Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by thevintagechronicles
The Burning Shadow by Jennifer L. Armentrout
3.0
Libby/audio
I could do without the commentary/lecturing on immigration/segregation and flu vaccines, which is heavy handed and biased in a singular direction.
It was in book 1 as well. It makes some sense in the context of the story, and with the timeline of the plot connecting into the original series. So i did my best to ignore it. It was easier in book 1. This was published in 2019, but i guess that just goes to show how hot button these issues have become, and that these topics are weaponized regularly. Anyway, yes, it makes sense in the story, but i kind of wish this had not been the plot devises used.
Eventually, the story drools and knuckle-drags its way to the plot, and from there(over half way through the book) the story gets more interesting/palatable.
The MC Eve is beyond insufferable for most of this book. She refuses to stay out of danger, and fights often with Luc about it. This is pretty par-for-the-course in this type of girl-power slanted fiction, so we all expect it, but boy did i find it intolerable in this book. Luc deserves better, but he has made his choice i guess. They fight often. Turns out Luc is most often correct, but Eve refuses to learn from this. He gets hurt often, and Eve is regularly shown to not be able to handle the situations she inserts herself into. Way to prove the girl-bosses right girlfriend!
The book in general left me feeling annoyed, irritated and angry, shoved out of the story often by current day issues and references(X-Men, TWD) and generally wishing i could stop reading it and move on with my life.
I do have goodwill for the original series and original cast of characters, and i want to know what ultimately happens, so i kept reading.
The overall plot-Eve has a previous life she doesn't remember, she and Luc have a crackling connection and possibly a hidden past, Luc is hiding in plain sight-running an underground railroad helping people, and a shady secret organization is setting events in motion that have important repercussions, this is all interesting. Or at least it should be. It's unfortunate it gets buried by modern day social justice commentary bloat. A word of advice to anyone who wants to draw attention to sensitive issues, try trusting the audience to draw their own conclusions. They are anyway. And not everyone agrees with you. Giving lectures wins you no favors.
It's kind of hilariously ironic that the actual villain is using false flag events and propaganda to activate the public in a cause, yet the story by and large ignores that. Interesting.
The AB narrator is much better for this series than the original, but the original characters act nothing like themselves in this series. No 'Kittens' to be heard. A shame. Now they all sound like old people. Which is beyond strange. But, other than that, it's a pleasant upgrade.
Sadly, i plan to read the last book to discover the end of this tale, but I'm preparing to be disappointed by it also. It's a shame, the original series is good, even if the first two books have questionable cringe vocab-destined to be considered camp someday i suppose.
Anyway, I'm prepared for the worst. Hoping for the best.
I could do without the commentary/lecturing on immigration/segregation and flu vaccines, which is heavy handed and biased in a singular direction.
It was in book 1 as well. It makes some sense in the context of the story, and with the timeline of the plot connecting into the original series. So i did my best to ignore it. It was easier in book 1. This was published in 2019, but i guess that just goes to show how hot button these issues have become, and that these topics are weaponized regularly. Anyway, yes, it makes sense in the story, but i kind of wish this had not been the plot devises used.
Eventually, the story drools and knuckle-drags its way to the plot, and from there(over half way through the book) the story gets more interesting/palatable.
The MC Eve is beyond insufferable for most of this book. She refuses to stay out of danger, and fights often with Luc about it. This is pretty par-for-the-course in this type of girl-power slanted fiction, so we all expect it, but boy did i find it intolerable in this book. Luc deserves better, but he has made his choice i guess. They fight often. Turns out Luc is most often correct, but Eve refuses to learn from this. He gets hurt often, and Eve is regularly shown to not be able to handle the situations she inserts herself into. Way to prove the girl-bosses right girlfriend!
The book in general left me feeling annoyed, irritated and angry, shoved out of the story often by current day issues and references(X-Men, TWD) and generally wishing i could stop reading it and move on with my life.
I do have goodwill for the original series and original cast of characters, and i want to know what ultimately happens, so i kept reading.
The overall plot-Eve has a previous life she doesn't remember, she and Luc have a crackling connection and possibly a hidden past, Luc is hiding in plain sight-running an underground railroad helping people, and a shady secret organization is setting events in motion that have important repercussions, this is all interesting. Or at least it should be. It's unfortunate it gets buried by modern day social justice commentary bloat. A word of advice to anyone who wants to draw attention to sensitive issues, try trusting the audience to draw their own conclusions. They are anyway. And not everyone agrees with you. Giving lectures wins you no favors.
It's kind of hilariously ironic that the actual villain is using false flag events and propaganda to activate the public in a cause, yet the story by and large ignores that. Interesting.
The AB narrator is much better for this series than the original, but the original characters act nothing like themselves in this series. No 'Kittens' to be heard. A shame. Now they all sound like old people. Which is beyond strange. But, other than that, it's a pleasant upgrade.
Sadly, i plan to read the last book to discover the end of this tale, but I'm preparing to be disappointed by it also. It's a shame, the original series is good, even if the first two books have questionable cringe vocab-destined to be considered camp someday i suppose.
Anyway, I'm prepared for the worst. Hoping for the best.