Scan barcode
A review by booksafety
Broken Bonds by J. Bree
5.0
Book safety, content warnings, and tropes down below.
Better to be hated and alive, better to be in pain than a murderer, better to be alone and safe.
This is my third time reading/listening to this series, so even though this is book one, my review will 100% be influenced by what I know happens later on. The ‘enemies’ part of enemies to lovers needs to be taken seriously when it comes to this series. Most of them are pretty awful to each other. There is *a lot* of hurt, lies and mistrust that needs to be processed, apologized for, and healed from, and very little of that happens in book 1. It’s a very, very slow burn, with absolutely delicious character and relationship development for everyone involved through the entire series.
The room is so loud that I almost miss it when he mumbles, “Fuck, I wish you’d never come back.”
The plot is amazing as well, and when I first read these books I couldn’t put them down. All of the books read like one big story (with cliffhangers), so you’ll definitely need to continue right away. I also love how the reader is kept in the dark a lot as well. We don’t get the entire story right away. We have to find out about a lot of stuff right alongside the other characters.
“Motherfucking, cocksucking, cunt of a thing, I will honestly carve the skin off of that miserable—” “Jesus Christ, you’ve got a mouth on you for such a little thing.”
Oleander is a fabulous FMC. She is a badass and doesn’t take shit from the men in her bond group, no matter their age or status. I also adore that the author has given her an amazing female best friend. Oleander puts her best friend above all else pretty much always, and I adore their dynamic. Their friendship is the main ‘relationship’ in book 1, and continues to play a big part in the other books. That doesn’t mean there’s a shortage of catty and awful women in the series, as it’s pretty heavy on the OW drama at times. However, it’s balanced out, and it doesn’t feel like the author is just shitting on women.
If you know me, you’ll know I have a massive aversion to ‘other woman/man drama’, and it is difficult in this series. It’s mostly contained to book 1 and a little of book 2. It helps that it’s a genuine enemies to lovers. No one is in a relationship yet, and there is no details of anyone being with other people on page. It is also mostly contained to one of the MMCs. There’s a lot of jealousy throughout. But, if I can deal, then you likely can as well.
Whew, this was a lot more than I wanted to write, lol. I love this series a lot.
⬇️ Blanket spoiler warning ⬇️
⚠️ Tropes & tags ⚠️
Reverse harem
Past trauma
Paranormal fantasy
Soulmates/bonds
Rejected mates
FMMMMM
Magically gifted
Slow burn
Gradual harem build
Enemies (to lovers, eventually, not in this book)
Age gap
College for magically gifted
Morally grey characters
Tattoos
Shifter MC
⚠️ Content warning ⚠️
Death of family (past)
Graphic violence
References to past homelessness
Harassment
Borderline bullying between MCs
Misogyny
Sexual harassment
Death of side character (off page)
Sexual assault between FMC and one MMC (discussed later on, FMC doesn’t believe it is 100% SA, but it reads like it. Complicated situation. Extreme dub-con at best. No penetration).
Underage drinking
Injured MC
Captivity
Vomiting
Jealousy
⚠️Book safety ⚠️
Cheating: No
OM/OW drama: Yes. One of the men in the (eventual) harem sleeps with other women during the book. None of it is on page. All if the main characters are still enemies. Plenty of moments of jealousy. Nothing *extreme*, I wouldn’t say.
Breakup: No
POV: 1st person, single POV
Genre: Paranormal fantasy, RH
FMMMMM
Strict roles or versatile: N/A. No MM in the harem.
Main characters’ age: 19, 19/20, 19/20, 24, 24 and 28
Pages: 324
She doesn't even try to hide her disdain for me and I find myself sitting straighter, pulling myself into a fighting pose because there’s nothing like a look of disgust to get me ready to rumble.
“Leaving you was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. This pain is nothing compared to that.”
You can find most of my reviews on Instagram as well: https://www.instagram.com/booksafety?igsh=MWZ3azhkdDc2Y2ludg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr
Better to be hated and alive, better to be in pain than a murderer, better to be alone and safe.
This is my third time reading/listening to this series, so even though this is book one, my review will 100% be influenced by what I know happens later on. The ‘enemies’ part of enemies to lovers needs to be taken seriously when it comes to this series. Most of them are pretty awful to each other. There is *a lot* of hurt, lies and mistrust that needs to be processed, apologized for, and healed from, and very little of that happens in book 1. It’s a very, very slow burn, with absolutely delicious character and relationship development for everyone involved through the entire series.
The room is so loud that I almost miss it when he mumbles, “Fuck, I wish you’d never come back.”
The plot is amazing as well, and when I first read these books I couldn’t put them down. All of the books read like one big story (with cliffhangers), so you’ll definitely need to continue right away. I also love how the reader is kept in the dark a lot as well. We don’t get the entire story right away. We have to find out about a lot of stuff right alongside the other characters.
“Motherfucking, cocksucking, cunt of a thing, I will honestly carve the skin off of that miserable—” “Jesus Christ, you’ve got a mouth on you for such a little thing.”
Oleander is a fabulous FMC. She is a badass and doesn’t take shit from the men in her bond group, no matter their age or status. I also adore that the author has given her an amazing female best friend. Oleander puts her best friend above all else pretty much always, and I adore their dynamic. Their friendship is the main ‘relationship’ in book 1, and continues to play a big part in the other books. That doesn’t mean there’s a shortage of catty and awful women in the series, as it’s pretty heavy on the OW drama at times. However, it’s balanced out, and it doesn’t feel like the author is just shitting on women.
If you know me, you’ll know I have a massive aversion to ‘other woman/man drama’, and it is difficult in this series. It’s mostly contained to book 1 and a little of book 2. It helps that it’s a genuine enemies to lovers. No one is in a relationship yet, and there is no details of anyone being with other people on page. It is also mostly contained to one of the MMCs. There’s a lot of jealousy throughout. But, if I can deal, then you likely can as well.
Whew, this was a lot more than I wanted to write, lol. I love this series a lot.
⬇️ Blanket spoiler warning ⬇️
⚠️ Tropes & tags ⚠️
Reverse harem
Past trauma
Paranormal fantasy
Soulmates/bonds
Rejected mates
FMMMMM
Magically gifted
Slow burn
Gradual harem build
Enemies (to lovers, eventually, not in this book)
Age gap
College for magically gifted
Morally grey characters
Tattoos
Shifter MC
⚠️ Content warning ⚠️
Death of family (past)
Graphic violence
References to past homelessness
Harassment
Borderline bullying between MCs
Misogyny
Sexual harassment
Death of side character (off page)
Sexual assault between FMC and one MMC (discussed later on, FMC doesn’t believe it is 100% SA, but it reads like it. Complicated situation. Extreme dub-con at best. No penetration).
Underage drinking
Injured MC
Captivity
Vomiting
Jealousy
⚠️Book safety ⚠️
Cheating: No
OM/OW drama: Yes. One of the men in the (eventual) harem sleeps with other women during the book. None of it is on page. All if the main characters are still enemies. Plenty of moments of jealousy. Nothing *extreme*, I wouldn’t say.
Breakup: No
POV: 1st person, single POV
Genre: Paranormal fantasy, RH
FMMMMM
Strict roles or versatile: N/A. No MM in the harem.
Main characters’ age: 19, 19/20, 19/20, 24, 24 and 28
Pages: 324
She doesn't even try to hide her disdain for me and I find myself sitting straighter, pulling myself into a fighting pose because there’s nothing like a look of disgust to get me ready to rumble.
“Leaving you was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. This pain is nothing compared to that.”
You can find most of my reviews on Instagram as well: https://www.instagram.com/booksafety?igsh=MWZ3azhkdDc2Y2ludg%3D%3D&utm_source=qr