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mandersdraws's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
2.0
I’m currently reading the next book in the series, and the further I get, the more I think this book is only here to serve as a prequel. I don’t feel like it stands very well on its own merits, and as it is, I’m wondering if it was all set up just for the sequel to tear down.
Now. The main thread of this book, and one of the most frustrating things about it, is how the main character Feyre is kept incredibly uninformed about the world, its magic, and the people around her.
For most of the novel the characters have reasons or excuses for never telling her important details. But in my opinion, there are plenty of situations in the book where they definitely could have told her more. They could have answered many more of her questions. They could have explained why something was dangerous. Especially when it becomes clear that this girl will not follow a rule or a warning without being given any reasoning behind it. Characters then often blame Feyre for being uninformed about magic or faerie society, which I find to be…well, unfair and kinda slimy. Especially when sex gets involved.
It also means that some of the rules of the magic in the world are just murky and unclear and appear to be inconsistent. The narration is in 1st person so (with maybe a few exceptions) we only know what Feyre knows.
And on the topic of world building, I had a little trouble staying invested when it came to the main villain of this book. They felt a little stereotypical to me in the way they are described. Additionally one of the great challenges they present, that ends up being the climax of the book, just felt a little silly.
I also have some thoughts about how the narration deals with class issues in this book. There seems to be kind of a rigid caste structure in this world that doesn’t really get examined.
Another point of frustration for me are Feyre’s own feelings about her family. I feel personally like whenever the narrative turns towards her father and sisters that her feelings are inconsistent. And listen. I know feelings don’t have to make sense. But it was a frustrating reading experience, mostly because for the majority of the book, I don’t feel like the narration recognizes the dichotomy in how she feels about them. It just kind of switches back and forth between devotion and resent.
I also feel a little uncomfortable knowing who the fan-favorite love interest ends up being in later books. That character treats the protagonist absolutely horribly in this book, and while there are (again) lots of magical and political reasons for him to treat her that way, if it’s not addressed and reconciled later, I’ll be kind of grumpy about it lol. Of course, this book’s love interest doesn’t treat Feyre great either IMO, and has a fair few red flags himself, but honestly. It’s bad. It’s all bad.
Now here’s what I did like:
I like that Feyre has character growth. It’s subtle and slow, but as a character who hasn’t had the time or privilege for introspection in her adolescent life, I think it makes sense. Feyre is a hunter by trade but the story has her questioning who and what she wants to be.
I like that the love story has our characters finding common ground. That sounds like a low bar I guess, but the narrative is VERY EXPLICIT that they find each other sexy, so it’s nice that spice isn't all the characters have in common lol.
When the book bothers to flesh out other characters than our main couple, I do tend to like them. Lucien is very likable, and I even ended up liking Nesta.
Already I can see the sequel has more characters for us to get to know, and I hope for more development for them and for Feyre.
Graphic: Xenophobia, Animal death, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Excrement, Gore, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Torture, Classism, Alcohol, and Confinement
Moderate: Vomit, Abandonment, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Drug use, Drug abuse, War, Alcoholism, and Sexual violence
-Is drinking “faerie wine” alcohol use or drug use? It blurs the line. -Fantasy racism is a big topic in this book. -Additionally while it’s never addressed directly, I think this book is kind of heavy on rape culture.kelseyr713's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Moderate: Blood, Murder, Alcohol, Body horror, Sexual content, Confinement, Death of parent, War, Gore, Kidnapping, Violence, Xenophobia, and Torture
Minor: Slavery
cararowen'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? It's complicated
Feyra is not like the other girls, she's special, she's not hot but ever fairy man desires her, she's unable to listen to the most basic instructions, beauty and the beast is about compromise, this is about ignoring your boyfriend is rich because his daddy owned people and having your main character intoxicated and/or enchanted and/or manipulated into every sexual situation then claiming it's love. It's about having zero feelings of guilt when you get other people in trouble or dead and being consistently rewarded.
I have never disliked a text more than this one.
Moderate: Colonisation, Cultural appropriation, Blood, and Xenophobia
Minor: Slavery, Stalking, War, Body shaming, Bullying, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Genocide, Panic attacks/disorders, Animal death, Gore, Misogyny, Death of parent, Sexism, Sexual content, and Domestic abuse
tieflingmom'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? No
2.0
Graphic: Slavery, Torture, War, Xenophobia, Violence, Sexual content, Sexual assault, Toxic friendship, Racial slurs, Murder, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Cursing, Confinement, Sexual harassment, Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Rape, Sexism, Infidelity, Gore, Racism, Genocide, Death, and Death of parent
darkpizza's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Blood, Classism, Confinement, Gore, Animal death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Slavery, Grief, Violence, Kidnapping, Sexual content, and Torture
Minor: Racism, Vomit, War, Xenophobia, Alcohol, Death of parent, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Colonisation, and Sexual harassment
emfo5777's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Murder, Death, War, Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Violence, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Suicidal thoughts, Animal death, Toxic relationship, Death of parent, and Slavery
Minor: Sexual violence
mmgreen23's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Torture, Xenophobia, Physical abuse, Violence, War, Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Gore, and Kidnapping
nlosievski's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
Graphic: Sexual content, Injury/Injury detail, Sexual assault, Xenophobia, and Violence
Moderate: Sexual violence, Racism, Murder, Torture, Alcohol, Death, Confinement, and Blood
Minor: Slavery, Grief, Gore, Gaslighting, War, Suicidal thoughts, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Cursing, Vomit, Sexual harassment, Genocide, and Classism
virgoofswords'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? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
Graphic: Slavery
Moderate: Sexual harassment and Xenophobia
itsmelaurenc'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
4.5
Graphic: Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Blood, Death, Gore, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Kidnapping, Sexual content, Slavery, Animal death, Bullying, Confinement, Death of parent, Genocide, Grief, Suicidal thoughts, Vomit, and War