amalia

The worldbuilding is SO bad, both in a “what are the horses eating??” way and a “this author does not understand how history or mythology or 1820s England or any sort of collective-human retention of information over time works; this book needs to either be 200x more rooted in its alleged setting or set on an entirely fantasy world” way. The best thing you can say is that the random cut-and-pasted magazine images of it do, in fact, each look badass as hell.

It’s DISTRACTING bad if you care about those things. It’s continuously distractingly bad, for 2/3–3/4 of the first book.

Unfortunately, the plot, emotions, and messy character dynamics then abruptly kick the FUCK into gear, and it ends really strong, such that you’re left standing there (with a cursed(?) sword and a bunch of corpses, some wanted, some horribly not, and a terrible secret and the world’s most embittered unicorn) going, “…Fuck, I do have to read the sequel.”

Also, saying this outright bc you the reader are likely following me on tumblr: there’s mind control(/reincarnation)-laced homoerotic fealty!

This is a book rec with caveats, basically. Read for the characters and the terrible pressure of the past, but maybe don’t start reading until you have time to blast through the frustrating first 300 pages.

The worldbuilding doesn’t actually improve after that, btw. The good just starts significantly outweighing the bad.

After everything they'd gone through together, all their history, their love spanning 6000 years, they literally vanished into dust.

Their "human versions" are not them. They met each other in their 50s? 60s? and will get like 30 or so years together.

No sticking together for centuries despite being from opposite factions in an eternal conflict, no developing their rivalry, friendship, and eventually love throughout the ages, no having each other's back despite the dangers of doing so, no bickering, no rescuing each other, no "you go too fast for me, Crowley", no 'our' Bentley, no "angel" as a pet name, NO THEM. At all.

I don't care, I just want you in this one.