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morgangrace3's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
jane_anon's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
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? Yes
4.0
tencutepuppies's review against another edition
5.0
(5/5) How are people not talking about this?? I don’t think I’ve seen it really spoken about at all prior to reading it now, which is a shame because this had everything I like in a book. Maybe I was just looking in the wrong places. (I will be referencing some spoilers below.)
Worldbuilding:
I loved the world Roshani Chokshi created here. It’s mysterious, dangerous and teeming with magic, but also brings in elements we actually see in history. The mixture was nice to read about, as usually I read high fantasy. And I know a lot of people gripe about how stories set in England/France are overdone or whatever, but I’m of the mindset that if the author can offer something new to an already-used trope, who cares? This world felt very real and fleshed out, but not in a way that I felt was done before, if that makes sense. It had a lot of unique elements, especially the system with competition between the Order and different Houses.
Séverin:
I’m obsessed. I mean, he’s a dark-haired, vengeful asshole, so I guess I should have seen this coming. (Shut up, I do not need to be psychologically examined.) I live and die for a revenge/comeback storyline, so I was intrigued by his burning need to earn back his title as patriarch of House Vanth. At the end of the day, he just wants to be powerful, which I can relate with. But there’s something so intriguing about his character. It’s like I can’t pin his character down. At times, he’s cold and distant and violent, but he also cares for his crew deep down, but also he doesn’t want to be tied to anyone, but also he’s just overall angsty and broody so it’s a lot. My favorite. And can we talk about how there were those little epigraphs before his chapters? Naming his fathers after the seven deadly sins was so creative, especially pairing it with the unique qualities they installed in him.
Laila:
I have a crush on her. She’s just so powerful and untouchable, but there’s also something so sad about her insecurities that humanizes her. It’s like she goes out of her way to be carefree and confident and human, but at the end of the day, she still feels like an illusion of a person. Which, I guess is technically true. But still. Her struggle with accepting that she’ll be dead before turning nineteen was so sad, especially knowing that the magical artifact she needs to help her live could be in their grasp. Lastly, I really appreciated her relationship with Zofia. First of all, female relationships aren’t shown very often in books, and when they are, they feel sort of formulaic. Like they’re just friends because the author made them friends. But I loved the uniqueness of their bond and how Laila is someone Zofia can look up to.
Romance:
Stop it. This is too much for me and it’s only the first book.
First of all, the setup for their ~bond~ from the beginning was divine. I had no idea I’d be a fan of the “we hooked up once but it was an accident because I don’t have feelings for you, I promise” thing, but here I am. The way they both think the other has forgotten about that night? Especially the way Séverin is so obviously in love with her but knows she’s going to leave and they have no future!!!!! That boy worships the ground she walks on and she doesn’t even know it. Oh god was it angsty. I feel fed. See, this is proof a romance doesn’t HAVE to be enemies to lovers to be angsty and edgy or whatever. It just has to be well-written so that you can feel their emotions secondhand. And boy did I. Every scene with them together, the tension is very palpable. And *spoiler alert* when they kissed a couple of times, it only seemed to heighten it. God their encounters in like the last fifty pages were painful, though. I get why Séverin was hurt and grieving, but wHY did he say that to our lord and savior Laila? I actually grimaced when I read that part. Anywayyy, I know they’re about to be even better in book two, so I’m ready to lose my mind again.
Secondary Characters:
Zofia - My queen. She was so interesting to read and I was not expecting it. I love how differently her mind works from any other character I’ve really ever read before. She’s a genius when it comes to math, science and engineering, but lacks in the social queues department, so that’s what she struggles with internally. I love the parts where she gets all dressed up and looks hot because it’s so not her element, but she makes it her element and becomes more confident in those situations with Laila’s guidance. We love truly strong female characters.
Enrique - I feel like we saw the littlest of him out of all of them, even though I know they had a relatively equal number of POVs. There’s definitely still room for us to dig into his desires and who he really is past that sort of carefree exterior that hides behind humor. He was funny, though. His and Hypnos’s scenes together always had me grinning. Also his inability to choose between hot person 1 (Zofia) and hot person 2 (Hypnos) spoke to me.
Tristan - I’m not going to lie, I accidentally read a spoiler about his death so it wasn’t a complete shock. It’s always the cute characters. He just wanted to live with his pet tarantula and his plants, man. Although, as the last events proved, he was maybe not so innocent as we all believed, even the other characters. My heart dropped when Laila found those dead birds and heard Tristan speaking to them. I liked how it put a spin on the innocent, naive character who suffers through trauma and is just a tiny little baby because of it. Because that’s not what he is. Even Séverin thought he was this child that needed to be protected, but he was clearly struggling with the abuse and trauma they went through together at the hands of their seven fathers. Those things said about him to the others when he was being tortured as the bait haunted me.
The Plot:
I can’t remember the last time I read a book with complex puzzles integrated into it (it weirdly reminded me of that series The Mysterious Benedict Society we all read as kids), but I thoroughly enjoyed watching them unfold. Was I too embarrassingly stupid to know what was going on half the time? Yes I was. But I loved it every step of the way. The dark academia-ish vibes got me. And the constant action. It’s like I could kind of tell where things were going, but also not at all at the same time. You know? Also I have a million unanswered questions that I’m sure will be answered by the next two books in the trilogy, which I am going to read immediately. Roshani Chokshi never misses.
Worldbuilding:
I loved the world Roshani Chokshi created here. It’s mysterious, dangerous and teeming with magic, but also brings in elements we actually see in history. The mixture was nice to read about, as usually I read high fantasy. And I know a lot of people gripe about how stories set in England/France are overdone or whatever, but I’m of the mindset that if the author can offer something new to an already-used trope, who cares? This world felt very real and fleshed out, but not in a way that I felt was done before, if that makes sense. It had a lot of unique elements, especially the system with competition between the Order and different Houses.
Séverin:
I’m obsessed. I mean, he’s a dark-haired, vengeful asshole, so I guess I should have seen this coming. (Shut up, I do not need to be psychologically examined.) I live and die for a revenge/comeback storyline, so I was intrigued by his burning need to earn back his title as patriarch of House Vanth. At the end of the day, he just wants to be powerful, which I can relate with. But there’s something so intriguing about his character. It’s like I can’t pin his character down. At times, he’s cold and distant and violent, but he also cares for his crew deep down, but also he doesn’t want to be tied to anyone, but also he’s just overall angsty and broody so it’s a lot. My favorite. And can we talk about how there were those little epigraphs before his chapters? Naming his fathers after the seven deadly sins was so creative, especially pairing it with the unique qualities they installed in him.
Laila:
I have a crush on her. She’s just so powerful and untouchable, but there’s also something so sad about her insecurities that humanizes her. It’s like she goes out of her way to be carefree and confident and human, but at the end of the day, she still feels like an illusion of a person. Which, I guess is technically true. But still. Her struggle with accepting that she’ll be dead before turning nineteen was so sad, especially knowing that the magical artifact she needs to help her live could be in their grasp. Lastly, I really appreciated her relationship with Zofia. First of all, female relationships aren’t shown very often in books, and when they are, they feel sort of formulaic. Like they’re just friends because the author made them friends. But I loved the uniqueness of their bond and how Laila is someone Zofia can look up to.
Romance:
Stop it. This is too much for me and it’s only the first book.
First of all, the setup for their ~bond~ from the beginning was divine. I had no idea I’d be a fan of the “we hooked up once but it was an accident because I don’t have feelings for you, I promise” thing, but here I am. The way they both think the other has forgotten about that night? Especially the way Séverin is so obviously in love with her but knows she’s going to leave and they have no future!!!!! That boy worships the ground she walks on and she doesn’t even know it. Oh god was it angsty. I feel fed. See, this is proof a romance doesn’t HAVE to be enemies to lovers to be angsty and edgy or whatever. It just has to be well-written so that you can feel their emotions secondhand. And boy did I. Every scene with them together, the tension is very palpable. And *spoiler alert* when they kissed a couple of times, it only seemed to heighten it. God their encounters in like the last fifty pages were painful, though. I get why Séverin was hurt and grieving, but wHY did he say that to our lord and savior Laila? I actually grimaced when I read that part. Anywayyy, I know they’re about to be even better in book two, so I’m ready to lose my mind again.
Secondary Characters:
Zofia - My queen. She was so interesting to read and I was not expecting it. I love how differently her mind works from any other character I’ve really ever read before. She’s a genius when it comes to math, science and engineering, but lacks in the social queues department, so that’s what she struggles with internally. I love the parts where she gets all dressed up and looks hot because it’s so not her element, but she makes it her element and becomes more confident in those situations with Laila’s guidance. We love truly strong female characters.
Enrique - I feel like we saw the littlest of him out of all of them, even though I know they had a relatively equal number of POVs. There’s definitely still room for us to dig into his desires and who he really is past that sort of carefree exterior that hides behind humor. He was funny, though. His and Hypnos’s scenes together always had me grinning. Also his inability to choose between hot person 1 (Zofia) and hot person 2 (Hypnos) spoke to me.
Tristan - I’m not going to lie, I accidentally read a spoiler about his death so it wasn’t a complete shock. It’s always the cute characters. He just wanted to live with his pet tarantula and his plants, man. Although, as the last events proved, he was maybe not so innocent as we all believed, even the other characters. My heart dropped when Laila found those dead birds and heard Tristan speaking to them. I liked how it put a spin on the innocent, naive character who suffers through trauma and is just a tiny little baby because of it. Because that’s not what he is. Even Séverin thought he was this child that needed to be protected, but he was clearly struggling with the abuse and trauma they went through together at the hands of their seven fathers. Those things said about him to the others when he was being tortured as the bait haunted me.
The Plot:
I can’t remember the last time I read a book with complex puzzles integrated into it (it weirdly reminded me of that series The Mysterious Benedict Society we all read as kids), but I thoroughly enjoyed watching them unfold. Was I too embarrassingly stupid to know what was going on half the time? Yes I was. But I loved it every step of the way. The dark academia-ish vibes got me. And the constant action. It’s like I could kind of tell where things were going, but also not at all at the same time. You know? Also I have a million unanswered questions that I’m sure will be answered by the next two books in the trilogy, which I am going to read immediately. Roshani Chokshi never misses.
tnh1313's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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? Yes
5.0
celinewyp's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- 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? Yes
3.75
kayceh's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
manreetkaur's review against another edition
4.0
Although it took me time to get into the book, and I had to restart it a couple of times, I enjoyed it. Chokshi writes with so much detail while remaining concise, making the novel easier to follow. The characters are well-built and have their own identities, which are all equally important in the grand scheme of things. I loved that there were several side plots within the large heist. For example, there are a couple of romances (spoiler) like Laila and Severin, Enrique and Zofia, and even Hypnos. These are not the book's primary focus, which I like since it would make all of their tight-knit friendships very awkward. The story does start slow and end fast, but I have gotten the second book in the series so I will see how it goes!
katiechasingchapters's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
ashify's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
4.5
.ೃ࿐ afterthoughts
“Take what the world owes you by any means necessary,” Pride had said. “The world has a shit memory. It will never pay its debts unless you force its hand.”
Wow, I’m speechless. Why do every found family story has end with everyone getting heartbroken? Why? Why not let them be happy all together?
I certainly need my heart nursed back into fullness.
maybe, I’ll do detailed review later, I’m too heartbroken right now. TwT
“Take what the world owes you by any means necessary,” Pride had said. “The world has a shit memory. It will never pay its debts unless you force its hand.”
Wow, I’m speechless. Why do every found family story has end with everyone getting heartbroken? Why? Why not let them be happy all together?
I certainly need my heart nursed back into fullness.
maybe, I’ll do detailed review later, I’m too heartbroken right now. TwT