Reviews - The Rycke | The StoryGraph

892 reviews for:

The Rycke

Lily Mayne

4.18 AVERAGE

menthe's review against another edition

5.0

fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

lillianmccallum's review against another edition

2.75

adventurous dark funny lighthearted mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

justabluebee's review against another edition

5.0

I was very much looking forward to meeting the mysterious Rycke that's been mentioned in the previous books and I was not disappointed! Wyn warned Danny about the Rycke and Edin described it as "unfathomably powerful—a dichotomy of unlimited violent rage and a peaceful, gentle nature". I mean... gotta meet that one, right?

Aury/the Rycke/One is just so precious and adorable and sweet. He obviously suffers from PTSD from being tortured at the Nebraska military base and he needed all the cuddles. On the other side we have Ghost/Gage. Honestly, with a raider name like Ghost, you'd expect a super stealthy baddass raider, right? But nah, Ghost is really just anxiety in human form with a big heaping of imposter syndrome to boot. He also needed all the cuddles. These two are so precious together and I loved them so much.

As for the other characters... This story is less isolated than the previous two. It's mostly set in the Nebraska raider camp that Ghost calls home, so we have a nice cast of diverse characters. And while I liked most of them just fine, a few did stand out. Rig is an obvious one. He's Ghost's best friend and he'll be the MC of book 4, which I'm very excited for. I look forward to getting to know him better! There's also Anchor, the leader of the camp, who... I mean... I wasn't a big fan of her. Sorry. She's not a bad person, but... yeah. Meanwhile, Cutter is just an asshole. Hated him. Moth's book is coming up after Rig's and I'm very curious about him! And we also have Lilac, who gets book 6. I look forward to his book the most, without a doubt.

We also meet Mary. We briefly, though unknowingly, "met" her in the previous book in a brief scene (you'll know once you read this book). And... Well, she's a creeper who creeps and I don't like her face or the way she calls everyone pet and someone needs to unalive her. Please and thank you.

This was another winner for this series, which is becoming the norm, really. Danny and Wyn are still my faves, but Aury and Ghost are a close second. Speaking of Wyn and Danny, we get to go back to them after this book, so onwards to Wyn's novella!

As for the secret hidden side of Aury? Well... I'm gonna put it in spoiler tags just in case you want to be surprised. But this was the note I made when the big reveal happened:

Spoiler

HOLY MOTHERFUCKING SHIT. So... sweet, adorable, precious Aury turns into a giant, nightmarish, feral rage monster of death when someone threatens the ones he cares about. Okay then. Dang.

Favorite Quotes

"I didn't care what he could become. I didn't see that monstrous face when I looked at Aury. This was my sweet, gentle, kind monster. He was still my Aury."

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“I liked the thought of giving my life, my memories, to the next rycke, because Gage would live on in them forever. He would be a balm, a reprieve from all the darkness. A sweet, delicate bloom that stayed rooted deep in the earth in the eye of a swirling storm of death and rage. I would make sure of it—I would make sure that my memories of him were never lost. I would make them the brightest spot in my mind.”

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“I do feel… It feels different here,” he admitted, voice soft. “Safer. Like I…” He trailed off, but I could tell what he’d been about to say.

“Like you belong.” I leaned forward to kiss him. “Because you do.” He belonged with me.”

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“I fell asleep far too quickly, one hand stretched out on the bed toward the monster reading to me in his soft, sweet voice.”