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typedtruths's Reviews (1.8k)
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I was running from one problem or place to another, with no time left to study, or sleep, or just breathe. I felt pulled in all directions, fighting to keep all these obligations circling in the air above me. It was only a matter of time before something fell.
It's so easy to get caught up in what people expect of you. Sometimes, you can just lose yourself.
• My first [a:Sarah Dessen|2987|Sarah Dessen|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1372181953p2/2987.jpg] had a lot to live up to but it met every expectation
• Her prose has a beautiful fluidity to it; I easily read this in a single sitting
• I adored all of the characters
• By the end of this book, I had to take a deep breath. I was crying.
• This is a powerful book that made me tear up
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Since marathoning both [a:Karole Cozzo|8384952|Karole Cozzo|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1423248179p2/8384952.jpg] and [a:Sandy Hall|8030489|Sandy Hall|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1395866523p2/8030489.jpg]’s books in the past two months, I was eager to see what else Swoons Reads had to offer. When I heard that Love Fortunes and Other Disaster was set in the sort of light-hearted, whimsical fantasy world I’ve recently discovered I adore, I knew I had to grab a copy. Unfortunately, this one didn’t quite hit the mark for me.
My biggest problem with this story was that there were far too many moments when I had no idea what was happening. This book is set in a completely unique world: a town named Grimbauld where all the citizens are obsessed with a charm shop called Zita’s which can foretell - with 100% accuracy - how your love life in the following year will unfold. I did love the zany and whimsical tone of this setting. It was just so atmospheric! But like [b:Curio|25309770|Curio (Curio #1)|Evangeline Denmark|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1429751736s/25309770.jpg|45040351], this world was so complex that I didn’t quite understand it… which meant it was very difficult for me to drudge up the energy to really care about the town’s situation. Some lady named Zita wasn’t letting anyone else make love charms? It just seems a little overly dramatic to conduct a full of a rebellion against that. I wish we had gotten more information about the mechanics and political situation of their world so I could sympathise with the character’s struggles or at least understand them better.
I also don’t think we were ever given a proper definition of what charms are... so I still completely confused about that. Are the objects bewitched with spells? Infused with a potion? Does this means magic exists or is it a form of science? Can anyone make charms or it some sort of hereditary power? Are there other types of magic then? When the twin’s parents collect wind and earthquakes - how do they do it? How do you know the effect a charm will have? Not knowing these things drove me insane and did really retract from the story. Maybe they’ll be touched on in the sequel instead? *Fingers crossed*
The characters themselves weren’t too bad. Fallon was a decent protagonist but I didn’t get overly attracted to her. I did like that she was introverted and her friends embraced that about her. Sebastian would have been a much more brilliant character if he wasn’t cast as the redeemable ‘bad boy’ romantic interest. He was a sweetheart from day one - you weren’t fooling me! - and I just couldn’t understand why Fallon was acting all weird towards him just because he had dated a few people. I also thought the romance advanced a little too quickly. Fallon was sort of starting to realise she had more than friendly feelings towards Sebastian and the next thing we know, she’s telling her friends she was in love? Hmmm, seems a bit too much! I did really like them together but I would have liked a slower development.
Luckily, I fell in love with the secondary characters. I absolutely adored Nico! He was such a cute little cinnamon roll - my favourite type of protagonist - and his little crush on Martin melted my heart, even if it was a little annoying. Anais and Bear were also absolutely adorable, I just wish we had gotten to see more of them. I’d love to see them get their own story later in the series.
Overall?
I loved the whimsical world this book is set in but I needed more answers and world-building before I could get invested in a full-on rebellion. I thought the characters were decent, particularly the secondary characters - Nico! <3 - but I wasn’t fully onboard with the main romance. For a debut, though, this author definitely has promise. This undeniably had a clever premise and I’m hoping the sequel will blow me away.
My biggest problem with this story was that there were far too many moments when I had no idea what was happening. This book is set in a completely unique world: a town named Grimbauld where all the citizens are obsessed with a charm shop called Zita’s which can foretell - with 100% accuracy - how your love life in the following year will unfold. I did love the zany and whimsical tone of this setting. It was just so atmospheric! But like [b:Curio|25309770|Curio (Curio #1)|Evangeline Denmark|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1429751736s/25309770.jpg|45040351], this world was so complex that I didn’t quite understand it… which meant it was very difficult for me to drudge up the energy to really care about the town’s situation. Some lady named Zita wasn’t letting anyone else make love charms? It just seems a little overly dramatic to conduct a full of a rebellion against that. I wish we had gotten more information about the mechanics and political situation of their world so I could sympathise with the character’s struggles or at least understand them better.
I also don’t think we were ever given a proper definition of what charms are... so I still completely confused about that. Are the objects bewitched with spells? Infused with a potion? Does this means magic exists or is it a form of science? Can anyone make charms or it some sort of hereditary power? Are there other types of magic then? When the twin’s parents collect wind and earthquakes - how do they do it? How do you know the effect a charm will have? Not knowing these things drove me insane and did really retract from the story. Maybe they’ll be touched on in the sequel instead? *Fingers crossed*
The characters themselves weren’t too bad. Fallon was a decent protagonist but I didn’t get overly attracted to her. I did like that she was introverted and her friends embraced that about her. Sebastian would have been a much more brilliant character if he wasn’t cast as the redeemable ‘bad boy’ romantic interest. He was a sweetheart from day one - you weren’t fooling me! - and I just couldn’t understand why Fallon was acting all weird towards him just because he had dated a few people. I also thought the romance advanced a little too quickly. Fallon was sort of starting to realise she had more than friendly feelings towards Sebastian and the next thing we know, she’s telling her friends she was in love? Hmmm, seems a bit too much! I did really like them together but I would have liked a slower development.
Luckily, I fell in love with the secondary characters. I absolutely adored Nico! He was such a cute little cinnamon roll - my favourite type of protagonist - and his little crush on Martin melted my heart, even if it was a little annoying. Anais and Bear were also absolutely adorable, I just wish we had gotten to see more of them. I’d love to see them get their own story later in the series.
Overall?
I loved the whimsical world this book is set in but I needed more answers and world-building before I could get invested in a full-on rebellion. I thought the characters were decent, particularly the secondary characters - Nico! <3 - but I wasn’t fully onboard with the main romance. For a debut, though, this author definitely has promise. This undeniably had a clever premise and I’m hoping the sequel will blow me away.
This book left a sour taste in my mouth.
3.5 stars
Everless pulled of an impressive feat: it circumvented all of the tradition pitfalls of YA fantasies while still introducing a captivating world that will appeal to readers of the classics, like [b:Red Queen|22328546|Red Queen (Red Queen, #1)|Victoria Aveyard|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1449778912s/22328546.jpg|25037051], [b:The Sin Eater’s Daughter|21936988|The Sin Eater’s Daughter (The Sin Eater’s Daughter, #1)|Melinda Salisbury|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1422735103s/21936988.jpg|41240830] and [b:Graceling|3236307|Graceling (Graceling Realm, #1)|Kristin Cashore|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1331548394s/3236307.jpg|3270810]. Yet it was kind of... average?
I admit that I found it impossible to put down… at least, until the last fifty pages or so. The premise really called to me. I've heard some whispers that it is very similar to a particular movie but personally, I have never read or seen anything like this before. I did think that the blood-time currency carried a lot of the plot, which was fine with me, but I would have liked the court intrigue to be actually, well, intriguing. The romantic subplot was also plain old unnecessary.
Jules was not a memorable protagonist, and I think that was what let this down the most. I liked her well enough but when I look back, I cannot remember a single defining thing about her. She had no real hobbies or interests. Her personality subtly shifted about as the plot demanded it, and I think that in the long-term, she will join the pile of forgotten fantasy protagonists in the corner of my mind palace. The secondary characters, on the other hand, were intriguing. I fell in love with all the possibilities Liam presented, and characters like Lora and Ina were much more developed than Jules.
Overall? I think Everless was well-written and immersive but it failed to connect with me on a deeper level. I found it a tad forgettable. Okay, a lot forgettable. Will I read the rest of the series? Yes, probably to sate my curiosity but it is not high on my priority list.
Trigger warnings for blood/needles, self-inflicted injury, and violence/death.
Review based on an unfinished review copy and may be subject to change.
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Everless pulled of an impressive feat: it circumvented all of the tradition pitfalls of YA fantasies while still introducing a captivating world that will appeal to readers of the classics, like [b:Red Queen|22328546|Red Queen (Red Queen, #1)|Victoria Aveyard|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1449778912s/22328546.jpg|25037051], [b:The Sin Eater’s Daughter|21936988|The Sin Eater’s Daughter (The Sin Eater’s Daughter, #1)|Melinda Salisbury|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1422735103s/21936988.jpg|41240830] and [b:Graceling|3236307|Graceling (Graceling Realm, #1)|Kristin Cashore|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1331548394s/3236307.jpg|3270810]. Yet it was kind of... average?
I admit that I found it impossible to put down… at least, until the last fifty pages or so. The premise really called to me. I've heard some whispers that it is very similar to a particular movie but personally, I have never read or seen anything like this before. I did think that the blood-time currency carried a lot of the plot, which was fine with me, but I would have liked the court intrigue to be actually, well, intriguing. The romantic subplot was also plain old unnecessary.
Jules was not a memorable protagonist, and I think that was what let this down the most. I liked her well enough but when I look back, I cannot remember a single defining thing about her. She had no real hobbies or interests. Her personality subtly shifted about as the plot demanded it, and I think that in the long-term, she will join the pile of forgotten fantasy protagonists in the corner of my mind palace. The secondary characters, on the other hand, were intriguing. I fell in love with all the possibilities Liam presented, and characters like Lora and Ina were much more developed than Jules.
Overall? I think Everless was well-written and immersive but it failed to connect with me on a deeper level. I found it a tad forgettable. Okay, a lot forgettable. Will I read the rest of the series? Yes, probably to sate my curiosity but it is not high on my priority list.
Trigger warnings for blood/needles, self-inflicted injury, and violence/death.
Review based on an unfinished review copy and may be subject to change.
Blog • Twitter • Instagram
