This book started out fun (finally!) because Jude got exiled to the human world and she lived with Vivi, Heather and Oak. Best of all, Taryn visited and broke the news that she killed Locke and what a joyful moment that was because fuck Locke.
But then, things quickly turned sour again for me because i’m not getting enough Cardan.
Now listen, i might hate him as a love interest but I expected to see some character development for him or perhaps some redeeming quality because honestly? I’m still not sold on the idea of him and Jude. They just feel so.. bland? Like i just don’t see them being together as this sparks-flying kind of love and i’m still stuck on the concept of Cardan The Evil Bully. I’m also not sold on the idea of him being high king because i don’t think he deserves it and I don’t find him particularly charismatic or kingly or really /anything/ because we don’t see enough of him in this entire series so I can’t be rooting for him. I just don’t care for him. The moments Jude and Cardan shared were always fleeting and I don’t really find them exciting at all! I love characters driven stories but it feels like this entire series rest on Jude’s shoulder while everyone else are not developed or even shown all that much.
Moving on.
Halfway through the book Cardan turned into a snake. Yes. A snake. After professing his love for Jude (which by the way was half-baked and kinda meh), he turned into an actual fucking snake. It’s a curse, no one knew how to break it, yada yada yada. I was sure he was going to kick it and I found myself wondering, do I care? And the answer was no. But I needed something big to happen because I was growing bored and I wanted, again, some development be that in plot or the characters. But then, what supposedly is the climax of this book, us finding out whether Cardan lives or dies, turned into this juvenile scene where Jude decided that she’d behead the snake (which was not planned) and then tadaaa, there Cardan was, unscathed. The king Lives! And worst of all, right after he emerged from the dead, beheaded snake, he immediately went into action and to perform his “kingly” duties when he never bothered to do that before. And Jude, who’s supposedly in love with him vice versa, upon realising that the love of her life lives, only went to hug him and then NOTHING. A big fat nothing. There was no shed tears, no holding each other crying their eyes out because they were so scared they’d lose each other, none of that. We immediately got flung back into boring ass scenes. Literally when the snake died and Cardan emerged, i said “what the fuck?” Out loud because it was so juvenile and stupid and i’m a little pissed now.
Anyway, am i disappointed? Yes, a little bit. I just expected more and even if I don’t get the characters development I wanted, I just needed more actions or something exciting to be happening in this book, but I just got nothing.