Series Review: Immortal Game by Ann Aguirre

Series Review: Is this series worth your time? Does it get better as the novels progress? Or does it get worse? Find out below:

Synopsis for Mortal Danger (from Goodreads):
Revenge is a dish best served cold.

Edie Kramer has a score to settle with the beautiful people at Blackbriar Academy. Their cruelty drove her to the brink of despair, and four months ago, she couldn’t imagine being strong enough to face her senior year. But thanks to a Faustian compact with the enigmatic Kian, she has the power to make the bullies pay. She’s not supposed to think about Kian once the deal is done, but devastating pain burns behind his unearthly beauty, and he’s impossible to forget.

In one short summer, her entire life changes, and she sweeps through Blackbriar, prepped to take the beautiful people down from the inside. A whisper here, a look there, and suddenly… bad things are happening. It’s a heady rush, seeing her tormentors get what they deserve, but things that seem too good to be true usually are, and soon, the pranks and payback turns from delicious to deadly. Edie is alone in a world teeming with secrets and fiends lurking in the shadows. In this murky morass of devil’s bargains, she isn’t sure who—or what–she can trust. Not even her own mind…

Series: The Immortal Game Trilogy
Author: Ann Aguirre
# of Books: 3 (Mortal Game, Public Enemies, Infinite Risk)

There is a prequel short story: The Girl in the Gray Sweatshirt. Read for FREE here!

Book Order: Chronological
Complete?: Yes
Genre: Young Adult, Paranormal, Urban Fantasy, Horror, Romance
Heat Rating: cool
Point of View: First Person, Single
Publication Dates: August 2014 – August 2016
Source & Format: Public Library–eBook

Why I Picked it Up / My Expectations:

I randomly stumbled upon this book at the library. My library had the original cover (shown below) and there is just something about simple covers that draws me in…

So I read the synopsis and noted the author. I read Ann Aguirre’s New Adult series 2B Trilogy but didn’t enjoy it all that much. But everyone seems to rave about her Razorland Trilogy which is Science Fiction/Horror/Apocalyptic so I figured those genres, not contemporary romance, were more her forte and Mortal Danger is the same genre (kinda/sort-of).

Then, I met Jennilyn @ RurouniJenniReads who also mentioned she was up to buddy read some books–and Mortal Danger was on there (among other ones)! A sign? I think so!

And so we decided to Buddy Read this together–and thank goodness we did!

What I Liked:

–The Revenge Concept–

I love a good revenge story and this one sounded so promising! Edie has a score to settle with the beautiful people of her school. What they did to her exactly is a bit of a mystery and so I liked the idea of it being revealed in time. The revenge plot line isn’t too elaborate but it started off strong and as I expected, it does take a backseat to the other plot-points later in the book.

–The Faustian Compact–

Definition of Faustian

: of, relating to, resembling, or suggesting Faust; especially : made or done for present gain without regard for future cost or consequences <a Faustian bargain>

Jennilyn and I both agreed that this story reminded us of the animes/mangas Death Note (which is one of my all time FAVOURITE animes) and Black Butler. Mortal Danger has a darker edge to it thanks to the deal Edie unknowingly makes. There is so much mystery and uncertainty regarding the bargain and its terms. I love stories that have great twists on word contracts and the like. It’s why I enjoy faerie stories so much: there are always great manipulations that come back to bite the characters back in the ass later and those make for shocking “WHOA” moments when reading.

And for the record, Mortal Danger pales in comparison to Death Note.

What I Didn’t Like:

–It was Slow and Wordy–

I had this problem with Aguirre’s 2B Trilogy as well; her stories seem to move at such a slow pace. I would find myself 30% of the way through the book and going, “really? We’re only here right now?”. I just felt like we were in the exposition wayyyy too long with this one and that nothing was really happening. It takes Edie a long time to get involved in the “game” and by the time she gets there, I really didn’t care anymore.

–Edie’s More than a Little Boring–

While I sympathize with Edie because she was bullied, there really isn’t much too her as a character. Her plan for revenge is never really elaborated on and she doesn’t come across as the brightest. I guess Kian was supposed to handle most of it with her wishes but that was never really clear to me. I just wanted more from her.

–The Romance–

This didn’t work for me AT ALL. I get the physical attraction thing but I failed to see why these two even liked each other beyond that. It was wayyy too insta-love for me and also seemed hypocritical to the story to a certain extent.

–It was Simple, Yet Oddly Complicated–

Like I said before, there wasn’t a whole lot going on in this book (hence, the “simple”). I wanted more revenge, I wanted more games and I wanted more excitement.

In the last 40 or so pages, things just get overly complicated. While I like twists that come out of nowhere, these ones just didn’t seem to add up for me given everything that had happened in the 250 pages beforehand. I felt like too many things were thrown in at the last minute. And while I’m sure they are going to be built upon in the next book, I found it more preposterous than exciting and that pretty much ended any hopes of me picking up the next book right there.

Will I Finish It?

No, I have no plans to pick up Public Enemies at this time–and I’m A-Ok with that. Even with all the “interesting” plot twists that we get at the end, I really don’t care to know how Edie gets her way out of the mess she created.

As Light Yagami would write:

I have to thank Jennilyn for buddy reading this with me because if we didn’t, I would have stopped reading and would have always wondered if I was missing out on something amazing.

Series Rating: DNF

Mortal Danger 2/5 | Public Enemies N/A | Infinite Risk N/A

Nothing really impressed me about this book. It took a long time to get anywhere and I just didn’t like the execution of it once it did reach a place of interest. I didn’t get invested in the characters nor their romance so there was nothing to keep me motivated to continue this series. At the start, I wanted a story about revenge and in the end, I got a sub par romance novel with some paranormal elements thrown in–not a winner for me.

Read if You Like: slower stories, revenge concepts, horror
Avoid if You: want a more intriguing heroine, dislike insta-romance