GODS & MONSTERS
Author: Shelby Mahurin
Source: Audio from Audible
Publisher: HarperTeen
Publication Date: July 27, 2021
Overall Rating:
Diversity Rating:
Summary:
Purchase:
The spellbinding conclusion to the New York Times and IndieBound bestselling trilogy Serpent & Dove. This stunning fantasy take on French witches and forbidden love is perfect for fans of Sarah J. Maas.
Evil always seeks a foothold. We must not give it one.
After a heartbreaking loss, Lou, Reid, Beau, and Coco are bent on vengeance more than ever before—and none more so than Lou.
But this is no longer the Lou they thought they knew. No longer the Lou that captured a chasseur’s heart. A darkness has settled over her, and this time it will take more than love to drive it out.
Amazon | Chapters | TBD
After the disappointment that was Blood & Honey, where did we go wrong with this series? I truly had higher expectations for this one, given how long, draggy and unnecessary many of the plot points were in Blood & Honey.
Except for the last few chapters and the epilogue, Gods & Monsters was a mess filled with frustrating tropes, even more unnecessary and loose plot points that are just added in to lengthen the book, and the lack of a strong plot to keep us entertained. Much of the political warfare between the witches vs chasseurs that was built up over the course of the first two books kind of disappeared here, except for the last few chapters.
As for the rest of it, I've literally just finished the book and I couldn't really tell you what went on because of the amount of fluff and filler that we received instead. There's a dragon, mermaids, memory loss trope (one of my most hated tropes to crop up at the end of a series), and a huge list of throwaway characters that cropped up like they're meant to make an impact (tbh most of them were forgettable).
Honestly the only thing that kept me reading was the characters, I wanted to see what the resolution was between Lou and Reid, and Coco and Beau. Most of the drama and "plot" is manufactured to add some excitement between Lou & Reid, and to kind of mimic the sexual tension they had in the first book. While I was frustrated at the annoying plot points to do with Lou and then Reid, I did think the resolution of their romance was satisfying enough to read. I was also satisfied with how a death from Blood & Honey was handled in here, as the characters are given space to grieve.
Overall, I definitely think this series has suffered as a draggy trilogy - it could've definitely been a duology instead given how little plot we have to work with. The characters are just thrown here and there with little sense or purpose, and there wasn't that much excitement when key things happened to the characters. I think the romance and banter here is the key part of the series with everything else taking a back seat, so if you're expecting a strong fantasy plot then definitely look elsewhere. Serpent & Dove was truly the best book of the series.
Except for the last few chapters and the epilogue, Gods & Monsters was a mess filled with frustrating tropes, even more unnecessary and loose plot points that are just added in to lengthen the book, and the lack of a strong plot to keep us entertained. Much of the political warfare between the witches vs chasseurs that was built up over the course of the first two books kind of disappeared here, except for the last few chapters.
As for the rest of it, I've literally just finished the book and I couldn't really tell you what went on because of the amount of fluff and filler that we received instead. There's a dragon, mermaids, memory loss trope (one of my most hated tropes to crop up at the end of a series), and a huge list of throwaway characters that cropped up like they're meant to make an impact (tbh most of them were forgettable).
Honestly the only thing that kept me reading was the characters, I wanted to see what the resolution was between Lou and Reid, and Coco and Beau. Most of the drama and "plot" is manufactured to add some excitement between Lou & Reid, and to kind of mimic the sexual tension they had in the first book. While I was frustrated at the annoying plot points to do with Lou and then Reid, I did think the resolution of their romance was satisfying enough to read. I was also satisfied with how a death from Blood & Honey was handled in here, as the characters are given space to grieve.
Overall, I definitely think this series has suffered as a draggy trilogy - it could've definitely been a duology instead given how little plot we have to work with. The characters are just thrown here and there with little sense or purpose, and there wasn't that much excitement when key things happened to the characters. I think the romance and banter here is the key part of the series with everything else taking a back seat, so if you're expecting a strong fantasy plot then definitely look elsewhere. Serpent & Dove was truly the best book of the series.
.png)