medium-paced
adventurous dark hopeful mysterious tense medium-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
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hanwink's review against another edition

DID NOT FINISH

I hated it 💔
adventurous dark emotional sad tense medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
adventurous challenging dark emotional slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Yes
Loveable characters: Yes
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
dark medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Plot
Strong character development: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: No

 This was definitely a five star read for me! I enjoyed the way the world unfolded, the secrets were uncovered, and the characters definitely stood out. Though I definitely predicted a few of the twists, they came off very satisfying. It was grittier than I was expecting, and I wish Kiva had been a little more active in the trial and the climax, but I'm curious (and a little apprehensive) to see where the sequel takes us. Definitely recommended for anyone looking for a fresh, well-written YA fantasy that's a little on the darker side. 

This was a solid 4 star read, but just for that ending I am gonna bump it's rating to 5 star. What an amazing book to end a month long reading slump. BUT THAT ENDING SERIOUSLY
adventurous challenging dark mysterious 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: No

Are and left no crumbs
adventurous mysterious fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven: Character
Diverse cast of characters: No

This is definitely a refreshing change from typical YA/NA fantasy novels. Lots of twists and turns, complex characters, and the unique setting of what is essentially a prison death camp.

Loved:
  • The unique setting of the story
  • Magic being tied to the different elements
  • The bond between Tipp and Kiva
  • The ethical boundary Kiva set for herself in how she cared for her patients
  • The twist at the end made me gasp 
  • The friendships with Naari and Mot

Meh
  • It was kind of obvious from the very start that Jaren was not your typical prisoner 
  • Related to that twist,
    it is very hard to be sympathetic to a royal character who apparently didn’t care about the literal death camp until it suddenly impacted him
  • Why would you introduce a cat and then not clarify the fate of said cat? WHAT HAPPENED TO THE CAT
  • I worry that we will get a totally different version of Kiva in the future books based on the final twist