Aviv Snowberry

If I could leave no stars I likely would. I read the first book in the series on a whim (I wanted to read a Christian romance and was interested in the historical fiction element of it. This was far from my typical wheelhouse) And I understand that these books were written in the 1980s, and that our standards have changed. Yet at the same time I really did not like Elizabeth in this book.

In the first book it was comical when she would struggle with life on the Canadian frontier, maybe a little much, but throwing mouse traps into the boy's outhouse because she couldn't handle the thought of it being in the girl's made me roll my eyes but also chuckle. In this book I found her to be more on the insufferable side. Shout out to her husband, because he sure did pick a real one. That man has more patience than I would have in similar situations.

I also understand that this book is written from a Christian perspective, and I have no innate issues with that, but the book is also predicated on the spreading of the Gospel in the community Elizabeth moves into, which while accurate to those who moved into the north country and all, was still a little preachy and eyerolly (for me personally).

The reason I gave the book as low a star rating as I did was due to how obnoxious Elizabeth is in this book and also how racist parts of it are. Elizabeth becomes obsessed with wanting another white woman to be living in the town she moves to and it's really off putting when reading it. I understand what the author was trying to achieve with that, but I don't know that she did successfully. This was a book I read on a whim after reading the first one, and I don't think I will be continuing this series at all.

This memoir was a really poignant story about growing up in the 80s/90s in a fundamentalist Christian context and trying to find out who you are and how you fit in to the world around you in the face of being ostracized, abuse, and that awful feeling of just not quite fitting in anywhere. The art was beautiful, and the story itself a very touching coming of age story.

I really enjoyed the other two books in the series, and loved this one even more. It's really the culmination of the previous two books' plot threads, twists, and character development particularly between Laurent and Damen. It's a satisfying conclusion to their story and to their journey all the way from book 1. Sometimes I find that series ends will be unsatisfying, that the author will try too hard to make the last book stand out even as they've run out of steam, the entire Captive Prince Trilogy feels like one continuous story split into three parts. Of course each has its own distinct narrative arc for our deutrotagonists, but it's satisfying seeing everything you've read and learned reach the end you'd hope it would. In the last 1/4 of the book I was nearly jumping out of my seat at the events transpiring, and the end definitely made me tear up at the poetic book-ending that Pacat gave the story.

I immediately enjoyed the disability representation, the Jewishness of all the characters, and the overall pacing was good. That being said, I think it dragged a little bit at the end.

I am personally not a huge enemies to lovers fan, never have been. While I enjoyed this book immensely, I am still not a fan of the trope being used within the book, especially as the original conflict feels very contrived and it ended up in the space that I often feel that these books get to which is "If they would just talk this would be resolved rather quickly." Also I know a third act breakup is par for the course with the genre, but that being said, the first one where she quits volunteering at the Matzah Ball was fine, but the second one where he personally discovers she's Margot Cross and gets upset that she's writing him into a book made me actually groan, it was conflict to be conflict and that was not really doing it for me.

This is a "dark" romance for those who think a kinky priest having deeply consensual sex is "dark." Which is amazing for those into that! I definitely understood the appeal of Fr. Bell, especially as his darker dominant side is tempered by being a man who cares deeply for others, for their souls, and is an overall very good guy. That being said, Poppy is herself a bit of a Mary Sue (I mean she kind of has to be to be good enough to make a priest leave his vocation). The end felt a little contrived, but it's a solid sexy book if you're into kinky sexy priests. (To which I'd say I am.)