Gail Dayton

Random thoughts:

The first chapters were lovely. Made me expect much more than was ultimately delivered.

I loved that the first description of the heroine is that she is strong.

Most sensual and arousing finger licking in the history of finger licking.

Also loved the fact that we see the characters bonding through the course of many weeks. The plot devices used for this needed to be more transparent.

I liked the tentative way in which sexual assault survivors were written.

I did not like that the sex scene of the book was written in a sensual way to titillate the reader while comparing and contrasting every move the male character did with that of Amanusa's rapists.

I also didn't like that from the start I knew that there was going to be a public display of how she was raped and abused, in front of important people so she can be exonerated for her alleged crimes. It is a trope we often see in such books and is one that really annoys me.

It skipped and skimmed though important parts of the plot but made sure to reference every wardrobe change, every touch of hands, in detail.

The evil characters were caricatures obsessed with hurting the heroine just because.

Character consistency was nonexistent. The heroine is from a village in Romania but all she needs to be able to blend in high society is just a new dress. She truly is a Mary Sue.

The sexism is over the top absurd. It's ridiculous to think that high society men, even in an alternate reality of the late 19th century, would shout at a woman they just met that she is a whore, while in the presence of other respectable gents.

Again the trope of writing everyone as shitty a person as possible so the heroine can shine.

What about the freaking dead zones then?

Wow I just read 500 pages in a day. I suppose this speaks in favor of the book.

Don't know if I'll read the rest. I'm glad to see they focus on other couples but i heard that the dead zone thing lies still unsolved by the end of the second book.… (meer)