This could have been amazing. I really, really wanted to love it, but unfortunately it fell flat.
What worked for me:
I absolutely adore the concept. The use of Mesoamerican magic as the foundation for the book, but also drawing on shifter and PNR made for a fantastic combination. Finally finding a fantasy book that includes "nagual" and jaguar shifters was really exciting for me. As I've studied social anthropology in Mexico, I've come across these ideas and, as a fantasy reader, I absolutely loved the blend! The worldbuilding needs a little tweaking, but it's pretty solid because it's based in these amazing traditions that already exist, which I think really helps lend this concept the kind of gravitas that wolf shifter and even vampire books have, because there's so much mythology to draw on for inspiration.
What didn't work for me:
The characters. The MC was unfortunately all over the place. I didn't know enough about her in the first few chapters to be comfortable in her shoes, and things she did or said kept confusing me. She's supposedly this broken individual who's had a really tough life and has joined the army because she has no other choices, but the character we meet in the novel is this kickass overachiever who can practically do no wrong. The contrast of the backstory and the person I was getting to see, with no transition, was very jarring.
Additionally, there were situations key to the plot that seemed very far-fetched and kept throwing me out of the story because I didn't feel they were believable. For example, the TI sexually harassing female cadets just seemed like a cheap ploy to fit the author's needs for the plot. Not once did it feel like something that could actually conceivably happen in the US army in the way described. It wouldn't take much to make it believable, though, considering the author is working with creatures with supernatural powers. Unfortunately, no explanation was ever given, as if it weren't necessary, but I feel it is and having read some of the other reviews here, that feeling is confirmed. It wouldn't take much to acknowledge the perp got away with it for so long because of supernatural abilities and to at least have the entire system in an uproar that such a thing had happened in their training camp. I mean really, it's a despicable thing that is not tolerated in the army at all, so some kind of reaction is necessary.
Lastly, I find the structure of the book was off somehow. The start felt like it was in the wrong place. Why start with the character in the boring in-between of "oh, my life is shit because I'm stuck" when the book could have started in the upswing of the new life in the army and built all the backstory around that, instead of sort of info-dumping it at the beginning without it really feeling integrated into the story. Then there was all the build up around the molestation and sexual abuse, which was wrapped up quite unexpectedly without any real cathartic moment. Following this, instead of a resolution, there was another build-up leading into a cliff-hanger. It felt disjointed and left me quite dissatisfied at the end.
I might consider giving the second book a chance, since the worldbuilding is giving me good vibes and I think some of the character issues I had in this book will not be relevant in the next one. But, who knows. There are so many books and so little time...
