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sarasbooktrove's review against another edition
4.0
Not my fave SJM book but I did it for the mass verse I guess? I DNFed 3 times before chugging through. So much world building in the first 150 pages. I did end up enjoying it by the end.
maggie_books92's review against another edition
5.0
The first half of the book was a wee bit slow to get going but I couldn't put it down after that! Another amazing book by Sarah J Maas
zlotsassilem's review against another edition
5.0
In true SJM style, the characters are cleverly written. You will love them or hate them, but either way you will find yourself emotionally invested and tears will be shed.
I enjoy a good mystery with twists and turns, so the plot sucked me in and held my interest from start to finish. The world building is complex and interesting. Bonus points for the map at the front of the book. I love a good visual.
I've seen criticisms from readers coming to this series after ACOTAR expecting something similar. It is so important to keep in mind that this is not a romantic fantasy series, but rather a high fantasy series with a slow burn romance.
I enjoy a good mystery with twists and turns, so the plot sucked me in and held my interest from start to finish. The world building is complex and interesting. Bonus points for the map at the front of the book. I love a good visual.
I've seen criticisms from readers coming to this series after ACOTAR expecting something similar. It is so important to keep in mind that this is not a romantic fantasy series, but rather a high fantasy series with a slow burn romance.
jonezeemcgee's review against another edition
3.0
3.0
Sarah J. Maas does know how to write fiction that is compulsively readable. I loved some of these characters and moments. At one point I even shed a tear! The story itself is very engaging. The plot (at least for me) is fairly original in its own right (if not a bit convoluted).
However original the plot, the main characters and formula are not original. At least within the SJM universe of books. The two main characters themselves are a slight cut and paste from SJMs book ACOMAF. Handsome, tall, muscular, tortured and enslaved (to evil woman) winged man meets gorgeous head strong girl who is into a form of the arts and ends up being a Mary Sue. I did enjoy many of the side characters, though. I also enjoyed that the romance in this book was way more healthy than what we got in the ACOTAR series of books.
The plot itself, while interesting and enjoyable, hinged on wayyyy too many plot conveniences. I can't pretend that I didn't find that frustrating in its laziness, and this book is far too big to not be fleshed out enough that these devices are rendered unnecessary. The plot also ran away with itself. You will need to break out the corkboard and string for this one, folks! It makes me worry a bit for the next book as so much information was dumped and people introduced that the next one seems like it may turn into too large a web of complexity.
I feel that with some strong editing this really had the potential to be at least a 4 star book. I will probably continue in the series though, as Maas' ability to hook you in is her saving grace. I'm hoping the next book doesn't go where I fear it may; into the "everything thrown in but the kitchen sink" type of narrative it feels like it's heading in.
Sarah J. Maas does know how to write fiction that is compulsively readable. I loved some of these characters and moments. At one point I even shed a tear! The story itself is very engaging. The plot (at least for me) is fairly original in its own right (if not a bit convoluted).
However original the plot, the main characters and formula are not original. At least within the SJM universe of books. The two main characters themselves are a slight cut and paste from SJMs book ACOMAF. Handsome, tall, muscular, tortured and enslaved (to evil woman) winged man meets gorgeous head strong girl who is into a form of the arts and ends up being a Mary Sue. I did enjoy many of the side characters, though. I also enjoyed that the romance in this book was way more healthy than what we got in the ACOTAR series of books.
The plot itself, while interesting and enjoyable, hinged on wayyyy too many plot conveniences. I can't pretend that I didn't find that frustrating in its laziness, and this book is far too big to not be fleshed out enough that these devices are rendered unnecessary. The plot also ran away with itself. You will need to break out the corkboard and string for this one, folks! It makes me worry a bit for the next book as so much information was dumped and people introduced that the next one seems like it may turn into too large a web of complexity.
I feel that with some strong editing this really had the potential to be at least a 4 star book. I will probably continue in the series though, as Maas' ability to hook you in is her saving grace. I'm hoping the next book doesn't go where I fear it may; into the "everything thrown in but the kitchen sink" type of narrative it feels like it's heading in.
tee207's review against another edition
4.0
I mean it's Sarah J. Maas. It was exactly what I expected.
kellythecloud's review against another edition
4.0
The world she builds is wild…definitely worth a read…it was a little bit more involved than some other books I’ve been reading so it took some extra concentration to get through but overall worth it.
liroa15's review against another edition
4.0
Look, it wasn’t the best book ever, and it definitely falls victim to some of the issues in Maas’s work and was too damn long, but it was fun and I’m interested to see where it goes.