This is a reread review. I will attempt to keep it mostly spoiler-free, but there will be at least a couple minor spoilers... can't exactly discuss the vampires and witches without them. You've been warned.
So, Demon in My View has been one of my favorite books since I first read it in high-school. Almost 20 years later, the beginning chapters are a bit of a slog to get through, but the rest of the story flows well, I think. I'm still rather fond of it.
I was struck on this reread by just how straight-up bitchy Jessica is. I have a feeling I brushed all that off as a kid because, hey, I was at an age where bitchiness was a fact of life. Gotta be bitchy to everyone, at least internally, cuz life is a bitch. Now, it's honestly super cringy... as is the Mary-Sue-ness and self-insertion-ness of Jessica. She's super pretty (a big Mary-Sue quality), an already published author who's book is Atwater-Rhodes' first book with a different title, and is able to just breeze into vampire society like it's nothing. Again, I honestly had a hard time, this reread, getting through those first couple chapters, and this is largely why. Hindsight/Adult Sight is great.
But anyway, I still mostly enjoyed the story. I do feel like the magic system here isn't well-defined. What is defined is largely through Aubrey's abilities, but it's still rather up in the air as to which ones apply to all vampires and which are just because Aubrey is "strong." That "strength" thing is talked about a little, but also very ill-defined. Witch magic is barely touched upon and thereby much less defined. I feel like the whole magic system works on vibes and I don't think that's a bad thing. It works here.
I found the story-within-a-story thing revealing Jazlyn effective. I literally won't say anything more about that, as it would be a major spoiler.
Demon in My View also had me thinking about The Twilight Saga parallels, because I know I originally read Twilight around the same time and we could probably talk about Teen Vampire Romance these days without mentioning Twilight but... it was on my mind, so I won't. Aubrey is definitely not Edward Cullen, though they do the same kind of stalking of the main love-interest. I also feel like Jessica has more of a personality than Bella ever did, and Atwater-Rhodes managed to do that in many less pages. Jessica and Bella share the same kind of mind-shielding thingy that makes them that much more enticing to their boys. And finally, I'm pretty sure Aubrey is who I picture in my head every time I read The Twilight Saga instead of Edward... at least physically. I did read Demon in My View first so... yeah.
Twilight out of the way, I did still mostly enjoy Demon in My View and feel like it's a good gateway into both romance and vampire fiction. The romance part, I will admit, is mostly downplayed, which was nice. It also doesn't feel shoe-horned in. I definitely have a soft spot in my heart for Atwater-Rhodes' vampires, so it was kind of a given that wouldn't change.
Favorite Line
"I might die, but which one of us will hurt more tomorrow?" - Jessica Allodola
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