This is another installment of "I so wished I loved this book but sadly I didn't".
While I was well entertained by the first book in the series, the spark just didn't take with me. And with this book, I had trouble getting through this.
However, I'm fairly sure it's not the book, it's me.
The writing is really good and engaging, the characters are lovable, the hero/monster theme is usually right up my alley and the worldbuilding is brilliant. On top of that, I love time travel stories.
Maybe it caught me at the wrong time? Maybe I loved it in the true timeline and will get drawn to it again at some point? Who knows.
If you loved the series, please tell me in the comments about it. I'd love to read.

3,5/5 stars

Thank you so much @netgalley and @hodderbooks for the eARC!

A brilliant sequel and I loved it just as much as the first! Such a unique take on magic and monsters! Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for early access to this book!

Having loved Only A Monster last year I was ecstatic to read Never A Hero. While it did take me a while to fully understand at the beginning due to not having visited this world since last year, I was quickly hooked.

We see Joan struggling with the past timeline and trying to fit into this new one and trying to ignore the monster world. Joan soon gets forced back into the monster world as a fugitive and this time she has to bring nick with her.
Throughout Never a Hero we see how the trauma Joan faced in Only a Monster affects her in a world where no one other than her remembers what happened. While we see Joan struggle with this I felt the discussions about taking life from humans were repeated and covered in the first book.

I loved meeting Joan, Jamie, Tom, Ruth and Aaron again and despite the complexities of the timelines I feel like all the characters have developed as the story progresses.

VL creates a complex and layered timeline that is amazing to explore and read through, even if I can’t fully understand it.

Never a Hero is filled with fast paced action and adventure, exploring the themes of life and death, friendship, love and family. VL’s writing navigates the entangled timeline, and delves more into aspects of the monster world and character relationships.

3 ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you so much to Hodder&Stoughton and NetGalley for an e-arc of this book.

This was a solid second entry in a trilogy. Rex toy a lot of second books have been disappointing but Never a Hero kept the interest up.

I liked the continued world building in this book, and that we got some answers from the first book (nothing worse than all secrets being kept for the last book).

I do feel like the characters didn’t develop a lot here, so I am hoping for some good character development in the last book.

The first book of this series, Only a Monster, was one of my top reads of 2022 so when an advanced copy of this came up, I was so excited to jump back into the world of time travelling monsters and couldn't wait to see what would happen next.

I wanted to write this review while it was fresh in my mind as I have just finished the book and my overall feeling is just a bit disappointed but hopeful. I devoured the first book but this took me longer and I found myself putting it down and not returning for a few days.

I loved some of the new twists that were introduced and can't deny there was always something to help keep the plot moving but... I'm really not a fan of Nick's character at all. He's too moral and good and perfect. So much angst from Joan towards him and as they are described as being soulmates and being together in the true timeline, I feel Joan will end up with him but I hope this is not the case. They are very much portrayed as star-crossed lovers but I find their relationship boring😴

Aaron, on the other hand, is an interesting character who is more complex than first appearances and he understands Joan more, due to both being monsters. I feel he sees sides of her that the others don't and helps to keep her grounded. In the first book, I loved their chemistry together and all the sweet little moments and the vulnerability he shows with her. However we barely seen him in this book until maybe the last quarter. I found myself continuously hoping he would show up and have some scenes with Joan. I have my fingers crossed for lots more Aaron in the final book and that the author will make him endgame for Joan🤞

Other than that, the book left us on a cliffhanger and it will be interesting to see how they all navigate what happens next in this timeline.

3.5⭐

Thank you to Netgalley, Hodder & Stoughton and the author for the review copy, provided in exchange for an honest opinion.

5 stars

I was so happy when Hodderscape gave me access to that e-ARC on Netgalley because Only a Monster has been one of my favorite books from 2022! That was a formidable debut and I wanted to know what would happen to Joan, Nick, Aaron and the others “after”.

Warning: if you haven’t read “Only a Monster” but plan to read it, don’t read further as this review will certainly contain spoilers for the first book!
What’s “Never a Hero” about?

Never a Hero is the sequel of “Only a Monster” and begins soon after we left Joan when she had “unmade” Nick.
She is now somewhere on another timeline, a new timeline, where Nick is simply human and does not know Joan.
Her family does not remember the past events either and I couldn’t help thinking that it must be excruciating for Joan to remember all these things while no one else did. She went through a lot and couldn’t even talk about it. Joan was sad and lonely yet happy to know that her family was alive.

I had no idea how Vanessa Len would twist the story, what trope she would choose but I must say that I was impressed once again! She succeeded in having us follow our favorite characters again, in a mad dash to escape people, again and save the world…again without any of it feeling like a wash out copy of the first book!
We will discover more about that world, about Monsters power and history, delving deeper into concepts of timeline while also getting some short history lessons as we’ll be time traveling through London more than once!

Joan didn’t expect her actions to have consequences yet it did.
She did her best to avoid Nick but the timeline does not intend to let them live apart. And in one dramatic turn of events they’ll be allied, running for their lives.
Only Nick doesn’t remember anything, has no notion of what makes a monster travel in time. What will happen if he discovers the truth again?

And when Joan will be faced with Aaron, working for the “enemy”, that will hurt a lot too as he doesn’t remember their friendship either!

There is a lot of torn feelings and conflicted emotions in this sequel. From Joan but also Nick and Aaron. Joan is still “half”. Half Chinese and half British, half monster and half human. Whatever her choices, she’ll always be “with” one side and against the other side. That made her decisions very hard and more than once did I want to shout and urge her to make a different choice. That was equally frustrating and understandable.

Nick might now be a “simple” human, he still has all the qualities of a king of old. Noble, loyal, courageous and charismatic. Someone you’d follow in a heartbeat. And even if he does not remember Joan, both are still very drawn together, trying to protect the other at all cost.

And as for Aaaron, he still is the golden boy, beautiful beyond understanding and yet an outcast among monsters. We’ll learn more about his past and his family and honestly, I just wanted to hug him. The way he has been treated…broke my heart.
We don’t have a “real” love triangle per se but even so, I’d be hard pressed to choose a favorite.

Between kidnapping, evasion, mad dash through London of the past, gathering friends and amassing enemies, we follow Joan and her allies at a brisk pace, heart beating, conflicted emotions overflowing while they try to prevent a very bleak future to happen for humanity.
I read that sequel in record time and … I need the next book as it ends on a huge cliffhanger!

I never saw the twists coming either so, bravo Mrs Len, you surprised and enthralled me once more!

Trilogies and longer that have one overarching story are tough because of the dreaded 'Slacking Middle' syndrome but I think Len did a bang-up job! I never got bored and was addicted to keep finding out what happened! It's fantastic that the protagonist, Joan, got her perspective challenged, helping to highlight her flaws and spin the plot in a different direction. A few of the most guarded characters from the previous novel were spotlighted more in this novel, allowing us to get a different glimpse of who they are or dig deeper into their histories. While I wasn't trying too hard to predict how the novel would end, I guess in some ways I knew how it'd echo the end of the first before we were teased about it in the story. With certain loose ends that weren't answered in this novel and a main plotline that stranded the characters in perilous states, the final installment is shaping up to be an exciting conclusion!

Thanks to Netgalley and Hodder & Stoughton for providing me with the e-ARC/DRC in exchange for an honest review.

OMG! This is just so good! Totally hooked and I couldn't put it down.

Having loved Only a Monster I eagerly awaited the release of the sequel and WOW!

At every page I needed to see what happened next. Twists and turns, excitement and not knowing whether to be team Aaaron or team Nick through out. Swayeing between back and forth and I've finally settled on Aaron. Maybe.

This is honestly up there as one of the best books I've read in forever.

As Joan struggles to come to terms after unmaking Nick, they are thrown together along with Aaron, Ruth and the returning crew and families to battle against an even bigger catastrophe than before.

No spoilers, but the secrets revealed, the future foretold and the relationships in this story literally broke me. Again and again!

This is one of those books that you love and recomend, knowing that the ending will destroy you. And all your friends. How can I cope till book three!!

4 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

I absolutely am loving this serie, one of my faves. This book was as good as the first one.

I love all of the characters, each were their own, all unique. We will get to know more about Joan, which was so nice.
Also I am team Aaron, (sorry Nick).

The cliffhanger of this book was such a mean one. I cant wait for the next book. I need it like yesterday.

Premise is great. Effort on world building impressive. These were two things that stood out in book one and carry forward to book two.

Plot is where this second installment took a backseat for me. Without getting into spoilers, some carry over questions from the first installment are not really addressed in this. Presumably it's building up to a big reveal in the next book, but it left some frustrated gaps in the storytelling. There are big chunks where not an awful lot is happen.

Character development? OK but there needed to be more growth really, again felt a little frustrated at the plodding along. Our main gal is still catastrophically clueless! And on a personal level no where near enough Aaron.

This is definitely worth a read, the monster magic system is different, if you love a good slow burn angsty love triangle, this has got that in droves. It's pretty fast paced, you can read it in 1 or 2 sittings if you're a relatively fast reader and it has that easy going light read feel to it, despite the peril!

** spoiler alert ** Although I finished this a couple of weeks ago, I held off from writing a review until I could confirm that my view would be (mostly) objective. I was extremely excited for this book. The first book set up a plot and a world that held a lot of potential; I was looking forward to Joan exploring her powers, decoding Aaron and his past, and seeing what they could both do together. I can admit that I wasn't a big fan of Nick, so of course, when his name came up not even three lines into the first chapter, I became terrified of the importance he would hold in this book. I hoped I would be proven wrong, but alas, everything I wanted out of this book failed to deliver, and everything I wanted to avoid became the main event.

Firstly, Joan has given me nothing this book. She'd been given such special powers and story, yet she refuses to make use of them because of her incredibly high morals. Her entire character revolves around how she's too good to be part of the monster world, which I can expect in the first book, but the second one too? What good is a main character in a fantasy series if she refuses to embrace her powers? Not only was that disappointing, but her personality has become one of a doormat. Every one of her decisions has revolved around Nick the entire book. And when I say the entire book, I mean every. Single. Chapter. We couldn't go more than two pages without being reminded of how amazing of a person he is, and how much she loves him, and how they're DESTINED to be together, and how she wronged him, and how he's PERFECT IN EVERY HUMANLY POSSIBLE WAY. Even if I liked Nick in the first book, by the end of this one I would've hated him. Joan's entire existence revolves around him and what he wants, which brings me to my next point.

Why does Nick get this much focus? Last time I checked, the entire premise of the book was 'What if sometimes monsters are the heroes', so why is Nick constantly praised for being the hero, brought back into the plot, and given so much power over what happens?? If they really are going to let the 'hero' take charge, remind everyone of how he's the only one that can defeat monsters, and make him 'the chosen one', then what was the point of the books? I can file this away with every other fantasy book that has disappointed me for giving me the same outcome.

I wish I wasn't so hard on this book. I really enjoyed the plot, and most of the characters bring so much to the table. Aaron!! Such a good character that could've added so much to the story, but he was given no focus and neglected. His story interested me so much and I wish we learned more about him, but instead Nick The Hero got 90% of the word count. Overall, the lack of scope in Joan's character and the way Nick has been made the main character instead, I could not enjoy the plot because of how much it revolved around him. This is entirely too long, and all I can say is that I hope the third book pulls out some moves that are out of this world to make up for this.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hodder and Stoughton for giving me an ARC if this book in exchange of an honest review.

This was a very good sequel! This is such a complex world with some veryyyy complicated time-travel problems, which does make it a bit confusing to get your head around but it's such a good story. I can really see the development of the story and where it's going to go next. I spent a lot of this book confused because, like the main character Joan, we have no idea what's going on! Finding out more about her power and her family was great. I actually did manage to guess one of the plot twists but the ending was still so intense, and also annoying! I just want one thing to go right for this group but it never does!

Speaking of the group, I loved being back with Joan, Nick, Aaron, and some of the other side characters. There was a great group this time all working together towards a common goal. Unfortunately I can't remember if I preferred Nick or Aaron in the last book, but poor Aaron came in so late in the story! I don't really like love triangles but I'm excited to see where the story goes and what happens. I love Frankie the dog. I enjoyed seeing Ruth, although I felt like she was kind of just in the background for most of the story.

Overall, this was a great story but I would have loved slightlyyyy more character development. Also, the beginning and the end were great but the middle section got a little bit repetitive at times. I really enjoyed this sequel and am excited to read the next one.

⏱️Never A Hero⏱️

By Vanessa Len @vanessa.len_writes

🤫🤫🤫

Spoilers for Only A Monster

🤫🤫🤫

Description:

Despite the odds, Joan achieved the impossible. She reset the timeline, saved her family - and destroyed the hero, Nick.

But her success has come at a terrible cost.

She alone remembers what happened. Now, Aaron, her hard-won friend - and maybe more - is an enemy, trying to kill her. And Nick, the boy she loved, is a stranger who doesn't even know her name. Only Joan remembers that there is a ruthless and dangerous enemy still out there.

When a deadly attack forces Joan back into the monster world as a fugitive, she finds herself on the run with Nick - as Aaron closes in. As the danger rises - and Nick gets perilously closer to discovering the truth of what Joan did - Joan discovers a secret of her own. One that threatens everyone she loves.

Torn between love and family and monstrous choices, Joan must find a way to re-gather her old allies to face down the deadliest of enemies, and to save the timeline itself.

⏱️⏱️⏱️⏱️⏱️⏱️

Only a Monster was in my 2022 top ten reads so I have been hugely anticipating the sequel.

After the events of the first book, Joan is back home with her Dad, trying to get on with her life.

Things quickly go wrong though, and Joan finds out that they have much bigger things to worry about.

I loved getting back into the world of Monsters. I find the concept of the timeline, and the true timeline, really interesting. The way the Monsters have enclaves in every time period is really cool.

All the key characters are back, but they have no memory of what went on in the previous book due to Joan’s actions, so they have to learn to trust each other again.

This is particularly painful with Aaron. I am still very much #teamaaron and I’m holding out hope!

This was a really great sequel. I’m not sure if this is going to be a trilogy or longer series, but we’re left on a cliffhanger so I hope it’s not too long til the next one!

Thanks to @netgalley and @hodderscape for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Never a Hero is out on the 29th of August.

Thank you NetGalley & the publishers for a free e-arc in exchange for an honest review.


The moment I finished Only A Monster, I was desperate for the sequel. I have hardly stopped thinking about it since that moment, and it has not disappointed in the least.

Going into this book, I wasn't wholly certain of what to expect considering where things were left. But wow!

This sequel picks up beautifully from where Only A Monster left us, with a reset timeline and only Joan with memories of all that has happened. Only a reset timeline does not fix everything and Joan finds herself on the run with Nick. And amongst the people after her? Only the friend she forged and promptly lost with the resetting of the timeline.

Throughout the whole of the first book, I was shipping Joan and Aaron so hard. I loved their relationship so much and I was desperate to see so much more of Aaron. I didn't think anything could make me doubt that those two should be a couple... Then Never A Hero comes along and shows us how a love triangle is done RIGHT.

Normally, I'm not a fan of a love triangle. There are so many instances I have been completely uninterested in a book because of it. But this manages to be an exception to that rule and I am SO glad that it is.

Romance is only a small portion of this novel though. The main star is undoubtedly Joan herself. Whilst the people around her have been "reset", she has not; her memories from the before timeline are in tact, which makes for some of the most gorgeous character development. The way she has grown from all that happened in the first book and how she continues to grow in this one is just wonderful. I absolutely adore her as an MC and her point of view is one of my absolute favourites to read.

I'm not going to mention much on the plot, other than I LOVED it. And this is only because the blurb gives you all you need to thoroughly enjoy this novel. It is so beautifully pieced together and I am DESPERATE for more. I'm definitely going to be rereading this one when it comes out!

The only thing I would warn is that you check the TWs for this book as it touches on a variety of subjects, including but not limited to: loss of family members, blood, violence, imprisonment, torture.

First of all, @HodderBooks and @HodderPublicity thank you so much for the free copy.

Never a hero was one of my most expected sequels of 2023, after loving Only a Moster in 2022.
So, I was more than excited when I saw Hodder Books approved me this arc (a part of me still can't believe I've already read it!).
That said, Never a hero has been both a confirmation and a surprise with strong and a weak points.
It was awsome to come back in its world, where the difference between "good/right" and "bad/wrong" is always blurred, and be reunited with a good amount of the characters of the previous book.
Maybe the first surprise has been seeing Nick again, with a major role I didn't expect (or hoped). Don't misread me, I really like Nick and he already shredded my heart in millions of pieces last time... but I'm team Aaron. I'll root for him until the end.
Anyway, the second thing that surprised me was finding a plot structure very similar to the first book, just with a character replacing another.
I don't know whether it's a conscious choice of Vanessa, that wanted to underline how the timeline tries to repair itself, but it felt a little bit odd, maybe?

Action is prominent in this book too, and I couldn't stop myself to keep going because I needed to know. Curiosity was too much to restrain me and keep a slow pace. At the same time (but it could also be my fault I was reading fast), some passages seemed a little bit confusing to properly follow the whole story. Nevertheless, the revelations this plot have led to left me speechless. I really, REALLY didn't see them coming and now I have to discover what will happen in the third book *insert a desperate face here*

Another thing I want to mention, for me one of the key points that make me appreciate this author is her ability to make you feel the character's emotions. Joan's sadness, her longing, the void caused by the absense of certain people in her life, I could sense them all while reading, like they were floating around, inglobing me. Same (in minor ways) applies for the rest of the characters: Nick was clear in every expression of his persona, or Aaron was characterized by little details that were so sweet I fell in love with him again.

I don't want to give you spoilers, so I'll end my review saying that I'm very satisfied with this reading and I can't wait to have the final book!

Wow, this series, I have no words!

I was completely blown away by Only a Monster so it’s sequel immediately became one of my most anticipated releases of 2023. I was over the Moon when I got the ARC from Netgalley.

Second books in trilogies often can be just fillers until the big conclusion in the final book but this was very much not the case here. There were a couple of moments where I felt the story slowed down but it quickly bounced back to all angst and action.

The ending of book 1 left me totally devastated (in the good way, mind you) and with so many possible scenarios for book 2. I went in expecting lots of action coupled with lots of feel and the book didn’t disappoint.

The angst, the loneliness at the beginning were so palpable, really heart-breaking. And just when I thought I couldn’t take it any more and boom, the action starts and never lets go till the end.
I found this book to be just as intense and the plot as twisty as book one.

Joan is amazing here as well, more vulnerable but also sad. In opposition to book 1 where she was new and didn’t know anything about the monster world, here she is the one with knowledge/memories of the other timeline. At least it seemed so at the start but trust Vanessa Len to turn things on their head. By the end of the book, neither Joan nor the reader was sure of anything.

I am intentionally vague on the plot because I think this is the kind of story that one should read without any previous knowledge of the plot. Not knowing what to expect next is thrilling but also scary at times. I trust Vanessa Len to treat her characters with care and compassion but she did keep me on the edge of my seat most of the book.

We see most the characters from the previous book getting together here again – Ruth, Jamie and Tom, Nick and Aaron. None of them is the same as they were in book 1 and just because they are in a different timeline.

Now, Nick and Aaron and Joan, all the feels – from fear through compassion and love to resentment and anger. It’s complicated fully encompasses their relationship. A bit of fated mates element which I am not really a fan but I want to wait and see how this plays out in book 3. We get more focus on Nick than on Aaron but every tiny glimpse into Aaron’s soul just confirms it for me I am #teamAaron all the way.

And that ending, wow, that ending. It’s complete in itself but also making me excited and impatient for the next book.

Gorgeous writing, great character development, amazing world building (I can’t comment on the historical accuracy but the feelings and sense of place jump straight from the page).

CW: violence, extortion, murder, imprisonment, blood, loss of one's family

Never a hero, second in Monsters series by Vanessa Len, is definitely on another level from the first volume, or Only a Monster.

From the very first chapters I noticed a different pace, much more dynamic and engaging, and undoubtedly intriguing.
The novel is also more complete in some aspects, there are many more descriptions of the various "time jumps," but also of the setting.
Our protagonists also have an interesting development to say the least.
The novel does not end with a space cliffhanger, however, I still want to read the third book, like now!

3.5 stars
After reading Only A Monster I knew I wanted to read the sequel as I loved that book so much. There is something so original about this series and I absolutely love that.
However, something about this book did not connect with me the way the first one did. I flew through Only A Monster as I could not put it down, but I found myself bored multiple times whilst reading Never A Hero.
This book really starts off with a bang and definitely had me hooked in the beginning 30% but the plot got a little lost in the middle and I found myself not wanting to pick this book up and read it, which was unusual after how fast I flew through the first one. However, the last 15/20% of this book made up for the boring middle section and the way this book ended makes me want to pick up the third book when it comes out.
I think one of the main reasons I didn't enjoy this book as much as the first is because I became so connected with the characters in the first book but those same characters are completely different in this book due to events which happened at the end of the first book.
I also think this book had too much Nick and not enough Aaron. I loved Aaron in the first book and you don't really see him in this book until the final 20% whereas Nick is in this book just as much as Joan and whilst I like Nick, I find him and his relationship with Joan really boring.
I loved being able to see Tom and Jamie again and actually getting to see them together, but even they were barely in this book and I wanted a little more about the characters because I felt so detached from them all in this book in comparison to the first.

~5 ⭐️
~thank you netgalley and hodder and stoughton
~I loved only a monster and was so excited to read this sequel!! I loved how the plot progressed into this book and it reminded you about what happened without being to repetitive. I love these characters so much and I was so happy to be reading about them again. I never knew what was coming next or how the book would end which made it even more exiting. This book is form the villains perspective and is n amazing if you like books from that pov. Even though it carries on from the first book I love the world building, and the “magic” system. I loved this book but I do think I preferred the first one a bit more(probably because it had more aaron) but overall I loved this one and I need the next book!!

i absolutely loved the first book and i was so excited to read the sequel! i enjoyed diving back into this universe and the cliffhanger was incredible but it felt all confusing at times. i dont think some of the timeline stuff makes a lot of sense and can get super confusing to keep up with. i’m excited for the third book and to see how they all get out of this mess!!