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A review by _onemorechapter_
Bride by Ali Hazelwood
emotional
funny
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
๐ญThis was my first Ali Hazelwood book and I WAS KNOT EXPECTING TO LOVE THIS And yet I absolutely adored it. I love vampires & werewolves as a pairing and I CERTAINLY love a Fated Mates romance. Add in a dash of a marriage arrangement and you've pretty much written a book I will like.
Themes of enemies to lovers and forbidden love may initially make us think we're in for a Twilight-like romance story. However, I assure you that this complex story offers so much more. Firstly, this book is more than a forbidden romance; it tells the tale of Misery Lark, the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyr councilman in the South, and Lowe Moreland, the most powerful Alpha of the Werewolves. Their marriage aims to bring peace and create an alliance between age-old mortal enemies. There's so much happening in the story, including political manoeuvring and highly calculated schemes within the territories of werewolves and vampyres. A group of rebels, calling themselves the "Loyals," whose lives have been spared by Lowe, seeks to avenge him by recruiting insiders from their inner circles, blackmailing them into committing treasonous acts.
Introducing the Female Main Character, Misery - Misery, was such a bad name....like Ali what were you going through when you named her that but besides that? Misery's character really brought out the life in this book. She was so unnecessarily funny and sarcastic and truth be told her sarcasm had me convulsing because I laughed my ass off. She was so sassy even in situations where there was no need and I feel like that really played off well for her character and this book.
Misery is the most intelligent, quirky, nerdy heroine free of stereotypes and clichรฉs. She possesses magical fingers that can sharpen computer skills for coding and breaking into highly secured werewolf territories.
Meet the Male Main Character, Lowe - An alpha werewolf and the leader of his species. Lowe is more than a vindictive alpha werewolf facade. He's loyal, perceptive, caring, and puts everyone's needs first. He's the first person to show how much he truly cares about her.
Misery and Lowe being the verified toxic catastrophes they are, envelop themselves in a forced marriage of convenience: taking you down a road of push-pull dynamics, complimented by feelings of denial, jokingly intoxicated banter, and undying sexual tension that lights this novel up all the way. Their chemistry is paranormal, forbidding but sizzling at the same time. Done absolutely right. The book was told from Misery's POV, HOWEVER before every chapter, we had a sentence or two from Lowe's perspective and those were GOLD.
The spice was okay and good till the point it turned weird(The last smut scene towards the end was a little weird.)
This is also a book in which I like FMC way more than MMC! (and it is not common!!)
This book contained much more plot aside from romance, romance was treated more as a subplot and I LOVED THAT. The main plot (politics, the world this was set in) was so interesting and has the potential for more books set in the same universe (I'm not sure if the author has the intention to do so but a nice foundation was built).
It's important to know this is a novel that will be beloved by many if you donโt take it seriously and have fun with it. It's not a substance-filled, philosophical soul-hitting one, but an extremely entertaining, overly imaginative, and darkly appealing one.
My only real issue is that I didnโt quite understand the heroโs motivations, even now after finishing the book. Why did he feel the need to say those things? What exactly was he trying to save her from? (You will know what I am talking about when you read the book and if anyone did get it please help me understand!!)
And Misery use of vocabulary and anatomy was๐๐ป๐๐ป
Overall, Bride is by no means a perfect paranormal romance book. But I loved it and enjoyed it to the fullest!
Paranormal romance? CHECK
Forbidden romance? CHECK
Forced proximity? CHECK
Enemies to lovers? CHECK
Marriage of convenience? CHECK
Fated mates? CHECK
Angst? CHECK
Spice? CHECK
Vampires X werewolves? CHECK
๐.๐ Iโm hoping thereโs another book to come with a new couple as is hinted at in the last page or so!
๐.๐.๐ Fuckwaffle๐๐๐๐ that is my favorite insult now!
๐ธ๐ด๐ ๐น๐๐๐๐๐: โญโญโญโญ
๐ธ๐ฎ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐น๐๐๐๐๐: 4.25 (26158)
๐ธ๐ฎ๐๐๐๐:Paranormal Romance
๐ธ๐บ๐๐๐๐: ๐ฅ๐ฅ
๐ธ๐น๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐: YES, YES, AND YES!!
Consumed this like a ravenous werewolf, and laughed at it hella hard!
Relax and enjoy this one, We all deserve to laugh after all โฅ๏ธ๐.
๐ธ ๐ญ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ธ๐๐๐๐๐:
โWhat I am is an adult woman with agency and the tools to make choices. Feel free to, you know, treat me accordingly.โ
โYouโre not a problem, Misery. Youโre a privilege.โ
โThe scent is growing into more than just a problem. It invades. It swirls. It travels. It sticks to his nose. It concentrates, sometimes. They rarely touch. When they did, her wrist accidentally brushed against the front of his shirt, and he found himself tearing off the piece of fabric where her smell was most intense. He slipped it in his pocket, and now carries it everywhere. Even as he leaves to avoid her.โ
โSome nights, when heโs walking past her door, he has to whisper to himself: โKeep going.โ
โMaybe there is something devastating about the incompleteness of it. But maybe, just knowing that the other person is there . . .โ His throat bobs. โThere might be pleasure in that, too. The satisfaction of knowing that something beautiful exists.โ His lips open and close a few times, as though he can only find the right words by shaping them first to himself. โMaybe some things transcend reciprocity. Maybe not everything is about having.โ
โYou think, but you donโt know. You donโt know anything about what itโs like to find your other half, I would take anything she chose to give meโthe tiniest fraction or her entire world. I would take her for a single night knowing that Iโll lose her by morning, and I would hold on to her and never let go. I would take her healthy, or sick, or tired, or angry, or strong, and it would be my fucking privilege. I would take her problems, her gifts, her moods, her passions, her jokes, her bodyโI would take every last thing, if she chose to give it to me.โ
โHer presence soothes him more than a full-moon run.โ
โYou know what makes Alphas good leaders?โ he asks without looking up. โNo clue.โ He huffs out a laugh. โNeither do I. But at times, there are decisions that feel right, deep in the marrow of my bones.โ He wets his lips. โYou are one of them.โ
โOf all the good things Iโve felt in my fucking life, you are the best.โ
Themes of enemies to lovers and forbidden love may initially make us think we're in for a Twilight-like romance story. However, I assure you that this complex story offers so much more. Firstly, this book is more than a forbidden romance; it tells the tale of Misery Lark, the only daughter of the most powerful Vampyr councilman in the South, and Lowe Moreland, the most powerful Alpha of the Werewolves. Their marriage aims to bring peace and create an alliance between age-old mortal enemies. There's so much happening in the story, including political manoeuvring and highly calculated schemes within the territories of werewolves and vampyres. A group of rebels, calling themselves the "Loyals," whose lives have been spared by Lowe, seeks to avenge him by recruiting insiders from their inner circles, blackmailing them into committing treasonous acts.
Introducing the Female Main Character, Misery - Misery, was such a bad name....like Ali what were you going through when you named her that but besides that? Misery's character really brought out the life in this book. She was so unnecessarily funny and sarcastic and truth be told her sarcasm had me convulsing because I laughed my ass off. She was so sassy even in situations where there was no need and I feel like that really played off well for her character and this book.
Misery is the most intelligent, quirky, nerdy heroine free of stereotypes and clichรฉs. She possesses magical fingers that can sharpen computer skills for coding and breaking into highly secured werewolf territories.
Meet the Male Main Character, Lowe - An alpha werewolf and the leader of his species. Lowe is more than a vindictive alpha werewolf facade. He's loyal, perceptive, caring, and puts everyone's needs first. He's the first person to show how much he truly cares about her.
Misery and Lowe being the verified toxic catastrophes they are, envelop themselves in a forced marriage of convenience: taking you down a road of push-pull dynamics, complimented by feelings of denial, jokingly intoxicated banter, and undying sexual tension that lights this novel up all the way. Their chemistry is paranormal, forbidding but sizzling at the same time. Done absolutely right. The book was told from Misery's POV, HOWEVER before every chapter, we had a sentence or two from Lowe's perspective and those were GOLD.
The spice was okay and good till the point it turned weird(The last smut scene towards the end was a little weird.)
This is also a book in which I like FMC way more than MMC! (and it is not common!!)
This book contained much more plot aside from romance, romance was treated more as a subplot and I LOVED THAT. The main plot (politics, the world this was set in) was so interesting and has the potential for more books set in the same universe (I'm not sure if the author has the intention to do so but a nice foundation was built).
It's important to know this is a novel that will be beloved by many if you donโt take it seriously and have fun with it. It's not a substance-filled, philosophical soul-hitting one, but an extremely entertaining, overly imaginative, and darkly appealing one.
My only real issue is that I didnโt quite understand the heroโs motivations, even now after finishing the book. Why did he feel the need to say those things? What exactly was he trying to save her from? (You will know what I am talking about when you read the book and if anyone did get it please help me understand!!)
And Misery use of vocabulary and anatomy was๐๐ป๐๐ป
Overall, Bride is by no means a perfect paranormal romance book. But I loved it and enjoyed it to the fullest!
Paranormal romance? CHECK
Forbidden romance? CHECK
Forced proximity? CHECK
Enemies to lovers? CHECK
Marriage of convenience? CHECK
Fated mates? CHECK
Angst? CHECK
Spice? CHECK
Vampires X werewolves? CHECK
๐.๐ Iโm hoping thereโs another book to come with a new couple as is hinted at in the last page or so!
๐.๐.๐ Fuckwaffle๐๐๐๐ that is my favorite insult now!
๐ธ๐ด๐ ๐น๐๐๐๐๐: โญโญโญโญ
๐ธ๐ฎ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐น๐๐๐๐๐: 4.25 (26158)
๐ธ๐ฎ๐๐๐๐:Paranormal Romance
๐ธ๐บ๐๐๐๐: ๐ฅ๐ฅ
๐ธ๐น๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐: YES, YES, AND YES!!
Consumed this like a ravenous werewolf, and laughed at it hella hard!
Relax and enjoy this one, We all deserve to laugh after all โฅ๏ธ๐.
๐ธ ๐ญ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ธ๐๐๐๐๐:
โWhat I am is an adult woman with agency and the tools to make choices. Feel free to, you know, treat me accordingly.โ
โYouโre not a problem, Misery. Youโre a privilege.โ
โThe scent is growing into more than just a problem. It invades. It swirls. It travels. It sticks to his nose. It concentrates, sometimes. They rarely touch. When they did, her wrist accidentally brushed against the front of his shirt, and he found himself tearing off the piece of fabric where her smell was most intense. He slipped it in his pocket, and now carries it everywhere. Even as he leaves to avoid her.โ
โSome nights, when heโs walking past her door, he has to whisper to himself: โKeep going.โ
โMaybe there is something devastating about the incompleteness of it. But maybe, just knowing that the other person is there . . .โ His throat bobs. โThere might be pleasure in that, too. The satisfaction of knowing that something beautiful exists.โ His lips open and close a few times, as though he can only find the right words by shaping them first to himself. โMaybe some things transcend reciprocity. Maybe not everything is about having.โ
โYou think, but you donโt know. You donโt know anything about what itโs like to find your other half, I would take anything she chose to give meโthe tiniest fraction or her entire world. I would take her for a single night knowing that Iโll lose her by morning, and I would hold on to her and never let go. I would take her healthy, or sick, or tired, or angry, or strong, and it would be my fucking privilege. I would take her problems, her gifts, her moods, her passions, her jokes, her bodyโI would take every last thing, if she chose to give it to me.โ
โHer presence soothes him more than a full-moon run.โ
โYou know what makes Alphas good leaders?โ he asks without looking up. โNo clue.โ He huffs out a laugh. โNeither do I. But at times, there are decisions that feel right, deep in the marrow of my bones.โ He wets his lips. โYou are one of them.โ
โOf all the good things Iโve felt in my fucking life, you are the best.โ