Book Report #40
What I read from Aug. 10 to Aug. 23: Sweet Obsession, Slewfoot, Silver Elites
Let’s get into it.
Sweet Obsession (Dark Olympus #8), by Katee Robert 🎧
Genre: Fantasy, Smut
What’s it about: I wrote about the general premise of all of these books a few months ago. In book eight (!!) of the series, Icarus has spent his life scheming and plotting to prove his worth to his father, King Minos, and it has warped his outlook on life and relationships. The only redeeming thing he thinks he’s done is sacrifice his freedom so his sister, Ariadne, could escape Olympus before Circe attacks the city in revenge. Now, Icarus is the captive of one of the big three of Olympus, Poseidon. Luckily, unlike many of the other title holders of Olympus, Poseidon is reluctant to wield the power of his role. He is determined to do whatever will protect Olympus with the least damage to his people, but he’s caught in a dangerous power struggle between Zeus and Hera. At first, Poseidon is eager to learn what Icarus knows of Circe’s plot, but soon the two find themselves inescapably drawn to one another. Both men must make difficult choices about their allegiances and the kind of people they want to be.
Was it good? No, and I don’t know why I keep reading these I’m honestly embarrassed.
Highlights:
One thing I do appreciate about Katee Robert is her commitment to body diversity. I think in a lot of these fantasy smut novels there is a default societal hotness that’s assumed, or it’s like, the girl who doesn’t think she’s hot because she’s too tall or too skinny or has red hair, or the guy has like…just a crooked nose or something. I, like the author, find a lot of kinds of people sexy.
Fuck the next book, Tender Cruelty, is about Zeus and Hera and unfortunately I am onboard.
Slewfoot, by Brom 🎧
Genre: Horror, historical
What’s it about: Abitha struggles to fit in with the people of her Puritan village in Connecticut: She’s outspoken and a little wild, yet she’s managed to find love with her arranged husband and they farm the land together. But after her husband dies in a mysterious accident, she is left alone and vulnerable to the machinations of her brother-in-law, who seeks to take the land from her.
Meanwhile, an ancient spirit has roused in the wood, but he doesn’t remember who he is. Is he Slewfoot, the devil, as the people call him? Or Father, the protector of the wood and the wildfolk?
Abitha and the spirit only have each other to turn to, and together, they force a confrontation between the old gods and the new.
Was it good? Yes, there’s a lot to like about it. If you, like me, loved The Witch by Robert Eggers, you’ll eat this up. I picked it up because I’m a fan of Brom because of his take on Peter Pan from almost twenty years ago, and he’s still just as creepy and good. Beyond the horror and violence, the heart of this story is one of identity. Both Slewfoot and Abitha struggle against the way others seek to define them and their nature, and through their mutual respect and acceptance of each other, are able to find themselves, in a way. It’s really beautiful.
Highlights:
So, I will say that this book is very grim, and Abitha is completely broken down by the end. The things she goes through become somewhat of a slog to get through. All I’ll say is that almost everyone deserves their bloody end.
I really loved the maternal line of magic Abitha draws upon.
This obviously draws on a lot of what we know from Salem Witch Trial lore, but I really liked the focus on the wildfolk and the forest, and how much of what is Good and Evil is defined by perspective and who is the custodian of the land.
Silver Elite, by Dani Francis 🎧
Genre: Dystopian, Romance
What’s it about: Wren Darlington is one of the most powerful psychics in the world…and almost nobody knows. On the continent, people with psychic abilities, or Mods, are either executed or sent to labor camps. Wren has spent her life in hiding with her uncle, running a ranch far out of the way of the rulers of the Continent, and aiding a small rebellion in little ways.
But Wren is impulsive, and a careless mistake uproots her from her home and lands her in the enemy’s elite military program. In order to survive, and be of use to the rebellion, she has to prove herself to the most elite block of soldiers. But she can’t help but get into trouble, especially when the head of the program, Cross Redden, has his eye on her.
Was it good? You know what, yeah. It’s been hard to explain what makes some dumb romantasies fun and what makes some unbearable. I think there are two things that help make Silver Elite a fun romp: 1) The world building is just enough to work. You don’t get bogged down in information and there’s less opportunity to get caught up on inconsistencies. 2) Wren, the main character, is slightly more self aware than other protagonists. She understands how the world works, so things aren’t constantly a shock to her in stupid ways. She is, self admittedly, kind of a dummy. She’s reckless and impatient, which leads her into stupid problems, but then she reflects on her choices! My hope is that we will see some character growth in the following books.
Highlights:
Ok, so enemies to lovers is a fun trope. But there’s a line where I struggle with the attraction. Like…the son of a genocidal leader who specifically has spent his entire rule oppressing your people….with his sons help? Like I don’t know that someone could be hot enough to get over that for me. THAT BEING SAID, Cross isn’t the worst. He’s like…hot and mean, but you get the sense he’s a principled person.
The sex scenes are fine! I enjoyed them.
Sometimes these books don’t let the main female character have other people in her life to care about. Wren has lots of them! And even her enemies, she thinks a lot of.
I don’t have the words to articulate this well right now, but sometimes, I wonder if the whole “oh what if the revolution were the real bad guys all along” trope in books is white nonsense. Like I never understand why some applications of power are considered fine and others are evil. There’s a kind of childish moral balance sheet at play in a lot of these books that I think is unnecessary. Some people want thing A and other want thing B. I don’t really think one has to be better or worse than the other. It’s more interesting if it isn’t.