YMMV / The Black Sheep Dog Series

• Ensemble Dark Horse: Lucretia Prewett nee Black steals the scene every time she appears, with many comments expressing delight at her hilariously wild antics and witty insights. Her habit of getting under her family's nerves never fail to make an enjoyable read.
• Jerkass Woobie:
  • Sirius had been raised in an oppressive family environment that disapproves of his life choices, and he grew up being unfavorably compared to his younger brother, which gives him a thirst to prove himself. When he is unexpectedly reunited with his parents, they waste no time trying to put him back in their leash (literally, in Orion's case), and force him to return to the life and responsibilities he most certainly do not want. What keeps him from being a straight Woobie is that Sirius is not entirely without fault in the conflicts he finds himself in—he often deliberately provoke and insult his parents, who, contrary to his belief, are not heartless monsters wholly intent on making him miserable. He also picks a fight with his friends when they dare to suggest that just maybe he should try to be less prejudiced about his family and at least try to play nice with them a little bit.
  • Orion as well. Arrogant, bigoted, and emotionally manipulative, he treats Sirius with open contempt and blackmails him into doing his bidding, frequently stating how little he cares about Sirius's wishes and emotional well-being. But seeing the appalling ways Sirius can behave in order to deliberately offend Orion (such as mocking him for being unable to stand up against his father's bullying, and openly wishing for his death), one can almost sympathize with Mr. Black when he resorts to more drastic measures to keep his son in line—especially when, by all accounts, Orion is still a better parent to Sirius than his own father, Arcturus, had been towards him. And given the tremendous strain he's put through because of the situation with Regulus, compounded with his apparent poor health (which his family knows nothing about), it's no surprise that many readers feel sorry for him.
• Tear Jerker: The heartfelt confrontation between Orion and Sirius in chapter 31 of Black Mask has brought more than one reader to tears. Orion finally tells Sirius about his condition and expresses his confidence that Sirius and Regulus can take care of things when he's gone, while (in a roundabout way) apologizing for not being a better father to his sons. Sirius breaks down and finally admits that deep down he still wants his parents's attention and approval, but at the same time knowing that he doesn't have it in him to be the heir his family expects him to be, and his rebellion is the only way he knows to get that attention—or, in his own words, if he were to fail his parents, he'd rather fail spectacularly—despite the self-loathing he feels for being inadequate. The conversation ends with Sirius begging his father not to go just as his father is leaving, and the latter replying that everyone must go some time.
• The Woobie: Regulus. Having almost died to steal Voldemort's Horcrux, and thus betraying the Dark Lord, he is now confined to his brother's flat and lives under the constant threat of being found out by the Death Eaters and probably tortured and killed. Being reunited with his brother means that he's going to be once again overshadowed by Sirius, as both his parents exert most of their attention and energy trying to control their wayward son once more, while ignoring Regulus.