I’ve read quite a few sci-fi/fantasy books recently, and this is definitely one of the better ones. The theme is so different to the normal, about monsters, humans and a hero, a unique slant on the subject. Joan is bobbing along nicely in her life when one moment in time literally changes it. She is a really good character, with guts, tenacity and a real moral code of her own. And, no spoiler as it’s in the trailer, she’s not the hero. The other characters are also really well written, mainly likeable and definitely draw you in to this book. This is a must read, and not just for the Teens and YA market, one for all sci-fi & fantasy fans, I look forward to reading what ever this author writes next.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

Damn this is a good book. It’s exactly the kind of YA fantasy I adore. I raced through this one, sneaking chapters whenever possible and found it so addictive – I’ve been struggling to keep focused on a single book recently but this one managed to grab all my attention. I was pulled in by the V.E. Schwab comp (I’m a basic fangirl) but I stayed for the complex morality, compelling characters and fast-paced story.
I think my favourite element of the book was the magic system – the so-called monster families are able to steal time from other people, which they then can use to travel through time. And that presents them, and the readers, with interesting moral questions. Joan, the main character, isn’t truly aware of the extent of her family’s machinations and powers, and so she discovers what she and others can do along with the reader. There are still a lot of open questions by the end of the book, but it is open-ended enough that it looks like it will continue on and there’s plenty of space to continue on in later books. It’s definitely one of those books where morality isn’t quite so clear cut and no one is sure if they’re really on the right side, and I really appreciated that.
Another thing I really liked is that romance isn’t at the centre of this story. All too often YA focuses on romantic pairings over everything else, and this one doesn’t. It’s about Joan, her family and saving the future (and the present). It’s a book where teens are actually teens despite being faced with problems far bigger than themselves and overwhelming odds. Only A Monster is a good one. One of the best YA fantasies I’ve read this year, so definitely one I’d recommend.

This was so very interesting, the way monsters magic works and the story line with the hero the wrong timeline, the impossible love story. Everything in this book is super interesting and cant wait to read more and keep discovering the answers to those hundreds of questions still hanging.  The characters are very varied and real and I would have loved to know more about everyone but that, I imagine will be coming in the next books of this series.
The only think is that for some reason I struggled to continue, after the first few hours of binge reading, every time I went to pick up to book again I found myself  doing something else. I cant put my finger in why this book didn't hook me as much as I would have expected, but I found the middle of the book hard to get through.
I will put my review up on Instagram closer to release date.

This book was a really good, easy read! I loved the unique storyline and magic system. It was fast paced and hooked me from the start. It was good and the last 20% was amazing….but then there was the end (I’ll get to that).

Joan was a really likeable character though she irritated me a small amount when she tried to do things when she had no idea about the world she stepped into. She had motivation though so I did understand it.

Omgosh I just loved the hero (won’t say his name because spoilers) How can you not love a hero who is avenging his family, especially after learning about his past and what happened to him.

The ending seemed rushed and it just didn’t feel right! I know it’s a trilogy so lots of things that was left unanswered will come later on but I just hope something happens to change the ending!? Instead of shocking me and thinking how tragic, it just felt abit like oh? Is that it?
That’s how this epic love story ends? But maybe (hopefully) not…I will eagerly await the next book, which is so long away, and see what happens 😭

Thank you Hodder and Stoughton and NetGalley for providing me an e-arc in exchange for an honest review. My review is my own and not influenced by others.

While reading this book I’ve been flipped forward and back a lot of times. There were moments when there were a lot of things happening, action after action. However, there were also a lot of moments when the story drawled on and I had to focus on the story instead of drifting away. At some parts, especially at the end, the story could use another few pages, while through the book there were too pages with no added value.

There were a couple of characters which I liked, Nick and Aaron, the main character Joan was someone I didn’t like. She’s in the victim role for the most part in this book and even at the end I didn’t really got the feeling that she stood for her action.

Knowing this is an debut book I’m going to give this book 3*

My first act on finishing Only a Monster was to check to see when the sequel comes out, only to realise the book isn't out until next year so I have quite a wait on my hands. And honestly, a month is too long to wait,, let alone at least a year!

So - destiny, magical powers, family secret, possible love triangle, handsome enemies, love interest nemesis. You've read this before, right? Well, we have read lots of attempts before some of which manage to hit the mark, but the real deal is rare indeed. Happily Only a Monster is the real deal. It's clever, inventive, original, fast paced, beautifully plotted and unflinching. Now you know why I need the sequel!

Joan spends the summer with her dead mother's family, The Hunts. They are unusual - and thieves - but just like anyone else. Or so she thinks. Until one day something happens and she learns that they are not humans they are monsters and she's a monster too. At least, half of one. Before she can process the information and what it means for her, things escalate with the boy, Nick, she is fast falling for, not to the summer romance she envisions but to the point where they are trying to kill each other. Because Nick is a hero whose destiny is to kill all monsters - and that includes everyone Joan loves. Before she knows it she's joined forces with the arrogant, absurdly handsome and probably evil scion of the Hunts ancient enemy on a desperate attempt to change time and bring down Nick.

Joan is a little reminiscent of Buffy in the High School years, a little naive, a little reluctant, impulsive and gung ho, and despite her monster blood, all too human. She's no special snowflake to whom things happen to make the plot move along, she shoves the plot along with intention. Please take note all aspiring YA authors!

Only a Monster deserves to be a YA sensation. Hurry up with the sequel!

Summary review incoming because I'm not sure I have the brainpower to be incredibly coherent right now:

- loved many of the characters, although Joan leaves something to be desired in terms of development. I would've loved her more if she made an effort to learn things instead of whining about not knowing things. Inquisitive/Curious Joan > Whiny/Clueless Joan.

- Was told that it was enemies to lovers but honestly I didn't sense any of that. Enemies to reluctantly working together to fight the same antagonist, sure. But the romance wasn't there except in 'he had a weird look on his face whenever he looked at her'. It needed more substance.

- Thoroughly enjoyed the rival families aspect, though. I do wish we had more about their backgrounds other than just 'this is what they're known for' and that we saw more of the rivalries in other 'clan' members than just our MCs, but it was still one of the better parts of this book!

- I wanted more of a story progression for Nick and Joan, it just felt like we were meant to accept their story, which I did not. They did, however, have one of the stronger relationships somehow. I enjoyed Nick's storyline, but I just think the book on the whole needed more development to it, more backstory and more fleshing out so that things were more obvious.

- The book felt both too long and too short: too long because there was a lot of rambling in between the good storytelling; too short because there wasn't enough development so everything felt a bit one-dimensional and could've used another 20-30 pages of fleshing out.

Overall, not a bad book, but certainly not enemies to lovers in my opinion. If anything had come out of it, I think it would warrant that label. I did thoroughly appreciate reading a book from the villain's perspective and would love to read more like that!

Thank you to Vanessa Len, Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with an e-copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton and NetGalley for providing me with an arc of Only a Monster by Vanessa Len in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

Mmmm unbiased, not so sure about that one. I picked up this arc on a wet, horrible Sunday whilst feeling very sorry for myself as I nurse a nasty cold…and I didn’t put it down again until I was finished! Yup, this book totally grabbed me from start to end and transported me to a world of time travel, time stasis, monsters and a hero!

Joan, one of the key protagonists in the story is spending Summer with her grandmother and family on her dead mother’s side, whilst her dad is visiting his family abroad. Whilst there Joan has been volunteering at a stately home - Holland House and is about to finally go on a first date with Nick, another volunteer.

However, things go awry before her date and Joan suddenly find out that she’s a monster and Nick is the Hero, a monster slayer!

Suddenly Joan is on the run with Aaron Oliver, the disinherited heir of another monster family and discovering a whole new world, that is more about when rather than where.

Im not the greatest fan of urban fantasy, but the world-building and structure are interesting and whilst not fully explained, drew me in to Joan’s story. The powers and gang of opposed misfits, united by a common cause are engaging, and the character growth is handled well, Joan doesn’t suddenly have super powers that she can handle perfectly…in fact it’s good to see a truthful reflection of her character’s age and knowledge- she makes stupid choices at times.

There are some pretty standard tropes including the previously referenced coming into new powers, but, also star-crossed love, yet the story feels fresh with the whole monster angle…definitely grey tinges!

I didn’t realise until I’d finished that this is the first in a series, but I’m definitely not disappointed. So, if you want urban fantasy with a new twist, give this one a go! I really loved it and will definitely be looking out for the next book in the series!

Joan is a half human, half monster whose life is turned upside down just as everything seemed to be going right. What follows is an intense, action packed journey across time with the heir of a rival family to try and fix everything that has fallen apart.

I really loved this book and though it was a brilliant story, but there was something not quite right about the world building. There were parts that were a bit confusing, where it wasn't clear what the rules of the world actually were. However, I completely adored it overall and can't wait for the sequel!

I received a copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton for providing me eARC of this book via NetGalley

Only a monster is such an unique and incredible read I am actually at loss at how to describe it! I read the whole book in one sitting because I really could not put it down, it was so good.

We follow Joan, a 16 years old seemingly ordinary girl, who has a crush on her colleague Nick and is about to go on a date with him. But then something happens to her and she realizes that she is not fully human - she is half-monster. From this moment everything was fast-paced and crazy, I had no idea what was going to happen next. There were so many plot twists, secrets, lies and it was so realistically written I felt like I was right there and then with Joan and her friends going through London and trying to make sense what is real and what is not.

At first Joan annoyed me a little, she sounded naive and maybe a bit stupid, but she changed so much as her story progressed that I ended up loving her. All the other characters, Ruth, Aaron, Nick and even Tom were so well-written and likeable they felt like real people. I can’t wait to read more about them.

I am still not sure how I feel about the ending. I guess I hoped for some problems to be solved in another way, but the more I think of it, it really suits this story and I am happy that there are going to be more installments in this series. The ending wasn’t really a cliffhanger, but I feel like I need to know what happens next soon. Overall, it was really amazing and unique book and I can’t wait for the next part of this story!

This book is so good, it was immersive, full of rich imagery and vivid descriptions and it is a gripping read. From the story, to the characters to the setting it is beguiling. I really enjoyed it

I think I liked the idea of "Only a Monster" more than the actual book.

I really liked the fast pace and that the story was told from the monsters' perspective, but there wasn't enough character development to really make me care about anyone.

The romantic subplot was really underdeveloped, especially since it plays such a big role in the end, and the ending itself was way too rushed to feel satisfying.

The storyline itself was interesting, I liked some of the characters and I think I could have enjoyed this a lot more if the romance aspect hadn't been forced to the forefront by the end.

Wow. Please add this to your 2022 TBR’s

I finished in one sitting as I just couldn’t put it down!
What an amazing story and I’m still sad it’s over I could have read so much more!

This book has left me with the start of a wicked hangover.

I hate giving a spoilery review so I won’t be going into details other than telling you to dive in to Joan’s story as soon as you can! The plot is so original and I have said it I could have had another 20 chapters and been a very happy reader! I loved the characters even the snarky posh boy. And there was not one part of the book I didn’t like.

Again I can just say wow.

Please read!

Thank you to netgalley & the publisher for access to this book.

3.25/5 stars!

overall, i enjoyed this book. the concept of monsters and secret families and the the fact that this story is narrated by a monster's pov is what had originally drawn me to this book. the beginning was very fast, we're immediately thrown into action and the plot keeps going very fast up until 40-50% into the book. in the first part i literally couldn't stop reading this book but i have to say that it took me a while to get used to the writing, which reminded me of early 2010s ya fantasy novels. when it came to the characters, unfortunately, i wasn't able to connect with them, what kept me reading was the plot and wanting to know how everything would develop. i loved the different take on time travel, something that i don't particularly like reading about, but that actually didn't bother me. i hope that in the next instalment the worldbuilding and the monster families will explored more because even if this book is not a favourite of mine i will be tuning in for the sequel!

4.5⭐️

Wow. Okay, this book wasn’t quite what I was expecting it to be, but in a good way. Picture Ninth House, with time travel, and more YA and you sort of have the vibes for this book.

I liked the characters and the found family element, it’s the sort of story where the ending leaves you achingly unfulfilled. I want to read more of Joan’s story, I don’t think it’s over as there’s still other mysteries to solve — or maybe I’m just in denial. The ending was a little jarring, as in, literally the final sentence. It felt a bit out of place. Also, I think I loved the wrong boy… though the ‘actual’ love interest was cool too.

The author has a lovely writing style, it’s very immersive and you get easily caught up in the details of the book. The world-building was both unique and not, it was a very interesting take on time-travel and I loved the idea of the timeline being a living thing.

If you like: Dr Who, Six of Crows and Ninth House then you’ll love this book.

THIS IS THE BOOK IVE BEEN WAITING FOR MY WHOLE LIFEE.
The characters, the plot, AH-
Enemy soulmates? ✅
Morally ambiguous characters that’ll leave you speechless? ✅
ANGST? ✅
Twists and secrets? ✅
KNIFE TO THROAT SCENE? ✅
Time travel? ✅
History?(the good kind) ✅
This book has the kind of ending that makes you scream at the ceiling at 2AM.
This book made me drink ginger tea and I don’t even like ginger. But I would eat raw ginger for the rest of my life if it meant that I could get the second book now.

Thank you to Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with an arc in exchange for an honest review.

It was the perfect summer for Joan. She is spending time with her grandmother in London and has a date with a cute boy, Nick. But things don't go quite as well as she hoped. She is struck with the terrible reality where she is a monster and the boy she is attracted to is a legendary monster slayer. A new alliance with Aaron Oliver, she runs in search for answers and understand this terrible and enchanting power she possesses. This story was surprisingly engaging with never a boring moment. A naive girl in the beginning, Joan becomes jaded with events that unfold. At times, I was quite frustrated with her impulsive decisions but I liked the character growth. The monster powers were intriguing but I hope to see more in the next books. It has some of the standard tropes like coming into new powers, star-crossed love but the main character being the monster in the story made it all the more interesting. I don't quite ship the main relationship as I always tend to like the dark haired love interest. There were a lot of questions that I want to be answered by the end of the book. Luckily this is a series, so I hope to get more knowledge about the fantasy elements. You wouldn't want to miss this exciting urban fantasy.

I couldn't get into this bc it turned out to be a tad too childish in tone, might be another reader's cup of tea though.

Thanks to NetGalley and Hodder & Stoughton for kindly passing on this ARC! 💫

A 4 star read !!! The synopsis captivated me so much that I just had to read it! I had so much fun reading the book and following along Joan’s journey as she discovers herself. This book is really fast paced which I absolutely loved! There was never a boring moment. Joan is such a sweet relatable character. I adored the choices she made and was so proud of her at the ending. Nick was a character I both liked and dislike, I really really liked sweet Nick but hero Nick was not for me. Him and Joan are both people with the same motive but just on opposite sides of the battle and that was really intriguing to see. Hot ruthless Aaron Oliver us definitely is my favourite of Joan’s love interests, my first impression of him was that he was a cowardly stuck up but he really started to grow on me, and that ending killed me! I’m also really excited to see how Jamie fits in the story, he was so mysterious. The time traveling aspect was so unique, I really enjoyed it, and all those London vibes were amazing. The ending felt like such a nice closure rather than a cliffhanger for a change and I really enjoyed that. This book sets up such a great series!! Thank you netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for the arc for this honest review!

a very quick and enjoyable read!

it's fast-paced and never-boring!.i was engaged all throughout the book and finished it in one day despite the slump that i was in. i'm glad to know that this is a series because there are still so many things to be explored and so many details of the world i would like to learn more about. the worldbuilding is easy to understand and not very hard to get into; i was so immersed and invested at 10% so good job to the author for that (since i was in a slump while reading this book).

this should be, by all means, a 4 stars, but the last paragraph of the last chapter (before the epilogue) really threw me off. it was just getting good — in fact, it was excellent — but then the last five lines (or so) rushed it and it felt too easy and convenient. i was so sad about it because i know it could've been executed and written better. also, the concept of the magic system is quite ambitious: dealing with time is tricky so it's really a hit or miss for me depending on how it's explained and executed. though the author has written the rules for it to avoid a paradox (among other time-related issues), i find the explanations to be lacking. i know that i can just attribute this to the fantasy aspect of the book, but i can't help but wonder about the science behind it.

anyway, i hope things will be cleared up in the following books. i am so excited for this book because i genuinely had a great time reading this and i think it got me out my slump (again, kudos to the author). i also think that the author has the skill to make it big with this one, so i can't wait for the sequel and see where the author takes the story!