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themiscyra_anna's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Suicide, Gaslighting, and Classism
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, and Alcohol
Minor: Bullying, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
bfaythe's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Graphic: Sexual assault and Suicide
jens6791's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
I picked it up again a few weeks later but was left ultimately unmoved. I will say that there are particular lines and paragraphs throughout that are quite good (although they feel a bit like they were written to be quoted), and the turn it takes towards the end is quite strong, although rushed. It did leave me quite uninterested in reading the sequel anytime soon - a summary would suffice.
Moderate: Suicide and Violence
anastasia_raf's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I still cannot decide if I liked the book or disliked it, or just didn’t care for it. It took me too long to become interested in the story; It started getting intriguing after 200 pages. I believe it’s a bit predictable… I guessed almost everything. It is a unique story, but the characters seemed mediocre to me. The author was so concerned in convincing us of everyone’s “gray morality” that I couldn’t distinguish any personalities within them. It felt like I read everything from the same POV but with just different “magical” abilities each time. Although I have a feeling that it’s going to be improved in the next books. Maybe I just need more time with them! I think I need to see how they behave outside of the society, how they are without one another, what they become on their own.
I liked the writing. The dialogue was pleasing as well! But I’m not sure if it’s enough for me to continue with the second book…
''A flaw of humanity,( said Parisa) the compulsion to be unique, which is at war with the desire to belong to a single identifiable sameness.''
Moderate: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Emotional abuse, Sexual assault, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Violence, Blood, Suicide attempt, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
alliebliterary's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Suicide, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail
vampire_burrito's review against another edition
3.0
Graphic: Sexual content and Suicide
vienna_books's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
The first thing that surprised me was the writing style: the sentences were more complex and the words more complicated than I’m used to (English is my second language but I mostly read English books). I got into it after a few chapters and thought that it fit the academic setting quite nicely. It impacted my reading experience though because it brought my reading pace down by quite a bit. I usually finish a book of this length in 1-3 sittings but this took me about 6.
What I loved most about this book was that it kept me guessing until the very last page. I like it when books allow me to form theories about the direction the plot is taking and I LOVE it when it turns out that I‘m completely wrong. Even better when I can see that the clues were there all along and everything makes sense in retrospect. I‘m usually quite good at predicting where a story is headed but here I had no clue (I guessed one thing correctly but that was only a small fraction of what was actually happening).
I also enjoyed the concept of looking at magic in a scientific way and the characters using it for research purposes. The book gave me major thriller vibes in a sense that I was constantly on the edge of my seat and waiting for something shocking to happen. During my reading process I couldn‘t tell if I actually liked the book and I told my boyfriend that it would probably come down to the ending. If the build up had been for nothing, I would have given it about 3 stars but the ending did not disappoint. Loved it!
I thought about giving it 5 stars but even though I got used to the writing style, I didn’t like that it slowed down my reading pace, so I landed on 4.5.
Moderate: Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Murder
remaininlullaby's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Moderate: Terminal illness and Death of parent
Minor: Drug use, Suicide, Car accident, and Murder
janacc's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.0
Graphic: Suicide and Murder
Moderate: Terminal illness
tinyjude's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.75
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death, Domestic abuse, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Suicide, Grief, Stalking, Gaslighting, Alcohol, Colonisation, and Classism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Incest