I highly suggest reading the Kingdom of the Wicked Series first because this is a follow-onFae and Demons and Vampires.... Oh My.
This book is HOT!!!
I highly suggest reading the Kingdom of the Wicked Series first because this is a follow-on adjacent series that does mention characters and events that happen after the end of the Kingdom of the Wicked. When the Kingdom of the Wicked ended, I felt unfulfilled, and I had a lot of questions remaining. I also wasn't ready to say goodbye to the MCs, so I am thriller that Kerri Maniscalco decided to do this series.
This one features Envy; I get the feeling each book will feature a different demon prince.
I loved the different viewpoints of some of the princes, which were painted in a singular light in the Kingdom of the Wicked Series. This shows an immense depth of world and character development. Specifically when it comes to Gluttony.
The spice was very nice, I LOVED it!
The angsty romance was well done, and the mystery was more of a background than a major plot.
I liked the overall theme of woman empowerment and that Isabel didn't compromise her values just because some man was willing to come in and save the I liked the overall theme of woman empowerment and that Isabel didn't compromise her values just because some man was willing to come in and save the day.
Some steamy scenes, and a lot of great personalities.
Solid 4 Stars for an entertaining historical romance....more
There is some spiciness, but there is a lot of the backstory that is really coming together from the beginning leading up to now.
The romance in this There is some spiciness, but there is a lot of the backstory that is really coming together from the beginning leading up to now.
The romance in this one is MFM, and it has some good scenes; even if you aren't a big MM reader, I think it was well done. I found the S&M slave kink to be very well depicted. Participants are Charon, Eurydice, and Orpheus.
I ended up liking the rest of the story more than the romance, which I felt worked, but I needed a bit more buildup with Charon.
You get to see all of the sisters in this one, and it leaves you ready for what development will occur with book seven. I hope this isn't Katee Robert getting ready to end this series because I have had a lot of fun with it.
This was the least entertaining of all of the IPB novels so far.
It starts out with rape/Stockholm syndrome, and everyone is just cool with this. It wThis was the least entertaining of all of the IPB novels so far.
It starts out with rape/Stockholm syndrome, and everyone is just cool with this. It was weirdly explained that the rape was ok, because she was horny... Umm what?
Preemie birth occurs with seemingly little issue after all of the hullabaloo about it.
The best part of this novel is seeing more of the planet's society and some of the relations.
This one felt really rushed and read more like a novella.
I love that Katee Robert is using her characters to represent the different types of relationships. Each iteration has a different type of coupling wiI love that Katee Robert is using her characters to represent the different types of relationships. Each iteration has a different type of coupling with different sexual appetites.
However, this one never sold me on the romance. The only romance that had any sort of emotion behind it was Pandora and Aphrodite. This was also a huge missed opportunity to bring in the "opening of Pandora's box, " which I kept waiting for, haha.
The Dark Olympus series is fantastic because it also is just good story-telling. With this novel, there is lackluster romance and not much content to add to the overall series. This could have taken place outside of the series without much loss.
There were some spicy scenes, of course, but the main couple had almost zero chemistry, finding it instead in outside sources.
So... It's always an interesting experiment when an author chooses to put themselves into the narrative. There have been a couple of instances where iSo... It's always an interesting experiment when an author chooses to put themselves into the narrative. There have been a couple of instances where it was a lesser character such as with Stephen King's Dark Tower later books, and then you have this.
Bret Easton Ellis is the MC and narrator of this fictitious tale, recounting his high school days of sexual awakening, experimentation with sex and drugs, obsessions with movies, and an obsession with a serial killer in LA.
This book meanders a lot! There is so much driving around and so many circuitous thoughts. It gets to a point where I would consider maybe putting it down if something didn't happen, but it's almost as if BEE knew exactly how far he could push you before reeling you back in. It happened three or four times with this long-winded ordeal.
While I would normally demand that he cut scenes and overdone words from him when this was originally released in serialized form, in a way, it works perfectly for setting the tone.
If nothing else, BEE has truly brought to life the drug-induced haze of rich California prep school kids. Bret's parents are gone for months at a time, while Debbie's routinely through lavish parties supporting drug and alcohol abuse. Debbie's father, Terry, also hits on her guy friends and even her boyfriend, Bret.
Bret, meanwhile, explores his interests while still having Debbie as a sort of confidence booster, social status symbol, and face to hide behind.
When Robert moves in, Bret becomes obsessively competitive with his fit into the group as he sees himself being slowly edged out. His serial killer obsession causes him to make every link to Robert and lay blame at his feet while trying to investigate very poorly on his own.
There is a LOT of graphic M-M, M-F, Solo sex scenes, some graphic torture and abuse of humans and animals, gratuitous drug and alcohol abuse, as well as homophobia.
In the end, you can interpret the final information in many ways, but unless BEE specifically states it somewhere, some mysteries remain to be solved. I could easily interpret this end in 3-5 different ways that break off on my own tangents.
3.75 Stars rounded up. Definitely a unique way to tell a serial killer story. ...more
If this were a standalone erotic novel, I would have easily given it 4 stars. SUPER HOT when Helen gets in the mix.
Unfortunately, it is Book three ofIf this were a standalone erotic novel, I would have easily given it 4 stars. SUPER HOT when Helen gets in the mix.
Unfortunately, it is Book three of the Dark Olympus series, which, up to now, wonderfully blended steamy sex scenes with a fantastic mythological plot.
The plot of this book was a HEAVY-handed reliance on the Minotaur and the maze and a large dash of Helen of Troy. Paris was just as much of a tool in this as with the original myth, at least, haha.
The Menage was definitely hot: MMF, but it wasn't adding much to the plot besides some vague character development.
I was missing the overall story and the characters from before. Only a brief glimpse of Eros and Zeus.
With these disappointments, I am stuck at a 3 star....more
I had very high expectations and had heard a LOT about this book from y my Facebook Cliterature group. So I was expecting a crap story with a lot of sI had very high expectations and had heard a LOT about this book from y my Facebook Cliterature group. So I was expecting a crap story with a lot of spicy.
What I got: A highly entertaining, well-written, a kick-ass story that left me wanting more. I loved the characters, and I loved the idea behind this story.
While there are a lot of spicy scenes, I thought they were e a bit short and rushed. I had HIGH expectations, so that probably played into it. Due to the rush, I didn't have the time to feel much for them.
I never understand how dual narration maximizes the use of dialogue by one character by using the narrator to make it sound better. The Persophone narrator did NOT do a good Hades voice.
Overall I loved the political intrigue and will be continuing with this series. I'm excited to see what Katee Robert does with this world.
I literally don't even know how to review the unique experience of listening to this book adequately. And let me tell you, this is one you WANT to lisI literally don't even know how to review the unique experience of listening to this book adequately. And let me tell you, this is one you WANT to listen to. Unless there are some crazy awesome drawings, I am missing from the physical book, the narrative performance of Dion Graham was award-worthy. Marlon James put heart and soul into writing this novel, and Dion Graham put heart and soul into bringing it to life.
This book is intense. This book is unlike anything you will ever read.
This book WILL make you uncomfortable; you are supposed to be uncomfortable with the horrors running rampant in and around Congo. I guess this graphicness is where the comparison to Game of Thrones comes in. Eh... To me, the comparison is a stretch. Yes, there is technically a monarchy issue at its heart, and yes, there are graphic gore and blood and sexual scenes, but no. This one stands on its own.
Marlon James brings an added layer of intensity with the brilliant cadence of his reading, and you can feel it when you listen. He gets your adrenaline going. Sometimes it is like, Woah, dude, this is too much, but really that is what you SHOULD be feeling there. Bravo!
The African culture and mythology are just immensely fascinating. In a lifelong obsession with world mythology and especially animal-centric themes, I have, of course, been led down African paths of beliefs. This was awesome to have a bit of background knowledge. Even if the details of my memory were sparse, I was brought back into the throes of oppressive violence and control at the best of times. Marlon James' extensive research to the point of immersive understanding was evident through the pages. You can feel his sweat and passion seeping from the words.
Now let's be honest. This book is not always "enjoyable" per se. The topics are dark and horrible and REAL and weird as crap in some instances of hazes of memory, drugs, mythological changes and shapeshifting, and the gratuitous amount of penises slanging all around. Marlon James graphically depicts each and every torrid detail, especially in moments of violence and sex and the blurring of lines between the two. Probably not the best pick if you are not into gender fluidity. However, I thought this was very interestingly approached, and I enjoyed the portrayal of the approach.
Suppose we want to accurately compare the REAL depiction of a character who is sugar-coating NOTHING about their personality. In that case, you can look to despicable Stephen King characters that were uncomfortable to read the thoughts of at times. Then you could add in the envelope-pushing graphicness that can splendidly be found in Joe Hill's ability to look the genuinely dark corners of humanity in the eye and lay them bare. Now bring in Marlon James and the intensely violent parts of the lore of this area of the world and the different linguistic styles and slang, and bam, you have Black Leopard, Red Wolf. With androgynous women and massive slongs, men who can tear open their stomachs to create wombs and carry children.
A Burn that Ashton Kutcher would be proud of: "I am your uncle. I am the only one you have."
"Then I shall live in trees and shit in the river."
Captured a chuckle from me: "This bastard was becoming my favorite in Congo that was not a buffalo."
The section about the great floods was great to speculate about, and chapter 19 is the most intense chapter of the entire book. My head may have exploded for a second.
I rate this one 5 stars for taking me on a journey I was unprepared for, with little beforehand knowledge of what I was jumping into. It was long, and it was intense most of the time. The intro was the slowest, and even that wasn't too slow. I can't wait to pick up the next book. The ending was a great stopping point.
Trigger Warnings: pretty much think of something that could be triggering... there's a 90% chance it's in this book. Yes, that DOES include dendrophilia....more
I read it initially more than a decade ago and was more enamored with it. It is still enjoyable, but I can see many of This one is a quick, fun read.
I read it initially more than a decade ago and was more enamored with it. It is still enjoyable, but I can see many of the holes in the story and the lack of details in the main subplot of this novel.
It's great to read after knowing what comes in the future, and I can't wait to continue because Alcide is HOT in Book 3!!!! Woo Hoo!
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