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A review by goodeyreads
To Bleed a Crystal Bloom by Sarah A. Parker
slow-paced
3.75
IT KIND OF WORKED FOR ME?
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I have felt super conflicted over my thoughts on this one.
One one hand, I really did like this overall. It is dark, it is a bit twisted, but the author did a good job of conveying that and it was written in a way that didn’t bug me too much. I could see great potential for Orlaith’s character development and the whole Rapunzel theme was perfect.
I did think the “heat” scenes in the middle of the book were way out of left field? And forced the steam rather than a natural development. It was kind of weird, I don’t understand why it was there and could have used a whole lot less of it.
The reader is kept in the dark as much as Orlaith and I liked that plot choice. I was kept enough in the loop to keep me going and that was fine with me. I figured more would be explained throughout the series and was getting a big enough taste to want to read those books.
There’s some plot holes involving Orlaith’s drug addiction and other tidbits that I thought were thrown to the side and needed more closure about, small plot things kept jutting out to me that left a little flustered.
But now after seeing some reviews and speaking with friends who’ve read the second book I’ve decided, at this time, not to pick it up. I have some major thoughts on the romance arc (that I won’t go into here because of spoilers) that I would need answered to give the whole series a go.
Overall audience notes:
- Dark Fantasy Romance
- Language: some strong
- Romance: high innuendo; 1-2 open scenes
- Violence: high
- Trigger/Content Warnings: abusive relationship, PTSD, agoraphobia, panic attacks, nightmares/night terrors, self-harm, drug use, drug addiction, blood/gore depiction
BLOG || INSTAGRAM
I have felt super conflicted over my thoughts on this one.
One one hand, I really did like this overall. It is dark, it is a bit twisted, but the author did a good job of conveying that and it was written in a way that didn’t bug me too much. I could see great potential for Orlaith’s character development and the whole Rapunzel theme was perfect.
I did think the “heat” scenes in the middle of the book were way out of left field? And forced the steam rather than a natural development. It was kind of weird, I don’t understand why it was there and could have used a whole lot less of it.
The reader is kept in the dark as much as Orlaith and I liked that plot choice. I was kept enough in the loop to keep me going and that was fine with me. I figured more would be explained throughout the series and was getting a big enough taste to want to read those books.
There’s some plot holes involving Orlaith’s drug addiction and other tidbits that I thought were thrown to the side and needed more closure about, small plot things kept jutting out to me that left a little flustered.
But now after seeing some reviews and speaking with friends who’ve read the second book I’ve decided, at this time, not to pick it up. I have some major thoughts on the romance arc (that I won’t go into here because of spoilers) that I would need answered to give the whole series a go.
Overall audience notes:
- Dark Fantasy Romance
- Language: some strong
- Romance: high innuendo; 1-2 open scenes
- Violence: high
- Trigger/Content Warnings: abusive relationship, PTSD, agoraphobia, panic attacks, nightmares/night terrors, self-harm, drug use, drug addiction, blood/gore depiction