The Vibes: slow burn, star-crossed lovers, muuuusic

Heat Index: 5/10

The Basics:

Although the curse on her family has been listed, Farrin struggles with the loss of her missing mother—and the fact that, as the Middlemist weakens, she must ally with Ryder Bask. She loathes him... but their connection may run deeper than she realizes.

The Review:

I approached this book really hopeful that it would be an improvement over the previous installment, A Crown of Ivy and Glass. Which wasn't a bad book; it just had some clear weaknesses. Unfortunately, I think I actually liked this one a bit less, despite the fact that I was excited about Ryder and Farrin after some hints in the ACoIaG.

Here's the thing: This book was too long.

And that's a common complain of mine lately. It's too long for a romance, including a fantasy romance. I would argue that it's especially too long because the world really doesn't need that much building. I like that Legrand has a cohesive plot arching over three books here with an otherwise standalone love story in each one. I used to read a lot of trilogies in this vein by Nora Roberts, including fantasy and paranormal series. Although she wrote about different standalone couples in each one, she spent less time explaining the backstory of the world in the second and third installments... Because the first covered it.

For all that the love story is meant to stand alone here, you are meant to read the first novel before this one. Often, the first book in a series like this is the rockiest, with smoother transitions into the second or third. I don't know if this was rocky, per se. The plot wasn't bad, the couple should've worked for me...

But it was just so slow, and part of that was the length. Part of that was again, as I've said often in romance reviews, the focus on Farrin's POV. I didn't feel like I got to know Ryder, and if I don't know Ryder, how can I know their love properly?

Fantasy-heavy readers may actually like this more, and I feel that the fantasy and political (as it is) aspects of the plot worked better than they did in the last. But I just couldn't really attach myself to the characters. When I could focus on the plot, I wasn't bored. I just could've focused better, in my opinion, with better character development and tighter editing.

Another thing I would say—I like Legrand's prose. I liked Farrin's voice (and I love that she's neurodivergent). There are so many components here I should like, so I can't say it's a bad book. It just read like the glue was missing.

The Sex:

I was also, I won't lie, disappolnted by the drop in heat in this one. Yes, I suppose it theoretically made sense for Farrin and Ryder. But it could've made sense for them to have more sex, too. I don't think I'd care as much if I wasn't excited for this couple and expecting more based off the last novel.

There's a recipe here. It just either isn't for me, or there's something missing. I don't know if I'll pick up the next book, but if what you wanted more of was the fantasy and non-romance plot from the last novel, you'll probably enjoy this a lot more than I did.

Thanks to NetGalley and Dreamscape Media for providing me with a copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.