(Beasts of the Briar Book 6) Stolen by Shadows by Elizabeth Helen review

 

Stolen by Shadows by Elizabeth Helen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5 Stars
🌶️🌶️🌶️ 3 Spice

EMOTIONAL DAMAGE 100 PERCENT

Going into this book, I knew right away it was going to be a painful start, given where the last book left off. I knew some of my favourite characters were currently not in their right minds, and I was so right. The first 40 percent of the book was a test of my will, and as always, the book was amazingly written. But it's very clear that this series, which started off lighter with thick storylines and side quests to boot, has slowly grown darker and darker, with more emotional pain and trauma than you could shake a stick at.

This book really covered the feeling of powerlessness, being controlled and used, and having no way out in sight. That really had me screaming. I was being thrown from pillar to post and all but pulling my hair out, but by midway, I started to see the light, and I was skipping and twirling and just totally happy that things were starting to pay off. This brilliant story was giving and not only taking from me emotionally. There was a large part of this story where I was giddily happy, like I was seeing rainbows and happiness, and I was enraptured. Things were going my way... for a moment, I was so happy!! Clearly I missed the signs.

This book felt much darker than the others. It felt more draining on my soul. There were some epic moments where I was screaming and groaning, and other moments where I was so light and happy, and I was overwhelmed by the sheer spectacularness of the book, let alone the series.

The characters at this point feel as real as you and me. We know them, we have watched them change and become stronger and smarter, and they are part of us. They make us laugh and cry, and that is one of the reasons this book got me.

I was taking my time reading this book, knowing I had a little while to wait for the last book in the series, and just taking a slow ride through. At some point, the hard start of this book eased into this... beautiful hopefulness, and I was lured... hoodwinked... into a place where I thought I was safe and loved and it was going to be bright and beautiful...

But I was blind.

The story led me into an inferno of pain and grief and did it in such a way that I felt like my own heart was breaking. I was overwhelmed and struggling to take in what was happening and hoping it was a cruel joke. And I can't even be angry or hate it because it worked so well. It gave everything such weight to the story and, most of all, a level of knowing that this is not just bad, this is... life and death. Everyone is standing on a knife edge.

This book is a masterpiece of emotional storytelling that can either hold your hand or push you off the edge of a cliff. Richly detailed, with the story always being the main focus and goal. The book has a mix of love, family, epic story, emotions, and more, but everything has a reason and value, and nothing feels like fluff.

I want to be mad. I want to moan, but I can't due to how well it was done... how much the book cost me, stayed with me, and held me to it.

Overall, a fantastic read that left me broken and hurting. It gave me the world for but a moment, but showed me the cost of battle and to never forget, if things look good before the end... bad things can follow.

View all my reviews