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This was a 3.5 review worth rounding up. It would have been higher but one character was so annoying I actually wanted them to be eaten or slapped.All around interesting and solid dinosaur scifi thriller with a decent attempt at science. At 45% of the way through I had to stop and rewatch the movie, which is incidentally about where the book starts to differ quite a bit. It's probably sacrilegious but I think the movie was better. I could rewatch the movie over and over; once was enough for the book.The acknowledgements mention [a:Robert T. Bakker 68286 Robert T. Bakker https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1303492859p2/68286.jpg]. I recommend checking out his book [b:Raptor Red 117710 Raptor Red Robert T. Bakker https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1533437168s/117710.jpg 986300].

DNF at 19%, but I was really done at 10%. I'd skimmed to see if it got any better.Ok, Sylvia Day took [b:Fifty Shades of Grey 10818853 Fifty Shades of Grey (Fifty Shades, #1) E.L. James https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1385207843s/10818853.jpg 15732562] and rewrote it. That's cool. All sorts of reviews rave that it's way better written than Fifty Shades, and I guess it is. Sort of.This is obviously erotica. Awesome. I'm totally here for the smut. The thing is is I need a decent story and characters. There will be no swooning from me when all I want to do is repeatedly throat punch the lead male character, Gideon Cross. This man is a lecherous boss in a position of power who will use and abuse his power because he thinks he's entitled to... well, everything. There's nothing sexy about sexual assault, which is what was continuously happening. No really does mean no. It doesn't matter what her body is telling you, pal.Cross said nothing until the car was on its way down; then he pushed the call button again and asked, “ Are you sleeping with anyone?”Um WHAT??? This is one of the first dialogue interactions they have and this is what he says? And when Eva asks him why the heck he's asking her:“Because I want to fuck you, Eva. I need to know what's standing in my way, if anything.”She tells him maybe she's not interested and from then on out no matter how many times she says no or pulls away he's trying to grope or kiss her. Just because the readers hear Eva's thoughts about how she finds Cross attractive her words and actions don't always show that. She's torn. But for all he knows she's not really fully interested. But he's not listening.It turns out Cross owns the building Eva lives in. Of course he does. But Eva finds out and is rightfully horrified. His reaction?“I accessed information you voluntarily made available to me.”“Not to you! Not for what you used it for! That has to violate some kind of privacy law.” I stared at him, more confused than ever. “Why would you do that?”He had the grace to look disgruntled at least. “So I can figure you out, damn it.”My skin crawled. Not only is Eva's livelihood in his hands, but so is her living situation. He's now pretty much completely able to cut her off and isolate her if he chooses. Or at least coerce. If you cajole someone into consent it's not really consent.The writing may be better than Fifty Shades of Grey in certain ways, but the story is just as abusive and disgusting and is nothing to emulate.Eva, run. Leave everything and run.

DNF at 39% because the insulting comments about women and marital rape make me want to set my kindle on fire to purge it of this.

His name fell from her lips, and in the recesses of her blurry mind, she realized this was the first time she'd used it.

This just made me too sad so I've set it aside for now.

I spent almost the entire time reading this wanting to throw it across the room. First because I was frustrated with the style and then because of the actual plot.

I quickly got tired of hearing how fair a maid Evangeline was and how Gabriel was the noblest of all the youths. We get it: they're gorgeous people who're destined to be together. Except...

Cruel Fate has torn them apart. Yeah, that's depressing. Really frustratingly depressing. But this only worked to make me angry, not sympathetic. There are times I'm too literal to just accept certain things and go along with the flow of the story. This happens to be one of those times. Sucks for me.

Poor Evangeline treks across the land following rumors trying to catch up to Gabriel. You know what my parents always taught me when I got lost? Stay in one place. Don't wander. It makes it harder for you to be found. So what does Gabriel do? He wanders. And the only time he stays in one place is when Evangeline stays in one place too hoping he'll come back to that location. Ugh! So much anger. Why does Evangeline hear all these rumors and searches for him but he doesn't seem to be hearing anything about her?

Here's the only passage giving any indication of Gabriel being upset about being parted from Evangeline. And yes, I'm aware that this poem is following Evangeline so we don't get Gabriel's perspective, but still.

“‘Be of good cheer, my child; it is only to-day he
departed.
Foolish boy! he has left me alone with my herds and my
horses.
Moody and restless grown, and tried and troubled, his
spirit
Could no longer endure the calm of this quiet existence.
Thinking ever of thee, uncertain and sorrowful ever,
Ever silent, or speaking only of thee and his troubles,
He at length had become so tedious to men and to
maidens,
Tedious even to me, that at length I bethought me, and
sent him
Unto the town of Adayes to trade for mules with the
Spaniards.'”