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A review by k_champagne
Diablo by Cora Rose
2.0
Missed the mark for me, but let’s start with the positive.
What I liked: Angel, Diablo, Anthony. This felt like a view of their family dynamics from an outsiders perspective. Father and sons. I could read. Whole book, family mafia drama, about the three of them. My favorite part was the random chapter in Anthony’s POV. Would have loved more from him, but alas, this was not his book.
Now, I’ll tell ya how I really feel. For starters, there was one key element of a Contemporary Romance that I felt was missing… THE ROMANCE.
- MMCs were flat / static.
Neither had a character arc in any way shape or form. That makes the story well… boring. No internal strife, desire to change or need to meet the others needs… it just was. Because of that lack of depth I felt no connection to the characters.
- Enemies to Lovers? I didn’t see it.
How can two people just suddenly get along with out compromise or change? Diablo & Skylar went from one to the other, somehow despite the lack of character arc - not to be confused with simply getting to know the characters. There was no change desired or otherwise, inward or outward. Aside from a few moments where unusual sentimental feelings surged, I wouldn’t have known either was effected at all - I knew only because it was stated explicitly, & even then there was no reason for those feelings beyond being turned on by physical contact…. which is fine… but missing the romantic element completely. It seemed they better understood each other in the end but… that wasn’t enough to make the fact they were endeared to one another make sense.
- Diablo: essentially a brat out of necessity, acting out when he wants attention (believable) but there was no depth or anything that made that trait endearing. It ended up being annoying. If Skylar didn’t have a gift in hand or start getting handsy / spanky / in the mood to tie him up, D would have probably never felt the need or been urged to seek him out.
- Skylar: a caricature of his character type profile, but in a way that didn’t allow him to display any personality, just the surface Alpha Body guard type. Honestly, no clue what he felt. One day he thought D was a gross mess and spanked his ass, the next he called him beautiful and then spanked his ass again. Idk.
In summary, this is an easy read with low angst and some spanking of a brat sprinkled in. Didn’t care how they turned out in the end, tbh. And I will absolutely read the next Cora Rose book the second it becomes available. She is nothing if not consistent and for the most part, even when it’s not my favorite (outside this one) her books are easy reads that make me laugh. And she is the mind that gave us Basil Lewis, so. Yeah. It hurts to put this rating and review out there but had to be honest because wtf is the point if I’m not?! Give it a try! You might love it! It’s just not for me.
What I liked: Angel, Diablo, Anthony. This felt like a view of their family dynamics from an outsiders perspective. Father and sons. I could read. Whole book, family mafia drama, about the three of them. My favorite part was the random chapter in Anthony’s POV. Would have loved more from him, but alas, this was not his book.
Now, I’ll tell ya how I really feel. For starters, there was one key element of a Contemporary Romance that I felt was missing… THE ROMANCE.
- MMCs were flat / static.
Neither had a character arc in any way shape or form. That makes the story well… boring. No internal strife, desire to change or need to meet the others needs… it just was. Because of that lack of depth I felt no connection to the characters.
- Enemies to Lovers? I didn’t see it.
How can two people just suddenly get along with out compromise or change? Diablo & Skylar went from one to the other, somehow despite the lack of character arc - not to be confused with simply getting to know the characters. There was no change desired or otherwise, inward or outward. Aside from a few moments where unusual sentimental feelings surged, I wouldn’t have known either was effected at all - I knew only because it was stated explicitly, & even then there was no reason for those feelings beyond being turned on by physical contact…. which is fine… but missing the romantic element completely. It seemed they better understood each other in the end but… that wasn’t enough to make the fact they were endeared to one another make sense.
- Diablo: essentially a brat out of necessity, acting out when he wants attention (believable) but there was no depth or anything that made that trait endearing. It ended up being annoying. If Skylar didn’t have a gift in hand or start getting handsy / spanky / in the mood to tie him up, D would have probably never felt the need or been urged to seek him out.
- Skylar: a caricature of his character type profile, but in a way that didn’t allow him to display any personality, just the surface Alpha Body guard type. Honestly, no clue what he felt. One day he thought D was a gross mess and spanked his ass, the next he called him beautiful and then spanked his ass again. Idk.
In summary, this is an easy read with low angst and some spanking of a brat sprinkled in. Didn’t care how they turned out in the end, tbh. And I will absolutely read the next Cora Rose book the second it becomes available. She is nothing if not consistent and for the most part, even when it’s not my favorite (outside this one) her books are easy reads that make me laugh. And she is the mind that gave us Basil Lewis, so. Yeah. It hurts to put this rating and review out there but had to be honest because wtf is the point if I’m not?! Give it a try! You might love it! It’s just not for me.