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The Veil Diaries #9
When The Grave Calls
With the Veil finally closed, I hoped that would be the end of the fight. But I was wrong. Jadis is still in town, people are still going missing, and things are getting worse. Choices will be made, lives will be lost, and friendships tested. Not all family is blood, not every family is the norm. What would you do to hold onto yours?
Join us for the thrilling conclusion to The Veil Diaries.
Join us for the thrilling conclusion to The Veil Diaries.
338 pages, Kindle Edition
Published November 28, 2020
About the author
B.L. Brunnemer
13 books2,292 followersB.L.Brunnemer has been a devoted reader since she was young. As a child, she was instantly attracted to horror stories. The plot, the suspense, the action. She loved it all. Which, as she grew, branched out into several other genres. But a strong female character always caught her eye. Through the years romance became a big part of her reading. Then she found the Young Adult/New Adult genre. But she had a problem. She never found the romance between most characters to be realistic enough for her. At least in the paranormal romance section.
So, she decided to fix that. She'd been writing for years already and had always struggled to finish a manuscript. Until, she decided to write what she wanted to read.
B.L. Brunnemer doesn't have any other publications at this time. She's just a woman, who loves a good story with great characters. And she hopes you'll love them too.
So, she decided to fix that. She'd been writing for years already and had always struggled to finish a manuscript. Until, she decided to write what she wanted to read.
B.L. Brunnemer doesn't have any other publications at this time. She's just a woman, who loves a good story with great characters. And she hopes you'll love them too.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 436 reviews
November 29, 2020
Largely disappointed with this last installment of TVD. After 8 books of tickle fights, video games, study sessions, and nights at Vagabond, the last 3 books of this series lost their slow-burn charm almost entirely. Unfortunately, the author appears to have largely given up on her own idea—whether from poor story-planning or just general fatigue—and scrambled instead to finish up with some (somewhat random) high-stakes supernatural warfare.
As someone who loved these books at the outset and felt all the feelings right along with Lexi, I felt myself getting further and further from her as the books moved into new adult territory. As the world building grew, it is obvious the author had a hard time juggling the overlapping supernatural species, the array of characters (and their politics) while managing to stay true to those “feel good” moments between Lexi and her guys. Honestly, I’d rather she left the supernatural world almost entirely for the next installment, and closed this chapter of Lexi’s life with her necro abilities and the focus on her new relationships with the guys. Let her finally meet Zahur, discover Hades’ secrets, and come into her own a bit more as a necro and then just close this chapter and leave us wanting more for TVD: The College Years. Fast-f0ward to everyone living in New England doing their various and sundry activities (Miles at MIT; Asher at culinary school; Ethan pursuing music; Isaac training to be a counselor; Zeke working on cars; Lexi at art school) and give us some romantic moments between them all maybe as they transition the summer before college.
Instead, what we got was a rushed and chaotic—crazy-big-save-the-world— plot line with a cameo from the OG Death himself. Unlike the other books, and despite reading many chapters from Lexi’s POV, the reader didnt spend a lot of time inside Lex’s head. Everything seemed to happen at her and to her but we didn’t read how it affected her, much less that “laser focus” deconstruction of the guys’ interactions that made the few romantic moments in past books all the more sweet. Lexi ran around placating her guys, hugging them, sleeping in her underwear, telling them she loved them and generally feeling guilty that all of the bad stuff happening was her fault. Where did the lovable, strong-ass “put everyone in their place,” potty-mouthed, brutally honest, and generally cantankerously angry Lexi go?
As someone who loved these books at the outset and felt all the feelings right along with Lexi, I felt myself getting further and further from her as the books moved into new adult territory. As the world building grew, it is obvious the author had a hard time juggling the overlapping supernatural species, the array of characters (and their politics) while managing to stay true to those “feel good” moments between Lexi and her guys. Honestly, I’d rather she left the supernatural world almost entirely for the next installment, and closed this chapter of Lexi’s life with her necro abilities and the focus on her new relationships with the guys. Let her finally meet Zahur, discover Hades’ secrets, and come into her own a bit more as a necro and then just close this chapter and leave us wanting more for TVD: The College Years. Fast-f0ward to everyone living in New England doing their various and sundry activities (Miles at MIT; Asher at culinary school; Ethan pursuing music; Isaac training to be a counselor; Zeke working on cars; Lexi at art school) and give us some romantic moments between them all maybe as they transition the summer before college.
Instead, what we got was a rushed and chaotic—crazy-big-save-the-world— plot line with a cameo from the OG Death himself. Unlike the other books, and despite reading many chapters from Lexi’s POV, the reader didnt spend a lot of time inside Lex’s head. Everything seemed to happen at her and to her but we didn’t read how it affected her, much less that “laser focus” deconstruction of the guys’ interactions that made the few romantic moments in past books all the more sweet. Lexi ran around placating her guys, hugging them, sleeping in her underwear, telling them she loved them and generally feeling guilty that all of the bad stuff happening was her fault. Where did the lovable, strong-ass “put everyone in their place,” potty-mouthed, brutally honest, and generally cantankerously angry Lexi go?
January 1, 2021
IF 2020 WAS A BOOK
I demand a refund.
The worst ending to the most built up series in history.
I hated this series from books 1-3 and then, admittedly with some group fangirling at RHR, it sucked me in. It peaked at book 5/6 and then it was all downhill.
If you’re a fan of TVD then you’ve already read this book and either agree with me, or want to hurt me. So I’ll not go into the details of why I think this was a total rush job.
BL got her pay check and was probably too busy working on spin offs from the 10,000 useless secondary characters (who all got a POV in this book) to actually put some effort in here.
About as much effort as I put into this review.
I demand a refund.
The worst ending to the most built up series in history.
I hated this series from books 1-3 and then, admittedly with some group fangirling at RHR, it sucked me in. It peaked at book 5/6 and then it was all downhill.
If you’re a fan of TVD then you’ve already read this book and either agree with me, or want to hurt me. So I’ll not go into the details of why I think this was a total rush job.
BL got her pay check and was probably too busy working on spin offs from the 10,000 useless secondary characters (who all got a POV in this book) to actually put some effort in here.
About as much effort as I put into this review.
November 29, 2020
Bad. I had to force myself not to leave it in the DNF pile. Honestly, I cringed since the first chapters. The previous book wasn't good either. It's like, the series started out great, interesting, quite well-written, cohesive. And the more it progressed, the more it started losing its quality.
The writing got sloppy. This last book, it's like the effort of a first-time writer; there were the scenes the author had in mind, but the in-between parts were missing, in order to turn it from a short novel to a full story. Also, it sounded like Lexie's character was regressing in maturity.
The MC and her guys got too woe-is-me, too "victim", too childish, with rash actions, miscommunication. And the the harem just didn't click together anymore, for me at least. I just couldn't connect. I've been annoyed by most of them for the last two or three books. I get that they are teenagers, but they were smarter and more mature when the series started. How did it get so bad?
In short, I was both disappointed (because I liked the first half of the series) and expecting the coming disappointment (the way the last books progressed). Pity.
The writing got sloppy. This last book, it's like the effort of a first-time writer; there were the scenes the author had in mind, but the in-between parts were missing, in order to turn it from a short novel to a full story. Also, it sounded like Lexie's character was regressing in maturity.
The MC and her guys got too woe-is-me, too "victim", too childish, with rash actions, miscommunication. And the the harem just didn't click together anymore, for me at least. I just couldn't connect. I've been annoyed by most of them for the last two or three books. I get that they are teenagers, but they were smarter and more mature when the series started. How did it get so bad?
In short, I was both disappointed (because I liked the first half of the series) and expecting the coming disappointment (the way the last books progressed). Pity.
November 29, 2020
What was that?
I'm not sure where to even begin. I waited a day to leave a review bc I didn't want to be offensive. I have loved Lexie and her boys since day one. I have bought the books and followed the author. But to be honest bk 7 and 8 had a totally different tone than the rest of the series and this book was just a mess. It was like she was throwing answers with no real care to how they stuck. The voices of the characters were hardly there and the rush to get from point A to point B was not a fun or smooth ride. I try really hard not to give spoilers but I will say that having voices of ppl we cared little to nothing about was just weird. The complete turnaround of some of the characters was hard to follow. The book was an utter mess. Im not sure I will read anything else the author writes. Her die hards will yell and scream and say what a magical book it was but for me it was just gibberish thrown tgthr. An end to what started out as an amazing series with strong individual characters who each rang clear and true. I am sad to see the end come in this way. 😢😢
Happy reading y'all 😊
I'm not sure where to even begin. I waited a day to leave a review bc I didn't want to be offensive. I have loved Lexie and her boys since day one. I have bought the books and followed the author. But to be honest bk 7 and 8 had a totally different tone than the rest of the series and this book was just a mess. It was like she was throwing answers with no real care to how they stuck. The voices of the characters were hardly there and the rush to get from point A to point B was not a fun or smooth ride. I try really hard not to give spoilers but I will say that having voices of ppl we cared little to nothing about was just weird. The complete turnaround of some of the characters was hard to follow. The book was an utter mess. Im not sure I will read anything else the author writes. Her die hards will yell and scream and say what a magical book it was but for me it was just gibberish thrown tgthr. An end to what started out as an amazing series with strong individual characters who each rang clear and true. I am sad to see the end come in this way. 😢😢
Happy reading y'all 😊
December 4, 2020
2.25 stars.
there was sexual content in this but what i missed was more romantic content, as well as the cute dynamic that existed between the main characters in the previous books.
in this one they're all so careful not to be affectionate with lexie in front of each other that they lost some of that closeness that i loved. it's as if, now that they each have their own relationship with lexie, the overall group interactions and dynamic have turned less entwined and more separate.
additionally, this whole book, because it was the conclusion to the series, was very serious from start to finish. lexie was stressed all the time. miles went from sweet and nerdy to being an absolute mess who pulled back from everyone (he was also like that in the previous book too though). tbh we never really got any closure on the tension and distance between miles and the rest of the characters. not enough anyway.
plus, im sorry but the bad guy turning out to be ERIC??? i don't even fucking remember who that is!!! and his reasoning for killing idk how many people and nearly ending the world is somehow just "uhhh idk i just wanted to save dylan's dad from cancer i guess 🤷♂️" like seriously?? that's what you're going with??? no one would ever go through that much trouble, KILL people, almost end the WORLD, to save their FRIEND'S DAD. that is the weakest reason ever, and im the most disappointed person on the planet. and jake turning out to be a spineless dick who just ran instead of helping lexie when eric was gonna kill her? honestly nothing made sense.
to sum up:
• the guys and lexie no longer interact like they used to, they've lost their closeness and their group dynamic now that the relationship turned romantic
• miles was a distant dick in the previous book AND in this one, and we don't really get any closure irt that
• the tone of this whole book was too dark, gloomy, and serious
• eric (who?) was the bad guy, and his motive was the weakest ever
if i ever reread this series again, i will stop after the eighth book.
there was sexual content in this but what i missed was more romantic content, as well as the cute dynamic that existed between the main characters in the previous books.
in this one they're all so careful not to be affectionate with lexie in front of each other that they lost some of that closeness that i loved. it's as if, now that they each have their own relationship with lexie, the overall group interactions and dynamic have turned less entwined and more separate.
additionally, this whole book, because it was the conclusion to the series, was very serious from start to finish. lexie was stressed all the time. miles went from sweet and nerdy to being an absolute mess who pulled back from everyone (he was also like that in the previous book too though). tbh we never really got any closure on the tension and distance between miles and the rest of the characters. not enough anyway.
plus, im sorry but the bad guy turning out to be ERIC??? i don't even fucking remember who that is!!! and his reasoning for killing idk how many people and nearly ending the world is somehow just "uhhh idk i just wanted to save dylan's dad from cancer i guess 🤷♂️" like seriously?? that's what you're going with??? no one would ever go through that much trouble, KILL people, almost end the WORLD, to save their FRIEND'S DAD. that is the weakest reason ever, and im the most disappointed person on the planet. and jake turning out to be a spineless dick who just ran instead of helping lexie when eric was gonna kill her? honestly nothing made sense.
to sum up:
• the guys and lexie no longer interact like they used to, they've lost their closeness and their group dynamic now that the relationship turned romantic
• miles was a distant dick in the previous book AND in this one, and we don't really get any closure irt that
• the tone of this whole book was too dark, gloomy, and serious
• eric (who?) was the bad guy, and his motive was the weakest ever
if i ever reread this series again, i will stop after the eighth book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
December 17, 2020
What on earth happened Brunnemer???? I NEVER, and I repeat NEVER, start reading a series before all the books are out. For you, I made an exception, and I have been waiting and checking up on new releases from you because, I so adored Alexis and her boys.. What happened in this book? Did it become to hard to write realistic RH? U lost faith in your own work? I read your hesitation in the last couple of books.. But I felt sure you would put on your big girl pants and let their relationship develop.
This book was so rushed, I thought you had proclaimed a 15 book series? Why did you decide to pack the last 6 books into one short, whatever that was?
I truly hope you change your mind and decide to rewrite this and give us the 15 books you promised.
This book was so rushed, I thought you had proclaimed a 15 book series? Why did you decide to pack the last 6 books into one short, whatever that was?
I truly hope you change your mind and decide to rewrite this and give us the 15 books you promised.
November 29, 2020
Huge let down (no spoilers)
I was a really devoted fan of this series and honestly this was a huge disappointment. Everything from book 8 to now was awful and rushed, I honestly don’t know how I thought this could be magically salvaged during the last book.
I was part of the Facebook group for BL and know that she was having some health issues, she should have just waited, this was trash.
I was a really devoted fan of this series and honestly this was a huge disappointment. Everything from book 8 to now was awful and rushed, I honestly don’t know how I thought this could be magically salvaged during the last book.
I was part of the Facebook group for BL and know that she was having some health issues, she should have just waited, this was trash.
December 3, 2020
Nothing But Cliff Notes
Do you remember when you spent ten years of your life watching, loving, and anticipating the next Game of Thrones episode? The next season? Then finally - because you know the previous seven seasons were so epic that season eight was just going to be the most amazing ending ever? Do you remember that?
I do.
I also remember feeling like ten years of emotions and love for characters were freaking wasted and destroyed in the last two episodes of season eight.
I bring this up because this is exactly how this book made me feel.
I’ve been religiously following BL and this series for two years. Was BL the best writer? Absolutely freaking not. But she straight up had a strong, engaging story and FANTASTIC character development. It’s honestly the best character development I’ve read in the RH world. I fell so hard for these characters.
This last book?
It’s freaking cheap. It’s an insult to all of her fans and most of all to herself and I bet you she knows that too.
She originally told fans the series was going to be 15 books. It ABSOLUTELY should have been 15 books! She fit seven books of content in 242 pages. 242 PAGES!!! She cheapened all of it. There was no heart and soul in this book. The content was there. The epic plot was there. But literally every intimate scene we’ve been WAITING for for YEARS was cheapened into three paragraphs each. The big ending? It was great - but just the ending itself should have been ONE book.
The reason I gave the book two stars is because this is the first time in the history of BL’s career that she released a flawless, edited book. And guess what that made me think? That she didn’t actually write this. It makes me think she handed this to a ghost writer and gave them the big plot points. It is not written at all like the first eight books and it has none of BL’s silly ridiculous quirks in it that we all love. There is NO HEART.
BL - rewrite this and break it up into the amount of books you ORIGINALLY intended!
I’m so sad. This feels like a waste. You are better than this. Lexie and her guys deserved way more than this. You deserved more than this. Your fans hella deserved better than this.
Fix this. Please.
Do you remember when you spent ten years of your life watching, loving, and anticipating the next Game of Thrones episode? The next season? Then finally - because you know the previous seven seasons were so epic that season eight was just going to be the most amazing ending ever? Do you remember that?
I do.
I also remember feeling like ten years of emotions and love for characters were freaking wasted and destroyed in the last two episodes of season eight.
I bring this up because this is exactly how this book made me feel.
I’ve been religiously following BL and this series for two years. Was BL the best writer? Absolutely freaking not. But she straight up had a strong, engaging story and FANTASTIC character development. It’s honestly the best character development I’ve read in the RH world. I fell so hard for these characters.
This last book?
It’s freaking cheap. It’s an insult to all of her fans and most of all to herself and I bet you she knows that too.
She originally told fans the series was going to be 15 books. It ABSOLUTELY should have been 15 books! She fit seven books of content in 242 pages. 242 PAGES!!! She cheapened all of it. There was no heart and soul in this book. The content was there. The epic plot was there. But literally every intimate scene we’ve been WAITING for for YEARS was cheapened into three paragraphs each. The big ending? It was great - but just the ending itself should have been ONE book.
The reason I gave the book two stars is because this is the first time in the history of BL’s career that she released a flawless, edited book. And guess what that made me think? That she didn’t actually write this. It makes me think she handed this to a ghost writer and gave them the big plot points. It is not written at all like the first eight books and it has none of BL’s silly ridiculous quirks in it that we all love. There is NO HEART.
BL - rewrite this and break it up into the amount of books you ORIGINALLY intended!
I’m so sad. This feels like a waste. You are better than this. Lexie and her guys deserved way more than this. You deserved more than this. Your fans hella deserved better than this.
Fix this. Please.
December 6, 2020
It really saddens me to give the book a bad review because I really loved the first half of this series. I really don't know what happened but as the series progressed the books lost their appeal and this last book was just one big mess. It felt like the writing was rushed, jumping from one thing to another and from POV to POV just to tie up loose ends. I loved Lexie at the beginning of the series but I couldn't stand her at the end. The connection the guys and Lexie had in the first books was missing and felt forced. I am sorry for buying the last three books and I feel that this series should have been a lot shorter. I feel that when the auther started clashing the worlds from two different series it ruined and changed the direction the first half of the series was going for. I didn't enjoy reading this book at all.
November 30, 2020
Super rushed and rather disappointing
I am a HUGE fan of the series, even joined the authors Facebook group for the series.... But this book was not very good. Its like she tried to shove a quick wrap up to everything in 200-some pages. She had so much opportunity to really make an epic ending yet she didn't. She left so many things unresolved and did a shit job having Lexie finally take on the witches. The writing screamed of just wanting it to be done rather than a real plot. I've loved the series, I just wish the author wouldn't have crapped out this book and taken her time. Very disappointing end.
I am a HUGE fan of the series, even joined the authors Facebook group for the series.... But this book was not very good. Its like she tried to shove a quick wrap up to everything in 200-some pages. She had so much opportunity to really make an epic ending yet she didn't. She left so many things unresolved and did a shit job having Lexie finally take on the witches. The writing screamed of just wanting it to be done rather than a real plot. I've loved the series, I just wish the author wouldn't have crapped out this book and taken her time. Very disappointing end.
November 30, 2020
Mmm
possible spoilers
I'm going to start off by saying I didn't even remember who Eric was. So it seem rushed, I think that this would have been an awesome 5 book series, 9 just seemed to drag it on forever, making you forget some characters. The last 2 books seemed hurried. I think if the last book was rewritten, making it longer and answering more questions it could be so much better
possible spoilers
I'm going to start off by saying I didn't even remember who Eric was. So it seem rushed, I think that this would have been an awesome 5 book series, 9 just seemed to drag it on forever, making you forget some characters. The last 2 books seemed hurried. I think if the last book was rewritten, making it longer and answering more questions it could be so much better
December 7, 2020
OK, OK, let me get my thoughts...
I'm going to probably repeat myself but from some point this series went downhill, like really downhill. It wasn't a slow, steady fall, it was a total drop. The finale of "The Veil Diaries" was a mess, it was too clustered. Too much stuff in only 15 chapters and honestly a lot of stuff was only mentioned. For example "X showed up, took Y and went to Z " and that's the only cameo in the entire book. For what point? I have no idea, it didn't bring anything important to the plot.
The only good thing I can think of is that the relationship between Lexi and the guys seems to be a lot better. Can't think about anything else. Oh! Wait, it was short and easy to read. But overall, "When The Grave Calls" was rushed and its finale was weak.
I'm kind of sad because the whole series had a great potential and I liked the characters (most of the time), unfortunately it only got worse and worse.
I'm going to probably repeat myself but from some point this series went downhill, like really downhill. It wasn't a slow, steady fall, it was a total drop. The finale of "The Veil Diaries" was a mess, it was too clustered. Too much stuff in only 15 chapters and honestly a lot of stuff was only mentioned. For example "X showed up, took Y and went to Z " and that's the only cameo in the entire book. For what point? I have no idea, it didn't bring anything important to the plot.
The only good thing I can think of is that the relationship between Lexi and the guys seems to be a lot better. Can't think about anything else. Oh! Wait, it was short and easy to read. But overall, "When The Grave Calls" was rushed and its finale was weak.
I'm kind of sad because the whole series had a great potential and I liked the characters (most of the time), unfortunately it only got worse and worse.
December 18, 2020
To say I'm disappointed is an understatement.
First of all, I couldn't bring myself to read this one because of the trauma of hating the 8th.
I had to FORCE myself to read it and especially to finish it.
Because WOW was I bored! For 65% nothing happens. It was a bunch of talking about things we already knew and other boring stuff.
And the 35% left were just a jumble of mess, that didn't make sense. It was rushed, all over the place and plain disappointing.
There was no redeeming whatsoever for Miles' character because all of his awfulness from book 8 was overlooked because of his father's death. Basically, they just moved past him being an a$$hole and that's that.
I'm impossibly mad at that. I cannot stand one of my earlier favorite characters. How sad is that?
While reading this series, I loved the world-building, the idea of a female badass character being able to communicate with ghosts and then some, but honestly, the best part of the series was Lexie's relationship with the guys.
And dare I say it was non-existent in this one. Making your characters say quickly that they love each other isn't enough. You have to show it. And it wasn't the case at all.
So either there was no impression of romance between them at all, or when there was an attempt at it, it was awkward and un-impressive. I kid you not, I cringe so hard at times.
They still don't really have their group relationship thing really figured out, their individual ones still aren't truly solidified, and it's just plain weird. STILL.
Also, I'm sorry but what was up with the action at the end?? Lexie has been training and I was expecting her to be a badass and all, but without spoiling anyone, she was truly and completely ✨useless✨. And so were her guys, not gonna lie. It's like the battle happened without them (and it did). wasn't cool or heroic in my opinion, it was just weak and pathetic because it meant that she (and Uma and the guys) weren't strong at all.
Also,
And what on earth was up with It came out of literally nowhere. It's as if Brunnemer didn't know how to get her out of that situation, and she just gave up and went "there, have fun with this thing I came up with."
*Shakes head sadly*
It felt like we'd been focusing on the wrong MCs from the beginning and these were just side characters.
I mean come ON! Tara, Jess, and whats-her-name almost had the same amount of "screen" time. Huh.
Do I care (and it is so not a spoiler) that Tara found love (in the most cliché matter too)? Nope. Big fat no.
Do I care that Riley is missing and became a Vampire? Nope. Couldn't care less.
I could have put a second star because the ending surprised me. But then I thought about it, and nope. It's lame. And doesn't make sense at all. . It felt a lot like because her FB group discovered the truth, she changed it to surprise us. Well, congrats, we're surprised, but we don't like it!
And Ethan being a ?? Just lame and (once more) disappointing. Even the character was disappointed lol.
That's about as much as I have to say about this, because nothing, and I really mean nothing, truly happened.
I'm sad and disappointed that this is the ending to a series I so greatly adored.
I'll probably still re-read books 1 through 7 and forgo the 8th and 9th while changing them in my head.
First of all, I couldn't bring myself to read this one because of the trauma of hating the 8th.
I had to FORCE myself to read it and especially to finish it.
Because WOW was I bored! For 65% nothing happens. It was a bunch of talking about things we already knew and other boring stuff.
And the 35% left were just a jumble of mess, that didn't make sense. It was rushed, all over the place and plain disappointing.
There was no redeeming whatsoever for Miles' character because all of his awfulness from book 8 was overlooked because of his father's death. Basically, they just moved past him being an a$$hole and that's that.
I'm impossibly mad at that. I cannot stand one of my earlier favorite characters. How sad is that?
While reading this series, I loved the world-building, the idea of a female badass character being able to communicate with ghosts and then some, but honestly, the best part of the series was Lexie's relationship with the guys.
And dare I say it was non-existent in this one. Making your characters say quickly that they love each other isn't enough. You have to show it. And it wasn't the case at all.
So either there was no impression of romance between them at all, or when there was an attempt at it, it was awkward and un-impressive. I kid you not, I cringe so hard at times.
They still don't really have their group relationship thing really figured out, their individual ones still aren't truly solidified, and it's just plain weird. STILL.
Also, I'm sorry but what was up with the action at the end?? Lexie has been training and I was expecting her to be a badass and all, but without spoiling anyone, she was truly and completely ✨useless✨. And so were her guys, not gonna lie. It's like the battle happened without them (and it did). wasn't cool or heroic in my opinion, it was just weak and pathetic because it meant that she (and Uma and the guys) weren't strong at all.
Also,
And what on earth was up with It came out of literally nowhere. It's as if Brunnemer didn't know how to get her out of that situation, and she just gave up and went "there, have fun with this thing I came up with."
*Shakes head sadly*
It felt like we'd been focusing on the wrong MCs from the beginning and these were just side characters.
I mean come ON! Tara, Jess, and whats-her-name almost had the same amount of "screen" time. Huh.
Do I care (and it is so not a spoiler) that Tara found love (in the most cliché matter too)? Nope. Big fat no.
Do I care that Riley is missing and became a Vampire? Nope. Couldn't care less.
I could have put a second star because the ending surprised me. But then I thought about it, and nope. It's lame. And doesn't make sense at all. . It felt a lot like because her FB group discovered the truth, she changed it to surprise us. Well, congrats, we're surprised, but we don't like it!
And Ethan being a ?? Just lame and (once more) disappointing. Even the character was disappointed lol.
That's about as much as I have to say about this, because nothing, and I really mean nothing, truly happened.
I'm sad and disappointed that this is the ending to a series I so greatly adored.
I'll probably still re-read books 1 through 7 and forgo the 8th and 9th while changing them in my head.
December 1, 2020
SO, I have mixed feelings about the last book. ( And i need to do a re-read after binge reading it lol)
I go back and forth between giving it a 3 and giving it a 4!
I think I lean towards a 4 based on the fact that we know BL would be continuing the series with everyone in college. BUT- I wish she would have wrapped up more things in this book instead of leaving us with even more questions after 9 books! I mean.
Overall, I liked it. But, the whole book felt rushed. The book was fast-paced;which is normally good but not this time( I get because of the plot of this book things needed to be face-paced but it could have been done in a different way too i think or made the book longer or made a book 10?). It's just that I wish there were certain moments of breathing room for everything. I felt the end where we found out that the guy who closed the veil happened quickly. I hoped there would have been longer moments with her mom or something. I wanted to learn more about Hades. I get this was the last book of this part of the series and BL wanted to wrap everything up though - so we can't have it all. ( And I realize BL probably wants to take the time to reveal new things in her new series too)
When I finished the book I had the feeling of "what, that's it?????
I feel we could have done without the scenes of Tara and gang on the run. Like I get where BL wanted to write about how Tara changed and her new feelings for Lucy. But, at the end of the series I wanted as much time with Lexie and the guy as possible if this is their story wrapping up. I don't need the side character as much- maybe they could have their own mini novellas?
There were beautiful moments of course like when Lexie and her guys sacrificed themselves to save the world. I like how we discovered certain new facts like what Ethan turned out to be! I liked the change in Tara and Jess.
For me books 1 to 6 were the best and I re-read those books a lot in the past! The way she wrote Lexie and the guys in those books and scenes were amazing and they didn't even need to have sexy time in them! There was something special in books 1 to 6 between Lexie and the guys. And, it didn't feel like this book had the same heart as the other books.
Also, I think the books and relationships maybe felt/worked better because books 1 to 6 were more "paranormal lite" before Evelyn and her crew came and Issac was possessed. ( The books at the start dealt with the newly forming friendship, problems at school, kidnapping, and then her problems with the veil and the worry about her dying). I feel like when the world-building got to big with all the different people being brought in for the battle we lost the connection with Lexie and the guys.( if that makes sense?)
For their college books I rather have it focus less are the big paranormal aspects and have more time to explore their relationships.
Also what happened to that other italian necro Lexi and the guy met in New Orleans?? I hope we see him again.
Overall, this is still one of my #1 RH series. This was the first RH i started reading, and despite my cons of this book I know BL has a plan for the new series with Lexie and the guys! So we got to stay positive.
Now, I look forward to the newest series of Lexie and the guys at college/the next phase of their lives.
I go back and forth between giving it a 3 and giving it a 4!
I think I lean towards a 4 based on the fact that we know BL would be continuing the series with everyone in college. BUT- I wish she would have wrapped up more things in this book instead of leaving us with even more questions after 9 books! I mean.
Overall, I liked it. But, the whole book felt rushed. The book was fast-paced;which is normally good but not this time( I get because of the plot of this book things needed to be face-paced but it could have been done in a different way too i think or made the book longer or made a book 10?). It's just that I wish there were certain moments of breathing room for everything. I felt the end where we found out that the guy who closed the veil happened quickly. I hoped there would have been longer moments with her mom or something. I wanted to learn more about Hades. I get this was the last book of this part of the series and BL wanted to wrap everything up though - so we can't have it all. ( And I realize BL probably wants to take the time to reveal new things in her new series too)
When I finished the book I had the feeling of "what, that's it?????
I feel we could have done without the scenes of Tara and gang on the run. Like I get where BL wanted to write about how Tara changed and her new feelings for Lucy. But, at the end of the series I wanted as much time with Lexie and the guy as possible if this is their story wrapping up. I don't need the side character as much- maybe they could have their own mini novellas?
There were beautiful moments of course like when Lexie and her guys sacrificed themselves to save the world. I like how we discovered certain new facts like what Ethan turned out to be! I liked the change in Tara and Jess.
For me books 1 to 6 were the best and I re-read those books a lot in the past! The way she wrote Lexie and the guys in those books and scenes were amazing and they didn't even need to have sexy time in them! There was something special in books 1 to 6 between Lexie and the guys. And, it didn't feel like this book had the same heart as the other books.
Also, I think the books and relationships maybe felt/worked better because books 1 to 6 were more "paranormal lite" before Evelyn and her crew came and Issac was possessed. ( The books at the start dealt with the newly forming friendship, problems at school, kidnapping, and then her problems with the veil and the worry about her dying). I feel like when the world-building got to big with all the different people being brought in for the battle we lost the connection with Lexie and the guys.( if that makes sense?)
For their college books I rather have it focus less are the big paranormal aspects and have more time to explore their relationships.
Also what happened to that other italian necro Lexi and the guy met in New Orleans?? I hope we see him again.
Overall, this is still one of my #1 RH series. This was the first RH i started reading, and despite my cons of this book I know BL has a plan for the new series with Lexie and the guys! So we got to stay positive.
Now, I look forward to the newest series of Lexie and the guys at college/the next phase of their lives.
November 29, 2020
I’m sorry but...
It was so bad. It felt like there was a rush to finish the series in any way possible. Such a shame. It started as a really good series.
It was so bad. It felt like there was a rush to finish the series in any way possible. Such a shame. It started as a really good series.
December 4, 2020
When The Grave Calls is the ninth and final novel in The Veil Diaries series by B. L. Brunnemer.
Ugh that ending pissed me off. Honestly this entire book was completely underwhelming. We got second hand boss fight. We got discord still within the harem members. We got ridiculous suspects with no prior suspicion. We got so many plot holes I’m surprised this story made it to print.
After the first 30% I speed read the rest. The only portion I really enjoyed was Tara and Lucy. Their burgeoning romance was so enjoyable. I love that she finally accepted herself enough to be herself.
The most annoying part was the amount of vampires and shifters on the corrupt witches side? It didn’t make a lick of sense. Them fighting for a source of major oppression towards them specifically. That Lexie wasn’t even a main hitter for their offense.
This book was just a let down. I’m sad to see the series end. But I’m even more sad that it ended in such a devastating way.
Ugh that ending pissed me off. Honestly this entire book was completely underwhelming. We got second hand boss fight. We got discord still within the harem members. We got ridiculous suspects with no prior suspicion. We got so many plot holes I’m surprised this story made it to print.
After the first 30% I speed read the rest. The only portion I really enjoyed was Tara and Lucy. Their burgeoning romance was so enjoyable. I love that she finally accepted herself enough to be herself.
The most annoying part was the amount of vampires and shifters on the corrupt witches side? It didn’t make a lick of sense. Them fighting for a source of major oppression towards them specifically. That Lexie wasn’t even a main hitter for their offense.
This book was just a let down. I’m sad to see the series end. But I’m even more sad that it ended in such a devastating way.
November 29, 2020
What a bummer!
I was absolutely in love with this series in the beginning but the ending was terrible. Seriously after everything that they went through the decision she made with death at the end was just not something I was okay with. I feel like I was completely let down by the ending.
I was absolutely in love with this series in the beginning but the ending was terrible. Seriously after everything that they went through the decision she made with death at the end was just not something I was okay with. I feel like I was completely let down by the ending.
February 20, 2021
Ok that was a really great ending and yes we do finally get to know who shut down the veil I know we have been getting clues through out the series but no proof until this book, we also find out what Ethan turn into because if you haven't work it out yet he is no longer human.
November 30, 2020
Meh
I have to say...it wasnt even close to amazing. I have no idea what these other people read that gave it 5 stars. I gave it 2 because it's veil diaries and it's always been an instabuy for me. But it was bad. This read like a 4 book outline. There was so much going on and none of it had any depth. It didnt even read like the same author. The only reason I knew it was VD was the character names. Huge parts of each characters personality and why we love them was just gone. The timing was completely off and it felt like the last jedi....WTH just happened!?...WTH was that?! Why did you destroy my fandom!? Eh...
I have to say...it wasnt even close to amazing. I have no idea what these other people read that gave it 5 stars. I gave it 2 because it's veil diaries and it's always been an instabuy for me. But it was bad. This read like a 4 book outline. There was so much going on and none of it had any depth. It didnt even read like the same author. The only reason I knew it was VD was the character names. Huge parts of each characters personality and why we love them was just gone. The timing was completely off and it felt like the last jedi....WTH just happened!?...WTH was that?! Why did you destroy my fandom!? Eh...
December 3, 2020
1 Star
This used to be my favorite reverse harem series and I'm deeply saddened by what it became. This was quite possibly the most disjointed and rushed book that I have ever read. I wouldn't have minded waiting years for the final installment in the series, if that meant that it would be halfway decent.
In my opinion, the author just wrapped this up because she grew tired of writing and lost interest in this series in general. When this series introduced a bigger supernatural world, the books started to suck.
This used to be my favorite reverse harem series and I'm deeply saddened by what it became. This was quite possibly the most disjointed and rushed book that I have ever read. I wouldn't have minded waiting years for the final installment in the series, if that meant that it would be halfway decent.
In my opinion, the author just wrapped this up because she grew tired of writing and lost interest in this series in general. When this series introduced a bigger supernatural world, the books started to suck.
I personally fell in love with the relationship that Lexie had with the guys when it was platonic. Once things got overtly sexual, something felt off. Oh well, as disappointing as this book was, I must admit that I will probably re-read the first five books in the series in the near future because I really do love them. I will just pretend books six through nine don't exist...
December 1, 2020
Well we get answers to the big questions - who closed the Veil and why, Jadis is dealt with, what Ethan is, but I felt like the story lacked the depth of feeling the other books had. There were several times where it seemed we were just given answers, rather than shown. I was hoping for more reconnection with Miles, and more with their relationships. I kind of felt like her relationship with Zeke almost took a step back, but then it did progress. I know the next series is supposed to be them in college years, but we don’t really get a feeling for how that will be or see them graduate. I was kind of surprised by Lucy’s seeming friendship with two other characters. I also felt like Lexie’s deal with death was kind of off, I will check out the next part of Lexie’s story because I love her and the guys, and want to see what happens with them.
December 5, 2020
So disappointed. I thought book 8 was bad but this was worse.
No character development at all. The story seemed rushed and confusing. Hades seemed to play such a big part in earlier books but this 1 he seemed so irrelevant and I disliked the relationship he had with Lexie in the end.
So many loose ends. What happened with her mum? Rory and Maria? Lucy and Tara? Even the lads POV at the end were bad.
In short, I don't think I enjoyed anything about this book which is a shame since the start of the series seemed to have a lot of promise.
No character development at all. The story seemed rushed and confusing. Hades seemed to play such a big part in earlier books but this 1 he seemed so irrelevant and I disliked the relationship he had with Lexie in the end.
So many loose ends. What happened with her mum? Rory and Maria? Lucy and Tara? Even the lads POV at the end were bad.
In short, I don't think I enjoyed anything about this book which is a shame since the start of the series seemed to have a lot of promise.
August 27, 2023
Ehhhhhhhhhhh
WTH?????? Was this even written by BL? Everything was rushed..... I was hooked on this series since the first book came out, but I think it started going down hill at book 8. this one was so disappointing. And Omigosh! The sex scenes we've been waiting for were so boring. The kissing in earlier books was a whole lot hotter. It's like a guy wrote those scenes. I know BL has had health issues.... but I'd rather wait longer, than get this.
WTH?????? Was this even written by BL? Everything was rushed..... I was hooked on this series since the first book came out, but I think it started going down hill at book 8. this one was so disappointing. And Omigosh! The sex scenes we've been waiting for were so boring. The kissing in earlier books was a whole lot hotter. It's like a guy wrote those scenes. I know BL has had health issues.... but I'd rather wait longer, than get this.
December 13, 2020
Well that was rushed. And is that the end of the series? I'm quite disappointed.
November 29, 2020
It breaks my heart to admit, but I was very disappointed in this book. This is the last installment in the series and I honestly feel like the story was rushed. I hate saying this because I previously loved everything about this series, but it felt like the author just decided she was done with the series and tried to tie up lose ends as quickly as possible. All the interactions felt forced between the main characters. I didn't feel connected to them like I did in the other books. The plot was rushed and all the answers we were previously invested in fell flat because of it. I also felt like the author didn't even have a culprit in mind when she was writing the books and just decided last minute who she was going to make the bad guy that we wouldn't expect. I didn't really feel anything for the big reveal. It was very anticlimactic to me and felt like it was just thrown in as an afterthought. All this taken into consideration, I give it a very generous three stars and I may have to change that to two.
November 29, 2020
Pages: 240
My rating: 5
Read other books by this author in the future: yes
MC: Lexi, Ethan, Isaac, Miles, Zeke, Asher
SC: Rory, Silvia, Maria, Tara, Jessica, Uma, Lucy, Zahur, Hardes
I was anxious that this book will be a very rushed book with lots of holes and gaps, because we expected more than one book when the author announced that book 9 will be the last one. And I truly loved the book.
For anybody who wants to read this book it is good to remember what happened in book 8. I didn’t do a reread, but I really regretted this, because I only remembered the major things that happened in this book. And sometimes you need to know more details.
I loved the book because it was mostly story driven. It had a good pace and I liked that everybody ended up in Miles house, living there.
The dynamics between the six could have been a little more, their usual banter was missing, but they were in a dire situation, so it is acceptable.
It was fast and entertaining read and I enjoyed it and I am happy the ending was good.
Reading this book leaves me sad, because there will be no more books in this series, maybe a spinn off.
Content spoiler for myself, so I know what I read:
My rating: 5
Read other books by this author in the future: yes
MC: Lexi, Ethan, Isaac, Miles, Zeke, Asher
SC: Rory, Silvia, Maria, Tara, Jessica, Uma, Lucy, Zahur, Hardes
I was anxious that this book will be a very rushed book with lots of holes and gaps, because we expected more than one book when the author announced that book 9 will be the last one. And I truly loved the book.
For anybody who wants to read this book it is good to remember what happened in book 8. I didn’t do a reread, but I really regretted this, because I only remembered the major things that happened in this book. And sometimes you need to know more details.
I loved the book because it was mostly story driven. It had a good pace and I liked that everybody ended up in Miles house, living there.
The dynamics between the six could have been a little more, their usual banter was missing, but they were in a dire situation, so it is acceptable.
It was fast and entertaining read and I enjoyed it and I am happy the ending was good.
Reading this book leaves me sad, because there will be no more books in this series, maybe a spinn off.
Content spoiler for myself, so I know what I read:
April 17, 2021
Shallow and rushed. This amazing series sadly lost its magic as the books went on and ended with whimper. The main characters were on the sidelines of a lot of the action, things were glossed over, loose ends tied up but it was missing a soul. The sweetness of each character and their relationship with one another was missing here. There was something about the first few books that was amazing and the characters rich and alive. Although technically, the writing improved the story arc grew more convoluted. I’m sure that the clumsy attempt to introduce spin offs was all part of it but it just didn’t work because the RH elements weren’t there-they seemed more immature and distant. Looking back, I think things went down hill from New Orleans.
The bad guy was who exactly? I’ve forgotten already. A bit more padding out of the antagonists and their motives might have helped me care.
Update:
Still pissed off over this series. I’d never read anything else of hers unless it was in KU.
The bad guy was who exactly? I’ve forgotten already. A bit more padding out of the antagonists and their motives might have helped me care.
Update:
Still pissed off over this series. I’d never read anything else of hers unless it was in KU.
November 30, 2020
Awful. I really didn't want to finish this book. I regret spending money on it but it was an accidental knee jerk reaction because I used to love this series. Somewhere around the book where they went to New Orleans it seemed like the author was struggling with this book. And this book and the one before it have been awful. So rushed! So many side characters that take away from the storyline of the main characters. Does anyone really care that much about Tara or Jessica? Why do we spend so much time reading about them and so little about the 6 that started this series? We are hardly in Lexie's pov anymore.
Not to mention, a lot of the characters have regressed greatly in maturity and honestly I don't see them all fitting together in a relationship. They don't mesh as well as they did in the first 6 books.
Just not feeling it and I don't think the author has been for a long time.
Not to mention, a lot of the characters have regressed greatly in maturity and honestly I don't see them all fitting together in a relationship. They don't mesh as well as they did in the first 6 books.
Just not feeling it and I don't think the author has been for a long time.
January 28, 2021
Excellent ending
This series was more than amazing. I’m super sad that it has ended. All the characters have been apart of my daily reading for a month or so now. I’m going to have hard core withdrawals with this one!
This series was more than amazing. I’m super sad that it has ended. All the characters have been apart of my daily reading for a month or so now. I’m going to have hard core withdrawals with this one!
December 11, 2020
Maybe 3 and a half stars if I’m being nice ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫
I’m just so disappointed that after 9 books that was the ending? Like wtf even was that?
I feel like the reason this book gets 3 and a half stars is because all the rest of the books in this series were so good and this was clearly just an example of an author that kinda seemed to lose interest in their own book, which is okay and I understand that. Doesn’t mean I’m not sad about it.
Also the first half was worse then the second, well until the actual ending because again. . . WtF.
I’m just so disappointed that after 9 books that was the ending? Like wtf even was that?
I feel like the reason this book gets 3 and a half stars is because all the rest of the books in this series were so good and this was clearly just an example of an author that kinda seemed to lose interest in their own book, which is okay and I understand that. Doesn’t mean I’m not sad about it.
Also the first half was worse then the second, well until the actual ending because again. . . WtF.
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