3.5 stars
OVERALL: Murdoch doesn't want to accept any choices made by fate, Daniela just wants to be loved and cherished, they both are very sexually frustrated. A good installment in the series, ties together a number of books' storylines, decently steamy for their predicament. My biggest 'meh' element was the hero being annoying to me.
Content Warnings: sexually explicit scenes, violence, death, blood, burns

I thought this one was okay--it functioned to tie many threads together and see 'behind the scenes' moments from other books, which was fun to revisit.
I actually really liked the heroine in this book, I felt like she was relatable in her loneliness and resignation and desire for love and company, plus (as my friend Izzy said) she really wanted an alpha guy and the guy she got was the least alpha we've encountered in this series, lol.
Honestly, that was a big frustration for me: I was annoyed with Murdoch for a lot of this book. I understood his reluctance, because he wanted to choose his mate and not have fate do that part, and also it's understandable that he wouldn't want to give up on the physical aspects of a relationship and that was a huge hurdle. BUT he knew that the woman who 'blooded' him would be his perfect match, so... don't look a gift horse in the mouth??

2021 review: 3.5 it’s fine. It fills some gaps but really it’s just weird. Favorite part is that Dani really wanted an alpha and got the softest beta Kresley can write (so not a real one