Raspberry Reviews

Wicked Hues || @CoffeeAndSilverInk

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REVIEWER: CoffeeAndSilverInk

Wicked Hues by SardonicBeauty

Title and Cover:

The title is simple and matches the story's genre perfectly. The cover also works well. The title and author are well-placed and are easy to say, although I cannot understand the quote on top of the title. That said, I don't think the background picture relates to the story.

Blurb:

The blurb is poetic, meddling into the main theme of the story: morality. It definitely spiked my curiosity. However, the main character's introduction could be further developed and the main conflict is not stated. It lacks information.

Plot/Flow:

Starting with the Summary, the story begins by making readers think what is right and what is wrong, already noting that the story will explore the themes of morality. Alongside, it introduces the characters and the world they live in right away. That's a great opening.

The story flows nicely, moving at a good pace. It begins in an unexpected way, and from then on, relies heavily on the shock factor. This, as well as the cliffhangers, keep readers attached.

This is not going to be a pretty story and that's obvious from the opening. Everything about the plot is surprising, yet logical. The main character herself remains logical even in moments where one could easily freeze in fear.

Still, there are some inconsistencies throughout the story. The most problematic one would be the way Adelina kills her daughter. At the very beginning, the baby is described as having a bullet wound, but later we know Adelina actually stabbed her. I also wonder what happened to the bodies of the men she killed as there have been no mentions. Lastly, in the torture seen in Chapter 2, Adrien uses a glass shard to hurt Adeline. Why? Was there literally nothing else available? Something that doesn't hurt his own hand? Because he would have hurt himself gripping it.

Another thing I thought to mention was how unnatural the dialogue was in that torture scene. Adrien tells Adelina he wants her to destroy Daniel, to which Adelina answers something along the lines of "Why would I help you?". I'm not saying all people react the same way under such a situation, but wouldn't the natural reaction to being told someone wants to "destroy" your husband to ask why? She is told the reason why she was captured was Daniel, but it doesn't occur to ask why Adrien wants to destroy him? I mean, she asks, eventually, but that's in chapter 4 (if I'm not mistaken). It makes little sense to be so later on when that particular dialogue was perfect to ask that key question.

Descriptions:

Throughout the story, there are plenty, well-written descriptions. When it comes to showing emotions and action, this aspect was very well-achieved. When it comes to places and people, the descriptions are also good and pleasant to read, although I wouldn't mind more of them.

Characterization:

Adrien's reasons are never stated, and I am not expecting them to be so early on, but guessing is half of the fun and he was inconsistent at times. He is quick to show he is "the man", constantly reestablishing his importance and power by stating his full name (or being referred to by it). It's obvious why people are afraid of him. He is ruthless from the very first moment and he is shown to be manipulative with Adelina.

His actions and words in the beginning indicate his goal is to "destroy Daniel", but in chapter 4 (I think) he made me question if he was that invested in it.

Adeline has a fight or flight response and that's not something I see often in the books I've reviewed. This alone makes her character interesting and easy to like. She is very logical when she has to be, even when put in a tough spot.

Writing:

The writing is enjoyable and pleasant to read, but there are some issues. Some sentences don't make much sense, punctuation is lacking in several places (the opposite also happens), and some parts consist of one-liners that could be condensed, which disrupts the flow.

More specifically, in the Summary, at some point the writing starts to seem redundant. Also, the first sentence could be reworded:

Original: "An artist, with different shades of colour, had painted..."

My suggestion: "An artist had painted the canva's of Adeline's life with different shades of colour."

The third sentence has a ; when it should be :

Overall enjoyment:

This is not my usual go-to, and I don't think it will ever be, but through unexpected scenes and the situation of uncertainty, it kept me hooked. I think the topic of morality is well displayed and will be well handled throughout the story and in general it is a good read for anyone who can stomach it.

Good luck with your future projects and thank you for choosing me as your reviewer.

~Astrid.

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