Very strange and unique read. I highly enjoyed every page of this novel. I highly recommend this book for genre fans of any and all ages.

I love Nicole Rubino and I adored this book! I love the characters, the romance, the setting. She hit on most of my favorite tropes so this was a major win for me.

This was sent to me as an ARC by Netgalley for my honest review. Thank you Netgalley!

This is definitely an interesting concept! I'm interested to see where it will go. It does seem to lean a little closer to YA mentally while trying to be more NA romantically and sexually, but it has good bones. I really hope things between the romance and the friend group can bloom and grow a bit more on page and feel a tad more authentic in their ages and where they are in life. Overall, super happy with this and optimistic for the future!

When I requested this ARC I didn't know it was a romance, which I'm not a fan of and tend to stay away from, I just knew it was a dark-academia fantasy. But this changed everything, with me not being the target audience at all. I get second-hand embarrassment very easily and the writing didn't help. I cringed my whole way through the book, dreading every time we would have to go back to the romance, the tropes were not for me and I couldn't care less about the relationship. Also, I hated all the punching, slapping, shoving and calling someone an idiot as a form of expressing affection.

Apart from that, it is not even a strong fantasy or dark academia. The world-building and atmosphere didn't exist. The characters didn't have any depth. The ending, the twists and the reveals were underwhelming.

There was queer representation in this, but there were also some random remarks from the main character that made me uncomfortable. I hope they were edited out.

Something positive I can say about this book is that it was very readable, and it gave off Wednesday (the Netflix show) vibes, but horny.

With all of that being said, I am not going to continue with this series.

Okay, okay, I know it’s early only being January, but, dare I say… I’ve found one of my new favorite books?

We follow our MC, Rhiannon, (Rhi), as she attends Alystair, a school for monsters just like her. A place she finally feels like she belongs, where she finally finds friends, her girl gang. But, then bodies start dropping and the prestigious school.

This book has everything you could want. Monsters, magic, dark academia vibes, an enemies to lovers romance, and oh man, the SPICE!

I could not put this book down. I was addicted from the first chapter. The writing had me so enveloped in the story, and so engrossed. The story itself is so original and creative. I’ve never read a book like this before and I loved every single second of it.

Nicole M Rubino’s writing was so beautiful and detailed. I love how she put in so much detail to the monsters, their abilities, and even the way the school itself looks.

The spice in this book was a slow build, which made me want to read the book that much faster but I also wanted to take my time with the book because I just didn’t want it to end.

The ending had my jaw on the floor, and me sitting there mind numb, and was definitely not something I was expecting.

I went into this book expecting to like it just by the description & the cover and came out loving it so much. Now, I’m so excited for book 2 👏🏻😮‍💨😭

This was an interesting story with an interesting main character. This is the first book I have read by Nicole M Rubino. I have a feeling this is going to be the first book in a series on how it ended.

Monstrous -Book #1-3

By Nicole M. Rubino -debut author

Genre: Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Paranormal, Mystery, LGBTQIA+ rep

Page count📖 :455 e-book

Publication date: 1-17-24 , read 1-6-24

Rating: 3.5/5 ⭐

Spice level 4/5 🌶️ The SA is in dreams. A lot of making out, actual sex is at the end.

🤷🏾‍♀️WHAT TO EXPECT:
✨ Greek mythology
✨ supernatural creatures
✨ friend group AKA "girl gang"
✨Dark Academia
✨ Think Harry Potter at Hogwarts, Percy Jackson, and P.C. Cast House of Night series(I've read them all)
✨murder mystery

⚠️: murder, off page SA, anxiety/panic attacks

Summary: Rhiannon (Rhi) Owens is new to Alystair University. Its an Ivy League college for monsters. Rhi has sharp teeth and claws and needs a place to feel not so alone. Her girl gang sticks together and even helps investigate the murders of their classmates. Nicholas (Nick) Cervallos is one thing the victims have in common- they dated him. An oracle has warned Rhi someone's coming for her. Can she embrace her monster side and take out the school's threat?

Characters:

- 🚺 FMC Rhiannon 18, believes herself a Scylla with the power of telekinesis. She is adopted and both her parents are human. Her powers seem to manifest when she's threatened.

-🚹 MMC Nick the son of a god. He won't reveal what he is, his real name, or what abilities he has. He has a lot of girlfriends, but none are serious. He's half siblings with Scarlett, Rhi's roommate.

🥰 What I liked:
-The girl gang of course. Scarlett, her scary gf Astrid, Zo, Olivia, and Rhi
-Using monsters from Greek mythology

😞 What I didn't like:
-Professors in their 30's. They seemed very immature
-Everyone trying to hook up with everyone. I hated B trying to get w/ Rhi.

🤔My Thoughts : I enjoyed it but I don't think I'm the demographic. It features 18-year-olds in college but reads YA but because of the Hogwarts-like school , I will excuse it. I liked Rhi and Nick but they have a lot to learn about each other. I will read book #2 just for the revelations.


🙏🏿Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC 💖! I voluntarily give my honest review and all opinions expressed are mine alone.

On the surface, Monstrous is everything that would attract me as a reader. It is a deadly coming of age tale filled with feminine power, dark academia, and just a hint of romance. Plus, that cover is an absolute scene stealer! However, while this was enjoyable, it wasn’t entirely what I was expecting.
Fundamentally when I see a novel being touted as dark academia, aside from it taking place at a school or library, I do make the assumption that it will be classically inspired. Speaking specifically to the style of writing and how it often parallels or mimics the Romantic Period. A key feature that set this era in literature apart was its use of impassioned flowery language and its sense of melancholy while simultaneously celebrating the self-reflection provided by either physical or emotional isolation. Basically, beautiful words and imagery paired with themes of being alone.
Monstrous does not make use of any of this. Rhi, the protagonist instantly forms meaningful female friendships and an immediate romantic chemistry upon the start of the novel. Additionally, the tone of this book is extremely direct and very plain, which is not a bad thing unto itself. It is just unexpected given the “dark academia” labelling.
Outside of my own personal expectation vs. reality, the only real complaint I have about this novel is that the simplistic language coupled with some of the dialogue did throw me off a bit in terms of how old these characters were. I kept thinking they were a lot younger, like they should be attending middle or high school and not university.
Ultimately, I think if you are someone who wants to try out the aesthetics of dark academia, but you have a hard time with overly verbose or ornate language, then Monstrous might be for you. For me, while I liked this, I prefer the more classically inspired examples of the genre.

Fantastic debut novel by Rubino - she should be proud of the story and characters she cooked up here.

Intense and passionate, loved the creativity and inspiration she spun together from greek mythology.

Thank you Netgalley and Xpresso Book Tours for the digital ARC!

Okay okay unhinged vibes-only review time, yay! First of all, I spent more than half this book trying to figure out what genre it is, because goodreads only lists horror, but this isn't horror. Does it have some horror themes, sure, but I don't know that I'd even tag it a horror, because monsters don't automatically equal horror. It's definitely adult, slow burn though it may be, though yes it's a college setting so it feels a little younger than my usual romantasy. This book is like if Percy Jackson was horny and focused on monsters rather than demigods. Do with that what you will.

Rhi. Okay so she aggravated me a lot of the time, because she questioned herself a lot, but she pulls through when it counts, and I'm definitely excited for her to come into her own. I adored the mmc as well, but considering this was an arc and ambiguity is abound early on, let's just say I'm waiting for him to come back in book 2.

The girl gang was the real MVP here, and as someone who blatantly distrusts all friends in any book with mukduk, I spent this whole book like PROTECT THE GIRLIES! I loved Scarlett from page 1, and I really need more romantasy with friends who just give a shit and have each others' backs.

I have tons of emotions on things I won't mention for spoilery reasons, but know I'll be screaming into the void because I was full JLaw toward the end. Admittedly, as a vibes girlie, I had no clue this was the beginning of a trilogy, so that's on me. One day I'll learn my lesson, except no I absolutely won't.

Thank you to Net Galley and Nicole M Rubio for this opportunity to read rate and review this arc which will be available January 17,2024.

What an incredibly lush, darkly woven and human monstrous tale. I honestly enjoyed the heck out of myself with this book. Well written LGTBQIA+ rep, fully thought out world. It left me speechless and hungry for more(pun intended)

I am not the target audience for this book, but mainly this is because I feel the blurb and categories it’s listed in are just not correct. This is listed as a NA, LGBTQ+ romantasy. I haven’t gotten to any spice yet, but the only thing about this book that could categorize it as NA is if there was explicit spice (because I don’t believe explicit spice belongs in YA books).

This book was marketed as an LGBTQ+ story, but the main characters M/F are only said to have been in past relationship with the opposite gender, so ultimately straight. Because you can’t write a book and label is queer unless the main characters are written queer. Yes, queer people can be in straight passing relationship, and of course bi people exist. BUT when you label your story as queer, there is a certain expectation that the main character will be explicitly stated as queer, even if they are in a straight-passing relationship. I hope I’m saying all of this in a way that makes sense, these are my feelings on the matter. Two of the side characters are in a sapphic (lesbian?) relationship, but only having two of the side characters as queer does not make this an LGBTQ+ book. It almost felt like this was a selling point, and I was lied to. I did look on Amazon, and this book is also listed as “LGBTQ+ Fantasy” and that’s just so misleading. People are going to download and read this book, thinking it’s a queer book (BECAUSE THATS HOW ITS LABELED), and it’s just not a queer book

Anyways, I’ve made my point. I won’t hash on this book much more, but I will say is that the amount of info dumping that occurs in the first quarter of this book is insane. Like I couldn’t keep up with the things that were being thrown at us, and what monster everyone was and what characteristic and “powers” they have.

I think this book would be better suited for a YA audience since the writing is very surface level, but again if there are explicitly spice scenes than in the last 3/4 of the book then it just isn’t YA.

Thank you to NetGalley and the author for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

"I’ve never been afraid of the dark.

I never needed any reassurance that there was no monster in my closet or under my bed.

Perhaps that’s because a part of me always knew I was one."

Very well written. Kept me frantically turning the pages and wanting more. A healthy dose of dark academia and danger. I would definitely read more.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for giving me a free eARC of this book to read in exchange for my review!

I went into this hoping that the LGBTQ tag was true, and that somehow the main couple would end up being queer, but alas. Overall, it was hard for me to get into, and I couldn't make myself stay engaged.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I had zero expectations going into this book and it’s certainly not what I was expecting but I absolutely LOVED this book. A little bit of Greek mythology mixed with murder mystery is the best way to describe the book. This is one of the most unique stories using Greek Mythology that I think I’ve read. From someone that is usually quick to pick up on who did it early on, I was honestly shocked with the outcome and the other twists that came along with it. The only bad thing I have to say about this (not a big thing) is that it was marketed as a slow burn, but I feel like that isn’t the case with this. Other than that I enjoyed this book so much that I devoured it in one sitting and I’m already anticipating the next book!

If you like Harry Potter, Percy Jackson, and Grimm (TV) you’ll like this book. I’m excited already for the next installment in the series. The main character is likable and there’s good female friendships in the story. The only downside is I did read this because it was listed under LGBTQ, and while there are two LGBT sidecharacters those themes aren’t present in the main cast. But that’s more of a matter of mislabeling on here than it is something against the story.

Monster college with murder mystery? Yes please.
This book had me hooked from page 1. The plot was well paced, the setting was dark academia vibes and I loved it. But my favorite thing besides the slow burn romance was the female friendships. I need book 2 asap.

I really enjoyed this, nice easy read with some great characters. I loved the uniqueness. The name drew me in but the characters plot and story kept me so interested. I was feeling so many emotions I’m also so heartbroken and need book 2!!!! Definitely kept me hooked

DNF at 15%

I’m not the target audience for this book. Now why did I request it? Well, it was in the categories adult and LGBTQIA+ and the blurb sounded a interesting and a bit sarcastic. But I think the blurb is completely serious and it is a straight NA romance. (The author also says so on Insta so not sure what went wrong here) (There are some sapphic SCs). Me reading the blurb and thinking the MC is a man is my fault I suppose, in retrospect I could have seen that.

So again this is definitely not something I normally read and I’ve only read 15%, do keep that in mind for what follows.

The MC definitely has “I’m so special” vibes. As in there is some actual internal monologue similar to “I’m different than everyone else, I didn’t belong anywhere, but now I’m in a place where everyone is different in the same way as me and I should belong. But I’m still so different.” It's annoying.
I also didn’t particularly like any of the other characters.
To the romance: That was the most cliché YA beginning I’ve ever read. She’s the new person and he’s the mysterious, popular pretty boy that is kind of an asshole and every other girl is super into him.
Mild spoiler: I’ve read until the first murder and then the first thing the MC does is faint into the arms of the LI.
I don't want to read that sorry.

ARC REVIEW: The way Monstrous immediately hooked me in and left me unable to read anything else until it was finished has left me with an insatiable need for the next book. I think it’s giving Zodiac Academy meets Greek Mythos and I loved it all. I loved the quote at the beginning “and for the girls with teeth & claws - don’t be afraid to use them” as it captured the boss babe energy of the girls together and the vibe of the story. The romance is spicy and while it is a slow burn I thought it was a good pace. And the LGBT rep in this story felt super cute and realistic. Bring on the monster girlies!