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A review by missawn
Dealing in Death by L.J. Hayward
3.0
This was a little disappointing. I am a person that very rarely goes back to re-read a book for a second time ... but I did ... and read [b:Why the Devil Stalks Death|40614258|Why the Devil Stalks Death (Death and the Devil, #2)|L.J. Hayward|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1541415725l/40614258._SY75_.jpg|63091131] (the second book in this series) in preparation for this instalment. In many ways, I wish I hadn't. And even though this is the kind of storytelling and series that lends itself well to a revisit read (complex narration, plot and characters) ... I found myself getting frustrated with a book I originally loved. And even though the angst did not feel superfluous and manufactured the first time around, it did with the second reading. Ethan's troubled past felt a little overplayed and so was his persistent reticence. Which meant, this book was a slog! The frustration of reading the same book over again, only this time from a new POV was difficult to ignore. I would have much prefered new content and a different approach to moving the story along. It might have just been that I wasn't in the mood for this right now ... because previous to this, I have devoured these books and loved this series.
Regardless, we did learn something new ... mostly about Blade and his weird-ass "family" -- which I suspect is the start of new storylines for this series. It is still a very imaginative and interesting world -- and strong characters that have definitely got under my skin!
I don't know, I wish I had enjoyed this more than I did ... I think a lot of this book would have worked better if it was part of the main series and not a separate novella that basically REPEATS the same events from previous books. Repetition is not something I enjoy ... and this is the second series this year where this happened ([b:Ravensong|35114241|Ravensong (Green Creek, #2)|T.J. Klune|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1530449892l/35114241._SX50_.jpg|56425855] by T.J. Klune - stella first book followed by a major rehash in the second). I am worried about this series ... it could fall apart pretty quickly, but so far is still holding on as one of my favourites (despite being a bit disappointed by this book).
Regardless, we did learn something new ... mostly about Blade and his weird-ass "family" -- which I suspect is the start of new storylines for this series. It is still a very imaginative and interesting world -- and strong characters that have definitely got under my skin!
I don't know, I wish I had enjoyed this more than I did ... I think a lot of this book would have worked better if it was part of the main series and not a separate novella that basically REPEATS the same events from previous books. Repetition is not something I enjoy ... and this is the second series this year where this happened ([b:Ravensong|35114241|Ravensong (Green Creek, #2)|T.J. Klune|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1530449892l/35114241._SX50_.jpg|56425855] by T.J. Klune - stella first book followed by a major rehash in the second). I am worried about this series ... it could fall apart pretty quickly, but so far is still holding on as one of my favourites (despite being a bit disappointed by this book).