SPOILER ALERT! I'm not in the business of ruining books, so if you haven't read this book yet, turn back now!
Author: Colette Rhodes
Series: Shades of Sin Series book #3
Category: Monster Romance
Rating: ⭐
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️
No one is as disappointed as me with this one-star book review as I am. Colette Rhodes is an amazing writer, I've read most of her work. The first two books in the Shades of Sin series were phenomenal, but the third falls flat.
Its downfall? Pity Party, Himbo, Hunter-By-Blood-Not-Profession Austin.
I barely made it through the first chapter listening to Austin complain about how his life choices had landed him as a washed-up singer with no one to love or to have sex with. Show business had gone to his head, and in the aftermath, he drinks too much and trolls fan pages trying to find validation and self-worth.
Yikes.
So, instead of pulling himself up by his bootstraps and changing his ways, Austin decides to make his way to the shadow world with no plan at all except to have an orgy. Yes, those are the exact words he uses when he stumbles through the portal and meets Selene, the second in command Shade.
Of course, with that delightful impression, the king decides Selene should be responsible for Austin while he is introduced to Shade society. As the only male hunter in their world, nearly all of the ladies in the court vying for his attention are willing to look past his dim personality.
"I was still smarting from being called unfuckable. Maybe a squid monster would want to fuck me? I was very much not opposed to fucking a squid monster. Maybe it could be just a little holiday? A little vacation from my increasingly bleak existence?" - Austin
Selene is a complex character, filled with strength when it comes to her value to the kingdom as a guard but lacking self-worth due to where she is from. She is responsible, stoic, and loyal, always putting duty above herself. Basically, the opposite of Austin in every way, and not in the opposites attract way.
Their relationship and chemistry were surface level and nonexistent, a mismatch of personalities with no balance of power. Although Selene claims Austin is more than he seems, she also refers to him as dim constantly because of how unrealistic he is about dangers in the Shade world. She seems protective of him more than anything, wanting to keep him safe.
"'No need to be afraid, fragile man. I've been assigned to protect you, and I take my duties very seriously. Going forward I will take more care with my claws around you.'" - Selene
Austin's constant depressive thoughts and personal issues were exhausting to read about, on a loop of loneliness and self-flagellation without any drive whatsoever to fix himself. I am all for more male characters being emotional and vulnerable, but Austin failed to have any redeeming qualities other than a pretty face and an open mind.
This book was the first to have a human male and female shade couple in the series and I love that unique concept but hated the execution. I admire the author for taking a chance on something different in monster romance but I just couldn't get into the story at all. All that said, I will definitely read the next book in the series and hope that the magic of the shadow world returns.
Tropes and Themes: Monster Romance, Paranormal, Fantasy Romance, Demon, Forced Proximity.
Blurb
Selene cares about three things in life:
1. Her prestigious position as Lieutenant of the Guard that very few of the elite at Court feel she deserves.
2. Her beloved sister and niece, humiliating reminders of her humble origins.
3. Her penchant for rare and expensive dining—a status symbol and marker of the success she’s attained.
Austin only cares about one thing in life:
Music.
Except Austin’s rockstar dreams never came true, and the bottom of the bottle isn’t giving him the answers he’s searching for.
But maybe, just maybe, a prickly Shade with a secret wild side will.
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