Scan barcode
michellewords's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Charles and Anna stories are like a breath of fresh air. For some reason, the stories and characters in this part of the series are so much better developed. I've been racking my brain all weekend, trying to pinpoint why I like them so much better and if they are really better than the Mercy books. The author is the same and the Mercy books seem to be her golden children, but the characters lack flaws and fawn over Mercy and the plots feel so unnecessarily complicated.
Anyway, I loved this book a lot-with a few caveats.
The book begins with Anna and Charles in a disagreement over children, but that gets quickly overshadowed by a phonecall from one of Charles's few friends (Joe), who is human and near his deathbed. Charles surprises Anna with a trip to buy a horse from his friend. They find themselves thrust into a fae attack against Joe's daughter-in-law and decide to help locate a fae who has been kidnapping children, abusing them, and killing them.
This book was not for the weak at heart. When you get kids involved in abuse and murder, it definitely takes a darker turn. Yet, those darker moments are some of the most powerful and well-written in the book. I felt so invested in this plot and these characters, I could not put the book down.
One thing I love about Charles and Anna is how flawed they are as characters and how that can play into the stories. Charles's history as Bran's police and the ghost reminders that follow him play an unexpected role in this book. Anna's own history under an abusive alpha's thumb also plays a role. While some histories can feel like kicking a dead horse. These moments are subtle and really good additions to the story and the character development.
Blast I love Charles and Anna so much.
You know what I really don't love in this one? Two big things: Anna's pining for a baby and horse-talk.
The woman pining after a baby felt like such a cliche' in this book. it also felt unnecessary and kind of weird for their plot line and story thus far. It came out of left field and I hate it. It's one of those things that can ruin a series for me. Not because I hate babies, but sometimes books add life events to give the characters something to do and I HATE that for Charles and Anna.
I don't think I need to explain the horse talk. Charles apparently used to work on a horse ranch with Joe. Charles is getting Anna a horse and this book was filled with horse-talk. So much so that I felt like I was reading a textbook about horse breeding and shows. It was really boring and weird for this series. I don't need to know what "English proper" is for the characters, the book, or the series. Why on Earth are we getting into this much detail about horses?! I can let one scene go due to the pretense of buying a horse, but there were like six scenes with extreme detailed discussion on horse stuff. So weird!
Anyways, I LOVED the book despite the horses/baby stuff. I'm glad I kept reading because Charles and Anna are always a good time.
Anyway, I loved this book a lot-with a few caveats.
The book begins with Anna and Charles in a disagreement over children, but that gets quickly overshadowed by a phonecall from one of Charles's few friends (Joe), who is human and near his deathbed. Charles surprises Anna with a trip to buy a horse from his friend. They find themselves thrust into a fae attack against Joe's daughter-in-law and decide to help locate a fae who has been kidnapping children, abusing them, and killing them.
This book was not for the weak at heart. When you get kids involved in abuse and murder, it definitely takes a darker turn. Yet, those darker moments are some of the most powerful and well-written in the book. I felt so invested in this plot and these characters, I could not put the book down.
One thing I love about Charles and Anna is how flawed they are as characters and how that can play into the stories. Charles's history as Bran's police and the ghost reminders that follow him play an unexpected role in this book. Anna's own history under an abusive alpha's thumb also plays a role. While some histories can feel like kicking a dead horse. These moments are subtle and really good additions to the story and the character development.
Blast I love Charles and Anna so much.
You know what I really don't love in this one? Two big things: Anna's pining for a baby and horse-talk.
The woman pining after a baby felt like such a cliche' in this book. it also felt unnecessary and kind of weird for their plot line and story thus far. It came out of left field and I hate it. It's one of those things that can ruin a series for me. Not because I hate babies, but sometimes books add life events to give the characters something to do and I HATE that for Charles and Anna.
I don't think I need to explain the horse talk. Charles apparently used to work on a horse ranch with Joe. Charles is getting Anna a horse and this book was filled with horse-talk. So much so that I felt like I was reading a textbook about horse breeding and shows. It was really boring and weird for this series. I don't need to know what "English proper" is for the characters, the book, or the series. Why on Earth are we getting into this much detail about horses?! I can let one scene go due to the pretense of buying a horse, but there were like six scenes with extreme detailed discussion on horse stuff. So weird!
Anyways, I LOVED the book despite the horses/baby stuff. I'm glad I kept reading because Charles and Anna are always a good time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Sexual violence, Child abuse, and Sexual content
More...