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sofiefarmer'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
4.0
My biggest issue was pacing. I thought the first half was well-paced, but the ending felt rushed. There were several times where I wished Shannon would have gone more into depth with a plot point. I found myself saying "Okay, I guess," when things became a little too convenient or a character blacked out for a whole section.
Also, I occasionally felt like the distribution of POVs left me wanting more from certain characters. There were times when I felt like we had completely abandoned a character only to find things neatly wrapped up as time had passed and we returned to them a few chapters later.
My last issue was how this book was marketed to me. I was told it was about lesbians that ride dragons. That is not what this story is about. I am not disappointed because the story was excellent, but I definitely came in with a much different picture of what this book than the reality.
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Miscarriage, and Torture
Minor: Death of parent
fatherprozac'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? It's complicated
4.5
Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Dementia, Murder, Xenophobia, Blood, Body horror, Classism, Domestic abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Grief, Incest, Infertility, Infidelity, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Miscarriage, Pregnancy, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, and War
Moderate: Alcohol, Abandonment, Alcoholism, Animal death, Confinement, Cursing, and Kidnapping
muriel_r'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
4.75
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Murder, Pregnancy, Violence, Confinement, Death of parent, Death, Fire/Fire injury, and War
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Religious bigotry, Xenophobia, Abandonment, Alcohol, Blood, Child death, Infertility, and Torture
rensreading'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? It's complicated
5.0
the plot? exquisite! the characters? phenomenal! the progression of relationships? flawless! all the twists and turns had me on the edge of my seat!
i think my favorite character would have to be tané. we didn’t get as much of her story as we did the others, true. but she spoke to my soul. a hidden past, seemingly abandoned by her birth parents and taken in by the temple (i’m like 80% sure it was a temple anyway) to learn and train to one day become a rider, having a dragon choose her and call her kin, claiming she has the heart of a dragon all while battling an insurmountable amount of guilt for lives she’s put in danger due to her own ambition. ughhhh i just loved her. i can’t explain it right. just know she’s marvelous and i wish only happy things for her from here on out.
i also love that all the queerness was so casual. the only issue anybody had with queer couples were due to blood heirs and classism. that’s it. so refreshing for two people of the same gender to be together and no one has an issue with it for the mere sake of it. especially in fantasy! you would assume since its all made-up, homophobia wouldn’t be a thing many fantasy stories subscribe to but you would be wrong. i also love that ace and aro also had rep in this. lost of people call this a sapphic fantasy, but that feels like a discredit to all the other queer identities represented in this book.
this is a tome, plain and simple. don’t let its size intimidate you though! once the story has you, its not gonna let go until you’ve read all 800+ pages it has for you. you’ll love it. but if you have trouble reading longer books, divide the book up by parts! it helped me immensely!
and when people say the story really starts to pick up at page 250, they truly were not lying.
5 stars (:
[edited 6/29]
Graphic: Death of parent, Murder, Religious bigotry, Torture, War, Confinement, Gore, Alcohol, Blood, Classism, Death, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, Violence, Cursing, and Miscarriage
Moderate: Pregnancy, Gun violence, Infertility, and Incest
Minor: Colonisation, Gaslighting, Mental illness, and Suicidal thoughts
concerning the incest: a character raises a child as her own then ends up falling in love with the child once they are grown. they are, fortunately, not blood related.abbyschalupa's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Graphic: Addiction, Torture, Infertility, Body horror, Fire/Fire injury, Gore, Miscarriage, War, Violence, Religious bigotry, Alcoholism, Blood, Murder, Death, and Grief
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Addiction, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual content, Pregnancy, and Injury/Injury detail
wreathedinviolets's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: War, Xenophobia, and Violence
Moderate: Blood, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Miscarriage
Minor: Child death, Torture, and Incest
beeboofighter'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? It's complicated
3.5
Just feels ridiculous to me that the book power couple doesn't get almost any of the impact throughout the story compared to the struggles of other characters. I enjoyed their romance nonetheless ofc. But like. Leave my girl Tané and the dragon aloooone 😭😭😭
Graphic: Body horror, War, Mental illness, Violence, and Torture
Minor: Pregnancy and Suicidal thoughts
toffishay'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
4.25
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Infertility, Fire/Fire injury, Classism, Miscarriage, Injury/Injury detail, Grief, Death, War, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Sexism, Xenophobia, Torture, and Incest
ging090803'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? No
5.0
It might seem complicated to understand (and it is), but the story is worth to read. The characters are amazing. The past is well written which explained everything during the present.
Anyway, 5 freaking stars.
Graphic: Death of parent, War, Sexual content, Fire/Fire injury, Death, Miscarriage, and Blood
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Torture, Pregnancy, Alcoholism, Infertility, Murder, Xenophobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Grief
Minor: Gun violence, Infidelity, and Religious bigotry
rtaire's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Death, Death of parent, Infertility, Violence, Xenophobia, War, Child death, Gore, Pregnancy, Confinement, Fire/Fire injury, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Miscarriage, Murder, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual content, Alcoholism, Suicidal thoughts, Torture, and Mental illness