Reviews tagging 'Death'

The Darkening by Sunya Mara

20 reviews

annorabrady's review against another edition

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Genuinely, I could not get into the story. There was potential, but I just felt like even the most basic aspects of storytelling fell flat. The main character has base level motivation, no thought behind her actions, and no consequences for the lack of those thoughts. Even the event that could be deemed a "consequence" ends up being something that was going to happen anyways so she was saved from the guilt and growth. 

Additionally, the story includes genocide and despite the FMC directly being tied to people who were victims of the genocide and her enemy being the person responsible for said genocide, there are strong indications that this story is going to be an enemies to lovers story. And that's just not my speed. Enemies to lovers when the enemies is due to personal distrust or misunderstandings is one thing. Enemies to lovers when one partner is actively evil is another thing entirely. Especially since he's years older than her and she's only 17. 

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lovelymisanthrope's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional mysterious sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I received a copy of this book in a FairyLoot box.
"The Darkening" follows Vesper Vale, a young girl whose parents were failed revolutionaries. Her mother was caught by the queen and chose to die by entering the storm. Now, twelve years later, the Prince's army has finally tracked down Vesper's father and they imprison him. Vesper has always wanted to practice her father's magic and now she has the perfect opportunity. She will stop at nothing to vindicate her parents and free her father.
I was not expecting to be so invested in this story, but I was! Vesper is a strong female lead with a complex relationship with her father. I really enjoyed seeing their relationship evolve and see them try to arrive at a middle ground together. Despite her father always keeping her at an arm's length, and trying to shield his past from her, Vesper still feels love towards him, and is devoted to rescuing him.
"The Storm" entity in this book was really interesting to read about, and I am curious to learn more in future books. We got a small taste of what the magic is that controls the Storm, and I am fascinated to see Vesper learn more and hopefully find a resolution to save her city.
I am definitely interested and am curious to pick up the sequel! 

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fromthefoxhole's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional inspiring mysterious reflective tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

This fucking book, okay?

I'm an unfortunate sucker for the chosen one girl in a YA trope (thank you, Katniss) and this one really hammers that into you.

1. Vesper (like even the name, come on!!)
2. lives in an area affected by The Storm, and her Region™️ is the last one on the outskirts closest to it, and it's the poorest region.
3. she's not trained in the Magic System™️ but she loves it
4. there's a rich boy who takes pity on her bc of something having to do with the Government™️
5. she has a family tie that creates a vengeance arc so she finds her way to the Capital™️
7. circumstances arise that lead to her working with the rich boy (she thinks that maybe she underestimated him)
8. they're thrown into the Gauntlet™️
9. Alliances are formed and broken, promises are stretched thin, betrayals - how could I ever love someone like You™️?
10. One of them either dies/falls into a coma and the last thing they see is their Enemy?™️

It's like, everything that is tired and we're supposed to hate. BUT- Truly I'm not sure if I'm just, like, giving the book more grace than it's due. BUT-

I think I always give more leeway to a first book, knowing that the author likely has planned arcs over the multiples rather than the individual, so I wanted to suspend my belief, y'know? I didn't mind the questions I had about the magic system, or the politics, etc. I felt like this book very intentionally only gave us the pieces that were given to Vesper. We're *supposed* to feel a little lost in a world we don't fully understand, because that's how Vesper feels in the Ven. I found myself tabbing something as important, then coming across a related thing and running back to the note like, proud of myself that I had called it. It was rewarding to piece things together with Vesper.

I ate up her friendship with the boys,
like, so much so that I was in tears at work towards the end of this book
. It reminded me of my own friends that I would kill or die for. She was infuriating and rash and impetuous, but she's a 17 year old chosen one! That's her job description. 

Something about the writing, the fluidity of the story, drew me in and held me for the two full days it took me to read this. Any time I had to stop reading, I found myself counting the minutes until I could pick it back up. I was fully entranced the entire time. Freaking witchcraft.

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frantically's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This was such a good read and it gave me all the YA feels that I love about the genre. The characters were fun and interesting and the world-building is so interesting and out-wordly. There's no dumb rules for only male monarchs, the rulers are queer, female, siblings ruling together. 

Yes, it's a bit basic at times — the different city parts relating to power, evil princes who aren't so evil after all but why change a working system? 😉 There is a lot of poc-rep and I spy mlm rep in the future 🤞🏻 Ikonomancy is an interesting power system and it doesn't rely on violence, more on academic wisdom. At first, I was a bit confused but it made more sense as the book went on and the explanations actually made sense for once, haha. 

The ending made me feel like I was on drugs and it was all a bit crazy (and the characterisation went 🏃🏼‍♀🏃🏼‍♀🏃🏼‍♀) but I'm still really excited for the next book!

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booksthatburn's review against another edition

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kirstenf's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful 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


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ambitiousnalgene's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The plot was super well done I think esp compared to some other YA books that feel a little elongated or rushed together. I really enjoyed. 

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asipofcozy's review against another edition

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adventurous dark 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

3.75

After many failed attempts at picking up any YA book and enjoying them (I guess YA is just not the IT genre for me anymore), I am happy to say that I actually enjoyed The Darkening by Sunya Mara. It was unique enough to capture my attention, and that was a good thing.

I loved the idea of a storm eating everything in its path and slowly consuming the city year by year. I especially loved the backstory to the story about a Great Queen fleeing from her husband and creating a storm in her wake. It was a unique concept and was done fairly well.

I also found the magic system to be interesting, the ikonomancy. It sort of reminded me of how runes work in the Shadowhunter universe; granted, I know little of those runes, but the concept was fairly the same. It seemed that drawing ikons were an important part of the magic system. Then there was the Wardana, the guardians of the city, that protect them against the monsters that come out of the storm. I can't wait to see more of the magic system developed in the next book.

Finally, applause to the rich and diverse characters and settings. I could imagine many of the settings in this book, the shadows from the dark storm encroaching the streets, the colors and brightness of the higher parts of the city. It was breathtaking in its telling. Also, chef's kiss to the side characters Cas and Izamal. The dynamic and banter between the three Wardana is perfecto!

I did enjoy the main character Vesper. While her naiveness got her into a lot of trouble and she could annoying at times, she was trying to save a father that she loved despite his disappointment in her. She just didn't always think her actions through.

What could have been better/expectations for the next book:
  • More worldbuilding - While I understand this YA and I can't expect the intensity of worldbuilding like that in high fantasy, I am hoping for more explanation behind the Great King and Queen as well as how Ikonomancy came to be.

  • Dual POV - I believe that The Darkening would have benefitted from dual POV over the singular POV of Vesper that we get the entirety of this book. I think it would have helped with some of the explanations of what was going on.

  • Lackluster romance - Okay, so this isn't something I am necessarily upset about. Romance in books isn't my biggest focus anymore. I am glad romance wasn't the focus here; however, it was inserted and was weird at times However, I can see more potential for expanding on this in the next book. I am just glad the MC didn't have an instant-love situation and even acknowledged to herself that while she has growing feelings, her main concern is the storm and her father.

Whelp, that's it! I kinda look forward to the next book.

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starrysteph's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

 The Darkening lives up to its captivating cover art. It’s got a great cast of characters, a clever magic system, and a uniquely terrifying layer of chaos within a living storm. 
 
Our story takes place in a world divided into rings, with the poorest on the outskirts. A living, magical Storm that curses any who touch it threatens the land and has overtaken several of the rings already. We follow teenage Vesper, the daughter of failed revolutionaries who has a strong spirit and desire to save her community. When her father is discovered + captured for his past crimes, Vesper embarks on a journey to infiltrate the royal ring and find a way to save her city. 
 
I found the prose very digestible - I would have absolutely devoured this as a young teenager. It’s simple enough for a young audience to understand, but still incredibly vivid. 
 
The magic of this world is comprised of written ikons; symbols that can be combined and embellished and created by those with a deep knowledge of their building blocks. The integration of magic into the world was so creative and playful; I loved discovering all the nifty ways ikons could be used, whether you’re desperately scratching a symbol into the dirt to save your life or using an incomplete ikon to hide a secret passage or adding a sense of wonder to pastries by using ikons to charm candied decorations to life. 
 
The living Storm was fascinating … a representation of pain and grief and fear, and what happens when you retract into yourself and let rage take over as protection. Everyone who touches or is touched by an element of the Storm is forever changed (cursed) in a way unique to their flaws or secrets. 
 
This is a world of gods, but the only god exacting his power via the current rulers is a dangerous representation of aggressive, toxic masculinity that leaves no room for adaptation. 
 
I found our main character Vesper very likable. She certainly has her flaws, and has a big coming-of-age arc, but she’s determined and witty and clever. I was rooting for her with all my heart & loved her journey of self-discovery and discovering her confidence and power. I also appreciated the complexity of the side characters; they were all so charming in their own ways. 
 
I also enjoyed the elements of political intrigue: what does it mean to be a good ruler (is there such a thing)? We’re witnessing two different perspectives here (Vesper, who lives on the outskirts of society, and the prince in line to become Regia) and they grapple to determine which approach will best serve the needs of their city. 
 
Finally, it’s tough to talk about this without giving too much away, but the backstory of the Storm was delightful. I’m truly looking forward to the sequel (and a bit nervous!). 
 
(And yeah yeah, there’s the start of an enemies to lovers arc if that tickles your fancy.) 

CW: death, child death, death of a parent, animal cruelty, classism, confinement, chronic illness, terminal illness, injury, possession, fire/death by fire, suicide, sexism, misogyny, grief

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bookwormbullet's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense 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? Yes

3.75


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