Noire

The concept and characters of this work sucked me in immediately, and I thought I might have found a new favorite romance series. And then...I got further into the book. Unfortunately, as much as the story and the characters held my attention, the writing of the characters and emotions was such a distraction that it's hard for me to imagine picking up another book by the series.

Put simply, as much as 'show don't tell' has become a writing advice cliche, this book is just the sort that proves the saying needs to be understood. Sure, there's a place for telling. But readers need to feel connected to characters and story. Here, everything related to feeling and emotion and goals/motivation was, to be blunt, 'told'--and it was 'told' show more repeatedly, each point hammered home without any real nuance. So, while the action scenes were really well-written, and the overall plotting was solid, no emotion ever came through the characters. You knew they were sad only because they were suddenly crying, or in pain because you suddenly told they cried out in pain. None of the emotions or feelings were shown in a way that engaged the reader or made the characters feel real because attention was put on repetition rather than real depth when it came to what characters experienced. So, even though the story was interesting and well-constructed, the characters felt more cardboard than real, and it was difficult to engage throughout.

I wanted to love this book. I want to be excited to go on to the next book in the series. Unfortunately, the writing around characters' experiences was so rushed, and so unengaging, neither is true. The book simply needed more time/development to carry any real emotional impact.

Not recommended, I'm afraid. show less

This is the first book I have read by this author. Instantly, i was sucked into this book. I could not read it fast enough. In fact, i finished it in one day. There are so many monsters to make a monster romance lover very happy. Although, i do have to admit that when I was picturing the monsters, all I could think about where the ones from the campy horror movie, Cabin in the Woods. All those monsters trapped in rooms waiting to be released.

I love Noire and Diana. Right away i could feel the sexual attraction between them. It just grows stronger and stronger the more time that they spent with each other. The intimate moments between them were so HOT.

Additionally, i want to take a moment to call out the rest of the cast of characters. show more They were all great. I was cheering for them all. I can't wait to read book two. In fact, i rushed to go get book two and saw that it does not come out for a few more weeks. This book is an instant must read that will have you "knotting" for more! show less