My least favorite book of the series so far, and I know exactly why. What the hell happened to Mac? Yes, I get that she's gone through something terrible and this book shows her survival of that ordeal and her transformation into someone stronger. But, wow.
She was a brat and she's still a brat, but at least there was a charm to it before. Now she's a much bigger one and just barely tolerable. And I thought she was self-absorbed before. Here, she's arrogant, selfish and just flat out full of herself. Does she seriously hold herself higher than a Seelie Queen? And the way she looks down her nose at all her sidhe-seer sisters -- guess what, without that spear of hers she'd flail just as helplessly as any of them. And of course, there's her borderline abuse of a sleepy 100-year-old woman. Well, at least she had the decency to feel ashamed of it afterward. I don't understand why V'lane or Barrons would even bother fighting over her.
Speaking of which, I also finally concluded that her whole relationship with Jericho Barrons does not sit well with me. Frankly, I feel it's a bit sick. Personally, I would never categorize this series under romance. Romance for me tends to require mutual respect and lack of abuse, you know? After four books, it's clearly not improving. He keeps secrets from her, knocks her around whenever he wants to, not to mention dubious consent where the sex is involved.
The dynamic between Mac and Barrons disturbs me and not just because of the way he treats her, but after so long their conversations never seem to go anywhere either. Don't get me wrong, I loved the way they sassed each other in the first couple of books, but that got stale quick. And frankly, at this point I'm also sick of the tired old "will they-won't they" dance. Mac, figure out how you feel about Barrons and just get on with it. As the saying goes, crap or get off the pot.
And finally, the "revelation" about iron as the kryptonite for Fae. Really? Iron as a protective or repelling substance against faeries has a long history in folklore and is quite widely known, I'm surprised it's being brought up here like no one knew.
Anyway, I won't deny this fourth book sort of put me off completing the series. I'm not even that tempted by the evil cliffhanger at the end of it. But oh well. I figure with one book left, screw it, I'll just finish it. I just hope I'll have a better time with it, because I was really enjoying this series until this book, and it'd be a shame for things to end on a sour note.
