Review:
*I received an eARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.*
From literally the first page, I was hooked and could tell I was going to love this book.
At 3% in, I was completely awed by the beautifully written descriptions of the music. If I had a reading bucket list, hearing Andres Valentine play violin would be in my #1 spot.
After that, I was thrown head first into the dark, disturbing and twisted. I don’t know if I was more disturbed by the descriptions of how they were reanimating a dead person or by the legitimate obsession the doctor had with Andres.
…but disturbed in a great way. I’m not sure any book has made me feel quite like that before, and definitely not so strongly.
Make no mistake though, this was not a gruesome or graphic book. It was more… unsettling and creepy, what with the possibly immoral Frankenstein-esque science, the doctor’s unrequited obsession, the tangled feelings of all the characters, and the dark fae playing puppetmaster over all of them. The creepiness somewhat abated about halfway through, which disappointed me, but an ominous cloud still hung over everything.
The characters themselves were developed and seemed to have a lot of complexity behind them, but I don’t think one book was enough to truly get to the depth of it. That’s the beauty of series though, and I look forward to getting to know them even more in next book.
The romance didn’t seem to be the main focus, but relationships and feelings did play a big role. And the romance that was there was adorably sweet and loving (a tad insta-lovey but somehow believable).
As for the plot, it was slow-paced, but not in a bad way. It allowed me to absorb the mood and focus on the characters.
Altogether it was a well-written book, but it was the addition of the pretty writing and the creepy feeling in the first half that pushed it to that extra half star for me, and I’m so glad I read it!
P.S. If you like having music in the background when you read, I recommend some dark, instrumental violin and piano music. It really sets the mood for the story!
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes creepy, ominous books and sweet M-M romance.
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Your Thoughts
4 thoughts on “Book Review: His Master’s Summons (Azgarth’s Chosen Book 1) by Cassie Sweet”
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It’s great when a book hooks you from the start! Sounds like the author did a great job with the creepy and omnious atmosphere in this book. I am glad to hear it’s not gruesome or graphic as I usually don’t like that in books. And that’s great the romance was well done, if a bit insta lovey. And I know what you mean with slow paced, but not in a bad way. SJ Pajonas her Nogiku series is a bit like that and the pace really fits the book and story. As long as enough things are happening I don’t mind it if books are a bit slow paced. Great review!
The start of the book was so good! And I was so happy because I had been so on the fence about whether to read it or not. I mean the rest was good too, but the creepiness was phenomenal in my opinion. And even though I don’t mind reading books with gore, I still don’t like it, so it was nice to find a book that pulled that off without being gruesome or using shock factor or anything gimmicky.
Exactly, I’m a character/emotion person, so I don’t really care what the pace is in a book as long as it’s done well and keeps my attention. A slow pace does just fit certain books better. Thanks!
This book sounds fantastic, Kristen. I really like that the author was able to convey the creepiness and set a dark mood without being graphic. That’s a gift! I love a story that is character-driven, if the characters are well developed, and His Master’s Summons sounds as though the characters are fleshed out well enough to conquer a slower pace. Plus, I’m just really curious about the science behind it all and why this dark fae master is pulling strings. 😉
Exactly! I feel like it’s not often that books are unsettling like that without all the graphic-ness and gore. And the characters did each have their unique-ness and depth. The science parts definitely creeped me out, but we actually didn’t get a whole lot about the dark fae master. I mean, he had an effect on the story since he was who they were trying to get away from, but I’d like to maybe know a little more about him or see him have more presence in the next book. I think it could be interesting.