Slaying Monsters for the Feeble

4.5 stars — Wow, that was INTENSE!!! Like seriously, even though as a reader I generally have an expectation of my level of anxiety, and I end up convincing myself that things’ll be okay, there were multiple times in this book where I honestly had NO IDEA how Robin and Zylas were going to survive. My poor heart needs to go read a fluffy romance and recover. All that to say that this was a fabulous second book in this series. I loved that since I am reading these books in the recommended reading order, I got to see Tori’s POV of a scene in the Spellbound series and then see Robin’s view of it here in the Demonized series. It’s just interesting to see things from different perspectives and know all the nuances behind that. I thought the continuing SLOW development of the relationship between Robin and Zylas is kinda fascinating. Again, just as in the first book, I really appreciate that Zylas is still extremely alien and non-human, and that Robin struggles to handle his natural tendencies to violence and self-interest. I also appreciated that in her quest to find some humanity in him, Robin makes some missteps along the way as well. But I’m still seeing her grow — she’s got more confidence, she’s got a purpose, she’s just coming into her own even as she’s been thrust into a situation she is completely unprepared for. I honestly love seeing the small incremental steps their relationship is taking, and how I can see the potential for more. It makes it feel like the connection will be really deep in the end. I really believe in the trust that they are developing over time. The mythic stuff was crazy and not at all what I was expecting! Definitely an interesting bit of mystery and a glimpse of some other creatures. It was fascinating to see Robin interacting with other members of the guild as well, primarily Zora. I am on tenterhooks to see how that’s going to shape up. So yeah, still completely enraptured by this world and loving it. I love both series, but I have a soft spot for Robin…and Zylas.