Scan barcode
A review by mspilesofpaper
A Court of Sugar and Spice by Rebecca F. Kenney
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
What a fucking nightmare. Head the trigger warnings if you still want to borrow the book and add rape threat, gang rape, ... onto it because I don't think that those are mentioned in the eBook.
I was told on TikTok that the book would be a dark and spicy retelling with Fae and I got the book via Kindle Unlimited based on this description.
It's not a dark and spicy retelling. It's just a soft porno with fated mates and horrible writing. The only dark thing about it is that it is a nightmare and gave me a headache. It's very crude (e.g., differently flavoured cum whenever he comes) and so non-sensical (e.g., FMC 1 shaves her armpits and legs after nearly dying a couple of times; if I nearly died, shaving off my body hair isn't on the top of my list). Horrible world-building as well (e.g., (2x fated mates trope but the one pairing doesn't make sense as the author themselves establish that "only the royal fae can have a Chosen").
The two sisters drove me crazy because they are so fucking stupid but described as genius (especially Louisa with her talent for war strategy). The author considers them as "strong female characters" when there's nothing about them that would make them strong in any way. They're just obsessed with sex; I'm all for sex positivity but being obsessed with sex as the only actual character trait is so cheap. Louisa is very open about her love for sex and how she uses men to her advantage by fucking them while Clara ... she's very closeted about it (Like literally hiding in the closet to masturbate.) but so kinky. Both have ADHD but the author decided that it's something quirky and should work as a character trait instead of something that should be taken seriously. I would like to see more characters with ADHD in books but it should be portrayed well then and not as something quirky to give your characters another trait.
The two male characters are just the male and Fae versions of the sisters and partly mirrored. One is artsy and outgoing, the other one is grumpy but level-headed. It's so stupid, I'm sorry. Louisa bickers constantly with her love interest, it's so awful.
The bad thing about the book is that it started well enough and was close enough to the original tale of the Nutcracker with Drosselmeyer, the wooden Nutcracker. You have a secret room, dark corridors, ... -- bit spooky and certainly dark. As soon as they are in the Fae lands: plot is thrown out of the window and it's all about sex now. Blagh.
I was told on TikTok that the book would be a dark and spicy retelling with Fae and I got the book via Kindle Unlimited based on this description.
It's not a dark and spicy retelling. It's just a soft porno with fated mates and horrible writing. The only dark thing about it is that it is a nightmare and gave me a headache. It's very crude (e.g., differently flavoured cum whenever he comes) and so non-sensical (e.g., FMC 1 shaves her armpits and legs after nearly dying a couple of times; if I nearly died, shaving off my body hair isn't on the top of my list). Horrible world-building as well (e.g., (2x fated mates trope but the one pairing doesn't make sense as the author themselves establish that "only the royal fae can have a Chosen").
The two sisters drove me crazy because they are so fucking stupid but described as genius (especially Louisa with her talent for war strategy). The author considers them as "strong female characters" when there's nothing about them that would make them strong in any way. They're just obsessed with sex; I'm all for sex positivity but being obsessed with sex as the only actual character trait is so cheap. Louisa is very open about her love for sex and how she uses men to her advantage by fucking them while Clara ... she's very closeted about it (Like literally hiding in the closet to masturbate.) but so kinky. Both have ADHD but the author decided that it's something quirky and should work as a character trait instead of something that should be taken seriously. I would like to see more characters with ADHD in books but it should be portrayed well then and not as something quirky to give your characters another trait.
The two male characters are just the male and Fae versions of the sisters and partly mirrored. One is artsy and outgoing, the other one is grumpy but level-headed. It's so stupid, I'm sorry. Louisa bickers constantly with her love interest, it's so awful.
The bad thing about the book is that it started well enough and was close enough to the original tale of the Nutcracker with Drosselmeyer, the wooden Nutcracker. You have a secret room, dark corridors, ... -- bit spooky and certainly dark. As soon as they are in the Fae lands: plot is thrown out of the window and it's all about sex now. Blagh.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Rape and Sexual violence