Review: Jack of Thorns by A.K. Faulkner // Or, The Plant Man Pines Hard

★★,5☆☆ | Original take on Urban Fantasy but tinted with Livejournal type depth…

“He had a god in his fucking shop.”

➽ MEET THE MEN IN QUESTION

Lawrence — Lawrence is a drug addict. He can’t keep a job so he works for his mother and lives above her flower shop. He’s a fuck up. AND he agrees to make a deal with the first magical weirdo who knocks on his door. Like, I know you’re a desperate dude but come on! You’re supposed to be the street-smart one! He’s a complex character though — he fights with his addiction despite seeing future where he fails anyway, he has intrusive thoughts of harming people because of how he was abused but he doesn’t give in.

Quentin — Quentin is… ugh. A snob. A Brittish noble who thinks the work is above him but will complain that the family he runs away from doesn’t give him enough money. I’m sure there’s more to his story to be revealed in the future books and I didn’t hate him (at least not all the time) but he can be annoying? And, I’m not Brittish but do high born people refer to themselves as ‘one’ all the damn time? He was sweet at times, I can’t say he wasn’t. But still.

➽ A LITTLE ABOUT THE BLOOMING LOVE STORY

Lawrence has fallen for the first guy who was nice to him I guess? It was a bit ‘insta love’ on his side or at least ‘insta fascination’ which rapidly developed into more and more. I liked his pinning but there could be more chemistry that wasn’t so I-want-what-I-can’t-have just for the flavour. As Quentin was so alien to the outside world, he’s pretty much experiencing his first friendship AND crush all at once and I enjoy a good slow-burn like everyone else but… something was missing here.

➽ AM I INTERESTED IN MORE OF IT?

I feel like there’s a hope for the series so I would still like to try the next book because plants and pagan gods is something I would love to see more of in fiction.

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