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Don't Let the Forest In
C.G. Drews
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Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil
Victoria E. Schwab
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Sunrise on the Reaping (The Hunger Games, #0.5)
Suzanne Collins
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The Shutouts
Gabrielle Korn
ash_reads_stuff finished reading and wrote a review...
The first thing that stood out to me about *The Monstrous Kind* was how slow and wordy it was. The first 30% felt like pure information dumping, and I kept waiting—hoping—for the pace to pick up. This is my first time reading a Regency-era novel with real substance, so I’m not sure if that kind of slow buildup is typical, but it made the reading experience feel like a slog. The story hinges on miscommunication between the sisters and repeated attacks by the Phantom, but neither element felt engaging enough to hold my attention. I found myself wanting it to be over. The only reason I didn’t DNF it was because it's an ARC, but I seriously considered it. As I kept reading, it became clear that one of the main issues was the protagonist, Merrick. She’s clearly privileged, yet spends most of the book complaining about her situation without making any real effort to change it. Everyone has their struggles—hers didn’t feel compelling enough to warrant the constant self-pity. Her character came across as one-dimensional, and she consistently blamed her problems on others, particularly her sister Essie and their father. Overall, this book didn’t work for me. The premise had potential, but the execution fell flat.
Post from the The Monstrous Kind forum
The first thing that stood out to me about *The Monstrous Kind* was how slow and wordy it was. The first 30% felt like pure information dumping, and I kept waiting—hoping—for the pace to pick up. This is my first time reading a Regency-era novel with real substance, so I’m not sure if that kind of slow buildup is typical, but it made the reading experience feel like a slog. The story hinges on miscommunication between the sisters and repeated attacks by the Phantom, but neither element felt engaging enough to hold my attention. I found myself wanting it to be over. The only reason I didn’t DNF it was because it's an ARC, but I seriously considered it. As I kept reading, it became clear that one of the main issues was the protagonist, Merrick. She’s clearly privileged, yet spends most of the book complaining about her situation without making any real effort to change it. Everyone has their struggles—hers didn’t feel compelling enough to warrant the constant self-pity. Her character came across as one-dimensional, and she consistently blamed her problems on others, particularly her sister Essie and their father. Overall, this book didn’t work for me. The premise had potential, but the execution fell flat.
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The Monstrous Kind
Lydia Gregovic
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The Shutouts
Gabrielle Korn
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The Monstrous Kind
Lydia Gregovic
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Post from the Heir (Heir Duology, #1) forum
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