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mal_eficent's review against another edition
emotional
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
My 'issue' with Hazelwood's stories is that they're all very much structured like fanfiction. I love fanfic, that's not the problem, but fanfic has different structures and expectations than normal fiction and it's really hard to review or explain why this works really well if you don't have a background reading fanfic.
I totally get why people don't get along with her style: fanfic skips a lot of world building and character motivation because you're expected to have an idea of how characters are related to each other thanks to the original media, and the world building is just set dressing to exploring how characters interact. Bride pretty much follows that trend completely – the world feels like it works and exists, but big chunks of description and exposition are skipped. It's bingeable, with a lot of character reflection, and that's even more present in Bride because of how isolated Misery often is. (I'm also just going to assume this is Reylo again because I think the only non-Reylo pairing Hazelwood has written is Stuck with You)
I will say Bride has a lot more connecting scenes than The Love Hypothesis did, which is definitely a move away from fanfic styles, and that makes it a more much traditional read. (Fanfic doesn't care about what's happening 'in the background', sometimes, because again, the readers are here for the characters and typically there's an emphasis on character interactions.)
If you like fanfiction, and you like Ali Hazelwood, there's a non-zero chance of you enjoying this. If you're not up for a slightly more loosey goosey, race to the finish line kind of romance and intrigue plot that hand waves a lot of the actual work in favour of characters chatting...You might not enjoy this.
I totally get why people don't get along with her style: fanfic skips a lot of world building and character motivation because you're expected to have an idea of how characters are related to each other thanks to the original media, and the world building is just set dressing to exploring how characters interact. Bride pretty much follows that trend completely – the world feels like it works and exists, but big chunks of description and exposition are skipped. It's bingeable, with a lot of character reflection, and that's even more present in Bride because of how isolated Misery often is. (I'm also just going to assume this is Reylo again because I think the only non-Reylo pairing Hazelwood has written is Stuck with You)
I will say Bride has a lot more connecting scenes than The Love Hypothesis did, which is definitely a move away from fanfic styles, and that makes it a more much traditional read. (Fanfic doesn't care about what's happening 'in the background', sometimes, because again, the readers are here for the characters and typically there's an emphasis on character interactions.)
If you like fanfiction, and you like Ali Hazelwood, there's a non-zero chance of you enjoying this. If you're not up for a slightly more loosey goosey, race to the finish line kind of romance and intrigue plot that hand waves a lot of the actual work in favour of characters chatting...You might not enjoy this.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Sexual content, Kidnapping, and Blood
Moderate: Xenophobia and Abandonment
elledanie's review against another edition
lighthearted
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Blood, Abandonment, Cursing, Death of parent, and Kidnapping
Minor: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, and Gore
ernallison's review
emotional
mysterious
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Blood
Minor: Gore, Violence, and Toxic relationship
daisycantread24's review
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Murder, Sexual content, Grief, Blood, Confinement, Gore, and Death
jtpgdavey's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Gore
mlottermoser's review against another edition
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
3.0
Spicy Werewolf & Vamp romance/mystery. I enjoyed the first half as Misery (vamp) finds herself after being married to Lowe (were) in a ceremony to unite their people. The second half is pure spice.
While not an example of classical, lyrical or well developed writing it was a fun romp in a fantasy world.
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
While not an example of classical, lyrical or well developed writing it was a fun romp in a fantasy world.
🌶️🌶️🌶️🌶️
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, and Gore
Minor: Confinement and Kidnapping
things100's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
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
5.0
As always Ali hazelwood delivered another amazing book and even though this was a different genre then her normal rom com she did a terrific job with the story, the twists and turns had me on the edge of my seat the entire time
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Alcohol, Blood, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, and Torture
Minor: Kidnapping and War
itskenzcarter's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
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? It's complicated
5.0
Absolutely loved this book! I finished it in 24 hours. I literally couldn’t put it down. The story, the spice. All of it was great. I highly recommend!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood
Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Cursing, and Kidnapping
Minor: Gore, Murder, and Death of parent
abby_can_read's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
📖
I went back and forth on how I wanted to rate this book. I enjoyed it and I thought it was cute, but it's not my favorite Ali Hazelwood book. I decided on three stars because I think this book is alright. I am likely to re-read it in the future, but I don't think it will be high on that list.
I thought this book was cute and I had a good time reading it. I don't have much commentary on the characters or their relationships -- I think they were all fine l, but no one really stood out to me as my favorite character. The writing style kept me interest, like Hazelwood's other books, and the plot was fine though I found it to be predictable.
Honestly my biggest issue with this book were the main characters names -- Lowe and Misery. Personally, I don't like those names and I think they're horrible.
I went back and forth on how I wanted to rate this book. I enjoyed it and I thought it was cute, but it's not my favorite Ali Hazelwood book. I decided on three stars because I think this book is alright. I am likely to re-read it in the future, but I don't think it will be high on that list.
I thought this book was cute and I had a good time reading it. I don't have much commentary on the characters or their relationships -- I think they were all fine l, but no one really stood out to me as my favorite character. The writing style kept me interest, like Hazelwood's other books, and the plot was fine though I found it to be predictable.
Honestly my biggest issue with this book were the main characters names -- Lowe and Misery. Personally, I don't like those names and I think they're horrible.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Kidnapping
Minor: Confinement and Gore
kimveach's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
I love this author, especially her STEM romances, but this romantasy was a nice change of pace. I don't read many vampire/werewolf books, but this was fun and steamy.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship, Confinement, Gore, Blood, Bullying, Abandonment, Cursing, Violence, Death, Kidnapping, Murder, and Sexual content