Book Review: Stone Sentinel (Beautiful Monsters Book 3.5) by Jex Lane

 
 
As a gargoyle, Jet's life used to consist of sitting on a building every day, but now he has Matthew and Samantha making things much more interesting. When Samantha insists they have to stop Krampus from ruining Christmas, Jet is ready to help, but first they'll have to convince Tarrick to help too.

Book Review: Stone Sentinel (Beautiful Monsters Book 3.5) by Jex Lane | reading, books, book reviews, gargoyles
Title: Stone Sentinel
Author:
Book Number: Book 3.5
Pages: 91
My Rating: 3 Stars
More Info: Goodreads, Amazon
 

Review:

I guess I’m the odd one out since everyone else seemed to love this book, but I’m generally not a big fan of extra novellas/shorts in the middle of a series that are told from a side character’s POV. But I saw it noted somewhere (I thought it was in the blurb, but it’s not there now, so I’m not really sure) that this one is necessary if you want to understand everything in the series, so I read it anyway. Was it necessary? Without having read the whole rest of the series, I don’t know. It might add something, but it’s probably not absolutely necessary.

Anyway, it was a fun idea writing this from the POV of Jet (a gargoyle), but one issue I had was that the voice felt off. Sometimes it sounded childish, other times it sounded mature, the word choices didn’t match up with each other, etc. It kept distracting me from the story in the beginning. But once the story picked up more, it kind of evened out because the writing got more focused on the actual stuff happening rather than Jet’s own thoughts.

This author’s portrayal of gargoyles is pretty cool though! They’re a very not-human type of gargoyle, so it was neat getting to learn more about them, their lives, and their abilities. That was my favorite thing about this novella.

I also loved Sam’s diatribe against Tarrick because I feel the same way. I’ve warmed up to Tarrick a bit, I see some good in him, and I do kind of ship him and Matthew, BUT I still don’t know if I forgive him for the things he did, and I still feel like Matthew’s love for him is more like Stockholm Syndrome. I was glad to see that those things weren’t actually overlooked, that other characters feel the same way even if Matthew doesn’t.

Overall, this wasn’t as Christmassy as I thought it would be from the blurb, and I can’t say it’s my favorite in the series, but it wasn’t bad. Learning about the gargoyles was interesting, and I’m sure plenty of people will love the chance for a fun, quick trip into the series from a side character’s POV.

 

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Talk to me!

Have you read Stone Sentinel by Jex Lane?
Do you like novellas in a series that are from the POV of a side character?

 
 
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Your Thoughts

 

14 thoughts on “Book Review: Stone Sentinel (Beautiful Monsters Book 3.5) by Jex Lane

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    1. Kristen Burns

      For some reason, authors always end up choosing characters I’m not all that interested in for their novellas lol. But it actually turned out to be fun getting the gargoyle POV.

  1. Olivia Roach

    I’m not usually a fan of novellas because I think they are too short and often not done well enough. But I do think that I don’t mind them too much if it’s a secondary character I love. Because I usually love secondary characters more than main characters just by chance. I thought it was going to be more Christmassy from that synopsis as well so I’m surprised that it isn’t! But you read it, and I hope it will somehow be more relevant to the rest of the series from here on out as you read it for that reason 😀

    1. Kristen Burns

      I’m not usually a fan of novellas either unless they’re part of a bigger series, except the authors usually end up choosing side characters that I’m not all that interested in. To be honest, I read this last year, so I kind of hope it’s not that relevant since I don’t remember anything lol.

  2. Greg

    I’m starting to like novellas and short stories more and more, although like you I’m not crazy about them popping up in the middle of a series and/or being “required” reading. I just want the series and then extras are fine as… extras I guess. So I’d be skeptical of this but glad to hear it had some good stuff, especially the gargoyle bits. And I actually really love that cover- I love the depiction of the gargoyle, very badass and spooky looking, and even the Christmas lights in the background.

    1. Kristen Burns

      If information is required for the series, then it should be in the main books. That’s how I feel. But I have nothing against extras if they’re just there, as you said, as extras LOL. It is kind of a cool cover, and I did enjoy the gargoyle stuff!

  3. Lola

    That does sound interesting how they are very not human gargoyle’s. I kinda like short stories in the middle of a series, but it really depends on the actual story and whether they are either fun enough or are necessary for the plot. It is nice timing to read this one around Christmas even tough it’s not that Chrimassy.

    1. Kristen Burns

      I do like novellas in a series sometimes, but only when they’re extra things and about a character I really like. But still, the gargoyles were interesting at least!

    1. Kristen Burns

      Yeah, it really depends on the character, and for some authors almost always choose a character I’m not interested in. Although I did like the gargoyle stuff!

  4. verushka

    Gargoyles! Clearly need to be represented far more in literature! I know if a voice doesnt feel right it can turn me off, but i think that this about gargoyles would win me over!

  5. Stephanie Jane (Literary Flits)

    I’ve got a hit and miss track record for novellas. Some have been absolutely amazing, others felt like underdeveloped longer stories! This one taking the point of view of the gargoyle sounds a fun concept though it’s a shame Lane didn’t pin down exactly what his voice would be before she started writing.