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scrubsandbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
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
5.0
The theme of this book: WOMEN PROTECTING WOMEN. Blythe Hawthorne is a goddamn treasure.
These are one of the very rare occasions where I felt like I loved the second book of a series more than the first. Is there a third? I don't know, I haven't looked it up yet but I'll be disappointed if we don't have one after THAT conclusion. If there was a certain amount of whodunit intrigue in the first one, this one had it amped up.
Someone's poisoned the duke and blamed it on the wrong person, you would never believe who was the real killer! Signa and Blythe are very limited in their time in finding the real culprit in order to free Elijah Hawthorne. This is complicated even more with the arrival of Fate who is trying to find the person reincarnated from his lover, Life, who he believes is Signa. Normally, love triangles annoy me but this one was less of a triangle and more of ... one line trying to intersect the other like a T. It was fairly obvious that one member of that triangle was the intruder, but how his story turned out was a lovely surprise.
I enjoyed the gothic atmosphere in both books, glad to see it didn't stray far from it between this and the first book. We even get an intro to Foxglove, Signa's parents' home and it is just as mysterious if not more haunted. And Adalyn Grace's writing? Chef's Kiss. The description of the settings were rich and vibrant, and the banter between Blythe and other characters was thoroughly enjoyable.
These are one of the very rare occasions where I felt like I loved the second book of a series more than the first. Is there a third? I don't know, I haven't looked it up yet but I'll be disappointed if we don't have one after THAT conclusion. If there was a certain amount of whodunit intrigue in the first one, this one had it amped up.
Someone's poisoned the duke and blamed it on the wrong person, you would never believe who was the real killer! Signa and Blythe are very limited in their time in finding the real culprit in order to free Elijah Hawthorne. This is complicated even more with the arrival of Fate who is trying to find the person reincarnated from his lover, Life, who he believes is Signa. Normally, love triangles annoy me but this one was less of a triangle and more of ... one line trying to intersect the other like a T. It was fairly obvious that one member of that triangle was the intruder, but how his story turned out was a lovely surprise.
I enjoyed the gothic atmosphere in both books, glad to see it didn't stray far from it between this and the first book. We even get an intro to Foxglove, Signa's parents' home and it is just as mysterious if not more haunted. And Adalyn Grace's writing? Chef's Kiss. The description of the settings were rich and vibrant, and the banter between Blythe and other characters was thoroughly enjoyable.
"She didn't care to be a sunflower, unfurling her petals in the daylight for all to see. She would rather be an adorable little mushroom, thriving in the dark crevices where few ventured to look."
Girl, same.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Toxic relationship, and Child death
Moderate: Sexual content and Blood
Minor: Pregnancy, Vomit, and Animal death
katievallin's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Domestic abuse, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Murder, Pregnancy, Blood, Alcohol, Violence, Animal death, Sexism, and Sexual content
Minor: Abortion
chronicacademia's review
adventurous
funny
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Death
Moderate: Misogyny, Pregnancy, Abortion, Animal death, Death of parent, Grief, Alcohol, and Sexism
kayceeisbookish's review
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Death, Terminal illness, Sexual content, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Blood, Chronic illness, and Alcohol
takarakei's review against another edition
mysterious
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
4.5
This series is so good!! If you like fantasy romance and mystery it's perfect. I did feel like the beginning of this was a bit slower and took a while to really grab me. The mystery in this one compared to Belladonna was also not as much of a focus and so therefore it wasn't quite as well done.
That being said Death and Signa are everything. Blythe is also so amazing, I'm so glad we got her POV. I wanted to like Fate more, but he annoyed me for most of this book. I'm willing to give him another chance tho...
I am already dying for book 3, cause I think that one is going to make me feral.
3/5 🌶️ (not graphic)
That being said Death and Signa are everything. Blythe is also so amazing, I'm so glad we got her POV. I wanted to like Fate more, but he annoyed me for most of this book. I'm willing to give him another chance tho...
I am already dying for book 3, cause I think that one is going to make me feral.
3/5 🌶️ (not graphic)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content, Death, and Blood
Minor: Animal death, Body horror, and Vomit
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