Review:
I want to start by saying I really like the whole Creepy Hollow series. The first three books especially are like a fun, whirlwind of action and lovable characters (they’re all good, but I will always be biased toward the original main characters).
What’s funny though is that I really disliked the first half of this book. Like, wanted-to-stop-reading disliked it. The interactions between Violet and Nate and their reactions to everything felt unrealistic. Maybe I just wasn’t a Nate fan? Or maybe I’ve just already forgotten what it’s like to be a teenager? Regardless, I kept reading, thinking maybe it would get better, and this was one of those rare cases in which it actually did! So I don’t say this to scare anyone off, but rather to tell anyone who ends up feeling the same way I did not to give up on the book. I’m SO glad I stayed with it because about halfway through…
Enter Ryn.
Ryn was an asshole. A really lovable asshole. Who maybe wasn’t quite as much of an asshole as he wanted people to think.
He was witty, charming, and brutally honest, and I loved every second of it. He brought the depth, emotion, and realism I like in books, and the friends-turned-enemies relationship between him and Violet was both entertaining and intriguing. I was dying to know more about him and his backstory.
Also around the time that he entered, the story picked up more, and Violet’s interactions/reactions become much more believable. In other words, everything that bothered me about the first half was fixed. The characters were likeable and three dimensional (Ryn is one of my favorite characters period, not even just in this series), the plot was action-packed and kept me wanting to know what would happen, and the characters and situations were the perfect level of maturity for teens and adults to enjoy and relate to.
This was also the first faerie book I’d ever read, and it turned out to be a good choice for my introduction because this book was fully immersed in the fae realm of Rachel Morgan’s creation without being too complicated or confusing, and everything I needed to know was explained without ever info-dumping.
All things considered, in the end, I really liked the book and think it’s a great read for fantasy-newbies and fantasy-regulars alike!
Recommended For:
Anyone who likes action-packed YA urban fantasy with faeries, lovable, kickass characters, and just enough emotion to make you feel invested!
More Books in the Series:
Book Review: The Faerie Guardian (Creepy Hollow Book 1) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: The Faerie Prince (Creepy Hollow Book 2) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: The Faerie War (Creepy Hollow Book 3) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: A Faerie’s Secret (Creepy Hollow Book 4) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: A Faerie’s Revenge (Creepy Hollow Book 5) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: A Faerie’s Curse (Creepy Hollow Book 6) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: Raven (A Creepy Hollow Story) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: Glass Faerie (Creepy Hollow Book 7) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: Shadow Faerie (Creepy Hollow Book 8) by Rachel Morgan
Book Review: Rebel Faerie (Creepy Hollow Book 9) by Rachel Morgan
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I LOVE fae! I’ve actually been trying to find a good fae series to start, because I’m in a slump. I’m reading Bitter Frost because I realized I had bought it 5 years ago and haven’t touched it. Oops.
I have this one as an audiobooks, but I don’t hink the delivery was working for me. I’ll have to revisit this in another format.
I don’t do audiobooks (I’m a visual learner, just can’t process things when I listen to them), so I don’t know how much the delivery can affect the story. There’s always a chance we just had different opinions about the book, but I definitely enjoyed it 🙂 I’m in the middle of another fae book right now, and I’ll be reading the 5th Creepy Hollow book next, so apparently this is, like, fae week for both of us lol.
Okay, first I had to laugh at the fact this is one of those books that you powered through and IT.GOT.BETTER. You know, since I just read that whole non-DNF’ing post. 😉 AND SERIOUSLY? The first faerie book ever??? Oh girl, I have some suggestions for you. I’ll get to those in a minute… So, it’s this book I have on my shelf – not book 6. And I’m very eager to read it now since this is a series you’ve enjoyed so much. I’ll remember to stick it out – ignore the feelings I might have about Nate and look forward to meeting Ryn. But mostly, I’m excited about the kind of heroine Violet seems to be….my kind of heroine. 😉
Recommendations of faerie books/series:
Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr (she has the dark, gritty element you seem to like 😉
Soul Screamers series by Rachel Vincent (this is a little bit of a stretch calling it faerie but the main character is a beansidhe)
Fever series by Karen Marie Moning (Mac may irritate you at first but stick it out)
The Books of Faerie series by Maggie Stiefvater
Those’ll get you started anyway. 😉
This really was the perfect review to read after reading my non-DNFing post, haha, since this was one of those books that got better. I mean, maybe you won’t have any problems with Nate or the beginning of the book since other people didn’t seem to? But just in case anyone does, I mentioned it because I don’t want them to give up on the book.
Oh, I have read other faerie books since this one, but I’ll always take recommendations for good books! Soul Screamers is on my TBR since it does sound really good and I really want to try more books about less common creatures, and I’ve never read about banshees. And I’ll check out those other series, especially the dark, gritty one!
This sounds so good! I love fae, but I have never even heard of this. I’ll definitely have to give it a try. Awesome review!
If you love fae, then I definitely recommend this series! Thanks!