Echo

Well, good to know I still don't like revenge plots. :/

I was very intrigued by how messed up this book was initially. It was like watching a car crash (oh god, maybe I should use a different comparison) and I couldn't put it down at first. There's no question that Ryland is depraved. And then you start to realize that maybe Brighton has just as much darkness in her.

Then, of course, Brighton catches feelings, and it kind of seems like Ryland has too! They can rip up their contract and be together in their own little messed up world forever! And that's when I put the book down for a year. I really didn't want to see how their relationship inevitably crash and burns.

And oh boy does it crash. [spoilers ahead]

I think this is fundamentally why I dislike revenge plots in my romance books. I hate the push and pull it generates. First she's resolved to leave him when she finds out who he really is. Then she goes back when he almost dies. Then he betrays her (oh no, how could he) and she leaves him again, but this time, there's a secret baby! Gasp! I don't know who's more stupid. Brighton for believing Ryland wouldn't try to kill her brother or Ryland for not going to goddamn therapy.

At the same time, and this might sound crazy, why in the world is Brighton trying to save her family so badly? Like, sure, Ryland should stop trying to kill them I suppose, but they also treat her like crap? I kept waiting for her to realize this when she went back to live with them, but she never did. I don't know, she probably has morals or something, but I'm just putting it out there.