A review by now_booking
Barbarian's Mate by Ruby Dixon

emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

I feel like there’s grumpy and there’s kind of mean and so feel like Haeden was on the kind of mean spectrum of grumpy and that if not for resonating with Josie, he would have continued to be mean and disrespectful to her. I didn’t “buy” the way it was explained as fear and I just wasn’t super convinced by this match.<br /><br />The premise is that endlessly-bickering pair Josie and Haeden find that they experience resonance for one another and Josie, after a childhood of abandonment, neglect and abuse, who has dreamt of a love match, is devastated to find that she’s matched with Haeden, a joyless sort who seems incapable of love.<br /><br />I think this could have been more convincing but I appreciate that the author kept Haeden in character. Even though thinking of Raahuk who was a similar gruff sort, that felt more of a convincing match to me- this one seems like he’s going to eventually silence her because she talks too loud or too much.
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