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A review by shamelesslyintroverted
The Undermining of Twyla and Frank by Megan Bannen
3.5
I read The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy last month and loved it so much that I had to dive into the second book, which recently released.
Since the title has two characters we meet in the first book, I didn’t need much more information than that; I went in blind.
There ARE dragons in Tanria, as it turns out, and we get to learn about them while trying to get to the bottom of a smuggling ring. This is a very cosy fantasy with a romantic plot.
You do not need to read the first book since this one stands alone, but there are spoilers for Hart and Mercy in here. I highly recommend reading these in order, but you won’t be lost if you decide to be a rebel.
As for the romance, I absolutely love that we’re watching two best friends that are in their 50s fall for each other after failed marriages. It’s such a different take on romance and I was here for it every step of the way.
My experience with friends to lovers is usually not great. A common pitfall I see with this trope is lack of friendship development. I want to see how they met, why they’re friends, and how they make sense as more. Friends to lovers books rarely give me all of that, but this one did.
The only reason I’m giving this a 3.5 ⭐️ is because I thought the ending was purely ridiculous, even for a cozy fantasy.
My favorite scene was when Twyla screwed everything up with Frank and Hope, so she went to the temple and prayed to the wisdom goddess. In walks this old woman with squeaky shoes and loud doses of clarity. I loved this scene so much, especially because Twyla realizes that she probably spoke with a god.
That ending... was something. When Twyla got the note and it ended with 'goodbye,' I knew it was Hermia. I begged for it not to be because it's just ridiculous. When it turned out being Hermia, I was like... okay, let's just give her a real motive. But no. Grape soda? Really? She decided to smuggle out precious substances for soda? At least the other characters realized it was dumb, but I did like how Twyla rode a fucking dragon to save Frank. That was fun.
🎧 I just have to say that the audiobook drove me crazy at certain points. The narrator sometimes voices Duckers using Frank’s voice and it throws me off since Frank has a twang and Duckers definitely does not. Plus, some of the females sound like males… the voices were off. However, this book is not easy to narrate, so I’m not harping on her too badly.
Since the title has two characters we meet in the first book, I didn’t need much more information than that; I went in blind.
There ARE dragons in Tanria, as it turns out, and we get to learn about them while trying to get to the bottom of a smuggling ring. This is a very cosy fantasy with a romantic plot.
You do not need to read the first book since this one stands alone, but there are spoilers for Hart and Mercy in here. I highly recommend reading these in order, but you won’t be lost if you decide to be a rebel.
As for the romance, I absolutely love that we’re watching two best friends that are in their 50s fall for each other after failed marriages. It’s such a different take on romance and I was here for it every step of the way.
My experience with friends to lovers is usually not great. A common pitfall I see with this trope is lack of friendship development. I want to see how they met, why they’re friends, and how they make sense as more. Friends to lovers books rarely give me all of that, but this one did.
The only reason I’m giving this a 3.5 ⭐️ is because I thought the ending was purely ridiculous, even for a cozy fantasy.
That ending... was something. When Twyla got the note and it ended with 'goodbye,' I knew it was Hermia. I begged for it not to be because it's just ridiculous. When it turned out being Hermia, I was like... okay, let's just give her a real motive. But no. Grape soda? Really? She decided to smuggle out precious substances for soda? At least the other characters realized it was dumb, but I did like how Twyla rode a fucking dragon to save Frank. That was fun.
🎧 I just have to say that the audiobook drove me crazy at certain points. The narrator sometimes voices Duckers using Frank’s voice and it throws me off since Frank has a twang and Duckers definitely does not. Plus, some of the females sound like males… the voices were off. However, this book is not easy to narrate, so I’m not harping on her too badly.