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A review by demetria_books01
The Kiss Curse by Erin Sterling
adventurous
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
THIS REVIEW IS NOT SPOILER FREE!!! Also, it’s a rumble of a disappointed reader so forgive me for this being a bit… well, 💩.
This was going so well! So freaking well! And then it flopped.
Seriously, I was so ready to give this book 4 stars! The story was better than the first book, the romance had some nuance and an actual base, the mystery was fun and unpredictable and the twist was great! Well, until it wasn’t.
You see, the romance between Gwynn and Wells would be well developed, cute and just a perfectly fun paranormal romance IF the author didn’t set it up as a second chance romance or friends to lovers (ish- they had one convo years ago). The book starts with a scene from the MC’s school years when Gwynn’s spell went rogue and Wells helped to control it by blowing it up, which annoyed Gwynn. As we later find out, Wells doesn’t recognise Gwynn even though she tells him they met before but he tells her he had a crush on a pink haired girl he embarrassed at school because he was a show off. You know what’s the problem?! SHE NEVER TELLS HIM THAT THE GIRL HE WAS IN LOVE WITH IS HER!!! Which makes the whole second chance (ish) romance thing completely irrelevant for the story! Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed all the sweet moments between those two, the teasing and the spice (even though fade to black is not my thing) but GOD DAMMIT the set up for their relationship bothers me so much!
Next issue: this book title refers to a problem which gets solved within few pages after it happens and it’s resolved in the stupidest way possible. Right after this, author creates two other obstacles for the characters- two dark and mysterious plots which have absolutely the laziest, most careless resolutions ever! The one that annoys me the most is a plot where Gwynn loses her powers. It turns out that the one who was stealing it was no other than Wells’ dad and he was doing it through his son. God, this could be such a perfect betrayal/ enemies to lovers trope but NOPE! When Gwynn gets kidnapped by an evil coven she saves herself and brings back her powers through BELIEVING IN HERSELF! For fucks sake! A powerful witch creates a whole scheme with the use of two combined spells Wells had to use his blood to even attempt fixing just for her to just power herself back!
Honestly, I’m so disappointed because I genuinely liked this book but unfortunately overall the plot of ‘the Kiss Curse’ is a mess. No matter how much I love Gwynn, Wells and sir Purrcival as characters, I just cannot recommend this book to anyone. It was way too frustrating.
Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read it ❤️
This was going so well! So freaking well! And then it flopped.
Seriously, I was so ready to give this book 4 stars! The story was better than the first book, the romance had some nuance and an actual base, the mystery was fun and unpredictable and the twist was great! Well, until it wasn’t.
You see, the romance between Gwynn and Wells would be well developed, cute and just a perfectly fun paranormal romance IF the author didn’t set it up as a second chance romance or friends to lovers (ish- they had one convo years ago). The book starts with a scene from the MC’s school years when Gwynn’s spell went rogue and Wells helped to control it by blowing it up, which annoyed Gwynn. As we later find out, Wells doesn’t recognise Gwynn even though she tells him they met before but he tells her he had a crush on a pink haired girl he embarrassed at school because he was a show off. You know what’s the problem?! SHE NEVER TELLS HIM THAT THE GIRL HE WAS IN LOVE WITH IS HER!!! Which makes the whole second chance (ish) romance thing completely irrelevant for the story! Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed all the sweet moments between those two, the teasing and the spice (even though fade to black is not my thing) but GOD DAMMIT the set up for their relationship bothers me so much!
Next issue: this book title refers to a problem which gets solved within few pages after it happens and it’s resolved in the stupidest way possible. Right after this, author creates two other obstacles for the characters- two dark and mysterious plots which have absolutely the laziest, most careless resolutions ever! The one that annoys me the most is a plot where Gwynn loses her powers. It turns out that the one who was stealing it was no other than Wells’ dad and he was doing it through his son. God, this could be such a perfect betrayal/ enemies to lovers trope but NOPE! When Gwynn gets kidnapped by an evil coven she saves herself and brings back her powers through BELIEVING IN HERSELF! For fucks sake! A powerful witch creates a whole scheme with the use of two combined spells Wells had to use his blood to even attempt fixing just for her to just power herself back!
Honestly, I’m so disappointed because I genuinely liked this book but unfortunately overall the plot of ‘the Kiss Curse’ is a mess. No matter how much I love Gwynn, Wells and sir Purrcival as characters, I just cannot recommend this book to anyone. It was way too frustrating.
Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read it ❤️