Review by literaryjunkie - God of War

literaryjunkie 's review for:

God of War by Rina Kent

3.25

dark hopeful mysterious sad tense slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I liked this book just fine. I was a little underwhelmed and was not expecting it to go in the direction it did. I wish it had taken place when everybody was at college, but I liked seeing everyone live their lives. I liked Ava as a character. She was loud, not a pushover, a girls-girl, and unapologetically herself. Even though she struggles with a lot of mental issues, she is a breath of fresh air and does not let that define her (bonus points for playing the Cello). She did not make things easy for Eli, and I loved that. Eli is very stoic and still kind of a mystery. I didn't like him at first because he had rejected Ava when they were younger, but I realized they had an age gap, and he admitted to seeing her more like his younger cousin, Glyndon.

Speaking of her, the author just seemed to forget about her. I understand that she and Cecily are best friends and Annika is her sister in law, but everyone kind of acted like she did not exist in their friend group. She didn't visit Ava much either (blame more on the author), so it was like their friendship did not exist. Maybe she cared about them more than they did for her, and we just got to see a switched point of view. I guess that is why she just disappeared with her man.

Other than that, he is charming at times, sweet, and very attentive towards Ava. He did everything for her. Even though it was a forced marriage of convenience, I enjoyed the trope and story.

He followed her one night from a party, driving, when she was run off the road and assaulted by a supposed friend. He stopped him quickly and in the process killed him. Ava was a witness, so he made her marry him or confess to everything that happened (frame her as well). They get married shortly after. The two years of such are rocky. She suffers greatly from substance abuse and mental issues. He weans her from the substances, but will not put her in a facility. She ends up trying to stab him with the intent to kill him, then throws herself off the stairs because she feels guilty. That is when she wakes up in the hospital, forgetting the last two years and why she is married to Eli.

The ending was good as well.

He let her go because she threatened to kill herself if he did not divorce her. She is admitted into a facility, but he still comes to visit her every day when she is asleep because he does not want to trigger her.

Their story was messy, but I am glad they got a happy ending.

Landon continues to visit and cause problems lol. We also need Remy and Ari's story! (He is so funny, just like Ronan!)

Content Warnings