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A review by bookitallaway
Phantom by Greer Rivers
4.0
I enjoyed this pseudo Phantom of the Opera retelling. I was aiming for a solid 3 stars but gave it 4 stars because I grew up not far from where this whole book took place and I could see, hear and smell the places they visited and that brought back so many wonderful memories of my childhood, that I had to give it an extra star because of that reason. Café du Monde has the BEST and only BEST beignets you will ever eat in your whole life. The busy quarter, the music, the food, the cemeteries, etc. I thought she did a great job of bringing me there. The storyline got kind of old and predictable after a few chapters in and some of the spicy scenes were a large stretch of logistical ability and physical ability. I won't spoil it, but it was 100% an eye roll for me and kind of ruined the moment in my opinion. You'll know it when you get there. Overall if you're looking for medium intensity, real life locale, and some good initial spice, then this book is for you.
What I liked:
--- The location was spot on
--- MFC struggled mentally and I really liked how she displayed those struggles but also didn't make it whiney or seem like a victim mentality, more like this is what I have and how I get through it and the confidence she had trying to get through it.
--- MMC was just a hottie with power, money and prestige let's be real. If he was broke, he'd have been in jail
--- I loved the overall grittiness of the book
--- Medium intensity read
--- Side characters were really fun
What I didn't like:
--- The spicy scenes were fun until they were not even logistical or physically possible, nor would it be attractive to make someone 'sing' while giving deep throat action. Just saying.
--- The plot was slowly building and then it all crashed together quickly like a hurricane leaving confusion and loose ends in its wake
--- MFC was super naïve about a lot of things that most people would have seen coming a mile away
--- I loved the music portion, but it seemed disjointed at times with the MFC and her to be or not to be singer status
--- Not enough time with a backstory for MMC and MFC, and honestly even the side characters.... this was way too rushed, I wanted more!
Spice: 3/5
Plot: 3.5/5
Character Dev: 3.5/5
Location: 5/5
Overall: 4/5
What I liked:
--- The location was spot on
--- MFC struggled mentally and I really liked how she displayed those struggles but also didn't make it whiney or seem like a victim mentality, more like this is what I have and how I get through it and the confidence she had trying to get through it.
--- MMC was just a hottie with power, money and prestige let's be real. If he was broke, he'd have been in jail
--- I loved the overall grittiness of the book
--- Medium intensity read
--- Side characters were really fun
What I didn't like:
--- The spicy scenes were fun until they were not even logistical or physically possible, nor would it be attractive to make someone 'sing' while giving deep throat action. Just saying.
--- The plot was slowly building and then it all crashed together quickly like a hurricane leaving confusion and loose ends in its wake
--- MFC was super naïve about a lot of things that most people would have seen coming a mile away
--- I loved the music portion, but it seemed disjointed at times with the MFC and her to be or not to be singer status
--- Not enough time with a backstory for MMC and MFC, and honestly even the side characters.... this was way too rushed, I wanted more!
Spice: 3/5
Plot: 3.5/5
Character Dev: 3.5/5
Location: 5/5
Overall: 4/5