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rebeccazh's Reviews (2.89k)
I was fully prepared for this to be quite bad because, let's be honest, the summary looks like a weeb wrote it. BUT I should have known Annette Marie is trustworthy and her usual tropes are all here: a distinctive and likeable protagonist, hot guys (who can't stop manhandling her so lots of close physical contact), HEA, plot twists, a fast paced story, found family themes, character development and the heroine levelling up in power. This was surprisingly well-researched and I actually know quite a few of the Japanese legends through cultural osmosis via anime and Japanese lessons so it was very fun to see the twists and new takes on the legends.
I have a few gripes: way too much use of Japanese. Sometimes, it's better to use English because the many many Japanese terms are very distracting (even for a reader like me who knows what they mean). And also it comes off like you're exoticizing the language.
I also feel like more time was spent on the angst between the two of them than on the fluffy and fun parts, like bantering, or sweet moments. The first two books were very solid and fun, but the third book was a bit draggy because the romance was just dithering back and forth on 'will they won't they' and bogged down by the heroine's martyr tendencies which were understandable at first but annoying by the end.
But with all that said, this book feels like if a yokai, Spirited Away-inspired fantasy anime was written as a hot and angsty YA romance. I read this over the weekend and it was very nice.
I have a few gripes: way too much use of Japanese. Sometimes, it's better to use English because the many many Japanese terms are very distracting (even for a reader like me who knows what they mean). And also it comes off like you're exoticizing the language.
I also feel like more time was spent on the angst between the two of them than on the fluffy and fun parts, like bantering, or sweet moments. The first two books were very solid and fun, but the third book was a bit draggy because the romance was just dithering back and forth on 'will they won't they' and bogged down by the heroine's martyr tendencies which were understandable at first but annoying by the end.
But with all that said, this book feels like if a yokai, Spirited Away-inspired fantasy anime was written as a hot and angsty YA romance. I read this over the weekend and it was very nice.
I wonder if I can squeeze in a few more books on GR before the year ends
3.5 for most of Vol 2 except the last 10-20 chapters. I really loved the first volume but honestly the bulk of Vol 2 really wasn't as good. It was redeemed though by the Outer Gods stuff. That ending!! Can't wait for the next Vol. (Putting this under my manga shelf because I don't have a separate shelf for webnovels).
In the mood for shapeshifter romance/fluff after KM Shea's awesome Gates of Myth and Power trilogy (I also reread bits of the Pack of Dawn and Destiny trilogy and it was great). Very unfortunately... This has too much obsessive controlling possessive I Am an Alpha Male behavior by the male lead, although the mystery and the story itself are engaging enough, and I really liked the heroine.
I love this series, and took a huge hiatus between books 5 & 6 (the current one). I've forgotten most of the events and details, but it wasn't hard to pick this up. This is quite self-contained. Anyway, this is as addictive as the rest of the Firebrand series, I started reading the first few chapters and ended up binging it all the way till 50%.
It's a detective novel with a bunch of gruesome and somewhat sadistic murders. Emma tries to find the murder and understand the motivation, with a very slight touch of romance in the form of her established relationship with the vampire Lord (wish there was more).
The ending is a cliffhanger with something big about Emma being revealed. I can't remember if Emma's history has been delved into but I'm very curious to find out more about her Phoenix abilities. I hope book 7 will be coming out this year.
It's a detective novel with a bunch of gruesome and somewhat sadistic murders. Emma tries to find the murder and understand the motivation, with a very slight touch of romance in the form of her established relationship with the vampire Lord (wish there was more).
The ending is a cliffhanger with something big about Emma being revealed. I can't remember if Emma's history has been delved into but I'm very curious to find out more about her Phoenix abilities. I hope book 7 will be coming out this year.
Borrowed on KU. Not TOO bad for a chick lit romance novel (I usually avoid these like the plague but I was desperate for some good romance novels). Quite funny, with good characterizations. I think chick lit is just not for me because I got bored.
I got on a free trial of Kindle Unlimited to have faster and more convenient access to romance novels lol. Tried and returned a few and then borrowed this. This is actually not all that bad. The premise is kinda similar to What's Wrong with Secretary Kim (which I really liked) but with an alpha male hero and a 'I'm different from other women' heroine. The heroine is very poised, competent, and feminine - and I do like her quite a bit. I don't really like alpha males but I could have gone with the story because the first 20-30% is quite compelling and very readable. Unfortunately what I find really hard to ignore is the subtle misogyny. Almost all the female characters (except our heroine) are absolutely unlikeable: backstabbing, conniving, jealous and competing for the male lead's attention. Blegh.
3.5 stars. It's an anthology, so the stories are of varying quality. Overall, I enjoyed this collection, with some stories that I connected with much more than others.
I totally didn't know that this is omegaverse lol! Tried this out coz it's on KU. Although this was not really to my tastes (too romance-heavy, barely any plot, and worldbuilding is quite vague and thin), I appreciate how the author made me emotionally invested in the characters. I liked her other series more because I don't really like omegaverse outside of the occasional fanfic lol.
I have mixed feelings about Pippa Grant. I can't seem to finish her books, like I like them ok, but not enough to finish them, but I don't DISLIKE her books. Her books generally run towards 'predictable' and while I like her characters, it's not compelling enough to keep me reading. I liked this pair more than the Worst Wedding Date because of personal tastes. Not a bad read if you have KU and just want some fluff.