Sweet Venom by Kirsty-Anne Still….Release Day Blitz & Review

There are two sides to every story.

Until there are three.

And ours isn’t for the faint of hearts.

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SWEET VENOM is a crazy in love novel set in three point of views – crazy, crazier and craziest. This is a love triangle that is not made for those looking for an easy love story or an obvious end.
If I were you, I’d be careful who you fall for.

This is STANDALONE.
Meant for mature readers due to murder, violence and sex.

 I have read Kirsty’s books in the past and have had mixed feelings on them. One I have enjoyed, while others I just ok with. This one, I am not sure where I find myself.

I loved the plot – it was great. But it’s how everything played out that took some of the excitement out of it for me. The characters I struggled connecting to. While at certain points I found myself really getting into the book, other times I found myself saying “do I really want to continue this book?” And I hate that. Let me try to explain further.

The characters. Ashley – I didn’t really care for her at all. One minute she was all feisty and not afraid of anything and the next, she was this timid mouse. And that just drove me nuts. I won’t give away any spoilers but at no point, beginning, middle or end, did I ever like this character. Eden I liked. She was fighter. She too had her moments of weakness, but you understood where those came in. As with Ashley, you just couldn’t grasp why one minute she was strong and the next she was weak. She just became an annoying gnat that wouldn’t go away. Then we have Lawrence – I really liked him. He’s a killer, a ruthless one at that. But Ashley and Eden have a way of weakening him in different ways. And it’s their ability to weaken him, that brings out different sides to him.

The plot. Love the concept! Hated how it played out. It seemed to take forever to get from one moment to the next. I get you want some suspense, but damn – don’t drag it out. You lose the point and the readers interest. This is where I found myself skimming parts because I just wanted to get onto the next scene and what would happen next. There was too much inner monologue amongst the characters. I understand wanting to see what the characters are thinking, but sometimes it gets to be too much. If we have a good understanding of who they, we pretty much know why do they things. And the backstories of these characters – holy shit. Yes, I understand we need to know things that happened because it sets other parts in motion, but again, don’t drag it out – there were multiple scenes jumping around explanations and then we finally find out the backstory. That was super annoying. It was just unnecessary filler. Sometimes it’s just best to give a quick synopsis of backstory.

Yes, it sounds like I am tearing this book apart, but I’m not. I did enjoy reading this or I wouldn’t have read it the whole way through. I think part of my issue is that this author is very detailed in her writing. And for me, personally it’s too much. As an editor, this book would have been cut much shorter. Or possibly made into two books. But that’s me.

Overall, the plot in itself was great. The book, while very lengthy was good. Don’t expect for anything to stand out. It’s one of those reads where you find yourself interested enough to continue, but it may take a few days to complete because there is not urgent need to finish other than flat out curiosity. There was portion near the end that redeemed this book a little and upped it to a 3 star rating for me.

I know that there are some who will love this book. As I said, that plot was awesome. Loved it. The characters were just ok – nothing to excite me and none that will stick with me. I am going to buy this book once it releases, but mostly for the reason of I need to see the final version of this book. I had an unedited ARC and I found LOTS of editing issues, which I think also hindered parts for me. I will re-read this and give an updated review on the released book if any of my opinions change. I will never critique an unedited book on editing issues – the answer to why is obvious.

Author, graphic designer, book worm, peppermint tea obsessive.

Kirsty-Anne stumbled across her love for writing as she started university. Over the last couple of years she’s found the style of writing that best defines her and her work. Her favourite genres to write are romantic suspense with dark themes, but loves to push her boundaries.