『 @annabellacx 』

✰ cover
I love the minimalism of the cover itself. Also, the cigarette plays a role in the story so I'm glad you incorporated that into it as well.

✰ title
The title has this uniqueness to it that I can't quite put my finger on what it is. It's just something I haven't heard nor seen before.

✰ blurb
I enjoyed the snippet at the top of the blurb! It hooked me in and made me want to learn more about what happened between these characters. I do have to comment on one thing, though, and that's the very last line in the blurb itself—I didn't really understand it. I guess what I'm asking is: what does it mean exactly? How is she being selfish and how does that keep the smile on her face?

✰ characters
Cassandra's personality is still somewhat of a mystery to me. She's rather closed off at first, but the moment she drinks, she spews out her traumatic backstory to a stranger. This can be seen as a character flaw, which makes her very realistic. I can only imagine how horrible it must have been to have gone through something like that. The moment someone kind comes in—I would probably feel like I have nothing to lose in telling them.

Blake seems like a very kind and caring character from what I've read so far, however, given the snippet from the blurb, I have reason to believe that it's all just a facade. I feel like he does care for Cassandra, but he's still healing himself from his past relationship so he doesn't quite know how to handle his own emotions yet.

✰ plot
The plot feels a bit angsty (god, I hate that word but I have no other word to describe it lol). I found it interesting to read about how these two "broken" individuals were seemingly brought together by fate. I've always found it refreshing when an author can capture pent-up emotions as well as you have.

✰ pacing
It is a bit fast-paced, I saw that mentioned that in one of your author's notes, but I don't see anything wrong with it. I think stories that develop the points that move the plot forward are the best (might be a little biased because as you may have already read—my story's plot moves at the speed of light in the first chapter). But I do sincerely mean that. It's something that builds off of it and keeps your story going.

✰ grammar/language
I did spot a few mistakes here and there, but nothing too big. Going back to proofread should help enhance your story tremendously. I suggest that you skim through your chapters before publishing them just to make sure everything is in order.

✰ overall thoughts
Overall, I thought your novel was very compelling! The aesthetics you add at the beginning of each chapter are unmatched. I do wish that the chapters were just a teeny bit longer, but it's completely your choice, of course. Great work!

✎ . . . .

Happy writing!