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A review by multicoloredbookreviews
The Hive by S.C. Morrison
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
It was fine. I'd never read sci-fi omegaverse before, so that was cool.
But, I'm not sure this book would work for people stepping into the omegaverse subgenre for the first time.
This was more for readers already familiar with the trope. There wasn't much explanation of the designations, the intricacies of each one, or the typical interactions between them. And in that sense, I think reading The Hive sort of felt like reading fanfiction AU (aka Alternative Universe), where the setting may be new and different, but because readers are expected to already be familiar with the basics, there's no need to explain some aspects of the world and the dynamics between characters.
But more than that, given this was first published in Kindle Vella (which is basically a paid version of Wattpad, the platform famous for turning fanfiction AU into published books), it makes a lot of sense that this short novel gave off strong fanfiction vibes.
The dialogues were kinda cringe—a little clumsy, utilitarian and stiff. They often didn't feel natural or flow all that smoothly. Saphyra, the FMC, was very sheltered and kinda useless, tbh, and the male characters were fairly archetypical.
The super fast pace ensured I was never bored, though, but at the same time, because the focus was so wholly centered on the rescue mission, that meant we got little to no character or plot development. Which in turn made the first act good, but what came after not so much.
The story felt aimless after Saphyra was rescued and her first heat passed. Not much happened outside of that. In a nutshell, The Hive is the story of a kidnapped princess that gets rescued and taken back to her planet. The end.
All in all, the book was a tad clunky, but not bad. Like most RH stories out there, it was more about the sex than the plot, just like smut fanfiction—the setting changes, but the core remains the same. If you know what you're getting into, I don't think you'll be disappointed. RH, and omegaverse in particular, is fundamentally supposed to be a vehicle for sexual tension build-up and group spicy scenes, nothing else. And in that sense, The Hive delivered.
But, I'm not sure this book would work for people stepping into the omegaverse subgenre for the first time.
This was more for readers already familiar with the trope. There wasn't much explanation of the designations, the intricacies of each one, or the typical interactions between them. And in that sense, I think reading The Hive sort of felt like reading fanfiction AU (aka Alternative Universe), where the setting may be new and different, but because readers are expected to already be familiar with the basics, there's no need to explain some aspects of the world and the dynamics between characters.
But more than that, given this was first published in Kindle Vella (which is basically a paid version of Wattpad, the platform famous for turning fanfiction AU into published books), it makes a lot of sense that this short novel gave off strong fanfiction vibes.
The dialogues were kinda cringe—a little clumsy, utilitarian and stiff. They often didn't feel natural or flow all that smoothly. Saphyra, the FMC, was very sheltered and kinda useless, tbh, and the male characters were fairly archetypical.
The super fast pace ensured I was never bored, though, but at the same time, because the focus was so wholly centered on the rescue mission, that meant we got little to no character or plot development. Which in turn made the first act good, but what came after not so much.
The story felt aimless after Saphyra was rescued and her first heat passed. Not much happened outside of that. In a nutshell, The Hive is the story of a kidnapped princess that gets rescued and taken back to her planet. The end.
All in all, the book was a tad clunky, but not bad. Like most RH stories out there, it was more about the sex than the plot, just like smut fanfiction—the setting changes, but the core remains the same. If you know what you're getting into, I don't think you'll be disappointed. RH, and omegaverse in particular, is fundamentally supposed to be a vehicle for sexual tension build-up and group spicy scenes, nothing else. And in that sense, The Hive delivered.