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A review by haletostilinski1
Head Games by Onley James, Neve Wilder
4.0
I think...that this was my least favorite installment of the series so far.
That's not to say I didn't like it. I actually quite enjoyed it most of the time. I thought Tobias and Soren's chemistry was pretty good and I liked their connection, for the most part.
But I just didn't quite feel it as much as I felt it between the first two couples. Maybe it was because of Tobias was written - he was interesting, but I don't think the "psychopath or sociopath" angle quite worked in this one, or just wasn't written quite write. It's interesting because with Onley James in another of her books, there was a sociopath character and the romance, the character, it worked really well in that installment.
In this one...not quite as much. It was hard for me to connect with Tobias for awhile because of how unfeeling he was. He just didn't quite...feel human, I think? And if I'm reading romance, there had to be some human connection, ya know?
Eventually we get that, we get Tobias feelings all the feelings for Soren and not knowing what to do with it, but still, at first, before he start to feel those things, it was hard to connect with him as a character.
I also wish we had gotten more on Soren. He still felt like a little bit of a mystery, even by the end of this. I really liked and enjoyed his character, but still, I wanted to know more about him. Was Soren his real name? How old was he? How long had he been an assassin, how long had be been retired? What was his childhood like that made him become a killer?
I just wish we had gotten to know him more, so I left feeling like I didn't quite 100% know his character, when I wanted to.
I felt like this story was very Tobias oriented. Which is fine, because I actually really grew to like Tobias as a character, and to see him fall in love with someone for the first time in his life, to let his walls down. But I wish it had been more even, that we could have gotten more of a balance between the focus between the two.
It felt like, at first, that Soren was there for Tobias more than he was there with Tobias, if that makes any sense?
That changed as these two become more of a unit, but that doesn't change how at first it felt like Tobias was the MC and Soren was almost secondary. I wanted him, for a good portion of this, to feel like an equal player. He did, eventually, but not at first.
Also I dunno what it is, but for some reason I'm cool reading with assassin characters most of the time, but characters who actually want to kill, desire to do it, is harder for me to deal with. Don't get me wrong, Tobias was certainly Dexter-esque, and only ever killed or wanted to kill very bad people. But he still had a certain bloodlust that made me uncomfy sometimes. Assassins are usually just assassins for money, it's very quick, impersonal, 'doing what I have to' type feel, that I guess in fiction I can disassociate that. But when someone *wants* to kill badly, it's just...yeah, uncomfortable.
But, Tobias being Dexter-esque really saved his character for me. He was capable of love. He was capable of lust, attraction, fear. He could feel things, even if it's just for one person, and he never wanted to kill innocent people. He wasn't a psychopath. Maybbeee a sociopath, idk. Either way, once we got more into his character and he become more than just an unfeeling guy who thought he himself was a psychopath, he became a more interesting character, and one I liked.
The plot didn't feel like a whole lot other than Soren teaching Tobias to kill properly, but these two, once they came into their own as characters and got together, really sold this book for me.
So overall, not my favorite of the series, but still pretty solid overall with a fun main couple who had great chemistry.
Still good enough that I recommend it, but for sure a weaker installment in this series, in my opinion.
Still give it two thumbs up, though!
That's not to say I didn't like it. I actually quite enjoyed it most of the time. I thought Tobias and Soren's chemistry was pretty good and I liked their connection, for the most part.
But I just didn't quite feel it as much as I felt it between the first two couples. Maybe it was because of Tobias was written - he was interesting, but I don't think the "psychopath or sociopath" angle quite worked in this one, or just wasn't written quite write. It's interesting because with Onley James in another of her books, there was a sociopath character and the romance, the character, it worked really well in that installment.
In this one...not quite as much. It was hard for me to connect with Tobias for awhile because of how unfeeling he was. He just didn't quite...feel human, I think? And if I'm reading romance, there had to be some human connection, ya know?
Eventually we get that, we get Tobias feelings all the feelings for Soren and not knowing what to do with it, but still, at first, before he start to feel those things, it was hard to connect with him as a character.
I also wish we had gotten more on Soren. He still felt like a little bit of a mystery, even by the end of this. I really liked and enjoyed his character, but still, I wanted to know more about him. Was Soren his real name? How old was he? How long had he been an assassin, how long had be been retired? What was his childhood like that made him become a killer?
I just wish we had gotten to know him more, so I left feeling like I didn't quite 100% know his character, when I wanted to.
I felt like this story was very Tobias oriented. Which is fine, because I actually really grew to like Tobias as a character, and to see him fall in love with someone for the first time in his life, to let his walls down. But I wish it had been more even, that we could have gotten more of a balance between the focus between the two.
It felt like, at first, that Soren was there for Tobias more than he was there with Tobias, if that makes any sense?
That changed as these two become more of a unit, but that doesn't change how at first it felt like Tobias was the MC and Soren was almost secondary. I wanted him, for a good portion of this, to feel like an equal player. He did, eventually, but not at first.
Also I dunno what it is, but for some reason I'm cool reading with assassin characters most of the time, but characters who actually want to kill, desire to do it, is harder for me to deal with. Don't get me wrong, Tobias was certainly Dexter-esque, and only ever killed or wanted to kill very bad people. But he still had a certain bloodlust that made me uncomfy sometimes. Assassins are usually just assassins for money, it's very quick, impersonal, 'doing what I have to' type feel, that I guess in fiction I can disassociate that. But when someone *wants* to kill badly, it's just...yeah, uncomfortable.
But, Tobias being Dexter-esque really saved his character for me. He was capable of love. He was capable of lust, attraction, fear. He could feel things, even if it's just for one person, and he never wanted to kill innocent people. He wasn't a psychopath. Maybbeee a sociopath, idk. Either way, once we got more into his character and he become more than just an unfeeling guy who thought he himself was a psychopath, he became a more interesting character, and one I liked.
The plot didn't feel like a whole lot other than Soren teaching Tobias to kill properly, but these two, once they came into their own as characters and got together, really sold this book for me.
So overall, not my favorite of the series, but still pretty solid overall with a fun main couple who had great chemistry.
Still good enough that I recommend it, but for sure a weaker installment in this series, in my opinion.
Still give it two thumbs up, though!