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A review by rlisaacs
Ensnared by Tiffany Roberts
4.0
I really enjoyed this.
The beginning definitely felt like it started out a bit slow. For maybe the first 10 or 15 percent of the book. But it's a relatively quick read, so that part goes by pretty fast. And it's necessary, because you need the background so you understand a bit about the new world you're in, and also the situation that Ketahn is dealing with.
Worth noting, I think the blurb for this book is a bit deceiving. It mentions that, from the moment he first saw Ivy, he knew in his soul that she was his heartsthread. That gave me the impression that this would sort of be an insta-love type of story. Which for me, when the insta-love is because of mates or things like that, I'm fine with, as long as the rest of the story is good. But this wasn't that. It was more of a slow-burn. A strangers-to-lovers type story.
I also love how sweet Ketahn is. There are a few moments when he takes things a bit too far, but it's not on purpose. His curiosity about Ivy, this entirely new creature to him, is what causes it. He gropes her once, but as soon as he figures out she's against that, he stops. Every step he takes that's too far, isn't out of malice or a desire to hurt her. It's curiosity, and as soon as he realizes he's overstepped, he apologizes, or does something kind to make up for it.
Our MCs are a great pair. Ivy is human in a world that isn't exactly human-friendly. But with Ketahn to help guide and teach her, she's determined to make this new world her home, and to be useful while she's in it. And Ketahn is so sweet. He just wants to take care of her. Just wants to keep her for himself and keep her safe. (Not in a douche-bag, he owns her type of way. Just a sweet way.)
And the spice. All the spice. Both the accidental, curious moments, and the intentional, both in agreement about it moments. Gah! I'm here for it! (That also makes me think I have a problem, but I don't care!)
One more thing I just really enjoyed, was just the way the language barrier was handled. There's no easy fix, and they don't both just magically speak the same language. It takes time to figure out how to communicate, and while there are some jumps in time to account for that, it's made apparent that this thing didn't get fixed in just a couple of days. I also enjoyed that, when we're in Ketahn's POV, we hear how Ivy sounds to him. It's a little tricky to read at times, but that's kind of the point. Ketahn doesn't understand it at all, so it's supposed to be tricky for us to as well. And when we're in Ivy's POV, we don't understand a thing Ketahn says. Not until Ivy starts picking up on a few words here and there and filling us in on what he's saying. Ketahn eventually talks in more human English than in his own language when we're in Ivy's POV, and that also shows us how much easier it's getting between the two of them since it's becoming easier for us as well.
This is my first book by Tiffany Roberts, and if this one is anything to base her others off of, I will definitely be back for more. I'm also definitely picking up the second book. We end this one on... it's a cliffhanger, but it's not a terrible one (in my opinion). I kind of hate cliffhangers, in general, but this one I'm okay with. It doesn't leave us dangling over the edge of the cliff by our ankles. We're more just peeking over the edge, looking down curiously to see what's next. And I do want to see what's next. So there.
The beginning definitely felt like it started out a bit slow. For maybe the first 10 or 15 percent of the book. But it's a relatively quick read, so that part goes by pretty fast. And it's necessary, because you need the background so you understand a bit about the new world you're in, and also the situation that Ketahn is dealing with.
Worth noting, I think the blurb for this book is a bit deceiving. It mentions that, from the moment he first saw Ivy, he knew in his soul that she was his heartsthread. That gave me the impression that this would sort of be an insta-love type of story. Which for me, when the insta-love is because of mates or things like that, I'm fine with, as long as the rest of the story is good. But this wasn't that. It was more of a slow-burn. A strangers-to-lovers type story.
I also love how sweet Ketahn is. There are a few moments when he takes things a bit too far, but it's not on purpose. His curiosity about Ivy, this entirely new creature to him, is what causes it. He gropes her once, but as soon as he figures out she's against that, he stops. Every step he takes that's too far, isn't out of malice or a desire to hurt her. It's curiosity, and as soon as he realizes he's overstepped, he apologizes, or does something kind to make up for it.
Our MCs are a great pair. Ivy is human in a world that isn't exactly human-friendly. But with Ketahn to help guide and teach her, she's determined to make this new world her home, and to be useful while she's in it. And Ketahn is so sweet. He just wants to take care of her. Just wants to keep her for himself and keep her safe. (Not in a douche-bag, he owns her type of way. Just a sweet way.)
And the spice. All the spice. Both the accidental, curious moments, and the intentional, both in agreement about it moments. Gah! I'm here for it! (That also makes me think I have a problem, but I don't care!)
One more thing I just really enjoyed, was just the way the language barrier was handled. There's no easy fix, and they don't both just magically speak the same language. It takes time to figure out how to communicate, and while there are some jumps in time to account for that, it's made apparent that this thing didn't get fixed in just a couple of days. I also enjoyed that, when we're in Ketahn's POV, we hear how Ivy sounds to him. It's a little tricky to read at times, but that's kind of the point. Ketahn doesn't understand it at all, so it's supposed to be tricky for us to as well. And when we're in Ivy's POV, we don't understand a thing Ketahn says. Not until Ivy starts picking up on a few words here and there and filling us in on what he's saying. Ketahn eventually talks in more human English than in his own language when we're in Ivy's POV, and that also shows us how much easier it's getting between the two of them since it's becoming easier for us as well.
This is my first book by Tiffany Roberts, and if this one is anything to base her others off of, I will definitely be back for more. I'm also definitely picking up the second book. We end this one on... it's a cliffhanger, but it's not a terrible one (in my opinion). I kind of hate cliffhangers, in general, but this one I'm okay with. It doesn't leave us dangling over the edge of the cliff by our ankles. We're more just peeking over the edge, looking down curiously to see what's next. And I do want to see what's next. So there.