Think Beauty and the Beast but extremely problematic. Buckle up Rad Readers, this was a rough ride...
If this if the first review you are reading of mine, you might want to start somewhere else. I don't usually do rant reviews. I typically like the majority of the books that I read or at least have something good to say about them, however I cannot say the same for this. Brace yourself rad readers because things are about to get a little heated. :)
Ugh, to be completely honest it was really tough finding something good enough or really analytical enough to write a review on this book, but I dug deep in my rad reader brain and I now think I have found respectable enough reasons to talk about this book. In all honesty I picked this book out because it was $3 at the goodwill bookstore, the title was 6/10 funky, and when I read the back of the book it really did sound promising. Biggest let down of my life thus far... and I am not being dramatic.
A description for your benefit...
So, we are in a dystopian (kind of mythological --hints of Greek Mythology sprinkled throughout) society where Nyx has been arranged since birth to marry the evil demon ruler of her kingdom. This is the case because her father made a bargain with him and promised that in return he would marry off one of his daughters to Ignifex (the demon). All Nyx's life she has planned to kill him and break the curse that has confined her people in this kingdom for thousands of years. However when she meets him she is unable to do it (for whatever reason she finds him endearing which -trust me- she should not). Strangely enough he is not what she expected and as she is trying to force herself to do what she has trained all her life to do she can't help but be drawn to Ignifex and his mysterious back story and castle. However, her chance to kill him and save her people has an expiration date and with time running out she needs to make a choice, and with resent towards her family and a change in heart towards her sworn enemy, circumstances are not as easy as they may seem.
Okay, so I just need to say this to get it out of the way, because the moment I was introduced to Ignifex's character and as he persisted to be just as evil and terrible as Nyx had prepared for, I just kept mentally screaming at my book that he is not different than she expected at all! He is evil and terrible and rude, she just reacted differently than she imagined she would!
There, glad we got that out of the way... Now onto a more poised evaluation of a very bad book.
This is the first in it's series, and having finished it, I can confidently say that I do not care at all about what happens next. I finished this book a week or so ago and I didn't even remember what the ending really was so I had to go back and reread. That is how un-impactful this story is!! Even rereading I was still so confused by the ending, there are too many plot holes to count and the way that everything is phrased is just... well, for lack of a better word... extra. Circumstances could have been told in far simpler terms and made much more sense, and definitely do not take that to mean that this is of a higher reading level. Certainly not. Take this to mean that the way this is written is just poor. I know that sounds harsh, but if you read this book (which I do not advise of you) you would understand my frustration. I could have been reading Turtles All the Way Down, or rereading The Goblet of Fire for the 6th time, but instead I wasted a good two or three days of my life in a confused and frustrated state.
I digress, I am not here to complain about time, I am here to complain about this book.
Allow me to present to you a quote from another more positive review I read:
"It's a dark tale that stabs you in the heart at every turn and constantly throws all new levels of craziness into the mix."
It stabbed me in the heart because I could feel a physical pain from the amount of precious time and life I was waisting reading this, and the "new levels of craziness" I would describe as 5 foot wide gaping plot holes, the only level of craziness provided to me was an annoyingly high degree of confusion. I'm sorry. I'm getting heated.
Now, as we all know I love to do, let's talk characters...
Oh boy, here we go.
Ignifex is terrible. Nay, volatile.
That should do it, but I will elaborate if I must. I am absolutely 100% tired of this "bad guy isn't that bad, just misunderstood" trope. If I've said it once, I've said it a million times, look no further than my Ignite Me by Tahereh Mafi review. I love that book and that series so far (I'm currently reading Restore Me) but the whole Warner-charachter transformation thing we have going on? I'm not into it. Once a bad guy that mercilessly kills thousands, ALWAYS a bad buy that mercilessly kills thousands. Once Ignifex is a demon that has killed and imprisoned an entire kingdom for some three thousand years, ALWAYS a demon that has-- okay. You get the gist. I found no redeemable qualities about him.
Nyx has what us non-delusional folks would called Stokholm Syndrome with just a little sprinkle or sociopathic tendencies. She went in there like an absolute queen. The first 100 pages or so I thought I was going to really enjoy this book. I liked the fact that in the beginning she was unapologetically bitter about the fact that her life was so completely unfair. She hated her sister, father, aunt, and everyone that had betrayed her. I am so tired of characters being so selfless. No, that is not how normal people react. If your father sold you off to a demon for marriage before you were even born, you should be angry! Nyx was and I loved that. However, once she gets in the castle, once she hesitates to kill Ignifex, things all started to go down hill from there. I have already delved into the extend to which things went down hill above. I do not think you guys need or frankly want to hear any more of my aggressive ranting to get the picture.
All in all 1/5 stars. First 100 pages? They had something to offer. The following 200 give or take? They fueled the fire that resulted in probably the meanest review I have and will ever produce here on this blog.
I apologize you all had to see me like this. Take this as a lesson. Absolutely don't read this book if you value your time.
Actually, who am I to tell you what to do? Read this book if you like, but you know that I for sure would not recommend it.
Stay rad my readers... stay rad,
-C8 :)