sheenareadsstuff's Reviews (966)

The Prodigal Son

Sara Cate

5.0

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad tense medium-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: Yes

Insta-Hate, Hijnks & Happy Endings

Rebel Warren

4.0

adventurous emotional funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Isle of Pain

C.J. Lucci

4.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-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: Yes

I am a firm believer that family is what you make it, and this book showed that so well. Marie needed to feel some sort of control in her life, and Nico needed someone to show him the way. These two were meant for each other. I loved this so much, and I don't even know where to begin. The D/s dynamic in this book felt so authentic, and I really appreciated all the discussions around consent and boundaries. Marie was new to all of this, so we got to "learn" along with her. Seeing her come out of her shell, realize her worth, and decide to save herself made my heart melt. This is my favourite of the series so far, and CJ Lucci is solidifying herself on my must-read list.

Isle of Seduction

C.J. Lucci

3.5

challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-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: Yes

Venom and Black Swan

Rue Knightly

3.5

challenging dark emotional tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Character

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I know that this book is only the first part of a duet, and it definitely feels that way. There was quite a bit that I have mixed feelings on, but I think that most of it will be resolved in the next book. I was immediately pulled in by the multiple-personality aspect of this story and found it quite fascinating how different Raidon/Kael are, but also how much they have in common. I had a hard time fully relating to Veronica, mostly based on her age. I love a good age gap, but high school-aged FMCs just seem soooo young to me. I do feel for her and can understand her yearning to just be loved by someone. She's been dealt a really crappy hand in life and just can't seem to catch a break. The twist at the end was devastating, and I'm really interested to see how the rest of the story plays out.