So I’ve been listening to Fourth Wing and will do Iron Flame too in preparation for the Onyx Storm release next week and I chose the graphic audio version since it sounded like a cool concept and I also didn’t vibe with the narrator of the normal audiobook from the sample.
Overall I’m really enjoying it, but there are some things that definitely takes me right out of the story every now and then
- Xaden’s voice actor is not great. He has moments where lines are delivered very well, but mostly he sounds kinda obnoxious and flat. Like he said “I’m on my way” or something to that effect in which the narrator says he had an edge of panic in his voice right after and he definitely did not. Like he had no emotional inflection in his voice at all and this tends to happen often.
Xaden is supposed to be cocky and arrogant, yes, but he’s also charismatic and confident and the voice actor doesn’t really pull that off. Like I said he just aounds obnoxious a lot of the time, like one of those trustfund baby stereotypes… makes me cringe a lot. He does have some moments here and there that he really delivers a line well though, so it’s not all bad
- The excessive moaning when they’re just kissing. And Violet low key sounding like she’s being tortured when they’re doing the deed.
I was so taken aback when I got to their first kiss because the moaning was just too much. The second the kiss started they sounded like they were about to finish if you know what I mean… it just was so weird to me.
And their first time, as mentioned Violet mostly just sounded like she was in pain. She did have some parts that sounded like she was enjoying herself, but mostly it sounded like a torture scene and that made things very weird for me
- Lastly, Tairn. I’m disappointed in his voice. I wish it was grittier, like a bit more like the voice actor for Professor Kaori (don’t remember if that’s the correct spelling), but at least he delivers his lines pretty well. Like my only issue is the sound of the voice, not the voice acting itself.
All this being said, I still am enjoying it a lot (I’m almost at the end now) and I will be doing the graphic audio version of Iron Flame too.
Have you listened to the graphic audio version? What did you think about it?
So I just started reading Crescent City after seeing it being recommended here and there. I knew basically nothing about it though other than getting the sound bite Ruhn Danaan crown prince of the Valbaran Fae on tik tok a lot. Tik tok made it seem like he would be the love interest and I got so confused when he was just introduced as Bryce’s half brother😂
I was like either this is a fake brother situation or this is a whole different book than I thought😅
The Graham Effect by Elle Kennedy
I devoured this in like two days. It was a great read and I love that it was more about the couple growing as people together and that the problems were mostly external. Like no stupid third act breakup just for the sake of it like I feel like too many romance books do.
I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was fun to get the little cameos from the OG generation too.
Also, Ryder was top tear! I’m obsessed with him. He’s just my type of book guy.
I had like one thong that annoyed me, which was the fight between Gigi and Ryder where she pushed him to talk about why he was upset and he didn’t want to and then she proceeded to not tell him why she was upset. Like he’d snapped at her which he apologised for, but she was still angry with him for not opening up and just expecting him to know that was the reason she was mad.
She should’ve just communicated that to him. Like dude, come on. She knows he’s not a talker. That he’s not used to sharing shit. Don’t expect him to be a mind reader.
The talk he had with his teammates girlfriend should have been had with Gigi.
But other than that I didn’t have any major annoyances or anything.
I just get frustrated when there’s poor communication😅
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ (5/5)
I forgot how much there was I got frustrated by in Iron Flame, like Varrish who fills me with rage in every scene he is in and Jack fucking Barlow.
I also do get fed up with both Violet and Xaden with their communication issues, but I try to remind myself of how young they are and that helps. Although Violet is the one who annoys me the most with all the hypocrisy and the full disclosure bullshit.
I think it bothers me the most because she has grown up in a military environment so she should know that some things aren’t for everyone to know. She is fine with Mira telling her “you can’t know that, it’s classified”, but it’s not fine when it’s Xaden, like because she’s in love with him she should get to know things that aren’t his to tell?
He also has a bunch of things that he could have told her, but he has his whole you have to ask thing going on which is also annoying.
It’s kinda hard for them to know how to be in a relationship with healthy communication though cause they don’t exactly have a lot of great examples around them😅
Still love this book though and I’m beyond excited for the release of Onyx Storm next week!
I just plowed through the first two books in this series and am just staring this third one. I’m obsessed!
This one was so good! I’ve seen in around on booktok and here on insta and I just hadn’t gotten around to it yet, but boy am I glad I did! I tore through it like two days, I couldn’t put it down, I just wanted to know what would happen next.
I’m obsessed with Xaden, talk about a shadow daddy🥵
I loved how Violet grew throughout. I love that she has a chronic illness, made me relate to her more cause I have one too (not the same one, but one where accommodations sometimes need to be made for me to do the things I want or have to do) so that was great.
I liked the relationships both platonic and romantic ones. And the mysteries were intriguing.
Tairn was hilarious, love him and Andarna is precious and must be protected at all costs🥺❤️
That ending had me shook! Didn’t see it coming. There were a lot of things I did see coming throughout the book, but that ending, no. It was surprising for me.
5/5 for me. I had a great time reading it.
And to quote fantasy fangirls pod: 🎶God fucking damn it Dain🎶
Today is the day!
See you on the other side🫡
Holy shit, what a wild ride.
I finished Onyx Storm literally like 30 minutes ago and I can’t even. So much happened, some things I expected and some surprised me, but man was it a good read.
I had to sit and stare at nothing for a while after I read the last page. I don’t know what to do with myself now that I’ve been in a vacuum in this world for the past couple of days😅
How are we feeling about Onyx Storm? Did you enjoy it? Were you disappointed? Let me know.
I personally loved it!
Every writer is different. Every writer creates as they wish. If everyone wrote the same way or made the same artistic choices, then we would have nothing but copy paste stories that don't shine with the vibrant colors of their authors.
What I'm trying to say is that trying to police a writer into adhering to some standard you have set in your head is like trying to stop the flow of coursing water.
It goes where it wants to go and water will erode any stone or metal, even if it takes a long time.
Writing is as much an art as painting and music and all the other art forms in which we so openly accept innovation.
Let writers create the way they feel is best. If their style does not appeal to you, move on. Find someone whose style does and pay them the compliment of your kind words instead of lashing out to those who don't fit your mold.
Titles and Ratings:
- Deaths’s Bloom by Lily Mayne 4/5
- A Delicious Descent by Amanda Meuwissen 4/5
- Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston 5/5
- The Spiral Down by Aly Martinez 4/5
- Game Changer by Rachel Reid 4/5
- Heated Rivalry by Rachel Reid 5/5
- Tough Guy by Rachel Reid 5/5
- Common Goal by Rachel Reid 4/5
- Role Model by Rachel Reid 5/5
- The Long Game by Rachel Reid 5/5
- Shades of Lust by E M Lindsey 5/5
- Waiting on forever by E M Lindsey 5/5
- Taste of Greed by E M Linsdey 5/5
- Spark of Wrath by E M Lindsey 5/5
February was a bit of a re-read month for me, though I did get in a few new to me books too.
Enjoyed all the new ones I read which is always great, cause you never really know. Sometimes it’s been more missed than hits, you know. E M Lindsey is usually a safe bet for me though. I haven’t read a book of hers I haven’t enjoyed yet (I have not read all her books, so that might change, who knows🤷🏻♀️).
What was your favorite read in February?
Fourth Wing and Iron Flame was definitely the highlight of the month for me, with parts of us a close second.
But I had a great time with all the books I read for sure.
Ratings:
- Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros 5/5
- Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros 5/5
- Twisted Love by Ana Huang 4/5
- A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J Maas 4/5
- A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J Maas 5/5
- A Court of Wings and Ruin by Sarah J Maas 5/5
- A Court of Frost and Starlight by Sarah J Maas 4/5
- Parts of Us by Cara Dee 5/5
- A Court of Silver Flames 5/5
- Cattle Stop by Kit Oliver 5/5
- Don’t You Dare by C E Ricci 4/5
- Power Play by Cara Dee 5/5