Review by rasha_reads - City of Gods and Monsters

rasha_reads 's review for:

City of Gods and Monsters by Kayla Edwards

4.5

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Complicated

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

At the beginning of 2025, I made several literary resolutions: (1) read 156 books or more (2) write reviews for every book that I read (3) open up an IG account specifically about books and (4) try to get through as many books in my NeverEnding TBR (the physical one of books I already own ☺️😳) as possible. So, I’m 2/3 through (1), I’m keeping up with (2), have managed (3) and The “House of Devils” series definitely makes it into (4)… so here goes my 101st REVIEW of the year…

The first thing I noticed when reading “City of Gods & Monsters” was it’s similarities to SJM’s Crescent City. There were certain things like the FMC being attacked and then being in a police station, the MMC being a hunter but then turning bodyguard… I had to remind myself that I was reading a different book and prayed that it was not just a repeat or fan fiction. For the first 200 pages or so, the plot felt slightly contrived due to the MCs motivations — A bounty hunter finds his mark but decides to protect her instead; and she just says yes and trusts him. (Really?) Plus her adoptive sister says ok to trusting him as well as long as he is no threat to her place in Loren’s life (chicks before d***s?). I had trouble getting into it but even so, I put my opinions aside (I am incapable of DNF-Ing) just to see what would happen next. Thankfully, my patience paid off and my questions were answered, at least partially.

Despite my initial reservations, I thought this was decently written tale. It is part urban fantasy and part dystopian that also has a mystery threaded throughout with some Mafia romance undertones ( I think these will become more apparent in later books). The city of Angelthene is populated with a host of characters major to minor that were decently fleshed out and lent to the overall world building which was pretty well done. Add to that some great dialogue and emotional damage from the FMC, Loren, and MMC, Darien, and I started to understand why this would appeal to fans of SJM’s Crescent City.

It might have had a slightly stilted and slow start but once it got to the halfway point, the storyline and character interactions really took off. It included several plot twists, a few of which I predicted but most of which really surprised me, and the slow burn builds until it sizzles at the end. Expect 🌶️ 🌶️🌶️ feels and 🩸🩸🩸 action.

This might not be God tier romantasy but it was engrossing and had me laughing, gasping and even crying so if you’re looking for a book with dark romantasy vibes, this would be a worthy addition to your TBR.

Looking forward to the next volume…

4.5 stars 🤓📚

#CityOfGodsAndMonsters #HouseOfDevils @KaylaEdwardsAuthor

#booksbooksbooks #books #bookish #bookaddict #bookclubread #reading #bookstagram #booktok #bookreview #booksof2025 #bookdragon #bookworm #lovebooks #bookrecs #booklovers #booklove #booknerd #bibliophile #ilivetoread #passionforbooks #bookish #readingcommunity #bookaddict #bookrecs

#sciencefiction #urbanfantasy #adventure #fiction

Content Warnings