Review: Solid 3.5
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 06 9, 2014
Hmmmm….how do I start this review? There are so many things to address but I am going to try and keep it simple. I am also going to try to keep it spoiler-free but can’t guarantee it so please please please don’t ready any further if you want to be surprised.This book had a good premise and the protagonists had good chemistry. The attention to detail regarding the surrounding environment was also good. It definitely had a lot of potential and for the most part I think it stuck to the plot and didn’t deviate.The ending kind of fell flat. Not between the couple but with regards to the “villain” of the story. It  took me by surprise how easily things resolved themselves. It was almost anti-climactic. Maybe Ms. Flite is thinking of a novella to tie up all the loose ends? I would definitely recommend it. Considering the world Leonide lives in, it just can’t be that easy.Also, while there wasn’t a whole lot of it, the s** was extremely disturbing and somewhat offensive but I suppose that is to be expected given the subject matter. SPOILER ALERT-How could Leonide leave her in that room with those things in her for hours like that? I get that it’s punishment but..…*shudder*. END OF SPOILER. Really what I had a problem with was how the darker aspects of it were written in detail but not the sweeter moments.  The last love scene towards the end mostly involved an inner monologue by Celeste of her feelings. It was a letdown.In my opinion, Leonide’s character stayed the same but with good character development. I appreciated it even though I only got a brief glimpse into his mind. That little window gave me a better perspective of where he was coming from. I am definitely not condoning all the things he did to Celeste and his behavior had me cringing most of the time but, at the same time I think he had been completely brainwashed by his past and didn’t know any better. I was not ok with the violence but, again, given the subject matter I wasn’t really surprised.I did have a BIG problem with Celeste. I liked her in the beginning. She was independent and strong. All that changed about halfway through the book. The further along in the book I got the more I grew frustrated and angry with her. By the end of it I could only come up with two words to describe her-Stockholm Syndrome. SPOILERISH ALERT- In my opinion, she was no better than Leonide’s mother. END OF SPOILER.I would give this book a solid 3.5 for the premise and Leonide. I may change my mind if Ms. Flite decides to write a follow-up novella.