JJ
I was hoping this one would be better than the first, but no such luck. It badly needs an editor to trim out the fat. There are way too many details that are unnecessary, and the author again gets sidetracked with what happens in the future and it really disrupts the flow. As for the story itself, all I could think was that these guys had a really toxic relationship. Apparently it ends up working out, but it's just not enjoyable to read.
This quote from the book says it all:
“He didn't even know why he was laughing, but the whole situation felt stupid, impossible, like a bad comedy with creepy dialogue and a wacky plot.”
It's bizarre; the characters' motives and thoughts are inconsistent and make no sense. I feel like I know what this book was aiming to be (dark with sexy evil dude who mindfucks his captive), but it just fails spectacularly with awkwardness to the point of hilarity. Honestly, the only redeeming quality of this book is finding out that there will be a 3rd book in the series with this cover:
Blurb:
I don't know how it gets to that, but I have to say, that was one of the funniest unexpected things I've seen in my life.
4.5 stars
Fuck this book for torturing me. That was brutal. I couldn't put it down.
Two criticisms:
1) whenever a character was pouring their heart out to another, it always sounded like the same person was speaking, even though it was different characters each time. They all had the same “voice”
2) I wanted more for the ending. I was left unsatisfied.
Overall, this book was just OK. Not great, not terrible. The writing was mediocre, and the dialogue was mostly cringe-worthy. The author would suddenly get sidetracked at random times with what would happen in the future, which was pretty jarring. I was hoping this would be a sweet story about two guys becoming friends, but most of the interactions recounted in this book were them bickering all the time, and not in a fun bantering way. It wasn't endearing; instead I just felt a lot of secondhand embarrassment while reading it because it was so juvenile.
2023 Reread:
Still so good! Finished it last night and watched the movie today. Unfortunately, the movie doesn't do it justice because they cut out/changed too many key parts that I feel are pretty central to the MCs and plot, but it was cute in parts. I at least enjoyed reading the book again! It really was perfectly timed when I first read it, and I remember how good it was for my mental health during such a stressful year.
Original 2020 review:
With the US election days away and the pandemic ramping up yet again all over the world, I desperately needed an escape from this shitshow of a year. This book gave me the perfect escape into an alternate timeline where Trump doesn't exist, covid is not a thing, and the president's son falls in love with a prince.
The writing is the kind I love most. Fanfic style, meaning present tense with clever snarky humor. It could have been smuttier, but it was still quite hot. I laughed so much while reading this, and I loved all the characters.
It wasn't super believable, but you know what? Our current reality wasn't very believable just a few years ago, yet here we fucking are. So I enjoyed pretending I lived in an equally unbelievable, but much better timeline, just for a little while. Did wonders for my mental health. That was the authors intention, and I for one am grateful!
Boring AF, too much of the plot was not believable/didn't even make sense, too much unnecessary filler. Also, I'm all for a slow burn, but nothing was even lit in this book. Apparently I have to slog through book 2 just for a kiss, and I'm not sure I can do it. Can someone please give me a hint of whether it's worth it to read the other 2 books? Does it get more interesting?
Well written, enjoyable, but not in the way I'd expected/hoped for. The characters have a weird dynamic that kind of hurt my brain, but it made the book interesting. Personal reasons that I didn't really connect with the book were that I hate Toby's name (I blame The Office) and it was such a turnoff every time Laurie said “Toby, oh Toby,” and I also hate poetry, which features rather prominently in this book. I am now off to reread Power Play: Resistance, which offers more of what I was hoping for when I decided to read this one.
I was hugely disappointed in this book, unfortunately. The reappearance of Kai Ren was the whole reason I looked forward to reading this since it was first announced, but he didn't show up until nearly the end, and even then it was less than thrilling. To be honest, not much of anything happened during most of the book. It reminded me of those papers I'd write in school where I had to bullshit my way through, just filling pages with words to meet the requirement rather than actually saying anything of substance.
For much of the book, it was basically saying Brady is extremely protective of his sister and feels out of place and undeserving of Cam because he's just an obstinate reffo, and Cam is endlessly understanding but also craves a return to the black. This was repeated a million different ways, making Brady and Cam so two-dimensional because that's basically ALL that was ever said about them.
I got the impression LH's heart really wasn't in this one, which makes me sad because I loved the first book and thought the second had SO much potential.
My kind of fic. They're both fucked up and even a mate bond isn't gonna fix them. Hell, it's part of the reason they're screwed up to begin with.
My favorite part was their text conversations. Perfectly in character and so amusing.
My only niggle was the way Stiles spoke to Peter when he was a child sounded more like how a kid in an old B&W TV show would address an adult. Don't care though; I loved everything else about it so much that it gets a full 5 stars from me!
“I think I'd like to stop at the Quick Lube. Is it quick, really, or is that just the name? Do they service Hondas? Will they need to see my title and registration? Do I need an appointment? Can I pay with my debit card?”
#me
I really enjoyed reading from Elijah's perspective, and I think it was necessary in order to understand the depth of his character, as it's not outwardly expressed and therefore couldn't be shown through Daniel's POV.
I do wish the mnems had been less obvious, because I like being surprised. I look forward to seeing how everything is wrapped up in the final book, hopefully with some surprises along the way!
2022 Re-read:
Starting this series over since I never got around to reading the final book and now it's been so long, I couldn't remember anything that happened. It was fun experiencing all that delicious UST all over again!
Original review:
3.5 stars
This book has an interesting premise, and I'm intrigued enough to continue to the next in the series.
In the author's note at the end, Price mentions her love of two of my favorite films, Memento and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, because they “keep the character's objective reality in question.” I loved them for the same reason, so I look forward to seeing what she does with this idea in the Mnevermind books.
I hate to say it, but I was pretty disappointed with this book. I absolutely loved the first in the series, and laughed countless times while reading it, but this one paled in comparison. It had lots of cutesy and slapstick type humor, which just ain't my thing. And I really don't find OTT dumb/clueless characters like Blake funny at all. I did laugh a couple of times, usually at something Mark said, but I cringed at most of what was supposed to be humorous. Even Mark didn't seem quite like I remembered him - more reckless antics than the clever snarkiness I loved. There were some good moments between Brandon and Alex that I enjoyed, and that's the only reason this wasn't a one star for me. Here's hoping the next in the series will be more like the first!
3.5 stars
My first mpreg with a live birth. I wouldn't have read it if it'd been fluffy, and I felt the angsty aspect made it much more realistic. I mean, as realistic as you can get with mpreg. I thought it was well written, and the pack dynamics were a great touch that I haven't seen much of in the TW fanfic I've read thus far. The slow burn between Stiles and Derek was nicely done, eventually culminating in a pretty satisfying fuck.
So yeah, even though I can say for sure mpreg really isn't my cup of tea, and I'm not a fan of babies/children in my books/fics, I still liked this one because of the direction the author went with it.
4.5 stars
This fic puts the reader inside Stiles' mind as he experiences Stockholm syndrome. He knows Peter is fucked up and manipulative, but he is already fucked up himself from the Nogitsune, and finds himself more afraid of his reality without Peter than what he experiences under his control. It's very dark and stays that way, which I think is appropriate because fluff would have felt totally out of place. Mind the warnings - there is violent rape and bloodplay so it's not for the faint of heart.
I think it would have been better if Stiles' acceptance had been more gradual, and Peter's use of endearments seemed excessive to me, especially because I can only imagine him saying “sweetheart” sarcastically.
I loved everything else about it though, and ate this up as quickly as she spit it out!
3.5 stars
This one's a little difficult to rate. I can't say I got bored reading it, but it was easy to put down and I wasn't dying to get back to it after doing so. It felt like not a lot happened even though the book was pretty long - or more accurately, more of the same kept happening (as far as their relationship went). I feel like I should be able to say it was well written, but it was lacking that certain something that makes me feel invested in the characters. I was not emotionally affected by it at all, but I know I should have been. I liked the guys well enough, but for some reason, I just didn't connect with them.
So overall, it was good, but definitely missing something in my opinion. Extra half star for that awesome cover!