Reviews tagging 'Eating disorder'

Lover Avenged by J.R. Ward

1 review

allingoodtime's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

 
Rehvenge has been burrowing into my heart more and more as this series progresses, so I was happy to find out more about him and the sympaths in this book. I especially love the mate the author picked for him.

Ehlena is wonderful. She is a top-notch nurse, an amazing daughter, and a woman who stands up for herself and those around her no matter what. She is exactly what Rehvenge needs. He has a very strong and demanding personality so he needs someone to keep him in check. Which wasn’t hard to do for Ehlena because once Rehvenge fell, he fell hard. Believe it or not, the man has a sweet side. Not just in his protection of his sister, mother, and friends that we’ve seen previously. Rehvenge is very thoughtful and caring and romantic when it comes to Ehlena. He definitely oversteps here and there, as is his nature. But when Ehlena speaks up and pushes back he generally listens.

As per usual with this series, this book isn’t just about the MMC and MFC. A lot is going on and some characters had turns that broke my heart. John Matthew is featured prominently in this story and it’s not all good. Through a series of events, not just in this book but also in past books, he has finally reached his limit. He has grown up abused and neglected, always reaching out and being swatted away or ignored. He thought things would be different with the Brotherhood, but he still feels as though he’s “other” and not important enough. No matter how much his friends and some of the brothers are always there for him, the people he needs either aren’t emotionally available or push him away to “save” him. I’m so glad his book is next because I don’t know if I could continue to watch him make bad choices and push people away. It’s heartbreaking.

The things happening with the Brotherhood other than John Matthew’s withdrawal into himself, made me feel as if the Brotherhood is slowly weaving itself back together to have the unity and power it had in the past. So far in the series, things have been slowly crumbling around them. Now it’s time to build everything back up.

The biggest thing that bothered me in this story is the return of some intense homophobic language. While it’s obvious the author has been growing with the times as these stories progress (this one being published about 15 years ago), it sometimes feels like two steps forward and three steps back. I give some grace in this matter because I do see that change in her wording and how she has her characters look at the world. It’s unfortunate that people still talk and think the way some of these characters do and that they definitely were more vocal about it just 15 years ago. She wrote the characters of that time and it not only shows, but it also makes the story feel dated at times.

That being said, the love story between Rehvenge and Ehlena is fantastic and the new characters introduced in this book already pique my interest. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
More...