Hello everyone!
When you can pick up so many really great books for free - the only price being getting a review up - there really isn't much competition or to think about.
The service has definitely helped me discover some really cool books and authors since I joined, so I encourage you to give it a try. It's really good!
But back to the show.
This week we're weaving through the realm of paranormal or supernatural again, but this time there's also the element of a fairy tale retelling.
There really isn't all that much more to say about it other than to simply dive right in, otherwise what good is an intro, right?
Deja O.Grey's Red and Her Wolf is up next.
I don't really read fairy tale retellings all that often, especially not of Red Riding Hood, so I don't have much to offer in terms of other links, however, if I do find something (a movie or two), you'll see them at the bottom of this page, as per usual.
On to the story.
Emily, our protagonist, has had a bit of a mental breakdown, and is incredibly happy when she inherits a cottage in the middle of nowhere from her deceased grandmother, which she immediately takes possession of and moves in.
She also runs into her neighbour Kade while she's at it, and he's a surly one, if handsome (naturally).
Now, Emily being a city girl and all, she isn't AS well-versed in country living, so you can probably see where this is going, aka Kade eventually ends up helping her with a bunch of stuff, and they keep going back and forth on their relationship (though I'll give the author credit that at least she recognizes, somewhat, that there's more lust than love involved in the beginning).
She even gets to meet his sister, Phoenix!
But Kade has a bit of a secret. He's a wolf shifter - AND he's a witch, because this mix is one that we haven't seen as often in books.
And while his psycho dad is dead, his psycho brother makes it to town to make his life miserable and to exert mind control over Emily in the process (these scenes should come with a bit of a warning because they do feel a bit like a violation of sort).
So after Kade rescues Emily, he takes her home to his mother in the Deep South, where it turns out Emily is a mind witch and would PROBABLY be stronger than the lot of them if she practiced - she also nearly gets pawed at by shifter Kade in the process, and ends up on a plane back home so they go their separate ways.
Of course things DON'T end there because Kade's brother still wants her for a sacrifice for the forest that borders those cottage properties - you read that right, the forest is the bad guy here - so Kade definitely gets back to try and rescue her, but she kinda-sorta rescues herself by flinging his brother into a mind prison, and Phoenix (who initially worked WITH Kade's brother) ends up torching the evil part of the woods (she's a fire witch).
From there it's relatively smooth sailing as Kade and Emily settle in this small community, talk about the future (even babies) and wonder just where his brother's gone off to, because he didn't end up dying in that inferno.
The end!
So overall, this is a fairly simple plot which we've seen before in other paranormal/shifter romances: girl moves to new place / girl meets boy next door / boy next door is kind of a bad boy / girl and boy can't resist each other but boy says he's bad for her / boy's family member comes to howl around the corners / girl and boy run off together / boy inevitably decides to send girl away / girl gets in trouble with his family member / boy and girl team up for a showdown and get their happily ever after.
In essence, this is a formula that works and has been utilized in many, many books up until this point, and I don't mind it. I wanted a light and easy read that wouldn't boggle the mind when I picked it up, so in that sense, Red and Her Wolf definitely was that and more.
The problem I had with this book is that it all felt a little bit glossed over. Kade and Emily were insta-lust that I never felt really developed into love throughout the book. On their own, they didn't exactly stand as strongly as individual characters, though seemed to hold down okay when together as a couple, which is problematic given they're supposed to be separate individuals for most of the book.
The lore was also very hastily penned down, though I liked the dark forest addition which you don't usually see, as the wolf is normally the bad guy - here, the forest is the thing to fear.
The villain was a little too villain-y that was almost comical, and a lot of things are kind of left unexplained, like, why EXACTLY didn't Phoenix just burn his ass when he showed up? Did the mom and Kade know who set the wards, because it's never made clear? Was the Grandma also psychic or what is this?
I feel like this was the beginning of a story that could be explored more deeply, so it's a little bit wobbly as a standalone, however, it WAS enjoyable for what I wanted, so three stars it is.
In essence, this is a formula that works and has been utilized in many, many books up until this point, and I don't mind it. I wanted a light and easy read that wouldn't boggle the mind when I picked it up, so in that sense, Red and Her Wolf definitely was that and more.
The problem I had with this book is that it all felt a little bit glossed over. Kade and Emily were insta-lust that I never felt really developed into love throughout the book. On their own, they didn't exactly stand as strongly as individual characters, though seemed to hold down okay when together as a couple, which is problematic given they're supposed to be separate individuals for most of the book.
The lore was also very hastily penned down, though I liked the dark forest addition which you don't usually see, as the wolf is normally the bad guy - here, the forest is the thing to fear.
The villain was a little too villain-y that was almost comical, and a lot of things are kind of left unexplained, like, why EXACTLY didn't Phoenix just burn his ass when he showed up? Did the mom and Kade know who set the wards, because it's never made clear? Was the Grandma also psychic or what is this?
I feel like this was the beginning of a story that could be explored more deeply, so it's a little bit wobbly as a standalone, however, it WAS enjoyable for what I wanted, so three stars it is.
xx
*image not mine
No comments:
Post a Comment