Love's Cruel Redemption: The Ghost Bird Series: #12

Editing, editing, editing. Can't say it enough. It shows an enormously flagrant lack of respect for your readers when you as the author refuse to hire an editor, especially when there are good cheap ones on freelance sites who could at least help you catch the obvious and numerous typos every book in this series is riddled with. And the number of reviews per book are proof you're making enough sales to cover a $50 edit.The usual typo rant aside, I also was annoyed by how the supposedly smart and trained team kept making such bad decisions repeatedly. I tried to pass this off as due to stress and lack of sleep. But it was just so often and so bad that I bagan to wonder why the Academy would ever want to work with this team. A lot of details were also left hazy and confusing, probably in an attempt to keep the twist end reveal a surprise. Instead, it just made me doubt the author's plotting abilities for the first time in this series. And the scent thing used in that reveal makes zero sense either since Sang would have made the connection way earlier due to her often repeated attention to smells.I waited a long time to buy this book, unsure I would stick with the series, but the previous books' plotting nudged me into this purchase. I don't think I will be buying the next and will probably have to let Sang abd the team go at this point. Any author who repeatedly refuses to respect their readers' time and money by getting some decent editing does not deserve to continue to have readers.

I love C.L. Stone's voice. I binged the first 6 novels in The Ghost Bird series in four days.Book crack. Totally addicted. Just sayin'That's why this book/review breaks my heart.The story lines have become an implausible, overcomplicated, oversimplified juxtaposition of both internal and external conflicts.Yep. I meant to say that. A crazy sentence that explains the "crazy" that has become The Academy.First, the romance plot. Issues that plague a polyamorous relationship are represented in the Ghost Bird series in a realistic way. I appreciate and applaud the details surrounding this issue. But seriously? Come on, in everyday life adults have difficulty with the concept of polyamory let alone the actual participation in a healthy, functioning multiples relationship. So we're expecting teens to figure this out?To be fair, that's what the characters are working toward. Sort of. They're teenagers. Very capable ones, but teenagers nonetheless. No actual IQ numbers have been thrown out, but this is a team of freakin' geniuses (a doctor, piano prodigy, and 19-year-old learn/do everything team leader) so they should be able to, at the least, communicate.Maybe that's where everything started falling apart for me. While I love ALL of the boys, there are too many to juggle. All couples have issues with communication, needs being met, day-to-day existing. The teens, yes I said teens, are in a constant state of emotional turmoil while juggling life-threatening, complex, adult life issues. There's not time to grow up, learn to understand and support your partner(s).And that's the crux of the issue for me: they're teens not adults.I get this is a YA, but if these young people are intelligent, capable, individuals functioning as adults they would approach this relationship as an adult with the life experience that brings. Can a teen be considered an adult? Absolutely. But the team is not functioning as adults. They're a group of amazing, above-average teens thrown into adult situations filled with teen angst instead of the deep, emotional connections they started with initially.That lack of depth and emotional connection made me, for the first time, feel like I was reading a YA filled with high school students instead of young adults resolving issues that by happenstance are occurring in a high school setting.As a final note, and I'm no grammar snob by any means, but this book had so many typos and missed/extra words I was truly disappointed. Ms. Stone's skill as an author shines through her work. Such lack of care with the final manuscript is a poor reflection of the amazing work I know Ms. Stone is capable of.Will I read the next book in the Ghost Bird series? I'm not sure. The team will have to do some growing up-together-for me to jump back in. I hope that's the direction they're headed. This group deserves their shot at finding love and happiness. I mean, that's what we all want, right? It's why we read these stories.

**Some minor spoilers...I loved this series when it started. But at this point, wth? Are these teenagers ever going to act like teenagers and get the romance moving?I've read a lot of comments about the editing, which really needs work, but sadly, this book is better than many in that regard. Self publishing authors really need to care a little more about their work if they want people to keep buying it. But the editing really isn't my biggest issue.This story is convoluted nonsense. At this point, my suspension of disbelief is crashing down. It's hard enough to believe there is a team of teenagers doing this type of work. Now their nineteen year old leader is put in charge of a school? What??? As someone who works in a school I can tell you that would NEVER happen. Ever. The possibility, and probability, of lawsuits is staggering. And the ridiculousness of teachers and principals being so unprofessional and spying on others while breaking laws and endangering students... Come on! One I could believe, cause there are some really stupid people out there, but multiple people in one school? Too far-fetched.And what is up with Volto? Really, they have an arch nemesis? That this crack team of teenagers can't catch? Who seems to be getting more and more dangerous. And the plot twist? Are you kidding? That would be demented if it's really going to turn out to be true. Makes what has already happened both make sense and completely not make sense.Generally, I can deal with a lot of unbelievable things in books because they are books and I enjoy the story regardless. So I guess my biggest issue with this book is the characters just spend all their time circling each other, never having conversations that move the story along, so the character plot development is going nowhere. Can we please make some kind of progress with the characters relationship? Make some decisions that make sense. Act like teenagers in love. Do something to make me want to continue this series because at this point I'm not sure I want to bother. Which makes me sad because this series started out so promising. Maybe C.L. just needs to reduce the ridiculous number of books in the series and start wrapping up this school job they've got going on so they can work on their relationship issues. After all, that's why I'm reading this series -- to enjoy the characters and see how they work out their tangled relationship. Can we spend more time on that? Please??

I think that Sang is starting to feel more grown up and the series seems like it is shifting a little. I know its YA so isn't going to go anywhere, and its a slow burn, but if I didn't know there was going to be so many books in the series, I think I would have waited until the series has ended and then read it.I do love these books. But as time goes on, you forget what happened and forget why you love the series until you read the next,I must admit, I don't think the ending is as clear cut as it seems....although I have suspected both the character and the associated character (none of the actual team) for a little while now. But CL does set it up so it could be anyone.It would be nice if we could have a faster pace if we are going to wait for books..I get the editing takes time and money and all the dots have to be tied together for both this series following/back books and the other series. I just want to see some sort of resolution. Volto is dragging on. I might re-read it once the next is out, but I think once the series is over and I know how it ends, I doubt I will.

Another great book from CL Stone. Sang is becoming much more confident and it is good to see how relationships are developing. I like that some of the old, long running issues are starting to clear up and there is more progression with everything. And I finally don't dislike Nathan. A lot of action in this instalment and I thoroughly enjoyed it.The only thing i would say negatively is that I was disappointed with the editing. There were words missing at times or the wrong word inserted. Misspellings and even a name wrong. I know CL has gotten better editors so it was a shame to see they aren't up to point. However this didn't stop my enjoyment of the story and as always I'm looking forward to the next book!

I have read the whole Ghost Bird series back-to-back up until the end of this book and, as I am years late to reading these, I was under the misconception that ‘Love’s Cruel Redemption’ was the last book in the series. Like, ever. Not just the last book that has currently been published. So, imagine my disappointment when I got about halfway through ‘Love’s Cruel Redemption’ and started thinking that C.L Stone needs to be wrapping this up pretty quick before she runs out of book. At about 2/3rds of the way in, I realised that we were not going to get any answers and, more importantly, we will not be seeing Sang and Mr Blackbourne getting together.I think throughout the series, it seems to me that every other book is just a ‘filler’ and occasionally we get two like that in a row and this was another filler for me. I actually feel that the storyline is getting way out of control and more and more unbelievable and I really hate that we had another character’s POV now and that seems set to continue. Sang’s POV’s are in the first person and the boys POV’s are in the third person and this just messes with my head a little.I don’t have anything against Nathan, I gather that he is not anyone’s favourite character, but this book (and him) were boring. Everything that happened in this book happened because they didn’t communicate or work together and this seems to go against all the academy training that we have been led to believe that they have. I did like how Sang seems to be treated as an equal member of the team now and they are including her in the plans and asking her opinion, it feels like she has come a long way through the series. But this was literally the only character development we saw in ‘Love’s Cruel Redemption’. Everyone else stays the same and even when Sang wakes up with Mr Blackbourne next to her, the moment moves on and we learn nothing from it.I have no idea when the next one in the series will be published (it seems to be overdue) but I am glad for the break. I think I exhausted myself with them all by reading all 12 books in a row. I might return to this gang when a couple more books have been released but I understand that we have to wait another 8 years for the conclusion of the series and I’m not sure how much I care anymore.

I love this series and I love the story however it feels like it’s just being dragged out now. I got to 50% of the book and it still felt like nothing was really happening and they’re all just having the same conversations. Hoping the author isn’t just dragging books out to make more money if the next book is the same I think I’ll be abandoning the series which is unfortunate because I was really enjoying the series.

Absolutely loved this book, very well paced! I do have a slight issue with the absolute tangled plot we've reached now, it just feels like A LOT of loose ends, that I highly dought will ever be answered. Also speaking as someone who is a fan of these books, I'm pretty disappointed we've had another Nathan themed book, with Victor next to come. Just a personal grievance that we spend so much time on characters I don't have a lot of love for. Also a shame about how long it will be until there is a new addition to this series as well as the Scarab Beetle series, maybe the author has taken on too much work at once? Wouldn't recommend even starting this series unless you're in it for the long term! We maybe have a week of time pass with every new book! It may never end...