Andy

So Close and Yet, So Very Far

This book does a really spectacular job at giving you a bunch of nothing, which is unbelievable considering it’s nearly fifty chapters long. A prologue or even a glossary at the beginning would go such a long long way, so that the reader isn’t walking into this story completely blind. There’s a lack of world building, with only surface level details being added and just enough repetition to keep you holding on thinking you’re making progress. When you finish the book, you’re faced with the decision to immediately re-read it in an attempt to try to understand it or just move on and let it be. There are terms thrown around from the beginning but you don’t actually know what they mean and you don’t get any semblance of clarity until more than halfway through the book. This book doesn’t follow modern lore and it seems the author is either making up their own or cherry picking which aspects to use for this story, which isn’t inherently a problem, but the lack of explanation to the reader makes it difficult to follow. It feels like being blindfolded, dropped off in a random neighborhood and then wandering around looking for an unknown destination, not even knowing when you’ve reached. & just when you get the slightest bit of information, not only does it not explain anything you’ve just read, but it is so anti-climatic, it feels wasteful. A major plot point of the whole book is about preventing the FMC from doing something she is adamant against and along the way, you hope to learn what happened to the MMC (no spoilers). The author, for whatever reason, does not explicitly state what happened to him and instead, dances around the point. This leaves the reader to fill in the blanks, if you will. Which I find unnecessary when I am literally supposed to be reading a story. Why do I need to use my own imagination to make up details about a book? Oh and when she does cross the forbidden line, nothing happens. Great, just great. Surely, there was a reason to drag out certain details or manufacture suspense right? Wrong. Actually, I didn’t find any real suspense or tension in this book. In truth, a lot of the enjoyable moments and/or dialogue doesn’t even come from the MMC or FMC, but the supporting characters. And speaking of the main characters, I found neither of them particularly likable, which is rare. There is no depth to the MMC (because again, you must use your imagination) and the FMC is childlike and weak. I usually enjoy when characters find their strength and courage but the dynamic is only that of a bully and a punching bag and it stays that way for the entire story. It isn’t endearing. Does she find her voice? Maybe, but not in this book. In summary, there’s some inconsistencies, too much left unexplained to really capture the reader and the text is moderately repetitive. A few spelling and grammatical errors but nothing overly distracting which was about the only saving grace here. This is supposed to be book 1 in a series, however I’m not inclined to continue, which I hate because I don’t like stopping a book or series in the middle or after having started. Maybe it gets better but it also could not and that would be a 5 book waste for me. I also must add, if you’re solely looking for a dark romance, this isn’t it in my opinion. The setting is dark, not the romance, there are no trigger warnings for this book (you don’t need any). Overall, it has the potential to be such a great book and I really wanted to love it and hoped that I would but unfortunately, it fell completely flat and missed the mark for me.

Incomplete

Yes, the story says completed but it doesn’t read as such. The writing is very rudimentary and the stop and go style makes it seem like you’re reading a middle school essay. The 3rd person POV makes it hard to connect to the characters, subsequently making the text feel jerky and undeveloped. There are details missing. Lots of them. With no clear timeline established and scenes seemingly skipped, it was hard to follow along in some chapters. The major plot point of the story, the issue of pack conflict and territorial squabbles, remains unexplored and unresolved, therefore making the reader feel like the events of the story were pointless. It has potential, if it was expanded and written better but as it stands, the book is mechanical and lacking severely in substance. You don’t even get a name for the baby, the ending of the book just drops off a cliff. This is one of my least enjoyable reads.

Started off strong but....

Okay so like.....it has potential. A LOT of potential but it just missed the mark for me. The book started off strong and it seemed fresh but somewhere after Liora was kidnapped, it kinda went downhill. The inconsistencies of the story make it hard to follow. There were multiple chapters where I had to scroll up a few lines or simply just start over because details didn’t make sense and I thought maybe I had missed something in my reading. Nope...I didn’t miss anything. There are random POV switches, details omitted or unnecessarily added, timeline errors and character errors. A major problem with the plot has to do with the visit to the warlock. She was supposed to have a week but did not before the rest of the events happened sooo how was that even possible 🫤. Not to mention the writing became super repetitive, to the point that I wasn’t sure if the author was just trying to drag out the chapters/book or not. It also needed way more dialogue, there just wasn’t enough. We only got the guys’ POV a handful of times and it was mostly Soren. Honestly, if their POV can’t be more consistent, we don’t need it. It throws the book off having Liora narrate 15 chapters and then read something from Soren, Riven or Thorne and they never have much to think or say anyway. Speaking of, they are the oddest group of creatures I’ve ever read about. Without giving too much away, Thorne at the very least, should be able to immediately heal....why is Liora stitching him up? It makes no sense to me. You also don’t find out until the end of the book what they (the boys) actually are, which is annoying. And Fluffy.....while I thought he was a nice companion for Liora, his introduction and addition to the book is so random that it seems misplaced. If any animal was getting a POV, it definitely should’ve been Fluffy before Bagel. The story is split up into two parts (so far?) but I don’t know if I’m going to read the second book. I’d like to know what happens but the plot holes of the first book make me reluctant. Minimal spelling/grammatical errors so there’s that. Again, definitely not the worst book I’ve read but it could be so so much better and I think the author has a good base but it’s worth a revision at best and a rewrite at worst.

Another One

*DJ Khaled voice*...yes folks....she’s done it again. I do not appreciate the author brilliantly writing these books and having the audacity to not continue writing them forever. Yes I want a chapter 147. Okay...I know I sound crazed, seriously though, this was another great book. The PERFECT enemies to lovers story. The author literally brought Tory to life, I’m honestly not convinced he’s not real *sits in deep contemplation*. He is 100% a piece of sh*t, but you can’t help but love him and root for him from the shadows (no pun intended 🤭). Emma is goodness personified and Mael isn’t as much of a stick in the mud as Tory would have you believe lol. I loved how all the characters were written. They weren’t dull or lacking depth. The real world references were hilarious as well, cue the fella named Taylor Swift lmao. I would have liked to read at least a chapter or two about the conflict/battle with the queen (wink wink, I won’t spoil it for readers) and about Tory learning the truth that Oberon shared with Emma about his father. I think that would’ve added to their unconventional but predestined love story, like father like son right? Less of a complaint than a missed opportunity but I’m still very content with the story as is. Emma being of two realms would really make for an interesting future. Hopefully there will be a part two, ever the optimist nowadays 😪. Anyway, well done author, another top notch read. Also hoping that Mael gets his own story, that should be fun(ny) 😅. Also also, wondering how things are with Meira, Oberon and Pieter....do I smell the beginnings of a reverse harem? Okay, I’m done. If you’re reading this, just stop and read the book. And just read everything else while you’re at it. It’s worth it. And if none of that convinced you, the smut should absolutely sway you 😉.

I’m Mad

Okay, disclaimer, I’m not ACTUALLY mad but I am upset that this story is over 😩. A common problem that shifter/wolf stories encounter is repetition. There’s only so many ways you can say something or convey a sentiment before you feel like you’re just rereading the same chapter(s). The author has done a wonderful job of keeping every. single. chapter FRESH! I never said to myself, “well I’ve read that line before”. The story didn’t feel rushed and she took her time to set up and build the plot. I truly am glad she split it into two books (one longer book would’ve been fine too) rather than try to finish the story at the first book abruptly. And let me just be frank here, the author had some apprehension about this story, expressing that she’d never written a reverse harem...I find that hard to believe now because it was so perfect. I will go on to say that the genre should continue to be explored, I’d read another in a heartbeat. Alright, on to the nitty gritty....a beautiful story about grief, love, fear, violence, guilt and navigating the predetermined threads of destiny. Oh and sex, lots of good steamy sex 🤭. The witty banter between the characters was also gold *chefs kiss*. I would’ve liked to see more character development and back story for the boys, especially Damon and Eric but that is in no way, a slight against the book or author. I’m still very much happy with this story and it is definitely getting added to my favorites and more than anything, I hope these characters are brought back to life in a part 3 maybe 🤞🏽. In case you couldn’t tell, I loved this book (and the first one) and bravo to the author 👏🏽. (Very very few spelling and grammatical errors, btw. Nothing that actually distracted from the story and def not enough to remove a star for.) P.S. Damon and Mitsy was the relationship I never knew I needed 🥰 P.S.S. The artworkkkkkk....omg the artwork. Thank you author, it was a nice touch. & the commentary from the author’s POV after the chapters was so enjoyable ☺️

Too Soon

We’re only 7 chapters in folks but this is shaping up to be a good story hehe. The banter between the characters makes me feel like I’m reading a romantic comedy but the detail that the author uses to write each chapter lets me envision it. I love how they interact with each other and the dialogue keeps me cheesing right along with them lol. The book obviously isn’t complete so I can’t fully rate the plot, seeing as idk where it’s going to go but so far so good. It’s keeping my attention and I can already tell that there’s some serious drama that Dani probably hasn’t all left behind. It’s steamy, funny and insanely sweet so far and I’m hoping the author ramps up all the qualities and then some. Bravo 👏🏽

Bravo E.L. Knight!

This was good & devilishly hot. The perfect friends to lovers story. She’s headstrong but scared, he’s possessive (not controlling) and head over f*cking heels in love (we love a strong male lead that knows wtf he wants). Detailed & expertly written; what a great read. The people want a part 2....the people NEED a part 2 (or 3), like how Rem needs Sin 🥹.

Wow!

This was just.....well, the title of the review says it all. I don’t know what I was expecting but what I got was so much more (and better!). Such a great but quick read. It’s a story that you wish was longer or came as a duology or trilogy. Honestly, I would love if the author gave us a second part to this story further into the future or just detailing the life of the characters. There’s a good amount detail and the author does a great job of “painting the picture” but I did think there were still a great deal many that could’ve been added (like was Kane’s heterochromia passed down to Joey or where did the body go?). Yes this is explicit so if you don’t like mature themes, stay away, however this was right up my alley. The characters are endearing and while the actual story could be seen as odd, the author writes it in a way that makes a smile creep up on your face. There’s some spelling & grammatical errors but nothing that’s too distracting. Ugh, who cares anyway, just give us more Frankie, Kane, Adam & Abel 😭.

Nice Little Surprise

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this read but I was pleasantly surprised. It’s still way too early to judge the complete story as it is unfinished but I’m hoping that the author will eventually update and finish this story. There’s definitely a plot building and I’m eager to dive into what is looking like some type of scheme or conspiracy. The budding romance tugs at your emotions and the bits of sarcasm & humor keep a smile creeping up on my face. Very few grammatical & spelling errors so far but none that distract from the story or prevent the reader from understanding. I really hope this book hasn’t been abandoned so that I can read more of Sky & Gage. Love it so far, very worth the read!

Best Pop-up Ad Ever!

A small snippet of this author’s work showed up on my search engine home page. It was attached to what looked like an illustration or maybe fan art, honestly, I don’t know but the art is what drew me in, hoping that the story would be as good as the picture. After reading the snippet available, the option to read more popped up. Instead, I search the characters to see if this was a book and that lead me here. I could not have made a better decision! I still don’t know where this story is going or its plot in its entirety but I don’t care. I am fully committed and along for the ride. The way she writes this book from both points of view to the intense and descriptive scenes, is amazing but also, not enough! I have truly been taken by this story and I need more. I can’t put it down. 10/10 read so far.