This is the kind of book that leaves you feeling giddy and warm at the end. The kind that makes you sigh with contentment, wishing to find a love like it.
Before reading this, I reread one of my favorite books by the same author, The Fine Art of Pretending, so I couldn’t help comparing the two. I guess every Rachel Harris book I read will always have high expectations to live up to. But although The Fine Art of Pretending remains my favorite, this one was great too.
Before I start this review, let me just say that I have “book amnesia”. I can barely remember books I read years ago even when I absolutely loved it. Honestly, what leaves a lasting impression on me is not the plot but the way a book made me feel.
The Fine Art of Pretending was one of the books that had the honor to be included in my favorites (stand-alone) shelf but I couldn’t even remember any of it. All I know is that it was sweet and fluffy and I absolutely loved it. So despite reading it five years ago, it still felt like the first time.
You know that feeling when you finish a series but it was published a long time ago so no one’s talking about it now? That’s exactly how I feel right now. 😦
Let me begin by saying that overall, I like this series. Still, I must admit that this is one of those series where none of the sequels could ever measure up to the first.
Don’t get me wrong. I enjoyed this for a lot of reasons.
Although this was good, it just wasn’t good as the first. Unfortunately, as with a lot of series, it suffered from what we know as middle book syndrome. This generally refers to an author’s second book not quite living up to their first, particularly if it’s part of a series.
I think part of the major reason why I didn’t enjoy this as much as the first is that Raffe was barely in it. The witty banter between him and Penryn was a major factor that made the previous book more fun. I spent most of the time reading this book just waiting for him to come.
If I didn’t buy this book from Big Bad Wolf, I probably would have never read it. I would have no idea what a great thing I would be missing.
To be honest, I have a slight prejudice against books about angels. I’ve always assumed it would be all about the forbidden romance between humans and heavenly beings. I tried reading Hush, Hush but I just wasn’t into it. The other popular series also had mixed reviews so I didn’t even bother. I was in my vampire romance phase back then and I wasn’t ready to move on yet. But even when angel books became so popular, I haven’t heard of Angelfall. Six whole years of not knowing an awesome series like this exists.
This is the kind of book that would’ve been perfect except for one thing: I did not root for them to be together. Yes, they had chemistry but since it all happened in one day, I still feel that everything was a bit rushed.
Yes, I get that this was all supposed to happen in one day but I’m not really a big fan of instalove. I also had a little problem with the ending. Everything was perfect and I was about to give this five stars since it kind of negated the instalove part. Until the epilogue happened.
This is one of those books that make you want to scream and shout “FINALLY!” after everything goes well in the end. The kind that puts you through sweet and anxious moments in equal measure. You know that there’s inevitable doom but you don’t mind because it is fun and sweet so you just enjoy the moment while it lasts.
To be honest, I really wasn’t into this at first. I tried picking this up last January but left it for another book. Eventually, I picked this up again because I HAD to read it. So if you decide to read this, I beg that you hold on because things will definitely get more interesting.
If you’re active in Book Twitter or any book-related social media, chances are you’ve probably heard of the Grisha Trilogy.
With the raving reviews about this book and the added hype of the upcoming Netflix adaptation, I can’t help but set my standards so high. Which probably explains why I was slightly disappointed.
Don’t get me wrong. I really enjoyed this and I will definitely read the rest of the series. It’s just that I expected nothing less but it didn’t floor me like I expected it would. To me, it seemed like any other YA fantasy with a generic formula.
When you’ve had the best, suddenly, everything pales in comparison.
I know I shouldn’t have but I couldn’t stop comparing this to The Unhoneymooners. It was my first Christina Lauren book and I absolutely loved it. It was hilarious and fun in all the right ways. On the other hand, Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating was fun… just not as fun.
I admit that I also didn’t give this the full attention it deserved. This past week, I was so busy that I only read this for at most fifteen minutes during lunch break. But when it did have my full attention, I was gripped.
I haven’t laughed this much while reading a book in such a long time. Like literally laughing out loud and not just in my head. The Unhoneymooners was that funny for me.
What I loved most about this book is how the characters were not really mean towards each other. I love good enemies to lovers romance but when one of them is abusive towards the other, that’s where I draw the line. Ethan and Olive hated each other’s guts which resulted in this awesome and witty banter. It’s what made this book so good for me. I loved both of their characters and they were perfect for each other. I got so invested in their relationship that I breathed a huge sigh of relief when everything went well in the end.
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