I really enjoyed this read! For some reason, perhaps also due to "forbidden" characters/relationships being a theme, it reminded me of Tamsin Hawthorn's Spell Caster's Familiar trilogy (which I definitely need to do a review on sometime).
Getting back to Half City...
Viv, the protagonist, is a character hardened by her secret life as a hunter. I know some other reviews refer to her as a "pick-me girl", but I honestly didn't get those vibes. While she certainly has a lot of weaknesses and made decisions I didn't always agree with, that didn't make her unlikable to me. She'd been chasing down demons and creatures for years, thinking she was alone in this role, which understandably messes up someone. Though I would like to see more character development from her over the rest of the series.
(Although, I do wonder how Viv didn't run into any other hunters in Astera, supposedly the most infested part of the entire region, during all her years and hunts alone...)
Due to Viv's isolation and upbringing, her outlook on certain things is complicated and shadowed by her past experiences. Her first look at the academy and the entire hunter world she never knew about is a bit overwhelming. Her initial encounters with Reid are colored by her own prejudice against demons, due to them murdering her father and her never having met a "good" (or at least, not evil) one.
(But of course, since they start to like each other...hehe you can guess. 😈)
And then the book ends with a horrific cliffhanger, which I certainly don't appreciate. 😭
But....I'm beyond excited for book 2, coming out in October! There's a lot of questions about exactly what happened to her dad, and who he is, which I'm sure will be explored. I believe there must've been a good reason for him to never mention Harker Academy to Viv. Since he did teach her how to hunt and defeat monsters, I think there was probably something specific about the academy he didn't agree with or wanted to keep her away from.
On a different note, I'd also love to learn more about how aeons came about. Were they originally born or created? Do they have a different gene that separates them from regular hunters?
Characters
- Viv — fierce, stubborn and impulsive (sometimes too much for her own good...)
- Reid — swoony, sexy, grumpy, with insane self-control (except when it comes to Viv, apparently...)
- Penny — the sunshine-packaged-as-human best friend that Viv does not deserve 🥹
- James — the lukewarmest boyfriend ever (also human, and Penny's brother)
- Sophia — Viv's bubbly roommate and close friend at the academy
Spoiler thoughts
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Spoiler thoughts
I'm not that happy with the supposed “resolution” between Viv and her mom, though I'm not sure how their relationship changed after their conversation...I'm sure we'll see more of them in the next book.
Random Questions
- Why do aeons have a third dagger? (I wonder if there are some other aeon abilities with said third dagger...)
- What's Deacon's deal?