Reviews with content warning for Violence - La Malédiction de la rose

Reviews tagging 'Violence'

La Malédiction de la rose by Cécile Tasson, Seanan McGuire

8 reviews

kadtide's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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tigger89's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

Some series start with an explosion of greatness, grabbing the reader's attention, drawing them in, and leaving them starved for more in the wake of the debut. Well, October Daye isn't like that. The concept of a fae-infested San Francisco was interesting, the story was acceptable, the characters made me scowl and smile as needed...but it was all just fine. There wasn't anything to it that would make me thrust this book into someone's hands, insisting that they read this great new series right now. I'd expected more from this much-hyped series, but I suspect that might be my problem right there - getting caught in the hype.

The strength of the series so far is undoubtedly the world building, how McGuire fit all the species of fae in and around our own modern(ish) world. I'll forgive any number of plot and character sins if it means I get to explore the nooks and crannies. I also really enjoyed the way magic was handled, with the unique scents and constraints on casting. The cast of characters were interesting and varied, but I found myself frustrated by Toby herself. It felt as if she was tumbling from one plot point to the next, getting knocked down only to be revived by her allies over and over. I liked viewing the world from her perspective, but at the same time I wanted to smack her until she let me drive, because she kept being stubborn. I know McGuire's writing enough to know that she's probably going somewhere with this characterization, but it was frustrating throughout this whole first book.

I do intend to continue with this series. I've heard it gets better as it goes along, and I was interested in many of the plot teasers that were dangled in the final chapter. But unfortunately it's a bit of a rough introduction.

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maryellen's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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readingelli's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

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foreverinastory's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I had fun with this one. I always love fae stories.

Rep: white female MC with PTSD, Asian coded female side character, various other fae race side characters.

CWs: Blood, confinement (in a pond as a fish), death, grief, gun violence, injury/injury detail, kidnapping/attempted kidnapping, medical content, murder, racism (within the fae there is discrimination and prejudice towards changelings and half fae), toxic relationship, violence, emotional abuse. Moderate: Ableism, child death, gore, sexual content. Brief: Dementia.

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wordsareworlds's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional funny tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Good start to a new urban fantasy series. A lot of times book one's can seem weak and info-dumpy, and I never felt like that here.

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laurajones's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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wardenred's review against another edition

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I’m sure it’s written somewhere, possibly in Fate’s day planner: “October Daye is never to be given enough time to actually think about what she’s going to do next.”

I've been following the October Daye series for ages. Buying new novels the moment they hit the shelves is a long-standing habit. Except several installments ago I started slacking on actually reading them: there was always something else on my TBR, and it would be cool to binge-read a few in a row eventually, right? Except now I'm a good few books behind, it's been a big break, and I'm realizing that I've forgotten more fine details than I'm comfortable constantly looking up on the fan wiki as I read. So here I am, doing something daunting: attempting a full re-read.

It is kind of hard to write any sort of review when my perception of the book is colored so much by plenty of events that come before. This was such a nostalgia trip, I swear. When I think about a lot of the characters from the series, I think about a whole different status quo. But here in this first novel, so much is still unrevealed and so many people (or, well, fae) are still their different, pre-all-the-trauma-and-character-development selves. Witnessing Toby's early interactions with some of the prominent characters, especially Tybalt and Quentin, literally made me giggle. My, you've all come a long way, haven't you?

I've kind of forgotten just how *big* this world is, and how much we readers get pushed into it off the deep end. Even though this is very clearly book 1, Toby isn't starting out, she's re-entering her life after a break, and there's already so much past here. Basically the entire story is built on picking up loose ends from before the pond. I remember when I first read this novel, I got that vibe, like I was reading a fanfic for a canon that only existed in the author's head and there were like five seasons of backstory stored between the lines. This re-read only solidified the impression, and to be clear, I'm very much digging it. Like, SO MUCH.

The book is somewhat clunkier than I remember, or perhaps just clunkier compared to the far later installments in the series, which comes off as no surprise for sure. I fear to count how many books Seanan McGuire has produced since—naturally, she keeps evolving as an author! But also, this one is so refreshing in how much it doesn't follow what I've come to think of as the "typical Toby Daye format." You know, the one where a big bad thing happens, Toby realizes she needs to bring in the big guns, goes to Luidaeg, gets advice and help, goes to deal with the big bad thing, checks in with Luidaeg now and then. Don't get me wrong, as far as reliable plot devices go, Luidaeg is my absolute favorite. I love everything about her, from her abrasive personality to her cluttered home. But it was kind of refreshing to go back to the roots and see the protagonist meander along on her own. And a lot of Toby's actions and various plot points she stumbled across felt so much more poignant and interesting in the wider context of later books.

Just like the first time around, I got lots of emotions about the entire storyline with Devin and Home.

Somehow, over the course of the story, I almost forgot that Devin was a villain, while also very much remembering it—and the book also does an awesome job from the start spelling out that he's mostly the bad guy here and Toby's perception of him is in no way objective. But also, he's the bad guy *and* someone who was instrumental in shaping Ocrober as a person *and* he betrayed her *and* he cared for her in his own way *and* he deserved what he got *and* he left a void that can't be filled.

This is what I love so much about Seanan McGuire's books and this series in particular: no fictional person or relationship is just one thing. Everyone contains multitudes.

I also got a newfound appreciation for the portrayal of mental health here. While no one ever states outright that Toby is deeply depressed over the course of the story, she just... so clearly is, and all the signs are there, just like all the signs of her slowly getting on the way to getting better toward the end. When I first read this novel, I was deep in the throes of depression, as well, except I didn't really know it. I just assumed that I felt shitty because life was shitty and I was very definitely an adult already and had to just deal somehow. And it was so refreshing then to see a protagonist whose actions and feeling had the same vibe as I did. It wasn't fully obvious to me just how not all right Toby was, because my perception was so skewed. I simply found her extremely relatable. Now, looking back from the vantage point of a slightly more stable mental health situation and being much better in tune with how my mental health works, I can consciously appreciate all the tiny little details that went into showing Toby's state of mind and what she's been going through.

I keep thinking of other small details to note, but I guess I'll stop here. Suffice it to say, this was a beautiful homecoming, and I can't wait to continue this walk through the familiar landscapes.

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