**spoiler alert** Well. Two stars because I really loved Michael and Francesca in the first half of the story—the pining, the sense of responsibility,**spoiler alert** Well. Two stars because I really loved Michael and Francesca in the first half of the story—the pining, the sense of responsibility, genuine affection and tortured guilt worked so well, and Francesca's more confident attitude as a married woman was a refreshing dynamic to have with a rake ML.
Then I read the second half, and they became almost unrecognizable.
Michael became a ball of barely contained anger, manipulation and manhandling—yet it is never truly treated as a devolution of his character. He is supposed, to the end, to be her best friend; but from the moment he sets out to marry her, he fails to live up to the title at every turn and the narrative never acknowledges this.
There are attempts being made to show consent, but it was unconvincing at best— and the male lead himself is aware of this and doesn't regret it. Michael openly admits to his attempts at seduction and baby trapping Francesca, crowding her, refusing to give her the time and space she asks for so he can pressure her into saying yes. This behavior is never challenged.
There were weird assumptions being made about Francesca being the one who was not fertile— why? Who says it wasn't the husband? Especially odd when considering how John is depicted as a supportive, open-minded man.
Then the weird double standard of a rake holding our leading lady to some higher, purity standards, and complaining that she was using him—when he literally set out to seduce her and impregnate her. He doesn't see the irony in it and only resents her refusal to marry him... after he's seduced her in order to force her hand.
A couple of hot scenes where Francesca acted as a woman with some experience and took control during their sexual encounters; but even those were ruined for me by the manipulative context.
In conclusion. Take a shot every time the author uses the word "wicked" in the second half. It will be as good a way as any to get drunk and get over the character assassination and disappointment after such a promising start, I suppose....more
I'm giving it two stars because I found the writing style very cozy and pleasant to read, but among many things, these are some of my complaints:
- theI'm giving it two stars because I found the writing style very cozy and pleasant to read, but among many things, these are some of my complaints:
- the incongruencies (I'm not asking for your help, just for you to listen to my troubles. Please, please help. Here's one of the very few things I've left to remind me of my mother. But no, I don't make deals with faeries!)
- the absolutely over the top and in-your-face portrayal of sexism, which was downright caricaturesque
- the main character being so smart, so different, so loving, so strong despite the discrimination, so unique in having hold on to the antique ways....more
Interesting as a concept, but frustrating to read due to, among many things, the book's inability to hold onto a coherent train of thought and not divInteresting as a concept, but frustrating to read due to, among many things, the book's inability to hold onto a coherent train of thought and not diverge into fantastical theories or encyclopedic descriptions that long overstay the point they're trying to make. Perhaps my biggest frustration and takeaway at the same time is that for people who are seeking yet scorning the idea of Contact, the complete lack of communication between the actual humans, not to mention how cryptic and meaningless the few conversations are, certainly explain why Contact, if even possible, would be pretty difficult. At times it felt artificial, just the author's very poor way to lengthen the book and try to build up some suspense....more
- 2 stars for the topic and research, incredibly intriguing
- it feels like I'm being told a heroic tale instead of the lives of real women
- the occasi- 2 stars for the topic and research, incredibly intriguing
- it feels like I'm being told a heroic tale instead of the lives of real women
- the occasional, private scenes that are narrated in such an oddly detailed way, down to each person's little hand gestures, feel jarring and more resembling of fiction
- the audiobook is a little hard to follow due to the non-linear structure and lack of characterization...more
There were a lot of questionable decisions and lore bits in this novel, but I still found it the most personable among all of the DA ones I've read soThere were a lot of questionable decisions and lore bits in this novel, but I still found it the most personable among all of the DA ones I've read so far. It did a fantastic job at describing the horror of the Blight in a way that the games only managed to touch, it brought to life a lot of locations we've only heard about, and it had a refreshing, tragic heroine who made me shed a few tears. Overall, I'd say it's the only one I've actually enjoyed *reading* vs just getting through the others in order to learn more about the backstory....more
The heroine is the quintessential stereotype. Bookish girl who looks down intellectually on other people, is insecure about her appearance, has a fierThe heroine is the quintessential stereotype. Bookish girl who looks down intellectually on other people, is insecure about her appearance, has a fiery personality to match her own red hair and is "completely different from other women".
To read only if in that very particular mood....more
