The Girl in the Mist

Again, WOW. This book blew my mind. It’s hot, its moody, it’s beauty, it’s intelligence, it’s soft, it’s hard, it’s addicting. I could not put it down. When I did my thoughts encompassed when I could pick it back up. I seldom read a book twice, this one is already calling my name to be read again.

Ok, this review is probably going to make people unhappy, so be it. First, I am a HUGE KA fan. Even my husband knows her by name. Second, when I am in a book slump the earlier works ALWAYS pull me out. To - Girl in the Mist… What, wait? Huh? I appreciate the new style, it didn’t even bother me once I got into the groove. What bothered me was the conservative women slam. I’m guessing at least half KA’s readers are conservative. So I don’t get that in almost all of her newer books there is a bashing or passive aggressive side note towards “values”, as her latest heroine insultingly puts it. Very disappointed, I understand that this is “art” and “free speech” and “if you don’t like don’t look, buy, etc” be why is it even necessary to say? It adds nothing to the story, except to piss off your audience.

Kristen Ashley has done it again, I really enjoyed reading the Girl in the Mist. This a slow burn and filled with suspense. I loved Delphine and Cade very hot. This was such a good romance with suspense etc. I love it.

I’m a long time Kristen Ashley fan, and I’ve read every book she’s ever written. This book is not her best work. The first thing to know is that there are a ton of references to Twin Peaks. However, this book in no way resembles Twin Peaks, Except they are set both set in small towns in the Pacific Northwest. To compare the Girl in the Mist to anything David Lynch would produce is really just unfair to both. It was almost distracting how every other character’s name was clearly drawn from a Twin Peaks character. Instead of getting into the characters themselves, I found myself trying to figure out if these folks were at all like their Twin Peaks counterparts. Also, I don’t really understand the title. There is a girl, she’s in the mist, but ultimately the book is not about the girl in the mist. Ashley is usually superb at small town world building, like the Burg series and the Mountain series (Sweet Dreams is a wonderful example). This is not that. I find myself really missing those early series of hers, as her recent work has had a lack of detail and needed a good editor to give advice.

I really do love this author, but this was a hard miss for me. The writing style was very disjointed and didn’t make sense in a lot of places, like Cade and delphine were psychically communicating behind the scenes so their words had no context. But that’s not my biggest problem. Then she started insulting conservative women (a lot of whom I assume are her readers because of how she writes her heroes), then man-hating and saying they think they’re crucial to woman but aren’t. That’s where I am now, and I honestly don’t know if I’ll end up finishing this book. The whole reason I read books like these is because having a good man (or woman if that’s your preference) as a partner in life, IS in fact the key to happiness. I don’t care how many feminists tell me or any other woman that having a high power career is just as rewarding as having a partner and family, because it’s not. Spreadsheets and briefcases don’t keep you warm at night. I mean every story ever is about how success doesn’t mean anything if you have no one to share it with. I’m not saying woman can’t have both, but stop trying to convince them they need the career more or it’s more important. That’s why we have all these bitter 30-40 year old feminists who are alone and miserable. And if you don’t believe having a man and a relationship is important, why would you be reading a romance novel? You probably wouldn’t. So insulting your readers? Not the best move.

This is a sad book, but still very fun

I SO wanted to love this book! I love this author. While I don’t necessarily love all her books I can say that this is the first time that the writing style and inconsistencies in storyline and characters to be so distracting that you literally get pulled out of the story. This storyline felt very contrived and the title sets you up for disappointment before you even “crack the cover”. Maybe if this is your first foray into a Kristen Ashley novel it would be ok, but from a long time reader and avid fan I have to admit it’s the first time I regretted putting my money down for one of her books. Really, if you’re new to Kristen Ashley, give this one a skip and buy any other book she’s ever written. If you’re a longtime fan and you enjoy it I’m so happy for you. As for me I will have to wait for the next release to get my KA fix.