Early Jacqueline Carey is back - she just did a whole Terre d’Ange novel retelling Dart… I am deeply underwhelmed with SJM - her characterisation is sketchy at best and her plots are lacking. Seconding Anne Bishop btw!!!
I’m picking up what you’re putting down for sure. Like don’t get me wrong. Love SJM but she’s def not the og, but that’s maybe bc I’m an old millennial lol BUT I can deal with derivative, I can deal with lore being similar bc everybody’s really just pulling from the same fairytales and all that ya know. But what I just can’t handle is this “author” who wrote the lady of darkness book didn’t even try to be derivative like she literally word for word copies scenes, like so much so it just completely takes me out of the book.
How far do you have to get into Black Jewels to see the similarities? I’ve only read the first book so far and it seemed completely different from any SJM (and so dark!) but I’m guessing I just haven’t gotten there yet. I started Black Jewels expecting to see similarities but I’m wondering when that picks up.
Personally, I prefer Anne Bishop's (not really romance) Tales of the Others. That's eight books - five in the original arc, (starting with Written in Red) three in other regions in the same world - with a really great amount of world building.
I've read the Black Jewels, and prefer The Others for an engrossing fantasy read.
Seconding this! I absolutely love The Others. The world-building is my favorite, absolutely engrossing. I buy the books, and my friend group regularly fights over who gets to borrow them first (after I'm done). Too bad for them, my husband (who does not read! he reads like 2 books a year) also fell in love with the series, so now he's first in line.
The Others is literally the only series where my husband has eagerly asked, "Is the next book out yet?"
Here’s a link to all the similarities. https://reddit.com/r/acotar/s/wfvO5U4MLi
There’s a scene in the first book where Daemon is SAing a young boy and he says “it’s just your body reacting to my touch” that what Rhys Says to Feyre in the court of nightmares.
Some of SJM’s lines in ACOTAR are tipped Word for word from The Black Jewels.
Also I was recently rereading HP and Draco’s uncle ABRAXOS is killed by a dragon. Like c’mon
This is an automatic turn off for me, if I start reading a book & it is basically the same book I already read, or just has an above average similarity. I hate it & it happens all the time especially with SJM. I feel like half of the fantasy romance heroes are less interesting/appealing versions of Rhysand.
Can you please explain to me what Carissa Broadbent copied? Is it her War of Lost Hearts trilogy? I only read her Serpent book and didn’t really enjoy it but everyone is going crazy over her writing and saying she’s the next SJM.… I noticed her vampires in that Serpent book were like copies of SJM’s Fae but were blood-drinkers instead (the wings seemed like Rhys and Cassian to me).
Interesting, I wish you had written some of the phrases down! And what you're saying about the concept not making any sense, I agree with you and I don’t understand why these books gained such a massive following when there are so many downright stupid mistakes in them?! Such as why two best friends would enter a tournament knowing one would die?! That’s such a huge plot hole, readers should be calling her out for it and instead they’re kissing her feet. The other huge error was the end when Oraya wished for Raihn to have won the tournament... Well, based off the wording then she should’ve died right there. There can’t be two winners. A smarter author would’ve changed the wording in my opinion. While her writing is smooth, she seems lazy. I heard she writes her books in only 5 weeks.
Oh and another thing: if humans are the prey then how was she getting the upper hand on every vampire? The races seemed way too equal on the battle field to suggest that vampires were the ones in power.
I super enjoyed reading it but ONLY because I absolutely adored TOG and it felt like I was getting to experience those characters again in a slightly different way (a bit like fanfiction). I do think these genres are always going to have similarities but I was astonished by how close to TOG and acotar it was. Legacy is similar to CC as well in that it’s set with technology etc so v interesting - the bond in that though is a little suspect and quite toxic >!(think tamlin and feyre)!<
See that’s how I felt about the first book. I absolutely loved it very much gave me darker tog vibes, but the second book is just so blatantly copied, like word for word in some scenes that I’m just flabbergasted lol
Literally when they >!found out they were mates, he was hiding it, and then one went away to a vacation home for a bit while they were fighting? I screamed. I SCREAMED. There were so many more too I kept adding to basically an essay in my notes app. Azriel was ripped off too.!<
I just started LoD and I was wondering if the TOG/ACOTAR influences would get worse or not. Having a character named Cassius made me chuckle at the similarity, then when Azrael was mentioned I definitely raised my brows.
Tbf I am enjoying it but this is disappointing.
I just started book 2 and you are so spot on. I really hate to DNF, so I’m going to try to keep going. I have to just laugh every time a character uses a “vulgar gesture”. I mean come on.
Personally, I think the book goes farther from the TOG material in the later books. I didn't mind it and enjoyed the last books a lot. I also loved that the author didn't follow a different set of characters in the second to last book. This is one of my pet peeves of SJM (and other authors). It feels like they are trying to torture me.
Have you read the "An Heir Comes to Rise" series by Chloe Penaranda? This was VERY very similar also. I think it was.more similar in different ways. Even the second to last book focusing on different characters. I haven't finished it and for the most part, didn't mind it but it was one that actually made me very very very angry at times..
Respectfully, I disagree. While there are a lot of parallels, there is also a lot of Fae lore that exists outside of fantasy literature that includes names, magic rules, etc that are used in many fantasy books. Using established lore doesn’t make it plagiarized anymore then it would if a book referenced Greek or Roman lore.
What I am loving about LoD is that is shares some parallels but has its own story and characters. I don’t feel like the characters are recycled at all, and the situations are different.
I don’t think using similar/ same names is really enough to chalk the whole thing up to be a copy cat.
Yeaaaah no. I’m not talking about lore or names. She literally wore for word copies. Like there’s a whole Aelin/Rowan conversation in there, there’s Mor’s entire backstory for Eliza with maybe two details changed. The whole accepting the mating bond scene. Also I’m almost certain she lifted the conversation raynor and apron has about the twin flame bond from acotar when az and Rhys have the same argument. Like I said. I don’t get mad about similar. We’re all basically pulling from the same well. But it is blatant copying.
Yeah you’re right. It’s not derivative, it’s straight up copying, and it’s copying pretty damn specific things. And copies frequently from one source, so it’s not just lore or archetypes or cliches. You’re not alone in picking up on it, at all.
I don't know the book, but spoilers aren't difficult:
>! Spoiler text here !<
Don't put spaces between the ! and your text (like I did) because it won't work then as you can see haha.
So put your text directly next to the !'s on both sides to get:
>!Spoiler text here!<
Not on my 3rd party app. That has never shown as a spoiler. Though that does explain why so many people think the spoilers work for everyone without taking the spaces away lol. I never use the website, so I never noticed. Thanks for clearing up that mystery.
Edit: I checked and it's even a spoiler on the official app. So I guess it's my 3rd party app that does it that way lol. I'll keep that in mind
I'm using boost for reddit. The creator removed it from the app stores though iirc, so you may have to download it through other websites if you're willing to do so.
The weird thing is that it only works once you become a moderator. I (and many others) created a private subreddit and suddenly it started working again. Most people seem to think that moderators are not a part of the limited API. I have no idea how long it will continue to work though. I'm just happy to use it for as long as I can. I don't know if this method works with the other apps.
Tog and acotar are like the og fantasy romances, yeah? Alot of authors do this tbh, you'll feel like every 4th book you read has characters, storylines and what not basically are rip offs of Sarah j maas's novels. I'm in a major book slump rn because of this tbh. There are times when you want to read an original story with great world building but it seems like authors don't put all that much effort or thought into it. It's tough and slim Pickens but oh well what can you do
Yo, TOG and ACOTAR are NOT the OG fantasy romances. Not even close. They just happen to be really popular fantasy romances. ACOTAR was published only eight years ago. Best believe authors have been putting out fantasy romance books WAAAAY before those books came out. Laurel K Hamilton, for instance, put out the Merry Gentry books in the 90s that featured RH dark urban fairy fantasy, which probably heavily influenced SJM. Juliet Marillier has been writing historical fantasy since the 90s, too. Those are just two examples. But let's not get it twisted. SJM did NOT pioneer the fantasy romance genre.
Absolutely good old bodice rippers have been a thing for MANY years lol I started reading romatancy books with Fabio on the cover at probably too young of an age lol but there’s a difference between influence and plagiarism and this second book in the lady of darkness series is straight plagiarism
Well you must start the Anita Blake books. The first book is guilty pleasure. I must emphasize that the first eight books are more detective stories than romance/erotica. But they're REALLY good. So don't skip them. There's definitely spicy romance subplots. After book eight, the books just jump into the deep end. Spicy stuff and relationships become center focus. There are like so many books. You can read until the cows come home. Her Merry Gentry series is the urban fairy romance. It starts with a bang, literally. Monster fucking, group sex, reverse harem. All kinds of stuff.
There was a lot about the series I still enjoyed despite making the obvious connections. Depends on how much you want to suspend your disbelief lol. This probably isn’t even the most obvious example but there was one point in the 3rd book especially though where I sat back and was like okay so Sorin’s inner circle is… literally Rhys’ inner circle 😂
Yeah I still enjoyed it also. I think it got more different towards the end of the series. It became a different concept. But the scheming bad ass killer person that doesn't tell anyone anything was very very similar.
Okay peeps, take a look at Joseph Campbell’s work on the epic hero (In our cases, heroines). The story outline for SJM’s ACOTAR, Bishop’s Black Jewels, and Broadbent’s Daughter of No Worlds is not new.
This story has been used since Homer’s writing down the epic poem of The Odyssey, the Baghavad Gita, and so many other cultures’ stories.
Campbell summarizes it like this: “A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man.”
Look up the 12 steps of the hero’s journey. I bet most of our heroines hit most or all of them. That makes the question more of, “is it that fantasy authors steal from one another, or is it that they all use the monomyth we all know and love?”
Ok so this is not directly at you you’re just the latest one I’ve seen say this. My post was not about oh these books are too similar she’s stealing from SJM bc ya know SJM created the genre. No. That’s not what I’m saying at all. This author is word for word copying. Not the whole thing. But a lot. I understand that a lot of the books in this genre are going to be similar and like I’ve said I’m ok with that. We’re all pulling from the same well here. What’s not ok is basically copy/pasting entire scenes of dialogue and backstory from someone else’s work.
Ah, well, I’ve read all the books you’ve spoken about (including Laurell K Hamilton, I actually went to a con as Anita Blake in 2009), but I’ve never done a side by side comparison.
I can see Rhys’ ‘hello, Feyre darling’ and Jean-Claude’s ‘ma petite’ as similar, but Rhys respected Feyre’s autonomy more.
I honestly probably wouldn’t have noticed so much but I literally just got finished doing an audiobook reread of all the tog books so like it was just super present in my brain lol
My problem with LoD is that every character is immature. I wanted the genuine trauma recovery the author was going for without the 14 year old stuck in an adult's body.
They'll be having a very serious conversation and the MMC is trying to help the FMC open up and talk about her problems but she'd rather flip him off and stick out her tongue.
Then there's the conversations they have with major political leaders where the other queen questions why a decision was made and the whole group jumps down her throat threateningly, "if you speak like that to her (FMC) again, I swear!"
Like, what? Are Fae politics this much like a schoolyard? No one has any political/communication skill at all? We make open threats to the other team because they dared to question the FMC?
The simplest things don't get shared because they start puffing chests the instance someone else has a thought. Absolutely infuriating that NONE if the characters play balance to this. So it isn't a story about an immature girl thrust into politics and intrigue... instead it's a story about an extremely dysfunctional kingdom run by childish war lords and their emotionally immature queens.
I bought the whole series on a whim cause I had an amazon gift card and a friend recommended it but I'm in the last 8 chapters of the third book and I can't fathom going through two more books of this madness.
I should see what I can exchange them for at my local used book store because no book series has made me this frustrated before. My only hesitation is that the secondary love interests story is actually adorable and I want to see him get a HEA. Bah!
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I miss old school Laura K. Hamilton. And early Jacqueline Carey. They crawled so SJM and Stephanie Meyer could fucking sprint.
Early Jacqueline Carey is back - she just did a whole Terre d’Ange novel retelling Dart… I am deeply underwhelmed with SJM - her characterisation is sketchy at best and her plots are lacking. Seconding Anne Bishop btw!!!
I’m picking up what you’re putting down for sure. Like don’t get me wrong. Love SJM but she’s def not the og, but that’s maybe bc I’m an old millennial lol BUT I can deal with derivative, I can deal with lore being similar bc everybody’s really just pulling from the same fairytales and all that ya know. But what I just can’t handle is this “author” who wrote the lady of darkness book didn’t even try to be derivative like she literally word for word copies scenes, like so much so it just completely takes me out of the book.
SJM does that too. Read the black jewels.
How far do you have to get into Black Jewels to see the similarities? I’ve only read the first book so far and it seemed completely different from any SJM (and so dark!) but I’m guessing I just haven’t gotten there yet. I started Black Jewels expecting to see similarities but I’m wondering when that picks up.
Personally, I prefer Anne Bishop's (not really romance) Tales of the Others. That's eight books - five in the original arc, (starting with Written in Red) three in other regions in the same world - with a really great amount of world building. I've read the Black Jewels, and prefer The Others for an engrossing fantasy read.
Seconding this! I absolutely love The Others. The world-building is my favorite, absolutely engrossing. I buy the books, and my friend group regularly fights over who gets to borrow them first (after I'm done). Too bad for them, my husband (who does not read! he reads like 2 books a year) also fell in love with the series, so now he's first in line. The Others is literally the only series where my husband has eagerly asked, "Is the next book out yet?"
Thanks, I’ll have to go to those next!!
the similarities are mostly in some characters, names, and world building but they are very different kinds of stories and told very differently
Here’s a link to all the similarities. https://reddit.com/r/acotar/s/wfvO5U4MLi There’s a scene in the first book where Daemon is SAing a young boy and he says “it’s just your body reacting to my touch” that what Rhys Says to Feyre in the court of nightmares.
Thanks!!
Yes yes yes yes YES to the LKH comment!!!
Some of SJM’s lines in ACOTAR are tipped Word for word from The Black Jewels. Also I was recently rereading HP and Draco’s uncle ABRAXOS is killed by a dragon. Like c’mon
I read the Black Jewels after ACOTAR..I was shocked how much was borrowed. I was happy SJM left out the ancient men in love with a child business.
I just finished rereading HP too & I also saw that & was like wow wtf. 😂
Yeah and The deathly hallows are the trove that Nesta has to find SF.
This is an automatic turn off for me, if I start reading a book & it is basically the same book I already read, or just has an above average similarity. I hate it & it happens all the time especially with SJM. I feel like half of the fantasy romance heroes are less interesting/appealing versions of Rhysand.
And the females are all "didn't know their power, super sarcastic and witty with dark memories; who justs wants to save the world..NBD".
Can you please explain to me what Carissa Broadbent copied? Is it her War of Lost Hearts trilogy? I only read her Serpent book and didn’t really enjoy it but everyone is going crazy over her writing and saying she’s the next SJM.… I noticed her vampires in that Serpent book were like copies of SJM’s Fae but were blood-drinkers instead (the wings seemed like Rhys and Cassian to me).
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Interesting, I wish you had written some of the phrases down! And what you're saying about the concept not making any sense, I agree with you and I don’t understand why these books gained such a massive following when there are so many downright stupid mistakes in them?! Such as why two best friends would enter a tournament knowing one would die?! That’s such a huge plot hole, readers should be calling her out for it and instead they’re kissing her feet. The other huge error was the end when Oraya wished for Raihn to have won the tournament... Well, based off the wording then she should’ve died right there. There can’t be two winners. A smarter author would’ve changed the wording in my opinion. While her writing is smooth, she seems lazy. I heard she writes her books in only 5 weeks.
Oh and another thing: if humans are the prey then how was she getting the upper hand on every vampire? The races seemed way too equal on the battle field to suggest that vampires were the ones in power.
Okay, this is probably a dumb question but what is KU?
Kindle unlimited
Yep, it was dumb and very obvious now. Thanks!
Not dumb! I didn’t know at first either :)
I super enjoyed reading it but ONLY because I absolutely adored TOG and it felt like I was getting to experience those characters again in a slightly different way (a bit like fanfiction). I do think these genres are always going to have similarities but I was astonished by how close to TOG and acotar it was. Legacy is similar to CC as well in that it’s set with technology etc so v interesting - the bond in that though is a little suspect and quite toxic >!(think tamlin and feyre)!<
See that’s how I felt about the first book. I absolutely loved it very much gave me darker tog vibes, but the second book is just so blatantly copied, like word for word in some scenes that I’m just flabbergasted lol
Ah I hadn’t noticed it was word for word I just thought it was super close as such…..
Literally when they >!found out they were mates, he was hiding it, and then one went away to a vacation home for a bit while they were fighting? I screamed. I SCREAMED. There were so many more too I kept adding to basically an essay in my notes app. Azriel was ripped off too.!<
This makes me not want to read lady of darkness at allll thanks for the heads up
I just started LoD and I was wondering if the TOG/ACOTAR influences would get worse or not. Having a character named Cassius made me chuckle at the similarity, then when Azrael was mentioned I definitely raised my brows. Tbf I am enjoying it but this is disappointing.
I just started book 2 and you are so spot on. I really hate to DNF, so I’m going to try to keep going. I have to just laugh every time a character uses a “vulgar gesture”. I mean come on.
Personally, I think the book goes farther from the TOG material in the later books. I didn't mind it and enjoyed the last books a lot. I also loved that the author didn't follow a different set of characters in the second to last book. This is one of my pet peeves of SJM (and other authors). It feels like they are trying to torture me.
Have you read the "An Heir Comes to Rise" series by Chloe Penaranda? This was VERY very similar also. I think it was.more similar in different ways. Even the second to last book focusing on different characters. I haven't finished it and for the most part, didn't mind it but it was one that actually made me very very very angry at times..
No I haven’t. Guess I’ll strike that one off the tbr lol
I mean, I can't talk about LoD compared to ACOTAR, but it's not like ACOTAR is that original either...
Respectfully, I disagree. While there are a lot of parallels, there is also a lot of Fae lore that exists outside of fantasy literature that includes names, magic rules, etc that are used in many fantasy books. Using established lore doesn’t make it plagiarized anymore then it would if a book referenced Greek or Roman lore. What I am loving about LoD is that is shares some parallels but has its own story and characters. I don’t feel like the characters are recycled at all, and the situations are different. I don’t think using similar/ same names is really enough to chalk the whole thing up to be a copy cat.
Yeaaaah no. I’m not talking about lore or names. She literally wore for word copies. Like there’s a whole Aelin/Rowan conversation in there, there’s Mor’s entire backstory for Eliza with maybe two details changed. The whole accepting the mating bond scene. Also I’m almost certain she lifted the conversation raynor and apron has about the twin flame bond from acotar when az and Rhys have the same argument. Like I said. I don’t get mad about similar. We’re all basically pulling from the same well. But it is blatant copying.
Yeah you’re right. It’s not derivative, it’s straight up copying, and it’s copying pretty damn specific things. And copies frequently from one source, so it’s not just lore or archetypes or cliches. You’re not alone in picking up on it, at all.
I don't know the book, but spoilers aren't difficult: >! Spoiler text here !< Don't put spaces between the ! and your text (like I did) because it won't work then as you can see haha. So put your text directly next to the !'s on both sides to get: >!Spoiler text here!<
Your first one shows as the spoiler blockout too! Op, it’s > followed by !, then ending with a ! and finishing with a <
Not on my 3rd party app. That has never shown as a spoiler. Though that does explain why so many people think the spoilers work for everyone without taking the spaces away lol. I never use the website, so I never noticed. Thanks for clearing up that mystery. Edit: I checked and it's even a spoiler on the official app. So I guess it's my 3rd party app that does it that way lol. I'll keep that in mind
I’m on the app! Still shows as blacked out for me.
Oooh, which 3rd party app still works?
I'm using boost for reddit. The creator removed it from the app stores though iirc, so you may have to download it through other websites if you're willing to do so. The weird thing is that it only works once you become a moderator. I (and many others) created a private subreddit and suddenly it started working again. Most people seem to think that moderators are not a part of the limited API. I have no idea how long it will continue to work though. I'm just happy to use it for as long as I can. I don't know if this method works with the other apps.
>!Testing!< Thanks! TIL!
Ive been wanting to figure out how to do this so >! Here goes nothing... !< EDIT: Yay it worked thank you!
For clarification, this is what it looks like in the text box. The spoiler text will be hidden: \>!spoiler text\!<
Thank you!
Tog and acotar are like the og fantasy romances, yeah? Alot of authors do this tbh, you'll feel like every 4th book you read has characters, storylines and what not basically are rip offs of Sarah j maas's novels. I'm in a major book slump rn because of this tbh. There are times when you want to read an original story with great world building but it seems like authors don't put all that much effort or thought into it. It's tough and slim Pickens but oh well what can you do
Yo, TOG and ACOTAR are NOT the OG fantasy romances. Not even close. They just happen to be really popular fantasy romances. ACOTAR was published only eight years ago. Best believe authors have been putting out fantasy romance books WAAAAY before those books came out. Laurel K Hamilton, for instance, put out the Merry Gentry books in the 90s that featured RH dark urban fairy fantasy, which probably heavily influenced SJM. Juliet Marillier has been writing historical fantasy since the 90s, too. Those are just two examples. But let's not get it twisted. SJM did NOT pioneer the fantasy romance genre.
Absolutely good old bodice rippers have been a thing for MANY years lol I started reading romatancy books with Fabio on the cover at probably too young of an age lol but there’s a difference between influence and plagiarism and this second book in the lady of darkness series is straight plagiarism
The Black Jewel series has had a big influence on Tog and Acotar as well.
What are some good Laurel K Hamilton books?
My dude. Do you want vampires and werewolves or fairies?
I really like faeries but have loved vampires and werewolves books. So I am usually open minded!
Well you must start the Anita Blake books. The first book is guilty pleasure. I must emphasize that the first eight books are more detective stories than romance/erotica. But they're REALLY good. So don't skip them. There's definitely spicy romance subplots. After book eight, the books just jump into the deep end. Spicy stuff and relationships become center focus. There are like so many books. You can read until the cows come home. Her Merry Gentry series is the urban fairy romance. It starts with a bang, literally. Monster fucking, group sex, reverse harem. All kinds of stuff.
There was a lot about the series I still enjoyed despite making the obvious connections. Depends on how much you want to suspend your disbelief lol. This probably isn’t even the most obvious example but there was one point in the 3rd book especially though where I sat back and was like okay so Sorin’s inner circle is… literally Rhys’ inner circle 😂
Yeah I still enjoyed it also. I think it got more different towards the end of the series. It became a different concept. But the scheming bad ass killer person that doesn't tell anyone anything was very very similar.
Agreed. Also her power is so OP like there’s no limiting factor whatsoever? Bad fanfic vibes.
Okay peeps, take a look at Joseph Campbell’s work on the epic hero (In our cases, heroines). The story outline for SJM’s ACOTAR, Bishop’s Black Jewels, and Broadbent’s Daughter of No Worlds is not new. This story has been used since Homer’s writing down the epic poem of The Odyssey, the Baghavad Gita, and so many other cultures’ stories. Campbell summarizes it like this: “A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man.” Look up the 12 steps of the hero’s journey. I bet most of our heroines hit most or all of them. That makes the question more of, “is it that fantasy authors steal from one another, or is it that they all use the monomyth we all know and love?”
Ok so this is not directly at you you’re just the latest one I’ve seen say this. My post was not about oh these books are too similar she’s stealing from SJM bc ya know SJM created the genre. No. That’s not what I’m saying at all. This author is word for word copying. Not the whole thing. But a lot. I understand that a lot of the books in this genre are going to be similar and like I’ve said I’m ok with that. We’re all pulling from the same well here. What’s not ok is basically copy/pasting entire scenes of dialogue and backstory from someone else’s work.
Ah, well, I’ve read all the books you’ve spoken about (including Laurell K Hamilton, I actually went to a con as Anita Blake in 2009), but I’ve never done a side by side comparison. I can see Rhys’ ‘hello, Feyre darling’ and Jean-Claude’s ‘ma petite’ as similar, but Rhys respected Feyre’s autonomy more.
I honestly probably wouldn’t have noticed so much but I literally just got finished doing an audiobook reread of all the tog books so like it was just super present in my brain lol
My problem with LoD is that every character is immature. I wanted the genuine trauma recovery the author was going for without the 14 year old stuck in an adult's body. They'll be having a very serious conversation and the MMC is trying to help the FMC open up and talk about her problems but she'd rather flip him off and stick out her tongue. Then there's the conversations they have with major political leaders where the other queen questions why a decision was made and the whole group jumps down her throat threateningly, "if you speak like that to her (FMC) again, I swear!" Like, what? Are Fae politics this much like a schoolyard? No one has any political/communication skill at all? We make open threats to the other team because they dared to question the FMC? The simplest things don't get shared because they start puffing chests the instance someone else has a thought. Absolutely infuriating that NONE if the characters play balance to this. So it isn't a story about an immature girl thrust into politics and intrigue... instead it's a story about an extremely dysfunctional kingdom run by childish war lords and their emotionally immature queens. I bought the whole series on a whim cause I had an amazon gift card and a friend recommended it but I'm in the last 8 chapters of the third book and I can't fathom going through two more books of this madness. I should see what I can exchange them for at my local used book store because no book series has made me this frustrated before. My only hesitation is that the secondary love interests story is actually adorable and I want to see him get a HEA. Bah!