The thing was that regardless of the fact that this was their culture, there was still the issue that that Circe was NOT from it and so Lahn had to learn to make concessions along the way too. And whenever he screwed up, I loved that she totally stood up to him. Which he, in turn, found endearing…. it was all just very sweet. Otherwise, this book didn't provoke as strong reactions in me as some other books. I like to be provoked. I fell in love with Dax, right along with Circe. Here was this super-tough, barbarous bad-ass, who truly couldn't understand why his behaviors were so off-putting to his new wife. Even as he was determined to dominate her, he was saddened to think of his actions crushing her spirit in any way. He wanted her to submit to him, while loving the fight and her spirit. The phrase “it is their way” is used throughout the book to explain and excuse these atrocious acts against humanity and to help the female mc accept this primitive, misogynistic land, its people, and their king.

The female mc Circe is a modern woman. A modern woman, who was raised in equality to men, with rights, with freedom, with the choice to say no and above all, with a sense of right and wrong. But she strives to accept her new husband after he repeatedly rapes, beats and mistreats her and she strives to accept this misogynistic world of the Korwahk with "their way". Kristen Ashley created a weak, ignorant, materialistic, selfish and shallow character who doesn’t bother to look beyond her own bubble of relative safety. She doesn’t fight for all the women in the Korwahk society who suffer immeasurably, nor does she even try to free herself from her awful situation. I have read this wonderful book many many times. I can honestly say, that this is my absolute favorite KA book...and I have many KA favorits. It helped though, that Lahn just melted my heart. He was just the biggest brute and definitely the kind of guy that nobody messes with and yet, when it came to her, he showed another side where he actually was just the biggest loveable softie <3 And its impossible not to see just how MUCH he cares!! He did act like a jerk a couple of times and yeah I took Circe's side there, especially the big thing at the end :((((P.S: I know it's weird that I've started the “Fantasyland” series with Book#2... My buddy told me it's the best book of them all and that I wouldn't get lost even if I didn't read Book#1 first. She gave me a little heads up about the PNR element, summarized the general plotline without spoilers before I started and it worked!

On another note if you have not noticed I am totally and completely OBSESSED with this series!!! TOTAL MUST READ! To call The Wife Hunt brutal would be an understatement. It is a common practice by the Korwahk people with the purpose of finding wives for their warriors. But the way they go about it, to our eyes, from our culture’s perspective, is horrific. They round up the most beautiful women from both their people and others who they kidnap and, at an appointed time, are let loose in the woods and hunted down by the warriors, raped, and thus claimed as that warrior’s new wife.Seerim, a warrior of The Horde, his wife Diandra. She teaches Circe the new world she has ended up in. Their daughter, Sheena (12). And that is my biggest issue with the book: That a modern woman could EVER accept these inexcusable and intolerable violations against humanity as the new social norm JUST because “it is their way”.