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A review by walskishere
Credence by Penelope Douglas
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
tw: mention of r*pe, consent issues, ab*se
I wanted so badly for this book to be 5 stars. The writing was really solid, and the "world building" was extremely good. I have trouble seeing the world most times, and if I can, it's based on a real place I've been. Not this book. The scenes that were set were unique to me. This is the mark of good writing, for me personally.
I didn't mind the reverse harem at all. In fact, I really enjoyed it; having a female-centric harem instead of the usual male-centric harem was a nice change. I don't understand when people complain about a reverse harem, but it could be the gay in me jumping out lmao.
Tiernan had good development, along with pretty much all of the other characters as well. She opened up and learned to communicate and be vulnerable. The plot in this book was strong, I think, and it made me want to keep reading.
The things that really knocked this rating down were the ab*se and d*b con present in the book. There was also, in my opinion, a r*pe scene. I say "in my opinion" because I feel like some people, especially those who were rooting for Kaleb, night not consider multiple of his scenes r*pe. I had no problem with the age, to be frank. Tiernan was freshly 18, though, so if you're sensitive to age gaps, this might not be for you.
Aside from Tiernan not ending up with whom I would have liked to see her (and who is best for her, no questions asked), almost every sex scene/sexual scene is prefaced by something really bad happening, or some emotional turmoil/emotional ab*se, most times from Kaleb, one or two from Jake. I don't think that she has a healthy relationship with Kaleb, and I don't think it's realistic, or a healthy standard to set, that Kaleb suddenly decided to talk because he loves Tiernan. After 17 ish years of not speaking? No therapy? He just falls in love and suddenly is fine to speak? No. I think Kaleb has too many issues to sort out by himself to be in a relationship with Tiernan. The six weeks they're apart at the end to "Listen" isn't enough. There's also the theme of Tiernan "fixing" Kaleb. That is not a woman's job. It's dangerous and annoying to perpetuate that.
All of that aside, I would definitely try other Pen Doug books, and I think I will. Her writing is just so good. I think it was just those few specific themes in the book that really ground my gears a bit. Overall, a pretty decent book. Like I mentioned, it would've been a 5 star read had the above-mentioned issues not been present, or even as heavily present. They were continually too enforced.
I wanted so badly for this book to be 5 stars. The writing was really solid, and the "world building" was extremely good. I have trouble seeing the world most times, and if I can, it's based on a real place I've been. Not this book. The scenes that were set were unique to me. This is the mark of good writing, for me personally.
I didn't mind the reverse harem at all. In fact, I really enjoyed it; having a female-centric harem instead of the usual male-centric harem was a nice change. I don't understand when people complain about a reverse harem, but it could be the gay in me jumping out lmao.
Tiernan had good development, along with pretty much all of the other characters as well. She opened up and learned to communicate and be vulnerable. The plot in this book was strong, I think, and it made me want to keep reading.
The things that really knocked this rating down were the ab*se and d*b con present in the book. There was also, in my opinion, a r*pe scene. I say "in my opinion" because I feel like some people, especially those who were rooting for Kaleb, night not consider multiple of his scenes r*pe. I had no problem with the age, to be frank. Tiernan was freshly 18, though, so if you're sensitive to age gaps, this might not be for you.
Aside from Tiernan not ending up with whom I would have liked to see her (and who is best for her, no questions asked), almost every sex scene/sexual scene is prefaced by something really bad happening, or some emotional turmoil/emotional ab*se, most times from Kaleb, one or two from Jake. I don't think that she has a healthy relationship with Kaleb, and
All of that aside, I would definitely try other Pen Doug books, and I think I will. Her writing is just so good. I think it was just those few specific themes in the book that really ground my gears a bit. Overall, a pretty decent book. Like I mentioned, it would've been a 5 star read had the above-mentioned issues not been present, or even as heavily present. They were continually too enforced.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Rape, Sexual assault, and Sexual content