The Ritual

:: 00:06

I wanted something that said fuck off, I'm married and my husband will gut you from far away. I think I made the right decision. Jen and I are here to discuss the ritual by Shantel Tessier, tesser, teasser, I don't know. I guess you should look that up. I mean, it's okay for me not to know how to pronounce a name because I can't pronounce anything. Right, that's true, so I will get away with it. It's fine, Jenn, I think that you should go first. Oh god, you want me to go first. I want you to go first. I Just want you to talk out all the things that you didn't like, and then I can either agree with you or battle you on why it was perfection.

:: 00:47

Okay, okay, so I'm gonna, I'm gonna give a caveat here's. Here's the caveat. I have recently realized that I do not like college High school books.

:: 01:00

I know, I mean the high school like I totally get, but like the a college Academy setting. I just love that. I.

:: 01:08

Just, they all make me want to take a shovel to their face sometimes I Don't disagree.

:: 01:16

Sometimes yes, but besides those like sprinkled moments throughout the book, everything else is greatness, mm-hmm.

:: 01:24

So okay, I remember I'm okay. Actually, I need to do better about like writing down notes as I'm reading, because I'm really upset that I have already removed it from my library and I lost all my highlight. But I do remember it was towards the beginning of the book and I remember highlighting it and I'm like, did a man?

write this. Like you know what's his name riot is checking out Blake and he's, like you know, basically itty-bitty, wastes the round thing in your face and her big old chest. I'm just like, seriously, just that's, that's the best we got. That's the best we got. It's just so. That was. I know that was one thing that like Irritated me was just the in here. And also, here's another caveat I Understand that it is fiction and I understand that these aren't real people, these aren't real scenarios and I can handle some misogyny in like, like contemporary, like. I just read a book by Abby Jimenez and I was just like, oh god, this guy, whatever it, but this was so misogynistic in the first 60% of the book it just made my teeth grind.

:: 02:36

So that was my first issue.

:: 02:38

My second issue is she was so, so fucking dumb for the first 60% of the book. She is just a puppet, like she is for everybody, like she's so easily manipulated, she's so easily Swayged, she's so easily Impressed upon. Meanwhile, this kid, this other, their kids, this other kid, who is maybe a couple years older than her, is like able to manipulate anyone. He has all of this power because he's this Lord. And it just made me roll my eyes the entire, the entire fucking time. So that was issue number two.

Issue number three Sorry, I'm trying, I know so up until 60% I was bored, I was just bored. And then it's like Chantel was like huh, we haven't had a whole lot happen. Here's five different plot points to have happen in the next 40%. And like that drove me crazy because I had just started liking her character. Like she started coming into her own, she started getting a backbone and then, instead of allowing her to step into this lady title, it's well, now her life is blown up because he is doing this. Or we find out this or nope. That's not enough to find out that she was sold. Nope, now we find out that, you know, she's been manipulated by her parents since day one and Like could you just pick a lane and stay in it?

Because there was so many things that happened in the 40%. I was sitting like I had just started to like okay, I could get into this, you know. And then it was just like a thing after thing after thing, like he got shot, she was drugged, she was kidnapped, he, you know, had to kill somebody else. I'm just like I feel like I was on the slowest ascent to like this scary roller coaster and then the roller coaster just went off the rails and I just got like decapitated or something at some point because I was just done. I was so happy to be done with that book. So those, those are the issues I had with it.

:: 04:55

Ok, so I definitely agree that she was naive, but that was on purpose, obviously, with the family not telling her, him not telling her, because you know the stepmom was a bitch. Obviously I OK, so while you're saying all these things, I'm just thinking so this is the difference between contemporary readers and dark romance readers. All the stuff that you hated, we don't care about because it has nothing to do with the couple.

:: 05:23

Right, You're not, which is why I wanted the caveat that you know I like. There's going to be some things I just don't like, and they're going to be in dark romance books.

:: 05:32

Yeah, so I heard everything that you said. I know I heard everything that you said. I'm just trying to figure out how to counter it Again. Yes, she's naive. I love them. I loved him more than I liked her. But I do agree with you that once she started getting her backbone and be like, no, if I'm going to commit to this and we're going to do this, we need to be on equal footing because otherwise it's never going to work. And she fought for that very hard and I feel like they got that at the end, but it just took time. Yep, as for the, I think they're both juniors.

:: 06:03

I thought he was ready.

:: 06:04

I thought he was at least a year ahead. He is either a junior and she is a sophomore, or they're both juniors.

:: 06:11

OK, I'll take your word for it, Because she's like I skinned so yeah, I think there's a year.

:: 06:18

I think there's a year difference. I think he's a junior and she's a sophomore. As for the power, I mean that's the whole point of a secret society and all these privileged and entitled people in this world is that they can do whatever they want. And his name and who he comes from he's inherited that power. Because you don't want to fuck with the kid if he's going to go tell daddy or mommy what you just did and then your whole family is destroyed. You know what I'm saying? Like there's a weight to it, which I like it when they have power. I like it when they can control things.

:: 06:47

I guess, like I guess I think my issue with it because I like billionaire romances Like those are like the darker billionaire romances and it's the same type of thing. They have lots of power, like the the Four Horsemen series that we read a while ago, Like that's very much like you know, lots of power, lots of like misogynistic themes throughout the series. But I guess, because they're older, I'm good with it, because I'm sorry. If some 20 year old punk ass kid came up to me acting the way he did, I would beat him with a shovel, but hold on.

:: 07:24

I just want to play devil's advocate here. We only know how old he is because we are the reader, right? I mean, obviously it's a college setting, but there could be older people in college. You don't know that they're 20 until they tell you how old they are. And I think his attitude and the aura that he presents makes him seem older than his 20ish, 23, 20, whatever years old he is, he's still going to look.

:: 07:46

I would still look at him and be like you're a kid.

:: 07:49

Ok, so I do agree with there being too many side hustles, side plots happening Like it was just yeah. And I yeah, it was her being naive, and especially that first time. What the fuck was the ex's name? Mark Matt Matt, when he came into riot which side note I'm so glad that you said right, because that's what I was calling him in my head, because otherwise, if his name wasn't Ryan, it would be rat, and then I'd really be pissed the fuck off.

:: 08:19

OK, I didn't really like his name. I thought that was a really, I thought that was a really good name.

:: 08:25

I didn't like that. She didn't talk to him about it. There's that miscommunication trope. I hate fucking miscommunication tropes. I think it's a cop out and I was upset when she left and then it took him three weeks to find her. But the mom that she doesn't know knew where she was the whole time, who was apparently supposed to be dead, Dude like dude.

:: 08:44

I want to read her book. Like, if any like of any character, I would read Valerie's book 100%.

:: 08:50

Oh no, I meant Leanne, not Valerie.

:: 08:53

Oh, definitely meant I met Leanne, yeah, look we got our stuff to fix up.

:: 08:56

This example right here falls into what I hate about the young adult, new adult, college Academy setting. They give them all this power, they can make all these powerful decisions, whatever, and then there's one thing that all of a sudden he can't do, or he's not smart enough to be able to figure it out, to be able to fucking find her if she disappears for somebody who's naive, right, like that. I hate it when they do that. But then when she comes back, he's all mighty and powerful again. That's the part that I don't like. You can't have this character, who is this person, and have this intrinsic or external power and money, and then it's just stupid. I hate it, I don't like it. I don't know how else to explain it. It's dumb.

:: 09:34

I think it's absolutely well, and because Leanne was able to find her and Matt was able to find her. So everyone got is pissed off at Matt because he's so. What was the word that they used? I can't think of the word now, but like everyone couldn't stand Matt because he, he was. Whatever Matt was, he was an idiot. But then he's able to outsmart your main character to find his girl. Like that doesn't make any sense.

:: 09:59

Yeah, that's the kind of thing that I hated. I'm glad that she actually know that's a lie. I don't even understand what the point of running away was Like. It was stupid. I do think that the marriage proposal was sexy, though Don't even remember it. I think he was like I don't know if they were having sex, or he was in the middle of giving her an orgasm and he's like marry me. And she's just like huh, oh yeah. And then he just puts, doesn't? He just put the ring on her finger?

:: 10:24

After she fell asleep. Like everything else he does, okay.

:: 10:27

I love it when they do that. What? When they just put the ring on the finger?

:: 10:33

I liked I did like the ring on the finger, like that was very like a riot thing to do. But never mind, I'll let you keep going.

:: 10:42

No, it's okay, Go just countering off of yours again.

:: 10:46

Again, like he has all this power, he's this, whatever, blah, blah, blah. He loves her and he has to drug her every other fucking chapter to get her to do what he needs her to do. That was bullshit too.

:: 11:00

Okay, no, I disagree on that. Okay, why? Okay, because I'm all ears, besides the times that she wanted it and it was, you know, the kinky sex player, whatever it was to stop the argument from happening and then just getting what needed to be done done because, at the end of the ear, regardless, if they had argued, he still would have won and they would have just wasted like an hour.

:: 11:22

But that's what our relationship is you communicate and you come to an agreement together. Wait again, I think. I think the good thing is she again about 60% in. She started to have a backbone and she was like listen, if we're going to do this, we're going to do this together. And that's when that was about the only time that I was like, okay, I could get into this when they're on equal footing. And she's like listen, if we're going to kill people and like, be in the secret society, I'm all for it, but I want to know about it. Yeah, I could get behind that, but just to drug her every other chapter so he can go off and do whatever the fuck he was going to do just irritated the shit out of me.

:: 12:00

I mean. But in his defense it was for own good, because otherwise she would do stupid shit like run off or listen to other people and not talk to him.

:: 12:07

I'll give you that. I guess I'll give you that bone.

:: 12:11

I will say though that one thing that, besides the stupid plot that didn't make no sense to the story, didn't necessarily need to be in the story to keep it going. The other thing that pissed me off was how Matt got all of this knowledge, and I'm wondering if it came from his dad. But then we don't really know because it doesn't clarify. But then how does his dad know all of this information, especially about riot? That part bothered me. I didn't like that.

:: 12:36

We don't ever get an answer to that, do we?

:: 12:38

Yeah.

:: 12:38

Interesting. I wonder if it comes out later. Probably not.

:: 12:42

I don't know. The next book is about whoever Easton is, but I don't remember meeting that person in book one. And then, of course, book three is Ty, which is I don't. I'm wondering if we could just skip book two and just read Ty's book.

:: 12:51

I would give this a shot. I would read Ty's book. I would also really answer book. Not that she has a book, but she should.

:: 12:58

Yeah, I think I I've watched through this to you. I was really pissed off about this whole. You have a chosen one, but the chosen one isn't the one that you marry Like that really bothered me. And before he went to to his dad and her dad he was like well, I'm going to give her back, but she's not going to be the same and Matt's going to be da, da, da. And I'm like motherfucker, if you want her, keep her. Why do you keep on saying that you're going to give her up at the end of the year? Like nah, that's not how this shit works. I hated that. That part really bothered me that day.

:: 13:25

Yeah, I, it didn't bother me because I assumed that wasn't where we were going with it. I guess I mean it bothered me that that that's the way it was set up, like you get a chosen one and then you have a wife, like that's. That's fucking stupid. What's the point? Okay, look into the. But I wasn't upset by him saying he was going to give her back, because I assumed that wasn't. Yeah, he was. That was that was going to be the case.

:: 13:49

I mean I, I like the. I guess I agree with you. I like the idea that the chosen versus the wife that's a good idea. I just didn't like that it kept on being thrown in our face, right yeah.

Yeah, it was just been mentioned, like once or twice, and then we forget about it and we're just continuing on this journey of them. And then maybe black moment or you know, conflict is could be. Now it's time for him to release her and it's like, oh no, no, no, no, I'm not, she's mine now. And then that becomes the battle that he has with Matt. That's how I thought it was going to go and that, to me, made much more sense than this whole. Like you were saying, like running around, she runs away, and then they get it. I don't know all the stupid things that happened. That was just nonsense. I think that would have been better.

:: 14:31

Yeah, All of like the subplots that happened in the last 40% were just it was too much. It was just too much.

:: 14:38

Okay, but I will say though you know me, JenN I'm glad that he got hurt, that he got shot, because I, yes, absolutely the main character, especially the male main character, should, should always be. It should be him and not her. That's how I feel.

:: 14:53

Yeah, now I agree, I, I, I did like how that played out.

:: 14:56

I did, yeah, the other thing that I liked well, I don't know If like is the right word, yeah.

:: 15:03

I'm I. The other thing, I guess I was happy is a really big word for it too. Like it took longer than 24 hours for him to get her back.

:: 15:12

Oh, okay, yeah.

:: 15:13

Like the healing I mean, granted, he's still left before he was completely healed but like it was plausible that he was in a hospital for a week before he could actually go after her. Also, can we just talk about how I we already know, I will you, I think you know I can't stand the pregnancy trope, and I just remembered that that was part of the issue, but at least at the very end it wasn't the whole book.

No, once she's back from BFE, she he's already fucking with her birth control. So we, it's already at that point.

:: 15:49

No, no, no, no, no, no, no I'm arguing with you that he did not fuck with it because she didn't take it with her. And when they came back they were fucking like rabbits and she didn't say anything about it. No, that is not going to be on him.

:: 16:01

Okay, I'll give it to you. You're right, he didn't fuck with the birth control, he just said that he, you know, wasn't going to allow her to get back on it.

:: 16:07

Yeah, I'll agree, but but we don't know about that till he's in the hospital anyways, because we don't know that she's pregnant. Until then, right? Or is it right before then?

:: 16:17

I think it's right before then, because it comes out while she's being held because Valerie wants the baby, okay.

:: 16:23

So right before then we didn't know. And then we don't even know about the birth control until her dad's like well, did you whatever he says about it? And he's like yes, no, she ran away for three weeks and didn't take it with her. Like, I mean, I was okay with it because it was at the end and it wasn't, it wasn't a big thing, I think. At the one point she tries to bring it up and he's like I know, I don't care. And then they fuck again Twice.

:: 16:47

She tried to bring it up twice and he's like, no, I don't care Fucking you anyway, you're mine, we're married.

:: 16:53

You can't have no or nobody else can have you yeah. I didn't understand Matt's obsession with her.

:: 16:58

Because in this book, if you're promised something and you're a man, you're supposed to get it, and he knew he wasn't going to get it once Riot had her. I will see.

:: 17:06

No, no, no, no, no, because they dated in high school and he didn't want anything to do with her when they were in high school. Like she even mentioned that he was sleeping with other girls. Oh yeah.

:: 17:15

But they were. They were dating in college. They dated for like three years Right.

:: 17:19

But they can't have sex for the three years, right? But no, I'm just saying it's like, why is he so upset that when he didn't do anything with them when they were in high school, now all of a sudden he's dating her in college. But he's, like you know, when I think of like a dark romance or a stalker romance, when a guy is obsessed, like Riot, is obsessed with her, they do all these crazy things, but there's a reason for it. I don't feel, or I didn't see when I read it, that there was a reason for his obsession. I feel like he only became obsessed with her after Riot had her. Yeah, I would agree with that and I don't. I mean, I kind of get it, but I feel like it was more of a way to punish Riot.

But again, I don't even understand because what, what problem did he have with Riot to begin with, besides the whole thing with Leanne? Like how the fuck did Matt even know that Leanne was? What's her face's name? What's her name? Blake? Yeah, fuck, and I don't even like Blakely, but I like Blake that Leanne was her birth mom. Like how the fuck, again, these little nuggets of him having this knowledge. But we have no idea how he has it. Yeah, or why. And let's start with the fact that if Leanne survived, why the fuck did they not take care of Matt then? And there she's a witness, she knows what happened. Why did they leave him in play? Cause then all of this other subplot bullshit, that didn't happen, wouldn't have happened. And then they she would probably, the author, would probably have to come up with something else, which I think would probably have been better.

:: 18:37

Well, and the thing of it is like again they kept saying, you know, matt wasn't smart enough or like doesn't cut it as a Lord or whatever, but really he outsmarted all of them until he did it, you know. I mean he was even able to attack Blake in broad daylight when she was supposed to be under protection.

Yeah, you know, but he's so dumb and he's, you know he doesn't deserve to be a Lord, but he has all of this information and he's able to outsmart riot and he's able to outsmart, like the higher up lords by you know. You know, like it just have I mentioned that I just really didn't like this book. Okay, All right, so let's talk about. Okay, well, is there anything else that that bug do or bother you about?

:: 19:22

Not that I could think of at the top of my head.

:: 19:24

Okay, so what were the things that that you like? Because you liked.

:: 19:29

I enjoyed it very much. Yes, yeah, I love the secret society. I love you, know the whole. I don't know, maybe not dominant personality, but I like that. I don't know, I just liked it. I like that. I'm going to take you and nobody else can have you. I wish that we had more of the secret society, though Then what we did, I feel like we just got like it just got like skimmed over, you know, because you know we're seeing it through riots perspective, so to speak. But I would have liked more of the inner workings, besides the few things that we did get, and I think I would have liked her, like you said, to be more involved and like, see, like the woman's perspective of being part of the secret society. Yeah, so what was it that you liked? I was saying the secret society, but I feel like I talked myself out of it. Right, you talked yourself out of it.

:: 20:25

Oh my gosh, that was great. She's like I like the secret society, except we don't know what it is or how it works or the structure. I just like that it exists.

:: 20:35

Yeah, if they were dragons then it would be like super hot. But you know I liked that through all of their sexual experiences they didn't kiss until they got married. I thought that was pretty hot. I'm pretty sure the first time what I'm pretty sure the first time they kissed was when they got married. Right, that cannot be right. The first time they had any experience he had the mask on and it was in her room and she was in his room and she was drunk. There was no kissing, it was eating out, yeah. And then I'm pretty sure any other time he kisses her forehead and he kisses her neck, but he does not kiss her lips. I am almost positive.

:: 21:14

I need to double check that, because that's wild. I never put that together.

:: 21:19

Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's what happened is they didn't kiss the first time until they got married and it was an oversight on him. He's like I can't believe I never did this before. What chapter did they get married in? I don't even know. I don't know. Let me see.

:: 21:32

I'm trying to think what I like. Okay, so I liked that she started to get a backbone. I'm really mad that I accidentally deleted my highlights, because they were in one point and it was literally at yeah.

:: 21:46

I mean I'll try, it shouldn't delete your highlights, because even when I I'm hoping it doesn't, because then I've lost a lot too.

:: 21:53

Oh, it doesn't delete the highlights. Okay, so page two I highlighted she is his gift for his servitude. My note dramatic eye roll, page page 44, her large breasts, the curve of them and her flat stomach, followed by her great ass. My note was this written by a man. I mean, come on, dramatic eye roll.

:: 22:21

That's hilarious. Okay, yeah, right here I found it. Okay, it says the first time I kissed her was yesterday, standing at the city hall, vowing my life to be hers. The thought had never crossed my mind. Now, now, I can't get enough of them. It doesn't matter what we've done. This feels more intimate than any of it. Her tongue means mine and I taste the champagne. So yeah, the first time they kissed is when they got married, that's why I? Thought that was hot.

:: 22:44

That's interesting. I don't. I don't have an opinion on it other than that's interesting. Yeah, okay. So, like I said, I did like this. She finally got a backbone and that she was insistent at the end of the book that she was going to be part of this, like whole, like all in with him, or you know, she doesn't want to do this. That that was probably my favorite thing. And yeah, and yeah, it's right at 60%. So I was legit bored up until then.

The other thing that and this has bothered me in other books too I read smut with plot. That's what I enjoy, like I enjoy the plot and the story and their relationship. That's what I think that and it's what you didn't like about. There is no devil. I loved the way their relationship like developed in that book. Like I could have actually I would have handled more sex than that book where this I felt like any time they argued it led to. You know, like I got to a point where I skim through the sex scenes because it was the same kind of sex. It was to get her to shut up and get her to agree to whatever he needed her to agree to, and it's just like we, we we get it.

:: 24:03

No, I agree, Some of the sex was a little bit much.

:: 24:07

I would have liked, like you said, like I would have liked more information on how the society worked, how the structure is, maybe even like her dad or his dad's point of view for a couple of chapters, and figuring out like because they have their hands in there in the pot at this this whole time, so like getting their point of view versus three sex scenes, would have been interesting, or even even having a point of view from their fathers or like that upper leadership, them having the discussion of everything that's going on, and like manipulating and moving people.

That would have been really good.

:: 24:40

Even though Riot and Blake wouldn't have known that knowledge us as the reader, I would have been satisfied with that.

:: 24:46

Yeah, 100%. Now the other thing I liked. My favorite scene of the entire book was the club scene where he handcuffed her to the floor on at the club before they went to the basement.

:: 25:01

Yeah, okay, that was that was see, that was different. That was a good sex scene. I'll give you that.

:: 25:05

It was a different type of sex scene other than, like you know, everything else that happened, but I that scene, holy cow.

:: 25:13

Yeah, that's good. I don't know if I have a favorite sex scene.

:: 25:18

There's all kind of blur together, that's fair because they were all the same except for that one, and there is one other one, I can't remember it. There was one other one that stuck out to me when I was reading like oh, there's something slightly different. They have been the sex scene after they killed Cindy, because that was pretty great.

:: 25:35

That was. I'll give you that. Yeah, that was she deserved to die. I think that I enjoyed that. Even though he didn't agree with some of the things that she wanted to do, like him standing up at the balcony watching her while she danced. While he didn't agree with her being down there without him, he still allowed her and I hate to say the word allow, but in this context of the book, he gave in to her wishes to be able to hang out with Sarah and have a good time.

:: 26:04

And like arrange it so that Sarah was there too and they both got like time together and yeah.

:: 26:09

I feel like that.

:: 26:10

I thought that was the first. I think you're about to say the same kind of the same thing. I think that was like the first kind of like telltale sign that he was really starting to fall for her.

:: 26:21

Oh yeah, no that's not what I was going to say. I was going to say it was more a show of the balancing of the power between them, that he that's a good point. He's like I may be like in charge as I say this in quotations, but I'm still going to listen to you, value what you have to say or what you want or what you need, and I'm going to give it to you or provide it to you if I can. And I feel like that happened. That started to happen more after she came back from running away and when she threw the papers into the fire. It's like no, I'm not divorcing him, he's mine. Yeah, girl, you tell him Cause I don't know, I can't. I mean, I'm pretty sure there's like quite a few little other things, but there's just I just enjoyed it Like I liked them together. I liked most of their journey together. I guess how would we? How many skulls would we give it? So we at least have? Are we ready for that, I should ask, are we ready for that part?

:: 27:12

Well, if you're ready.

:: 27:14

I'm ready.

:: 27:14

Cause I think, you know, I think we've talked through all the points and such.

:: 27:19

Got into the bones of it? How many? Okay, let's break this down. So we have the sex on the scene, we have the death on the scene, right, we do see them kill people. I don't. I don't. Was the environment dark?

:: 27:33

Yeah, I mean his was for sure, not so much hers. I mean hers was essentially a college and then, being with him, his was very dark. He kept having to go through initiations for three years.

:: 27:44

I think I would give it three. Okay, wait, hold on. I have to remember that we're doing separate ratings, so this is the rating of the darkness, not necessarily rating of how we enjoyed the book. Okay, so then I would give it five, right? Right right, right, I have to remind myself. So then I would give it five stars, because it does, it has, it has all of them, it's on the page. It has five skulls. I mean, was the relationship dark? I don't know if it was dark.

:: 28:07

I don't think it started it, but I mean by the end of it.

:: 28:10

they're both serial killers, so yeah, but them as individuals is different than them when we say well, I guess I was part of their relationship. A couple that killed together stays together. Yeah, they killed Cindy together.

:: 28:20

Yeah, I mean she was out there, and Barry and Cindy too. So five I think. Five you have. You have plenty. I don't think and this is where the rating can get wonky right, Because we gave Butcher and Blackbird five skulls too, and it's very graphic murder scenes and like that kind of thing, and I don't feel like the ritual is as graphic with a lot of it.

:: 28:47

So I mean, there's so plenty of, I would be satisfied with four? Yeah, I'd be okay with four. Yeah, so four skulls for the darkness, four skulls. How do we feel about the spiciness?

:: 28:57

Absolutely Five chili peppers. Like you, had multiple scenes that were, you know, explicit and kinky, and those are the three things that I kind of look for. I just got bored with it until the club scene, in which case I was not bored.

:: 29:11

That was one-handed reading, I would say okay, I'll give you, I'll give you. You give me the four for the skulls, I'll give you the five for the peppers. I'll give it to you. Okay, I'm.

:: 29:23

I, I, why, why do you think it's not?

:: 29:26

five. I'm curious, maybe because it was so repetitive? Yeah, you get bored with it. I completely agree. But it was some of it was dark, like her, while she's asleep, you know, doing all the things watching her. Yeah, I could be satisfied with drugging her. I mean multiple times she also did it to herself too. I'm just saying I'll yeah five peppers Okay, but our overall rating I'm gonna have to say I'm gonna give it a three.

:: 29:53

I would really. You're gonna give it a three. Yeah, that's interesting. I did not think you were gonna give it. Well, I'm definitely not giving it a five.

:: 29:59

If I would do anything, I'd probably maybe give it a four, but no, I'd give it a three.

:: 30:06

Okay, so I looked at your rating system again and I it's good. I enjoyed it. You should totally check it out. Three I yeah. What is my four? I'm a one. What four is there was a little something extra. Yeah, see, there was nothing, a little bit extra.

:: 30:22

The only thing that was extra that pulled at me was the not kissing her until they got married. But that was such a small, insignificant thing. It's not enough for four stars.

:: 30:30

I didn't even register that until you said it so good.

:: 30:34

So I'm sticking with maybe three and a half. Because of the kiss or the non kiss kissing, I should say I would give it a three half, but not I mean 600 pages. No, absolutely not. It's not.

:: 30:45

Not, not for four and I feel like if the 60 percent happened 30 percent and the 40 percent had been like the 40 percent, with two less subplots, I would probably agree with a three, but I just I can't. It's a one for me. This is my, my, my, our first one-star read for me. I just and and here's the thing, I don't want y'all to come for me because, like, I completely understand that the themes are gonna be in Dark Romance book and I can handle like misogyny and you know that kind of thing, I can totally handle that stuff. It's for the subplots and her naivete and the repeated sex scenes that give like that made it so Boring to me. Like if 60% of your book is boring, I can't, I Can't, yeah.

I would have DNF'd if not for this episode.

:: 31:40

Oh really, yeah, I mean in the future, I mean you could totally do that, and then.

:: 31:45

but I mean then, well, no, I think I think we could have a good discussion on it and that's what I want. You know, that's what I want to be able to do. I want us to be able to bounce back and forth and and discuss fully and that kind of thing. So for these books I won't DNF, but I, if this was on my own, I would have DNF'd probably about 40 to 50 percent in.

:: 32:05

Okay, I can see that he was the same thing over and over. I agree, I really need you to read that one series that I've been bitching about. Okay, so we can.

I'm not saying it. I'll tell you what. I'm gonna cut it out. Oh okay. Oh yeah, I got to book three and I'm like I just I can't do it anymore, like it's Same motherfucking shit, but I need somebody else to read it. So I don't think that it's all in my head, that I'm just making it up. Maybe one day we'll read it and then discuss it. Okay, listeners, let us know if we can skip book two and go on to book three, because I'll be really care about it. It's tie, right, I don't know who the fuck eastern is like. Yeah, it's easy, important. No, I don't think so. It would have been different if, like, maybe book was their kids, like I, like.

:: 32:54

But see, and that's the thing that I think I was excited about, tie to, he's a little older, he's not in the college scene like he's a little older, he's got some experience, he's got some trauma.

:: 33:04

that happened and he was hot as he was in his scenes that he had in this book I was like yes, please, and the fact that he's waiting for somebody specific, that makes it, I think, even better, because you know that she's gonna be younger. Mm-hmm, that'll be exciting.

:: 33:18

I'm, yeah, I yeah. I would totally read his book.

:: 33:23

Okay, readers, and where does the darkness rate with you? Thank you for joining us on the journey into the shadows of love, where dark romance stories come to light.

:: 33:34

We hope you enjoyed this episode of bones of the story as much as we did. If you did, don't forget to subscribe and leave a review.

:: 33:41

Your feedback means the world to us and to stay updated on all things dark Romance, follow us on social media. You can find us on Instagram, tick tock in YouTube.

:: 33:49

We'd also love to hear from you. Share your thoughts, ideas or even your own dark romance stories with us. Drop us a line at bones of the story at gmailcom.

:: 33:58

Remember, our next tantalizing episode is just around the corner, so keep your hearts open and your senses sharp until then, embrace the darkness and let the stories continue to stir your deepest desires. This is Mistie and JenN signing off from bones of the story.

Transcribed by https://podium.page