A review by ipaintitred
What Hunts Inside the Shadows by Harper L. Woods

3.0

I did really enjoy the ending and I will say overall the plot was better than the first. I really felt the story had good moments and definitely had potential. I recognize the author tries to make a point of calling out the dysfunction of this romance throughout (“codependent,” “possessive”) but also justifies it (“I can’t hold him to human standards”) which I’m torn on how I feel. I will definitely be reading the next book as I must somewhat enjoy the story. I could certainly do without the romanticizing of rape and non-consensual sex. I could do without the blatant lack of choice FMC has and blurred consent generally as well as icky degradation imo at times (“your place is beneath me”). The wishy-washiness of FMC annoyed me often. There were times I did enjoy how sex and romance was written, even times I felt the author was trying to make MMC more likable and understandable, but a lot of his statements and actions still ruined any chance of me fully accepting and liking him. Anyway, the ending did surprise me. The plot was, again, better than first but I felt we were basically traveling and having sex the entire book. I give 2.5 stars because the story had some appeal, FMC had fun development eventually, and overall I’m interested in where we go next.