I really wanted to enjoy this book because I’m always looking for new Black fantasy reads, but unfortunately I did not enjoy this. In fact, I think it solidified that contemporary romance is not for me, even if it’s in a fantasy setting.

The two mc’s felt forced, and I was told about their connection and growing feelings more than I saw them actually develop. There were literally two parts where the female main character says “and we shared more about ourselves”, but did not elaborate on what was learned. So I didn’t gain insight into either of them. Even the sex scenes lacked passion.

I think the FMC was supposed to be ‘sassy’ and ‘stubborn’, while the MMC was ‘brooding’, but they weren’t any of these things. The FMC continued to not listen to the MMC and get herself into trouble when it could’ve been easily avoided. She was annoying, not stubborn. Meanwhile, in reaction to these obnoxious behaviors, the MMC had an attitude because he was tired of her making stupid decisions. I felt like his demeanor was warranted and couldn’t be considered brooding.

I couldn’t really picture a lot of what was going on, and this includes the settings and the magic system. And the conclusion to the entire thing felt lackluster and anticlimactic. I honestly considered giving this a one star, but there were some parts I genuinely laughed out loud at. Unfortunately, none of them were the parts I was supposed to laugh at. Yeah… save your energy and time.