Take a photo of a barcode or cover
A review by imtiredofthisgrandpa
Paladin by Onley James
4.0
I really, really enjoyed the first 3/4, but the last quarter just felt really rushed and not as smooth as some of the endings of a few of the other novels of hers that I’ve finished, and the final “massacre” wasn’t up to par, tbh.
Those things said, this book made me smile way more than I expected—with Ever’s sweet curiosity and Arseny’s utter adoration, with all the people around them quickly becoming just as obsessed with Ever and his lack of life experiences, with the cute Twitch stream moments. I wish a lot more had been done with the streaming—I feel that the main conflict could have been more centered on those appearances, rather than just one instance of vague threats in the chat. Obviously, you should also leave everything you know about healthy relationships at the door because, even though Arsen is determined to never take advantage of Ever, Ever stays with Arsen from the moment he’s rescued and is immediately attached.
At face value, this is a wonderful piece. 4/5 stars because I loved literally every character I was meant to (I knew some characters from other book cameos and hadn’t liked them in those, but now I don’t mind them), and I enjoyed that the primary focus was on Ever getting to experience new things, even if that meant the actual plot expansion wasn’t really there. (I’m hoping an audiobook is recorded because I’d love to hear Liam DiCosimo speak Russian.)
I’ll absolutely reread the first 75% of the book when I’m in the mood for the cuteness of a feral sweetheart and a soft Russian.
This can be read as a standalone novel because it’s starting a new series from outside the Mulvaney universe, and we’re being “introduced” to entirely new characters, though I always will recommend reading Moonstruck in her Necessary Evils series (that birthed this series) for the full background of Jericho and the beginnings of Jericho’s boys.
This novel contains: human trafficking; indentured servitude/slavery; corrupt police officers and other figures of authority; therapy; past murder of a parent by another parent; past sexual abuse; past CSA; past domestic abuse; past child abuse.
Those things said, this book made me smile way more than I expected—with Ever’s sweet curiosity and Arseny’s utter adoration, with all the people around them quickly becoming just as obsessed with Ever and his lack of life experiences, with the cute Twitch stream moments. I wish a lot more had been done with the streaming—I feel that the main conflict could have been more centered on those appearances, rather than just one instance of vague threats in the chat. Obviously, you should also leave everything you know about healthy relationships at the door because, even though Arsen is determined to never take advantage of Ever, Ever stays with Arsen from the moment he’s rescued and is immediately attached.
At face value, this is a wonderful piece. 4/5 stars because I loved literally every character I was meant to (I knew some characters from other book cameos and hadn’t liked them in those, but now I don’t mind them), and I enjoyed that the primary focus was on Ever getting to experience new things, even if that meant the actual plot expansion wasn’t really there. (I’m hoping an audiobook is recorded because I’d love to hear Liam DiCosimo speak Russian.)
I’ll absolutely reread the first 75% of the book when I’m in the mood for the cuteness of a feral sweetheart and a soft Russian.
This can be read as a standalone novel because it’s starting a new series from outside the Mulvaney universe, and we’re being “introduced” to entirely new characters, though I always will recommend reading Moonstruck in her Necessary Evils series (that birthed this series) for the full background of Jericho and the beginnings of Jericho’s boys.
This novel contains: human trafficking; indentured servitude/slavery; corrupt police officers and other figures of authority; therapy; past murder of a parent by another parent; past sexual abuse; past CSA; past domestic abuse; past child abuse.