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sunnydale's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
i enjoyed the fairy tale references, the haunted house, the theme of self-deception through personal narrative, and the girls' desperation to believe in magic. i still found the bridegroom's chapters uninteresting except as a framing device for azure's narrative, and i didn't enjoy the feeling of dread built around jupiter's predatory behavior. i ultimately found this to be a really satisfying story, but i'd be hesitant to recommend to readers i don't know well.
Graphic: Sexual content, Terminal illness, Abandonment, Pedophilia, Sexual harassment, Bullying, Toxic friendship, Incest, and Animal death
Moderate: Medical content, Child death, Chronic illness, and Child abuse
Minor: Blood, Alcohol, Body shaming, and Eating disorder
Pedophilia/incest/sexual harassment details:mariavdl's review against another edition
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Graphic: Toxic friendship, Gaslighting, and Bullying
Moderate: Mental illness, Emotional abuse, Sexual harassment, Child abuse, and Child death
Minor: Animal death, Death of parent, and Blood
cheye13's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
A big part of my disappointment is the fault of the synopsis. I had expected a bluebeard-like tale featuring the Bridegroom as a main character, but as is, he could've been removed from the story entirely. In actuality, this is the story of Indigo and Azure growing up together, and the all-encompassing nature of their friendship and the world they create together. It's an interesting story, but simply too long. Every element of the tale is overdrawn to the point that any initial tension dissolves.
Graphic: Blood, Death, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Gore, Animal death, Bullying, Child abuse, Alcohol, Child death, Dementia, Gaslighting, Grief, Sexual content, and Suicide
Minor: Death of parent, Dementia, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Rape, and Pedophilia
a myriad of standard old-style fairytale content warnings, not graphically described, but consistently mentioned: rape, incest, murder, etc. A persistent predatory stepfather and an off-page sexual assault involving blackout drinking.displacedcactus's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Moderate: Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual content, Child abuse, Child death, Pedophilia, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Animal death, Blood, and Death of parent
The toxic friendship crosses over to abusive territory, IMHO.moonchild_cos's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Abandonment, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Toxic friendship, and Animal death
Moderate: Toxic relationship, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual harassment, Alcohol, Child death, Pedophilia, and Terminal illness
Minor: Death of parent, Medical content, and Sexual content
prairieraven's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Body horror, Sexual content, Bullying, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Toxic relationship, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Animal death, Pedophilia, Violence, Blood, Child abuse, Classism, Confinement, Death, Gaslighting, Grief, Incest, Infidelity, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Misogyny, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, and Rape
ctara2123's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Violence and Animal death
Moderate: Child death, Death, Sexual assault, and Sexual content
Minor: Murder
acogna's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
However, its quality is extremely held back by the prose. It was my main struggle; it attempts to write in that poetic, lyrical style of magical realism. But I could clearly tell that this is Roshani Choski's first foray into writing like this. Where at times the prose is lilting and beautiful, there are more instances where it's jarring, repetitive for no reason, nonsensical with its metaphors, clunky, obstructive, meandering, pretentious. It does not feel nice to read.
The author sees how prose like this should work (it's obvious from the novel she's been inspired by a lot of good Gothic fiction, and it shows) but she doesn't seem to understand how to apply the prose in the way that best fits it. And it's a shame because of how good the story it's telling is.
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Pedophilia, Child abuse, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Animal death
katmystery's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Abandonment, Death, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Suicide attempt, Emotional abuse, Toxic friendship, Blood, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Murder, Gaslighting, and Animal death
Moderate: Grief and Pedophilia
wrensreadingroom's review against another edition
5.0
Moderate: Animal death, Bullying, Cursing, Gaslighting, Grief, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gun violence, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Mental illness, Self harm, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Suicide attempt, and Violence