I do not have a lot of experience with Danmei novels. The only other series I have read has been Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation on some w2.5 stars
I do not have a lot of experience with Danmei novels. The only other series I have read has been Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation on some website years ago and even though the writing was clunky, I read it in one ago. It was a sort of guilty pleasure.
This book was also a similar experience for me. There were parts I liked, such as the political setting (even though it was so difficult to follow wth) and the enemies-to-lovers slow burnish trope. But the writing- it was so average. What also would constantly put me off was the fact that there was no consistency in POVs. The POVs would keep changing so abruptly and it just came off as strange and made it difficult for me to stay connected to the characters.
So yes, it is a decent enough read if you are looking for some nice slow burn queer historical romance guilty pleasure. ...more
I enjoyed the mystery way more than the previous books, but god I hated Somers here. I hated the Nico slander. Calling Nico a baby, infant, immature wI enjoyed the mystery way more than the previous books, but god I hated Somers here. I hated the Nico slander. Calling Nico a baby, infant, immature when the biggest baby in the entire book had to be John Henry fricking Somerset. I didn't think he could make me any more angrier after the last book but no, here I am. At this point, I just need Nico to be left alone, he deserves better. It's actually laughable how much of an annoying child he was being the entire time. And god those mood swings- this gave me anxiety. And I don't like that.
Also, I was so disappointed with Somers finally meeting Evie. I was actually looking forward to some nice heartwarming father daughter interaction BUT NO. It was like a second long interaction and then that's it. He doesn't even try to look for her again, as if he has just buried the fact that he is a father to a daughter???
However, despite this and bunch of other problematics things which I don't have the patience for typing all of that out, this series is weirdly addictive and even though I had yelled "NO MORE" after finishing this book last night, I feel like I might pick up the next book. Kill me....more
Agh I am so mad right now. I was invested in this series. Started out SO GOOD, but I swear these two characters have a lot of stuff to work o2.5 stars
Agh I am so mad right now. I was invested in this series. Started out SO GOOD, but I swear these two characters have a lot of stuff to work on. And unfortunately it's not amusing anymore. I'm all in for slow burns, y'all want to get together in the last book, fine by me. But THIS is NOT SLOW BURN. This is childish, immature and just two men taking turns at being the mean one and hurting the other FOR NO BLOODY REASON. Drama is only drama when it's entertaining, otherwise it's just characters being unbearable.
I really liked this book, even though I had pretty much ditched it at 20% for a very long time before I picked it up again and then finished 3.5 stars
I really liked this book, even though I had pretty much ditched it at 20% for a very long time before I picked it up again and then finished it rather swiftly.
There were a lot of things in the book that could have been better, things that would have usually called for a lower rating. There was the poor editing, uncomfortable details in the prose that just made the writing really awkward sometimes, and over-done insertion of fragmented flashbacks randomly (you'll know what I'm talking about if you read this). Initially, that was cool but then after a while, it was bordering on bromidic.
And then the plot itself- it was actually a decent plot, not mindblowing, because I guessed the mystery at around 84%, which is not too bad but again, I am a slow at this. So I would imagine, the characters, who are alleged veterans in this field (beat detectives) should not have taken this long to figure stuff out, especially when it was glaringly obvious at a point.
So what did I like then? The characters. They were pretty well done. I was not expecting the main characters to embody such depth and authenticity. It was honestly messy-but in a good way-the stuff that had gone down between the characters in the past, and their story forward will take some time before we can expect rainbows and sunshine, but I was all for it. I think Gregory Ashe did a spectacular job with bringing out the really, really grey bits of his characters, which truly came off as extremely realistic. I felt pity, anger, frustration, and a bunch of other negative stuff throughout but I did find myself also rooting for the characters, so I am actually really excited to see how all of this plays out. On top of that, a lot of issues highlighted in the plot, mainly revolving around intolerance and how batshit crazy intolerance can make a person, no matter which side they are on, whatever cause they are advocating.
All in all, I had a good time. The fact that I am so invested in these two characters is the redeeming quality of this book. I do hope for some better female characters in the coming books because what the hell was this...more
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