Rhapsodic (The bargainer book 1) -review
by Laura Thalassa
time spent reading: 07.23.2021 - 07.25.2021 3 days
⭐️ (1/5)
The first book of the bargainer series has an intriguing plot, I'll give it that. But it just wasn't for me. At first I was really interested in the story, because I love the "you owe me a favor" trope but by the end I was very glad it ended.
To give a quick resumé, it's a fantasy world where there is a guy who can basically give you anything you want... in exchange for something else in return of course. He's known for asking really, lets say, evil things back. But this girl named Callypso was the only person where he never asked for anything. For years she has been asking favours and he has never come to collect his dept, they grew close and because she liked the proximity, she started asking as a "favour", his time, so he could spent it with her. When she grew older he stopped coming, for a long time they did not see each other. Until one day he comes back and finally takes his payment...
It was difficult to distinguish what I didn't like at first. Like, by the plot i just told you it looks very good right? But now I understand that I have a condition... I absolutely HATE clingy romance. There, I said it.
They can't get enough of each other and that's what I did not like.
I know that this book is very, very loved by most people, but the romance ruined it this time. But I will admit that the whole, "you owe me a favor" thing is a brilliant plot idea, but this time it didn't work out. For me at least. I would absolutely LOVE to read something like this again but maybe written in another way.
And the bargainer is very mysterious and all, but the way he just keeps everything to himself gets annoying throughout the story. Because we are kept in the dark 90% of the time. I get this may be the idea, the whole mistery of the story is brought by him not telling Callypso the whole truth always, but its excessive.
Also, if you read the Sarah J. Maas "ACOTAR" series, I feel like you shouldn't waist your time with this one, since, in my opinion, Des is just a weak version of Rhysand and if you start comparing them along the story (as I did), you will get just as frustrated at him, as you got at Tamlin on Book 2 of acotar, i'm sure.