I was genuinely excited to read Fury Bound, ready to see Meryn finally claim her rightful throne and, most importantly, get Stark’s POV. (Yes, I am an absolute su.cker for dual POV.)I’ll start with the positives because, overall, this is not a terrible book. I’ve definitely read worse.Buckle up, it’s not very short. 🙊The world built is ambitious and the foundations built in the first book promised something great in the second book… and I kept waiting and waiting, but nothing came.The story completely loses focus somewhere along the way.What should have been a strong central conflict: Meryn vs Killian-Alistair/Astreona vs Nocturna, gets buried underneath endless side-plots, side-quests, repetitive interactions, and additional characters that simply do too little for me to truly care about them.We spend reading hundreds of pages building armies, bonded, councils, powers, political structures, and a war that supposedly shaped the world for centuries… only for the climax to narrow itself down to what essentially feels like three people handling everything while everyone else randomly disappears until it’s finished.I think the best way I can describe this book is: a story overflowing with ideas, but lacking enough control to make all of them land properly.Characters: (might contain spoilers///Read with caution)FMC - Meryn had all the ingredients to become an incredible fantasy FMC, which is exactly why her development frustrated me so much in this book. In Dire Wolves, she was stubborn, determined, emotionally strong, and willing to push forward no matter how many times she got rejected or knocked down. In Fury Bound, her characterization often feels inconsistent. The story constantly tells us she is strategic, important, and destined for greatness, yet instead of evolving naturally, most of the time she’s impulsive, and strangely disconnected from the weight of the role she is supposed to carry. And darn it, why is she so filthy all the time??!!MMC – Stark, built surprisingly nice in the first book: stoic, cold, calculated, with a soft layer underneath. And for a while he seemed to be doing good in the second book as well. But then, instead of deepening him, his POV becomes repetitive and heavily centered around same thoughts. The authors wrote him down 🥲Now, don’t get me wrong, I’m an absolute smut lover, but after the way Stark was built in the first book, I expected more from his POV. At first, I was excited, but then his yearning was mostly lust driven and mixed endless, repetitive dialogue… It became tiering.Guys, he was supposed to become my new shadow daddy… 😔Some side characters actually had potential, they were developed and then abandoned…Lucian - For a king who has lived for thousands of years and has been at war for centuries, choosing “nursing a transition” over finally confronting the brother who started everything felt absurd to me. And despite his age and supposed intelligence, 80% of the time he behaves like a spoiled frat-boy with unresolved anger issues. Which is frustrating because the chemistry and tension surrounding his character actually had huge potential.Alpha Egith - Introduced as important, then disappears from most of the important stuff that happens in the book.Sovereign Alpha – Only god knows what she is doing or what she decides, but she loses in the end.Noemi - I am still trying to figure her out 🫠. I understand her background story and implications, but her having the last action in the war that has consumed so many, felt a bit exaggerated. Apart from her dragging out some of Meryn’s reactions, I think she is given too much importance in the book tbh.The ending… Instead of delivering satisfying payoff and clarity, it introduces yet another layer of confusion and withheld information. It shifts the story from political intrigue and wolf-bonds to abstract magical nonsense.Not sure I will continue the series, especially since it’s not KU anymore. ☺️
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