adrierising 's review for:

Terms of Inheritance by Adorabol Huckleby-Ordaz

1.5

dark emotional slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

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codependence: a novel. a well-deserved 1.5/5 stars.

tropes: arranged/contract marriage, mob/cartel princess, huge "my wife" energy, touch her and die, slooooooow burn

potential triggers: domestic abuse (literally on the first page), on-page death (literally on the second page), ptsd, eating disorder, dubcon, implied parental/family neglect

was it entertaining?

no. i am not the intended audience for contemporary trauma bonding mislabelled as literary romance. there is an audience out there, but it's not me. i spent the entire book being annoyed by a character in desperate need of a therapist, and hating myself for it. it's not her fault -- nothing is her fault, because clem is perfect and delicate and beautiful and fragile and --

i can't even write it off as good people have good sex or magic dick because they never have sex. it's just 460 pages of angst, miscommunication, and two emotionally stunted weirdos circling the drain.

also, the implied mafia/cartel thing -- either shit or get off the pot. there's so much insinuation about shady dealings and nefarious connections that amounts to a big, fat nothing burger. stop it. pick a genre and stick to it. 

was it enjoyable?

in a parallel universe, i'm sure it was. it's a glacial start, followed by a tedious slog, and capped off with an entirely unnecessary plot twist that's intended to feel like justice but mostly feels like punishment -- for the reader and all of the characters. 

was it well-written?

i mean, nothing was misspelled that i remember, but it felt like the literary equivalent of a stutter.