Jaysea Lynn‘s For Whom the Belle Tolls is a shockingly good paranormal romance with a fitting blend of comedy and drama (along with a small bit of action and a number of detailed sex scenes in the second half). My only complaints are how the counterpart to ‘people can change for the better’ is never addressed and how the reincarnation issue is ultimately handled.
The initial resolution was perfect, not least because it didn’t come across as a trite ass-pull. So to suddenly change that at the last moment comes across as nothing but a… trite ass-pull. One made worse due to how the epilogue makes clear that there ended up being no functional difference between the two. That’s a very minor issue though and isn’t anywhere near enough to ruin the story.
I wasn’t thrilled with how the first book in Nora Roberts‘ Lost Bride trilogy ended, and so had put off reading the second until now. Turns out the trip was just a brief arbitrary thing… presumably to force that cliffhanger ending. Nothing actually changes regarding the daily life routine or character dynamics, which for the most part is a positive. The only thing that really sticks out negatively is the somewhat high level of repetition in both conversations and certain events.