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alayoob313's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
4.0
paigedesjardin's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
3.0
k_brown02's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
emhof96's review against another edition
5.0
Overall rating: 5 stars
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Plot: 9/10
Ending: 7/10
Writing: 9/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Hero: 8/10
Heroine: 9/10
Supporting Characters: 8/10
Humour: A bit
Sex: Yes
Feels: Yes
HEA: No, series tbc-kinda cliffhanger
Genre: Paranormal Romance
Plot: 9/10
Ending: 7/10
Writing: 9/10
Enjoyment: 10/10
Hero: 8/10
Heroine: 9/10
Supporting Characters: 8/10
Humour: A bit
Sex: Yes
Feels: Yes
HEA: No, series tbc-kinda cliffhanger
sagemage's review against another edition
emotional
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
nikala_brooke's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
cmfricano's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
mayasbooksncafe's review against another edition
5.0
Read more on my blog: https://www.mayasbookshelves.com/a-strange-hymn-laura-thalassa/
I’m completely in shock. I can’t even process the way that this book went, and I have to say I LOVE that. This is a whole new level for this series and I’m loving how crazy it’s gotten! We’ve met a ton of new characters, we’ve seen our beloved ones grow, and we’ve learned a ton about the Otherworld.
I’m completely in shock. I can’t even process the way that this book went, and I have to say I LOVE that. This is a whole new level for this series and I’m loving how crazy it’s gotten! We’ve met a ton of new characters, we’ve seen our beloved ones grow, and we’ve learned a ton about the Otherworld.
tinaha083's review against another edition
3.0
I want to love this series. I really do. I really like the pairing of Des and Callie, and I’m very interested to see where their relationship goes because of the sheer amount of messes they’ve been through. I love their past history, and I love how they’re forging a path for themselves that’s not really based on the rules of either culture. There is some very interesting world-building, thought it’s not as fleshed out as it could be. It seems to read more like a tourist “hot spot” guidebook than anything else. And yet, I enjoy it for what it is. The writing itself is okay, but she tends to veer towards the juvenile when speaking in Callie’s voice, as though 19 year olds don’t have any concept of a wide vocabulary, or can’t handle stressful situations without unnecessary profanity.
However, the main reason this can get no higher than a three star rating is this: I am a Black woman, and there is nothing more infuriating to me than to see idiotic, insipid, ratchet, uneducated stereotypes of Black women. Temper INFURIATES me. I actually have grown to hate every time she’s on the page. Every single sentence out of her mouth starts with “Bitch...”. And the rest of those sentences is made up of bad grammar and slang. Which leads me to wonder, has this author ever actually conversed with a Black woman before? Has she ever even eavesdropped on conversations between Black women? Since I’m Black myself, I have a wide-ranging acquaintanceship with a lot of Black women across different walks of life, different backgrounds, different financial situations, and from different parts of the country. Some use profanity, others don’t. None of them talk like Temper. She is the worst example of what somebody who’s only seen Black people on sitcoms, or rap music videos by Nicki Minaj or Cardi B, or movies like Friday, thinks we sound like. It’s insulting, and disgusting that her character is meant to be as ghetto as possible so people don’t forget that she’s Black. And if this is what’s meant by representation, you can miss me with it. She’s a joke, and not a funny one. Every time she’s on the page, I’m left fuming.
After that extremely negative portrayal of my race (which, I might add, is generally the sort of stereotype people lean toward for so-called representation) I considered not carrying on with the series. The only reason I will is because I had already paid for them so I can’t get my money back. I will not, however, be reading anything else by this author, unless she learns how to write characters of other races better.
However, the main reason this can get no higher than a three star rating is this: I am a Black woman, and there is nothing more infuriating to me than to see idiotic, insipid, ratchet, uneducated stereotypes of Black women. Temper INFURIATES me. I actually have grown to hate every time she’s on the page. Every single sentence out of her mouth starts with “Bitch...”. And the rest of those sentences is made up of bad grammar and slang. Which leads me to wonder, has this author ever actually conversed with a Black woman before? Has she ever even eavesdropped on conversations between Black women? Since I’m Black myself, I have a wide-ranging acquaintanceship with a lot of Black women across different walks of life, different backgrounds, different financial situations, and from different parts of the country. Some use profanity, others don’t. None of them talk like Temper. She is the worst example of what somebody who’s only seen Black people on sitcoms, or rap music videos by Nicki Minaj or Cardi B, or movies like Friday, thinks we sound like. It’s insulting, and disgusting that her character is meant to be as ghetto as possible so people don’t forget that she’s Black. And if this is what’s meant by representation, you can miss me with it. She’s a joke, and not a funny one. Every time she’s on the page, I’m left fuming.
After that extremely negative portrayal of my race (which, I might add, is generally the sort of stereotype people lean toward for so-called representation) I considered not carrying on with the series. The only reason I will is because I had already paid for them so I can’t get my money back. I will not, however, be reading anything else by this author, unless she learns how to write characters of other races better.
ktbeth143's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.5
The plot of the sleeping female faeries and the missing male soldiers continues to thicken as Callie and Desmond get to know each other as mates.
In this story, we learn more about the Other World and the King of the Night, although we arguably still have much to learn about the latter by this book’s end. I’m not sure I liked everything or more specifically liked how certain things were revealed in this novel (some of the reveals felt random and like they might require some work later on to make everything fit together), but it was still entertaining.