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eesh25's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 Stars
Note to self, the next time you think you're reading the last book in a series, maybe check to make sure that that's actually the case? That way, you won't end up having to rethink all your opinions toward the plot of the book.
Honestly, this was a weird reading experience for me. If you're familiar with Ahdieh, then you know that she's previously written two duologies. So I just assumed that it was the same with this series. I don't find out that this was only the second of four books until I finished it, realized the ending left like 50 plotlines up in the air and googled the series to see if there were going to be more books. Which there were because this was never planned as a duology!
At the end of The Beautiful, we left Sebastian turning into a vampire and Celine having her memory of anything relating to him erased. And Michael deciding to be an opportunistic douchebag by taking his chance with the girl without her memories. I really don't like Michael, something that doesn't change throughout the novel.
Now, the way I thought the story would go is that we'd deal with the memory issue, Seb's new vampirism, and his evil sister. Then there would be a happily ever after. Instead, the book introduces a bunch of new elements relating to Celine's past, potential new villains, and just a whole other major plot. And I couldn't figure out why the author was doing that because I thought this was the last book! But, having thought about it now, there were some very interesting developments. And I loved getting to know some of the side characters more. Arjun, for example, played a much bigger role.
The rating is still 3.5, though, because the book took some time to get interesting. It was always easy to read, but some parts felt a bit unnecessary. Like Odette's POV. I don't know what it had to offer to the story. And it was so ridiculously overdramatic that I couldn't take it seriously. I also thought certain parts were rushed, and why was Bastian's sister barely mentioned for over half the novel?
Also, the book's take on vampires is nothing new. It reminded me of The Vampire Diaries (the show), and it's not as if we haven't read about or seen vampires in media before. They're kinda old news at this point. So the whole I-am-darkness, I-am-a-monster stuff was tedious and took me out of the story. Odette's POV was the worst, but Sebastian's wasn't great either. Though the latter got much better and Odette only got two or three chapters.
My favourite POV was Celine's, except for the love-triangle. Which wasn't actually a love-triangle because there was no way Celine was gonna chose fucking Michael. So it was just annoying. Also, Celine made a few choices, regarding Michael, that I didn't agree with.
Overall though, this was a fast, engaging read. I do wish the book took itself a little less seriously because the purple prose-y ness was a bit much this time around. But for the most part, I liked the book and I'm looking forward to what'll happen next. I'm hoping that the next two installments will be better paced and, with plot intro out-of-the-way, more cohesive.
Note to self, the next time you think you're reading the last book in a series, maybe check to make sure that that's actually the case? That way, you won't end up having to rethink all your opinions toward the plot of the book.
Honestly, this was a weird reading experience for me. If you're familiar with Ahdieh, then you know that she's previously written two duologies. So I just assumed that it was the same with this series. I don't find out that this was only the second of four books until I finished it, realized the ending left like 50 plotlines up in the air and googled the series to see if there were going to be more books. Which there were because this was never planned as a duology!
At the end of The Beautiful, we left Sebastian turning into a vampire and Celine having her memory of anything relating to him erased. And Michael deciding to be an opportunistic douchebag by taking his chance with the girl without her memories. I really don't like Michael, something that doesn't change throughout the novel.
Now, the way I thought the story would go is that we'd deal with the memory issue, Seb's new vampirism, and his evil sister. Then there would be a happily ever after. Instead, the book introduces a bunch of new elements relating to Celine's past, potential new villains, and just a whole other major plot. And I couldn't figure out why the author was doing that because I thought this was the last book! But, having thought about it now, there were some very interesting developments. And I loved getting to know some of the side characters more. Arjun, for example, played a much bigger role.
The rating is still 3.5, though, because the book took some time to get interesting. It was always easy to read, but some parts felt a bit unnecessary. Like Odette's POV. I don't know what it had to offer to the story. And it was so ridiculously overdramatic that I couldn't take it seriously. I also thought certain parts were rushed, and why was Bastian's sister barely mentioned for over half the novel?
Also, the book's take on vampires is nothing new. It reminded me of The Vampire Diaries (the show), and it's not as if we haven't read about or seen vampires in media before. They're kinda old news at this point. So the whole I-am-darkness, I-am-a-monster stuff was tedious and took me out of the story. Odette's POV was the worst, but Sebastian's wasn't great either. Though the latter got much better and Odette only got two or three chapters.
My favourite POV was Celine's, except for the love-triangle. Which wasn't actually a love-triangle because there was no way Celine was gonna chose fucking Michael. So it was just annoying. Also, Celine made a few choices, regarding Michael, that I didn't agree with.
Overall though, this was a fast, engaging read. I do wish the book took itself a little less seriously because the purple prose-y ness was a bit much this time around. But for the most part, I liked the book and I'm looking forward to what'll happen next. I'm hoping that the next two installments will be better paced and, with plot intro out-of-the-way, more cohesive.
verihapunkt's review
3.0
I'm disappointed :( the author was suddenly in a hurry, that doesn't work for me..
crown_carmen's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
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
5.0
yodamom's review
1.0
I predicted everything that is happening based on the first book. So predictable, so disappointing. I have listened to one characters inner dialog for so long from a narrator that destroys the story for me. I'm done. DNF @10%
shes_book_obsessed's review
5.0
The Damned
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved this book! While listening to jazz and drinking tea, the atmosphere surrounded me completely. This is truly one of my new favorite books!
Unfortunately school caught up to me and I didn’t read for a week, but I just finished this and ahhh amazing!
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I loved this book! While listening to jazz and drinking tea, the atmosphere surrounded me completely. This is truly one of my new favorite books!
Unfortunately school caught up to me and I didn’t read for a week, but I just finished this and ahhh amazing!
ladyk1483's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-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
4.0
nicolecaryl12's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
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
4.0
Like twilight but Bella is also a mythical creature. So slay very drama and YES SHE GOT WITH THE VAMPIRE
issianne's review
2.0
This one started out boring, then it picked up a little when the main characters finally interacted, then it got a little weird with fey lore, then it got tangental with going into the Wyld, and then it was interesting/action-driven at the end. I feel like Ahdieh keeps luring me in with the end of her books, but like...that's not fair when I haven't really enjoyed the rest of the book. This book had so many POVs that I just couldn't care any more at points. And it took 100 pages to get a POV from the MAIN character! I was about to start a riot (and I'm not even obsessed with Celine or anything). Poor Michael also...you deserve better, dude. Also, Bastien and Celine just really had little to no flavor in this (and there was a pretty smutty scene for YA, so that just shows you...) I will most likely not continue on in this series...
vtrumpredd's review
emotional
hopeful
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
hannalafever's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25