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skillyillian's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
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? Yes
4.0
Spoilers abound ✨
I love so many things about this book. Kell, love of my life. Lila, love of my life. I need more rhy and alucard. Hastra is #1 cinnamon roll and I'd give my life for him. Calla is the ultimate mom, I adore her. The characters are so wonderful.
I feel like Lila as a person didn't develop a ton, although her talents certainly did. I love how much of a badass she is, give no fucks and take no prisoners is so stellar when it's done right and with her it definitely is.
Kell's frustration with feeling trapped and held accountable when no one else really was is such an older sibling vibe. God it was so frustrating to read, but in the way it was meant to be. It was extremely relatable for me and made me support him even more.
I loved this book, but I also had issues with it. Someone online introduced me to the idea of "bridge books" where a novel in a series is basically just a bridge to get from one major plot point to the next and doesn't do a ton for the story in and of itself besides giving context for the next big thing. This kind of felt like that? Not terribly, but it was noticeable. Like the biggest things we needed were Kelly getting back to white London and Lila discovering her powers. Everything else felt, not as important. Which is fine, not every plot point should have the same level of importance, but it did make a lot of the rest of the story feel like it dragged on. There wasn't a lot of vital stuff that happened in the first half of the book, it was mostly drama and kind of "where are they now". The only reason I didn't dock more off my score was because it's Schwab, so even when it felt kind of like filler, it was still really well done and held my attention.
Once things picked up though, they definitely went off. The Essen Tasch was a blast, I definitely caught myself grinning a few times throughout. Schwab builds tension in a way that makes it hard to pull out of once you're there and it's addictive. Truly one of my favorite authors 🖤
I adored this book despite it feeling a little bit like filler at some points so we could get to the third installment. The cliffhanger ending was insane, the characters are lovable af, and the magic system grows ever more interesting. I can't wait to dive into the third one, I love these characters so damn much 😮💨🖤
I love so many things about this book. Kell, love of my life. Lila, love of my life. I need more rhy and alucard. Hastra is #1 cinnamon roll and I'd give my life for him. Calla is the ultimate mom, I adore her. The characters are so wonderful.
I feel like Lila as a person didn't develop a ton, although her talents certainly did. I love how much of a badass she is, give no fucks and take no prisoners is so stellar when it's done right and with her it definitely is.
Kell's frustration with feeling trapped and held accountable when no one else really was is such an older sibling vibe. God it was so frustrating to read, but in the way it was meant to be. It was extremely relatable for me and made me support him even more.
I loved this book, but I also had issues with it. Someone online introduced me to the idea of "bridge books" where a novel in a series is basically just a bridge to get from one major plot point to the next and doesn't do a ton for the story in and of itself besides giving context for the next big thing. This kind of felt like that? Not terribly, but it was noticeable. Like the biggest things we needed were Kelly getting back to white London and Lila discovering her powers. Everything else felt, not as important. Which is fine, not every plot point should have the same level of importance, but it did make a lot of the rest of the story feel like it dragged on. There wasn't a lot of vital stuff that happened in the first half of the book, it was mostly drama and kind of "where are they now". The only reason I didn't dock more off my score was because it's Schwab, so even when it felt kind of like filler, it was still really well done and held my attention.
Once things picked up though, they definitely went off. The Essen Tasch was a blast, I definitely caught myself grinning a few times throughout. Schwab builds tension in a way that makes it hard to pull out of once you're there and it's addictive. Truly one of my favorite authors 🖤
I adored this book despite it feeling a little bit like filler at some points so we could get to the third installment. The cliffhanger ending was insane, the characters are lovable af, and the magic system grows ever more interesting. I can't wait to dive into the third one, I love these characters so damn much 😮💨🖤
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Violence, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, and Murder
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, Body horror, and Cursing
msradiosilence's review against another edition
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Murder, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Violence, Torture, Death, Cursing, and Confinement
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Kidnapping and Grief
donatio's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
tense
fast-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? Yes
5.0
Like ADOM this was a reread and definitely took some of the tension out of it since the world building is not as heavy as in ADOM anymore, but I still like the book, especially the writing style, the way everything comes to life in my mind and the characters. I remember being absolutely captivated by the book when I first read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Blood, Confinement, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, and Violence
Moderate: Murder and Physical abuse
Minor: Sexual content
rdmoreland0801's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
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
4.5
I’m glad Lila got her own storyline in this book, but she can be a really terrible person.
It’s hard to fault her because of her life up until this point, but she is constantly dragging others down with her. She’s selfish and impulsive and I hope to see growth in the final book.
I absolutely adore Alucard Emery, and he makes a great match with Rhy. No wonder Kell hates him so much.
I loved the action of the Essan Tasche and getting to meet all the other magicians. The best part of these books are the fight scenes. V.E. Schwab does these scenes so well, you can vividly pictures them in your mind.
It’s hard to fault her because of her life up until this point, but she is constantly dragging others down with her. She’s selfish and impulsive and I hope to see growth in the final book.
I absolutely adore Alucard Emery, and he makes a great match with Rhy. No wonder Kell hates him so much.
I loved the action of the Essan Tasche and getting to meet all the other magicians. The best part of these books are the fight scenes. V.E. Schwab does these scenes so well, you can vividly pictures them in your mind.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Murder and Death
purplepenning's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Blood, Body horror, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Sexual harassment, and Violence
Minor: Alcohol and Fire/Fire injury
emmakhend's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
funny
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? Yes
5.0
I love this series so much. I finished the entire series in a span of a few days. I adore the main characters and the developing (slow-burn) romance. The world building is phenomenal.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Incest, Murder, Violence, and Torture
solouncapitulomas's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
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? Yes
4.5
4.5
It felt so long but I enjoyed the tournament a lot and Lila's development has been great (she was kinda insufferable during the first book) and I like her more now.
Kell per usual is my number one boy and I want to give him a hug asap
The king and queen can both fuck off and all of the ppl of red london
It felt so long but I enjoyed the tournament a lot and Lila's development has been great (she was kinda insufferable during the first book) and I like her more now.
Kell per usual is my number one boy and I want to give him a hug asap
The king and queen can both fuck off and all of the ppl of red london
Content Warnings
Graphic: Self harm, Blood, and Violence
Moderate: Alcohol, Confinement, and Murder
Minor: Kidnapping
takarakei's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- 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
This was a lot more character driven than I was expecting, but the characters in this series are fascinating so that's only a slight downside. There is a bit of plot, mainly this competition, which was interesting in theory but also didn't seem so important enough that I was that enthralled by it. Kinda felt like 'well something HAS to happen in this book so why not this to bring the characters together'.
Narrators in this book were way better than book 1.
THE ENDING GAH. MAJOR cliffhanger, and this is what I mean, by the time things were really moving plot-wise the book ended. Did it leave me wanting to read the third book immediately? Yes. Am I mad at that? A bit.
Narrators in this book were way better than book 1.
THE ENDING GAH.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood and Violence
Moderate: Murder, Alcohol, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, and Confinement
Minor: Kidnapping and Sexual harassment
headinthepages's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Gore, Vomit, Injury/Injury detail, Torture, Abandonment, Ableism, Grief, Blood, Alcohol, Fire/Fire injury, Kidnapping, Murder, Body horror, Death, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, and Violence
guessgreenleaf's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
tense
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? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Murder, and Violence
Moderate: Alcoholism and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Self harm and Abandonment