Review: This book managed to break my heart and mend it at the same time. 

 

“Gods & Monsters” follows Lou, Reid, Coco, and Beau as they seek vengeance for the destruction caused by Morgane le Blanc in “Blood & Honey.” 

 

Like the previous novel, “Gods & Monsters” transports the reader to new environments beyond the city of Cesarine. I really enjoyed exploring the waters of the L’eau Mélancolique, especially since they were only mentioned in passing in the first two books in the trilogy, and learning about the Melusine’s way of life. Mahurin’s take on mermen and mermaids is both unique an a touch dark, immediately capturing my attention and holding it. 

 

Lou’s personal journey of healing and self-discovery in this book is infused with emotion and drove me to tears on several occasions. Mahurin does a fantastic job convincing her readers to invest in the well-being of her characters by sharing their hopes, fears, and everything in between across all three of her books. It is for this reason that reading from Lou’s perspective was so painful. She felt like a friend of mine, a friend I just wanted to hug desperately. 

 

Lou and Reid’s love story in this book also elicited many tears. Without giving too much away, Reid makes the ultimate sacrifice, which leads the two of them to undergo the most difficult and truest test of their love. Alternating between their povs and watching them fall in love with each other all over again reminded me of how much I adored the establishment and development of their relationship in the first book of this series as well as the chemistry between them. 

 

While the quest the characters go on feels too drawn out by the end, I did not mind because I received the closure I wanted and needed. Additionally,  I found myself genuinely having fun spending more time with Mahurin’s characters. I am so glad I get to inhabit their minds for a while longer and return to the Kingdom of Belterra in “The Scarlet Veil”!