As always, these books are really fun, with loads of interesting secondary characters as the case plays out.
I feel like this one was hurt by a couple As always, these books are really fun, with loads of interesting secondary characters as the case plays out.
I feel like this one was hurt by a couple little things, which kept me from giving it 5 stars despite the fun.
Firstly, Nick's family and the geriatric imbeciles got dialed up a bit too much for my taste in this book. Nick's mom and sister are literal human garbage, and I don't find them funny - they are entitled, bullying asswipes and I need someone to tell them to go fuck themselves because it isn't okay. It is different from the geriatric imbeciles because they are completely mean-spirited. I'm not interested in a character that treats people this way, and I'm especially not into seeing Nick and Riley cater to them, trying to win them over. No. People like this deserve a boot to their ass, and to sit in loneliness in their old age, wondering why no one wants to be around them. Frankly, Nick's mom is no different than Griffin and Bella - a rich bitch who thinks the majority of the world is beneath her, and their only purpose is to toady to her. She is the definition of what is wrong in this world.
And while usually the geriatric imbeciles amuse me, this book took it a bit too far imo, Maybe because they just moved into Nick and Riley's house as if they had every right, and then proceeded to trash it and/or idiotically keep barging into their bedroom.
Secondly, it's hard to watch them try to help Griffin and Bella. Frankly, I'd make popcorn and watch him get murdered. The human race as a whole would benefit from this dickhead being removed, and especially being out of the gene pool. Again, he is the definition of what is wrong in this world...just a celebrity version.
I get that Nick needed the money, and so that worked to make me roll with it, but he was just so unbelievably irritating that it made for some tough moments. Also, given that you know he rips people off, get paid UP FRONT. Like, that asswipe could be in the middle of a gunfight, and I would not engage until he wrote me a check. Don't want to pay up front? Okay, good luck then, you shithead.
Those quibbles aside, it was fun. Riley and Nick have a really great relationship, and it was cute seeing them on a case together. And it was gratifying to see Riley comfortable with regularly leaning into her psychic abilities - PI seems like an amazing job for her, right up her alley!
I'm glad the author is continuing with this character, because I really do like the cast. And because I need to see Weber and Jasmine finally get together, please!
And because someone better drop kick Nick's sister, and throw his mother out a window. Seriously....more
This is just...not for me. I'm not entirely sure why I thought it would be - I must have been in a weird mood when I downloaded it to my kindle TBR. BThis is just...not for me. I'm not entirely sure why I thought it would be - I must have been in a weird mood when I downloaded it to my kindle TBR. But I finally decided to give it a whirl, and unfortunately noped out at about the 15% mark.
This is kind of like 50 Shades, but with a less amateur author. Let me paint the picture.
HIM: Super rich, super hot, mysterious billionaire. He is a genius at all things, a paragon of business, turning a teensy inheritance into billions by his early 20s, via some...hand-wavy business. Business, you know! He does THINGS! And sounds very commanding on the phone, with a cadre of people following him around breathlessly waiting for his next directive. Or mopping up the drool from all the adoring herds of women - it's called Manwhore, y'all. We're told he is not just a paragon of business, but he's also a paragon of penis, having a cloud of women adoring him since age 13. (Yes, 13. Ew.) But we're told he keeps his private life private, and the press salivate at any hint of info, because the public adores him. Worships him. We're also told he has social media, with our intrepid reporter reading his public wall, and all the messages from women asking why he hasn't called, they gave him their number last weekend. He's a super hot enigma, private but with his hook-ups splashed all across the interwebs, y'all!
HER: Hard-boiled journalist, who writes a weekly column The Sharpest Edge, where she digs deep into the topics that matter. She's got an assignment to do an expose on him, maybe flirt with the manwhore a bit to get the good deets. She gets an interview with him, where she's so arrested by his manly physique and piercing eyes that she wastes the whole time staring at him and being an imbecile. She gets a second interview though - cuz he's a manwhore and she has boobies! - where she behaves like the same bumbling idiot because watching him talk business on the phone before the interview was so entrancing. He's so manly in his expensive suit, with his commanding eyes and beautiful lips, and ... what was I saying? Oh damn, time is up for the interview. Maybe he'll give her a third one, cuz she really can't screw up this assignment?? I'm sure he will, cuz BOOBIES! And she's not like other girls - she's a journalist and she doesn't mess around, unlike those pathetic bitches posting on his Facebook when he never calls them back! - so the manwhore will totally be into her.
I feel like Anna Hackett has fabulous ideas for stories, and interesting plots. I like her characters, and enjoy their adventures. I keep coming back I feel like Anna Hackett has fabulous ideas for stories, and interesting plots. I like her characters, and enjoy their adventures. I keep coming back to her because a new series book blurb sounds awesome.
They just never jump that line from like to love, for me.
It all boils down to pacing. So freaking much happens in like 200 pages that none of it has any weight or emotional impact. There's one point in this book where the FMC says "I can't possibly be in 3 ship crashes in a week" as it appears their transport is going down, for, yes, the third time this week. And I was like "I know, right?!"
I feel like if she either extended the book, or scrapped a couple scenes to let the rest breathe a bit, it would let her stories be everything they are on the verge of being. But YMMV....more
I really enjoyed this grumpy/sunshine book. I enjoyed that both of them had these outward faces - him grumpy, of course, and her sunshine - that maskeI really enjoyed this grumpy/sunshine book. I enjoyed that both of them had these outward faces - him grumpy, of course, and her sunshine - that masked a lot. Naomi spent her whole life putting on a brave face and making herself as small as possible. Knox spent his whole life trying to avoid connections because he has some pretty serious abandonment issues, but he's such a big softie.
Waylay was also just a lovely character. Poor kid has been through so much.
I don't read a lot of contemp romance, so it took me forever to get this to this on my TBR pile, but I'm so glad I finally did....more
**spoiler alert** This is a fun start to a space opera trilogy. It was a quick, riveting read, and I will definitely be continuing onward with the ser**spoiler alert** This is a fun start to a space opera trilogy. It was a quick, riveting read, and I will definitely be continuing onward with the series.
That said, it bears a heck of a lot of similarities to The Firebird Chronicles by T.A. White, which is one of my all-time favorite space opera series.
A heck of a lot.
To give some brief examples that happen pretty early in the book:
-Ex-military FMC that just kind of disappeared on her unit most of a decade ago, whom everyone assumed was dead. -She has a plucky AI sidekick as her partner, via some illegal modifications that must be kept secret to preserve their lives. -She and her AI can meld to dial up her ability to rapidly process/assess a situation. -MMC is a warrior, of an alien race that really, really frowns on this AI thing. -MMC finagles things to railroad FMC into accompanying him to his home territory. -Rescuing an alien kid under the protection of the MMC lands the FMC back on the radar of human military, and in some wild coinky-dink, her old team (that thinks she's dead) happens to be on that same station. -Alien race can do "magic"
To be fair, I've seen some of these in other space opera/sci-fi books. But all of them together kind of make this first book kind of feel like a Rules of Redemption homage.
Seems like things are going to go differently from here, though. And anyway, I'm enjoying it. But YMMV....more
Julie Garwood highlander books are just catnip for when you need a lovely, sweet time. Please note that I've tagged this with "abuse" but that's becauJulie Garwood highlander books are just catnip for when you need a lovely, sweet time. Please note that I've tagged this with "abuse" but that's because the FMC has a background of abuse - it doesn't happen on page, but she's clearly recovering from it.
I know I'll come back to JG's highlander books again and again....more
This was a really fun, easy ride. The blurb is a little misleading, because the MMC Aiden isn't that bad, and he isn't this annoying ego-douche for moThis was a really fun, easy ride. The blurb is a little misleading, because the MMC Aiden isn't that bad, and he isn't this annoying ego-douche for most of the book. He actually is all in much earlier than I would expect, and it's the FMC who drags her feet here. But not in an annoying way - I thoroughly enjoyed it, and I understood why Frankie was wary.
It was sweet and lovely, a nice break if you're looking for something low on angst....more
This one just didn't work for me, because the FMC was a complete imbecile. I mean, I get her rambling at the mouth was probably supposed to be cute, bThis one just didn't work for me, because the FMC was a complete imbecile. I mean, I get her rambling at the mouth was probably supposed to be cute, but it wasn't. She just looked like a goddamn idiot.
She was also a TSTL damsel across the board, which isn't a character type I deal well with. That plus her diarrhea of the mouth just made her utterly unlikeable to me.
Campbell deserved better than this useless, vapid chick.
Also, this is the second book (of three total in the series so far) where the youngest brother Rannoch was supposed to guard the FMC and the baddie swipes the chick right out from under him. So maybe let's not have Rannoch on guard duty anymore, kthx....more
The angst was sometimes dialed a bit too high for me, but it was still cute. Started out as a bit of fake marriage trope, but that lasted for like 3 sThe angst was sometimes dialed a bit too high for me, but it was still cute. Started out as a bit of fake marriage trope, but that lasted for like 3 seconds so it barely counts....more
I really enjoyed this one. It's been awhile since I've read some HR - I think I gorged on them a few years back, and burned myself out.
I absolutely aI really enjoyed this one. It's been awhile since I've read some HR - I think I gorged on them a few years back, and burned myself out.
I absolutely adored the FMC in this book - Annie is strong, loving, loyal, smart, compassionate, and much softer than she allows most of the world to see. She also had a wonderful pragmatic streak, and not even the teeniest speck of spoiled TSTL-ness. I also utterly loved her family, big tough highlander men who clearly adore their firey hoyden sister/daughter.
The MMC was also fun, especially once he got out of his own way and stopped living with his baggage as a boat anchor around his neck....more
Writers who leave cliffhangers like this are assholes. I'll read the last book in this series because I feel like I have to. But I won't read anythingWriters who leave cliffhangers like this are assholes. I'll read the last book in this series because I feel like I have to. But I won't read anything by this author again, unless the entire series is out. And maybe not even then....more
But I still really do not like the FMC. I've come around a bit on the MMC (he was a shithead in the beginning, but withI really really like the story.
But I still really do not like the FMC. I've come around a bit on the MMC (he was a shithead in the beginning, but with more insight into him - gained in this book - I get it a bit more), but she is just OTT emo and melodramatic, to an exhausting degree. She's also really REALLY easy to manipulate - case in point, how easily Lorian's brother totally fucks with her head.
Speaking of Lorian's brother, I loathe that guy. He has cemented that every asswipe sitting on a throne in this series needs to be gutted and fed to wild animals. Preferably while they're still alive. In this book, she's trying to ally with them, but the author fails - utterly - to make a case as to why she would even want to. Her people were once allied with the fae... who backstabbed them and left them to be wiped out. The other human king is a puppet to the evil king, who has been happily murdering her people (the refugees who survived) as he finds them. Why is she bending over backwards to ally with people who will, quite frankly, never actually be useful? She certainly can't trust them - both Lorian's douchebag brother and the other human king have made it super clear they'll kill her at the first opportunity. So ... here's an idea. Overthrow those fuckers. Install Lorian on the fae throne, and someone who is a non-shitbag on the other human throne. And then ally with THEM.
She's a dumbass - as are her advisors - for even trying to ally with the shitty fae king. Tell him to go fuck himself, and let the evil king attack him while you sit back and eat popcorn, watching cosmic karma unfold. Same with the human king. And ESPECIALLY the same for the hybrid elders. Fuck them all.
But the biggest problem is Prisca, who is the worst combination of emo, martyr, and narcissist. Here's the thing that I wish authors would understand: having a hero character take all responsibility for everything everyone else does doesn't make them heroic...it makes them a narcissist. As if they're positive that the entire fucking world revolves around them, like all things are either done by them or because of them. It starts to feel like a whiny asshole going on and on because they want the attention, frankly. You want her to be a strong leader? Then have her recognize the injustice of other people's actions, and be determined to end their ability to affect people like that - kill them, dethrone them, whatever. Get pissed. But don't get emo, like wah fucking wah, all this is happening because of me! It's even stupider in this book because the core of the story is about a fuckhead who has been stealing power to stay in charge for literally a couple hundred years - killing his kids to pretend to be them once they're old enough to take the throne. Bitch, none of this is because of you. You're just a person who maybe has the ability to stop it. So quit fucking whining, put on your big girl panties, and DO SOMETHING. Instead, we got way, way, way too much emo narrative from her POV. Stuff like -
I couldn't rely on other people to carry the weight of my decisions. To prop me up because I was unable to deal with the reality of my life. That was what I'd been asking Demos to do. He was doing the best he could in this camp, but now my brother was asking me for something. Something he thought we needed. I had to put on a good show. Because I sure as fuck wasn't good for anything else.
Agreed, Prisca. You are not good for anything else, because you are an exhausting whiner.
Also, she's an asshole in her relationship with Lorian, to be frank. If you don't want him because of everything that happened before, then make it clear. None of this wishy-washy stupid bullshit. I don't honestly even know why he likes her, because she is so fucking exhausting. Seriously.
The two of them - Lorian and Prisca - wallowing in their hurt rather than talking to each other like the grown-ass adults they supposedly are ... that was also exhausting. Though Lorian snapped out of it first, and tried and tried and tried to talk to her, while she just kept pretending it all meant nothing. Like I said, she was totally exhausting.
I am continuing on for the plot, despite deeply disliking the FMC. But I have to say, if she ends up allying with any of these people - shithead fae king, completely asinine hybrid elders, utter douchebag human king - I'm going to be really pissed. They are all the worst kind of rulers, and they all need to be struck down almost as badly as the villain. Seriously. If the villain is a 10 on the 1-10 scale of "Evil Ruler Must Be Stopped", Lorian's brother is an 8, the hybrid elders are probably a 7.5, and the human king is a 9. If she allies with with them and allows them to stay in power, she utterly fucking fails....more
I liked the story, but I didn't like the characters too much. I found Prisca (FMC) to be largely toothless - she kept swearing vengeI'm a little torn.
I liked the story, but I didn't like the characters too much. I found Prisca (FMC) to be largely toothless - she kept swearing vengeance in this book, to the point where it became hilarious - and TSTL. I mean, she's like this headstrong dumbass who keeps careening into bad situations and not thinking. And it gets other people killed. That combined with her martyr bullshit ... I just didn't like her much.
And the MMC Lorian is just a total douchebag. He's 2-dimensional, a lot of the time - just a snarling asshole, to an unjustifiable degree. We get hints of something softer in there, but it is mostly eclipsed by his utter douchebaggery. And I think the author wanted it to be secret, who he is ... but it was pretty transparent. I guessed it the first moment we heard about that dude. So the big identity reveal at the end was pretty meh.
But like I said, I liked the story. The human king who created a religion to steal magic from everyone, and the rebellion who is trying to stop this super powerful asswipe. The hints of the broader story - the hybrid kingdom, the fae - are interesting and compelling.
I'm reading onwards because I really, really liked this author's Deals with Demons series. But I'm concerned that she's skewing this one too YA in the characterizations, and it won't be to my taste. We'll see....more
I know there was some weird feelings about this book because MZ doesn't generally write fantastical stuff - she's pretty much straight contemporary roI know there was some weird feelings about this book because MZ doesn't generally write fantastical stuff - she's pretty much straight contemporary romance - so it didn't land well with some of her usual fans. But as someone who reads fantasy, romantasy, UF, etc, I enjoyed it a lot. And to be honest, it wasn't a huge stretch from what she normally writes, because top-of-their-field pro athletes are only a tiny step below superheroes, in so many ways. The tropes played out pretty much the same.
As always with MZ, it was a slow burn. I struggled a bit with the first 30% because man, Alex was such a dickhead, and Gracie was pretty spineless about it. I get why she was, though - she knew he was hurting and she was trying to be gracious. And I get, after finishing the book, why he was the way he was too. And again, this wasn't really out of type for MZ - oftentimes, I want to punch the MMC in the throat for a good chunk of the first half, and I feel dubious he'll ever win me over. Oh ye of little faith... like (almost) always, he won me over.
(view spoiler)[I spent a lot of the back third of the book waiting for a last shoe to drop - the cartel, or something with the cousin who sold her out, or scary Grandma, or SOMETHING. I don't know why, but it was like I was bracing for some terrible twist. Maybe because we were in Gracie's POV, and she was bracing for some terrible twist, as she carried a knife around with her everywhere due to her PTSD.
I'm glad it didn't happen, though. I feel like there was enough for these two to sort through without adding more conflict, stress, adrenaline. It makes for a more believable HEA, too - had they clung together after an 11th hour fight for their lives, you'd wonder if that was why they were together. Instead, they worked through their complicated feelings and got to a beautiful spot, so I utterly believe in their HEA. (hide spoiler)]...more
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