Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - Faebound - Veren erottamat

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

Faebound - Veren erottamat by Saara El-Arifi

99 reviews

eloise_gilbart's review against another edition

4.25

adventurous tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Content Warnings

raynelib's review against another edition

i feel conflicted bc the book was easy and rather fast to read and the world building was quite interesting and i really liked the queer and disability rep, but I just couldn't get into it fully and wasn't looking forward to continuing, i didn't really like the different dynamics between love interests either and some interactions just felt off, i do think i might have dnfed too early bc i guess twists and revelations would have happened soon but unfortunately i don't care for that too much, it's a shame but I'm excited to continue reading the final strife series soon

Content Warnings

clockworkhobbit's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous emotional fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: No

At first I thought the pacing was rushed, but the plot was fascinating enough to keep me reading. I'm so glad I did! A definite recommend from me, and I can't wait for the sequel to come out!

Content Warnings

tayrayhay's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous emotional fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Content Warnings

matmatmatty's review against another edition

3.5

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This is the story of two elven sisters, Yeeran and Lettle. Yeeran is a colonel in the army and Lettle is training to become a diviner (someone who can read the future). When Yeeran disobeys orders and ends up causing a huge defeat, she is exiled, leaving her sister to follow her (along with Yeeran's captain, Rayan). The three of them reunite, only to be discovered by a group of fae (who are thought to be fairytales) after committing a huge crime in the eyes of the fae.
Now they need to manage the politics of a new place, while trying to figure out a way to get home. And without getting executed ideally.

I really liked parts of this story, and others I found a bit annoying. Overall, this was an interesting fantasy with a lot of cool worldbuilding.

Things I enjoyed:

Loved the queernormative world - its really important to have good representation like this, especially in fantasy
I really enjoyed the world building - the creation myth with the three gods and the humans, fae and elves I thought was really interesting. That story created the basis for the story which I enjoyed.
I liked the struggles that the main characters faced -
Yeeran wasn't suddenly able to control her fae magic, despite literally only getting it. She had to work hard and figure it out, and it made it feel real.
The obeahs and their relationship to the fae -
I liked how well respected they were, the fact that houses are built to accommodate them was really cool. That line about only lovers touching another’s obeah also showed that there is a lot of respect for them, that they are an extension of another person whilst also being their own person. Was cool. Also big kitties.
I liked the hierarchy of the fae - how those without obeahs are treated differently. I think it was good to show that even a utopia in the eyes of some can be flawed.
I liked how our main characters are flawed - they both had a rough upbringing and that's reflected in their characters. They're both done things they're not proud of, but they did it to survive. Their characterisation is still in line with their past and present.
Loved how Lettle was not helpless - it wouldn't make sense for her to have served in the army and survived and yet still been helpless, but a lot of stories like this I've read, the little sister character is helpless and constantly needs rescuing and can't handle herself at all.
Even when Lettle was put in situations where she was in danger, she would try and fight back, and I appreciated that.

Things I didn't enjoy:

The prophecies - I think prophecies can an interesting addition to a story, but this was a bit of a let-down.
I found most of the prophecies pretty easy to understand, and it felt like i spent most of the book knowing what was going to happen with the characters not knowing, which was quite frustrating.
Because of the prophecies, twists were predictable.
I guessed that Najima had fathered one of them (though will say i thought it would be Yeeran, though glad they didn't do that), I guessed that Golan had a hand in the murder of the queens (the only poison is mentioned by him, then they're poisoned?, its too obvious), I knew it was the queens who would be murdered as soon as we met them (one gilded, one pearl was far too obvious imo) and I guessed Komi was the other chieftain as soon as that prophecy was read because it was too obvious.
Other than a general sense of wanting to be home, I don't quite get why they were so hell-bent on escaping. I get that they are trapped here, and that would add to the sense of not belonging, but I didn't really get an idea that their lives back home were all that good. Yes Yeeran was rich and a colonel, but she had been exiled - she isn't going back to that life. She wouldn't be allowed back in the army surely? Or not at her old position anyway? Lettle struggled with money (and we didn't hear much about her life other than that) so i don't get why the mad rush to escape.

Overall, I didn't hate this. I will probably read the next one, as I am a bit invested in this story.

Note on CV: talk of executions and capital punishment.

Content Warnings

flora_arns's review against another edition

3.0

adventurous fast-paced

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I needed something light, and this was an enjoyable read, albeit flawed.
Pros: Cool political dynamics, fast-paced, Black sapphic lead, and a unique magic system.
Cons: simple prose that felt immature at times, mostly predictable plot, and the romance felt rushed. characters also fell flat for me.
Will I read the sequel? Eh, I dunno. I think this just isn’t the type of book for me. I just kept hoping for more and better from it.

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ephemeralzen's review against another edition

3.25

lighthearted mysterious sad tense fast-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Yes

Loveable characters: Complicated

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

the book was so mid tbh. the romance felt really forced and out of place because it seemed to just develop from nowhere; it seemed to be rather to fill a checkbox of a trope rather than to develop any meaningful connection between characters.
the writing was also… not great. still don’t really get the whole magic system or worldbuilding but i fr might just be stupid. the whole thing about the obeah and stuff?? don’t get it LMFAO. it also did bring in a lot of anachronisms (existence of leggings and a few other things) that i felt was really forced or out of place for a fantasy book; yes i know ‘suspend your disbelief’ but my immersion </3
that being said i am invested now because i am 100% rooting for these characters now ajd will buy the next book when it drops

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veggiestrawenjoyer13's review against another edition

3.75

adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: Complicated

Loveable characters: Yes

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

My issue with reading is that I expect every book to be a masterpiece, like the select few I’ve read. This book was pretty good, it just didn’t live up to my standards.

The writing style was good and the author did a great job at invoking emotions. I quickly became attached to the characters, and I feel they had a lot of personality. Though I will say, the romances did feel slightly forced and moved quickly for the characters (in my opinion.) Despite this, I did enjoy the couples together, so I can overlook the lack in development for them.

Overall, it was a good book. Some plot twists were expected, but I think the more important ones caught me so off-guard. I was pleasantly shocked at the end, and I’m looking forward to reading the second book.

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