C A > Recent Status Updates

Love, love, LOVE the premise... but this book is in DESPERATE need of a structural editor. It's much too long with excessive repetition. This book could have easily lost 200 pages and been so much better.

I am STILL at 56%. The book put me in a slump and I needed to seek out a palate cleanser to keep going. Burned through another book in one day and realized the problem wasn't me... it's Deep End. It's just not fun? Meh... I'll finish it eventually, but I'm not really enjoying the newer Hazelwood books. Such a shame.

Sigh… Ali Hazelwood, still at it. Every single book of hers has the same problem: interesting plots, likable MMCs, but a MFC that makes me roll my eyes constantly. They are Mary Sue personified. Good at EVERYTHING except one thing that will be resolved by the end of the book. “Plain” but irresistible to the MMC. WILDLY intelligent, but has the emotional maturity of a gnat. Spice is nice though.

This is giving serious Secretary (2002) vibes—not in the story, but in the characters and how I expect them to grow. I’m really not a fan of the whole Penelope storyline, but so far I’d put this at a 3.5-4 stars.

Uhhh... This is going to sound REALLY nitpicky, but why third person omniscient for the MMC's chapters but first person for the FMC's chapters? It's weird and off-putting. Most of the Dual POV CRs out there use a consistent POV style and just work on differentiating chapters by voice.

It feels utterly bizarre to be inside the FMC's head but just "hearing" the MMC's thoughts from an external viewpoint. Not a fan.

I’m enjoying this book significantly more than the first book in the series. Feyre is better written, more complex, and has more chemistry with the characters here than she did in ACOTAR. I never thought she and Tamlin had much connection, so book one made little sense to me.

This is a tough one. I like the idea of the book, I like the plot and conflict presented, but I absolutely cannot stand the stream-of-consciousness style of writing and obnoxious FMC. Every single conversation is bloated with her internal monologue that adds nothing to the story and every other page she wonders about the MMC's love life. I hope it gets better, but I may just not be the audience for Mariana Zapata.

I wasn’t sure what to expect going into this book and it sat idle on my TBR for longer than it should have.

Thankfully it has already caught me in the first few pages.

Oh god, my heart. 😞

Anna is emotionally intelligent, kind, and funny. I take back my MPDG comment. She is shaping up to be a great FMC and I’m absolutely on her side. Can’t wait to see where the story goes. Leaning closer to a 5-star for me right now.

So far loving this book. The MCs are attracted to each other, but are behaving believably given the circumstances. FMC has a great sense of humor and feels like a more realistic version of a MPDG (but not in a bad way). Common tropes, but still enjoyable.

Likely shaping up to be a 4- or 5-star for me. Perfect summer escapism read!