3.5⭐️

I had to take time to consider this, to understand what it was I was thinking and feeling.
This brought up some personal issues, that made it hard for me to grasp what was mine, and what was the authors.

This was a huge improvement on book 1, but still not equal to World 1.
I liked the characters better this time around, but there still wasn’t anywhere near enough world building, or non-central character building.

Plus the FMC was still victimising herself, allowing others to take advantage of her, and abuse her self-worth.

Mate 3 was way more likeable and believable as a love interest.
Mate 2 developed more worthwhile characteristics, though he still needs to grovel more to make up for his poor earlier treatment of her, and the recent disrespect and dismissal of her needs and feelings.
Mate 3 is still a first rate asshole, who doesn’t deserve her consideration or interest. The author tries to introduce some elements to justify his dick-ish-ness, but it doesn’t even come close. The FMC hesitation to stay mad, her continued desire and willingness to question herself where he is concerned, all make her seem weak and disappointing.

However, the story does pick up pace and move forward. The action becomes more interesting, and the narrative becomes intriguing enough you want to find out more.

The Gryphon’s frustrations and anger with her males give you some hope, until it again starts to buckle, and once more disappoint with its total disregard for its human counterpart.
The FMC’s anger and feelings of betrayal are completely understandable, and you wish she had spoken up sooner, had stood her ground sooner!
The story continuity with the Gryphon is shite. One moment it comes off as young, naïve, and immature; the next it’s knowledgeable, older, aware, and dominant… it’s very frustrating and hard to figure out what is excusable and what isn’t. As a young, immature, etc. female, you would make allowances. As an older, more knowledgeable, more dominant female, you would have different expectations … But both? What works, and what doesn’t?
Needs more explanation, more development.

The author talks about forgiveness, fairness, willingness to see from the others perspective. But it’s always the FMC who has to be the first to give, the bigger person … it becomes less about all the other, and more about setting healthy boundaries, and demanding responsibility and atonement for wrongs committed against her. Of not allowing it to continue, regardless of excuses, justifications, and the total lack of recognition.

We hear all about their world, their war, their culture, their problems, their needs.
Not ONCE, does anyone worry about the fact that this woman has been taken form her entire world, dumped unexpectedly in another, isolated, immediately assaulted, sexually harassed, bullied, than sexually assaulted (all by her first 2 supposed love interests). She’s then manipulated, lied to, betrayed, and rejected.

Where’s the compassion, the empathy, even some basic concern for her well being and emotional sanity? Never mind her ability to cope, HELL, her strength and bravery in not collapsing and simply giving in!

She’s not perfect, far from it. But she’s copping far more crap, and receiving absolutely none of the respect she deserves. Massively disappointing

still no answers to who she is and why what happened. also like how did she not know she was mating i find it hard to believe.