There Is No Devil
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Description
Cole and Mara's relationship has grown to consume them both. Cole, sculptor and killer, finds himself adrift in a depth of feeling he's never known, while Mara, unafraid of his darkness, is blossoming into a successful artist, shaking off the trauma of her youth to finally chase success.
For the first time in both their lives, they might actually be...happy.
But the past has a long shadow.
Alastor Shaw is the Beast of the Bay, a frenzy-killer who once hoped to share his hunting ground with Cole. They never chased the same prey...until the night they both laid eyes on Mara Eldritch. And now, when Shaw realizes the cold-hearted Cole has fallen in love with the girl they once targeted, he plans to destroy him, using Mara as his weapon and pawn.
Cole will do anything to protect Mara, including making her strong enough to protect herself. And soon, he finds himself tempting her deeper and deeper into the depths of violence she never thought she'd commit.
Shaw's hunt won't stop. Neither will Cole's love.
When the time comes for Mara to act, will she be ready to do what needs to be done?
Book Information
Characteristics
2 reviews
Mood
Protagonist(s)
Pace
Writing Style
Posts
(EN) 🔥 Dunkel, intensiv und kompromisslos - ein Finale, das unter die Haut geht
💞 Liebe: 4 / 5 🌶️ Spice: 4 / 5 Mit „There Is No Devil“ liefert Sophie Lark einen absolut gelungenen Abschluss ihrer Dilogie - intensiv, fesselnd und emotional genau auf den Punkt. Die Geschichte knüpft nahtlos an den ersten Band an, sodass man sofort wieder mitten im Geschehen ist und ab der ersten Seite mitfiebert. Cole und Mara wachsen noch enger zusammen, während er als Killer mit ungewohnten Gefühlen konfrontiert wird und Mara als Künstlerin immer mehr aufblüht. Doch ein alter Feind bedroht sie beide und versucht, Mara gegen Cole auszuspielen - was sie tiefer denn je in seine gewalttätige Welt zieht und sie zwingt, selbst zu kämpfen. Mara überzeugt erneut mit einer starken Entwicklung, und durch tiefere Einblicke in ihre Vergangenheit werden ihre Gedanken und Entscheidungen noch greifbarer. Auch Cole gewinnt durch neue Facetten aus seiner Vergangenheit deutlich an Tiefe, was sein Handeln noch besser nachvollziehbar macht. Die Handlung bleibt durchgehend spannend und fesselnd, mit genau der richtigen Mischung aus Dunkelheit, Emotionen und Intensität. Dabei fühlt sich das Ende rund und stimmig an – ein würdiger Abschluss, der definitiv Freude bereitet hat. Der Schreibstil ist wieder düster, schonungslos und gleichzeitig unglaublich packend, mit einer guten Portion Spice, die perfekt zur Geschichte passt. Eine starke Dilogie, die im Gedächtnis bleibt und Fans von Dark Romance definitiv begeistern wird.
My expectations were definitely met!
I liked the second book much better than the first. The ending was predictable (like in most other books), but here it was really well done. ‼️Spoiler alert‼️ What bothered me: Mara had no problem killing people at the end. I found that pretty unrealistic, but I guess it's a matter of taste 😅
" I'll do what I have to do. No one is going to take you from me... and no one is taking me from you." Ein gelungenes Ende Es war schön zu sehen wie Cole und Mara sich immer besser kennengelernt haben. Ich hab tatsächlich auch die ein oder andere Träne in diesem Buch verloren als man die Vorgeschichte der beide Protagonisten mitbekommen hat. Jedoch hat mich gestört das Shawn nicht ganz so präsent war wie im 1 sten Teil. Auch wenn es durchaus Sinn gemacht hat. Klare lese Empfehlung <3
I didn't know if I wanted to pick up the second book after the first one - I wish I didn't. This is a short little under 300 hundred paged book. However the whole point of the story happened in like 30 pages. I read 240ish pages full of nothing (mostly smut). If you'd feel connected to the characters (which I didn't) you might enjoy this but for me it was a no
Lieblings zitat: S. 19. "I've had friends, but i was never the most important person in their life, the sun in their solar system."
🇺🇲 = 🇩🇪 ⬇️ 🇩🇪: Tw lesen. [18+] Das Buch fängt auch schon wie der erste Teil mega spannend und sehr spicy an, in dem Teil ist mehr Tiefe und mehr Details zu Coles als auch Maras Vergangenheit. Man bekommt tiefere Einblicke in Erinnerungen und Gründe, was vieles intensiver gemacht hat und dem Buch einen gewissen Charakter gegeben hat. Mir hat trotzdem irgendetwas gefehlt, weshalb das Buch nur eine 4,5 für mich geworden ist. Gegen Ende hin, so ca. die letzten 80 Seiten, wurde es nochmal richtig spannend und heiß. Es ist auf jeden Fall eine Empfehlung! Für Leute, die gut Englisch können, ist es auf jeden Fall etwas. Gelesen: 05.09.2024 - 25.09.2024. [Hab kaum Zeit gehabt 🥲] 🇺🇲: Favorite quote: p. 19. "I've had friends, but I was never the most important person in their life, the sun in their solar system." Read TW. [18+] The book starts off as exciting and very spicy, just like the first book, but this part has more depth and more details about Cole's and Mara's past. You get deeper insights into memories and reasons, which made things more intense and gave the book a certain character. I still felt like something was missing, which is why I only gave the book a 4.5. Towards the end, about 80 pages were really exciting and hot again. It's definitely a recommendation!! Read: 09/05/2024 - 09/25/2024. [I barely had time 🥲]
Die generelle Story hat mich von Anfang an mitgenommen, aber insgesamt ist etwas wenig passiert. Die Handlung hat sich sehr in die Länge gezogen und ich persönlich fand es etwas unrealistisch, dass Mara am Ende kein Problem mehr mit dem Töten von Menschen hat. Es gab keine Phase, in der sie dazu übergegangen ist, sondern von jetzt auf gleich war sie vollkommen überzeugt, dass es das Richtige ist. Aber allgemein fand ich die Geschichte zwischen den Beiden sehr fesselnd.
Mit ziemlicher Sicherheit ist zu sagen, dass wie erwartet, der 2 Teil genauso überragend war, wie der erste. Aber auch hier gilt wieder nichts für schwache Nerven. Shopie Lark weiß wie man Sachen in scene setzt und beschreibt, eine unglaubliche Atmosphäre. Ich habs geliebt hoffe ihr auch... Viel Freude beim Lesen ❤️
Langatmig bis zu einem spannenden Ende
Ich habe diese Bücher hauptsächlich wegen der Autorin gelesen und muss ehrlich gestehen, dass ich etwas mehr erwartet hatte. Ja, es ist Dark. Ja, es gibt guten spice. Aber es gibt nunmal auch irgendwie wenig Handlung. Nach Band 1 hat man klare Erwartungen an den nächsten Band und ich persönlich fand es eher langatmig und um den heißen Brei herumgetanzt, bis es dann endlich zu einem spannenden Ende über die letzten Kapitel gekommen ist. Die Illustrationen im Buch haben mir wieder sehr gut gefallen und machen ja auch irgendwie die Bücher von Sophie Lark aus. Ich finde das unheimlich charmant und dies ist für Mich auch immer ein zusätzlicher extra Punkt - Sorry, aber die sind wirklich gut. Und somit ist mein Fazit: Naja. Gute Idee, tolle Charaktere, hätte man vielleicht noch etwas mehr draus machen können. War zumindest eine Erfahrung zu lesen.
Der zweite Band ist genauso intensiv wie der erste. Leider wurde der Prozess, in dem Mara DIESE Entscheidung trifft, meiner Meinung nach etwas zu schnell abgehandelt. Auch ihre Verwandlung wirkte ziemlich abrupt. Cole hat sich ebenfalls stark verändert, was ich durch die Erzählperspektive nachvollziehen kann – dennoch hat mich seine rücksichtslose Seite deutlich mehr „angezogen“. Nichtsdestotrotz hatte ich beim Lesen viel Spaß.
I liked There Are No Saints more.
I enjoyed There Is No Devil, but I personally connected more with the first book. While this one continues the intense story and keeps the dark, dangerous atmosphere, I felt the pacing and emotional impact were stronger in the first part. This book still had gripping moments and a unique dynamic between the characters, but for me it didn’t hit quite as hard as There Are No Saints.
What a story
It was really catchy and I needed to know how it ended .. I loved how the characters developed. Cole from someone cold and not feeling a thing, to someone who starts to care for mara. It was a really good and I loved the obsession part a lot tbh. It might sound twisted but the series was overall great!
Just when I was about to think I branded Sophie Lark as an author, who doesn’t match with me, too fast…she gives me this book. After the blast that was the first book of this duet - the concluding part of this promising series feels like slogging through Stolen Heir all over again. It’s pages after pages. But they could might as well be plain white. Cause that’s all I can recall of the content. Reading book one was like a rush to get high on. Reading book two is draining me of all my energy. Where book one had excitement and tension. Book two had emptiness and filler. Cole, as much as you intrigued me at first, the more you lacked later on. We get it, you’re an emotionless manipulative psychopath who does nothing that isn’t sorely for you’re own needs and purposes and you can’t respect boundaries for shit. And like, don’t get me wrong, it’s fiction, so I totally don’t care about a bit of toxicity. If I would I couldn’t read half of the books I read. But this felt like a slap in the face. I know it’s a toxic relationship. You don’t have to emphasize it with every damn sentence. At some point it felt beyond repetitive and annoying to read the hundredth chapter about Cole stressing how less of a fuck he gives about the world. And his obsession with Mara. I GET IT! GIVE ME SOME VARIETY. And whilst on the topic: yes Mara, we know you can see through him. We get that you see qualities in him. You are the one to change him. Be happy but stop annoying me with it. This book felt like it had 1990 pages instead of 300. I read for what felt like ages, only to have progressed 30 pages. It went on for years without anything happening. And the end then felt anticlimactic. It was underwhelming and after everything intent through with this book I would have at least deserved a better resolve. This book was one of the most disappointing reads I’ve read this year. Just because I had such high hopes after book one. REDUCE YOUR EXPECTATIONS TO ZERO. 2
Nach dem ersten Teil war ich ja sehr gespannt wie es weiter geht. Ich bin vom zweiten Teil allerdings etwas enttäuscht. Mir gefällt der Schreibstil von Sophie Lark weiterhin sehr gut, aber die Story hat sich sehr gezogen. Zum Ende hin wurde es nochmal etwas spannender aber alles vorher hat mich nicht so überzeugt. Die Beziehung von Mara und Cole kam bei mir sehr oberflächlich an und hatte keine interessanten Aspekte. Es gab ein paar Momente, wenn sie über die Vergangenheit geredet haben, wo die Charaktere mehr Tiefe bekommen haben.
This book i tarted a month ago right after the first one then I took a pause bc I had some issues with it but I think those issues I realized as I kept reading did add more to the book and I really liked it. I think the book was solid I had fun while reading it though and I have some scene that will forever be engraved in my mind
Just when I was about to think I branded Sophie Lark as an author, who doesn’t match with me, too fast…she gives me this book. After the blast that was the first book of this duet - the concluding part of this promising series feels like slogging through Stolen Heir all over again. It’s pages after pages. But they could might as well be plain white. Cause that’s all I can recall of the content. Reading book one was like a rush to get high on. Reading book two is draining me of all my energy. Where book one had excitement and tension. Book two had emptiness and filler. Cole, as much as you intrigued me at first, the more you lacked later on. We get it, you’re an emotionless manipulative psychopath who does nothing that isn’t sorely for you’re own needs and purposes and you can’t respect boundaries for shit. And like, don’t get me wrong, it’s fiction, so I totally don’t care about a bit of toxicity. If I would I couldn’t read half of the books I read. But this felt like a slap in the face. I know it’s a toxic relationship. You don’t have to emphasize it with every damn sentence. At some point it felt beyond repetitive and annoying to read the hundredth chapter about Cole stressing how less of a fuck he gives about the world. And his obsession with Mara. I GET IT! GIVE ME SOME VARIETY. And whilst on the topic: yes Mara, we know you can see through him. We get that you see qualities in him. You are the one to change him. Be happy but stop annoying me with it. This book felt like it had 1990 pages instead of 300. I read for what felt like ages, only to have progressed 30 pages. It went on for years without anything happening. And the end then felt anticlimactic. It was underwhelming and after everything intent through with this book I would have at least deserved a better resolve. This book was one of the most disappointing reads I’ve read this year. Just because I had such high hopes after book one. REDUCE YOUR EXPECTATIONS TO ZERO. 2
I can't say it enough, I'm obsessed with this world and these characters. There is just something so addictive about Sophie's writing style that I read both books in one sitting. Her characters always have such depth and visible strength that one could only admire. As I already said I read both books in one sitting and can't believe it's already over. I loved seeing Mara and Cole together. For me both just belong together. The tension and the plot twists not only captivated me and made me love the storyline, but also Mara and Cole themselves fascinated me, with their personalities and many facets.
I read that book right after I finished the first because I was so desperate to know what will happen next. I must say I lost my interest quite fast because it didn’t continue how I expected it but as you can see I have the book 4 stars so how come it got that rating some might ask? (Or none I really dgaf) Anyways moving on. The book had great story plots. I liked the way we could learn more about Mara in her earlier stages and how she learned to draw etc. but I also loved the fact that we now knew how Cole and Shaw got their „killer persona“ and I loved the connection between Cole and his dead mom. And I kinda feel that Mara was for him the person that his mom was for him when he was younger but with the difference that Mara didn’t judge him and actually accepted it. For Shaw I fucking loved that Mara killed him that mf had it coming for himself he had no reason to hill Erin and I will never forget that NEVER. One thing I was missing and it actually pissed me of was the way Joanna (I think that was her name?) treated Mara. Like it was not her fault that Shaw killed Erin and in my opinion she had no right to think or blame Mara for it even tho Mara blamed herself but as far as I remember Mara never told them more about her kidnapping and her nearly dying. I wished Mara and Joanna would have talked about it after the sfpd announced that Shaw was the one who did all the killings. But all in all I loved the book actually and the growing relationship between Cole and Mara. I loved how he helped her find her happiness.
Characteristics
2 reviews
Mood
Protagonist(s)
Pace
Writing Style
Description
Cole and Mara's relationship has grown to consume them both. Cole, sculptor and killer, finds himself adrift in a depth of feeling he's never known, while Mara, unafraid of his darkness, is blossoming into a successful artist, shaking off the trauma of her youth to finally chase success.
For the first time in both their lives, they might actually be...happy.
But the past has a long shadow.
Alastor Shaw is the Beast of the Bay, a frenzy-killer who once hoped to share his hunting ground with Cole. They never chased the same prey...until the night they both laid eyes on Mara Eldritch. And now, when Shaw realizes the cold-hearted Cole has fallen in love with the girl they once targeted, he plans to destroy him, using Mara as his weapon and pawn.
Cole will do anything to protect Mara, including making her strong enough to protect herself. And soon, he finds himself tempting her deeper and deeper into the depths of violence she never thought she'd commit.
Shaw's hunt won't stop. Neither will Cole's love.
When the time comes for Mara to act, will she be ready to do what needs to be done?
Book Information
Posts
(EN) 🔥 Dunkel, intensiv und kompromisslos - ein Finale, das unter die Haut geht
💞 Liebe: 4 / 5 🌶️ Spice: 4 / 5 Mit „There Is No Devil“ liefert Sophie Lark einen absolut gelungenen Abschluss ihrer Dilogie - intensiv, fesselnd und emotional genau auf den Punkt. Die Geschichte knüpft nahtlos an den ersten Band an, sodass man sofort wieder mitten im Geschehen ist und ab der ersten Seite mitfiebert. Cole und Mara wachsen noch enger zusammen, während er als Killer mit ungewohnten Gefühlen konfrontiert wird und Mara als Künstlerin immer mehr aufblüht. Doch ein alter Feind bedroht sie beide und versucht, Mara gegen Cole auszuspielen - was sie tiefer denn je in seine gewalttätige Welt zieht und sie zwingt, selbst zu kämpfen. Mara überzeugt erneut mit einer starken Entwicklung, und durch tiefere Einblicke in ihre Vergangenheit werden ihre Gedanken und Entscheidungen noch greifbarer. Auch Cole gewinnt durch neue Facetten aus seiner Vergangenheit deutlich an Tiefe, was sein Handeln noch besser nachvollziehbar macht. Die Handlung bleibt durchgehend spannend und fesselnd, mit genau der richtigen Mischung aus Dunkelheit, Emotionen und Intensität. Dabei fühlt sich das Ende rund und stimmig an – ein würdiger Abschluss, der definitiv Freude bereitet hat. Der Schreibstil ist wieder düster, schonungslos und gleichzeitig unglaublich packend, mit einer guten Portion Spice, die perfekt zur Geschichte passt. Eine starke Dilogie, die im Gedächtnis bleibt und Fans von Dark Romance definitiv begeistern wird.
My expectations were definitely met!
I liked the second book much better than the first. The ending was predictable (like in most other books), but here it was really well done. ‼️Spoiler alert‼️ What bothered me: Mara had no problem killing people at the end. I found that pretty unrealistic, but I guess it's a matter of taste 😅
" I'll do what I have to do. No one is going to take you from me... and no one is taking me from you." Ein gelungenes Ende Es war schön zu sehen wie Cole und Mara sich immer besser kennengelernt haben. Ich hab tatsächlich auch die ein oder andere Träne in diesem Buch verloren als man die Vorgeschichte der beide Protagonisten mitbekommen hat. Jedoch hat mich gestört das Shawn nicht ganz so präsent war wie im 1 sten Teil. Auch wenn es durchaus Sinn gemacht hat. Klare lese Empfehlung <3
I didn't know if I wanted to pick up the second book after the first one - I wish I didn't. This is a short little under 300 hundred paged book. However the whole point of the story happened in like 30 pages. I read 240ish pages full of nothing (mostly smut). If you'd feel connected to the characters (which I didn't) you might enjoy this but for me it was a no
Lieblings zitat: S. 19. "I've had friends, but i was never the most important person in their life, the sun in their solar system."
🇺🇲 = 🇩🇪 ⬇️ 🇩🇪: Tw lesen. [18+] Das Buch fängt auch schon wie der erste Teil mega spannend und sehr spicy an, in dem Teil ist mehr Tiefe und mehr Details zu Coles als auch Maras Vergangenheit. Man bekommt tiefere Einblicke in Erinnerungen und Gründe, was vieles intensiver gemacht hat und dem Buch einen gewissen Charakter gegeben hat. Mir hat trotzdem irgendetwas gefehlt, weshalb das Buch nur eine 4,5 für mich geworden ist. Gegen Ende hin, so ca. die letzten 80 Seiten, wurde es nochmal richtig spannend und heiß. Es ist auf jeden Fall eine Empfehlung! Für Leute, die gut Englisch können, ist es auf jeden Fall etwas. Gelesen: 05.09.2024 - 25.09.2024. [Hab kaum Zeit gehabt 🥲] 🇺🇲: Favorite quote: p. 19. "I've had friends, but I was never the most important person in their life, the sun in their solar system." Read TW. [18+] The book starts off as exciting and very spicy, just like the first book, but this part has more depth and more details about Cole's and Mara's past. You get deeper insights into memories and reasons, which made things more intense and gave the book a certain character. I still felt like something was missing, which is why I only gave the book a 4.5. Towards the end, about 80 pages were really exciting and hot again. It's definitely a recommendation!! Read: 09/05/2024 - 09/25/2024. [I barely had time 🥲]
Die generelle Story hat mich von Anfang an mitgenommen, aber insgesamt ist etwas wenig passiert. Die Handlung hat sich sehr in die Länge gezogen und ich persönlich fand es etwas unrealistisch, dass Mara am Ende kein Problem mehr mit dem Töten von Menschen hat. Es gab keine Phase, in der sie dazu übergegangen ist, sondern von jetzt auf gleich war sie vollkommen überzeugt, dass es das Richtige ist. Aber allgemein fand ich die Geschichte zwischen den Beiden sehr fesselnd.
Mit ziemlicher Sicherheit ist zu sagen, dass wie erwartet, der 2 Teil genauso überragend war, wie der erste. Aber auch hier gilt wieder nichts für schwache Nerven. Shopie Lark weiß wie man Sachen in scene setzt und beschreibt, eine unglaubliche Atmosphäre. Ich habs geliebt hoffe ihr auch... Viel Freude beim Lesen ❤️
Langatmig bis zu einem spannenden Ende
Ich habe diese Bücher hauptsächlich wegen der Autorin gelesen und muss ehrlich gestehen, dass ich etwas mehr erwartet hatte. Ja, es ist Dark. Ja, es gibt guten spice. Aber es gibt nunmal auch irgendwie wenig Handlung. Nach Band 1 hat man klare Erwartungen an den nächsten Band und ich persönlich fand es eher langatmig und um den heißen Brei herumgetanzt, bis es dann endlich zu einem spannenden Ende über die letzten Kapitel gekommen ist. Die Illustrationen im Buch haben mir wieder sehr gut gefallen und machen ja auch irgendwie die Bücher von Sophie Lark aus. Ich finde das unheimlich charmant und dies ist für Mich auch immer ein zusätzlicher extra Punkt - Sorry, aber die sind wirklich gut. Und somit ist mein Fazit: Naja. Gute Idee, tolle Charaktere, hätte man vielleicht noch etwas mehr draus machen können. War zumindest eine Erfahrung zu lesen.
Der zweite Band ist genauso intensiv wie der erste. Leider wurde der Prozess, in dem Mara DIESE Entscheidung trifft, meiner Meinung nach etwas zu schnell abgehandelt. Auch ihre Verwandlung wirkte ziemlich abrupt. Cole hat sich ebenfalls stark verändert, was ich durch die Erzählperspektive nachvollziehen kann – dennoch hat mich seine rücksichtslose Seite deutlich mehr „angezogen“. Nichtsdestotrotz hatte ich beim Lesen viel Spaß.
I liked There Are No Saints more.
I enjoyed There Is No Devil, but I personally connected more with the first book. While this one continues the intense story and keeps the dark, dangerous atmosphere, I felt the pacing and emotional impact were stronger in the first part. This book still had gripping moments and a unique dynamic between the characters, but for me it didn’t hit quite as hard as There Are No Saints.
What a story
It was really catchy and I needed to know how it ended .. I loved how the characters developed. Cole from someone cold and not feeling a thing, to someone who starts to care for mara. It was a really good and I loved the obsession part a lot tbh. It might sound twisted but the series was overall great!
Just when I was about to think I branded Sophie Lark as an author, who doesn’t match with me, too fast…she gives me this book. After the blast that was the first book of this duet - the concluding part of this promising series feels like slogging through Stolen Heir all over again. It’s pages after pages. But they could might as well be plain white. Cause that’s all I can recall of the content. Reading book one was like a rush to get high on. Reading book two is draining me of all my energy. Where book one had excitement and tension. Book two had emptiness and filler. Cole, as much as you intrigued me at first, the more you lacked later on. We get it, you’re an emotionless manipulative psychopath who does nothing that isn’t sorely for you’re own needs and purposes and you can’t respect boundaries for shit. And like, don’t get me wrong, it’s fiction, so I totally don’t care about a bit of toxicity. If I would I couldn’t read half of the books I read. But this felt like a slap in the face. I know it’s a toxic relationship. You don’t have to emphasize it with every damn sentence. At some point it felt beyond repetitive and annoying to read the hundredth chapter about Cole stressing how less of a fuck he gives about the world. And his obsession with Mara. I GET IT! GIVE ME SOME VARIETY. And whilst on the topic: yes Mara, we know you can see through him. We get that you see qualities in him. You are the one to change him. Be happy but stop annoying me with it. This book felt like it had 1990 pages instead of 300. I read for what felt like ages, only to have progressed 30 pages. It went on for years without anything happening. And the end then felt anticlimactic. It was underwhelming and after everything intent through with this book I would have at least deserved a better resolve. This book was one of the most disappointing reads I’ve read this year. Just because I had such high hopes after book one. REDUCE YOUR EXPECTATIONS TO ZERO. 2
Nach dem ersten Teil war ich ja sehr gespannt wie es weiter geht. Ich bin vom zweiten Teil allerdings etwas enttäuscht. Mir gefällt der Schreibstil von Sophie Lark weiterhin sehr gut, aber die Story hat sich sehr gezogen. Zum Ende hin wurde es nochmal etwas spannender aber alles vorher hat mich nicht so überzeugt. Die Beziehung von Mara und Cole kam bei mir sehr oberflächlich an und hatte keine interessanten Aspekte. Es gab ein paar Momente, wenn sie über die Vergangenheit geredet haben, wo die Charaktere mehr Tiefe bekommen haben.
This book i tarted a month ago right after the first one then I took a pause bc I had some issues with it but I think those issues I realized as I kept reading did add more to the book and I really liked it. I think the book was solid I had fun while reading it though and I have some scene that will forever be engraved in my mind
Just when I was about to think I branded Sophie Lark as an author, who doesn’t match with me, too fast…she gives me this book. After the blast that was the first book of this duet - the concluding part of this promising series feels like slogging through Stolen Heir all over again. It’s pages after pages. But they could might as well be plain white. Cause that’s all I can recall of the content. Reading book one was like a rush to get high on. Reading book two is draining me of all my energy. Where book one had excitement and tension. Book two had emptiness and filler. Cole, as much as you intrigued me at first, the more you lacked later on. We get it, you’re an emotionless manipulative psychopath who does nothing that isn’t sorely for you’re own needs and purposes and you can’t respect boundaries for shit. And like, don’t get me wrong, it’s fiction, so I totally don’t care about a bit of toxicity. If I would I couldn’t read half of the books I read. But this felt like a slap in the face. I know it’s a toxic relationship. You don’t have to emphasize it with every damn sentence. At some point it felt beyond repetitive and annoying to read the hundredth chapter about Cole stressing how less of a fuck he gives about the world. And his obsession with Mara. I GET IT! GIVE ME SOME VARIETY. And whilst on the topic: yes Mara, we know you can see through him. We get that you see qualities in him. You are the one to change him. Be happy but stop annoying me with it. This book felt like it had 1990 pages instead of 300. I read for what felt like ages, only to have progressed 30 pages. It went on for years without anything happening. And the end then felt anticlimactic. It was underwhelming and after everything intent through with this book I would have at least deserved a better resolve. This book was one of the most disappointing reads I’ve read this year. Just because I had such high hopes after book one. REDUCE YOUR EXPECTATIONS TO ZERO. 2
I can't say it enough, I'm obsessed with this world and these characters. There is just something so addictive about Sophie's writing style that I read both books in one sitting. Her characters always have such depth and visible strength that one could only admire. As I already said I read both books in one sitting and can't believe it's already over. I loved seeing Mara and Cole together. For me both just belong together. The tension and the plot twists not only captivated me and made me love the storyline, but also Mara and Cole themselves fascinated me, with their personalities and many facets.
I read that book right after I finished the first because I was so desperate to know what will happen next. I must say I lost my interest quite fast because it didn’t continue how I expected it but as you can see I have the book 4 stars so how come it got that rating some might ask? (Or none I really dgaf) Anyways moving on. The book had great story plots. I liked the way we could learn more about Mara in her earlier stages and how she learned to draw etc. but I also loved the fact that we now knew how Cole and Shaw got their „killer persona“ and I loved the connection between Cole and his dead mom. And I kinda feel that Mara was for him the person that his mom was for him when he was younger but with the difference that Mara didn’t judge him and actually accepted it. For Shaw I fucking loved that Mara killed him that mf had it coming for himself he had no reason to hill Erin and I will never forget that NEVER. One thing I was missing and it actually pissed me of was the way Joanna (I think that was her name?) treated Mara. Like it was not her fault that Shaw killed Erin and in my opinion she had no right to think or blame Mara for it even tho Mara blamed herself but as far as I remember Mara never told them more about her kidnapping and her nearly dying. I wished Mara and Joanna would have talked about it after the sfpd announced that Shaw was the one who did all the killings. But all in all I loved the book actually and the growing relationship between Cole and Mara. I loved how he helped her find her happiness.