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aforestofbooks 's review for:
A Curse So Dark and Lonely
by Brigid Kemmerer
Giving this a 3 stars because I honestly don't have a lot of thoughts about this one.
There was definitely a lot of hype surrounding this book, which was the main reason I decided to give it a go. I wanted something quick and easy to read on my commute to and from work. But overall, I was kind of underwhelmed.
Beauty and the Beast retellings feel overdone to me now. And while this was a new take, I just didn't care for Rhen all that much. He isn't all that likeable, and he mostly just wallows in self pity and guilt and regret. He's constantly arguing with Harper, which I know was meant to pass as sexual tension or something, but then he would ignore her/give her the silent treatment and Harper would be all sad and miserable and I just didn't like that. It kind of problematic and abusive.
Grey aka Scary Grey was the reason I finished this book. He's just the perfect, squishable character. I loved his hard exterior to the world and people around him. And whenever a little bit of that softness broke through, it warmed my heart. He deserves all the happiness. I did guess the "plot twist" though, and while it seems promising, I still don't care enough to bother reading the next book. The ending mostly resolved the conflict. At least in a way that I just don't find myself wanting to know what will happen after.
Harper was an okay character. I liked how she didn't let her cerebral palsy effect what she could/couldn't do. She's definitely a strong character and I'm glad there was no insta-love. But she wasn't memorable in any way. She completely forgot about her brother and mother until she was reminded of them. And even once she got to see them, she treated Jake awfully. Considering he wanted no part in this, she dragged him and Noah into a dangerous situation with no care to their safety or the repercussions. I get saving Emberfall is important, but Jake is family.
Overall, this is a pretty fast read, and it is entertaining at times. I found that some parts dragged a bit and that I was mostly just trying to get to the end and hoping for a resolution of some sort. I did like how the book focused on choices and how the decisions you make at a moment in time are not necessarily bad decisions, but the best possible decision you could make. And I found that to be kind of reassuring, especially since I'm the sort of person to hate myself over my past decisions, even though I did the best I could at the time.
Rating: 3 stars
There was definitely a lot of hype surrounding this book, which was the main reason I decided to give it a go. I wanted something quick and easy to read on my commute to and from work. But overall, I was kind of underwhelmed.
Beauty and the Beast retellings feel overdone to me now. And while this was a new take, I just didn't care for Rhen all that much. He isn't all that likeable, and he mostly just wallows in self pity and guilt and regret. He's constantly arguing with Harper, which I know was meant to pass as sexual tension or something, but then he would ignore her/give her the silent treatment and Harper would be all sad and miserable and I just didn't like that. It kind of problematic and abusive.
Grey aka Scary Grey was the reason I finished this book. He's just the perfect, squishable character. I loved his hard exterior to the world and people around him. And whenever a little bit of that softness broke through, it warmed my heart. He deserves all the happiness. I did guess the "plot twist" though, and while it seems promising, I still don't care enough to bother reading the next book. The ending mostly resolved the conflict. At least in a way that I just don't find myself wanting to know what will happen after.
Harper was an okay character. I liked how she didn't let her cerebral palsy effect what she could/couldn't do. She's definitely a strong character and I'm glad there was no insta-love. But she wasn't memorable in any way. She completely forgot about her brother and mother until she was reminded of them. And even once she got to see them, she treated Jake awfully. Considering he wanted no part in this, she dragged him and Noah into a dangerous situation with no care to their safety or the repercussions. I get saving Emberfall is important, but Jake is family.
Overall, this is a pretty fast read, and it is entertaining at times. I found that some parts dragged a bit and that I was mostly just trying to get to the end and hoping for a resolution of some sort. I did like how the book focused on choices and how the decisions you make at a moment in time are not necessarily bad decisions, but the best possible decision you could make. And I found that to be kind of reassuring, especially since I'm the sort of person to hate myself over my past decisions, even though I did the best I could at the time.
Rating: 3 stars