light spice, and some genuinely spooky moments. It might actually be genius to add some supernatural horror into a rom-com. Maybe this is actually something I need a lot more of in my life.