Emoji Review by Rebecca Dixon
I just finished reading โThe Hellbeastโs Fight,โ which is Book 2 of โThe Hellbeast Kingโ series by Stephanie Hudson! AND HOLY BEASTMAN ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฒ! Stephanie strikes again ๐๐ป! (This gushing praise is spoiler-free FYI!)
Warning โ ๏ธ ! If you have not read the other books in the Afterlife world that take place chronologically before this book (Afterlife saga, Transfusion saga, Afterlife Academy series, Hellbeast King Book 1) you may want to stop reading this right now as there may be spoilers for earlier books!!
OK! So there were SO MANY things I LOVED ๐ฅฐ about this book! First off! It basically starts RIGHT where we left off at the end of Book 1! Iโm a HUGE fan of that folks ๐๐ป! This literally feels like you finished the final chapter in Book 1 and then you turned the page and started with the next chapter in Book 2. Which is super awesome ๐คฉ. Perfect for reading Book 1 and Book 2 back-to-back! But at the same timeโฆ it had been two months since I read Book 1 and I was able to pick it right back up with no problems. It was the perfect combo of reminding me of what happened (without being too redundant) and keeping my interest in the new plotline ๐๐ป!
There were sooooo many great scenes in this book!! The book is LOADED with tender, goosebump ๐ moments. I MEAN TONS. If you didnโt love our Beastman ๐บ before (ok seriously Iโm sure that didnโt happen ๐,) your gonna LOVE โค๏ธ him now!! Honestly, I usually wait for the final paragraph of my reviews to talk about the MMC. I literally CANNOT wait with this one ๐คฉ๐คฉ๐คฉ!!! This guy IS Jason Momoa to a โTโ ๐๐ป (appearance wise, because believe it or not, I actually donโt know Jason Momoa ๐.) I mean, heck! Look ๐ at the book cover and google the guy & youโll see what I mean! But forget the ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฅ appearance, this guy IS Draven MEETS Lucius ๐๐ป! Heโs got that whole possessive ๐, angry ๐ , obsession ๐ thing going on that Draven hasโฆ ANDโฆ heโs got the cheeky ๐, snarky ๐, dirty-mouth that ๐ Lucius has! Really, heโs the BEST of both worlds and I am HERE FOR IT ๐๐ปโโ๏ธ!!!
Now ELLAโฆ. I LOVE THIS GIRL ๐๐๐. She is my FAVORITE ๐คฉ FMC in the Afterlife universe! I donโt know how Steph does it, but she makes me nuts about each of her FMCโs more & more as we meet each one ๐๐ป! And I am SUPER interested in Ellaโs story!! There are hints here & there about her medical ๐ฅ background and I CANNOT WAIT to find out her past ๐๐ป. I love the mystery ๐ around her and her snow globe (โ๏ธ + ๐บ !) Speaking of her snow globe, I remember reading that bit in Afterlife and thinkingโฆ man, I hope Steph takes this somewhere when we get to Jaredโs story ๐ค๐ป! And boy did she ever ๐ฅณ!!! This lady is a GENIUS ๐ก . I seriously canโt believe all of the characters and plotlines she has imagined and BLESSED US WITH ๐๐๐. I am OBSESSED ๐ with what Iโm definitely going to refer to as the โSnow Globeโ plotline and I sort of feel like itโs a โLucius in Afterlife 2.0โ plotline and that is A-OK with me!!! I LOVE IT โค๏ธโค๏ธโค๏ธ!!!!!!! I was CRAZY ๐ฅต about Lucius in Afterlife โฆand I am SO EXCITED ๐คฉ to see where this story goes!! ๐ฅฐ๐ฅฐ๐ฅฐ
Speaking of where it goes and the TWIST ๐ชโฆ I was totally mind blown ๐คฏ towards the end of the book! A certain bathtub ๐ scene and I was like OH MY GOSH ๐ฏ. WHAT THE HECK IS HAPPENING ๐ฎ . THIS IS NUTS ๐ฒ. And then I was likeโฆ OH MY GOODNESS ๐ฒ๐ฒ๐ฒโฆ there is gonna be one heck of Cliffhanger !!!!!!! ๐ต๐ต๐ต AHHHHHHH ๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฉ! But then again, super bonus ๐ฐ because during this twist I found out Ella is 5โ2โโ and hellloooโฆ so am I ๐๐ปโโ๏ธ๐ โฆ so that makes me super happy ๐!
Oh! The guys ๐ฅ!!! I have to talk about the guys ๐ฅ! So we always knew Kiera was super protected right? And Amelia really was too. BUT! ELLA! Man, Jared has a biker ๐ gang posse and Iโm LOVING โค๏ธ how they are all up in there ready to smack down ๐๐ป for Ella! I LOVE IT ๐๐ป๐๐ป๐๐ป! I also LOVE how we meet SO many great new characters and Iโm super intrigued by the dude that is like poison โ ๏ธ ivy. Spin-off anyone!? And speaking of spin-offs, I donโt know about you, but Iโm loving that 40-something-year-old Doc at the beginning! I NEED a book on her! Iโm always saying Steph is basically Oprah when it comes to her charactersโฆ โAnd you get your own book ๐ ! And you get your own book ๐ ! And you get your own book ๐ !โ So Steph girl, if you are reading this, letโs get that Doc in there! Letโs just say THIS ๐๐ปโโ๏ธ 40 something-year-old would totally love a sassy 40-something-year-old FMC in the Afterlife universe ๐ ! I would definitely be down for that ๐ค๐ป!
Honestly, I could go on and on! I loved ๐ this book. I love ๐ this series. And I love ๐ the world Steph is building. And I CANNOT WAIT FOR BOOK 3 ๐๐ป. This really was a FABULOUS book and could very well turn into being my favorite of the Afterlife world sagas! So if you havenโt read Hellbeast yet or even tried Afterlife, they are free on KU! Go ahead and give it a shot! The Hellbeast King may just be the Beastman ๐บ for you!