2 ⭐
I originally rated the first two books 3 stars, but the more I read on, the more I started to become grated by this series as a whole and had to drop the previous ratings down.
The MMF in this series just didn't work for me at all. In fact I hated it. The MM aspect completely dominated every single part of these books. I let it slide in the first one, as Laurent and Varick had a decades-long, pre-existing relationship, and I thought the MMF angle would just be a heavy slowburn that would span across the 3 books. And in a lot of ways it was, but it still didn't improve at all.
I felt so sorry for Given (awful name btw). Despite the author repeatedly telling us that actually the MMCs do in fact love her and crave her just as much as they do each other, there was literally no evidence to support that. They were so indifferent to her the whole time. She was constantly left out, overlooked and forgotten about and it grated on me so much. They'd all be having sex together but only the MMCs would be looking at each other or holding hands, and only saying 'I love you' to each other while she is right there. It made Given seem just like a sex doll for them to use whenever they saw fit.
Laurent and Varick clearly had a lot more love for each other, which is understandable considering their long history, but at no point did Given ever feel like an equal. It felt like she could disappear altogether and neither of them would notice or care.
And I'd had high hopes for Varick and Given after their storyline in the second book. They formed a genuine and deep connection that felt natural and had me hopeful for where the series was headed. But of course that was immediately stomped out as soon as Laurent was back in the picture. Given was forgotten about yet again, despite the author trying so hard to tell us otherwise.
I couldn't stand Laurent as a character, and the series would have been miles better off if he was turned into a villain and not a part of the relationship at all anymore. Everything was always centred around him, he was selfish, manipulative, and lied and broke vows constantly. He was so unlikeable and felt so irredeemable in all 3 books. Varick I actually enjoyed, but how easily he gave in to Laurent at every turn was infuriating. I couldn't understand the hold he had over him at all.
Given had zero personality whatsoever. She was bland and had nothing about her apart from her powers. She was supposed to be the main character and heroine, but felt like like a spare part for most of it.
The storyline throughout the 3 books actually wasn't bad at all, and despite it being paced awfully and bit all over the place at times, it was the main reason I kept reading. The world-building wasn't great but it was an interesting one.
And the spice... As good as those scenes were at times there was just too many of them. It felt like every few chapters there was another one, at the most unnecessary times aswell. I'd turn a page, roll my eyes and think 'oh god, here we go'. They were also pretty repetitive and copy-paste. And, as always, Laurent was at the centre of everything. There was only one spicy scene, ONE, in the whole series that didn't involve him.
I did quite like the ending though (for the most part), and the epilogues were sweet.
The plot and characters did have a lot of potential but sadly this author couldn't deliver on most of it. Won't be reading any more by her, unfortunately.