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shaykay's reviews
741 reviews
Torment: Part Two by Dylan Page
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I understand why people have a hard time explaining this duet. It's really not a romance. It's a dark, emotional, contemporary book. Dealing with heavy content such as sexual assault, murder, and medical content. The FMC is having a hard time dealing with her life and we're past the time when she idolized her stepbrother and stepdad. She's now realizing that she's stuck here and no matter what she does her stepbrother will never let her go. Things do get really graphic in here and although there is an ending in here it's a pretty sad one. It's just a very emotional read and at times super hard to read because it is so graphic. I do really wish we had dual POVs or even got into Shay and Keenan's POVs in this one.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Alcoholism, Confinement, Death, Suicide, Violence, and Death of parent
Minor: Drug use, Trafficking, and Murder
Torment: Part One by Dylan Page
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I thought my last book was an emotional read, but it had nothing on this one. This one isn't even really a romance, it's more of a dark contemporary book because we are following a girl from the time, she's like 7 years old up until 17 years old. We have a lot of flashbacks throughout important times in her relationship with her family, especially her stepbrother, Shay. Shay and James are part of an MC and she's just a kid who is obsessed with them but doesn't fully understand that they are bad guys until she's about 13/14 when she finally realizes that her mom's not the bad guy and it's just a very emotional, sad book and gets very detailed. It's super heavy. Plus, we do end on a cliffhanger.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Toxic relationship, and Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism, Confinement, Domestic abuse, Sexual content, and Medical content
Minor: Drug abuse, Infidelity, and Car accident
If You Dare by Harmony West
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I was obsessed with the cover, not going to lie, that's what pulled me into the first book. It is a dark romance and the MMC is bullying her to run her off. He doesn't want her on campus anymore due to blaming her for his sister's death. Then the FMC is dealing with grief. She blames herself and thinks she deserves him to hate her and bully her. It gets really dark because he takes things so far and I kind of wish we had more of the college/hockey vibes because it was really easy to forget where we were at. Then everything was just suddenly fine and these two needed to have more conversations and work things through together to get to the place where they were healing together. It just got a bit too much for me. It is an emotional read because we are dealing with a lot of grief and heavy content. I don't think I'm going to read the rest of the series; I might read the next one just because it's Luke's book but then the next one is Trey's and he does not need a redemption story! Bad guys can stay bad guys and don't need redemption, and Trey is one of those that just does not deserve an HEA.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Sexual assault, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Death, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Toxic relationship, and Stalking
These Bonds That Unite Us: The Primordial Covenant Duet Book Two (Soulbound Omegaverse) by J.C. Belenac
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I think the omegaverse system was really unique here and I really wish the fated system was expanded because it is so interesting. The story overall wasn't terrible, and I loved that the FMC made the guys work for it. She didn't just forgive them when they reunited. I also wish that we had more attention on the suspense side of things. Since we had a lot of time building it up through her story it just felt like all of the suspense happened at the beginning and then the end of the book and the rest was steam and groveling. I still want to read Bea's books though. Hopefully, get more of the fated system explained.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Abandonment
Moderate: Gun violence, Violence, Medical content, and Kidnapping
Minor: Confinement and Drug abuse
Finding the Forward, Part Two by Jane Handler
Did not finish book. Stopped at 57%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 57%.
Another one bites the dust, unfortunately. So this is book 2 of a duet and normally I can plow through the sequel and usually why I wait to pick up book 1 because of the cliffhanger. Well, this duet started strong. I mean we had more going on than just the pack because we had a lot of the hockey side of things, we had the drama going on with Verity's family/work, and then the tension with AJ refusing to meet her. We kind of end on a cliffhanger but overall it's pretty tame. Especially for a book that's over 600 pages! Well this second book is a little shorter, it's still over 500 pages. But instead of the drama, and suspense coming in we actually step back from literally everything and it's nothing but steam! Like I need more especially if the book is this big. We could've focused on the secret with Griff's designation, hockey, Verity's research or family, or heck have the tension with AJ still going on. But it's literally nothing but steam and barely plot and I just could not. I eventually just tapped out. There wasn't really anything that I wanted to continue for. Maybe if it was a little shorter and had more attention to literally anything else.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Finding the Forward, Part One: A Why Choose Omegaverse Hockey Romance by Jane Handler
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
It wasn't a bad omegaverse. It's honestly on the slower side when it comes to steam. Verity has a lot going on between her family, school, and research. I love the connection she and Griff have and seeing her and the pack merge. Plus it's always interesting to see an established pack take on a new person like this. I'm curious where we are going to go from here.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
This Fate That Guides Us by J.C. Belenac
challenging
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
I've had the first book in my TBR for a while now and refused to pick it up until the story was completed. The second book finally came out and I picked up the first book. It took me a lot to get into the book but once it hooked me it was hard to put down. It is on the slower side, and really emotional. We get the most of Omen's story and she had a rough childhood. We learn quite a bit about it as the book progresses, but it makes so much sense why she keeps everyone at an arm's length away. As it ends, I'm so curious how they are going to get a HEA after everything explodes in here. I can't wait to see how the next book goes because I want answers, and I want to learn more about this omegaverse since it is really unique, and I love how the fated mate system works here.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Religious bigotry and Abandonment
Minor: Drug abuse, Sexual content, Suicide, Violence, and Kidnapping
Sinners Retreat by Lauren Biel
adventurous
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Talk about a fun, unhinged, dark book. I honestly feel like it is in the same category as Butcher and Blackbird just a bit steamier. They go overboard sometimes, and it was so hard to put down. I needed something more on the comedic side and this one just fit it all. I can't wait to see what happens in the next book and I need to read more by Biel. I don't think all of her books have this comedic side, but I think they are all on the darker side of things so I'm just curious to step into some of her other worlds.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual assault, Torture, and Gaslighting
Minor: Cannibalism
Freaking Love, Part One: First Love by Bethany Monaco Smith
Did not finish book. Stopped at 39%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 39%.
I'm just so bored with it. I thought there would be a lot more drama since it's a teen pregnancy but other than the FMC's mom all of the other parents are just fine with it and on board to help them. Then the drama with the baby daddy is okay, I wanted it to be a little bit more cataclysmic. More drama overall. It might even happen but with the pacing and feeling like we aren't going anywhere after 151 pages, I'm just tapping out. Plus this is only book 1 of the trilogy! This year I'm just trying to be more brutal with my DNFs and if the book isn't doing it for me, especially after 100 pages, it just has to go. I feel like my reading time is already limited so I won't keep forcing a book in hopes it might get better.
Seraphina Bryce: Omega Unleashed by Elizabeth Dear
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Seraphina! I love this omega so much and the fact that she got her own book, and we got to see a lot of the past characters as well, it was just so good. This one was hard to put down. Plus, I love how much she's grown since the ending of the duet. She's reaching her goal of becoming Dylan and a badass FMC of her own. But this world is still terrible to Omegas and she has to figure out how to keep control over her life while everyone is trying to force her into a pack. It's just so wild! I need Daisy's story now because I'm so curious about what is going on not just with her but between her and Derrick. We do see them again here but it's just kind of sprinkled in instead of a big angle.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Kidnapping and Sexual harassment
Minor: Confinement, Drug abuse, Rape, and Pregnancy