Elizabeth Dear

The writing ranges from mediocre to outright artlessly crude.
It's a female power fantasy wish-fulfillment with all-perfect protagonists.
Pretty bad Mary Sues all around.
There is never any doubt that the protagonists can blindly master all the struggles they face.
A lot of the dialogue is very unnatural and stilted.
The smut reads like bad porn which isn't helped by the audiobook narrator's moan enactment which sounds just like fake porn moaning. The rest of the narration is pretty good though, especially considering the unnatural dialogue she has to try to sell.
It's a bit of a shame because I liked the premise and the world. Even reading about an MC that isn't constantly making retarded decisions because of the need for drama was refreshing.
But everything just falls into place too easily. None of it feels deserved.
The plot almost felt like an excuse for a collection of unconnected scenes each of which is explicitly designed to satisfy one particular power or erotic fantasy.
Well, that is not entirely fair. There is a very clichéed standard plot with a classic arc of suspense.
The dirty talk is as crude and blunt as sending unsolicited dick-picks is as a genuine attempt at flirting.
Sometimes the protagonists stray uncomfortably close to being bullies instead of being bullied. It comes across as if the author believes that "might makes right".

The one thing that worked really well is the rejected mate dynamic. While the mate was incredibly stupid with a hugely inflated ego, the author captured the bittersweet feeling of really having lost something unique and precious by the rejection of the mate bond very well. It didn't feel like an unnecessary prologue to the actual romance story like it does in many rejected mate books.… (más)